Last Week Tonight Episode Review: John Oliver on Dopes and Doping

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In his most recent edition of Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver took on the two subjects of the Brexit and doping for the upcoming Rio Olympics. I found the first, shorter segment about the Brexit to be more entertaining, as a presentation, that is. Both subjects cover events most people wish had never happened.

Technically, Oliver is sticking to his format of three segments, but, as was the case in the previous three weeks, the middle segment was a short, pointless montage that was neither amusing enough to entertain the hard-sitting couch potato, nor long enough to allow him to go for a snack or a bathroom break. Look, if you’re running low on material for three quality items per show, then hire another writer or two, but please don’t pretend you’re on top of the format, because you are not.

Okay, going back to the first bit. It was the less obvious problem because everybody knows doping is bad, but the implications of Great Britain leaving the European Union are not quite so clear. By most people’s reasoning, it would seem to be a bad thing, but it is not a 100% lock that the Brits are going to end up having improper relations with the pooch over it.
The part that put this first segment over the top as the more entertaining segment of the two was where Oliver discovered a somewhat well-known Yank, who happened to be in Scotland at the time, and got his take on the matter. That’s your freebie for the week, in the link, below.
As to the doping segment, well, for Oliver’s part of it, the bit was more depressing than humorous. On top of that, many of us are having a hard time getting anything like excited over an event to be held in a place that has no business hosting it. Ah, but in the blow-off, where the host goes to another medium, Oliver provided us with an excellent satiric film clip about the kind of smarmy Olympic hopeful’s profile that we might expect around this time, but with the reality of doping thrown into the mix. It is actually quite entertaining and more than a tiny bit scary. The scary part was the young man’s coach who, for some reason, reminded me of Penn State’s notorious Jerry Sandusky. Google him if you’ve forgotten what the flap was about, but it was (and still is) a very big deal.
At the end of the show, Mr. Oliver mentioned he is going on vacation for a few weeks. We can only hope he will be back in time for the Republican and Democratic conventions.

Sources

Last Week Tonight, HBO, June 26, 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.