Before we get into the top-five moments of the week, I want to shout out the No. 6 clip of the week. QVC+ has brought Busy Philipps back to late-night TV with a show that runs every Wednesday. Busy This Week is still in its infancy and has some kinks to work out, as all new shows do, but this bit where they made Kenan Thompson make a vision board is inspired. I want to know what all celebs want to manifest, because they already have so much. This feels psychologically revealing in a way normal chat segments just aren’t. It was an oddly insightful week all around in late night. Let’s check it out!
5. Would You Believe Miranda July’s Cool With Being Uncomfortable?
Miranda July is a fascinating talk-show guest, because she doesn’t seem particularly horny for the audience’s laughs and attention. She seemed really present with Daily Show host Desi Lydic, as they both mused on aging as a woman and the mental gymnastics that engenders. Lydic was game too; both women had a Cavett-esque desire to get stuck in with some thorny ideas, presentational nature of chat shows be damned. This interview didn’t necessarily win late night on the metric of “be funny,” but it definitely made me want to read July’s new book.
4. After Midnight Demands Self-Reflection
Before we talk about this game on After Midnight, I want to emphasize that the YouTube embed above works. It just has the title card of a broken video. Hit play, and you’ll see a game where the After Midnight guests have to guess which of them has been tagged in which random Instagram post. This was a deeply revealing game and mildly psychologically tortuous to play, because the contestants genuinely didn’t know if they’d been tagged in an aluminum-free deodorant post or not. Ana Gasteyer had to quickly conjecture why a deodorant brand would tag her, and the only guess was “I smell.” Great stuff.
3. Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell Brainstorm a Broadway Collab
This was very sweet — just two dudes being buds and coming up with a revival of The Odd Couple in which they both play Felix and Jon Stewart is Oscar. “Somebody right now is saying, ‘That might work,’” Carell said. It’s me; I’m the one saying that. Colbert picked Carell to be the main guest on his birthday show, and that’s cute as fuck. Shout-out to being cute.
2. Just Some Classic Sketchwork on The Tonight Show
It’s always fun when the NBC talk shows just become Saturday Night Live. Tonight Show sketches are silly in the way Fallon’s best SNL material was, and this segment with Will Forte was a lovely little palate cleanser between chat segments. Just several deeply silly jokes in a row, and then the plane crashes — end of sketch! In and out before any games get overused. Lovely.
1. “Jokes Seth Can’t Tell” Keeps It Loose
It would be unfair of me to say Late Night With Seth Meyers took to heart my lessons to learn from Everybody’s in L.A, namely never being afraid of imperfection. Because this show has always had a penchant for leaning into failures. Seth Meyers seems to delight in a joke bombing or a complex bit coming apart at the seams. One of Amber Ruffin’s jokes in this week’s “Jokes Seth Can’t Tell” rested on her singing in a perfect vibrato, a feat she only accomplished once in rehearsal. Why do I know that behind-the-scenes tea? Because Meyers told the audience, that’s why. Late Night gives the vibe of a show where it’s okay to fail, and that’s why it succeeds. Also, Jenny Hagel looked cool as hell in her cutoff leather jacket. Come on, gun show!
