the.com/callbacks
a joke's reappearance, later, wearing a disguise it thinks you won't recognize.
means referencing something said earlier in a set or conversation, so the earlier moment pays interest.
from stand-up comedy borrowed the term from telephone etiquette, where a callback meant returning someone's call; comics repurposed it for returning to a bit.
comedy structureoften planted early, detonated in the closer
programming meaningunrelated: a function passed to run later
audience effectlaughter grows because you did the remembering
riskfails hard if nobody recalls the setup
for instance
seinfeld finale — 1998 episode weaves years of running bits into one trial
anchorman milk joke — 2004 film plants and repeats absurd non sequitur for effect
louis ck sets — builds entire specials around one buried opening line