There’s been a lot of curiosity about Jay Leno’s new (and improved?) 10 pm NBC comedy show: Will it be any different than when he did “The Tonight Show?” How long until NBC fires Conan O’Brien and moves Leno back to his old time slot? How will the world survive without a new episode of some “Law & Order” spinoff to watch every night? Inquiring minds want to know.
We decided to get some answers by sending two writers from Comedy.com’s TV channel to sneak into a test taping of Leno’s new show yesterday on the NBC lot in Burbank. Here’s a look at what we saw and what Jay’s apparently planning to unleash on the few people out there who still watch network TV…
We arrived at NBC Studios posing as an unsuspecting audience member for the test screening and quickly stumbled upon our first interesting find. As we waited for the show to begin, we found gold: Near our seats in the lobby was a discarded script. It was a sketch from another Leno test show! The sketch featured Cheryl Hines (from “Curb Your Enthusiasm”) being attacked by the infamous “JMZ” paparazzi. Clearly a sign of what to expect. It was so bad it was good.
The studio: Super-slick. The structure is beautiful and the stage is huge. However, it’s basically the old “Tonight Show” setup with a few tweaks. There was lots of “car art” onstage (as if the set designer thought, “Leno like cars or something, right? Whatever, here’s some car stuff.”). A separate double-door entry was made for comedians (whereas the interview guests came in from the main backstage entry as Jay). The stage was so huge, we assumed Jay was going to drive onstage in a Model T. There were two chairs and no desk, which we thought was awkward. Can Leno conduct an intimate interview with a guest?
The Warm-up: Leno unexpectedly walked onstage in his trademark casual wear – all denim – and let the audience ask him questions. This could be the best part of the show, even though we assume it won’t ever actually air. Questions ran the gamut from “Can I get a job here?” to “Is that what you’re wearing?” It was a major reminder of Jay’s amazing rapport with an audience, and we hoped that his new show would include more of his genial, “every guy” relatability.
When Leno left, some douchey-looking guy in an Affliction shirt ran onstage shouting at us and throwing Leno merchandise into the audience. Then he started to juggle! Though he only chose hot blondes for a dance contest, that actually made it more enjoyable. We were grateful for the choice of a juggler over a hacky warm-up comedian to sit through.
Top of Show: We had floor seats, which meant we got to shake Jay’s hand when he came out – lucky us. It made sense to keep this aspect of the old show, but when Jay shook my hand it felt like a taping of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” The band is back, and they’re exactly the same. Kevin Eubanks and the Primetime Band were very lively, but ultimately reinforced the same flavorless lack of tone the old “Tonight Show” had. Ahh…that patented sound that you can’t tell whether it’s Salsa, Jazz, or Rock.
Monologue: It was Leno’s usual, “Tonight Show”-esque lengthy monologue, with a few funny tape throws peppered in. It was full of jokes that must’ve been written six months ago, including punchlines about the Octomom and a lot at the expense of George W. Bush. Most notably, he told a joke about President Obama’s recent speech to America’s youth about staying in school and getting good grades. The punchline was, “and then George W. Bush gave his rebuttal.” Ugh.
Later that night on the “Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien,” Conan had the exact same joke in his monologue! Spooky. And maybe a sign of things to come: three guys in one night, all on the same network, all fighting for the same monologue jokes. This could get ugly.
First Comedy Guest: Our old pal comedian Nick Thune was given is own segment, titled, “Nick Thune Changes Your Life.” He performed a hilarious bit about preparing for high school, which was a nice change of pace from Leno’s Bush jokes.
Celebrity Interview: Selma Blair (does she still count as a celebrity?) walked onstage uncomfortably with mega high heels, and sat uneasily in her chair opposite Jay. It proved that Jay still keeps a conversational distance with celebrities. The interview topics (spas, and her dour demeanor) were extensively prepared. There might as well have been a desk in front of Leno, at least it gave him something to lean on for his witty rejoinders. During this segment it was clear that the producers really intend to make another “Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, which made all the aesthetic changes seem really hollow and unnecessary. They threw to a tape of Selma Blair being ambushed by “JMZ,”proving that the sketch we snagged earlier in the lobby is going to be a recurring gag.
The Race Track: The Ford-sponsored concept of a “green” race track was really funny, only because Jay didn’t seem into it at all! It was essentially a long Ford commercial – sounds hilarious, right? Not so much. Selma Blair changed and was put in an Electric Ford Focus, which couldn’t look less like a race car. If it were a Hot Wheels, it would be the lamest Hot Wheels car ever. Selma had two minutes to go around the track twice. She made it in 58 seconds…that felt like an hour. We’d forgive the unabashed marketing ploy if it were entertaining, like Conan’s recent “Blow Up My Car” contest, but Leno’s track is even more forced and much less fun.
Second Comedy Guest: Tom Papa did a four-minute stand-up segment. Albeit very funny, it was his standard “my-wife-and-kids” fare– definitely a stark contrast to Nick Thune’s segment much earlier in the show. After the segment, Leno hopped over, wrapped it, and ordered us to stay tuned for the local news. But wasn’t there another comedy bit we’re supposed to see? Did it get cut?
Comedy Bit Leno Forgot: Nope, they still taped it. Leno kind of acknowledged that the segmenting of the show was messy. For this overlooked bit, they brought back another old “Tonight Show” standard: “Back to School Products.” The gag products included a laptop that makes paninis, a juice box full of steroids (it was of course called, “Juiced”), a Guitar Hero Sandwich (which was just a hero sandwich strapped onto a Guitar Hero controller), and our favorite – a teacher’s chalkboard that folded out to a sexy bed for seducing students. Leno loves jokes about teachers having sex with students, and always will. Somewhere, Carrot Top must be pissed at Leno for stealing his act.
At the end of the test taping, the producers asked us a couple questions. Not about content (thank God), but acoustics. Hollywood never ceases to amaze us.
VERDICT: The new show is muddled and confusing. There’s not enough innovation, and too much that reminds us of the old “Tonight Show” for us to feel like this is Jay’s true “victory lap” primetime show. But don’t worry fans, Jay and Kevin retain the same “electric” banter they always had. During the “Back to School” segment, we got our favorite Kevin rejoinder, “I love hot meals.”
What it comes down to is that Jay Leno is a great salesman. The producers won’t let him forget that. Maybe that’s why he continues to tour 160 days out of the year (or he just really hates his wife), and this show is still what he calls his “day job.” He seems aware of the show’s lack of sensibility. We’re guessing the segment order will change up and the celebrity guests will be actual celebrities, but it’ll still be essentially what we saw yesterday.
Jay is at the helm of this show, but we get the feeling he has little autonomy on his own show. With his own primetime program, we thought we’d get to see more of Jay as himself. Unfortunately, looks like he’ll continue to be a big ladle serving us more imitation comedy gruel. In the meantime, we’ll just keep staying tuned for Conan.
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