Newly released on Netflix, Bo Burnham performs his second comedy special, “What.,” in front of a crowd in District of Columbia.

Burnham initially achieved fame by displaying his musical and comedic talents on YouTube. His videos, especially “I’m Bo Yo,” gained a substantial amount of views that led to him being discovered and performing on Comedy Central.

Burnham pairs his songwriting with edgy — sometimes offensive — material in his shows that are riddled with underlying messages about the political correctness of society.

In “What.,” Burnham challenges institutions and the trivialities that are endorsed by society. He sings from the perspective of God, satirizes the mainstream music industry and even makes fun of the idea of comedy and how it uses sadness or pain to fuel jokes.

While Burnham is only 24 years old, he is innovative and creative in his on-stage performances. Several of his skits involve acting out charades to recorded music that require intricate timing to gain comedic effect.

He separates himself from other comedians with the depth of his jokes. The jokes generate initial laughter, but then viewers are left thinking about the underlying tones and the things that Burnham might have been implying. The audience is then in wonder about the kernels of truth that Burnham slyly infused in each joke.

Some of the show had points where it lulled or where the jokes were over-the-top silly, but a majority of the show stood tall with creativity and plenty of laughter.

4/5