Conan returns with hair, flare

For those of you who don’t know, Conan O’Brien hosted his “second annual first show” on Monday, Nov. 8. This marks O’Brien’s return to television after his departure from NBC. The entire situation is still shrouded in a little mystery, so the whole truth is hard to fully discern. O’Brien’s first episode does not tell the whole story or really much of it at all.
Exactly what happened may never be known, but Conan seems to be in control of his anger, if he has any at all. “People ask why I named the show ‘Conan.’ I did it do I’d be harder to replace,” O’Brien said. This quote is typical of O’Brien’s approach to his new show. He is not visibly bitter and does not seem to harbor any ill will towards any one. His attitude is refreshing because a lot of people would expect him to launch an attack with his new soapbox, but instead he kept it classy and really avoided the issue all together.
The show opened with a cold cut, in the form of a short film chronicling the happenings of his departure from NBC. While entertaining and cameo-filled, it focused more on what happened since leaving NBC. While O’Brien was unemployed, he spent most of his time tweeting and portraying, but in the video, he is doing various other jobs with his late night talk show host skill set. This opening is really the only reference to his wildly publicized departure from NBC, which he retells as not bitter, hostile or dramatic at all.
The format of the show should not seem unfamiliar. There is an opening monologue followed by celebrity and musical guests. Andy Richter followed O’Brien to the new Conan. However, the band on Conan is now helmed by Jimmy Vivino.
With all these familiar faces, O’Brien almost seems not to have missed a beat and he is still as hilarious as ever. It almost seems like his old show is back. The set may have changed, the channel may be different, and the time is not quite the same, but O’Brien is no different. Everything anyone loves about O’Brien has stayed. O’Brien is witty and fast, always interacting with Andy, the audience, himself and the camera. He keeps the audience engrossed because he never stagnates; there is always something interesting happening.
Everyone who knows and loves O’Brien will like his new show. He has a few jabs about being stuck on basic cable and having poor job security, but he is always in good humor.
His frenetic personality and snappy wit are as charming as ever, especially to the just-off-mainstream Adult Swim crowd that populates most college campuses. O’Brien definitely has a showman’s personality, which is easy and entertaining to watch.