The always-funny and thankfully-resilient Norm MacDonald is back on television with a new effort for Comedy Central simply titled “Sports Show.” Unlike SportsDome, The Onion’s Comedy Central show that was a hilarious take on how cable news (read: ESPN) covers sports*, Sports Show is much closer to a version of The Daily Show with sports as the sole focus.
I thoroughly enjoyed the Tuesday night debut of Sports Show. Here’s a sampling of a half-dozen jokes I liked that give you an idea of the show’s sensibilities:
“[New reality TV show] ‘Kloe and Lamar’ is based on the two stars’ lives. I watched the show, and I must say that it is a clever combination of basketball and a bunch of s___.”
“This year, The Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting have merged, and plan to form a new sport . . . called ‘Murder.’”
“President Obama is a phenomenal player of basketball for a President of the United States . . . but I think he’s just mediocre for a black guy.”
“I’m Blake Griffin, and you are?” “Your . . . good friend and teammate, Deandre Jordan?”**
“I don’t know the difference between a ‘hippie’ and a ‘hipster,’ but it’s fun to watch either one of them get beat up.”
“Cameron Diaz is developing a movie that would take place in the world of Major League Baseball, and she wants her boyfriend, Yankees’ slugger Alex Rodriguez to star in it. You can read my review for the film in ‘Norm MacDonald’s suicide note.’” (Opening joke of the series)
Norm MacDonald’s quirky sensibilities are a belt-high fastball in my comedic wheelhouse. Maybe this show isn’t for everybody, or maybe it’s not even for all sports fans. But, for me, this opening salvo was easily potent enough to warrant a “record series” click on my DVR menu.
The show airs once a week: Tuesday nights at 10:30 Eastern. I strongly recommend giving it a look.
____________________
*So, on the television satire spectrum, Sports Show and The Daily Show would be close to one end, while SportsDome would be near the other, and The Colbert Report would be somewhere in-between.
**This was part of a much-funnier-than-it-looked-on-paper bit where Norm “goes undercover” as Blake Griffin (actually the real Blake Griffin with Norm’s voice dubbed over). Great job by Griffin totally getting into the character of a middle-aged, out-of-shape non-basketball player. Surprisingly convincing. My favorite part may have been “Norm” calling out “SKYHOOK!” and missing the backboard entirely, bouncing his hook shot off the back wall. I also liked him frantically exclaiming, “I think I pulled part of my leg that’s . . . underneath the top part . . . ahhhhhh . . . sweet Gordie Howe!”
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The always-funny and thankfully-resilient Norm MacDonald is back on television with a new effort for Comedy Central simply titled “Sports Show.” Unlike SportsDome, The Onion’s Comedy Central show that was a hilarious take on how cable news (read: ESPN) covers sports*, Sports Show is much closer to a version of The Daily Show with sports as the sole focus.
I thoroughly enjoyed the Tuesday night debut of Sports Show. Here’s a sampling of a half-dozen jokes I liked that give you an idea of the show’s sensibilities:
“[New reality TV show] ‘Kloe and Lamar’ is based on the two stars’ lives. I watched the show, and I must say that it is a clever combination of basketball and a bunch of s___.”
“President Obama is a phenomenal player of basketball for a President of the United States . . . but I think he’s just mediocre for a black guy.”
“I’m Blake Griffin, and you are?” “Your . . . good friend and teammate, Deandre Jordan?”**
“I don’t know the difference between a ‘hippie’ and a ‘hipster,’ but it’s fun to watch either one of them get beat up.”
Norm MacDonald’s quirky sensibilities are a belt-high fastball in my comedic wheelhouse. Maybe this show isn’t for everybody, or maybe it’s not even for all sports fans. But, for me, this opening salvo was easily potent enough to warrant a “record series” click on my DVR menu.
The show airs once a week: Tuesday nights at 10:30 Eastern. I strongly recommend giving it a look.
____________________
*So, on the television satire spectrum, Sports Show and The Daily Show would be close to one end, while SportsDome would be near the other, and The Colbert Report would be somewhere in-between.
**This was part of a much-funnier-than-it-looked-on-paper bit where Norm “goes undercover” as Blake Griffin (actually the real Blake Griffin with Norm’s voice dubbed over). Great job by Griffin totally getting into the character of a middle-aged, out-of-shape non-basketball player. Surprisingly convincing. My favorite part may have been “Norm” calling out “SKYHOOK!” and missing the backboard entirely, bouncing his hook shot off the back wall. I also liked him frantically exclaiming, “I think I pulled part of my leg that’s . . . underneath the top part . . . ahhhhhh . . . sweet Gordie Howe!”
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