Fans of Stephen Colbert have missed his enthusiastic, “Hello, Nation!” greeting for nine months now. Those who tuned in to “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on Tuesday, Sept. 8, however, heard that notable welcome again.
“The Colbert Report” on Comedy Central aired its last episode in December 2014. For nine years on that talk show, Colbert took on the persona of an ultra-conservative figure. In fact, during his new show on Tuesday, he described his former job as a being a “narcissistic, conservative pundit.” Viewers of “The Colbert Report” rarely saw Colbert be himself on that show. Rather, he would always seemingly be making fun of the politically far right by his comedy and his news.
Viewers finally have a chance to see Colbert be himself on his new talk show. It is still most likely a hyped up version of him, but at least he no longer markets himself as his former conservative persona.
Those who watched “The Colbert Report” probably wonder what makes “The Late Show” different from Colbert’s former show besides the lack of a façade. If all the Colbert Nation can recall, the Comedy Central show was mostly comedy with a side of news. For the most part, his new show is the exact opposite.
Colbert’s charm and wit that fans fell in love in on his former show is nowhere missed on his new show. Viewers of the “The Late Show” can pick up on his humor in every segment of the episode. From the introduction, to talking about the show’s sponsors, to election coverage, to the two guests –– George Clooney and Jeb Bush –– comedic timing was side by side with what he was discussing. On his old show, it was the opposite. Weird, nerdy, quirky comedy took center stage while news stood in the background. This time around, Colbert still allowed comedy to be present, but just not in the forefront.
An example of this can be found within the first few minutes of the show.
When Colbert talked about one of his guests for the night, Jeb Bush, he stated how Bush used to be the governor of Florida. His remark immediately after that was, “You would think that much exposure to oranges and crazy people would’ve prepared him for Donald Trump. Evidently not.”
Shortly after that, Colbert had a humorous five minute segment on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. All the while, he ate Oreos and made connections with what Trump said to the cookie. Curious now? YouTube that segment of his show.
Overall, any member of Colbert Nation will be pleased with this new talk show. Fans of the former show host, David Letterman, should tune in also. At the beginning of the show, Colbert thanked Letterman and said how he had changed comedic history. I, for one, am looking forward to watching Colbert do the same thing every weeknight at 10:35p.m.
