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A stand-up roundup...

Marc Maron: From

Bleak to Dark

Chris Rock grabbed more headlines, but Maron has turned in the best stand-up special of this young year. Like a more pessimistic George Carlin, he turns tragedies, even the death of his girlfriend, into resonant comedy. HBO Max

Sommore: Queen Chandelier One of the original Queens of Comedy, Sommore has been in the game a long time. In her sixth comedy special, she shines like a fine chandelier, slaying her audience with jokes about soliciting prayers on social media, the pandemic, and staring down fans at the airport. Netflix

Atsuko Okatsuka:

The Intruder

If you’ve caught Okatsuka on late-night, or maybe doing her Beyoncé-inspired #drop challenge on TikTok, you know how funny she is. Even so, her first stand-up special is a revelation, featuring great bits about fending off a home invasion and attending a Magic Mike Live show with her grandmother. HBO Max

Whindersson Nunes: Preaching to the Choir

You know a comedian is funny when reading the subtitles makes you laugh. Nunes, a Brazilian comic, MMA boxer, and YouTube star, delivers a hilarious set in Portuguese on topics ranging from the absurdity of influencers to getting beaten in the ring by 46-year-old boxer Popó Freitas. Netflix

Nate Bargatze: Hello World Bargatze seems like a comic from another era. If this were the ’90s, he’d have a sitcom. His latest special puts him in competition with Jim Gaffigan for best clean comedian in the biz. Amazon Prime

Kathleen Madigan: Hunting Bigfoot

Madigan’s wry jabs at folks older and younger than her are pure comfort comedy. Amazon Prime