I would never claim to be a diehard Chris Gethard Show fan.
I’ve seen a handful of episodes — both from the show’s public access days and their run on Fusion — and I’ve immensely enjoyed what I saw. I’ve interviewed Gethard, and he’s easily one of my favorite interviews due to his honesty, and the fact we’re both Jersey-born Rutgers graduates who love pro wrestling, and Asbury Park. His recent HBO special, Career Suicide, was an absolutely amazing piece of work, as it was a hilarious, frank, heartbreaking, and uplifting hour of television.
So when it was announced The Chris Gethard Show was coming to TruTV,I was immediately excited, then immediately concerned. How could a show, known for its admirably uncompromising nature, succeed on a channel that broadcasts into 80+ million homes, and features some pretty mainstream content (e.g. the litany of “funniest videos” shows, and the wildly popular Impractical Jokers).
Would the same weirdness, and honesty the show made its bones on translate on a new, more popular platform? Would Gethard, and his team be forced to tone things down? Would they be asked to conform to TruTV’s demographic?
Then the announcement came that the first episode on TruTV would features Q, Murr, and Sal from Impractical Jokers, the channel’s flagship program. This move sure sounded like TruTV was hedging their bets, and trying to draw an audience into TCGS, by placing their biggest act on it.
Luckily, Chris Gethard, and his band of weirdos proved all my worries wrong. The show is still is as weird, awkward, honest, hilarious, and genuine. Gethard even defused the worry I had about the Jokers being on the show, as he stated how he loved the show, and aired clips of Sal being on the show numerous times. (For the record, I love Impractical Jokers, and watch it nearly every day).
The Jokers crew let their hair down, and embraced the madness of the live show. They were loose, and fun, and that only added to the fun the audience in the studio, and at home were having. The premiere episode was just a crazy live show that captured the spirit of its previous incarnations, and benefitted from having a larger platform, and a few more bucks in the budget.
The thing I love about The Chris Gethard Show is that it’s honest about being awkward, and weird. It embraces it. The show makes you feel like you’re part of the team — even if you’re tuning in for the first time. It makes you feel like this isn’t just Chris Gethard’s show, but it’s also your show. And that’s special. And there’s no show on television like it.
So join the fun, weirdos.
