Bill Maher has many fans. But no one is a bigger fan of Bill Maher than Bill Maher. His smugness is as apparent as it is nauseating. That self-satisfied grin, forever etched on his face, gets on my nerves. Im sure Im not alone. Twenty years ago, Maher, the human equivalent of Marmite, made his first appearance on HBO. Since then, his show,Real Time with Bill Maher, has grown in popularity and for good reason. Its a great show.
Good comedians must be able to poke fun at themselves, not just members of the audience. Maher obviously never got the memo
Not necessarily because of Maher, but more because of the eclectic guests (one of his very first guests was Ann Coulter) and supremely talented joke writers. You see, Maher is a poor interviewer and an even poorer comic. He is, in many ways, a conversational narcissist who rarely, if ever, lets his guests finish their sentences. He is a contrarian, and, yes, sometimes contrarianism makes for good television. He is confrontational, aggressive, and extremely dogmatic. Again, this can make for good TV.
However, all of this enjoyable watching is so often displaced by his lack of humility. Maher, clearly an intelligent man, wants the world to know just how intelligent he is. This is not a recipe for good comedy. This point was originally made by the late, great Norm MacDonald, a man who knew a thing or two about generating laughs. In fact, if you have time, I would encourage you to check out thisYouTube videothat sees MacDonald puncture Mahers obnoxious behaviour. MacDonald emphasised the fact that good comedians must be able to poke fun at themselves, not just members of the audience. Maher obviously never got the memo.
Due to the ongoing writers strike,Real Timehasnt aired for months, But Maher has another project. Its calledClub Random, the comedians new podcast. On it, Maher regularly belittles his guests, talks over them, and scolds them mercilessly. Ostensibly, he invites them into his man cave for an intimate discussion. More often than not, these intimate discussions turn into patronising lectures, full of condescension and passive-aggressive remarks.
Take Sharon Osbourne, whorecently sat down with Maher. After discussing her battle with cancer, the two discussed wokeness. Specifically, they discussed the fact that an increasing number of once respectable universities are removing the horribly white, horribly male Shakespeare from their curriculums. Osborne heaped praise on the playwright and the many stories that he wrote. With a slight chuckle and a wry smile on his face, Maher then proceeded to tell Sharon that Shakespeare never wrote stories; he wrote plays and sonnets. Silly Sharon! This is not how good interviewers behave or even human beings.
The womens rights activistRiley Gaines, Mahers most recentClub Randomguest, is a passionate Trump supporter. Maher, on the other hand, is not. In truth, he cant stand Trump. As soon as Gaines said that she voted for the awful, orange man in 2020, and would vote for him again in 2024, Maher automatically switched into lecture mode, telling the 23-year-old that she really ought to reconsider her political views. When she questioned Bidens credibility, Maher, yet again, proceeded to put her in her place. There was no attempt to understand Gaines, only to scold.
To my knowledge, only oneClub Randomguest, Rainn Wilson (Dwight fromthe American version of The Office) has been brave enough tostand up to Maher. Wilson, clearly fed up with Mahers constant interjections, asked the comedian to shut up and let him finish his sentence. Maher begrudgingly accepted Wilsons demand.
When hes not cutting people off and ridiculing religion, Maher can be found waxing lyrical about weed, and the many ways in which the psychoactive drug has transformed his life for the better, of course. However, considering Maher is a heavy weed user, and weed usershave been shownto possess elevated levels of impulsivity and severe deficits in inhibitory control, perhaps he should reconsider his stance.
Its not all bad, of course. The sanctimonious sexagenarian does get a lot right. He regularly rallies against wokeness, including the trans craze sweeping the western world. He is also a passionate defender of free speech.
However, the good that Maher does is so often cancelled out by his many rude and irritating qualities. Of all his unattractive attributes, and there are many, his thin skin is perhaps the most notable. The comedian Kyle Dunnigan doesa great impressionof Maher. Its spot on. Flawless. Everyone agrees. Well, almost everyone. Not Maher, though. In 2020, during an appearance on Joe Rogans podcast, Rogan asked Maher if he had seen Dunnigans impression. Maher frowned, criticised Rogan for asking the question, and then insisted that the impressionwasnt funny. It is. The irony of a comedian not being able to take a joke is obviously lost on Maher. Perhaps this is why he never really made it as a stand-up comedian.
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The unbearable smugness of Bill Maher - The Spectator