James Acaster set about re-performing his three most recent
Edinburgh shows in 2017 as a so-called ‘Trelogy’: Recognise, Represent and
Reset. As it turns out, this was all in preparation for Acaster’s filming of
his 3 shows plus a 4th containing older material re-worked into a
new narrative for Netflix as his ‘Repertoire’ special.
I first saw Acaster in 2013 when he performed Lawnmower,
containing the Mariachi band material and his Yoko Ono conspiracy theory. I’ll
admit that at the time I really didn’t ‘get’ Acaster and thought him as an
offbeat, peculiar but ultimately unfunny character, however having matured in
my comedy tastes I finally saw the light and realised what his comic genius
truly was.
Having seen Represent in 2015 in Sheffield and Reset in 2016,
I was keen to complete the set by watching Recognise.
It’s a show about loopholes and minutiae, full to the brim
with Acaster’s characteristic offbeat observations: “My favourite number?
Umpteen. It sounds big, but it’s in the teens” or even Pythagoras’ famous motto
“Every triangle’s a love triangle, when you love triangles.” Goddamn is that
man a genius.
Initially he’s kneeling down because, little known fact, in
ice skating the timer doesn’t officially start until the skates touch the ice.
From this he moves onto a delightful tale of fantasised revenge against apparently
free bananas from Pret a Manger and the cashier who made him a fool before actually
revealing that all is not what it seems – he’s in fact Pat Springleaf – an undercover
cop disguised as a stand-up.
It’s a giddy hour of incredible, bizarre story-telling and
thoroughly enjoyable. This is a comic at the peak of his powers.
Acaster’s Netflix special prompted me to finally subscribe
to the service, and within the free month I watched all four of the shows three
times.
He’s currently working on his next show ‘Cold Lasagne Hate
Myself 1999’ – it’ll be interesting to see what quirky tales he’ll spin next.
Score: 9/10
Venue: Pleasance Courtyard
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