Legalize Everything on Netflix showcases Eric Andre's energetic demeanor, but why does he yell so much? The stand-up special opens with a surrealistic skit, in which Andre wears a police uniform and partakes in questionable activities in front of New Orleans locals. The show then properly begins as the comic takes the stage and hypes the audience, which sets the tone for 50 minutes of loud material. But, as the official Netflix poster implies, there's a method to the madness.
Andre is best known for starring in The Eric Andre Show on Adult Swim, and for voicing Aziz in Jon Favreau's 2019 film The Lion King. With Legalize Everything, Andre makes his Netflix stand-up special debut and provides commentaries on race, gender, and drug use; topics that will undoubtedly appeal to millennial viewers. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Andre never defends past jokes and never takes aim at "cancel culture," but rather focuses on keeping the audience entertained with personal anecdotes involving surrealistic imagery and wordplay.
In Legalize Everything, Andre uses noise as a punchline for several jokes. Within the first 10 minutes, he even tells the audience that most of the set involves him yelling and moving wildly around the stage. Those familiar with Andre's past work may appreciate the surrealism, but others may not immediately pick up on the absurdist style. Meaning, Andre doesn't yell simply because he lacks self-awareness or may be extra excited for the special - he yells to create a specific vibe while using his body to execute punchlines. Whereas a comic like Bert Kreischer adopts an Animal House persona on stage, Andre is more of a modern stoner's comedian, and uses sound for a trippy effect.
Legalize Everything begins with Andre telling drug-themed jokes, and with a surrealistic edge that matches the tone of comic Andrew Jeselnik. For example, Andre talks about blowing marijuana smoke in the face of a baby, and yells out "Buy! Sell! Trade!" while imagining his little brother on the playground after using a cocaine-laced toothbrush. When recalling the moment when he inadvertently missed a 2Pac hologram performance at Coachella, he begins yelling once again to comedically complement the reveal that it was during a mellow Snoop Dogg performance.
Early on in Legalize Everything, Andre lifts up his shirt to double down with his unpredictable persona and on-stage demeanor. He yells some more during a salvia-themed joke that connects to the feeling of losing while playing Tetris. Approximately midway through the act, Andre screams during a surrealistic commentary about "motor-boating" fat chickens. The in-your-face comedy builds to a wink-of-the-eye moment when Andre asks the audience to meditate and think about their parents having sex. The last 15 minutes of Legalize Everything on Netflix involves little yelling, but ends with Andre dropping his pants and recreating the Buffalo Bill pose from The Silence of the Lambs; a quiet on-stage moment that transfers all the loud energy to the audience.