What we are totally ignoring in The Curiosity Made Me Ask Show 

Let me say this upfront, not reading this article could be a better use of your time. 

Isbae U’s “Curiosity made me ask” is becoming one of the fastest-rising YouTube Content in the Nigerian online Space. The Show has featured many celebrities who come on for fun or to secretly promote their upcoming projects. We all know sometimes it is all about showbiz, right? I must commend Isbae U for churning out a unique type of comedy content that resonates with everyone.

Although the Show, like most Nigerian YouTube content nowadays, is a copy of Zach Galifianakis’s Between Two Ferns, which started in 2008. I know, Frank Edoho mentioned that to Isbae U’s face. But we must commend Isbae U and his team for localizing the content and making it more fun than the original. I am not here to heap praise on the content. On the contrary, I  want to explore a part of the Show we often ignore and sweep under the carpet as sarcasm. 

I would love it if you could read between the lines to get the right picture and understand this information clearly. However, if you feel like lashing out, the comment section is below this post. 

Firstly, we need to understand the kind of comedy at play in The Curiosity Made Me Ask Show. The jokes aren’t the questions or the mannerisms he asks them. The jokes stem from observational humor and social commentary on the celebrity. The host uses words like People have been saying . . to convey the local man’s thoughts and perception of the celebrity to his/her face. The sole aim of this strategy is to get a response from the guest, which could be hidden in the mask of sarcasm or fun.

Isbae U explores his guests’ psychological environment with questions that humanize them. Sometimes, making fun of people more powerful than you humanizes them. Chill, it is just a fun show. Nothing too serious, right? Well, that is the facade it exhibits. Right from the introduction, Isbae U explores the guest’s mental fortitude, breaking it towards the end or receiving the guest’s defensive rebuttal.

Furthermore, he masks salient social and personal lifestyle questions under the guise of sarcasm to reveal the mindset of the celebrity. I would have loved to give a practical example about one of the guests who is still relishing past glory, thinking that his body of work/album is still one of the biggest albums even now. Oh, wait. Did I just give an example? And the guest is not the only individual spilling out words that establish the mental framework of the speaker. Like one time when the host himself referred to owning cars as a measure of wealth (find that episode yourself) 

The “roast” and “satire” show, as Isbae U describes it in his YouTube description, comically reveals a celebrity’s idiosyncrasy, whether he/she is humble or arrogant, calm, reserved, or just the total opposite of the personality we already recognize. The host has been able to constantly erase the atmosphere of a severe/regular interview, leaving guests to have fun and throw healthy (unhealthy) banter. 

Are there absolute truths in the conversations between the host and the guest? Yes! Do you have humor? A huge yes! However, it is not all fun and satire.

Written by: John