He’s the straight man, not the funny guy, and he fills that role well. Noah didn’t. (IMO of course.)
I think Noah connected with me more in general, but I do think his strengths were more in the interviews than the jokes, not unlike Stewart, except when he started talking about language. I also liked his mocking Trump impression as much as Colbert’s.
I don’t think it’s impossible to be a funny host. Colbert and Oliver do it, and I’m counting modern Colbert, who is no longer a satirical character. Even on their own shows, they clearly shine in the kind of political comedy made iconic by the Daily Show.
Jon Stewart on the bothsiderism comments from last week’s opening (some of which we saw on this forum too). Also on the model of journalism that is Tucker Carlson:
Fun fact: his joke about working in a dying medium was apparently adlibbed as a member of the audience asked him about that during the Q&A just before the show. :)
