Opinion| I Wish You Would: Trevor Noah brings schadenfreude to the stage in his comedy special

There’s this thing that comedians usually do – they narrate an ordinary story that lands on the fence of an ordinary punchline. The punchline alone wouldn’t be worth a laugh because it wouldn’t make any sense at first. But when it’s mixed into a story, it gets a flavor of its own. Trevor Noah talks about going to Switzerland to meet his dad and breaking into German in order to surprise him in his latest Netflix stand-up special, I Wish You Would. His dad, he says, upon meeting him, didn’t want him to carry on the conversation in German, however, because it’s half-baked.

But that is not the end of the story. He goes to a fast-food restaurant in Germany with a friend where he once again drops a few sentences in that particular language, and finds out that the woman at the counter, who’s taking his order, is shocked beyond belief. It must be stated as a matter of fact at this point that Noah, while yelling his preferred items, raises his hand in the manner of a sprightly dictator and earns the sobriquet “the Black Hitler.” The story, though, still hasn’t come full circle, as it has just started.

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Noah’s friend makes fun of him and, when he’s told to cut the charade, the latter says that he just wants to enjoy his moment of “schadenfreude.” Now that’s the punchline. Noah’s displeasure makes way for his friend’s obvious joy. So much of the joke depends on his delivery, of course. The way his face changes with almost every word he utters is priceless. But when he comes back to the emotion behind schadenfreude in the closing minutes of the special, that seemingly simple word works like a cracker. And this is easily the best part of the show.

Comedians usually romanticize their growing-up years in their hometowns (or countries); in Noah’s case, it’s South Africa. Conan O'Brien also does that a lot on his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, in which he rambles on about Brookline, the town he was raised in. And comedians, like memoirists, never lose an opportunity to mine their memories. They go to the past to gather stories around their adolescence, falling in love for the first time, etc. It doesn’t matter whether they’re good or bad, happy or sad. All that they need is some sort of material they can dig into.

And, then, there are some comedians who are great at more than one job; they can even play instruments. Steve Martin, in the stand-up special An Evening You Will Forget for the Rest of Your Life, picks up a banjo and shows off his skills. And O’Brien whips out his guitar whenever he’s on a tour. Noah’s comedic style is that of narrating stories that appear personal. Similar to what David Sedaris does in his essays about the kind of life he’s lived, Noah opens up about the languages he’s comfortable with, his international holidays, and the casual racist remarks that are thrown at him on the street.

I recently read Jerry Seinfeld’s book of jokes Is This Anything? and came to the conclusion that it’s always better to see a comedian say ridiculous things on stage. Seinfeld, unlike Noah, excels in dry humor. Without his high-pitched voice to guide me through the bits, I felt like an unaccompanied minor. What’s the use of a joke if its juice dries up on the page?

In I Wish You Would, Noah trains his funny gaze on the current pandemic, gaffes committed by politicians (such as Donald Trump and Boris Johnson), the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and ordering Indian food at an Indian restaurant in an Indian accent in Scotland. And, just like Bill Burr, he frequently worries about getting cancelled. While Burr maintains that comments uttered by people (who are now dead) should be taken as they are (strictly in a historical context and nothing beyond that), Noah tries to stay away from shooting himself in the foot.

Noah doesn’t hold his thoughts back regarding the impact of colonization, though – his observations on the British Empire are on point. And he generally comes across as a person who’s aware of what’s happening around the world. Perhaps, his role as the host of The Daily Show may have kept him on his toes. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said, “When all the mountains and the valleys wash away, when everything else in my career is gone, the last thing I wish to be doing on this planet is standup comedy.”

If there are still people living on this planet, then, why not? Sure, comedy is the antidote to suffering. Maybe, in his next Netflix special, he’ll try to order food in another new language.

Karthik Keramalu is a writer. His works have been published in The Bombay Review, The Quint, Deccan Herald and Film Companion, among others. 

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