Will Smith spent a week in Las Vegas in November 2019 with 16 stand-up comedians. It was filmed for Quibi. Then the pandemic happened. Then Quibi quit. Now the footage finally makes to the screen thanks to Roku.
THIS JOKA: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
The Gist: When Will Smith turned 50 in 2018, he had a “bucket list” of things to try which he filmed for Facebook. One of the things on his list which terrified him the most? Stand-up comedy.
Apparently, he not only get over that fear, but also dove even deeper into the comedy world, because he decided to host and executive produce his own stand-up comedy showcase. As Smith narrates the intro to each episode of This Joka: “I brought 16 comedians to Las Vegas for three nights to showcase their material. They talk about art, life, and see what we can learn from each other. This isn’t a competition. This is an opportunity to discover, grow, and most importantly, laugh.”
The comics Smith invited to join him in Vegas? Rell Battle, Rosebud Baker, Sean Patton, Jackie Fabulous, David Gborie, Vanessa Gonzalez, Baron Vaughn, Clayton English, Megan Gailey, Martin Urbano, Daphnique Springs, Sam Tallent, Shane Torres, Christi Chiello, Chris Estrada, and Punkie Johnson.
Filmed pre-pandemic, we see them performing in a cocktail lounge, hanging out with Smith in a separate bar setting for “small talk,” and B-roll footage of them rolling down the Vegas Strip atop a double-decker bus, partying on a rooftop, and hitting balls at a Topgolf driving range. That last venue is added because This Joka is a co-production of Topgolf Studios alongside Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook Media.
What Comedy Specials Will It Remind You Of?: For your streaming purposes, the closest thing to this would be Tiffany Haddish Presents: They Ready on Netflix. But there are other recent stand-up showcases like This Joka on EPIX (Unprotected Sets) as well as Comedy Central series hosted by Bill Burr, Kevin Hart, and Gabriel Iglesias.
Memorable Jokes: The first episode sets the stage with Smith often holding a camera in his own hand for selfie-perspectives, and multiple times tells the camera and the live audience that it’s the first episode of the series. Moreover, the first comic he introduces is Battle, whom Smith credits for helping him with his own stand-up debut.
Honestly, the jokes in this or other episodes aren’t nearly as memorable as the vibe and aesthetic of the atmosphere watching this mostly unknown comedians hang out with Smith, roast him on and offstage, and share bits of their life experiences with him.
Our Take: Which is when and how we’re reminded that This Joka was originally intended for Quibi, and that Quibi had inherent limitations.
Each episode only clocks in at 6-7 minutes, so there’s barely any time for any of the comedians to establish themselves. Especially since each episode also mingles the spotlighted comedian with Smith and all of the other comics.
Once Roku acquired This Joka out of the ashes of Quibi, they dropped the option to switch back and forth between horizontal and vertical viewing that was supposed to make us all sign up for Quibi in the first place. I wish they’d dropped the time-limit requirement, too. They could’ve easily added more time for jokes or interviews. I’m sure the intended audience of people stuck on subways/trains/buses can appreciate the short running times. Or they even could’ve re-edited This Joka into one big ol’ special or concert film.
But I guess most of what happened in Vegas stayed in Vegas.
Our Call: STREAM IT just so you can see Punkie Johnson tell jokes before she got hired by Saturday Night Live, or Rosebud Baker for that matter, too (Baker just got hired as an SNL writer).
Sean L. McCarthy works the comedy beat for his own digital newspaper, The Comic’s Comic; before that, for actual newspapers. Based in NYC but will travel anywhere for the scoop: Ice cream or news. He also tweets @thecomicscomic and podcasts half-hour episodes with comedians revealing origin stories: The Comic’s Comic Presents Last Things First.
