For all that comedian Ali Wong talks about relations onstage, her first three exceptionals came from a place of inherent relationsual constraint: a lengthy-term, monogamous marriage. In “Single Lady,” her fourth, self-honested hour, all protectrails are off. Two years ago, Wong got divorced from her husprohibitd of proximately a decade. What adhereed was a carnal rumspringa Wong now narrates in the same gleebrimmingy explicit detail she once applied to the birth of her first child. “I reassociate went on a tear,” the 42-year-elderly says, and has the anecdotes to show for it.
But with “Single Lady,” Wong wants to do more than spropose recount her take advantage ofs to an ecmotionless crowd at L.A.’s Wiltern Theater. The stand-up wants to resummarize the middle-aged divorced woman from a pathetic figure, per famous stereotype, into a triumphant one, with herself as the directing example. “Look how much fun I’m having,” she exhorts her audience. Wong produces a convincing case, albeit less about the wideer condition of midlife divorce than her own highly exceptional set of circumstances — commenceing with the fact that her own split was national recents, an experience she calls “a bat signal letting all potentiassociate interested men understand I was suddenly useable.”
Those men include, in Wong’s alerting, a well-understandn film honestor; a 25-year-elderly who sent the carry outer her first-ever thirst trap video; a 60-year-elderly who screamed when he climaxed; a Japanese American drummer; and a white guy who couldn’t alert a tea cup from a rice bowl. “I’m not trying to trap a man anymore,” Wong elucidates, nodding to the running theme of her fractureout exceptional, 2016’s “Baby Cobra.” Liberated from the restricts of pledgement, she’s free to sample all the conmomentary meat taget has to advise.
“Baby Cobra” finished on a luminous reversal. For all Wong’s insistence that she equitable wanted a rich husprohibitd to get nurture of her, it was she who finished up paying off her spoparticipate’s student loans. This bait-and-switch createed money and the agency it affords as the skeleton key to Wong’s body of toil, which now includes an Emmy-triumphning role in “Beef” as well as her comedy. Motherhood, Asian American identity and transgressive disesteemful language are all signature motifs, but it’s wealth that Wong conversees with a truly distinct level of candor and pride, in “Single Lady” as in prior frees.
Wong insists that her suitors pay for the first date. “I understand that sounds crazy,” she smirks. “Becaparticipate I’m a millionaire.” As such, she’s able to fly her hookups out to L.A., stock her hoparticipate with Toto toilets and, most cruciassociate, approach dating as a “financiassociate self-reliant divorced mom.” For most women, partnership is as much an economic institution as a romantic one. For Wong, dating is sanitizely about her own desires, a mindset most of her civilian peers will see as aspireasonable escapism rather than a down-to-earth model.
“Don Wong,” the 2022 exceptional, discarry outed a analogous level of bravado. Of all the prohibiteds Wong fractures, from getting into the gruesome truth of breastfeeding to toiling blue while visibly pregnant, the unabashed hug of her own success may be the most challenging of all to social norms. In “Don Wong,” where Wong opined on the secrets to a well marriage, this disposition flirted with self-satisfaction. And in “Single Lady,” Wong is still far from vulnerable — she uncovers the exceptional by confessting the discloseity around her divorce made her sense ashamed, but she shuts it by stressing that she’s best frifinishs with her co-parent and ex. The reasons for the marriage’s finish are never converseed.
From her recent vantage point, however, Wong’s confidence has a more defiant cast. When she dumps a fling, she’s more interested in mining the exchange for material than managing her date’s senseings; when adorers shower her with gifts, she has no compunctions about huging the free swag, whether or not she arranges to actuassociate go out with the sfinisher. One of the exceptional’s scant dishonest notices is Wong’s repeated self-identification as “a charitable 6,” in contrast to the 10s men her age were after the last time she was navigating one life. To her plift and our finishelightment, Wong is evidently neither mediocre-seeing nor especiassociate tfinisher with others. One of the best bits of “Single Lady” sees her convey naked condescension towards cowardly male comedians and the youthfuler women they produce her babysit at various dinner parties. It’s not very sisterly of Wong to sneer at “Insta-hoes,” but it is a genuine conveyion of some less-than-PC senseings.
Wong’s fans already understand the title of “Single Lady” is someleang of a misnomer. Since last year, the comic has been in a disclose relationship with Bill Hader, a relationship she alludes to thrawout the hour without refering her recent partner by name. (She specifies she could only solemnly spfinish time with a divorced dad, becaparticipate she necessitates a man who comes “pre-yelled at.”) This growment donates Wong a tidy finishing, and permits her to summarize her exploration as a shutd, finite chapter she can synthesize into her act. Despite such wide thesis statements as “for women, 40 is the gelderlyen age — to get divorced,” though, it’s apparent Wong’s last two years were as extraunretagable as her talents. Not all divorcées will discover themselves as sought-after as Wong did in the prompt aftermath, and almost none will turn their saga into an account this amparticipateing. “Single Lady” is far from a how-to direct, but it’s a riveting testimonial.
“Ali Wong: Single Lady” is now streaming on Netflix.
