The Bottom Line
Pros
- Unabashedly adult and raunchy, a welcome differentiator in the late night talk show world.
- Wanda Sykes is outspoken and unafraid to challenge her guests.
- Early in its lifespan, it has room to grow and adapt.
Cons
- Slow middle third drags the show down.
- Borrows too much from other talk shows – its format is too hodge podge.
Description
- One-hour program
- Airs Saturdays at 11 p.m. on Fox
- Debuted in November 2009
- Includes sketch comedy, political humor and a guest panel
Guide Review - Review of 'The Wanda Sykes Show'
As a fan of Wanda Sykes, I was eager to see what she would put together for her first talk show, The Wanda Sykes Show. I was largely disappointed by the result: a hodge-podge of formats and styles from other shows, including The Daily Show and Chelsea Lately.
What Sykes has going for her is her unabashed raunchiness. She's not afraid to be adult and she's comfortable talking about ideas that might make others shift around in their seats. There isn't a similar show on television at the moment, so Sykes delivers the adult perfectly.
Her premiere monologue was sharp and wholly political, something she pretty much promised from the outset. But next two segments, which amassed about 20 minutes of the program, fell flat and unfunny. The segment following the monologue, during which Sykes and announcer Keith Robinson, chatted about whatever was on their minds, lacked spark. The next segment, Wandarama, was little more than an extension of her monologue, with more video.
The final 20 minutes of the program found Sykes with a group of guests at a bar, discussing topics of the day, much like E!'s Chelsea Lately or even The Bill Maher Show. Though the discussion wasn't particularly lively premiere night, you could see how the right group of people would make for a fun time. This segment also included the show's brightest, most organic and funny moment: "Inappropriate Games," in which resident transvestite Portia leads guests during inappropriate guessing games.
Granted, this is after one viewing, but the show feels like it would be much tighter and more enjoyable if it were cut to 30 minutes and dropped the chat with Robinson and Wandarama.
Maybe even bring back Spike Feresten for the second half-hour.
