Another year, another hell ride through a cultural landscape that devoured and reproduced at an alarming rate in 2025. Through all the “unprecedented times” that we’re all tired of living in, to the birth of “6-7!” (whatever the fuck that means), and everything in between, one constant that kept us afloat was the levity, and often times societal mirror check that comedy offered to the masses. With a little bit of everything for everyone, the world of stand-up was stretched, expanded, experimented with, and ultimately came out stronger as some of the brightest minds and loudest voices made their way to the forefront by offering a genuine blast of humor and reality to our lives, whether it was through, jokes, stories, songs, cultural revelations, or a combination of all ingredients. It’s interesting to think about where the comedy world will go in 2026, but for now, we’re all about celebrating the good times (and the best dick jokes) that got us through the calamity of 2025. Drink up, take a nap, and enjoy our look back at a year that tested every ounce of patience we all had, while still getting us to chuckle once in a while.
January: Roy Wood Jr., Lonely Flowers
While Nate Bargatze and Doug Stanhope brought things to a noteworthy close in the late innings of 2024, as Bargatze unleashed his “everyman” personality and critically-acclaimed storytelling on an arena with the same effective and intimate delivery as he would a theater in Your Friend, Nate Bargatze, and Stanhope’s New Year’s Eve release, Discount Meat, boasted a mish-mash of fresh and weathered material from both pre-COVID and the re-opening following the pandemic, It was technically Casey Crawford who got us off on a very good (and hyper-local) foot with Joke Writer. We were delighted to see the return of Tom Green, whose I Got a Mule! showcased a side of him rarely seen, but oh so welcomed as the one-time king of MTV returned to the stage with a much more subdued, but deeper and more genuine approach than ever before. All in all, it was a shockingly strong month of comedy to start the year, but arguably none were stronger than Roy Wood Jr., who unleashed a brand new hour of incredibly timely and well-crafted comedic frustration with Lonely Flowers, which sought to answer, at least in part, the burning question we tend to ask ourselves all too often in today’s ongoing culture shift: “What are we doing here, people?”
February: Kelsey Cook, Mark Your Territory
There wasn’t much to discern the difference between January and February as the winter dread carried on with the confidence and stride of a Red Hot Chili Peppers jam session, but the “cry-bernation” became a bit more bearable thanks to a slew of exciting new specials. Genuine good guy and kid-at-heart Ian Karmel shoveled us out of despair with Comfort Beyond God’s Foresight, which fully displayed exactly why he’s been getting so much love over the course of the last few years, as his trusty charm and impressive ability to find the humor in just about anything (especially where you least expect it) kept the blood flowing. The legendary and ever-lovable Dana Gould returned with another banger of an hour (because of course he did) in Perfectly Normal that showed very little wear on a celebrated and well-respected comedy mind that just refuses to slow down, which we’re beyond thankful for.
Rosebud Baker birthed a true gem with The Mother Lode, which showed at two different stages in life, with one half of the hour taking place when she was eight months pregnant, and the other half resuming a year later after she had given birth. In detailing her IVF journey, experiencing a miscarriage, and how she was feeling after giving birth to her daughter, Baker expertly crafts the ups and downs with tact and, of course, that lovable dark and unapologetic humor we’ve come to know and love from the Emerson alum. While we’re on the subject of bringing light out of life’s challenges, Kelsey Cook had her own throwdown with darkness as Mark Your Territory, Cook’s second full-length special, took a deep dive into how she’s acclimating a new life in Minnesota, her experiences with navigating her mother’s battle with dementia, and everything else the world has thrown at her since we last heard from her. In true Kelsey Cook fashion, though, she stuck the landing and gave a firm middle finger to the lurking shadow of the “sophomore slump.”
March: Bill Burr, Drop Dead Years
Even as the “lightest” month of comedy output within the first quarter of 2025, March still boasted some of the best the year had to offer. With Nick Thune breaking up the straight-at-you stand-up selections from months prior by adding in the Americana twang of a guitar with his latest hour, Born Young, the different vibe was well appreciated, and well-executed to say the least. Bert Kreischer remained larger than life in his sixth special, Lucky, tallying his fifth in total for Netflix. While a very familiar approach, The Machine dished on what makes him feel so lucky in this business, before ending the show with a gut-wrenching account of saying goodbye to his dog, which made us hold our own real good boys and girls a little bit tighter. Of course, no list of the “best of the best” is truly complete without the work of Bill Burr, who showed up as lively as ever in Drop Dead Years, his first soiree as they continue to delve into the stand-up game. Although it offered up those vivid and animated “Billy Blood Pressure” moments we always enjoy, the calmer and much more introspective evolution of Burr steered this ship, curating a much more thoughtful hour while still managing to piss off a multitude of demographics in the process.
April: Brett Goldstein, The Second Best Night of Your Life
As the world began to thaw out after a brutal winter, the April offerings were a bit light – but we were watching the Red Sox anyway, so it’s totally cool. It wasn’t all peanuts and cracker jacks though, as Ted Lasso star Brett Goldstein cashed in the hour he’d worked on all over the world for the better part of two years with The Second Best Night of Your Life. As if we had any doubts, the special shined a new light on Goldstein’s talents as a brilliant jokewriter and storyteller, without succumbing to the possible feeling (if you’re a goober) that he was only on stage in front of sold out crowds because of his on-screen accomplishments. Quite the contrary, really, as Goldstein rose to the occasion and reminded us just how talented he is as a comedian.
May: Joe List, Small Ball
The fifth month proved to almost be a family reunion of sorts, where some of our most covered comedians all decided that May was going to be the month they released their latest specials, and while it should come as no surprise, they all hit so hard. Chad Daniels returned with another YouTube-released ripper in For Reels, while Mike Birbiglia did what he does best and delivered another striking one-man show to Netflix with The Good Life. Matteo Lane brought his refreshingly unapologetic “fuck you” attitude to the stage with The Al Dente Special on Hulu, which was, with all puns intended, biting in the best possible way. For those who wanted a bit more depth with their laughter, Jerrod Carmichael came back strong with Don’t Be Gay, and Sarah Silverman wielded her well-sculpted ability to be dark as hell and remain bubbly and upbeat about it in PostMortem. Taking the cake, at least for the most impressive editing but mostly for the superior joke writing, was Joe List and his latest hour Small Ball, which saw a full theatrical release in addition to becoming available on YouTube. For good reason too, because List proved you could (through the power of editing) be in two places at once and still kill on stage.
June: Steph Tolev, Filth Queen
You know damn well at this point, that if Ali Siddiq releases a special, which he does often, it’s most likely going to make our list. He’s just that good, and with his Father’s Day release, Rugged, he just can’t miss. Outlining what it means to be a man and a father through a lens that only Siddiq can narrate from, the proud Texan delivers the cold hard facts in a way that makes you want to laugh and cry at the same time. Then, like a western outlaw, Steph Tolev completely kicked the door in with Filth Queen, lighting a match to every standard set for women in comedy by being her most authentic self. While the ode to Boston is appreciated and taken to heart in this special filmed at Paradise Rock Club, the Toronto native doesn’t hold back in any way, setting up a full hour of punk vibes, deep gutteral laughs, and unrelenting energy that is sure to get you jazzed up and ready to tell the world to fuck itself, because you’re awake and ready to bring it.
July: Joe DeRosa, I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
As the temps continued to rise, and we started firing up the grills with excess frequency, Dusty Slay came through in the clutch with Wet Heat, his second Netflix special that once again put on full display exactly why he’s becoming one of the most consistently sold-out shows and in-demand comedy voices in the game today. Nothing divisive or hostile, just some good ol’ down home comedy that left us with laughs and perhaps some new viewpoints on the simpler things in life, while lightening the mood a bit when we certainly needed it. On the other hand, Joe DeRosa unleashed a career-defining piece of art with I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, which went the complete opposite direction, as he dug his heels into the very foundation of what is pissing him off in today’s social and cultural landscape. It’s angry and bleak, yes, but DeRosa delivers goods (or bads?) with an all-too-relatable frustration and zip that had us on the edge of our seat from the jump. A bonafide highlight of what made comedy so important in 2025, no doubt.
August: Marc Maron, Panicked
Two of the best in the biz showed up to give some cool laughs during the more melty summer days as Beth Stelling crushed twice as hard in half the normal time with The Landlord Special, while Josh Wolf let the good times roll with guitar in hand, and plenty of top tier stories at the ready by way of The Campfire Special. The big player came in quick, though, as Marc Maron opened the month with his latest hour, Panicked, which still holds the same significance today as it did the first time we watched it: “It’s a hell ride for sure, with very few beats in between most of his thoughts and jokes, but it’s a ride nonetheless, and one that is desperately needed in times like these.”
September: Caleb Hearon, Model Comedian
Kicking things off in the back nine of the year, Andrew Santino delivered a fresh hour of him, for lack of a better descriptor, trying to become a better person in real time with White Noise, and taking a different route to somewhat of the same idea, Jordan Jensen made her full-length debut on Netflix with Take Me With You, while Gianmarco Soresi went for the gold on Thief of Joy, further cementing his voice as one of the most sought out in the industry this year. With all of the feel good energy flowing in September, Caleb Hearon put a powerful surge into the good vibes with Model Comedian, his stand-up debut, which landed on HBO. With wisdom beyond his years, the Missouri boy left it all out on the stage with elements of storytelling, stand-up, crowd work, and everything else short of music to deliver his message. It was, and remains to be a never-ending thrill ride of excitement, good-natured hilarity, and the occasional gasp.
October: Ryan Sickler, Live & Alive
We almost went the duration of spooky month without even as much as a fun-sized serving of comedy, but Ryan Sickler and Mo Amer came in clutch with the full-size goodness as Amer, a true mastermind of detailing the human condition, took the stage with Wild World to not only bring us in on his journey as a new dad, but also to sound the ever timely and thoughtfully sculpted horn of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Without dragging it into the spotlight, Amer dissects what this moment in time means to the human race, and more specifically the Palestinian people, and does so with such precision, that you almost don’t notice it taking center stage until you’re in it. Quite possibly the strongest month of comedy in 2025 was capped off with a much needed, and well-executed gut check. Sickler held nothing back in his own way, and delivered a truly career-defining tour de force with Live & Alive, where he brought the highlights to the lowlights of a near-death experience that has refreshed his love for life, living, and laughing until he has to come up for air. It’s like an hour of your cool uncle telling stories that make you almost question their legitimacy, but Sickler walks the walk and keeps it real all the way to the end.
November: Anthony DeVito, Straight Hoopin’
As we got deeper into the fall, and ultimately introduced to another winter, Sebastian Maniscalco brought his arena-filling presence back into the round for a hometown hero’s welcome in It Ain’t Right. With such a full touring and, well, everything else schedule, the Chicago native showed no signs of fatigue as he brought his high energy A-game once again to the masses. Myq Kaplan, forever engulfed by the art of joke writing and word play, entrenched himself in a fresh approach that, in addition to being named after his life partner, Rini also brings us into Kaplan’s deeply thoughtful takes on traditional marriage, ployamory, psychedelics, religion, and even more beyond his usual comfort zone. Speaking of “comfort,’ Anthony DeVito shoots to share some untouched, and at times uncomfortable truths in Straight Hoopin’. With his long-standing collected demeanor, DeVito goes up one side and down the other on topics that most people are trying to stay away from for the sake of their sanity, but he approaches them in a way that make them magically palatable once again, if only for 46 short minutes. A calming special, atmospherically, for the those who are pissed off at everything and just need to hear someone validate them, DeVito for the win.
December: Robby Hoffman, Wake Up
If there’s anyone who can empathize with the misery of a New England winter, it’s a midwesterner – enter Charlie Berens. His December 1 release, Neighborly, may not be his first special, but the return of Berens offers up a fresh bit of perspective that is so effortlessly real and warm, pulling us in further with each story and punchline. However, while Berens has delivered a fun bit of comedy to close things out in 2025, there is even more promise in specials we have yet to see in full, as they are slated for release at different points throughout the rest of the month. As Kumail Nanjiani comes in hot with his Hulu special Night Thoughts on December 19, and Tom Segura dishing out his latest hour, Teacher on Christmas Eve, it’s no secret that the heavy hitters are coming in clutch during the holidays. The heaviest hitter of the bunch, though, is shaping up to be Robby Hoffman, who brings her debut hour, the John Mulaney-directed Wake Up, to Netflix on December 14. Just by the looks of the trailer, the hour is primed to be one of the best in the game by the time the ball drops, and already had us excited to see Hoffman make her Wilbur debut in 2026.