Wanda Sykes is a comic, actress and writer who has written for Chris Rock and appeared in Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Good Fight and, more latterly, Netflix series The Upshaws. But standup fans know her for her on-the-money political humour, and in this Netflix special she doesn’t disappoint.
Sykes opens Legacy by reminiscing about her time at Hampton University in Virginia. Things have improved since she studied there, she says, pointing to the spacious auditorium she is performing in, new sports facilities, more cafeterias. In her day, the only dining option was, she says drily, “gravy, baby?”
Then she’s off into the meat and potatoes of the show, describing how living as a liberal in Trump’s America in 2026 is like “being stuck the shittiest escape room ever”.
Donald Trump is an easy target, but Sykes has some devilishly clever putdowns of the man baby and original takes on other matters, too. She suggests the reason why the release of the first tranche of the Epstein files was mishandled was because the printers ran out of ink after “Trump” was redacted.
The political content forms the core of the show, as Sykes talks about racism, homeland security, the cost of living for average Americans and the impact of artificial intelligence on jobs.
In a very physical performance she acts out several scenarios - using self-checkouts, middle-aged music fans trying to rediscover their youth and, most memorably, referencing the now notorious footage of a young Trump and Epstein at a party, she recreates his weird dancing. It’s the standout section of the show.
With all this acting out, at one point Sykes runs out of puff, which means she can segue into talking about how, now that she’s in her sixties, her body doesn’t always play ball, and the show moves to more domestic material.
Sykes talks about her marriage to a French woman - evoked with an air cigarette in hand, even though, comically, she doesn’t smoke “but I always think of her like that” - and their teenage twins. She ponders on the domestic politics of flannels - efficient cleansers or toxic germ traps? - before showing us which side of the argument she comes down on. (And not for the reason you may suppose.)
The more personal gags allow Sykes to end the show on a positive note, but it’s the astute political material that lands in a thoughtful state of the nation assessment.
Add comment