Streaming columnist NICK OVERALL writes his column just for a laugh (or two or three) this week. 

THINK back to the 2020 Golden Globes where comedian Ricky Gervais came out swinging at the Hollywood elite in a hilariously on-point opening speech.

Gervais, famed creator of hit sitcom “The Office”, left no stone unturned. From slamming Leonardo DiCaprio’s dating habits to Apple’s sweatshops in China, the room was slack jawed with a takedown that left some of the attendees wishing he hadn’t received an invitation.

But to many viewers at home, this tell-it-how-it-is style of comedy was seen as a refreshing moment in an industry that is otherwise swallowed by sanctimonious virtue signalling.

“Everyone is watching Netflix. The [Golden Globes] could just be me coming out, going, ‘Well done Netflix. You win everything. Good night.’ But no, we got to drag it out for three hours,” unleashed Gervais in his speech.

“You could binge-watch the entire first season of ‘After Life’ instead of watching this. That’s a show about a man who wants to kill himself ’cause his wife dies of cancer and it’s still more fun than this.”

And what a show it is. Gervais, who writes, directs and stars in “After Life” has crafted himself a premise where he can let loose on the world in the same vein as his Globes’ speech and the series now has its third season streaming on Netflix.

It’s the story of Tony, a happy-go-lucky guy who loses all faith in the world after the death of his beloved wife. While initially wanting to end it all, Tony soon discovers he has a new “superpower” – saying and doing whatever he wants without caring who he offends.

Watching Tony play with his “superpower” is hilarious, especially in one scene where he says to a school bully what everyone has always wanted to. However there’s a humility and deeper message that works its way into “After Life” which makes it more than just a fun slice of cynicism.

As the show goes on viewers see the character forced to come to more peaceful terms with the new life he leads, wrestling to find meaning in what he believes is a meaningless world.

In many ways, it makes “After Life” a fitting show for our challenging times. It can be pretty easy to lose faith in humanity these days, especially amidst current events, but “After Life” tells its audience that meaning and kindness is really out there if one is willing to look.

Everyone can use a laugh right now so why not stream a sitcom?

Netflixers looking for some levity can also find it in “Schitt’s Creek”, which follows the misfortunes of a wealthy family who must adjust to life after being stripped of all their money.

The lead writer was given the idea of this sitcom when questioning what would happen to a family like the Kardashians if they were to suddenly lose their fortune and be forced to live in the real world.

There are a few other certified comedy classics on the platform, including all nine seasons of “Seinfeld”. Throughout the show’s 180 episodes, it somehow managed to put its characters in almost every awkward situation one can think of and makes it easily rewatchable – from waiting for a table to free up at a restaurant to being sentenced to prison. 

Prefer the other ’90s sitcom about friends hanging out in a New York apartment? “Friends” can be streamed on Binge, including its reunion special which brings the cast back together after the show’s original ending almost 20 years ago.

Travelling overseas and a little more into the obscure, Britbox has got a classic political satire that bonks bureaucracy on the head with “Yes, Minister”.

It follows the career of Jim Hacker, Britain’s Minister for Administrative Affairs. No, that is not a real parliamentary position but, yes, it may as well be with how hilariously redundant it is. 

What about something more local though? Rob Sitch, who wrote the classic Aussie flick “The Castle”, was also the head creative of “The Hollowmen”, a sitcom set here in Canberra and streamable on Stan.

Not unlike “Yes, Minister”, it spares the pollies of Parliament House no mercy in a satire that sees them fumble around issues which hit brilliantly close to home – for Canberrans, quite literally.