By Nick A. Zaino III Globe correspondent, Updated October 11, 2023, 12:40 p.m.
Russell Howard believes the world is magnificent. We forget that sometimes because we are too busy doom-scrolling and arguing with strangers on social media. But he’d like a word to remind you to keep your sense of wonder and to promulgate the idea that silliness offers relief. Lucky for him, and us, he is a deeply silly comedian.
In his most recent special, “Lubricant,” he is gobstruck by the idea that dogs can be trained to sense low blood sugar in diabetics. He imagines a dog sitting next to its owner on a couch while she’s watching television. The dog gives a sudden sniff. “Maureen?” he imagines the dog saying. “Have a biscuit. I really love you, darling, but it’s really coming off you tonight.”
It’s not as if Howard doesn’t see the awful side of humanity. He can joke about that, too. But he wants to burst that bubble and show people something brighter. “It’s those daft little moments where — life is such a battle for people — just those little moments where you’re not in fight mode, you’re just kind of laughing,” he says. “It’s really important.”
To further focus on the positive, Howard recently released a podcast called “Wonderbox” (which is also the title of his 2014 stand-up special). He interviews guests — who have included John Oliver and Taylor Tomlinson — about their most treasured objects and places, asking them to put it all in a hypothetical “wonderbox.” Howard believes he gets better interviews from people by talking about their passions rather than what makes them angry or asking them to plug their latest project.
