Chris Rock’s “Selective Outrage” was Netflix’s first dwell streaming occasion, and the outlet handled it like a coronation. Rock’s buddies and admirers, younger and previous, turned out for a pre-show presentation that portended a stand-up set for the ages. The sight of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was significantly encouraging, given his vehement assist of the trans neighborhood within the face of a right-wing-driven marketing campaign disputing their very proper to exist.

Rock, maybe leery of his colleague Dave Chappelle’s TERF-friendly dismissal of trans folks, made a glancing joke concerning the Kardashian household’s acceptance of Caitlyn Jenner earlier than explaining how his blue-collar brothers would lose their minds if their father pursued gender reassignment. The bit was meant to enlighten “wokes” — and, sure, he disappointingly used that time period as a pejorative throughout his routine — as to the problem of getting common folks to regulate to the idea of transgenderism. Amazingly, Louis C.Ok., Rock’s disgraced former writing accomplice, was extra gracefully understanding of gender fluidity — which he in comparison with enjoying a fretless bass — in his most up-to-date stand-up particular.

The title “Selective Outrage” prompted hope that Rock would practice his ire on our social-media-addled obsession with tabloid sideshows just like the Kardashians and the British Royal Household. As a substitute, Rock sunk undue minutes of his set into celebrating Robert Kardashian’s function in exonerating O.J. Simpson of homicide (when he was merely a periphery participant within the authorized cleaning soap opera) and excoriating mixed-race Meghan Markle for marrying right into a famously exclusionary lily-white clan.