5 reasons you must watch John Oliver's Last Week Tonight

A "Santa Claus comedian" is the impression John Oliver would have created on those who first got to know him through the news of his sensational move to forgive $15 million of medical debts of 9,000 people at the end of his show.

But to reduce John Oliver to just that would do injustice to the man who was only one of the two media figures on TIME's list of 100 most influential people, has won several Emmys and hosts one of the most impactful comical shows in history.

John Oliver, a 39-year-old English comedian, host of HBO's wildly popular show Last Week Tonight, is redefining comedy and journalism in profound ways. The show is a satire that covers politics, news and current events.

Such is his show's impact that TIME has termed it the "John Oliver effect". Last Week Tonight, which airs weekly on Mondays, has an audience of millions. If you are not among those millions in awe of John Oliver, here are five reasons why exploring "Last Week Tonight" is among the first things you should do.

Serious fun

The most basic reason to watch Last Week Tonight is that it is an excellent comedy show. Half an hour of the show's runtime cheers you up and its humour is second to none.

It's infotainment with a unique style that makes otherwise dull and complex social issues easy to grasp.

John Oliver's sharp, lucid, informative and creative style in combination with top quality investigations make him the master of the art of making the dull and the mundane interesting.

Usually, social problems often don't get due attention as they are dull and complex subjects that people would rather not discuss. John Oliver has defied this conventional wisdom of the serious being necessarily boring.

When John Oliver directs his lens towards a social issue, he ensures that his show cuts through the haze and provides users information that is entertaining and deepens their understanding of important issues facing them.

Take for example how John describes that non-consensual intercourse with anyone is a crime: "Because sex is like boxing, if one of the parties didn’t agree to participate, the other one is committing a crime."

Those who seek information on current affairs, but are repelled by the complexity or the boredom of such an exercise, Last Week Tonight is for you.

Champions free speech

Last Week Tonight is characterised by an irreverent style. No taboo is too sacred to be defied. The show has particularly made its mission to defy the social convention of being coy about sex in public and avoiding cuss words even if they are needed for realism.

F*ck and penis must be the two most-used four-letter and five-letter words on the show.

There is a heartening defiance against the hypocritical and suffocating norms that most resent, but few dare to break the mould. His show also involves intentionally insulting those who are otherwise saved from insults.

Oliver's defiance widens the space for thought and expression. Those of us who take free speech seriously, but had not watched him before can take heart in discovering another icon who, in his own way, is championing free speech.

Takes up lost causes

The show has earned lot of its respect by taking up lost causes. It fearlessly takes on bigwigs - the ones who usually escape scrutiny due to fear or respect, for instance the tobacco lobby and the church.

The show is not afraid of stirring the hornet's nest. In fact, it regularly creates ripples by speaking for those whose feeble voices are seldom provided a platform.

From standing for rights of residents in US territories, to taking up the struck cause of Washington DC's statehood (the episode included Oliver singing with kids), Last Week Tonight with John Oliver wins one's heart by making sure that the voiceless, who are buried in majoritarian ignorance or rigidity, find their voice.

Comedy that makes impact

Last Week Tonight has turned into a show for social transformation. It's a comedy that makes impact. More often than not, its coverage of issues leads to tangible improvement.

It's coverage of net neutrality had over 10 million views and led to US regulator FCC's site to crash, due to the unprecedented response that the show had generated.

Oliver's comedy led to the regulator changing its stance, shifting the wind in favour of net neutrality.

Similarly, his take on the civil forfeiture was soon followed by the US attorney general tightening the system, an episode on the abuse of chicken farmers by the industry biggies led to legislative action on the front, et al.

Oliver's coverage of well functioning NGOs often boosts their donations, while revelation of malfunctioning systems creates huge public pressure to fix the system.

It's due to likes of Oliver that the dream of a better world lives on despite the endless challenges. For his yeomen job, here is wishing more power to John Oliver.