Re: OT: TDS returning tonight

Just got back from the first TDS since the strike began and must say
Stewart hit the right combo of funny bits and snarky cynicism about the
strike.

If you don't want to know anything about the show, stop reading right
now......



Ok, for those of you who are still reading, here's went down.

Before the taping began, he dropped this bomb on the audience...Seems
Stewart worked very hard behind the scenes to get CC to agree to the
same deal that Worldwide Pants has with the Guild. He got the approval
from CC, presented it to the Guild, and the Guild promptly rejected it
last week. Same exact deal. It was apparent Stewart was completely
flummoxed by the Guild's decision and questioned the logic behind the
rejection. Stewart was quite serious during this discussion and you
could tell he was crestfallen about the rejection.

Once that was out of the way, he took several questions, none of which
were all that revealing, but provided Jon with the jumping off point for
some good lines. Asked what he did during the strike, he said he
realized that without the show he's just an old guy yelling at the TV.
The mood lightened up greatly from there.

The first act ran a solid fifteen minutes. At one point Stewart looked
out to the stage manager and asked where they were time wise. With no
visible scripts on the desk or with the crew, the show was loose and
conversational, but the bits were well fleshed out and the show ran
smoother than I was expecting. Most of the first act was dedicated to
strike stuff including a hilarious bit about the writers walking the
picket lines and going from sickly to Conan the Barbarian. It's a great
sight gag and quite funny.

Jon Oliver did a bit about walking the picket line while still working
so as to keep his work visa and not get deported.

There were two segments with a labor relations professor from Cornell.
And although they didn't dwell on it, seems the professor got some
negative feedback from the Guild regarding his impending appearance on
the show. The prof was a bit stiff at first, but Stewart did a good job
of pulling him into the interview. It was here where Stewart began to
make sarcastic references regarding the Guild's nose thumbing of the
deal he worked so hard on much to the delight of the cheering crowd. He
asked what the strategy would be behind such a move. The professor could
offer none. Stewart never came out with details during the segment, but
made it obvious he had been involved with a deal that fell through.

He did a hilarious toss to Stephen Colbert which involved Stephen
sporting a fake strike beard and shredding a script.

After the close Stewart thanked the audience profusely. You could tell
he was happy to be back, but upset about what went down with the Guild.
In fact, he even said he was at once happy and sad and that duality
kinda made everything seem right for his psyche.

I must admit my expectations were pretty low coming into the show, but I
was knocked out by how well it came off. Stewart really walked the
perfect line between pissed off and funny. Although, I have no idea how
they are going to edit the blasted thing considering how long act one
went.

Looking forward to the rest of the week....

Traci


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