Ellen DeGeneres For Your Approval review: Ellen DeGeneres literally begs for audience approval

1.5/5

Ellen DeGeneres For Your Approval story: Standup comedian and former talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres takes the stage for her final Netflix special, talking about all the things that she thought were harmless gestures meant in jest behind-the-scenes of her show, were not received in the ‘intended spirit’. Ellen, whose brand was built on urging her viewers to be kind, was said to be the quintessential mean girl and got kicked out of showbiz – a situation she’d been in before when she came out about her sexuality. She had a stellar comeback from that slump, but this time around, it doesn’t look very likely.

Ellen DeGeneres For Your Approval review: A comedy show to address a dark period in someone’s life, may not be the perfect choice after all. With For Your Approval, a standup special that comes 6 years after her last and is her final set for Netflix, Ellen DeGeneres tries valiantly to make the circumstances under which she was canceled seem funny, while also playing the victim card. It’s not a recipe for disaster, but it isn’t a great combination either. This should have been a TED Talk if you must.

Ellen DeGeneres For Your Approval OTT release date: When and where to watch Ellen DeGeneres’ final standup special 

For Your Approval’s biggest problem, therefore, is that it’s not funny. It is an hour of Ellen justifying herself in front of an audience that seems like it's straight from the set of her talk show – lapping up every word and applauding all the great stuff she’s done. Was the workplace she ran really toxic and was she, in particular, a mean boss? Well, we’ll not know, at least not from her, as Ellen skirts around the subject and wonders why she became the most hated person on the internet. Ellen’s logic that just because her show bore her name doesn’t exactly make her the ‘boss’ is a weak ploy.

Her defense that much of what was said and done on the set was meant to be fun feels like a slight to those who experienced racism, sexual harassment, intimidation, and more as part of Ellen’s team. For all the talk that she got kicked out of showbiz, The Ellen DeGeneres show didn’t wind up until a good two years after the first allegations of a toxic workplace came up and another 2 years later, she’s got a previously committed comedy special out, so, she’s not exactly out of action, as she was in the years following her coming out.

Ultimately, far from being a confession with Ellen showing an iota of remorse, For Your Approval was about putting her back on a pedestal (if she ever stepped down), and applauding her as a strong woman who refuses to be fazed by these events in her life.

Ellen DeGeneres For Your Approval verdict: Ellen DeGeneres may have given up on botox and fillers, but not on the need to impress upon audiences that she isn’t the big bad wolf she was made out to be. What her audience thinks of her is vital and her special, which lives up to its title and how, goes to great lengths to sweep the reason she’s doing this particular show, under the carpet.