I tried watching the new Jay Leno show for the first time tonight. Holy cow. I lasted maybe 15 minutes before I had to change the channel in a Darwinian self-preservation move.
I’ve been confused over what in the hell NBC is thinking in putting Leno in a spot generally reserved for the ‘Law and Order’ and — God help us — ‘ER’-type shows. Is it cheaper to pay Leno than to pay for hour-long dramas? Do they honestly think people will watch it every night? I really have no idea. So, while I have been less than even luke-warm about this whole experiment, I finally decided I’d try it out tonight. Despite having a slow learning curve when it comes to bad tv (at times), I’m pretty sure I won’t make that mistake again. The monologue was stale, uninspired and maybe even recycled. The final straw for me came when Leno made a stupid Hugh Heffner joke. Now, I’m no fan of Heffner, but jokes about the ancient playboy seem a little desperate. And this joke was worse than desperate: it wasn’t funny. It was some nonsense about how old the guy is that when he walked into the room with his ‘bunnies’ he couldn’t remember which one he was going to ‘do.’ Yes, that was the joke: he’s old; he has young sex pots around him; he couldn’t remember with whom he was going to have sex. Because he can — and does — have sex with all of them. Apparently.
Really? This is from Carson’s heir? The joke is so tired, tacky and lame it doesn’t even deserve blogging about — even from me, a lame blogger. There are still probably some viable (ha!) jokes to be made about Hef — maybe something about how anachronistic the whole Playboy crap is (or should be) — but I’m pretty sure a joke about how an 80-year-old man is senile and can’t remember which 20-something blonde he’s going to ‘do’ isn’t one of them.
Like I said, the worst part was that it wasn’t even funny.
life and puppies 
I haven’t watched this, but I think it has to be a bad move. I don’t care how cheap it is, if it’s terrible, it’s not a good idea for a network. And I haven’t watched, being pretty sure it is a waste of time. I have to say, I’m so delighted that Conan is now on at a time I can watch. I never liked Letterman much either, and Leno has gotten so bland in his attempt to be the world’s most likeable comedian, that 10:30 was just no fun.
Agreed — love Conan. Conan = genius.
Craig Ferguson = my absolute favorite now. Too bad he’s on late. But I do DVR him and watch while I’m getting ready for work in the morning. Do yourselves a favor and check him out if you have never. Laugh. Out. Loud.
Yeah, I’ve never been much into Leno anyway, but this was definitely a bad move. I’m so sick of networks trying to be cheaper and refusing to take any real risks. It would have been much better if they’d picked up and aired an interesting and intelligent new drama with talented actors. Well, my motivation for this frustration is evident, but still, it’s nice to know that others aren’t liking the new show choice. I agree, the only bonus is Conan’s new slot. Now, HE’S funny.