LSSC: Season One All Episodes Talk

[Grace284]

Personally, I was more appalled by the Damian Lewis interview than the sandwich bit, I don't know why they let him walk around given his links to Abu Nasir. Particularly shocking given his service in WWII.

[zxy556575]

The scientist was great. Very interesting stuff.

 

I thought so, too -- maybe because Stephen actually let her speak without interrupting or inserting himself into the narrative.

 

Hated the song with Broderick. It's unfair of me because I think most of Fallon's musical/comedy skits and games with his guests are amusing, or at least inoffensive, but I'm irritated every time Colbert does it, because it seems to come from ego rather than a sense of fun or comedy.. Eh. I generally don't watch his interviews anyway, should just stick to the desk bits and be happy. The problem is that the show sometimes intersperses those throughout the hour so I have to FF around to find them and end up inadvertently seeing some of the interview segments (which I assume is the point).

[Milburn Stone]

 Eh. I generally don't watch his interviews anyway, should just stick to the desk bits and be happy. The problem is that the show sometimes intersperses those throughout the hour so I have to FF around to find them and end up inadvertently seeing some of the interview segments (which I assume is the point).

 

I doubt that that's the point. I think it's more likely that people enjoy different things. I, for instance, thought "Wouldn't It Be Loverly" was charming, and one of the best things I've seen on the show. I also liked the Confessional bit, even though there was no or little political content in it. (I also love his political bits.) So the show has elements to please different constituencies, with the only thing in common being that they're all things that please Colbert.

[roseha]

I also absolutely loved the segment with Sarah Parcak.  I had never heard of her work, and that someone could use modern technology of that sort to uncover ancient ruins is just mind blowing.  It was impressive that Stephen got through a live show with so few flubs, but it was funny that he twice held her cards with the reveal photos the wrong way and she promptly took them and fixed them while he was holding them.  They both seemed to be having a good laugh over that.

Edited January 9, 2016 by roseha

[nowandlater]

Why wouldn't they announce that they were doing a live show in advance?

 

A lot of people, like myself, generally aboid late-night TV on Friday night because it's the weekend.

 

(I learned there was a live show because the Late Show's Twitter went crazy last night.)

 

Anyways, it doesn't feel as special watching it Saturday morning...besides, they flashed a "Recorded Earlier" notice on the bottom during the show for us West Coasters. It would be impressive if he did 2 shows, including one for the West Coast (which is what NBC's Undateable does and what 30 Rock did when it did live shows).

Edited January 9, 2016 by nowandlater

[Victor the Crab]

Hated the song with Broderick. It's unfair of me because I think most of Fallon's musical/comedy skits and games with his guests are amusing, or at least inoffensive, but I'm irritated every time Colbert does it, because it seems to come from ego rather than a sense of fun or comedy.. Eh.

 

Funny, but I don't seem to recall anyone being annoyed at any of Stephen's song and dance routines when he was hosting TCR. But now that he's hosting his own network show, it's all about his ego. Well I guess nobody can hold a candle to the talented entertainment juggernaut that is Jimmy Fallon (PUUUUKE!).

[nowandlater]

Funny, but I don't seem to recall anyone being annoyed at any of Stephen's song and dance routines when he was hosting TCR. But now that he's hosting his own network show, it's all about his ego. Well I guess nobody can hold a candle to the talented entertainment juggernaut that is Jimmy Fallon (PUUUUKE!).

 

Personally, I don't care. But perhaps it's also because we have way too many singing talk show hosts. Fallon seems to be singing a lot these days or in recent months (this week alone, he had an impromptu doo-wop on his show with Billy Joel followed by performing with Joel on Madison Square Garden). Then you have James Corden, who can sing, but sings way too much on his show, especially with Carpool Karaoke. (Also, Conan does singing with his guitar, but very rarely.)

[roseha]

 

Why wouldn't they announce that they were doing a live show in advance?

 

He announced it in the intro on Thursday.  The idea is that it was a dry run for the live show they will be doing after the Super Bowl.   Of course, who knows what time that show will actually start.

[zxy556575]

Funny, but I don't seem to recall anyone being annoyed at any of Stephen's song and dance routines when he was hosting TCR. But now that he's hosting his own network show, it's all about his ego.

This may be rhetorical, but since I never watched his other show, how on earth did he integrate song and dance bits into the character of a left wing political pundit, satirical or not?

I also took Stephen's comment as truth that normally he'd let the audience continue chanting his name forever but had to keep the show on time since it was live.

Most performers are egotistical ("There are many studies that suggest that people who go into the performing arts suffer from an external locus of identity." ~ Beverly Hofstadter, The Big Bang Theory) but I think Stephen pegs the meter. Being a talk show host would typically require him to subsume his personality in service of letting the guests shine, and his failure to do that has been the most frequent criticism here. Interrupting guests in order to get his jokes in and not letting them finish their thoughts indicates to me that he believes his comments are more worthwhile than theirs. I don't think he's doing it in order to move the interviews forward, but rather to bring the attention back to himself.

I never watched TDS when Stephen was on it and am only familiar with him through this show, so my opinions are based on that. I enjoy most of his comedy segments but hate the song and dance shit. Sounds like I'd hate Corden, too, so thanks for that warning. ;)

Edited January 10, 2016 by lordonia

[Saylii]

When was Hungry for Power Games on? I thought I watched every episode this week at least until midnight. If he's burying his political segments at 12:20 I won't be watching them.

It was after the Damien Lewis interview. Damien didn't have an extended first slot interview, so it ran after the commercial break after his segment. Probably 35 minutes in or so.

Edited January 10, 2016 by Saylii

[nowandlater]

This may be rhetorical, but since I never watched his other show, how on earth did he integrate song and dance bits into the character of a left wing political pundit, satirical or not?

The Colbert Report wasn't all politics. He'd go into rants about Star Wars. He'd talk about pop-culture, etc.

Here's a collection of his best musical moments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fpj1Yu20mYQ

And here's one of my favorite performances, receating that 14-year-old girl Rebecca Black's song Friday on Jimmy Fallon.

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/video/watch/81415080/

Edited January 10, 2016 by nowandlater

[shok]

 

This may be rhetorical, but since I never watched his other show, how on earth did he integrate song and dance bits into the character of a left wing political pundit, satirical or not?

 

You know, most of the time I kind of laugh at people who say they never watch(ed) a show but not this time. I totally believe you because you completely got the premise of his previous show wrong! He was the complete opposite of a left wing political pundit. His character was based largely on Bill O'Reilly and other right wing blowhards and that's what made him so funny. I'm not picking on you personally but this just struck me really funny because I've never heard him accused of that before. 

[possibilities]

As for how he integrated musical performances into his old show, he just plain did them, without explanation or apology. The last part of every episode was an interview and/or musical guest. Sometimes he'd pick up a mic and sing with them. I usually hated it because who needs to see some mediocre singer join with a pro? He's not terrible, but he's nothing special (as a singer). But he clearly loved doing it and it always seemed like he was basically indulging his lifelong fantasy to sing with (whoever it was). It was definitely more for him than for the audience.

[BW Manilowe]

By the looks of Jessica's Instagram account they went skiing somewhere. Unless they took two vacations. But there is only one pic of them on vaca recently and they're all on top of a mountain in ski gear. I'm sure Jerry has just gotten into the habit of not broadcasting to the general public where he and his family go.

He doesn't have to. He & his family are friends with Kelly Ripa, from Live! with Kelly and Michael, her husband, Mark Consuelos (who's on a show on DirecTV now, I think) & their kids. They go/have gone on what sounds like a lot of family vacations together. Kelly comes home & spills a lot of the details in her show's "Host Chat" afterward. The last place I know they all went together was Greece, I think during Spring Break last year (2015), 'cause Kelly talked about it a lot on her first show back.

So if he wants the world to know where he & his family go on vacation, all he has to do is take the Kelly Ripa/Mark Consuelos family with him. Thanks to Kelly, at least her viewers will know most details of his vacation as soon as she's back on the air.

Edited January 10, 2016 by BW Manilowe

[M. Darcy]

 

Personally, I was more appalled by the Damian Lewis interview than the sandwich bit, I don't know why they let him walk around given his links to Abu Nasir. Particularly shocking given his service in WWII.

And, he's married to a Death Eater!   I was kind of hoping the entire interview would be about Wolf Hall but I knew that was never going to happen. 

[ABay]

Even though I knew it wouldn't happen, I still wanted to see Stephen audition for the El Chapo bio-pic as Esteban (chicas!)

[peeayebee]

That would have been great! I did like the audition he did, but I do miss Esteban.

 

Love the audience chanting, "Warlock! Warlock! Warlock!" I also liked his line about Christie working in a bowling alley and being able to shut down the lanes whenever he wanted.

[Hanahope]

Loved the Hungry for Power Games bit. Lots of goodness in that. I think my favorite part was when he was talking about Lindsay Graham losing support when he came across as a moderate. "If you listen closely you can hear his mating call: 'Let's COMpromise! Let's COMpromise!'"

 

I had a feeling we had to wait for a second person to leave the race, since the first left right after TLS when on holiday break.  I think its a bit sad that Lindsay Graham is now being looked at as a 'moderate' Republican.  He wasn't a 'moderate' Republican 10 years or so ago, he was one of the more conservative.  But now that the Republican party has a whole has moved so far to the right extreme, those that used to just be 'conservative' and now considered 'moderate', mostly because the former moderates are now called 'liberal' Republicans and don't even really exist anymore (those that do are probably more Liberterian).  Just another example of how the Republican party has moved the goal post.

[Deanie87]

I haven't had a chance to finish last night's episode, but I was very surprised that Colbert didn't mention anything about David Bowie.  Did he later on?  (I have only gotten to the second El Chapo segment.)  

[ChelseaNH]

It's at the very end.

[roseha]

That would have been great! I did like the audition he did, but I do miss Esteban.

 

Love the audience chanting, "Warlock! Warlock! Warlock!" I also liked his line about Christie working in a bowling alley and being able to shut down the lanes whenever he wanted.

 

The Warlock - complete with spontaneous audience chant - was my favorite bit as well.  Just loved the Christie line.  I also loved Stephen trying to manipulate his way around the dry ice.  Somehow it made the bit even funnier.

[Hanahope]

Yes, Warlock was a great bit, hopefully he does it again before some of the more colorful candidates drop out.  El Chapo was good too, though I didn't care for Stephen's 'audition'.  I agree that it really needed Esteban.

 

While I agree that should Hillary win the Dem nomination, choosing an Hispanic male VP-mate is probably her best bet, I think she needs to choose one that speaks Spanish.

[A Boston Gal]

There was clearly a tomato on that sandwich.

You know, I thought I saw it, too, a thin strip along the bottom of the filling. But, I was cowed out of that idea by Stephen's insistence there was NO tomato there.

I can't believe my own lying eyes, apparently.

[peeayebee]

I loved the graphic of the boys' club sign, "No girls aloud!" Also, I never thought about it before, but why don't those Oregon guys just go out and buy some supplies themselves. I guess having people send them stuff makes their occupation seem more significant.

 

Loved the dress that Saoirse Ronan was wearing. And she was delightful. Too bad Stephen interrupted so freaking much. 

 

I didn't pay complete attention to the Yelp guy interview because I was multitasking at the time. The bit Stephen did with the amuse bouche was kind of dumb, I thought. 

 

I liked the interview with the creators of Making a Murderer, but I was caught off-guard by how serious Stephen was. The women joked around a bit, but Stephen didn't, except maybe once. Granted, the show is very serious and depressing and upsetting, but I was surprised at how somber Stephen was.

[peeayebee]

I loved the bit that during the SOTU there were ads in Obama's pauses.

 

Paul Giamatti was a fun guest.

 

I completely agree with the Big Furry Hat declaration that movies should have no more scenes after the credits.

[Fisher King]

Glad Stephen acknowledged some of the "tweetosphere" backlash regarding the awkward Rupert sandwich bit.

 

Loved the one about Jeb! giving away tortoises but they keep sneaking out of his pocket & passing him in the polls.

 

TJ Miller is nuts. Love Silicon Valley.

[roseha]

I've read that raw potatoes can be poisonous so I hope Stephen didn't swallow any/too much of that one.  He was sick enough apparently. 

I never heard of TJ MIller before but that was one weird segment especially the egg part.

The taped bit with Jon Batiste teaching piano was charming.  I loved that he explained the triangle offense in the middle of it..

[peeayebee]

I thought that Jon Batiste bit was fantastic. It was so well-written, and Jon performed it perfectly. There were so many funny little things, like him saying "Sir Elton John" with a pic of Billy Joel. Hilarious from start to finish.

 

I like TJ Miller on Silicon Valley, but I'm not sure about his comedy. When I watch the Independent Spirit Awards I'll see how he does.

 

I really didn't think that was tomato on the bottom of the sandwich, so color me surprised. Like Fisher King, I'm glad Stephen addressed the backlash against his bit.

[Athena]

I thought that Jon Batiste bit was fantastic. It was so well-written, and Jon performed it perfectly. There were so many funny little things, like him saying "Sir Elton John" with a pic of Billy Joel. Hilarious from start to finish.

 

I thought it was good as well. Jon seems to work better alone; he is a natural performer, but for some reason, his and Stephen's pieces have not worked as well. When they did his podcast, I liked their interaction, but not anytime I've seen them together on screen.

[trow125]

I now have about 10 episodes of LSSC piled up on my TiVo, whereas with TCR I always felt compelled to watch them immediately, often staying up 'til midnight so I could see the show as soon as possible. Reading through these posts at least shows me some sketches that may be worth seeing out, and a few to avoid.

[peeayebee]

I kind of liked the interview with Patricia Heaton with them quizzing each other on Catholic stuff. But Stephen, please please please work on not talking over your guests. Yield to them more. Thank you.

 

That clip from The Middle was great.

 

It was funny with Quincy Jones telling the story about how he discovered music. His story was entertaining and interesting, but Stephen continuing to ask about the music was cracking me up. I'm glad Quincy was not offended AND that he just continued to tell his story the way he wanted to. 

 

The Black Lives Matter guest was good.

 

I enjoyed the singer, Grace, until she did that vocal showoff stuff. Sounded like screaming to me.

 

The baby segment was cute and funny.

[roseha]

I enjoyed the show.  I particularly liked that Stephen took the time to have the segment with Deray McKesson and to discuss seriously the Black Lives Matter movement.  The four guests made for one less time for a skit but as it was Martin Luther King Day I think Stephen and company made a good decision to not skip over having a serious talk about it.

I particularly enjoyed the Quincy Jones and baby segments as well. 

Edited January 19, 2016 by roseha

[ChelseaNH]

I enjoyed the singer, Grace, until she did that vocal showoff stuff. Sounded like screaming to me.

 

She's a coloratura like Mariah Carey, but I suspect not as well-trained.

[hendersonrocks]

I don't usually catch Colbert, but I watched last night's because I used to work with and am still friends with DeRay. I thought their interview was good - and I especially enjoyed the moment where they switched seats - but I hope it's the first of several conversations. Stephen seemed to consistently deflect with humor, and while I'm good with that in terms of bringing people into what can feel like a high stakes convo, I'd like to see them go deeper.

 

Still: so grateful for the platform for DeRay and Campaign Zero.

[DrSparkles]

I thought Olivia Munn was a hoot! I don't know her from Adam's cat tho.

[BW Manilowe]

I thought Olivia Munn was a hoot! I don't know her from Adam's cat tho.

She's an actress. She was in HBO's The Newsroom, X-Men: Apocalypse, Magic Mike, Iron Man 2 & the current Ride Along 2 (which I assume she may have been promoting on the show), among other things.

She's also the girlfriend of Green Bay Packers Quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Edited January 21, 2016 by BW Manilowe

[peeayebee]

I loved that video clip of the washing machine with the brick in it on a trampoline. 

[ABay]

Olivia Munn was a correspondent on The Daily Show for a while. She was not nearly as entertaining on TDS as she was on LSSC. She did one really great segment, though, about her mother as a Tiger Mom.

[DrSparkles]

Olivia Munn was a correspondent on The Daily Show for a while. She was not nearly as entertaining on TDS as she was on LSSC. She did one really great segment, though, about her mother as a Tiger Mom.

Now there's where I would have seen here (TDS). Yeah, they talked about Aaron R some. Thanks :)

[nowandlater]

Olivia Munn was a correspondent on The Daily Show for a while. She was not nearly as entertaining on TDS as she was on LSSC. She did one really great segment, though, about her mother as a Tiger Mom.

 

She was actually there pretty briefly. According to IMDB, she appearedon 16 shows through 2010 and 2011.

 

During her Colbert visit last week, Munn met backstage with one of The Late Show's executive producers (whom, I'm assuming, isn't always backstage).

 

[catrox14]

Stephen's Palin rant/riff was the absolute best thing I have seen in so long. And that sad part is his riff STILL made more sense than her word salad idiotic madlibs "speech".

[peeayebee]

The Daily Show already did a segment on Trump's Liberty appearance, but it was great to see Stephen do something too. Honestly, the first time I heard Trump say, "Two Corinthians..." I thought it was the start of a joke. "Two Corinthians walk into a bar..." 

 

The worst thing about Sesame Street moving to HBO is that they're not doing parodies anymore. I think that has more to do with a change in the show's producer than in HBO. The new producer doesn't see the value of kids watching with an adult.

 

So funny when Danny Beaver said that the deer didn't have male parts, but female parts, and it had a nice rack. Of course it's terrible how our medications are changing animals and fish.

 

I liked seeing Christian Slater's "loser face." Mr Robot is a great show, but I didn't think Slater should have won for it. The only other nominee in that category that I've seen is Alan Cumming in The Good Wife, and I'd say he was more deserving of an award than Slater. Of course it's just the Golden Globes. 

[Hanahope]

I have to love how Stephen's Palin bit started with just letting the video run.  Really, no jokes have to be made because she's just one big joke herself.  Of course, Stephen added to it brilliantly by going off on his own palin-speak 'endorsement'.

[Muffyn]

Stephen's Palin rant/riff was the absolute best thing I have seen in so long. And that sad part is his riff STILL made more sense than her word salad idiotic madlibs "speech".

I quickly hit a point yesterday where I was tired of the coverage of Palin's ramblings.  I hate that she gets any coverage at all.  Often the media giving these loons a platform adds to their popularity.  And I was having a really terrible day, so nothing was making me laugh.  Then Stephen did his Sarah Palin inspired speech.  I scared the cats I was laughing so hard.  I want a transcript of that.  The nonsensical rhyming, the meaningless catch phrases - gold, Jerry, gold!  

[Clanstarling]

The Daily Show already did a segment on Trump's Liberty appearance, but it was great to see Stephen do something too. Honestly, the first time I heard Trump say, "Two Corinthians..." I thought it was the start of a joke. "Two Corinthians walk into a bar..."

Me too! I saw this covered on three different shows and no one even commented on how much it sounded like a setup.

[mtlchick]

Is it too late to get Sebastian the Crab into the race?  That may not be a serious question.  

 

Christian Slater.  25 years later, I'd still hit that.  

[whatsatool]

Nice planetary discussion.

[roseha]

I love Stephen bringing out unannounced "friends of the show" like Neil Degrasse Tyson to engage in the Friday Night Fights Twitter fest with him (after the astronomy discussion of course)  It's a good way to boost audience engagement also.

 

Nice moment when Stephen called out to all the band members by their first names after one number.

[zxy556575]

Jon has been mic'ed for a while but he's started adding his little interjections at the oddest moments, like right when Stephen is in the middle of a joke so that the entire flow is interrupted. Being the second banana requires a certain amount of patience and timing, Jon. Calm down.

[Clanstarling]

Jon has been mic'ed for a while but he's started adding his little interjections at the oddest moments, like right when Stephen is in the middle of a joke so that the entire flow is interrupted. Being the second banana requires a certain amount of patience and timing, Jon. Calm down.

Well, if Stephen's his role model - interruption is the name of the game. As much as I love Stephen, patience is something he needs to learn as well. Unless he can make them all as funny as the Quincy Jones interview.

Edited January 24, 2016 by clanstarling