Alex Edelman: Just for Us

A Comedy Special

Preface

As a preface to this review of Alex Edelman's HBO Special (spawned of a touring one man show), I'd like to provide a little personal background, as perspective for why I think this is worth discussing. (If you just want to read about the comedy special, skip my preface and go to the image of the special!)

I am a lay person (it means I'm not in ordained ministry) who does ministry with families. That means children, parents, and on many occasions those who may or may not be retired. The younger the demographic that I am working with the more cultural opportunities they have.

The oldest cohort is just from the end of when the Catholic Church would have been not only where they go on Sunday, but also a significant cultural touchstone. Socializing, community support, occasional political organizing, and who they spent time with was determined by which ethnic Catholic Church (and geographical territory) they lived in.

The next generation under that, perhaps after gaining economic upward mobility, social standing, and influence began joining country clubs and more mainstream cultural organizations (along with the White Anglo-Saxon Protestants). Their parents saw angry people yelling that JFK was a Papal puppet, now they've reached a different status (at times by shedding their Catholicism).

Now, due to social media, public education, a propensity for younger generations to avoid association, it is a free for all! A faith may hold less value when athletics, extra-curriculars, parental power networking offers all new worldly opportunities, that do not depend on the otherworldly spiritual nature of faith to feel like they are progressing in life.

I found out about Alex Edelman's Special: Just for Us while listening to Marc Maron's WTF Podcast. I listen to the podcast to educate myself on the comedy, literature, and cinema that shape our society. I was personally drawn to the person of Alex Edelman because minus the performing career, he is to Modern Orthodox Judaism as I am to Roman Catholicism. Somewhat bold statement, but what I mean, is that the faith is deeply meaningful to both of us, and we've both in some senses have had to figure out how we fit in this world while still living in the world.

Now, the Review:

With a frenetic pace, Alex seamlessly lets us in on his life as a Modern Orthodox man who grew up in Brookline Massachusetts. He does this through the recounting of a particularly precarious evening in Queens where he as a Jewish man decided to sit in on a gathering of white supremacists.

The special touches on what brought him to that place, a tweet inviting individuals who have questions about their whiteness.

The comedians' quirks, need to fit in, even in a place like that, desire to be liked, and seen as helpful paint an amazing picture of the lengths someone would go for free baked goods, to understand why others think and feel the way they do, or to solve a puzzle.

This dangerous, and some would say stupid chance the comedian took serves as an amazing device to rewind through his life, to vignettes of how he was brought up by his parents. I would spoil the special but will say my favorite story was the one where Alex's mother overcame the protests of his father to provide Christmas to a neighbor and friend who was bereaved. Hijinks, and a call from the Rabbi ensued.

Conclusion:

Watching this special was an absolute joy. It kept me laughing from start to finish. The use of space (and in some senses time) to string together a personal narrative was amazing. Honestly, we live in a time where our difference separates us, and we fail to try and understand others. Just for Us does not refer to what it might think it does, so you'll just have to watch and find out.

So, a Modern Orthodox man walked into a white supremacist meeting, and the results probably won't puzzle you as much as it did the attendees.