What Yearly Departed is about
Yearly Departed takes a genuinely unusual premise—a funeral for an entire year—and runs with it. Released in 2020 by Amazon Studios, this 44-minute comedy special frames stand-up performances as eulogies delivered by seven female comedians mourning the death of 2020 itself. Rather than a traditional special where comedians take turns at a microphone, the funeral conceit gives each performer a narrative anchor. They're not just riffing on the year's disasters; they're eulogizing specific casualties of 2020: the pandemic, certain celebrities, normalcy, sanity. The format lets the comedy breathe in ways a straightforward stand-up showcase might not, and it's that structural cleverness that makes Yearly Departed feel fresher than it might otherwise.
Behind the making of Yearly Departed
Yearly Departed was created by Bess Kalb, a writer and comedian who'd worked on shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live! and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The concept itself—a year-in-review special structured as a funeral—was ambitious for 2020, when the year still felt unresolved and raw. Amazon Studios and Scrap Paper Pictures partnered to produce the special, betting that audiences would be ready to laugh at their own misery by late 2020. The gamble paid off: the special earned two wins and two nominations at various awards ceremonies, validating both the format and the performers. Rotten Tomatoes critics gave it an 86% Fresh rating, suggesting broad critical appreciation for the tone and execution. The IMDb score of 5.8/10 tells a different story—audience reactions were more mixed, which makes sense for comedy: what lands with critics doesn't always land with the general public, and vice versa. The special is unrated, meaning no MPAA restrictions apply, and the comedians were free to go wherever the material took them.
Why Yearly Departed stands out in 2020 comedy
What's striking is how the special manages to be both deeply cynical and oddly life-affirming at the same time. The comedians don't shy away from the worst parts of 2020—COVID deaths, economic collapse, racial injustice—but they're not wallowing in despair either. Instead, they're using comedy as a tool for survival, which feels honest to how a lot of people actually processed that year. One performer might riff on the absurdity of zoom calls while another tackles police brutality with sharper teeth. That tonal variety is crucial; it prevents the special from becoming a single-note dirge. The funeral framework also does something clever: it gives permission for the jokes to be dark without feeling gratuitous. You're at a funeral. Dark jokes are kind of the point. I keep coming back to how well the format serves the material—it's not just a gimmick, it's a genuine structural choice that deepens the comedy. Some bits land harder than others (as one viewer noted, a few performances felt flat), but the best moments hit with real sting, mixing pandemic-era observation with sharper cultural commentary about Black Lives Matter and the political chaos that defined late 2020.
How to watch Yearly Departed online
Yearly Departed is available across major OTT services, with Prime Video being the original home—it's an Amazon Studios production, after all. If you're looking for where to stream it right now, check the Where to Watch widget at the top of this page for current availability across platforms in your region. Streaming rights shift, so it's worth verifying before you settle in. The 44-minute runtime makes it a quick watch, perfect for a break in your evening or a lunch-hour laugh. Movie OTT tracks current streaming availability across Netflix, Prime, and other major platforms, so you can see exactly where this special is playing without having to hunt through five different apps.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Who are the comedians in Yearly Departed?
The special features seven female comedians delivering eulogies at the funeral for 2020, each tackling different aspects of the year's chaos. While the full roster isn't detailed here, the variety of comedic voices and perspectives is part of what makes the special work.
Q: Is Yearly Departed based on a true story?
No, it's not a documentary or memoir. It's a fictional comedy special structured around a metaphorical funeral for the year 2020. The jokes riff on real events and cultural moments, but the format itself is pure satire and absurdism.
Q: How long is Yearly Departed?
The special runs 44 minutes, making it one of the shorter comedy releases. It's a tight, focused piece rather than a sprawling two-hour showcase.
Q: Who created Yearly Departed?
Bess Kalb created the special. She's a writer and comedian known for her work on late-night television and prestige comedy series. The special was produced by Amazon Studios and Scrap Paper Pictures.
Q: Why did critics rate Yearly Departed higher than audiences?
Comedy is subjective—what resonates with professional critics doesn't always land the same way with general viewers. The special's 86% Rotten Tomatoes score versus its 5.8 IMDb rating suggests critics appreciated the format and cultural commentary, while some viewers found certain performances less effective.
Final thoughts on Yearly Departed
Yearly Departed isn't perfect—some jokes don't land, and the conceit works better in theory than it does in every moment of execution. But it's a genuinely inventive piece of comedy that captures a specific moment in time: the collective need to laugh at 2020 before we moved on to 2021's disasters. If you're looking for comedy that's smart, dark, and willing to mix pandemic humor with real cultural critique, it's worth your 44 minutes. Movie OTT readers looking for specials that blend format innovation with sharp writing will find plenty to appreciate here.