To be compared to Aubrey Plaza in ANY way, shape, or form is one of the highest compliments one can receive. She is the queen of sarcasm and dry humor, and can make any dark or uncomfortable situation into comedy. She’s a writer, actress, producer, comedian, voice-actress (catch her in Legend of Korra?!) and all-around angel on earth. I got hooked watching her on Parks and Rec and have now seen every fan edit of her on YouTube (my personal favorites include “Aubrey Plaza is really WEIRD and…AWKWARD. I love it!” and “elizabeth olsen and aubrey plaza being in love with each other for 4 minutes straight”). I’ve always been drawn to a style of comedy similar to Aubrey’s. However, recently I’ve been told that I “give Aubrey Plaza” more than ever before, and I’ve been having a little think into why this might be the case.
Deadpan, non sequiturs, and sarcasm are definitely my comedy go-to’s, so when I was introduced to Aubrey she immediately became a great source of comedic inspiration. Yet, I always seemed to have trouble with the aspect of her humor that really puts it over the top: the way she can pull off entirely emotionless expressions after dropping the most outlandish, dark, and/or genius jokes. I guess it’s just hard for me not to acknowledge my comedic prowess by smiling or laughing for 3+ minutes after an especially good one-liner. But now I think that I’ve finally mastered the art of seeming just as cold and calculating as Aubrey, and people are starting to notice.
Usually comics don’t reveal the secrets of their greatness, but I’m a kind and benevolent soul who knows that the readers of The Rib will use my secret for good (taking over the realm of comedy from cis white men) and not for evil. On that note, I’ve been on several types of antidepressants over the years, and have finally found one that helps me feel stable and allows me to live the life that I want. But I’ve realized now that these different SSRIs don’t only affect my general mental state–they must be impacting my style of humor too (which is arguably more important). It seems that an extraordinary side effect of the medication I’ve landed on is that it lets me have more control over my feelings, which in turn allows me to at last harness the power of the emotionless expression. Who would have thought that a pill made to dampen your emotions would allow you to be more emotionless??!??!!!
So, it looks like I owe all of my recent Aubrey-ness to Effexor XR. It is truly the jackpot for me in my quest to become more like my supreme goddess and idol. For those wondering how to get an edge on your comedy competitors, you’ve gotta give this stuff a shot.
