MATT CHEETHAM
Opinions Writer

I don’t really hate Jay Leno. He seems like a nice guy and, once upon a time, a very good comedian.

You see, after Leno left The Tonight Show at the end of nearly a 20 year run, he and NBC thought it would be a good idea to jump right back into a talk show. It’s exactly the same as before but it’s called The Jay Leno Show and somehow it got lamer than you could possibly imagine.

Imagine trying new food and knowing it’s terrible but you keep eating because you paid for it, all the while hoping it will get better. It doesn’t. And that is The Jay Leno Show in a nutshell: bland, lame and way past it’s expiration date.

Aside from its lameness, the show also took away five hours of programming a week to make room for Leno; and let’s face it saving money probably didn’t hurt NBC.

I especially miss a quirky cop show called Life which I adored. I will never forgive NBC or Leno for cancelling the adventures of one of the most interesting television characters since Dr. Gregory House. His name was Charlie Crews and you killed him, NBC. I guess I’m a little bitter, to say the least.

Even though in recent years I have gravitated to deep cable and the sultry sirens known as HBO, Showtime, FX and AMC, there were a few good shows on NBC. That means not only potential viewers are being slighted, but actors, writers and directors are all tossed aside so we can see Leno’s big chin in an earlier time slot.

But there is good news amidst this television catastrophe: the American public isn’t buying it this time. Since The Jay Leno Show has been on, the ratings according to the Neilson model have not only been decreasing, but dropping like a stone. Not only are the daily ratings suffering, but the lead-ins for the local news affiliates and Conan O’Brien’s ratings are all reflective of this massive hiccup.

Now, while I am elated that this means the failed experiment will come to an end sooner rather than later, I feel a little bad for Leno. Like I said, I think he’s a nice guy who wasn’t ready to prematurely retire and wanted to stay loyal to his company. Too bad Leno has become more of a joke than before and people will remember this as one of the low points in television history. If only reality television would follow. Well, it’s nice to dream.

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image: Wikimedia / Michael Albov