What's Cristela Alonzo: Middle Classy About?

Her first Netflix special was called Lower Classy, but Mexican-American comic Cristela Alonzo is moving (slightly) up in the world. In Middle Classy, she's cracking jokes about finally having enough money to go to the doctor, buying regular priced items at Target, and even getting the 80s toys her family couldn't afford when she was little.

Who's involved?

Along with her previous Netflix special, you may know Alonzo from her semi-autobiographical sitcom Cristela, or as the host of the rebooted game showLegends of the Hidden Temple.

Why (and to whom) do we recommend it?

Like a modern-day Roseanne, Alonzo is one of the rare mainstream comics who talks about what it's like to be poor in America, and while she's not pretending it's great, she still makes it funny.

Take a stand-out bit where she discusses finally getting insurance in her 40s and going to see a gynecologist for the first time: She earns belly laughs as she recalls being startled by stirrups and being shocked to learn what a "lady doctor" even does, and she trusts her audience to grasp the economic commentary sitting just beneath the jokes. She works a similar whimsical magic when she focuses on everything from underpaid farm laborers to the culture shock of leaving her Mexican-American family to go to college. It's clear she's having a great time on stage, which gives viewers the freedom to laugh, relax, and then think about what her humor is really getting at.

Pairs well with

• The Conners (ABC) is still delivering sharp and often moving stories about its blue collar clan. (Streaming on Hulu.)
• Vida (Prime VIdeo and Hulu), a finely observed drama about Mexican-American sisters who move back to their childhood home after their mother dies.
• Ms. Pat: Y'all Wanna Hear Something Crazy? (Netflix), a frank and funny special about the comic's life growing up poor in Atlanta.