Matt Mira Impresses, Chris Hardwick Brings It Home At The Vic

By Marielle Shaw in Arts & Entertainment on Dec 9, 2013 4:00PM

While Saturday night’s show with Matt Mira and Chris Hardwick at the Vic Theatre may not have actually been a Nerdist event, there was plenty of brotherly love to spare between the two performers on stage. The whole event had a familial feel and not just because we were all piled on top of each other in the “rows” at the theater.

Matt Mira was the opener and was looking good from the get-go. While many might be more familiar with Mira as a podcaster extraordinaire and showrunner for @Midnight, his stand-up really wowed us. If Mira hadn’t told us he was working off a picture of a napkin, we would never have known. His set flowed naturally and he told tales of life as an officer in Star Trek, anosmia and the desperate want of bread. It had us wishing he had more time when the moment came and he intro’d hardwick.

In fact, Hardwick actually rode out on Mira. The twosome continued the night with many stories, some that the couple of kids in the audience should likely have had earmuffs on for (some of them did, but they could still hear him!). Chris isn’t afraid to work blue, but one of our favorite things about him is that he’s also not afraid to make it personal. As most of the internet may be aware, he recently lost his father. A little while into his set this became the focal point and it really took the show to a different place.

One of our favorite things about comedy is the ability a good comedian has to use it to discuss the hard things. Hardwick's tribute to his dad’s inappropriate dinner conversations and plasticene adventures was as hilarious as it was touching.

The night also brought a few appearances by his girlfriend and well-known cosplayer Chloe Dykstra, who was on hand for a few indignant interjections, some silly demonstrations and a rather funny impression of Hardwick doing one of his bits, while he was actually doing that bit.

We can’t say we loved the setup at the Vic, but once the show got under way we didn’t really care so much. If you haven’t gotten acquainted with Matt Mira, do yourself a favor and do so right away—we highly recommend catching his standup and you can also catch him on quite a few podcasts, includingNerdist, FEAB and James Bonding.

And if you hadn’t already, dive into the Nerdist empire and have some laughs with Chris Hardwick. His special "Mandroid" is available here.