August 18, 2022 

The Scotsman
Nervy and vulnerable, Sam Serrano on stage is at peak confidence, the young comic maintains, which really makes you feel for them. Juggling a significant number of identity and mental health issues, they're queer but not in easily defined ways. This attracts anti-gay violence but also some compelling sex stories, from a one-night stand with a Lady Gaga impersonator gone awry, to their relationship with their asexual girlfriend, it's all out there, atypical experience that they can still find the relatability in and amusing side of.That also applies to Serrano’s upbringing after their parents' divorce and their bulimia and Kabuki syndrome, responsible in part for their insecurity about their looks, though they could probably do with more elucidation on this. With a fondness for dick jokes and a tendency to go for the easy gag, Serrano is still quite raw in their performance and needs to trust more in the strength of their anecdotes and original thoughts, as when they subvert the idea of having a knee-jerk homophobic grandmother.The closing admission, that some of what they’ve discussed has dated since they wrote it, is a bit deflating and could be expressed with more sophistication. But Serrano is a distinctive, likeable act. Jay Richardson