$$$$$$ - The MANDAL Man
A monthly collection of what I’ve found creative, fun, interesting, or weird on YouTube.
I wrote about Mandal last year after we saw him open for Josh Johnson in DC. A year later, he hasn’t slowed down and his new half hour $$$$$$ is a huge leap forward. My favorite version of him is his chaotic riffs on podcast appearances and he has managed to bridge that into this set. The opening crashes into a stream of consciousness that swerves back and forth between social media, aging, the state of healthcare, pranks, and aquariums. The jokes go so fast and clever that I’ve already watched it a second time to catch the stuff I missed.
The comedy on offer already crushes, but it presented as a special from another era too. The way it is shot, the live band, Mandal’s outfit, his set, and the animations, all showcase a creative vision that matches his personality. Nostalgia for a different time blended with a modern spin.