Ellen DeGeneres is the highest paid talk show host in the world, wealthy on a level it is difficult to grasp and one of the most well-known faces on the planet. Yet after fifteen years she has decided to go back to where it all began for her, to stand-up comedy.
It's understandable then why she kicks off her Netflix special by telling the audience how a friend questioned her decision to return to the stage by asking if she is still "relatable". She then goes off on a barrage of a sort of rich person self-deprecation that may go on a bit too long but only Ellen could pull off.
And let's be clear, if you are not an Ellen fan, there is no place for you here. If you've watched her talk show, and let's face it, who hasn't, you will be aware how absolutely nuts her audience goes for her. Well, imagine that but times a thousand. It's almost off-putting at first as any hint of a joke earns the whoops and cheers of a pep rally.
However once that settles down, Ellen gets into the heart of things, and why, it becomes clear, she decided to return to stand up at this point. After over a decade of interviewing countless people, it's time for Ellen to tell her story, and to tell it the best way she knows how, through comedy.
It is easy to forget now just how difficult it was for Ellen back in the nineties. She went from being the star of a hugely successful sitcom to jobless practically overnight. Why? Because she came out.
Ellen announced she was gay in her sitcom and in real life in 1997, making her the first openly lesbian actress to play an openly lesbian character on television. The announcement completely derailed her career and she remained out of work for three years. She lost everything and was virtually untouchable in Hollywood until eventually an executive decided to give her a talk show, and well, we all know how well that worked out.
She goes into this time in detail in her set, finding the humourous side to something you know must have taken a severe toll on her.
It serves as a reminder that Ellen broke ground and no doubt inspired many with her decision to come out but she paid the price for it. In a world where so many are worried we are becoming over-sensitive, it's important to remember just how insensitive we were, and not that long ago.
Ellen's set goes on to move from everything from social media, buying shoes, turning 60 (yes, somehow Ellen is 60) and packing for holidays. As much as there's nothing necessarily unique comedy-wise here, there are still plenty of laughs to be had. And by the end, you too will want to be jumping up and down and cheering Ellen, because you know what, whether you think she is relatable or not, she bloody well deserves it.
