Ruthless jokes about Joe Biden's age
Satirist Jon Stewart is hosting his “Daily Show” again in an election year. The start on Monday was great.
Jokes about a reality that's ridiculous enough in itself: Jon Stewart on Monday's “Daily Show.”
Photo: BD
After about two minutes, it seems as if he was never far away: Jon Stewart, the comedian, late-night show host, and long-time personal commentary track on political horror in the USA. And in the 2024 election year, he'll return every Monday to his “Daily Show,” which he dominated until 2015. It was the first show yesterday, and boy, did people applaud.
Of course, the standing ovation is immediately uncomfortable for the 61-year-old New Yorker, because he is preoccupied with the big questions. “What the hell are we doing here?” For example, by which he meant presidential candidates, there was actually no other topic. Reality had become more ridiculous while he was gone, so Stuart asked, “Where have you been?”, stuck his tongue out of the corner of his mouth and drew large circles again on his paper.
Late-night shows on American television aren't doing well, audiences are dropping out, advertisers are dropping out, and hosts would rather be doing something else. Jon Stewart doesn't exactly embody renewal either. At times he sounds like the nation's left-liberal conscience, at other times like a disaffected alarmist; He has long had an honest emotional side.
But of course anger has no meaning in a satirical show without stupid gags and puns. “I have committed many crimes, but as I understand it, talk show hosts are subject to immunity,” it began. At one point, Stewart showed off his gray hair and a few wrinkles on his face and said: “And I'm 20 years younger than her!” (cursing)
Stewart is still good
He meant very old presidential candidates from both political camps, clips of which can now be shown on a satirical program without comment. But Stewart has always been good at drawing parallels and highlighting paradoxes. He's still good.
Joe Biden looks like a stupid grandpa who can't remember where he “parked” the documents. He confuses Egypt with Mexico – “and geography buffs noticed that right away!” -And he shoots himself in a press conference that was supposed to be to confirm his mental fitness because he messes up again.
But there was also a video of Donald Trump testifying under oath that he could no longer remember the sentence and that he had the best memory in the world. It's the kind of archeology of media stupidity that makes Jon Stewart's “Daily Show” so great. Even worse are attempts to ingratiate themselves with young people: “How can Joe Biden go on TikTok and look older?”
Jon Stewart, 61, hosted the Daily Show from 1999 to 2015.
Image: screenshot
Unlike former host Trevor Noah, who would often laugh at his own jokes before he made them, Jon Stewart is someone who's so fed up with some jokes that he can't take them seriously as jokes anymore — which of course makes the whole thing so… It's funnier. His “Daily Show” is always infotainment about technology humor: “We've added speech here, which makes it…smarter?”
But it's also Stuart's sigh at jokes that are no longer jokes because they merely describe facts. His return raises a plea for the daunting task of the American idea: every day matters, including the days before and after Election Day in November.
Once again: applause. But this time it is because of the democratic commitment of a no longer young satirist who knows that there are enough things that are simply not funny.
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