I’ve always liked Jay Leno but haven’t been a regular viewer of any of the late night shows for a number of years.  I’m more of a Letterman guy really.   Jay’s a likable guy, not very edgy, but he does a pretty good show.  He’s like the equivalent of ordering the Chicken Parmesan at every restaurant you go to:  generally speaking it’s OK to pretty good, and you usually know what you’re going to get when you order it.  Safe, but vaguely enjoyable.

I never really watched much of Conan’s show, just because it’s been years since I’ve watched any of the late night shows at all.  That being said, I think he’s really talented and really funny.  NBC and Jay Leno did themselves a massive disservice by screwing Conan the way they did.  Conan and his staff are going to be just fine, thanks to Conan playing hardball with his severance agreement.  But Jay and The Tonight Show as a brand are both damaged goods, and rightfully so.

This was just painful to watch.  It started out OK, safe but vaguely enjoyable.  In fact, the bit with Betty White in the opening was pretty funny.  And the search for a new desk segment was pretty good.  But trotting Jamie Foxx out to blatantly cheerlead for Jay’s return to the show?  Really?  They’re pretty desperate to erase all memory of Conan.

I turned it off after that.  I won’t be watching again, in spite of how packed this week is supposed to be with A-list guests, and spite of the general likability of Jay.  I don’t think he’s that likable anymore, and I suspect there are a lot of people who agree with me.  But I eagerly await the return of Conan O’Brien to the airwaves, wherever he shows up.  I’d especially like to see him here.  But I also hope he land a new late-night gig to compete head-to-head with Jay.  I think he’ll crush the Tonight Show if he does.

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