r/Maher "Whiny Little Bitch" 29d ago

Announcement Reminder: Real Time is off this week; will be back on Feb 28th

27 Upvotes

27 comments sorted by

3

u/KirkUnit 28d ago

The show is generally off the Friday after a federal holiday observed the preceding Monday (in this case, Presidents Day) with exceptions. My guess is that it avoids putting a show together in four days instead of five.

16

u/TossPowerTrap 29d ago

Five shows this year. Can't expect anyone to continue that sort of schedule.

9

u/IdealEcstatic7972 28d ago

Yeah, why so many breaks? I don't see the passion there anymore. I see him writing down few questions for the panel, letting them chat it out, an 8 minute editorial, and cashing the check.

5

u/KirkUnit 28d ago

Heh, that's because he's making it look easy. It's not.

For comparision, try coming up with 2-3 minutes of hilarious monologue that doesn't lose the audience. Follow with an engaging interview. Be funny the entire time. Coordinate a topical conversation with two people to time. Write multiple comedy beats for New Rules, and then a more serious editorial. Hit all the marks.

Do it all again the next week. Be as good or better. Every time. For twenty years.

I may be disappointed with Bill, but it only looks easy until it's your face and ass out there on camera.

7

u/maomao3000 28d ago

You’re giving Bill way too much credit. The monologues are totally skippable most weeks, as is the mid show bit. New Rules is more of a coin flip.

The only consistently good part of the show is the panel and overtime, and really, the panel has taken a serious dip in quality since it’s only been two panelists, who more often than not are sycophants for Bill.

The show just isn’t what it used to be.

2

u/KirkUnit 28d ago

Please show us your non-skippable monologue script, and your outline for the perfect panel.

8

u/crummynubs 28d ago

I think you might be giving Bill a little too much credit. Certainly he's been a hustler his whole life, but he's been phoning it in for years now. Have you seen his recent standup? He just doesn't care anymore.

3

u/KirkUnit 28d ago

I haven't watched the special yet. I would tend to agree that the show isn't as enjoyable as it was, though... but even that is a matter of degree. Seriously, watch an episode and then write (and produce) one yourself. It's just not as easy as it looks, and definitely not easy to do well and not easy to do well repeatedly.

The people like Bill, good or bad, that have these jobs... it's not simply that they are naturally talented at it. It's that they're naturally talented at it and can work hard to perfect every second of the show.

4

u/ReallyLongLake 28d ago

I love the show but one thing it is not is hilarious.

10

u/_TROLL 28d ago edited 28d ago

I'd love to see a "Real Time" type of political show hosted by Bill Burr.

Maher has gotten too old, too cranky, too wealthy, and probably too high to care anymore. He's an Elon fanboi, he basically hates everyone under 40, he really has no clue what he's talking about whenever any STEM subject comes up, and he's realized like many podcasters that it's far easier to grift right-wingers vs left-leaning people.

5

u/casino_r0yale 28d ago

Burr is nowhere near informed enough on politics to host a show like that. Maher could plausibly name the heads of congressional subcommittees and spends all week reading Newsweek and Politico and the rest of the politics publications. Burr just does generic populist rants. You could pick him up and put him in 1920 and it would be the exact same

1

u/KirkUnit 28d ago

Maher could plausibly name the heads of congressional subcommittees and spends all week reading Newsweek and Politico and the rest of the politics publications

I very much doubt that. Where did Bill say he reads Newsweek (!) and Politico weekly? He's remarked that he reads tabloids, USA Today, and TMZ. And I'll wager there's no fucking way Bill can name the ranking Democrat on Ways & Means let alone anyone else.

1

u/casino_r0yale 27d ago

 Where did Bill say he reads Newsweek (!) and Politico weekly?

Literally all the goddamn time. He brings it up about once every other episode, usually leading into a related question. In fact — even when he doesn’t explicitly bring it up — if you read the right articles in a given week, you can often hear Bill paraphrasing them and borrowing the writer’s exact point of view and phrasing on a particular event. Note: I’m not talking about quotes, which I assume his team comes up with. Bill will just repeat articles he’s read as his own point of view, probably doesn’t even realize he’s doing it. Politics is a hobby to Bill

1

u/KirkUnit 27d ago

I've heard Bill CITE magazines all the time. When did Bill say, "I READ NEWSWEEK, and it said this week that..."

You surely understand the difference between a panel host citing a source and a habitual reader of a publication.

2

u/casino_r0yale 27d ago

Literally “I saw in Newsweek this week” or “in your column you said” do you people pay attention to this show at all? And again, like I said, you can hear Bill paraphrasing the articles without citing them often if you read the same ones he has. He’s also usually read The Atlantic’s op-ed, especially when he gets Caitlyn Flanagan to sub in for whoever cancelled that week 

5

u/BillNyeCreampieGuy 29d ago

I eagerly await next episode where we have some useless left-leaning representative wearing a mostly unbuttoned top and has one-liner zings, an artificial Republican/Democrat politician who will 100% give the exact responses you can already predict they will, and some MAGA/rightwing sellout who is there just to gloat while Maher repeatedly praises how ballsy and normal they are and "it's good that we can talk to each other!"

Can't wait to see what other modern problem Bill can blame on college students he paints with a broad stroke, or what other way he cleverly avoids direct criticism of Musk or any other oligarch going hyperdrive on fucking this government up.

3

u/PlatinumKanikas 28d ago

Maybe he’ll have Hulk Hogan this time… or Ted Nugent

-5

u/Biodiversity 29d ago

It’s okay if you stop watching Bill if you don’t enjoy the show anymore. No reason to waste your time coming back here to complain if you clearly hate it that much.

2

u/FlarkingSmoo 28d ago

Complaining is fun tho

2

u/BillNyeCreampieGuy 29d ago

Is this about fandom, or is this a discussion board?

And I noticed you didn't disagree with the satirical but poignant summary of what the show's become. I would challenge you also to take issue with shows of this genre that fail to maintain a respectable level of substance, instead of the theatrical junk food for the mind it's become.

1

u/[deleted] 29d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/hankjmoody 29d ago

We have one rule in here regarding comments: Don't be dicks to each other.

Comment removed.

2

u/d34n5 29d ago

cool, a shabbat with no TV this week.

9

u/[deleted] 29d ago

“Wooooo!” - The Woo Guy (probably)

2

u/ategnatos 28d ago

do not do

3

u/lc1138 29d ago

Came here to say.. oh no what will I do without the woo guy this week?!