Let's Show Some Appreciation for the Awesomeness of Nicole Byer

This morning I went out for a run and I like to listen to podcasts lately when I decide to listen to anything. The podcast is not important though, this piece is all about the guest on the pod. The guest was Nicole Byer. My piece today is an appreciation post to Nicole Byer.

She is the best. She is so funny. She is open and proud of her accomplishments. She's all about empowerment. She is a great actor and stand up. She is a great podcast host herself. I have been a fan of hers for awhile now, and after hearing her this morning it just hammered home my adoration for Byer. I am not one to get starstruck by an actor, but if I saw her I would be scared to talk to her. She has reached that level of fame to me. I'm sure it is silly, and I am sure she would be a delight. But I would still be in awe.

I knew of her awhile ago, but it was really my wife who opened my eyes to Byer. She had me listen to her standup when we were first dating. It was great. I like how blue and gross it can be at times. I also like how truthful and open she was, and still is in her act. We have both continued to follow her ever since I was first introduced to her. Besides her standup, her television performances are a thing of beauty. And she has been in a ton of stuff. I think I may have been one of the few people that watched every episode of "Party Over Here". That was an underrated sketch show, and Byer was the standout for me. Her two appearances on "The Birthday Boys" were awesome. She's excellent in "Michael Bolton's Big Sexy Valentine" special. She does excellent voicework, most notably for me on "Bob's Burgers". She fit so perfectly on her lone scene in "The Good Place". She was a gem as Trudy Judy when she was on :"Brooklyn 99". But the two shows that are her best in my opinion are "Loosely Exactly Nicole" and "Grand Crew".

"Loosely Exactly Nicole" was before its time. The spoof aspect of it was great. If that show were to come out today it would be a humongous hit. And it totally holds up. "Grand Crew" is letting her truly shine. I adore that show. I hope it comes back for another season. I felt like it was hitting its stride at the end of the season. And Byer was my absolute favorite part. I enjoy all the other actors, but Byer outshines them all. I laughed super hard at almost every scene that she was in. I also like when she does some dramatic stuff. This show really lets her be her best self. Please NBC let it come back for another season.

And then we have her podcast appearances and her hosting. There are too many to mention in this piece. When she is on a podcast I listen to, or one she hosts, I get amped to play it. I know it is going to be hilarious. I know she will do something that will resonate with me. I know she will be completely open and honest. I know she will have a good time. I know she will treat the other hosts and guests with respect and integrity.

Nicole Byer is a truly great actor and stand up who is finally getting her time to shine. She is crushing it right now, I like her so much more than John Cena on "Wipeout", and I am a Cena fan as well. Byer is getting work, the work she has deserved for a long time. I am a fan, obviously, and I just wanted to write an appreciation piece to her today. Keep getting queen, you have earned it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Grand Crew"

Back when RD and I did the what we are looking forward to pod for this year we talked about TV. One of those shows started in early December, as an early premiere, but the series did not officially start until this month. That show is "Grand Crew", and it is really good so far.

They have done six episodes so far, they have ten ordered, and each one has gotten better and better. When they did the first two episodes back in December they were good, but looked like they needed a little work. As with all pilots, they usually start slow. "Grand Crew" was no different. But unlike other shows, "Grand Crew" has blasted away as one of the best new shows on TV in some time.

First and foremost, the cast is incredible. They have wonderful chemistry. They play off one another. They play their characters to perfection. They are so goddamn good. The cast is led, in my opinion, by Nicole Beyer. She is so, so, so good in her role. She is funny and smart. She likes to hook up with dudes, but she always finds a silver lining. She is the funniest, looks the best and just crushes her role. She is so good. So is Echo Kellum. He is the first billed in the credits, so I guess he is the "star" of the show. He is almost as amazing as Beyer. He is the typical lover boy. He wants to find love. He loves romantic comedies and tries to live his life as if he is in one. Kellum is really good at portraying this, and he does a good amount of lifting. Carl Tart is hilarious. I am a big time fan of his as you all know. I love that he is getting a real shot to star on a network sitcom and he is crushing right now. Every time he goes off on a rant on the show I find myself rolling on the floor with laughter. He is so good at controlling the room and owning the scenes he is in. Aaron Jennings is the responsible working one of the group, but he has his comedic moments as well. There was an earlier episode where he thinks he is going to get a promotion, but they are just using him because he is a minority. This was some heavy stuff, but Jennings did a great job making it real yet comical at the same time. The most recent episode, where he is learning chess, is a great masterclass in subtle comedy from Jennings. Grasie Mercedes was an excellent addition. It appeared as if she was going to be a love interest, but they scrapped that and it has worked perfectly. She fits in seamlessly with the rest of the cast. And then we have Justin Cunningham. He is the married one, the settled down one, the one who may or may not have kids and he is so good. He is so funny and relatable. I see a lot of myself in him. My wife and I have said multiple times that he and his wife are us. I love the way he plays his role. The cast is wonderful. They have the same chemistry that the cast of "Happy Endings" had, and that is one of my all time favorite shows. And like I said before, they seem to be finding their groove. They have the relationships all figured out. They are connecting on all fronts. Everything they are doing is working right now. I laugh out loud while watching and none of it is forced.

I hope this show gets its due. I do not want it to leave after three seasons. They have a great thing going, and if they keep up at this pace, "Grand Crew" can become a mainstay. It is that good. Check this show out if you have not yet. It is more than worth your time, even if you just watch it to see this amazing cast. "Grand Crew" is excellent.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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Ty Watches Nicole Byer's "BBW (Big Beautiful Weirdo)"

Last week, before departing for our holiday trip, my wife and I were finally able to watch Nicole Byer's new stand up special "BBW" on Netflix.

We are Byer fans in my house. We love "Nailed It". My wife and I think she is tremendous on "Brooklyn 99" as Trudy Judy. She is the star of the new, very good show "Grand Crew". She is always a delight when she is on a podcast or hosting her own. But I have never seen her standup before. I have heard about it from other people. I have heard that she works very blue, that she is very funny and that she knows how to control the crowd. A buddy of mine saw her pre-pandemic and said she was amazing, but he did not know that she was so dirty. He knew her from "Nailed It" as well I believe. So I was pretty pumped about the special. I did know, or heard, that she does work dirty, but I could care less about that. I have seen a bunch of comics that work blue and the same amount that work clean. It does not matter either way. A good comic is a good comic. Hell, Tracy Morgan was incredibly blue when I saw him, and it was amazing. Brian Regan is known as a clean comic, and he was fantastic every time I have seen him. Jen Kirkman straddles the line, and she rules. The language does not matter. But make no mistake, Byer is blue, and that comes off right away in "BBW".

The special opens with a pole dance, those of us that follow her on Instagram know how much she has practiced this, and it is great. It is a perfect way to open the show. From there on out Byer touches on a ton of things. She opens talking about life during the pandemic. That can be tiresome, but she made it funny and personal. She talked about how it has affected her sex life. She cannot find a good and safe way to hook up with another person. It was very funny. From there the special just got better and better. Her whole bit about Karen's was simply wonderful. I loved her portraying the children of said Karen's. When she talked about flying on a plane with a humongous NICOLE chain and getting drunk, that was the best bit of the night. I loved the button she put on that bit, talking about getting Shake Shack in the morning when she landed, and eating it in the airport toilet. Another pandemic joke I loved was when she talked about the only people who oppose masks are the people who should be wearing them to hide their not so great looking faces. That was perfection. I really enjoyed the crowd work. That is always a plus for me. I like how she went after JK Rowling, and the Harry Potter stuff was gold. I related to her dropping pizza on the ground but deciding to finish it anyway. But what I loved the most was when she talked about singing and how she is not very good at it. This included some wonderful crowd work. She made some very solid jokes about how her appearance can fool people who may think she is a singer. But it was all wrapped up in a great bow when she was talking about Shake Shack and eating it in the toilet. This was when she was so hammered that she decided to sing to try and calm her nerves and let the other people in the bathroom know she was okay. This made me laugh the hardest. This had me giggling afterward. I am smiling thinking about it right now. It is a great bit of comedic storytelling.

Check this special out. Byer is finally getting the shine she has deserved for a long time now. Byer is a great actor, but she is an even better comedian. This special more than proves that.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.