Full Frontal Episode Review: Does Samantha Bee Need Another Breather?

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Yes, I know that Full Frontal just came back from an extended rest last week, and did so with an OK show. Now though, it appears that Samantha Bee and her staff may not have managed to fully re-charge their collective batteries. The most recent edition, for December 12th, was more than a little flat.

Please understand, I am not here to dispute any of the facts claimed or even opinions expressed by the host and her writers. I am always prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt. That said, I do not see my sole mission here to evaluate verisimilitude. I also feel an obligation to consider the entertainment value of any show I happen to cover, and this one clearly came up short. If you were to couple this attitude on my part with my highly dubious ability to handle my monthly budget, you could easily conclude that I am neither an economist nor an encomiast. I “yam,” as Pop (aye, the sailor man) would say, what I “yam.”

If I had to pick one of the three segments, it was least difficult to hold my peepers open through, it would be the second one, labeled Democrats in the Wilderness. Because of the slight level of interest I found in that bit, I am using it as my instant freebie. As the title might indicate, it is an examination of the party’s future, as seen both through the eyes of discouraged Democrats and gleeful Republicans. The crux of the matter in this segment seems to be the question of that most despised plurality, white males.

Although I am one of their number, I would be quick to point out that not all of us decided that a toxic circus clown would be a better bet than an assertive female. I would respectively point out that a lot fewer of us will come down on the side of reason and decency if we are made out to be the absolute enemies of same. In other words, even as we, the Democrats (as opposed to we the white men), continue to embrace minorities of all sorts, we should not do so at the expense of a large number of people who resemble the KKK in race and gender only. I am not altogether sure that Ms. Bee arrived at that conclusion by the end of her segment.

The two parts sandwiched around the above piece dealt mainly with abortion rights and government surveillance. Once again, no beef about the facts asserted; big beef about the presentation. Instead of rallying those of us who may be in sympathy with the show’s editorial policy, the overall effect of both segments was probably to make us wonder, “Aw, hell, what’s the use?” Not the effect you were going for, I would imagine.

As it often does, the show closed out with a small bit at the end, lasting only a minute or two. Even this was far below the standard of closing small bits in the past. All we got here was a request that we first take a moment to buy some snazzy Full Frontal merchandise before we get on to the smashing of the state. Okay, Ms. Bee, fair enough. Now, in fairness, let me ask you to journey over to Amazon and make the snappy purchase of either or both volumes of poetry by Thomas Cleveland Lane: Too Many Rhymes, Not Enough Brains and The Lost Notebooks of Glub Dzmc. Do that and maybe I’ll lay down a couple bucks for one of your souvenir exploding cigars. Deal?

Full Frontal, TBS, December 12, 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.