Episode Review: Better Late Than Never Calls it a Wrap

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Those of us who have been following NBC’s summer replacement show, Better Late Than Never, already knew that the most recent episode, broadcast September 13th, was to be the series finale. We also knew that the venue was to be Thailand. What many of us may have been expecting as well was something like this.*

Instead the Latesters bracketed that intriguing country, first with a visit to the not-quite-so-edgy city of Phuket, where Terry Bradshaw showed us precisely how late better late is, with a celebration of his 67th birthday. During the course of the festivities, the birthday boy gets to cross off something that may or may not have been on his bucket list, but which, we can be pretty sure, will stay crossed off. Suffice it to say that, Bangkok or not, this is still Thailand, where everything that meets the eye may not be what it seems.

After the birthday party and a few other hijinks, the fellows journeyed to the north of Thailand, arriving at the city of Chiang Mai. Apparently, this is the cultural center of the nation, and, give the guys credit, they treated the place and the people with the respect they both deserved. The segment was not exactly slap-your-thigh funny, but, then it was not meant to be. Let us always keep in mind, unless you are watching a Mel Brooks show, not every moment of a good comedy needs to provoke howls of laughter. All that said, it was certainly an enjoyable interlude.

Less enjoyable was the somewhat sappy ending, where Terry Bradshaw, William Shatner, George Foreman and Henry Winkler all proclaimed their heartfelt friendship and gratitude, and continued to do so, on and on and on. Jeez, for all this, I sat through an extra batch of exhortations that I go commando, get top dollar for my trade-in, refuse to live in a world ruined by Hillary Clinton and consider the latest pharmaceutical, unafraid of the possible side effects of self-immolation, Bubonic plague and the Irish Potato Famine? I mean, I ask you!

But let us not close on such a negative note. Overall, the series was very entertaining. Let’s (those of us who typically don’t wear them) go out and buy a hat so we can doff it to NBC for giving us two entertaining summer replacement shows this year. First there was Maya and Marty, which gave us some excellent comedy, despite a second show that lagged somewhat behind the others. Then they gave us Never Too Late. I should, in all honesty, point out that, as good as these two shows were, they were not the network’s best effort in the summer replacement department. In the summer of 2007, NBC ran an excellent improv show called Thank God You’re Here, which tested the wits of several talented guest stars, all of whom came through in style. NBC and David Alan Grier (the show’s MC), if you’re listening, that may be a corpse worth exhuming.

For now, though, thanks for the memory.

*For those not familiar with the song or its setting, it is from the Broadway musical Chess.

Better Late Than Never, NBC, September 13, 2016

 

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Thomas Cleveland Lane

Thomas Cleveland Lane is a semi-retired freelance writer for pay and a stage actor for nothing more than the opportunity to make a fool of himself. Well, he does get a small stipend from the Washington Area Decency League, after playing the role of Hinezie in The Pajama Game, to never, ever appear on stage in his underpants again. When he has not managed to buffalo some director into casting him, Thomas can often be found at his favorite piano bar, annoying the patrons with his caterwauling. Thomas is the author of an anthology called Shaggy Dogs, a Collection of Not-So-Short Stories (destined to become a cult classic, shortly after he croaks). He is also the alter-ego to a very unbalanced Czech poet named Glub Dzmc. Mr. Lane generally resides in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and was last seen in the mirror, three days ago.
Thomas Cleveland Lane

Thomas Cleveland Lane

Thomas Cleveland Lane is a semi-retired freelance writer for pay and a stage actor for nothing more than the opportunity to make a fool of himself. Well, he does get a small stipend from the Washington Area Decency League, after playing the role of Hinezie in The Pajama Game, to never, ever appear on stage in his underpants again. When he has not managed to buffalo some director into casting him, Thomas can often be found at his favorite piano bar, annoying the patrons with his caterwauling. Thomas is the author of an anthology called Shaggy Dogs, a Collection of Not-So-Short Stories (destined to become a cult classic, shortly after he croaks). He is also the alter-ego to a very unbalanced Czech poet named Glub Dzmc. Mr. Lane generally resides in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and was last seen in the mirror, three days ago.