Stephen Colbert Bids Farewell With A Fantastic Star-Studded Swansong
Satirist Stephen Colbert wrapped up The Colbert Report with a heart-warming farewell. Over the past nine years, Stephen Colbert hosted The Colbert Report, claiming more than a handful of awards for his sharp wit and humor throughout the series.
The Colbert Report was launched as an offspring from The Daily Show hosted by Jon Stewart, after Colbert’s performance on the late night program was acclaimed by critics and audiences alike.
On December 18, 2.5 million viewers tuned in to watch the very last episode, episode 1447, of The Colbert Report, making it the most watched episode of the series.
In the show’s finale, Colbert made a quick jibe in typical fashion remarking, “If this is your first time tuning into ‘The Colbert Report,’ I have some terrible news”.
Stephen then proceeded to a popular segment, “The Word,” a segment directly lifted from “Papa Bear” Bill O’Reilly. In the final segment, Colbert focused on the word “same,” to which Stephen preached about his importance to pop culture and the impact he and his fans, The Colbert Nation, had in the last nine year.
The segment was, in essence, why Colbert was so highly praised by critics and by fans. Although many accuse Colbert for his left-leaning stance, despite his character being an overtly staunch Republican, all he does is enlighten the hypocrisy shown throughout politics, whether by mocking pundits, politician, or even the system itself. Colbert reminded others not to take everything so seriously by essentially taking everything seriously.
Recently, President Barack Obama did just this on his Presidential version of “The Word,” “The Decree,” where he mocked the success of Obamacare.
Even Fox News host Greg Gutfield admitted that “all of our gaffes made that man’s career.”
Just before wrapping up, Colbert killed his last guest, Grimmy the Grim Reaper, in self-defense. This, however, led to Colbert declaring himself an immortal god instead of killing his character. Perhaps a homage to The Colbert Nation, or possible return in the distant future.
What we do know is that Stephen Colbert ended his show with an ensemble of stars singing the tune of “We’ll Meet Again.” Quite obviously, Jon Stewart was the first to appear holding hands with former colleague and pal Colbert, singing along with stars such as James Franco, Brian Cranston, Neil DeGrassi Tyson, Eliot Spitzer, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Katie Couric, Arianna Huffington, Tom Brokaw, Barry Manilow, Big Bird and the Cookie Monster, Michael Stipe, and former President Bill Clinton tweeting on his Twitter handle, famously set up by Colbert himself.
And with that so ended The Colbert Report, strangely enough the ending of the Report may just be the tip of the iceberg of Stephen Colbert’s glittering career, but to many he will still be known over-zealous alter-ego that dominated the cable news talk show line up for almost a decade.
[Image via ABC]
