Trevor Noah on Monday took a slightly unexpected approach to his first night as the new host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Sure, Noah brought along a few bells and whistles — a moderately upgraded set and some fancy new graphics gave the show a slightly fresher feel — but for the most part, Jon Stewart’s successor played it safe, giving us exactly what we want from our Daily Show (but with way more winking.)
“I can only assume that this is as strange for you as it is for me,” he told the audience at the top of the half-hour. “Jon Stewart was more than just a late night host. He was often our voice, our refuge and in many ways, our political dad. And it’s weird, because dad has left. And now it feels like the family has a new stepdad… and he’s black, which is not ideal.”
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Noah kicked things off by skewering the media’s coverage of Pope Francis’ recent tour (“I’m saying the Pope has a huge c–k!”), lamenting the departure of John Boehner (“I just got here!”) and even taking a dig at Whitney Houston’s death by crack (“Too soon?”). His first episode also introduced new correspondent Roy Wood, Jr., who helmed a pretty funny segment about why we shouldn’t be going to Mars — and which black celebrities are most likely to make the cut. (“Beyoncé, Oprah and Michael Strahan. … White people like anything Kelly Ripa likes.”)
The evening wrapped with a visit from comedian Kevin Hart, a safe choice for a first guest — and not just because he came bearing gifts. The conversation was short and sweet, not unlike Hart, and the two had a solid rapport. If this whole “hosting” thing doesn’t work out, maybe they can team up for a buddy comedy or something.
But what did you think of Noah’s first outing? Grade his debut below, then drop a comment with your full review.
