Melbourne International Comedy Festival review

Wabi-sabi is the Japanese aesthetic that finds beauty in imperfection. Under that philosophy, Takashi Wakasugi’s new show is very beautiful indeed.

For the loveable comic – who’s capable of savvy routines – very much seems to be treading water in this disappointing offering with material that’s flimsy and often repetitive, a couple of strong ideas notwithstanding.

He starts with a couple of greatest hits about his love of Vegemite on toast, which shows how he’s naturalised, and about why ‘toothbrush’ is a misnomer, which shows how he very much still has an outsider’s eye. At its best this is a winning combination, of someone who loves his new culture but sees its illogicalities.

But the extended 'wabi-sabi’ routine, is little more than describing things that are a bit shit then saying ’that’s wabi-sabi’ in place of a punchline. Melbourne’s lack of a decent beach? That’s wabi-sabi. Racists who like Chinese food? That’s wabi-sabi. 

It may be wabi-sabi that a person for whom English is a second alphabet – let alone language – appeared on Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee. Wakasugi’s efforts on the TV programme certainly offer an amusing, if brief, interlude here, reinforcing his persona as someone battling against odds stacked against him.

The defining routine of this show has Wakasugi pondering how the word ‘dog’ covers all manner of breeds, while every slight variant of rodent becomes its own species. By extension, he starts dividing the world into such categories – in his view, even inanimate items can feel like broad, welcoming groups or pedantic degradations.

It opens the door to a series of strong, witty analogies, but when he applies virtually the same formula to decide whether various things are toilet paper, tissue paper or paper towels – after a long set-up that seems more PSA than comedy –  it definitely feels like he’s out of inspiration. 

As a charming presence with an infectious  energy, Wakasugi is always watchable – and while there’s a very strong 20 minutes or so here, the rest feels more like a work in progress than the finished product.

• Takashi Wakasugi: Wabi-Sabi Comedy is at The Westin at 7.40pm (6.40pm Sundays) until April 19, with an extra show at 4.30pm on Easter Sunday at ACMI.

Review date: 1 Apr 2026
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett
Reviewed at: Melbourne International Comedy Festival