The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien (2009–2010) User Reviews (12)

Conan Sets Record-Get Ready For FOX-TNT WTF

[DKosty123 · 8/10 · 24 January 2010]

I stayed up late this past Friday to watch Conan's last Tonight Show. It is his last due to the poor management of the NBC Network more than anything else. NBC has done nearly everything it could possibly do to end it's late night reign that it inherited from Johnny Carson. This might put the final nail in that coffin. Conan now has the record as the shortest tenure as Tonight host due to the nonsense of self-destruction going on at NBC.

I found this last show with Will Farrell to be a very good show. Conan bowed out with a style as defiant as anyone- his last appearance was on stage with the band, grinding on a guitar like a hard rocker behind Will Farrell singing a defiant song. This is indeed appropriate. He lost a short battle to keep Tonight to the consummate Leno the same way that Letterman did when Carson left. The decision here has everything to do with politics & nothing to do with talent.

Cross reference http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1445990/usercomments-1

NBC has really messed this up, as the ratings for both Leno & Conan's Tonight had gotten better since the feud started. NBC as Leno quipped recently, doesn't care about ratings and as soon as both these shows started to soar, they acted quickly, way too quickly against their own financial interest.

I believe you will see Conan Tonight on FOX in September, unless he gets a better offer from the Home Shopping Network. I mean, Conan can sell & with his punch I am sure he could move Ginsu Knives better than most folks. If Conan does get started in September, watch for Leno & Letterman to both take a ratings hit.

I have one suggestion for TNT, since your trying to build your Late night ratings, try & talk Conan into doing Conan Tonight like Carson originally did the Tonight Show, for 90 minutes. This would give TNT the opportunity to smash into the ratings of Leno & Letterman.

Conan, better than Fallon

[bushape1 · 9/10 · 16 July 2014]

My wife and I were die hard fans of The Tonight Show, our favorite host had to be Johnny Carson, no one can replace the master. Jay Leno took a long time for us to 'warm-up' to him but he finally became the norm, or we just got used to him. Then along came Conan, we didn't particularly care for Conan when he was on The Late Show, he was just to outlandish for us or just to 'gayesque'. When Conan started on the Tonight Show we gave him a chance to entertain us. And entertain us he did. Conan started out acting nervous and it took awhile for him to get into his groove. After awhile we had a lot of respect for him for hanging in there and giving it his best. And as we got used to him he became part of us just like Jay had done previously. NBC in their ultimate wisdom decided it was time for him to go. I don't know why or neither do I understand the politics of bringing Jay back. But it was totally unfair to Conan. I am glad that Conan got another gig. But now that Jay Leno is gone I will no longer be watching the Tonight Show. Jimmy Fallon is not and will not be as good as Conan. NBC really screwed the pooch on this one. Conan worked for NBC for over 20 years and then gets told he is fired, what a bunch of BS. How much NBC stock does Jay Leno own? I like Jay but he is no Johnny as Jimmy is no Conan. Rock on Conan.

Leno's was better

[mattkratz · 7/10 · 22 June 2009]

I think Jay Leno's Tonight Show was considerably better. Conan does a decent job on the show, but somehow Leno's style worked better, and Conan's style worked more on his Late Night program. While they can be funny at times, Conan's jokes and routines (with the possible exception of in the year 2000, which I believe has now been renamed in the year 3000) aren't as funny or as clever. Admittedly, it can work sometimes, and his interviewing style is passable, but I prefer Leno and can't wait for Jay's new talk show to debut in the fall. My final verdict:passable. Just barely. His off-beat wit is Conan's saving grace.

Conan made me a die hard fan.

[dfgremnants · 10/10 · 22 September 2009]

To be really honest I hate talk shows and I avoided Leno's shows because well I didn't like him. But CoCo a.k.a Conan is awesome. I haven't missed a single episode. I agree not all of his episodes are good but still he does an awesome job of making that show worth watching.

I did watch some of Leno's episodes and compared with Conan they do seems a bit dull. I know after watching 66 episodes that the Tonight Show is really an awesome show to watch thanks to Conan unique hosting style.As the show is progressing it is becoming more streamlined and unique. Also,thanks to CoCo unique charisma even the dullest of jokes make you laugh or at least smile.

If you haven't seen the show do watch it. If you don't like it at first then wait and watch another episode.

Better than Johnny?

[randymil · 10/10 · 4 June 2009]

No offense to the late Johnny Carson, or Jay Leno for that matter. But I think Conan O'Brien is the funniest talk show host of all time. Better than Letterman, Kimmel, and Jack Pahr as well. There's not a minute of the show that my abs are not still recovering from my last gut-wrenching outburst of laughter. Conan knows what's funny, and he's got a wit that is unmatched by any comedian I've ever seen. And of course Andy Richter does a GREAT job as Connan's Ed McMahon. He should definitely go back to sitting on the couch. McMahon did it right? Leno is a decent comedian, but he didn't have the charisma and fast paced sense of humor like Conan does. He made Tom Hanks, Will Ferrel, and Julia Louise Dreyfuss ten times funnier than what they actually were. And of course CoCo and Coop was hilarious as well. I have to say that I had HUGE expectations for Conan in his Tonight Show debut, and he's surpassed them with an enormous surplus. The Tonight Show is my new favorite show. And I think that if NBC doesn't fold under pressure, it will soon blow David Letterman out of the water with ease.

PS: I've watched Jimmy Fallon too. It has potential. He just still seems pretty uncomfortable being the leading man on an unscripted show.

Better Than Leno!

[MannyCastro · 10/10 · 1 June 2009]

To quote a line from Seinfeld, "that's gold, Jerry. Gold!" Is it possible that in only ONE night, Conan O' Brien has surpassed 17 years of Jay Leno? Yes, it is very possible. Conan's first episode as host of the Tonight show was, to say the least, hilarious! He began the show by running from New York to L.A. to host the show. That's right. Watching Conan run across the country was funnier than Leno's monologue. Then, he began the show by doing his usual monologue in the set Universal built just for him. It's different from Leno's set since it's a more traditional talk show set with a little New York flavor. However, he did keep Leno's lighting which I thought was interesting. Conan followed the monologue by showing two hilarious remote pieces. One was Conan giving a tour of Universal Studios and the other was him driving his 1992 Ford Tarus around town. Then, the show lost some steam during the interview segment. The guest was Will Ferrell. I like Ferrell and he was funny but you couldn't ignore the fact that a show owned by Universal, being shot at Universal was promoting a movie by Universal. The show went from 30 minutes of hilarity to 30 minutes of promotions.

Either way, it was a great episode. And I hope there's more great episodes to come. We've been waiting 5 years for this and it lived up to expectations. The best part is that Conan didn't really change a thing. It's classic Conan!

The American Way!

[Lancefer · 23 January 2010]

I'm a manager at McDonalds (not really). I replaced the previous manager that went on to bigger and better things (At Radio Shack). I just found out that I lost my job because HE can't figure out how to put batteries in a remote. Yea, this is BS, but I think you get the picture.

Conan, I have no doubt we will be seeing much more of you in the future. You did a fantastic job with NBC (Like me at Micky-D's), I am now happier working with industry making 10 times what I did before. You will find something new and make it AWESOME. And - you will be decorated for your work!

The Tonight Show with Conan O' Brien

[beautifularmenia · 10/10 · 18 October 2009]

I think Conan O' Brien is so funny and I believe he is doing a fantastic job on the Tonight Show. I have complete faith in him and the show because to me he is an inspiration. I believe that no matter where Conan is in this world, he will all ways be funny and entertaining to those who love and respect him,especially his fans. I think that everything about the show is very funny. I also think it is better that the show is on at 11:30pm, instead of 12pm. What makes The Tonight Show and the Late Night show very exciting is Mr. Conan O' Brien. I say that because he has a different kind of sense humor. I hope that one day I can go out to LA, to see his show. I believe it would be so exciting to meet Mr.Conan O' Brien in person. The Tonight Show is wonderful because he makes it so entertaining to watch.

Conan is SO FUNNY!

[stefan_petrescu888 · 10/10 · 16 October 2010]

First I want to say that Conan appeals to me much more than Leno or Letterman. And I think he did a great job of the show while he had it for that short period of time, which will in no doubt go down in history as a miserable mistake by a network that shoots the victim to stardom. I mean you can say it is the worst thing that could have happened to Conan, he finally got the show he wanted after a decade of loyal hard work with NBC on the Late Night show...and then he gets screwed over...but if anything that has made him even more popular, its funny actually, his misfortune may actually turn out to be his good luck. This is the very kind of thing he makes jokes about, so ironic.

Now let me address the people who give him a below 50% rating. Are you Dumb? There's really not much to say. If you think Leno is smart than boy i do not want to know you. In case you have never done any reading in your life, which is probably the case if you love Leno and hate Obrien, Leno never went to school, he just started doing stand up comedy and he was good at it, Obrien went to Harvard where he wrote for the paper there and then we started off by writing skits for many famous shows including the Simpson's, so don't say that Obrien isn't smart and he does stupid jokes...if you don't understand them then its probably cause your too stupid to understand them.

And people who say his show wasn't getting good enough ratings...HELLOO!!! its a transition period! There is a pretty large style shift in comedy, people need time to accommodate, no host of the tonight show has ever been a hit right from the beginning, Obrien was entitled to be given a fair chance at being accepted by the public, and he was denied that.

I initially like Leno as well, but after his dick move with NBC I hate him. What kind of person are you when you steal a job from another man, hold it for DECADES, make MILLIONS and make one of the largest car collections in the world by a single private owned, say that your retire and give your job to someone else...and then be OK with taking that job back!?!?! have you no dignity Leno? No pride? Even if NBC wasn't satisfied with Obriens ratings and they wanted him gone, don't accept your job back! Have some decency! Anyone who is still a fan of Leno after that...well quite simply YOUR whats wrong with our society, no ethics! Leno is a dumbass, he should have completely left the scene after the Tonight Show, not try some new half assed show! How many successes have major actors had AFTER their role that made them famous? Friends, Seinfeld, Etc etc. Often people who get a big break and get a kickass role, will likely not get that lucky again, and Leno was old and full of cash, start fundraising or contribute to the community! Why the F would you try some new stupid show? Is that what other Tonight show Hosts did? Just goes to show that a sleazeball he is and how big a puppet he is for NBC. Im glad Conan left, now he has a shot at beating Leno directly and he will. Cheers!

spectacular wreck

[SnoopyStyle · 8/10 · 23 January 2019]

For almost 8 months, Conan O'Brien tries to take over The Tonight Show from Jay Leno. NBC had hoped to keep them both and settled on a flawed strategy. By the end, Jay would take back his show and Conan would be let go. It is better that Conan finds a home on TBS which gives him more freedom than The Tonight Show.

The start was rough as Conan tries to fit the show's traditional mould. He loses a lot of his irreverence as he tries to appeal to its older demographics. It's all a mistake and it doesn't help to have Jay doing another talk show at 10pm. The whole situation was untenable but it does lead to one of the most hilarious network public infighting in TV history. Conan's ingenious comedy is unleashed against Jay. Whatever shortcoming Conan had during the early months is overcome by Conan's good-natured takedown of the network brass. It got so great that even Kimmel from another network goes on Jay's show to take him down. Conan's humor is more niche than a watered down Jay and is probably never going to work. Conan is by no means an edgy comedian but even that is not white bread enough for that show. It's a show of bland humor geared towards the broadest of common denominator. This is a car wreck waiting to happen but it was spectacular while it lasted.

Not funny, or at least not yet

[nightwind_hawk · 5/10 · 4 June 2009]

I failed to find any of the jokes in his first episode. It was just a bunch of videos - some funny, and some were him just screaming nonsense (for example, the Universal Studios clip). The second episode opened up with a more traditional monologue, but still, it was short and contained very few jokes.

I've enjoyed some of the videos so far, such as the video clip about his old car and his shopping spree. However, most of the show consists of him standing anxiously or screaming in strange voices. I suppose this is a new "Tonight Show" that must be gotten used to, because it used to be much classier.

Let's give Conan a chance, but I've already removed it from my DVR. The first three episodes were very disappointing and from now on, I'll view it online if I want to see how it's going.

The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien Review

[farkomeister · 4 June 2009]

Conan O'Brien is already disappointing die-hard Leno fans, like me for one, with his egotistical, self-centered and clichéd jokes and antics. His monologue, so far, is barely funny. O'Brien continues his increasingly irritating impressions (of who anyway?!) and his jokes barely make you laugh. Richter is boring and doesn't compare to Eubanks or any of Leno's crew.

You literally have to be stupid to laugh at, or with, O'Brien. There is simply no depth, no insight. The worse part is that O'Brien is not even laugh-out-loud kind of stupid funny. He's just boring.

The first episode featured Conan running cross country and then forgetting the key on the window sill - how much more clichéd can you get? I had even predicted that he would do something about moving from NY to LA. A commentator on IMDb actually found that part funnier than Leno's monologue. Spare us your sense of humor, will ya?

The obsession with the new set and the Universal lot is already getting lame. When O'Brien did the tour, you could notice that most people on the trams were bored out of their minds. His antics included emotional outbursts, making the tram go round and round, becoming scared by everything, and so on, none of which were even remotely funny. You could tell the laughter was mostly canned.

Leno's monologue was funny - if it wasn't, Leno made it funny. Leno's face and expressions are funny. His jokes are intelligent. Leno's jokes ranged from stupid funny to intelligent funny to laugh-out-loud funny. You could enjoy Leno, regardless of your taste or age group.

Leno was number 1 for a very long time. Letterman's going to finally top the ratings after more than 17 years.

Yay 10 o'clock!