Tonight Show Shakeup Leno Back In

[quote name='LinkinPrime']Heroes was trash after S1. Do yourselves a favor and watch Chuck instead.[/QUOTE]

NO!

I do admit that heroes is starting to lose my interest. It's like it seems there is no "Threat to the world" anymore, like in s1 and s2. My gf is hooked on heroes after one episode she caught me watching on Netflix.
 
I haven't watched any of the Late Night Shows in a few years due to a change in sleep schedule, but if Conan goes to a new network I'll at least DVR the shows. He was always my favorite and it's sad to see him treated this way.
 
[quote name='ITDEFX']NO!

I do admit that heroes is starting to lose my interest. It's like it seems there is no "Threat to the world" anymore, like in s1 and s2. My gf is hooked on heroes after one episode she caught me watching on Netflix.[/QUOTE]

Yeah I still like Heroes. Season 2 and 3 were a big step down from Season 1 for sure. Season 4 has been much better, still not season one quality, but much better. The show is just good in a cheesy, B movie kind of way to me.

Chuck I've never watched as the previews just never interested me and I've had too much on my TV watching plate as is so I'm pretty resistant to picking up new shows.
 
[quote name='LinkinPrime']Heroes was trash after S1. Do yourselves a favor and watch Chuck instead.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. Another bad aspect of this mess is that NBC is going to have to scramble to fill 5 hours next year and there's talk of giving Herpes Heroes a 5th season. NBC needs to put that show down like a rabid animal.
 
[quote name='neocisco']Agreed. Another bad aspect of this mess is that NBC is going to have to scramble to fill 5 hours next year and there's talk of giving Herpes Heroes a 5th season. NBC needs to put that show down like a rabid animal.[/QUOTE]

*High-Five*

Nothing would make me happier than to see that shitty show canceled. I just wish I could get the time I wasted on S2 and half of S3 back :[
 
[quote name='neocisco']Agreed. Another bad aspect of this mess is that NBC is going to have to scramble to fill 5 hours next year and there's talk of giving Herpes Heroes a 5th season. NBC needs to put that show down like a rabid animal.[/QUOTE]

I haven't watched season 4 at all (are they doing seasons, since they had like this weird comic serial thing where it should be 5? Or beats me, I don't fuckin' get it), and 3 is pretty much the reason why.

That said, this is NBC. They ain't replacing Heroes with Masterpiece Theatre. It's going to be another hackneyed crime/law show, a hackneyed hospital show, a hackneyed detective show, and perhaps a hackneyed postapocalyptic drama that y'all will get excited about and hate shortly thereafter. And also a reality show where people make instant oatmeal.

The choice isn't really "Heroes or something better," because it's prime time TV.

All that said, here's a harsh dose of sobering maybe-reality that lets us pretentious cultural elite types feel good(ish) about Conan getting moved:

http://www.gq.com/blogs/the-q/2010/...an-the-wire-and-why-everyone-is-so-angry.html

It's certainly been heartening to see the Armies of the Educated, Coastal, Ironic and Hip rush to the ramparts in defense of Conan O'Brien this week, filled with shock and dismay at NBC's idiocy. (Though I suspect that Conan might have preferred the same numbers of people had tuned in at 11:35pm these past seven months.) My question is, Why the shock? Where on earth did the Coco minions get the notion they could expect anything from network TV?

A previous generation of cool coastal elites took it for granted that they would never agree with a decision made by a TV network—that their taste would forever be out of step with the rest of the faceless, anesthetized, Disney-brainwashed, choose-your-Beat-cliché masses. That's what made them cool and elite. That's why they had moved to the coast. If everybody liked edgy, it would be called middley—a nicely onomatopoetic word for whatever it is that Jay Leno does.

That used to be a given. TV was the Vast Wasteland, short-hand for all that middle. Then things began to change. Cultural elites grew accustomed to watching actual quality on their (fine, our) TV sets. There was The Sopranos, The Wire, The Daily Show, Mad Men—to drop just the most obvious names. Even if we intellectually understood that these shows existed precisely because of business models that were drastically different than the networks' (more people watch your average The Big Bang Theory, than watched The Sopranos finale) the physical sensation of sitting in our living rooms, watching, was the same. So it's forgivable that we started to believe in an illusion: That we had won. That the Box was now Ours.

What you're hearing now is the rage of that illusion exposed, the anger of outsiders who were briefly allowed to believe they were inside, that one of their own now ran the show. It was a false gift—offered and then cruelly withdrawn, but ultimately it's for our own good. And Conan's, too. The truth is that there's only room for one Dave. (And his ratings are neither surprising nor inappropriate to his sensibility. If Letterman appealed to the majority of Americans, wouldn't you assume he was doing something wrong? Or that you were?)

If Conan had stayed on The Tonight Show he would have always had to fight the inexorable pull toward settling into the only niche left, and that's Leno's. That's why I'm hoping he takes an NBC buyout large enough that he can forgo Fox and go instead to cable, where he truly belongs. There he'll be free to be as smart, perverse and genuinely good as he wants. Even if only a fraction of us will be watching.
— Brett Martin
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mykevermin's link;6732931 said:
That's why I'm hoping he takes an NBC buyout large enough that he can forgo Fox and go instead to cable, where he truly belongs.
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I've been saying this since all this shit started. An HBO-aired Conan show would be awesome.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']If you did not watch The Tonight Show last night, Conan read off a list of proposed names of the porno film he was invited to work on. I found a transcribed list, huzzah.[/QUOTE]
I was laughing my ass off when I saw that bit last night.

No one here watches The Office? That's the only show really worth watching on NBC in my opinion.
 
[quote name='yukine']I was laughing my ass off when I saw that bit last night.

No one here watches The Office? That's the only show really worth watching on NBC in my opinion.[/QUOTE]

Yep, Conan and The Office are the only things I watch on NBC.
 
[quote name='mykevermin']

All that said, here's a harsh dose of sobering maybe-reality that lets us pretentious cultural elite types feel good(ish) about Conan getting moved:

http://www.gq.com/blogs/the-q/2010/...an-the-wire-and-why-everyone-is-so-angry.html[/QUOTE]


I have to disagree with the basic premise of this article. Saying that Conan is edgy and far too intelligent for middle America is like saying Obama is a leftist radical. In relation to the complete spectrum of popular comedy Conan is not edgy or weird compared to for instance (a show I don't really care for) Tim and Eric Awesome show....he's not as vanilla as Leno by a long shot. Conan rests somewhere in the middle slightly more progressive than Letterman in terms of more absurd non traditional skits.

I believe up until Leno The Tonite Show was a great catalyst for moving more progressive humor into middle America. Every generation of comics always mentions Carson and Letterman as people they looked up to. How many future great comedians are going to be inspired by the The tonite Show with Jay Leno? Answer None. The people that find Leno funny will die off very soon but Conan type of humor will become Middle American's humor. I would argue it already has hell The Simpsons has already out lasted Jay's first run as Tonite Show host handily--a show that Conan help build a huge fan base for in the early 90s.
 
As someone from "middle America" I am starting to get pissed at people bringing that crap up when deciding who likes Leno vs. Conan vs. Letterman ect. That middle America stuff is garbage and just an easy to arrive at conclusion when trying to figure out who the fuck out there like Leno.
 
[quote name='007']The saddest thing about all of this is that, even in those comments, it becomes obvious that they were ALWAYS worried about the appeal of Conan on the Tonight Show. A situation that could've completely been stopped 5 years ago has now turned into a network clusterfuck of epic proportions.[/QUOTE]

The funny thing is, Conan did take it down a couple notches and make the show more tame. You don't see shit like the masturbating bear on anymore. He did try to change it up and appeal to a bigger audience.

Also, I watched Conan last night and didn't see Andy's plea aired twice like gareman did.
 
cgarb, cool off. I think people refer to "middle america" as a frame of mind more than a geographic location. They're just pointing to the middle of the hypothetical bell curve of American taste.

[quote name='gareman']I have to disagree with the basic premise of this article. Saying that Conan is edgy and far too intelligent for middle America is like saying Obama is a leftist radical. In relation to the complete spectrum of popular comedy Conan is not edgy or weird compared to for instance (a show I don't really care for) Tim and Eric Awesome show....he's not as vanilla as Leno by a long shot. Conan rests somewhere in the middle slightly more progressive than Letterman in terms of more absurd non traditional skits.

I believe up until Leno The Tonite Show was a great catalyst for moving more progressive humor into middle America. Every generation of comics always mentions Carson and Letterman as people they looked up to. How many future great comedians are going to be inspired by the The tonite Show with Jay Leno? Answer None. The people that find Leno funny will die off very soon but Conan type of humor will become Middle American's humor. I would argue it already has hell The Simpsons has already out lasted Jay's first run as Tonite Show host handily--a show that Conan help build a huge fan base for in the early 90s.[/QUOTE]

I get that. But I also know that what you're arguing is akin to saying that Tabasco isn't hot because Dave's Insanity Sauce is out there. You know what? You're right. That doesn't change the fact that Taco Bell "Fire Sauce" is about as hot as plain yogurt.

Hmm. I hope that analogy makes sense.

Also, you may be right about people pushing the envelope on Tonight Show. I watched Carson a bit growing up, but wasn't savvy enough to see if it was edgy or not. I know that Leno is the plain yogurt, and that NBC has shown, by their maneuvers over the past week or so, that they want something comfortably boring on their lineup - and they're scared to fucking death to dare take a chance.

The Tonight Show may have been edgy, but Leno single handedly killed that legacy over a decade ago.
 
[quote name='KaneRobot']I've been saying this since all this shit started. An HBO-aired Conan show would be awesome.[/QUOTE]

This is a great idea actually. I'd watch.
 
Yeah I guess the "middle America" thing isn't really literally the middle of America. I just like to defend us Midwest folk as more than just retard simpletons. I mean we do have those in spades but no more than any other region.....right?
 
[quote name='Trakan']Also, I watched Conan last night and didn't see Andy's plea aired twice like gareman did.[/QUOTE]Not sure if they maybe edit the show again for the West Coast viewers, but they replay clips of the sketches they do during the show at the end, after Conan says goodbye. Last night's happened to be Andy's plea.
 
"(more people watch your average The Big Bang Theory, than watched The Sopranos finale)"
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Really? No shit? Could it be because you have to pay for HBO (actually, a base cable bill AND the HBO fee on top) and the other show is on a widely distributed (and free) broadcast television network? Maybe I expect too much from a GQ writer.
 
[quote name='SteveMcQ']Not sure if they maybe edit the show again for the West Coast viewers, but they replay clips of the sketches they do during the show at the end, after Conan says goodbye. Last night's happened to be Andy's plea.[/QUOTE]

It was also at the end on hulu.
 
[quote name='SteveMcQ']Not sure if they maybe edit the show again for the West Coast viewers, but they replay clips of the sketches they do during the show at the end, after Conan says goodbye. Last night's happened to be Andy's plea.[/QUOTE]

Oh okay, that makes sense. I thought he was inferring that certain things were edited out and they replayed Andy's plea in place of them.

They've been airing clips of the show at the end since he was on Late Night.
 
[quote name='yukine']I was laughing my ass off when I saw that bit last night.

No one here watches The Office? That's the only show really worth watching on NBC in my opinion.[/QUOTE]

Community and The Office for me. Chuck also, if it is on when none of the others shows I watch are on.
 
[quote name='Trakan']Oh okay, that makes sense. I thought he was inferring that certain things were edited out and they replayed Andy's plea in place of them.

They've been airing clips of the show at the end since he was on Late Night.[/QUOTE]

I know they have done that often, but I assume it's when they have extra time. The fact that they did this plus had an extra long musical guest, an additional commercial break and played the overture extra long one would assume at least 4-5 minutes was edited out unexpectedly.
 
[quote name='life.exe']Community [/QUOTE]

community is THE funniest show on tv right now. theyve done an excellent job in fleshing out the cast and giving them distinct personalities. i really hope it gets renewed for years to come.

i hadnt thought of conan on HBO before, could be good, but itd probably be a weekly show then, and i dont like that. i wouldnt mind if he went to cable, i think fox would let him do a lot of late night that he left behind when he took over the tonight show.
 
I just read that Conan is going to get 30 million to walk away and can work anywhere he wants after except for The Tonight Show.
 
[quote name='wildcpac']I just read that Conan is going to get 30 million to walk away and can work anywhere he wants after except for The Tonight Show.[/QUOTE]
Where'd you read that? That's great news.

Nevermind, it's all over the media.
 
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=9577427

NBC is nearing a deal with "Tonight" host Conan O'Brien to leave the network, freeing Jay Leno to reclaim the late-night show he stewarded for 17 years.
A person familiar with the negotiations says top NBC Universal executives and representatives for O'Brien on Friday were close to settling details of his departure. The person, who did not have the authority to discuss the issue, spoke on condition of anonymity.
The person says Universal Studios president and COO Ron Meyer is among those involved in the talks.

The focus is on how much O'Brien, who has time left on his NBC contract, would be paid for leaving and what limits NBC may put on his future employment at another network.
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I don't see how NBC should get to kick him out of his show and terminate his contract and then get to set conditions for his future employment elsewhere.
 
[quote name='yukine']Nah, Conan wants to get back at NBC. Best way to do that is to take his fan base to a competing network.[/QUOTE]


He should move to weather channel, there is no way he will get blown away by the competition
 
Would 11pm at Fox be the same as 12:30am at NBC? Or would Conan try to keep it tame like he did with the Tonight Show?

I think Fox definitely knows how to build a good brand name behind something.
 
Fox would definitely be more lax with content restrictions. Not by much, but certainly more than NBC, even 12:35AM NBC that Conan used to air on. The only problem is Fox doesn't have shit to function as a good lead-in for the work week, anytime Fox has a show that gains a following, they cancel that and roll the dice on some other show that isn't nearly as popular (like canceling Terminator when ratings were going up while keeping Dollhouse when its ratings were nosediving). Or their own show-destroying mistakes of airing episodes out of order, playing timeslot roulette, or preempting with sports...as was the case with Firefly. Freaks & Geeks (the most promising show NBC had the entire past decade) even suffered the same fate for the same reasons on NBC.

Conan on Fox could just have the same ratings struggle he had when he took over on Tonight and had a crap lead-in. Conan's best longevity bet would to get on Comedy Central and form a trio out of Stewart, Colbert, and himself. Being on Fox would just be an uphill battle due to Fox having their head further up their ass than NBC does.

Or maybe it could work on Fox. You never know.
 
With $30 million, why worry about future work? I'd retire from hosting, do a little writing, and spend all my time with my family.

My only question is, what happens when Leno comes back and the ratings still suck? Do they reincarnate Johnny Carson?
 
[quote name='RedvsBlue']With $30 million, why worry about future work? I'd retire from hosting, do a little writing, and spend all my time with my family.
[/QUOTE]
Because it's quite possible he loves his job, and would like to continue doing it. There's also the chance to get back at NBC which would be awesome.
 
[quote name='RedvsBlue']
My only question is, what happens when Leno comes back and the ratings still suck? Do they reincarnate Johnny Carson?[/QUOTE]


Leno's ratings will build back up after a bit. His fans will tune in, and he'll have better lead ins than Conan got with Leno's stupid show.

Again, that was a death sentence. No one's watching a talk show at 10pm when there's other stuff on to watch. People watch them at 11:30 and after as there's not much else on. So Conan's ratings partly dropped as people were on the other networks at 10 pm, and not switching to NBC for news and late night shows in great numbers.

Leno won't have that problem unfortunately.
 
[quote name='Rei no Otaku']Because it's quite possible he loves his job, and would like to continue doing it. There's also the chance to get back at NBC which would be awesome.[/QUOTE]

...or fail miserably and prove NBC right in the first place. Its all on what he wants to do really but one thing is for certain, if he is smart with his money, he certainly won't have to worry about money no matter what he wants to do.
 
[quote name='RedvsBlue']...or fail miserably and prove NBC right in the first place. Its all on what he wants to do really but one thing is for certain, if he is smart with his money, he certainly won't have to worry about money no matter what he wants to do.[/QUOTE]

He's been in a position to not have to worry about money for a LONG time. He wasn't making peanuts before, and was getting paid a lot in this current gig.

He hosted the Late Night for 16 years or whatever, it's clear he loves doing this. So he'll definitely take his show somewhere else.
 
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