Jimmy Fallon began his tenure on The Tonight Show last night and I watched it during lunch today. (One perk about working from home two days a week: watching TV during lunch.) Wow was he appreciative! I think I’m the only person he didn’t thank.
I like Jimmy Fallon, but I know him mostly from SNL and from the musical parodies he does which get a lot of play on the internet. His Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen imitations are amazing!
I think he did a good job on his debut. I remember taping Jay Leno’s first Tonight Show and it was pretty stiff, he was visibly nervous and awkward. Fallon was a bit tense but still much more collected than Leno was.
A new Tonight Show host is a big deal to me. I used to watch Carson all the time, though I didn’t appreciate him then as much as I do now. His skill as an interviewer hasn’t been matched by anyone since, he had an amazing ability to connect with his guests, to truly listen (or do a great job of pretending to), and ad-lib hysterical responses. But I always thought he had a bit of a disingenuous, forced quality.
It’s hard to know if Fallon is going to be funny or a good interviewer, because everything about this first show – even the conversations with the guests – was about how this is the first show. Fallon is certainly respectful of all who came before him and appreciative and apparently humbled, and that’s nice to see, but it’s too soon to know what he’ll be like when he hits his groove.
However, I was impressed. I think once Fallon settles down he’ll be very good, and is already better than Conan O’Brien ever was. O’Brien was (and still is) so forced, needy, pandering and neurotic, he’s hard to watch; he makes me uncomfortable. An entertainment show shouldn’t make you uncomfortable. Even with the pressures of his first appearance, Fallon is better.
I can already see the traditional Tonight Show crowd moving on though. How Fallon landed The Roots to be the house band is a mystery, but what a feat! However, their hip-hop/funk vibe might alienate traditional viewers, as will some of the humor which is already catering to a younger demographic. I also don’t know if Fallon is going to have a 2nd banana, an Ed McMahon to his Johnny Carson. He does have an “announcer,” but little attention was paid to him this first time out. It could be that Fallon doesn’t need a partner – did he have one on his other talk show? – but at this point it’s unclear if he’ll have a foil and what that rapport might be.
The show is looking a little edgy, and no one’s ever said that about The Tonight Show before. This may turn out to be the most dramatic overhaul in its history, and I’m encouraged. I like the new set and I like how it’s back in New York. Will the ratings retain Leno levels? I think they might settle in a little lower. I can see a time when Fallon and Letterman start alternating over who has the best ratings – Leno almost always had more viewers than Letterman – and if that happens, I don’t know how NBC will react; bring Leno back again?!?!
I already like the show more than I did during Leno’s tenure. I’m very interested in seeing how it develops over the next few weeks. I’ll be watching.
I like Jimmy Fallon, but I know him mostly from SNL and from the musical parodies he does which get a lot of play on the internet. His Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen imitations are amazing!
I think he did a good job on his debut. I remember taping Jay Leno’s first Tonight Show and it was pretty stiff, he was visibly nervous and awkward. Fallon was a bit tense but still much more collected than Leno was.
A new Tonight Show host is a big deal to me. I used to watch Carson all the time, though I didn’t appreciate him then as much as I do now. His skill as an interviewer hasn’t been matched by anyone since, he had an amazing ability to connect with his guests, to truly listen (or do a great job of pretending to), and ad-lib hysterical responses. But I always thought he had a bit of a disingenuous, forced quality.
It’s hard to know if Fallon is going to be funny or a good interviewer, because everything about this first show – even the conversations with the guests – was about how this is the first show. Fallon is certainly respectful of all who came before him and appreciative and apparently humbled, and that’s nice to see, but it’s too soon to know what he’ll be like when he hits his groove.
However, I was impressed. I think once Fallon settles down he’ll be very good, and is already better than Conan O’Brien ever was. O’Brien was (and still is) so forced, needy, pandering and neurotic, he’s hard to watch; he makes me uncomfortable. An entertainment show shouldn’t make you uncomfortable. Even with the pressures of his first appearance, Fallon is better.
I can already see the traditional Tonight Show crowd moving on though. How Fallon landed The Roots to be the house band is a mystery, but what a feat! However, their hip-hop/funk vibe might alienate traditional viewers, as will some of the humor which is already catering to a younger demographic. I also don’t know if Fallon is going to have a 2nd banana, an Ed McMahon to his Johnny Carson. He does have an “announcer,” but little attention was paid to him this first time out. It could be that Fallon doesn’t need a partner – did he have one on his other talk show? – but at this point it’s unclear if he’ll have a foil and what that rapport might be.
The show is looking a little edgy, and no one’s ever said that about The Tonight Show before. This may turn out to be the most dramatic overhaul in its history, and I’m encouraged. I like the new set and I like how it’s back in New York. Will the ratings retain Leno levels? I think they might settle in a little lower. I can see a time when Fallon and Letterman start alternating over who has the best ratings – Leno almost always had more viewers than Letterman – and if that happens, I don’t know how NBC will react; bring Leno back again?!?!
I already like the show more than I did during Leno’s tenure. I’m very interested in seeing how it develops over the next few weeks. I’ll be watching.
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