Review: Trevor Noah's First DAILY SHOW Feels Like Jon Stewart's DAILY SHOW; For Now

There is a saying in sports that goes, "You never want to be the guy that follows The Guy," or something to that effect. It means that following on the heels of an icon is a fool's errand. No one remembers that Gene Bartow replaced John Wooden as coach at UCLA, or that Marty Domres took over under-center for Johnny Unitas; both were destined to fail, simply because of the legends that they were unfortunate enough to succeed. Yet, that is the very situation in which Trevor Noah found himself when he assumed the anchor chair at Comedy Central's World News Headquarters last night as the new host of THE DAILY SHOW.

As Noah sincerely explained in his opening, Jon Stewart was more than just a late-night talk-show host. With his unique brand of political humor and his keen eye for detecting hypocrisy, Stewart became young and progressive America's ethical center. He was their "political dad" who ushered many from uninterested bystander to fully-engaged citizen. His impact on television, comedy, politics, and America cannot be overstated. However, as Noah reminded us in his inaugural opening, "Dad has left, and now, it feels like the family has a new step-dad. And, he's black." Except, during the first episode of this new era, it didn't quite feel like dad was completely gone yet.

Other than the inevitable jokes about not being Jon Stewart, everything else that Noah said in his first broadcast, especially during the show's first two segments, sounded like it could have been said by Jon Stewart, and with good reason; many of Stewart's producers and writers have stuck around to aid in the transition between the Stewart and Noah administrations. If many will remain long-term is still yet to be seen, but their presence clearly helped give the new TDS a solid start.

After the earnest opening, Noah partook in a bit of self-deprecating humor to acknowledge the fact that a number of extremely well-known comedians had been offered, and turned down, the position before Comedy Central arrived on him (those declining to replace Stewart are rumored to have included Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer, and Chris Rock). Noah then dove into a fairly standard DAILY SHOW round-up of the news, highlighted by coverage of the Pope's first visit to the United States and John Boehner's sudden resignation from Congress.

While the segment didn't break any new comedic or editorial ground, it did what it was supposed to do, it made me laugh. Noah seemed at home in the more scripted segments, even coming off as a naturally charismatic storyteller at times. His first correspondent "remote," with the returning Jordan Klepper, went off without a hitch. In the bit, Klepper was not yet convinced that anyone was capable of replacing Stewart Boehner, and it had him quite worked up, since he had just purchased a new condo.

The highlight of the first episode was the debut of new "Senior Mars Correspondent," Roy Wood, Jr. Along with Noah, he debated the significance of finding water on Mars and what it might mean to African-Americans. Between you and me, I think Noah's DAILY SHOW could be pretty successful if they dedicated one segment a night just to Wood telling us what he doesn't "give a $h!t" about.

While Noah seemed at home in the first two sketch-centric segments, when guest Kevin Hart came out for the interview portion, the new host appeared a little less at ease. The pair of comedians covered about 27 different free-wheeling topics in a five minute conversation from ties to running to Instagram to Hart's height. Interviewing anyone is hard. Having to be funny while interviewing someone is insanely difficult, but to do it with the specter of Jon Stewart hanging over your shoulder must be damn near impossible. That being typed, I have no doubt that Noah will get more accustomed to the process as time goes on; after all, if you watch Stewart's first interview with Michael J. Fox from 1999, it wasn't exactly comic gold, and Stewart had already hosted a talk-show before taking over TDS.

Noah, a black comedian who grew up in Apartheid South Africa, clearly brings different sensibilities to the show than Stewart, a white, Jewish man raised in Jersey. I would imagine that as Noah begins to feel more comfortable in the role, and as the writers begin to get a better sense of his humor and perspective, tose unique sensibilities will become more evident, and the new host take full ownership of the show. The question then becomes, how far from Stewart's well-worn, much-beloved path can he actually take it?

When Stewart assumed the Daily Show duties in 1999, he was replacing Craig Kilborn, who had moved to CBS' LATE LATE SHOW. Under Kilborn, the show was still a parody of a news broadcast, but it had a more ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT feel. Stewart's passion for politics is what transformed the show into a culture touchpoint for over a decade and a half. While Noah will clearly have a tremendous amount of say as to what this new iteration of DAILY SHOW will become, I can't imagine it ever being anything too different from Stewart's. The show has grown into one of, if not the, most important political programs on television, and as the 2016 presidential election approaches, Noah will be thrust further and further into the spotlight.Will that spotlight be too much for him to handle, or will he be able to step out from Stewart's shadow and create his own legacy? Only time will tell, but Bartow and Domres aren't optimistic.

Then again, Steve Young did win a Super Bowl replacing Joe Montana, and Lou Gehrig did become "the luckiest man on the face of the earth" after Wally Pipping Wally Pipp, so perhaps Trevor Noah won't be just a place-holder. After a solid first outing, I'm getting on board with Noah.

If nothing else, at least we know that Trevor Noah's DAILY SHOW has righted one of the most egregiously ignored atrocities in the history of television.

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What did you think Trevor Noah's first night at the helm of THE DAILY SHOW? Let me know in the comments below, or on Twitter @BWWMatt. If you want to follow along with my "366 in 366" articles, you can check out #BWW366in366 on Twitter. Also, don't forget to follow @BWWTVWorld on Twitter and Like us onFacebook for all of the latest TV news, reviews, and recaps.

Photo Credit: Comedy Central

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