You said it, man. I'm so sick to death of everything being drafted into a red-vs-blue, left-vs-right culture war. Either everything is okay to lampoon, or nothing is.
True, and it was so late in the election that many Democrats weren't ready to vote for the substitute Harris. In retrospect, they should have nominated someone in the primaries who might not run into that problem/perception.
Last year, I had a moment while watching "SNL" when I realized that I had warmer feelings towards Maya Rudolph's version of Kamala Harris than I did for the actual Harris, which was....weird. (That said, I do think James Austin Johnson's take on Donald Trump is pretty fantastic, in part because he nails the free-associative elements of Trump's speeches.)
True. That was a very weak effort by Colbert but Mamdani consistently refuted the very dodgy questions Colbert threw at him. He clearly translated that verbal ability into votes! This is why he crushed Cuomo.. and poor Lander too.
Great piece. I spent a whole morning looking at all the links! My take on SNL is they've been easing away from politics this last season, as happens in a presidential second term, when people just aren't as interested in political stuff. And as for "1.5 billion for South Park", I suspect that number is intentionally shocking and that the reality is much much much less than that.
Ross is probably far from the only person who hasn't thought about South Park in a long time, but as someone who has been watching the show faithfully for 28 years, I am here to say that many of my favorite episodes are from the last decade.
Don’t forget The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour on CBS. Brutal anti-war comedy and the best rock music on TV. All the groups were live. Every Sunday night we sat in front of the TV in the lounge of our dorm.
Colbert moving on from the Report made sense-- he had done everything that could be done with the character, and "villains" like Bill O'Reilly were starting to seem almost quaint next to harder-edged conspiracists like Tucker Carlson. But I think instead of the Late Show he would have been better served with a 1/2 hour HBO show (or the equivalent) where he wouldn't have had to play the character but could have kept his sharper, more subversive angle, since he wouldn't have had to appeal to such a broad network audience.
This is a great post about how these beloved shows or actors really have their moment in the sun. Colbert was brilliant as a parody of a two bit Bill O'Reilly but I think as a straight man (comedy wise!) he is just kind of meh.
Sienna Hubert-Ross did some killer Kamala impressions but it seems like she is almost too much of an uncanny look-alike. Like Harris herself, where is she going to go? Kamala seems to be out of the political scene for now and like your post stated, what is her role with the Dems as an ex-VP? Gore did well as an environmentalist and even Clinton seems to be a useful "martyr" but who knows about Harris.
Lionel McGloin, who hosts a YouTube show called No Cap on God. This guy is pretty fricking good, his interviews with the MAGA faithful are pretty hilarious. Jordan Klepper was another dude who could walk into the abodes of the MAGA faithful and just rip them to shreds. I think parody or satire is a great way to do humor but not everyone can pull it off..... Colbert, Klepper and now McGloin are all masters!
My take on this is this problem won’t disappear until Trump’s long gone. Liberals cannot laugh at themselves as long as they believe doing so risks further empowering MAGA. It’s too dangerous. In the Bush era, it was easy because it was clear his political power was waining and he was on the way out.
They’re going to feel that way about the next one, and the one after that. The trick is to pry cultural institutions out of their control, or those institutions will die.
One thing I've found cringe about SNL is when they say "Live from New York, it's Saturday night." Like it doesn't have a surprise element anymore, and it feels stale. Most people aren't even watching it on TV- most of the cold open clips I watch are on Youtube the day after or later on.
I will also say that the MAGA humor has bad timing and jokes that get old really fast. I watched this comedy fest last summer with impersonations of both Biden and Trump, and the first 10 minutes were interesting. But the show went on for over an hour, and I think this clip is just 30 minutes of that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4xvQnu535s (Edit: I should say the first 5 minutes, ugh)
SNL's skits are still funny, and adapt to the new generation. They also benefit from being shorter skits (although some go on too long). None, however, are as long as a three hour "comedy" podcast. Thankfully.
The timing you lay out here seems to also align with the idea that Joan Rivers’ death after outing the Obamas had a chilling effect on mainstream comedy.
You said it, man. I'm so sick to death of everything being drafted into a red-vs-blue, left-vs-right culture war. Either everything is okay to lampoon, or nothing is.
yeah they never should have given Biden such a pass, especially as more and more people were calling him to step down! And I'm a Democrat!!
True, and it was so late in the election that many Democrats weren't ready to vote for the substitute Harris. In retrospect, they should have nominated someone in the primaries who might not run into that problem/perception.
Last year, I had a moment while watching "SNL" when I realized that I had warmer feelings towards Maya Rudolph's version of Kamala Harris than I did for the actual Harris, which was....weird. (That said, I do think James Austin Johnson's take on Donald Trump is pretty fantastic, in part because he nails the free-associative elements of Trump's speeches.)
I've seem Johnson live ad libbing Trump. He's really good.
Also, right here on Substack check out Cartoons Hate Her's audio Trump impressions.
https://www.cartoonshateher.com/p/free-trump-on-the-pope-the-met-gala?utm_source=publication-search
Agree with you on Colbert. Was super pissed at his interrogation of Zohran on his show and so were many many others.
True. That was a very weak effort by Colbert but Mamdani consistently refuted the very dodgy questions Colbert threw at him. He clearly translated that verbal ability into votes! This is why he crushed Cuomo.. and poor Lander too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClNKD_6ow-g
In terms of verbal sparring, Zohran was Muhammad Ali and Colbert played the role of the washed up fighter Sonny Liston !😆
Great piece. I spent a whole morning looking at all the links! My take on SNL is they've been easing away from politics this last season, as happens in a presidential second term, when people just aren't as interested in political stuff. And as for "1.5 billion for South Park", I suspect that number is intentionally shocking and that the reality is much much much less than that.
Ross is probably far from the only person who hasn't thought about South Park in a long time, but as someone who has been watching the show faithfully for 28 years, I am here to say that many of my favorite episodes are from the last decade.
Excellent piece! You have put into words what so many of us have felt the last 8-10 years.
Don’t forget The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour on CBS. Brutal anti-war comedy and the best rock music on TV. All the groups were live. Every Sunday night we sat in front of the TV in the lounge of our dorm.
Smothers Brothers was always on tape from Los Angeles
Colbert moving on from the Report made sense-- he had done everything that could be done with the character, and "villains" like Bill O'Reilly were starting to seem almost quaint next to harder-edged conspiracists like Tucker Carlson. But I think instead of the Late Show he would have been better served with a 1/2 hour HBO show (or the equivalent) where he wouldn't have had to play the character but could have kept his sharper, more subversive angle, since he wouldn't have had to appeal to such a broad network audience.
Counterpoint: John Oliver also is no longer funny.
Very insightful piece
This is a great post about how these beloved shows or actors really have their moment in the sun. Colbert was brilliant as a parody of a two bit Bill O'Reilly but I think as a straight man (comedy wise!) he is just kind of meh.
Sienna Hubert-Ross did some killer Kamala impressions but it seems like she is almost too much of an uncanny look-alike. Like Harris herself, where is she going to go? Kamala seems to be out of the political scene for now and like your post stated, what is her role with the Dems as an ex-VP? Gore did well as an environmentalist and even Clinton seems to be a useful "martyr" but who knows about Harris.
Lionel McGloin, who hosts a YouTube show called No Cap on God. This guy is pretty fricking good, his interviews with the MAGA faithful are pretty hilarious. Jordan Klepper was another dude who could walk into the abodes of the MAGA faithful and just rip them to shreds. I think parody or satire is a great way to do humor but not everyone can pull it off..... Colbert, Klepper and now McGloin are all masters!
Great cultural incite per usual -- and always delivered with velvet glove, a touch of humor and sardonic wit... always look forward to your stuff.
My take on this is this problem won’t disappear until Trump’s long gone. Liberals cannot laugh at themselves as long as they believe doing so risks further empowering MAGA. It’s too dangerous. In the Bush era, it was easy because it was clear his political power was waining and he was on the way out.
They’re going to feel that way about the next one, and the one after that. The trick is to pry cultural institutions out of their control, or those institutions will die.
One thing I've found cringe about SNL is when they say "Live from New York, it's Saturday night." Like it doesn't have a surprise element anymore, and it feels stale. Most people aren't even watching it on TV- most of the cold open clips I watch are on Youtube the day after or later on.
I will also say that the MAGA humor has bad timing and jokes that get old really fast. I watched this comedy fest last summer with impersonations of both Biden and Trump, and the first 10 minutes were interesting. But the show went on for over an hour, and I think this clip is just 30 minutes of that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4xvQnu535s (Edit: I should say the first 5 minutes, ugh)
SNL's skits are still funny, and adapt to the new generation. They also benefit from being shorter skits (although some go on too long). None, however, are as long as a three hour "comedy" podcast. Thankfully.
A-gain, even about the showbiz: You missed the boat by failing to name spin-off "The Colbert Report".
Unfortunately for Stevie it was “Colbert Must Go” at CBS.
The timing you lay out here seems to also align with the idea that Joan Rivers’ death after outing the Obamas had a chilling effect on mainstream comedy.