Eric Andre's Most Surreal Moment
It's been hard to stay sane in 2020, and there are only a handful of things that have helped me keep my grasp on reality. A few podcasts, some great music, and, of course, Eric Andre's appearance on Larry King's YouTube talk show. It’s a thing I can watch whenever I’m down, and it just makes me feel all kinds of emotions. It also makes me laugh uncomfortably, and although I’ve watched it a zillion time, it has yet to lose it’s punch. It’s a totem of total presence, unapologetic humor, and, like Andre’s entire body of work, it contains a lot of that cringe-y rebellion that has been mostly absent of the world of left-field comedy for the past couple years.
No one seems more awakened to the reality that life is an illusion, and that nothing really matters more than Eric Andre. His comedic sensibility as a whole questions the necessity for humor in a society where the stakes are increasingly high. As we can’t really agree on what is true and what is fabrication anymore, it becomes harder - and, some might say, dangerous - to introduce sarcasm.
A simple parody can now be perceived as a nihilistic attack on truth, and perhaps no one on the fringes of mainstream media is more nihilistic than Eric Andre. The DNA of his humor is contained in every moment of that Larry King interview he did back in August 2016.
As an interviewee, it's easy to comply with the tone of the interview, forgetting to be true, to be present. That's what Eric brings forward when he makes fun of Larry King for throwing questions out there without acknowledging the answers. This technique might work with public figures who have something to lose by calling out their interviewer, but it quickly starts to unravel when it's used with a notorious prankster who's used to taking control of an interview, no matter which seat he's sitting in.
Eric Andre is currently dissecting the codes of the talk show for his fifth season on Adult Swim, and his lack of reverence for the medium turns to a denunciation of sorts as he answers - or baldly detours - King's questions.
Sure, it can be a little rough to watch the comedian handle a talk show legend (and not the youngest one at that), but shame on us for underestimating a senior citizen. Larry King isn't in his prime, but he's more than capable of keeping up with Eric as their encounter progresses. In a touching display of agility, he’s forced to make fun of Eric and throw questions at him until the two find a common ground.
Like a high school kid dealing with a bully, Larry isn’t afraid to demonstrate force, or to engage in a bit of playful I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I rhetoric.
As Andre brings his very personal brand of fresh comedic blood to the table, Larry King gives a masterclass on standing his ground and finding a soft spot that will help him get to the core of his guest’s soul. As it's often the case with a senior interviewer, he finally reaches back in Eric’s childhood gets him to open up about his his family dynamic in a genuine way.
In this interview, he’s there to throw a ranch in the status quo of the fluff interview, but he’s not looking to derail the process at all costs. Like many weirdos before him, Eric Andre’s insanity is only a reflection of what we all have inside of us, and what we’re all desperately trying to hide.
At first glance, Eric Andre's appearance on Larry King's show could be seen as the new guard disrespecting the old, but it's really a sign of reverence and extreme respect to treat an elder like an equal, instead of considering them like a fragile being.
In its most fascinating moments, this interview becomes a metaphor for how generations sometimes need to bang heads in order to bridge the gap that separates them from each other, or for how people from both end of a spectrum can come together to understand their differences a little better.
If nothing else, it's a compulsively watchable clip bobbing on an endless sea of toothless late-night interviews. I've watched it many times, I can never look away. As King says himself, that's what he’s looking for, and that's what he got.
The Eric Andre Show is back for a 5th season on Adult Swim.