Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Maz Jobrani bounces onstage like a boxer in a sleek suit, which would be fitting even if he didn’t open his fourth solo comedy special, and first for Netflix, to the sounds of Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power.” The comedian and actor is brimming with positive energy; he can’t help but burst into dance, or song (or made-up lyrics to cover his tracks), hyping up the crowd in front of him.
You may recognize Jobrani from his current co-starring role on the CBS sitcom, Superior Donuts on CBS (although he also co-starred on ABC’s criminally underappreciated Better Off Ted and The Knights of Prosperity during the 2000s). He directed himself in Maz Jobrani: Immigrant, filmed at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where he says he always wanted to record himself for posterity in the 20 years since he started performing stand-up comedy. Then or now, he jokes: “I don’t think Public Enemy ever thought someone would be dancing Persian to ‘Fight the Power’.”
Behind him onstage, a large banner photo of Jobrani as a boy, stamped IMMIGRANT with the date Dec. 5, 1978: When Jobrani’s parents emigrated from Iran to California with 6-year-old Maz in tow. To show the strength of immigrants in America in 2017, Jobrani asks for applause first from all of them, and then separately from Arabs, the Iranians, Syrians, Indians, Chinese and Pakistanis. He’d later use them to good effect by asking them to translate various funny words into Arabic, Urdu, Chinese, Ukrainian and even sign language.
He also employs two people — one, a white guy in the front of his audience; the other, his cousin Majid — for recurring callbacks throughout the hour. “White Guy” Ed receives helpful advice such as Jobrani’s Arabic gibberish singing, which surprisingly doesn’t get a Simon and Garfunkel shout-out for “The Boxer,” while cousin Majid’s “gotta go” thanks to Trump’s stricter deportation policy.
Jobrani describes Donald Trump as a Saturday Night Live sketch that refuses to end. The new president certainly isn’t a boon for comedians. “You know, as a comedian, it’s been really hard to keep up with Trump, because he says so much crazy shit all the time,” Jobrani laments. The audience boos when he mentions Kellyanne Conway. And when the comedian declares that Trump’s not qualified to be president, he receives an applause break. To which he quickly clarifies: “None of us are qualified – well no, this is the Kennedy Center – two of you are qualified. But most people are not qualified to be the President…it’s not the managerial position at Carl’s Jr.”
He doesn’t think Trump even wanted to win, claiming that’s why as candidate he kept saying more and more outrageous things. Although now that Trump did win, Jobrani wonders how the history books will inform children about the most outlandish quotes and such.
And he blames Trump and FOX News for inspiring fear and hatred. “People are afraid of immigrants, and if you watch FOX News, you, too, will be afraid of immigrants,” including himself, Jobrani acknowledges.
On the plus side, he jokes that the weekly protests are not only fun, but also good excuses to exercise — even if as an immigrant, he cannot exercise the same judgment as white protesters when the riot police show up.
Jobrani also calls himself very liberal on sexual politics, from gay marriage to transgender operations, recognizing the courage and determination of those who know they’re born the wrong gender. “I can’t even decide what to eat for dinner,” he jokes. And to those who seem intolerant, he urges: “Stop judging, man. Take care of yourself first.”
It’s not all political. Jobrani has figured out a tactic if he should ever have to race against sprinter Usain Bolt, and despite being in his mid-40s, he knows that men his age still fantasize about training four years for the next Olympics.
Athletes and children remind you you’re getting older, though. Jobrani brings the hour full circle by joking about the differences between childless adults and parents, between his parenting skills and those of his immigrant father, and how kids these days rule over their parents and get in the way of their continued sex lives. If not them, then farts.
At least farts are funnier than Trump. Unless you’re in England.
Sean L. McCarthy works the comedy beat for his own digital newspaper, The Comic’s Comic; before that, for actual newspapers. Based in NYC but will travel anywhere for the scoop: Ice cream or news. He also tweets @thecomicscomic and podcasts half-hour episodes with comedians revealing origin stories: The Comic’s Comic Presents Last Things First.
