Chocolate News with David Allen Grier

[ROAMAN]

I know that most of us are twenty-something whites with way too much time on our hands and a proclivity to name drop other twenty-something whites who study & perform at UCB at any given moment before returning to our witty conversations and clever T-shirts, but I think it's time we talk about this vague new program, appropriately or inappropriately titled "Chocolate News" with mister two snaps up, David Allen Grier.
From the little video and promos that I've seen it appears as though the program will be fueled with the same racial humor that made "Chappelle's Show" a moneymaker---funny, but far from poignant. The most played clip thus far is of D.A.G. posing the question, "did someone just say 'you people'?"
Obviously, that is fucking hilarious on one many levels.

Is Comedy Central just dusting off Grier in hopes of reaching the same levels of success of Chappelle's Show? If they were to hire anyone from the old In Living Color cast who they could ensure would act in accordance with their contractual obligations, they made the right choice in David Allen Grier, though I personally would have preferred Tommy Davidson...well, if one has to make a choice. I'm not saying he'll be an Uncle Tom for the network, but it would seem that Comedy Central will do a better job of covering their asses this time around. It seems unlikely that Chocolate News will ever reach the same levels of popularity that Chappelle's Show did, but it'll be interesting to see how they play it. After opening up the series with "The Black Supremacist" it appears that Chocolate News has a tough act to follow.

[TacoSmith]

This post tied my brain in knots. Are you Dennis Miller?

[punkdc]

I do plan to watch this but who knows what to expect.

[TacoSmith]

Oh yeah, I also wanted to mention that I actually think David Allen Grier is kind of funny. Certainly funnier than Tommy Davidson.

[Itslikeimsayin]

Who was writing for this? I want to say someone who was on Guys with Feelings not all too long ago.

[terror firma]

i've always seen DAG as a genuinely funny guy who makes unfortunately lousy career choices. this show seems to be keeping in line with that.

[BillBrasky]

Here's a press release; gives us a little better idea of what to expect:

David Alan Grier adds a new flavor to COMEDY CENTRAL with "Chocolate News," an outrageous, character-driven sketch magazine series debuting Wednesday, October 15 at 10:30 p.m. "In Living Color" alum and Tony Award-nominee David Alan Grier is the creator, executive producer and host of "Chocolate News," a hilarious take on pop culture events that makes no apologies for its biased approach.

An encore presentation of the debut episode of "Chocolate News" will air October 15 at 11:00 p.m. The ten-episode series will regularly air on Wednesdays at 10:30 p.m. (all times ET/PT)

"Chocolate News" will take on a variety of contemporary topics from a decidedly African-American perspective and everyone and everything is fair game. The series stars David Alan Grier who, in addition to serving as the acerbic, all-knowing, in-studio host, will also portray multiple characters within the series' investigative reports, which will be presented by a cast of three correspondents.

The debut episode features a story on platinum-selling rap artist Phat Man (portrayed by Grier) with a hilarious, politically incorrect music video PSA promoting the "No Child Left Behind" act. The episode includes the recurring segment, "Can I Flow?" in which Grier presents a topical comedic editorial/rant. This episode's "Can I Flow" focuses on the death of Hip Hop and Rap as Grier argues, "we should have seen the signs when Ice Cube went from "Kill at Will" to "Are We There Yet?" Also featured is a report on Poet Laureate Maya Angelou (played by Grier) reciting a poem she has composed to celebrate Obama's nomination. The poem begins innocently enough and then takes a decidedly "Chocolate News" twist with lines such as, "You have a mocha choke hold on the American Dream..."

Other surprising and revealing reports scheduled to be presented by Grier this season include: unmasking the shocking news that the super group KISS was originally black; "Fat Black Momma Syndrome," an investigation into the recent trend in Hollywood films of excessive "fat black mama" characters; "Vitahood," a report on Thelonias, founder of the "Jackie Robinson Empowerment Agency" who has devised a way to get drug addicts healthy by mixing vitamins in their illegal drugs; and "Tranny Wreck," a report on Candelabra, a cross-dressing transsexual who was once an aspiring NBA player but now spends his time competing in transgender beauty pageants.

On www.comedycentral.com, the "Chocolate News" site will be an extension of the news magazine format online, allowing users to immerse themselves more deeply in the stories they see on-air and to also discover a wealth of Web-only comedy. The site will feature a blog with contributions from show correspondents, writers and Grier himself, plus exclusive video blog entries. In addition, site visitors can catch extended scenes, outtakes and bloopers from the show and view a comprehensive collection of previews and highlights from each episode.

[mcpiranhas]

I think it bodes well that they're letting Grier run wild. I haven't seen his specials, but he really slays on his radio appearances and I think it sounds like a great outlet. It's no surprise to see him pull out Angelou again, but I have to admit that it gets me every time.

Did anyone ever watch his sitcom DAG enough to form an opinion? I always liked the central premise of a disgraced bodyguard who jumped the wrong way when the President was shot, but it was canned before I remembered to give it a shot.

[winnie4theTOUchDowN]

Don "No Soul" Simmons still makes me laugh



DAG is A-OK in my books

[Babychoby]

Colbert Noir, perhaps?

[KeithTalent]

Who was writing for this? I want to say someone who was on Guys with Feelings not all too long ago.

Robert Morton, although I don't remember if he said he'd be writing or producing or what

[BillBrasky]

From Getty Images:

[TacoSmith]

Wait...Obama was on "In Living Color"?

[Babs]

I found myself stuck on the couch watching this. The worst part was the billion commercials during South Park for it...Chocolate News in 15 MINUTES!!! 5 MINUTES!! NOW!!! blah.

I will admit some of the commercials made me laugh but wooow. That show was terrible. Making an R. Kelly pee joke, really?

[ROAMAN]

Not more than five minutes after the closing credits rolled on "Chocolate News," we were hit with a commercial touting the critical review that proclaimed, "We haven't laughed this hard since Chappelle!" There we have it. It's been no secret that Comedy Central has been trying to fill the enormous void left by Chappelle, but fans didn't seem to go for "T-Bones & the Naked Trucker." With this quote, Comedy Central finally appears to have make the connection quite clear: Come back America, it's another funny, black B-lister!
Unfortunately, after seeing the premier of Chocolate News, methinks "DAG" shouldn't be preparing himself for a $35 million contract just yet. I loved his opening monologue on the state of hip-hop music, fucking brilliant. Great way to kick off a new show. He lost me with the next two sketches, especially Maya Angelou, where he seemed more hellbent on displaying his own acting talents at the expense of turning the great woman into a facial twitching sight gag. He lost laughs during the potential Obama presidency address, but salvaged it with a quick, cheap laugh on Maya Angelou's thoughts on a potential McCain presidency. The fat man sketch was pretty predictable, but I found the kid's expressions saved that one. The Nigger Treaty was OK; a nice 7 minutes of whitey bashing. Well done. Genius in fact. The best sketch came last, with the first black presidential candidate from 1932. The strengths of the sketch lay entirely in the facial expressions of the actors. The candidate's idealistic confidence was fucking hilarious, even more so when it was opposed by the look in the eyes of the racist white guy. A solid ending to go along with DAG's closing, "If it's chocolate..."
All in all, a solid debut, but I don't think this puppy's got any legs. Chappelle had the power to grab both the casual & intellectual viewer, while I felt that DAG's articulation (esp. Maya Angelou) and intricate dialogue forced his audience to [ EGADS! ] think. And even though Dave Chappelle titled his show, "Chappelle's Show" and ran everything funny through him, I felt that David Allen Grier to be much more egocentric in one episode than Chappelle had been when given the same amount of time.
It'll probably last a couple of seasons, but I don't see Chocolate News even coming close to the fan base of Chappelle's Show.

[TomHicks]

Regardless of Grier's projects, and my enjoyment of them -- which has been spotty -- I have always found him a likable presence. So even when he is in something bad I don't roll my eyes at it like I would, say, a Pauly Shore vehicle.

[Shane]

I only saw the last 10 minutes of this, but from those I feel like DAG was the perfect fit. I buy his character I guess, and I think I'll watch it again

[Señor Colostimizer]

I wasn't even planning on giving this show a chance, but I forgot to change the channel after South Park and ended up watching and liking it a lot. The punchline to the Nigger Treaty sketch could be seen coming miles away, but it still really made me laugh. No Chappelle's Show, but that's setting the bar too high.

[Siggers]

I liked the standup bits but the sketches has got to go.

[mueXog]

i saw some ofthe first episode, some okay stuff. I was a fan of DAG's Maya Angelou from the 2 times he hosted SNL, plugging Pennzoil and Fruit Loops, too bad those clips aren't online anywhere. I was happy to see Chris Tallman (Crossballs, Reno 911, Sarah Silverman Show, etc) get some decent airtime on this, it looks like his character will be recurring too.

MAD TV's Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele are also in upcoming episodes.