EPISODE NUMBER: 10009 (October 21, 2013)
GUEST: The Reflektors
STAFF CAMEO: Paul Dinello
SEGMENTS: End of the Government Shutdown | Tip/Wag – Gay Marriage in New Jersey, America’s Education Problem, & Erotic Fiction on Kindle | The Reflektors – “Normal Person” | Sign Off – @Midnight
EXCLUSIVES: The Reflektors - “Afterlife”
SUIT REPORT: Gray Suit | White Shirt | Burgundy Tie
TAPING REPORT: [Link]
VIDEOS: Monday, October 21, 2013
I have never heard the audience “awww” more often in a TCR musician’s interview than last night. Win Butler was a tuggin’ at the heart strings, and made a pretty substantive case to visit Haiti. The puppets kind of creeped me out a bit, but other than that, the music was great. I am glad Arcade Fire The Reflektors made it on the show - they seem like it-getters and helped ease us into a return from break week.
Also loved the gay treatise on New Jersey’s legalization of gay marriage - Stephen gayed it up while also making a pretty astute characterization of suburban life. As a suburbanite myself, I always say, “sure I’ll go to Chicago…sometime…but my daughter’s got a girl scout thing and I’m too tired”…right.
What grabbed your attention from this ep? How did you enjoy The Reflektors? Let us know in the comments.
End of the Government Shutdown
“The government shutdown…caused China to lower our credit rating to A-. Or, as Chinese parents call it, an “F.”
- Now, Congress can get back to the important work of government gridlock.
- [On a Zimbabwe publication's declaring the United States "a failed state"] That’s like asking Ted Cruz, “have you really thought your strategy through?”
- Yes, this shutdown was a remarkable victory, and with all victories, we’ve got to know who to blame.
- Yes, Obama’s refusal to negotiate with Congress was just him getting back at his parents.
“I mean, we’ve seen this story too many times. African-American males without role models go on to become President and give everyone healthcare. It’s sad, so sad.”
- That a brilliant long-distance diagnosis by Dr. Ablow. But one must ask: how was he able to yank such an insightful diagnosis so smoothly from his ass?
Tip/Wag - Gay Marriage in New Jersey, America’s Education Problem, & Erotic Fiction on Kindle
- Now Nation, if you watch this show, you know my judgments are final. But if you have a receipt, I can offer store credit. This is Tip/Wag!
Tip: New Jersey’s Making Gay Marriage Less Glamorous
- Whenever I am invited to a gay wedding, I express my outrage by getting a gift that’s not on the registry. Hey, Mark and Jeffrey, you’ll never match my sauterne glasses with the stemware on your list and enjoy a couple’s dinner party with 7 of them!
Stephen applauds NJ’s first gay marriages: “I don’t know why I’m clapping. (continues clapping) I have NO idea what this means.”
- Yes that was Newark’s hero-mayor and Senator-Elect Cory Booker acting also as Justice of the Peace. He then went on to cater the wedding dinner, drive the limo, and save the couple from an escaped circus lion.
- Gay marriage has come to New Jersey, and not just because it missed it’s exit on the Cross-Bronx expressway.
- A tip of my hat to the Olive Garden State. If there is anything that will take the glamour out of gay marriage, it’s New Jersey.
I mean the suburbs sound nice at first, gays. You stop renting a cramped gay apartment in the big gay city and own your own gay house. Lots more room to gay live. Some place with a gay yard where you can plant some gay tomatoes. Sure gay property taxes can be high, but that’s to pay for all the great gay schools. But then, after a few years, you get gay fat. Oh sure, you promised yourself you will gay go into the City but it’s Friday night and you gay worked all week and gay Dateline NBC is on. And you say, “Ah, the gay hell with it!” And you sit on the couch with a beer. Traditional values win.
Tip: Robo-grading
- Three times faster! That’s almost twice as much.
- If we can help one kid in school do better, we will help all the kids who copy off that kid.
- Finally, we have the ability to grade homework at the same blind speed it was plagiarized from Wikipedia.
Tip: Erotic Kindle-lit
- Daniel Day Lewis, return my calls!
- A tip of my hat for putting the power of the press into the hands of the people, especially in their finest genre- and again, this is real- “Dinosaur Erotica.” It’s for anyone who’s been at the museum and said to themselves, “I’d tap that.”
- That is the hottest story of a prehistoric creature taking advantage of a young woman since Hugh Hefner.
- Who among us has not thought about getting it on with a Lady Triceratops? We’re all a little tri-curious.
Interview — The Reflektors
- Stephen: What do you like more, getting people to listen to your lyrics? And think about the message of isolation in the modern world, or getting them on the dance floor to shake dat ass?
- Win Butler: Ideally, you’d be shaking your ass with a little tear in your eye.
“Travel to Haiti.”
“Actually, you and Paul [Farmer] have a physical resemblance, yeah, you guys can kind of be ‘reflektors’ of each other. Just physically. He’s a way better person.” “Really?You don’t know me!”
The Reflektors - “Normal Person”
A little healthy Self-”Reflektion”= Two handsome guys.
Exclusive: The Reflektors - “Afterlife”
“Hello everyone watching on the internet. Here, with yet another song from *not this* (long pause) The Reflektors!”
I rarely feel this way, but Stephen just didn’t seem in the groove tonight. When he applauded along with the audience and said “I don’t know why I’m applauding”… normally I’d expect him to have something else there to twist a positive reaction to a thing he’s against. And when the Arcade Fire dude told him he was taller than Jon, he just had… nothing, again. Very unlike him.
But I thought the Jersey piece and the fanfiction piece were both great, and the Dinello cameo helped get me through that “music” the kids are apparently listening to.
Tip of the Hat!
+1
I thought it was a great episode (although I am heavily biased to think the best of the show at all times), but sometimes he’s just tired. I don’t know how he does all the appearances outside of the show, and then the show on top of it all. I would make the grand assumption somewhere in there he is also a reg’lar guy with his own stuff also going on and taking up the rest of his time. The only thing that makes me feel better in this regard is knowing that the audience is there every night like the Calvary, super jazzed and ready to radiate whatever energy they can at him, to get him going and doing a fantastic job night after night.
A lot of times he is resistant to the guest getting the upper hand in the interview, lest things reach Fonda-like proportions (not that it necessarily would with a dude guest, but you get my drift.) Still Win did a good job of getting in some jabs at Stephen, no mean feat. I think Win showed he has a lot of charisma too, so perhaps they both need to have a charisma-off. Not sure what that would entail, but I bet Stephen would make it funny.
Tip of the Hat!
+3
I was literally strung the moment “Fanfiction” came out of Colbert’s lips. Just when I hoped he would plug in certain fanfictions with him or the other Fake News characters, the dino erotica took the cake. And yay for the Dinello cameo and all his hipster glory!
TDS’s coverage of Obamacare’s online glitches was leaving me speechless! And Olly-Scone’s report was the right pinch satirical expression over the longevity of time to get healthcare. Oh, and if you can see carefully in Olly-Scone’s office, there’s a picture of Regis Philbin kissing him on the head! Seriously, TDS, how many times do you have to remind me how much I really want Olly-Scone to have his own late night show!?
BTW, forgive me, but I did watch all the way to the end once Colbert ‘bumped’ Chris Hardwick’s @midnight, so I thought, “Meh, why not?” I recommend the Nation to give it a shot. It reminds me of Whose Line, only for stand-ups and in the form of a compacted jeopardy stage. Pretty solid on night one, but I’m curious if this show can reach Jonny-bun and Colbert’s level in the late night slot.
Either way, welcome back from your break and cheers to brand new episodes!
Tip of the Hat!
+4
Hey, Corrie-luv! I also noticed John Oliver’s picture of him and Regis. Hilarious! And I have to agree with you about @midnight. I really enjoyed the first show. I thought that it might be like Tosh.O (which I can’t stand), but it is infinitely better. I’ll definitely tune in for more.
Tip of the Hat!
+2
The Fox News clip of psychiatrist, Dr. Keith Ablow, really ticked me off. Having worked with people in the mental health field, it is reprehensible to see a mental health professional give - as Stephen put it - a “long-distance diagnosis.” So, bravo to Dr. Stephen T. Colbert, DFA for analyzing Dr. Ablow using Freud’s anal stage. Loved it!
Those giant head masks used during the opening of Arcade Fire’s performance were so freaky and really cool. And hello, Paul Dinello!
Tip of the Hat!
+7
This was a very funny show….and I usually turn it off when the band comes on…I was busy, let it on…and did like the band!
Tip of the Hat!
+2
Welcome Georgette to the comments! And glad that you liked the band. I thought they were pretty rad myself. Stephen has definitely gotten me more into indie stuff as a result of watching the show.
Tip of the Hat!
+1
Tip of the Hat!
+3
This episode was full of win. (I’m so sorry.) The take down of Ablow was hilarious and Tip/Wag was just amazing. Loved the gay ramble. The day when we stop calling it gay marriage and just call what it is - marriage - will be a fine one indeed.
And my former med anthro student heart went all a flutter when Win compared Stephen to Paul Farmer!
Tip of the Hat!
+3
Americas education problem should get more air time.
Tip of the Hat!
+1