A Complete Guide to the Clip Package from The Best of Whose Line is it Anyway

In 2000, WL did a clipshow, featuring a lot of ‘best of’ moments, and unaired clips. It finished with a HUGE AMV-esque package of clips, both unaired and aired. A whoser years ago dared someone to go through everything to see what came from which episodes/tapings.

…I’ll take that challenge.

-E27, right before Scene to Rap

-E18, during Telethon

-I am not sure if this aired, but it’s from the 209 taping.

-E10, Hats
.

-I don’t think this is from anything that aired, but it’s definitely from the 205 taping

-I would guess E4, Greatest Hits? I could be wrong

-This is definitely something from the Scenes from a Hat from E9, but I don’t think it aired

-…I am guessing it’s from the 201 taping, but I have no idea what it’s from.

-Scenes from a Hat, the 206 taping, unaired.

-E7, Greatest Hits

-Unaired Fashion Models from the 206 taping.

-Interlude after Weird Newscasters from E33

-Foreign Film Dub from E20

-Unaired bit from the SFAH round from E6.

-ah yes, this one. Uh… well, this definitely happened during the 210 taping. In terms of what game it is? Uhh…it’s not a singing game, cause I don’t see band members. It’s likely a game with all four, though it could be Film, TV & Theater Styles or Change of Cast. I don’t see stools, and I don’t see Colin so it’s probably not SFAH. Other than that, I’m stumped.

-Most likely from Song Styles in E11

-Millionaire Show, E25

-Sound Effects, E31.

-Weird Newscasters, E19

-Scene to Rap, E27. Ironically, we see GREG’s black hole.

-Weird Newscasters, E9

-An unaired Scene to Rap from the 203 taping. Considering how bad the Scene to Rap was in the other Denny show, I’m glad we never saw this one.

-E10, Superheroes. Too easy.

-E6, Weird Newscasters

-Unaired bit from the Scenes from a Hat at the 205 taping.

-E8, after Let’s Make a Date. “SHOUT-OUT?”

-E26, Greatest Hits

-another one from E6’s WN

-Unaired Props from the 202 tap-HEY…WAIT A MINUTE…HOW THE FUCK DO WE HAVE AN UNAIRED GAME OF PROPS? It’s literally the EASIEST game to plug into a show. I’ve never seen that arthropodic prop before, and I want more.

-Um…this one’s tough. Maybe this was during a credit reading or a Hoedown? Either way, definitely during the 206 taping.

-This is even tougher. it’s definitely from the 201 taping, I just am not sure which game.

-E23, Scenes from a Hat

-E11, Let’s Make a Date

-E5, Weird Newscasters

-E34 Let’s Make a Date

-E32 Weird Newscasters

-So…this is from an episode that hasn’t aired yet. Weird Newscasters from 3×36. That’s odd.

-Unaired, a Sound Effects round from the 210 taping.

-E19 Weird Newscasters
.

-I…THINK this is from E7’s Superheroes. I’m not certain.

-I’m blanking on this one, from the 212 taping. Can’t be from LMAD. I don’t think it’s from F&TS, but it could be. Superheroes??

-Another tough one. It’s definitely from the 211 taping. It’s definitely Melissa-related.

-ANOTHER ONE FROM S03E36, which hasn’t aired yet. Motown Group. 

-E33, Scene to Rap

-Superheroes, E24

-Another Misc. shot from the 211 taping

-ANOTHER ONE from the 3×36 Motown Group

-E26, Scene to Rap

-E20, Newsflash. WELLLL LOOK AT THE FESTIVE COLORS.

-3×36 Weird Newscasters. SPOILERS, WL.

-3×36 Motown Group. I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that 3×36 was supposed to be 2×40, but ABC wanted a clip show.

-E7, Superheroes

-Credit Reading from E23.

-Right after Foreign Film Dub, E20

-…3X36 MOTOWN GROUP, AGAIN.

-Unaired from E13 SFAH. Whatever this is, I’m sad this was cut.

-E24, Greatest Hits

-Another 211 taping reaction shot

-Change of Cast, E16

-One of the Unaired Hoedowns butchered by Ryan’s Melissa-ing, E12

-Greatest Hits, E13
–

Either Colin’s Fish and Chips verse from E12 or another unaired Hoedown verse from that taping

-90% sure this is F&TS from 3×36

-Definitely Unaired, from the 212 taping. Um…I’d say Three Headed Broadway Star. Drew’s out-of-shot, Colin’s at the desk. Not many other games Ryan and Wayne would win the show for.

-E35 Weird Newscasters

-…sigh, 3×36 MOTOWN GROUP YET AGAIN

E37 Motown Group

-E20 Credit Reading

-E21 Superheroes

-…I SWEAR TO GOD…

-E25 Superheroes

-Oh god another one of these. Uh…definitely from the 207 taping.

-E37 Film, TV and Theater Styles

-…I BELIEVE…THIS IS FROM THE Christmas Hoedown from E9.

-E6 Weird Newscasters Again

-…Unaired Fashion Models, from the 206 Taping? I think so!

-Also from the 206 taping, possibly something that happened after/before a Hoedown or some Drew game.

-Hoedown from E22

-Greatest Hits from E33. Pa, you’re crazy.

-E6 Weird Newscasters

-I think E24’s Greatest Hits?

-Another unaired one that might be from the Superheroes from the 212 taping?

-3×36’s Motown Group yet again

-Weird Newscasters, E8

-E29, Let’s Make a Date

-Weird Newscasters E27

-Greatest Hits, E26

-Weird Newscasters, E9

-Greatest Hits, E1

-E29 LMAD again

-E15 Song Styles

-Hoedown, E3

-E23 Weird Newscasters

-Sound Effects, E18

-Possibly another Hoedown from the E11 taping

-Greatest Hits, E37

-Unaired Sound Effects from the 209 taping

-Greatest Hits, FROM 6×09, SONGS OF SOCCER. Man, that’ll be a while

-Weird Newscasters, E16

-Let’s Make a Date, E4

-Greatest Hits, E26

-E1 Greatest Hits

-E27 Party Quirks

-Unaired from the 210 taping, same game as the one where Greg rides him

-Unaired Sound Effects from the 210 taping

-More misc shots from the 207 taping

-Let’s Make a Date, from E30

-Helping Hands from E31

-Party Quirks from E29

-Film TV and Theatre Styles, E8

-somewhere in the 212 taping

-E14, Film and Theater Styles

-E33. MORE ALE, WENCH!

-E34, Whose Line

-somewhere in the 205 taping

-E8, Film and Theater Styles

….and the rest were edited too rapidly for me to decipher.

Never Mind the Reboot, or How Come I’m Just Finding Out About This Now?

I started watching Never Mind the Buzzcocks simply because I enjoyed Phill Jupitus on QI and wanted to see how he’d do in a more familiar environment. I didn’t expect to fall headfirst into 28 seasons of some of the most inspired panel show moments I’d ever seen, or to become impressed with the show to the point of preferring eras, like Mark over Simon or Bill over Sean or whatever, and tallying favorite episodes on this here blog.

I just started watching it for fun. And also, because it’d shocked me that the show had just ended, in December 2014. Why have something on for 28 years and just stop it out of the blue? What cruelty is that?

So, the whole watchdown, I went through knowing that there was a concrete end, Series 28, and that it wouldn’t be like Have I Got News For You where the end cap would keep shifting [I’m never picking that one up, I’m afraid]. By the time I got to Series 28, I had that air of finality around me, and finished the show with a sense of accomplishment. I’d done it, I’d finished every last one, and I’d learned so much about panel dynamics and music because of it.

And really the only reason I moved onto Whose Line was that I’d be able to cover two more big shows with definite endings and then potentially a third one that’d be on for a bit, to keep me busy. And considering how quickly I’d finished the UK and Drew versions, I’m progressing on CWLIIA gingerly, because I don’t wanna get to the current stopping point too quickly and run completely out of steam.

So I’ve been thinking about other options for the next watchdown. I know I need to finish QI but that one’s also a more stagnated goal cause it’s still going. I’d thought about doing Would I Lie to You, but that one’s a little trickier to do a watchdown of in my opinion because, at least initially, it seemed more game-based and less personality-based. Mock the Week was always an option, but as much as I’d loved watching it in the past, a lot of the first 8 or 9 series’ would be lost on me due to being topical and regional. I’d also thought about Shooting Stars, but I worried that I wouldn’t get it.

And then…just tonight…on a whim…on a youtube comment, I found out that Sky had booked a reboot of a show I thought I’d finished 3 years ago. And so I had something else to cover.

Yeah, that’s right, I’m just now hearing about the September news that Sky is bringing back Never Mind the Buzzcocks for a rebooted new season, with Greg Davies as the host. There’s not much else out there in terms of conclusive news on it, nothing about team captains [I can only assume Phill Jupitus would agree if asked, but is he what Sky wants?], nothing about a start date, but…it’s happening.

And it’s kind of cool that it is, to be honest. There’s a lot of factors in this that I’ve thought about, but most of them are in favor.

I was just thinking recently about Buzzcocks stopping when it did, in 2014, and how it was about to arrive at so many new turning points for music- the rise of rap in the US and grime in the UK, the new wave of pop-rock [Matty Healy was on just in the nick of time], the evolution of rock as a niche genre [people like Steven Wilson, Luke Spiller, some members of King Gizzard, would be perfect as panelists], and the rise of more formulaic pop stars [Olly Murs is a judge on The Voice now, for Christ’s sake]. I think about how many up-and-comers would have languished on Buzzcocks, just as Ed Sheeran, Amy Winehouse, Iggy Azalea and, yes Matty Healy had. I think of what the show missed out on by not being there.

And so now, with this show returning in 2021, I wonder what kind of music fan the show will speak to. More likely it’ll be the fan of mindless pop, and a lot of Little Mix and 5SOS survivors might be on for a bit, with the occasional actual cool guest. Maybe Buzzcocks will play into its niche status, or its throwback status, but it’ll likely want to seem ‘hip’ and ‘now’, and so be it. So yes, the potential for an anti-establishment-seeming pop quiz combatting the modern music landscape is something I am looking forward to.

There’s also something to the formula of the show, of just having people do Intros, the ID Parade and Next Lines, and just having the host interact with people and have fun. I do think that Greg Davies will be close to the Rhod Gilbert mindset of ‘look, we’re all here for a laugh’, but I do think he’ll have some sharp, biting jokes, like how he took on Tinchy Strider during his S25 guest-hosting stint. And I do think Sky will provide the show enough of a budget to keep from seeming like they’re grasping at boundaries or anything.

However, I am worried about how the show was when we left off, and how obligatory the ‘game’ rounds felt, like how most rounds of Guess Who or Connections would spend maybe 20 seconds on the actual question before tangentializing on the panelist’s lives for the other 2 minutes and 40 seconds. Have those details come up naturally. Richard Fairbrass brought up Toblerones on his own, Ed Sheeran brought up passing out during sex on his own, Lucy Porter brought up getting licked by a tramp on her own. Sometimes you don’t need to push, the funny comes out naturally. Although sometimes when you push TOO MUCH, the funny has no choice but to happen [see Simon Amstell reading Chantelle’s autobiography while Preston was on].

And so I wish that production doesn’t force things and moments to happen on the show too much, and just lets the game and interactions amount for the best moments. That’s what made the Mark Lamarr era so great, cause there was a natural feeling to a lot of the best moments. I know we’re very far removed from where we were when Mark hosted, but it would be nice if we brought back that same mentality and just let Buzzcocks be Buzzcocks.

I know it’s unlikely, considering where a lot of similar panel shows have gone recently, but I’d just like it to happen.

Also, I’d like to get Phill and Bill back as captains, but I’ll just let Sky do what they will and hopefully be alright with it.

Oh right, I should probably mention this bit- when Buzzcocks returns, I’m gonna be reviewing the episodes in Watchdown format as they air. I don’t know how many fans of the Nevermind Watchdown still read the blog, if any, but I don’t wanna stop documenting things now, and this way I’ll be able to react to it in real time, along with everyone else.

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E20, or You Missed Exfoliation Man

We’ve reached the end of the…Season 11 shows that AIR in, uh…season 11. Look, this show’s weird.

I can sort of see why the CW would want to keep producing S11 material. This season has been stronger than any other to this point, with better guest bookings, more guestless shows, and more 10/10 classic shows from me. I’ve been really impressed with the bulk of this season, and would call about 2/3rds of this season ‘great shows’. Like, we only had one real dud [thanks Gina].

So we wrap things up [as far as I’m concerned] with one last Jeff show from the same taping as E4 and E6, a solid enough taping.

Let’s Make a Date: Jeff must choose from:
Wayne – Butch female coach gathering and training her all-girl wrestling team
Colin – Demanding actor auditioning people to do a passionate love scene with him
Ryan – Chimp being launched into space

Wayne, after setting down enough about his character, goes right for Jeff:

Not too far into this show and Jeff, the Unbreakable, has broken

This is the physical extent we’re starting the show with, folks

Jeff: “…Security!”

I also love, as Wayne tries to get Colin in a lock, he nearly tips over Colin’s chair, which Ryan prevents, but he knowingly knocks over his own chair.
Colin: “Interesting choices, but no…”

Colin, looks at Ryan for 1 second: “…NEXT.”
This is the difference between 2015 Colin and 2001 Colin. He did a similar quirk in 2001 with Ryan, and Ryan was just faintly shaking his head as Colin went in to kiss him. Here, instead of going for it with Ryan, he just refuses to altogether. Maybe because he knows the joke’s been done a million times.

Ryan:

Wayne immediately realizes what he’s doing and cracks up. Then he and Colin exchange a look. They both know what Ryan is.

Ryan’s bewildered monkey face once he realizes he’s in zero-g is fantastic. He then tries turning towards the stage step and gets stuck, and cracks a bit.
Colin, with a meta line that doubles as an in-scene critique: “excellent space work!”

As usual for the CW, the second round is devoid of any questions, just clips from it packaged together as if it happened in succession with the end of the first round. Though it is funny to see Wayne doing his quirk with Aisha as Ryan floats by confusedly in the background. It even distracts Wayne. Jeff, knowing how zero-g works, has to grab Ryan before he floats past him and throw him back into the scene.

Aisha is right there with Wayne doing push-ups and flexing, which is impressive as hell

The push-ups give Colin an idea: “there’s something I want to try:”

Sure enough:

Then Ryan wants in:

Everyone is working together, even Jeff. Wayne does a ‘down for the count’ bit, Colin says Aisha’s got the part, and Ryan asks for a high-five, which Aisha gives only for Ryan to be propelled across the stage again [second time we’ve had this joke in two shows].

Jeff gets ’em all pretty spot on.

Okay. So. I know we have a lot of tight competition with the ‘Wayne waxing’ and ‘horny werewolf’ playings of this game, but this might be my favorite LMAD of the CW version. All three quirks are funny, all three quirks collaborate with each other, and Aisha, perfectly, and we have that hilarious ending where it all comes together. It felt like a combination between 4×01’s LMAD [with Colin kissing everyone] and 5×21’s LMAD [with the bun-tightening finale]. I just loved it so much

Aisha: “and YOU KNOW WHY YOU’RE NOT GETTING ANY POINTS, COLIN MOCHRIE.”
Colin: “hey, I only used one penis…”
Aisha, breaking: “do you have a SECOND that you’re not-”
Colin: “I always have a second one just in case something goes wrong…”
I love Colin

Sound Effects: Colin and Ryan are two Special Forces commandos enjoying a little R&R in Las Vegas when they hear on a newsflash that alien spaceships are attacking the city

THE ONLY SOUND EFFECTS OF S11.

Colin does a dice roll that Mickey gives a loud ‘PWWWRRR’ to
Colin: ‘…I missed the table”
I missed this game

Then, as Ryan does a slot machine motion, Melanie emits a flustered laugh. Ryan responds to this: “IT SHOT ONE COIN OUT!”
Colin: “I’ll try mine out”
Mickey: “RRRRIICK!”
Colin: “oh, I didn’t see the rooster…”

Colin: “I thought I heard a…news bulletin.”
Mickey: “….NEWSBULLETINNEWSBULLETIN!”
Ryan: “YOU’RE RIGHT.”
Colin: “PERHAPS IT’LL BE LESS VAGUE…”
Mickey: “We interrupt this program to let you know that ALIENS have landed in Las Vegas”
Ryan: “Chuck…what program is she talking about?”
PFF. Yes, great move by Mickey, but Ryan just can’t see to give anyone the satisfaction

Colin: “Luckily I brought my rifle.”
Mickey: “RRRRR”
Colin: “AND THE ROOSTER.”
I love whenever they bring something back from an earlier sound in this game

Ryan: “I got the bazooka.”
Melanie: “BOOOM”
Ryan, shrugging: “I *HAD* A BAZOOKA…”

Ryan: “I got a knife.”
Melanie: “CHEAP!”
Colin and Ryan barely hold it together at that sound effect.
Ryan: “it’s a cheap knife…”

Ryan: “Look at the size of that floating disk.”
Melanie: “…WOOO.”
Colin: ‘…WOOWOOWOOWOOWOO.”
Ryan: “You can’t speak their language.”
Colin: “sorry, it seemed easy to pick up.”
So many nice improv moves here

Ryan, nearly breaking on a flub: “I’M GONNA THROW MY WI…I’m gonna throw my wife…I’M GONNA THROW MY KNIFE…IF THIS DOESN’T WORK, I’M GONNA GO GET MY WIFE.”
[Shades of ‘What I didn’t was-know was, OR WAS KNOW…”]
Ryan:

Melanie: “HEYWHATTHEHELL-”
Ryan: “SHUT UP.”
And I’m GONE

Ryan: “NOTHING. YOU THROW *YOUR* WIFE.”
PFFFF
Colin: [gets his]
Mickey: “OH NO, PLEASE”
Colin: “SHUT UP”
Mickey: “AIIIIIIIIGH”
Ryan: “NOTHING.”
Colin: “No, she was caught by that eagle!”
DEAR GOD
Melanie: “WOOOWOOOO”
Colin: “AND THE OWL.”

Then, as they fire up the chopper and Melanie does a GREAT chopper noise, Mickey adds a ‘WOKKAWOKKAWOKKAWOKKAWOKKA”
Ryan, confusedly: “THAT CHICKEN’S FOLLOWING US!”

Colin jumping from the chopper to the window then exclaiming “I’M STUCK IN THE WINDOW” is another moment from this game that cracked me up.
Ryan, walking: “you didn’t have to jump, it’s right here!”
Colin: “I KNOW, I’M SO DRAMATIC!”

Ryan and Colin gaze upon the aliens
Ryan: “Look how small they are”
Melanie, in a very spaced out voice: “…hey Ryan…”
Colin: “hey…what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas..”
That is a fantastic ending line that Aisha thankfully uses to buzz out.

SUCH A GOOD SOUND EFFECTS. One of the best ones of the CW version by far. Mickey and Melanie were so funny, there were so many great bits [the wife bit had me cracking], and it was just long enough for me.

Aisha: “No wives were hurt in the previous game…unless they were watching at home”
Ryan, chuckling: “OUR WIVES WOULDN’T WATCH THIS SHOW…they don’t even know where the MONEY comes from..”

Film Dub: One Day in the Lab

THE ONLY FILM DUB OF S11. AND OH, WHAT A GOOD ONE IT IS.

Ryan’s character begins by looking in a microscope
Ryan: ‘….I wish I knew what I was looking at…”

Ryan: “AAAIIIGH…A…stuffed sheep in my window?”
So already, Ryan’s on edge

Then, Colin’s character appears:

Ryan, now absolutely gone: “OHHH MY GOD!”

Colin: “I have come here for my skin cream!”

I love the horrified tracking shot of Ryan’s character moving away that Ryan dubs over with a ‘HAAAH….HAAAAH….AAAARGHHH…” Like a frightened Bee-Gee

Colin, whose character slices through a curtain: “AND I ALSO NEED A MANICURE!”

Wayne appears as a superhero: “EXFOLIAAAAATIOOOOOON.”
The audience applauds. They know exactly what this scene has become

I love Colin and Wayne dubbing over this ridiculous fight scene. Very Kung-Pow esque quality. Colin even throws in a ‘HEY! E! I! O! U! SOMETIMES WHY!”

Then, as Colin’s character leaps through the window, Colin perfectly times yelling “I’M GONNA GO TO WALGREENS!”

Then, this shot, which is probably my favorite scene in this:

Jeff, as the wife: “Honey, I’m home, what did I miss?”
Ryan, with the most perfect delivery: “You missed Exfoliation Man!”
Jeff, still as the wife: “HONEY, I’M HOME, WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?”
Ryan: “STOP STANDING SO CLOSELY BEHIND ME.”
Jeff: “Who are all these people?”
Ryan: “I don’t know but get off my back!”
Jeff, as one of the others: “There’s a spaceshi-”
Ryan: “WHY ARE YOU ON MY BACK?”
Jeff, as one of the men runs out: “AH, OHMYGOD, I’M LEAVING!”
Every line of that is funny. The fact that they’re all on top of each other is just as funny.

And now it’s Jeff’s job to end it, making a phone call. He does a good anti-humor thing by just dialing 5 several times. Due to the long, drawn out nature of the joke, Wayne thinks he needs to save it by yelling ‘EXFOLIAAAATION’ again, but Jeff probably gives him a look that expresses that he’s got the perfect ending:

Jeff: “I’d like to order some American food?”
PERFECT. ABSOLUTELY PERFECT.

Probably my favorite CW Film Dub. Ya hear that? We’re three games in and we have three games that rank as my favorite playings of each on this network. I think this show is doing something really right.

Wait a minute.
Ryan: “And did you see the package he had? That alien was…WOW.”
WAIT A MINUTE. LET’S GO BACK TO 11×06‘S NEWSFLASH:
Colin: “I’m guessing it’s an alien monster with a big penis.”
DOES THIS MEAN…does this mean my favorite CW Film Dub has a callback during one of my favorite CW Newsflashes? Oh my god.

Scenes from a Hat:

“Unlikely Things to Hear in a School Assembly”
Ryan: “just for the record, strippers make more than nurses”
Wayne: “We’ll be releasing you all early today…nah, I’m just fuckin with ya…”
Colin: “I called this assembly to tell you that this assembly has been cancelled.”

“Strange things to happen at a urinal”
Wayne does a ‘talking penis’ mime, giggling at Jeff’s, and then emitting a gigantic roar
Ryan starts up this one:

Possibly one of the goofiest portraits of CWLIIA at its peak

“Excerpts from TV shows that will never get made”
Ryan does a ‘Charlie’s Anglers’ one that gets a smile from Jeff

A decent SFAH. Considering everything around it, it feels a bit low-key, but a lot of it worked.

Greatest Hits: Songs of San Francisco

As Aisha sets up the game, Colin accidentally knocks over a stool. Ryan rolls his eyes.
Aisha, pivoting: “Colin and Ryan are two television voiceover personalities who are EXTRAORDINARILY CLUMSY”

Colin is very goofy in his setting up of the Lil Wayne-Pavarotti number, doing a full interpretive dance which Ryan nitpicks

So ‘Too Many Hills’, this Lil Wayne-Pavarotti song that Wayne and Jeff do, is one of my favorites. Mostly because, like ‘Kelp’, Wayne takes the lead for the first part and Jeff just lingers

Just…looming

Wayne’s Weezy impression is really good, and gives the first part a decent amount of flow. Then, right as it feels as Wayne’s about to slip, Jeff takes over:

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.”
I laughed SO HARD the first time I saw this. It’s the perfect foil for Wayne’s talky Lil Wayne impression, just a full operatic note at full force. Such a funny contrast

Jeff’s eventual ‘Too fat to climb, too many hills’ note is pretty powerful, and a funny AND impressive capper on this really good song. Right here is where Jeff’s Pavarotti became one of my favorite impressions of his, and it’d show up on occasion over the rest of the run

Wayne and Jeff start the boogie-woogie number with mindless scatting, which is a nice touch

Their ‘Escape the Rock’ number is a fun little Alcatraz-themed song, and both Wayne and Jeff seem to be in sync and working off each other perfectly.

It does have a fun ending, with Jeff suddenly drowning as Wayne’s agreed to let him go first.

A pretty good GH, with one of my favorite CW songs with Too Many Hills, and some awesome Jeff-Wayne work all around.

Overall: One last classic S11 show before the CW-season ends. LMAD, Sound Effects, Film Dub and Greatest Hits have some of my favorite moments of the CW run, there’s some great collaboration all around tonight, and it’s the sort of guestless show that could be right up there with some of the Drew-era favorites. Plus, Jeff was really well-edited, and was responsible for great moments in Film Dub and Greatest Hits. This is a rare sentimental favorite of mine that is as good as I’d remembered.

Show Winners: Ryan and Colin
Best Performer: Ryan dominated almost the entire show. I’m just really thankful he showed up to the S11 tapings in such a good mood.
Worst Performer: Wayne did more set-dressing than anything tonight.
Best Game: Let’s Make a Date felt absolutely perfect, and had so much going on with all FIVE performers.
Worst Game: Scenes from a Hat was good, but not as good as the rest of the show.

SEASON 11 SUPERLATIVES:
Best Episode: E7, the Heather Morris show. You’d think the other Brad guest show would go here, but this one felt stronger to me due to feeling like this entire episode couldn’t be replicated, especially the live, insane feeling throughout. Literally starting energy for this show is Brad accosting Colin as a monkey. But we got the Aisha in drag runner, some excellent guest games, Wayne going mad in SFAH and a really fun GH. Even the Kathie Lee Gifford show couldn’t top it for me.
2nd Best Episode: …E11, the Kathie Lee Gifford show. See? As wild as this show got, especially in Duet and Helping Hands, it couldn’t top E7. But it is one of the most maniacally insane show we’ve had in a while, with Kathie Lee simulating a sexual act with Brad and carrying that through the rest of the show while also being a really fun and game performer. This one had more runners than E7, and it’s still rightfully a classic.
3rd Best Episode: E12, the Randy Couture show. The image of Randy Couture stomping back towards the stage while everybody but Colin frantically runs away is one of the funniest images, and also one of the most clever camera pans in the show’s history. This was a great Jonathan show, a great guest show, and had an insanely fun finale with Jonathan’s wife in SFAH.
Worst Episode: E13, the Gina Rodriguez show. Gina’s lack of A.) improv expertise and B.) want to be there pissed me off and dragged down her games, making it a real slog to get through despite a fun SFAH.
Episode Most Deserving of a Second Look: E4, the Jaime Camil show. A show that I liked at the time that just kept getting overshadowed by more and more great S11 shows. I bet if I watched it again it’d go up in my rankings.
Best Taping: The Brad Sherwood taping, because how could I not? There was this insane, uncontrollable energy throughout with all four performers that touched everything in sight, even if there was less to report in E16.
Taping I’d Love to See More From: Not only at this point in time, but also now, the Jonathan Mangum taping. If you were to only do the Randy Couture show in this season and say ‘that’s all we got for now’, you’d get tons of shit. We’ve gotten 2 more from that taping, yet even that isn’t enough.
Best Regular: Ryan Stiles dominated this season. It wasn’t even close.
Best Fourth Seater: Jeff Davis did the most this season, and had the most impressive moments. Watching this one solidified this choice.
Best Guest Star: Jaime Camil, E4. Nearly went with Kathie Lee, but Jaime put his absolute all into every scene and had the time of his life, even without coming off as ironically funny.
Worst Guest Star: Gina Rodriguez, E13. Gave me the heebie-jeebies.
Episodes Ranked: See my Twitter, @WLIIAWatchdown

COMING UP NEXT: Season 12 begins with the last few episodes from S11. Our first one is a Gary show featuring another staple of a lot of 90s kids’ childhoods.

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E19, or I’m Not Sure What This is Selling

Okay, let me try to name as many of the current Queer Eye Fab 5 as I can- Uhh, Karamo, Jonathan, Tan, uhhhh…..FUCK.
[one google search later- okay, Antoni and Bobby. Got it.]

Okay, now let me try to name as many of the ORIGINAL Queer Eye Fab 5 as I can- much harder. Carson, Jai, and I don’t know the others, and I only know Jai because he was playing Carmen Ghia when I saw the Producers on Broadway.
[does research] WAIT, TED FROM CHOPPED WAS ON QUEER EYE? HOW DID I NOT KNOW THAT???

Bottom line- Queer Eye for the Straight Guy as a concept is an amusing idea, but the people behind it can only do so much without becoming the kind of celebrity whose entire personality is being gay. Ted Allen has dodged this entirely- his entire personality is hosting Chopped. But a lot of Queer Eye people are on other shows because the establishment thinks ‘okay, we need a gay one on this’.

And that’s the role Carson Kressley has played in most things since 2003. ‘oh, we need a bitchy gay guy on here, get Carson’. He’s had a nice career on Bravo on shows involving fashion and things like that, but he’s ran the celebrity circuit as well, doing Dancing with the Stars, Celebrity Apprentice and, yes, Whose Line.

This is Carson’s WL episode, and it comes from the Heather taping that gave us E15. A swimsuit model and a Queer Eye guy on the same show. Not exactly a ‘passions erupt’ type greenroom.

Questions: One Day at the Gym

Heather, with a pizza hat: “WOULD YA LIKE-A SOME PIZZA HERE AT THE GYM-A?”
Wayne, with nothing to top that, just leaves

Ryan does his through a muffled facial mask, and buzzes himself out for not doing a gibberish question

Heather, judge’s wig: “WHAT ARE YOU ACCUSED OF?”
Colin just shakes his head and leaves. They’re all in such a goofy mood top of this taping

Wayne, gladiator helmet: “do you have the time to work out?”
Heather: “I think it…MIGHT BE 3 PM?”
BUZZ
Wayne: “INFLECTION DOESN’T COUNT”
Poor Heather’s struggling in this one

Wayne: “would you like to work in?”
Ryan: “…are you coming onto me?”
Wayne, being very careful: “have you been come on…to before???”
PFFFFF
Ryan, holding up 2 fingers: “have I been come on TWO before?”

Ryan does a thrusting motion
Wayne: “Ah, hittin the, uh, lats?”
Ryan just crumbles at that one

Heather, demonic hat: “HAVE YOU SEEN THE PORTAL TO HELL?”
Wayne: “whooooooOOHOHOHOOOOOO…”
BUZZ

Colin comes in with a snakes hat and then he and Heather have a great scene. “DOES THREE HOURS OF PASSION MEAN ANYTHING TO YOU?”
Heather, thinking of a great comeback then realizing once again what game she’s playing: “MORE LIKE Twwoo hours…”
She just deflates. Poor Heather

Ryan: “DOES THIS LOOK FAMILIAR TO YOU?”

Colin just calmly shakes his head. An epic staredown

A clumsy Questions, but at least fun to watch

Wayne returns to the seats looking like this:

Ryan: “WAYNENADO!”
Wayne: “I just wanted to know what it felt like to be a great white”
HA
Wayne throws it back to the box: “not as great as being a great black”
Ryan: “or a hammerhead as you like to call it”

Props: Ryan and Heather vs. Wayne and Colin

THE RYAN-HEATHER PROPS COMBO STRIKES BACK

HEATHER, IMMEDIATELY:

“GET TO THE CHOPPAH!”
Ryan: “AAAGHH!”
PFFFFFF
And it just falls apart…
Ryan: “YOU CUT OFF MY ARM!”
And they’re both gone. If this is how this props starts out…

Wayne: “QUICK, GET IN THE CHOPPER”

Amazing

Ryan, with his usual ricola horns: “GENERIC BREATHMINT..”

Wayne: “Have you accepted Jesus as your lord and savior?”

Hell, even this one cracked me up:
“PULL!”

Ryan: “NO-AAGHH”
PFFFFFF
Yeah, the Heather-Ryan combo might be my favorite props duo since Colin and Steve Frost

Wayne: “Hi, and welcome to Prank Olympics”

SO GOOD

Ryan: “Why would a snake do that to himself?”
Heather can barely compose herself

Colin: “…I told it to go fuck itself.”
PFFFFF
Wayne:

Dear god this props round is demented

Ryan, riding the prop with the head slamming against itself: “…I hope this is a horse”
Heather, once again, loses it. I love how much fun she has on this show

A phenomenal Props round. So many fun and new gags from all four, and so many really funny moments.

Dubbing: Outrageous fashion designer Ryan is teaching model Carson, voice by Colin, how to show off his latest collection on the catwalk when suddenly, Carson’s bitchy rival Wayne enters to show that he’s got the better moves

Carson is perfect for this game, as he’s completely justifying all of Colin’s dialogue and being right into the scene. That is the correct improv mindset

Ryan pleads for Carson to have “two pounds drop in the next 30 seconds”
Colin: “If you wanna see two pounds drop, take your nose off!”

Heather, once again, is a great audience member. I just really wish Dan would have her in more games

I love the pivot from Carson yelling and screaming to Ryan just going ‘let’s have champagne’ and the mood instantly changing

Carson is great at going into model walks and expressions, and having great chemistry with Ryan, and I’m honestly really impressed. Hell, he even combines the moves when Colin commands him to. Carson just gets exactly what this game, and this show, is

Wayne, entering: “I see…IT…is here?”

Wayne’s also doing really well here. The cadence he has on the line ‘Deremy rhymes with ‘kiss my ass'” makes the line better than it has any right to be. Man, Dubbing hasn’t worked this fundamentally for me in a bit

As Colin puts in backstory [“I used to love you like a brother and more”], Carson does this:

Man, he is really into this, and I’m really thankful he came to play
And then:

Wayne: “This is how we SHOULD walk down the catwalk”
Colin, pricelessly: “I’m not sure what this is selling!”
I kinda love that line. And it’s a great one to go out on.

A really good Dubbing. All four performers were into it, doing great character work. Carson had full dedication to the physical and emotional ranges of improv. Wayne and Ryan were great at working with Carson. It just really worked in a very simple, bare-bones improv sort of way.

Scenes from a Hat:

An old one from the Drew era: “times when a slap on the butt is inappropriate”
Wayne, to Colin: “good job, Mr. President” [slap]

Also, once he gets back from that, Colin gets dragged back down with Ryan. He chuckles a little.

Ryan and Colin do a space one, which means we get this GENIUS payoff:

SO GOOD

Heather: “I’m so sorry, your wife didn’t make it…BUT…”

Wayne: [slaps it and cries]
I love Heather so much on this show

Ryan does this long, drawn out ‘tenderizing’ proctologist one that Colin just shakes his head at.

As Aisha brings Heather and Wayne down, you can hear Heather going ‘WHAT?’
Aisha does one as the priest, slapping the bride and groom after the kiss
Ryan, passing in to slap Aisha: “good job, reverend…”

“Unlikely things to hear on a fitness DVD”
Ryan, once again:
Colin: “I feel the pounds just COMING OFF!”
Aisha: “…I am never hitting the buzzer.”
Colin: “alright.”
Ryan, with both hands on Colin’s butt: [buzzer noise]

Ryan: “look how large my penis is!”

Wayne:
PERFECT
Ryan, coming back on: “I know, look at it! You’re standing on it!”
And this leads into a whole jumprope gag

Such a goofy SFAH. Lots of long, drawn out, fun scenes. Progressing the fun mood of the taping forward

Living Scenery: Ryan and Colin are two newlyweds in a department store during a sale, buying all of the furniture and fittings for their new home; Heather and Carson are props

There’s some cute moments to start. Colin referring to Carson and Heather’s fold-out couch as ‘adjust-a-bed’. Ryan lowering Carson’s side of the bed by turning a dial on his nose.
Colin, sitting on Heather: “oh, mine has the comfy, inflatable things in the back..”

Ryan, on Carson: “I think this one blew a spring.”
Carson’s laughing at that as Ryan gets up

Ryan uses Carson as a fridge door: “OHHH LOOK AT ALL THE FRUIT.”
It was bound to happen eventually
Colin: “AND…it comes with constant running cold water”

As Carson and Heather do the television, Ryan goes: “ohh, look what’s on!”
Heather:

Colin: “oh, Fox News!”
HAAAAA
Ryan: “oh, I’ll switch to another channel…”

Ryan: “LOOK, LET’S MAKE A DEAL’S ON!”
Colin: “…what’s happened to Wayne Brady?”
THAT DELIVERY THO

I love Carson and Heather’s ceiling fan motion. As Ryan puts it: “it’s four blades, but they’re going together!”

Carson does an Air Condition mime by blowing right at Ryan
Ryan, of course: “I can feel that blow all the way across the room”

Colin suggests Ryan “strap it on your back, so you can always get cool on your neck”
Ryan: “That’s great, let’s move on!”
PFFFFF. The rare ‘no’ on this show, just cause Ryan doesn’t wanna risk back injury

A pretty good Living Scenery. Had some fun pieces to move it above the basic LS formula, including the TV bit and the very funny ceiling fan bit.

Aisha: “SIX…TY…SEVEN…POINTS.”
Colin, of course: “69’s funnier.”

Doo-Wop: Wayne, Ryan and Colin sing about Harriet, who died tragically in a softball-related accident

Wayne starts with a fantastic rhyme
“She was a traitor, that softball player Harriet
she turned on her team [crack] like Judas Iscariot”
WOW
Wayne gets a little lost, then then “Of the litter you were the runt [!!!!!!]
dot dot dot…I love your BUNT.”
OKAY THEN

Ryan, on a lovemaking related death, “I guess you should have choked up on my bat..”

Colin: “Yes, Harriet….you were a bitch”
ALREADY I’M GONE
“I didn’t care because your father was so rich
But you died on the field, that’s how it ends
I guess we learned that diamonds AREN’T a girl’s best friend”
The sequel to his baseball hoedown verse

Wayne throws in a line: “If I’d have worn a glove, you wouldn’t have caught an STD”, which confuses Colin and Ryan as they try to finish the song

A pretty good Doo-Wop. Funny stuff from all three, good lyricism, funny all the way through.

Overall: A perfectly solid show, with no bad games, a lot of fun energy, and some really nice moments all around. I think this one was better than the other Heather show this season, because it was a bit more solid all the way through and had some really goofy, charming moments at rest. Stuff like Props, SFAH and Doo-Wop sum up this show because it just feels like they’re having fun. You also have two really strong guest games in Dubbing and LS, and a really game and improv-friendly guest in Carson, so pretty much all criteria are fulfilled. Just a really fun show that, while overshadowed by this season’s highest heights, is still a grateful addition to its fold.

Show Winners: Wayne and Heather
Best Performer: Wayne dominated tonight. He was all over this show and doing fantastic stuff all around.
Worst Performer: Honestly, Colin had more moments of deferring to another performer than anyone else tonight. He still did ‘I told him to go fuck itself’, but he was mostly used for other people’s gags tonight, which is fine, but lands him here.
Best Game: Fuck it, Props. That’s an all-timer Props.
Worst Game: Questions was the clumsiest but I still had fun with it.
Guest Star Rating: 9/10. Carson was great in both his games and understood what made improv work.

COMING UP NEXT: Season 11 [technically] ends with one last Jeff show, and one last spot-on Jeff impression.

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E18, or You’re Like a Rollercoaster!

For the last half of this season, we’ve had a steady stream of switching off guestless shows with guest star shows, and now we’ve hit another guestless show, a third Keegan show from his S11 taping, and his third of four from it.

Hollywood Director: At an FBI gun range, trigger-happy partners Ryan and Keegan are practicing firing different weapons, suddenly a pair of crazy escaped convicts, both played by Wayne, burst in seeking revenge on the cops who put them away

Wayne’s doing a fantastic job of playing two southern characters at once. It really powers the initial scene.

Ryan, after Colin enters: “I didn’t know who to talk to…”

Ryan’s usual over-the-top Spanish Game-Show stuff is actually outdone by Keegan’s mustache and machine guns in this. Man, he’s really good at blending right into a mood

The eventual running around madness in that style cracked me up:

Colin: “that was offensive on so many levels”

Colin, to Ryan: “this may be difficult for you, but everybody do it sexy.”

The ‘sexy’ scene is pretty fantastic, mostly because Keegan absolutely nails the bawdy, horny tone of it. Once Wayne enters, he and Ryan collapse into a unison ‘AAAHHH’ which cracked me up
Wayne: “I came…..LOOKIN FOR Y’ALL.”
PFFFF
Colin: ‘cutcutcutcut…”
Ryan, still:

Colin: “…I’m guessing you’re all single.”

Colin: “you’re all catwalk models- DON’T WALK LIKE A CAT…”
Ryan, who was about to: “DARN!”
Colin realizes he just took an idea from Ryan: “so sorry…aaah, do whatever.”
That’s a nice inter-moment where you see their thought processes going

This is where Colin ends it:

A solid Director that got better as it went along, and was boosted by physical choices and goofy subversions. There wasn’t a ton to this one, but a lot of little stuff impressed me

Aisha, not giving points: “I think doing excellent work is its own reward”
Keegan: “I can’t buy a new car with JOY…”
Aisha: “can’t buy a new car with points neither…”

Scenes from a Hat:

“If drill sergeants did other jobs”
Ryan: “KEEP YOUR VOICES DOWN, THIS IS A LIBRARY.”
Colin: “I…WILL DO SOME MIME WHERE I WALK AGAINST THE WIND…THEN…I WILL WALK A DOG…THAT ISN’T THERE…”
Keegan: “…AND WHY DO YOU *THINK* YOU FEEL THAT WAY? COULD BE IT BECAUSE OF WHAT YOUR MOTHER DID WHEN YOU WERE A CHILD?”
That one made me laugh

Wayne’s baby delivery one isn’t as funny as it is impressive, as he keeps it going long enough, doing a full ‘left-right’ chant as it comes out. That honestly sums up a lot of Wayne’s appeal, too

“The worst person to be stranded with on a desert island”
Keegan: “…MY FIRST BIT OF MIME WILL BE ME WALKIN A DOG…”
I burst out laughing. That is an ace callback, and that is why Keegan is so valued on this show

Ryan’s “I saw a boat earlier but they didn’t see me” is funnier the longer he holds his creepy smiley expression. Eventually you just hear Keegan lose it in the background

“Opening Songs of Doomed Broadway Musicals”
Ryan: “welcome suckers, thanks for your dough!”
Pff. Simple, but it works
Colin, in the midst of gibberish song: “…short-term memory”
That one made me laugh as well

And Ryan brings in Colin for one of my favorite SFAH deliveries of all time:

Ryan: “Ohhhh we’re old men, and these are our penises…”
Perfect.

I really like this SFAH. I love how it used gags throughout, I loved all three scene suggestions, and I think there was a lot of good stuff throughout.

Ryan gives Aisha his points back, just “for walking down the stairs in those heels.” Which reestablishes goodwill with Aisha, before he throws in a ‘love you on The View’.

Whose Line: Indiana Jones, Ryan, is on an adventure with his lovely girlfriend, Colin, and they discover a hidden tomb and become trapped inside.

A repeat scene of a S7 WL playing i enjoyed

Colin, immediately taking advantage of the scene: “hey, Indy, thanks for last night.”
PFFF

Ryan wants a partner who will “look at me as she wakes up and say “where are all the restrooms?”

I also love Colin reaching as he says “you never…CLIIIMBED the heights of desire like you did last night.” He’s just throwing whatever he can in there and seeing if it works

Colin: “OH, YOU LOVED ME BIG LAST NIGHT WHEN YOU WERE SCREAMING OUT ‘NICE BOOBS!'”
Ryan:


I love that. Ryan has to verify it, and once he does he just shrugs and goes with it.
Ryan: “IT WAS DARK. IT WAS VERY DARK.”
Colin: “IT WAS *DARK???”*”
[“Helen FROZE??”]
Ryan: “your boobs are attractive but they’re no TREASURE, and you know I must seek treasure, as that’s my job.”
Colin: “…what a dick…”
[Keegan goes down in the back thanks to that]

Ryan: “I don’t wanna wake up in the morning and hear people talking outside the door about me and saying things like “I’m wearing your mother’s underwear…”
I love how, because that’s how Ryan accentuates the end of sentences, he does it here. Your mother’s underWEEEAR.

Ryan, as they become trapped: “I guess this is it for us.”
Colin: “…boy are you ever pessimistic…THAT’S IT? ONE DOOR CLOSES AND WE’RE DEAD NOW???”

Ryan now confesses “I’ve never loved anyone as much as I’ve loved you”
Colin: “….YOU’RE LIKE A ROLLERCOASTER! I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT’S GOING ON WITH YOU!”
Ryan: “well, because we’re about to die I thought maybe I could get a little something..”
Colin, in a delivery and position that’s way funnier than it should be:

“OHHHH NO.”
PFFFFFF

Ryan, pulling out another line: “will it help if I said…[reading], oh, wait that’s just my name…”
PFFFFFF. WRONG SLIP OF PAPER
Ryan: “RYAN? WOULD IT HELP IF I SAID RYAN??”
Colin: “Oh, that would just KILL THE DESIRE RIGHT THERE.”

Colin: “just softly say in my ear…’lick my face and call me Mindy'”
PFFF
Ryan: [does so]
Colin: “OHHHH”
I love them so much

Honestly, probably my favorite CW playing of Whose Line. Yes, the Spider-Man one has the starrier moments, but this one just felt like a classic Ryan-Colin scene with some great interplay, some great live moments, and Colin just blasting through the last third of this. I love this one so much.

Aisha compliments Colin’s boobs one more time. “I’ve seen him without the shirt…UHUHUHERGGHH…”
Colin, on that noise:

Hats: Dating Service Videos

YES, HATS ON THE CW. A few more have been filmed but so far this is the only one that’s aired.

A sign of the times is Ryan doing his usual bird ‘get laid’ joke, but as it’s 2015, it doesn’t get censored
Wayne, ocean helmet: “It’s okay, baby, I’ll go down.”
This makes air as well. Man, the censors have loosened up

Ryan: “I’m easy to make, you just roll some balls around until I get bigger..”

Colin: “If ya don’t do me, I’ll be EXTINCT…………I CAN’T SEE OR HEAR *ANYTHING*…..EXCEPT THE SOUND OF MY OWN VOICE.”
Like a Greg one

Keegan: “so basically, you have…two options.”
Keegan is surprisingly perfect for this game

Wayne: “…it’s gon’ make you cry.”
A lot of Wayne’s are pretty basic by design, but this one was good

Keegan, perfectly with a vulture hat: “no big deal, I’m just gon’…circle around until you fall down…”
And he perfectly slumps off the stool at that

Wayne, revolutionary hat: “the british are coming…”
It’s that simple

Keegan, Russian hat: “if you let me, I will PUT-IN.”
PFFFFF

A pretty nice Hats round, with all four delivering good stuff [except for Colin, honestly, who usually isn’t great at this game]. I really wish they’d air some more of the rounds of these they filmed.

Ryan, postmortem, bringing back his Christopher Lloyd impression: “WHY DO I NEED HAIR?”

Greatest Hits: Songs of New Orleans v2

Colin, possibly to spite Aisha, does his standup pronouncing it ‘Nawlins’ a few times.

Ryan: “Kids of all ages, what, you mean like a 54-year-old kid?? Like an 80-year-old kid?”
Colin, dropping: “just go with it, for GOD’S SAKES…”
And then Colin, after holding one expression for like 10 seconds, deftly changes expressions like nothing happened.

Colin: “But on this song, there’s a cut by an animatronic-”
Ryan: “oh, you mean like-”
Colin, suddenly lashing out: “I’M IN THE MIDDLE OF WORKING!!”
Ryan: “I didn’t know if it was a kid of all ages-”
Colin: “GIVE ME A *CHANCE!*”
The amount of times Colin is busting out and coming for Ryan is fantastic. He hasn’t been this outwardly huge in a while this season

Ryan, still: “I didn’t know if you meant like medieval, the 60s, kids from those ages..”
Colin: “YES, THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I MEANT…A kid from the medieval times can listen to this and enjoy it as much…AS A KID FROM THE FUTURE THAT DOESN’T EXIST YET…….OH MY GOD, KILL ME NOW.”
10/10

Colin, still very angry: “ANYWAY…AS I WAS SAYING THERE’S A…SONG FOR *KIDS*….DONE BY AN ANIMATRONIC COUNTRY BEAR BAND.”
Ryan, finally:

Colin: “THAT HAS NO RELATION TO ANY OTHER YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN OR HEARD…”

Wayne, of course, has the physicality of the Country Bear Jamboree down perfectly, and can do this sort of off-kilter robotic movement really well.
Wayne: “she was lookin’ at me…clappin to the beat”
Wayne, now as a more serious accordionist bear: “because she was four foot tall and she only had three teeth”

Laura and Linda stop the song about a beat later than Wayne thought, and he has to clumsily power down to save it. Which is a nice ending to a very fun number
Colin: “for some reason…I thought that song would go on longer…”

Ryan: “you know, I love my Beyonce.”
Colin has a horrified look for a few seconds before going “oh, the SINGER.”

Wayne gets a bunch of audience members to be his Beyonce backup dancers, which is just the touch we need.

Then, the chorus gets Wayne wobbling around drunk, and so does his backup dancers. Then, he sees the one guy he picked out doing this sort of move on one of the women and stops singing and dissolves into “whuh-hu-…whoaaa..”

Then, as he does some more shaking, another female audience member is right by his backside
Wayne: “shake…WHY YOU SO CLOSE TO ME, SHAKE…”
PFFF

Then, after another chorus of drunk dancing, Wayne reprises a move from his first number and powers off, which the dancers thankfully follow. Such a funny move

A really good GH, just as good as E3’s half of this. This also had some great moments from Wayne and his struggles, as well as that explosive Colin-Ryan banter moment. Just proves how good of a GH session we got in this taping.

Overall: For the first time since Season 9, I really liked a Keegan show. I’ve had issues with the last four despite great running gag work in 10×02 and 11×03. It’s not Keegan’s fault, but there have been little things in a lot of his recent shows that have put me off. None of them were present in this show. There was a lot to love, including some great fundamental games like Director and Greatest Hits, plus two awesome quickfire rounds in SFAH and Hats, and what felt like an all-timer Whose Line. This was also a phenomenal Colin show, another great showcase of Keegan’s scene-sweetening talents [though he was less prevalent tonight], and a great show for live moments, like Keegan bringing back the drill sergeant, Ryan picking the wrong line and Wayne getting frustrated by both the musicians and his backup singers. It felt like an OG Whose Line in the best ways, and might be one of my favorite guestless shows thus far.

Show Winners: All four
Best Performer: Even if he was missing during Hats, Colin Mochrie was giving his strongest work in SFAH, Whose Line and GH.
Worst Performer: Wayne had the most slip-ups tonight.
Best Game: Whose Line. Oh my god this WL playing felt so live to me. Colin was just on fire in the last half, sort of like this show.
Worst Game: Director was the most simple, despite also being good.

COMING UP NEXT: One more Heather show, and a guest appearance from a guy who was on the OG Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E17, or I Wouldn’t Call That a Problem

When I was in middle school, there were very few constants in my life. Like, we had the reassurance that the cafeteria food would be disappointing, gym class would be a wee bit too strenuous for 9 AM, and that the general populace of the school would be needlessly rude.

But the one constant was that every once in a while in science class, to either sum up or preview a unit, the science teacher would put on an episode of one of the greatest educational kids shows of all time…BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY!

That’s right. Bill Nye was always a hit when I was a kid. He made sure that these scientific concepts were digestible and interesting to someone with a low attention span by using amusing tactile experiments, real-life applications, the occasional guest star [including two guest stars who filmed in S11, Alfonzo Ribiero and Penn and Teller], and an ill-advised song at the end of the episode. Nye himself was one of those wholesome kids show figures who seemed to be exactly who he was on TV, and encouraged deeper learning and discovery. Nye has been playing this scientist character off and on for the last 30 years, also having new shows on new platforms, and branching out to even be on Dancing with the Stars one year. But Bill Nye is one of those good-guy personalities who’ll always be relevant for the right reasons. Heck, John Oliver brought him on one time to yell at the audience about doing nothing about climate change. He knows who he is, and he knows what works.

…So in 2015, WL booked Bill Nye and everybody freaked out because, I mean come on, BILL NYE ON WHOSE LINE? THAT’S GOTTA BE AWESOME. And sure enough, some awesome things happened. I don’t remember a ton about this episode from my first watch, but I know that this is the second show from Greg’s taping, and his 2nd and last show of the season.

Aisha: “and like a hairbrush at Ryan Stiles’ house, the points do not matter”
Ryan:

Weird Newscasters: Colin anchors, Greg, Enthusiastic fashion show host, bitching about Colin’s appearance, co-anchors, Wayne, Excited female shopper on Black Friday who thinks other people’s clothes are in the sale, does sports, while Ryan, Colin Mochrie’s entire life flashing before our eyes

Colin, when he hears Ryan’s quirk:

The tension at moment zero…

Colin’s “HanSolo It touches the ground” pun gives us a brief cutaway to Wayne trying desperately hard not to laugh

Greg, in the midst of tearing apart Colin’s fashion sense: “oh look, Columbus!”

Greg: “sailing across the vast, empty space of your globe.”
Colin, once again, holds a glare for about 5 seconds then goes about his business

Wayne, in the midst of grabbing audience members’ clothes: “I should put this blouse on, but that’d be a lawsuit..”

This leads Greg to try to make Colin “a little hotter”

Ryan, playing Colin’s parents: “WHY DO WE HAVE TO GET RID OF THE BABY?” “WELL, LOOK!”
Colin:

Ryan, as Colin in front of the class: “a man who, uh, brought a salt shaker in a restaurant, and he couldn’t listen to his radio cause the batteries had worn out, so he got arrested for a salt and BATTERY.”

Ryan then depicts the moment where most of Colin’s hair flies off, which is just biting enough.

A pretty good WN. A few moments that were too basic for this game, even Ryan’s, but it served its purpose.

Newsflash: Greg and Ryan in the studio, Colin in the field in front of a sausage factory

Colin: “the first four hours were tough, but the more I look at this, the more I find a certain…beauty.”

Ryan, on a blobby mess: “Colin, I don’t even know what that is…”
Colin, who probably has it kinda early: “it used to be something..”

Ryan: “oh, I have that same problem myself…”
Greg: “I can attest to that, he really does…”

Greg: “AND HE HAS THIS PROBLEM AS WELL!”
[A sequel to his ‘Hey, who invited the chicks’. It just feels like serendipity.
Ryan, even more well-timed: “…I WOULDN’T CALL THAT A PROBLEM.”
Perfect

A decent Newsflash. That ending makes it for me, until then it’s pretty basic.

Song Styles: Wayne sings a 50s rockabilly song, The Click, to BILL NYE

So already, Bill’s goofy-dad dancing is enough to charm the pants off the audience, as it should.

Wayne: “he can teach you all about velocity, but when he dances, his joints go:”
Bill, nearly missing his cue: “click…click…”

Man, this is so much fun. Bill and Wayne complement each other perfectly

Wayne: “he can teach you all about temperature
oh god, please let his joints endure..”

I have to applaud Bill’s dancing, doing a nice twirl, and keeping on his feet without too much of a wear on him. Yes, a lot of his appeal is being a goof and a brain while also keeping stylish, but he’s really coming off fun and professional in this number.

Wayne even invites Aisha downstage for this one
Wayne: “come on, Bill, have a ball, it’s not your fault, she’s just too damn tall..”

This final note move is awesome. Man, Bill Nye is suave as hell.

SUCH A FUN NUMBER. A really fun environment thanks to Bill, plus Wayne had some really fun lyrics throughout. The kind of fun to watch, infectious Duet I wish there were more of.

Aisha jokes that we found “scientific proof, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that not all black people can dance…scientific proof, courtesy of Bill Nye the Science Guy”
Wayne: “thank you, Exhibit One”

Aisha: “my pack had dropped down to the center of my pants, and felt like a very warm-”
Ryan, quickly getting up: “did you get it out, is it okay?”

Scenes from a Hat:

“Bad times to break into a song and dance number”
Wayne, as a stripper: “I’m…working my way through college….please ignore, the tattoo and the BUL-LET WOUNDS…”
He cracks up at that addition
Ryan, in the electric chair: “DO YOU SMELLL SOMETHING BURNINNNNG TONIGHT?”

Ryan, snapping: “A BABY’S COMIN OUTTA MY WIFE’S VAGINAAAAA…”
That’s funny enough in itself but the others lend support:

Wayne does backing vocals
Ryan: “LOOK AT THAT! THAT’S MY BABY-”
Colin:
PFFFF
Ryan, stopping his song dead: “OH MY GOD…”
Colin, referencing E5’s LMAD, runs towards Aisha desk with his tongue waggling. Fantastic inter-taping runner

Wayne does an erectile dysfunction song that doesn’t get the laughs he’s looking for, so he gets some help
Aisha, sitting next to him: “IT HAPPENS TO A LOT OF GUYS…there’s nothing to be EMBARRASSED ABOUT-”
Greg, suddenly entering with Ryan and Colin: “SORRY I’M LAAAATE..”
PFFFF. That cracked me up back in the day, and it still does

Colin:

“GUESS WHO JUST HAD ASPARAGUS!”
So damn funny, but even funnier is the physical component:
Just dancing across the urinals. Perfect
Ryan: “were you going down from urinal to urinal?”
Colin: “yeah!”

“Inappropriate times to give someone a kiss”
Colin shakes his head as he comes down for Wayne’s.
Wayne: “On behalf of the united nations, we’d like to present you with this award.”
Wayne: “this was from my country, and THAT was from ME.”

Greg: “you are now the president of the United States.”


I love Colin’s earnestness here.
Greg: “…come here and give the chief justice some love.”
PFFF
Colin:
This is why both these performers are still on the show to this day

And the crowd goes wild:

Ryan, for the second time this round:

Colin:
I’m surprised we end on this one rather than the Greg one, but it’s still a good way to go out

A great SFAH, more than making up for last show’s, and having lots of extended, fleshed-out scenes that impressed me.

Helping Hands: Ryan, hands by Colin, is the tough head astronaut on the International Space Station teaching new science officer Bill Nye all about living in space

Heck, we even get a science-y scene for Bill

I do like Ryan trying to demonstrate toothpaste in space, and the upwards stream from the tube, then Colin tilting the tube and the ejected glob of toothpaste just falling onto the table

The struggle of Colin attempting to squirt some of the vodka into Bill Nye’s mouth is amusing as hell. But Bill does one of the coolest things I’ve seen on this show in a while:

Yes, it may seem like a normal spit, but the way Bill holds the liquid in his mouth and then rockets it out so it still sort of has a shape before it dissipates- that speaks to someone who clearly knows a lot about the properties of liquid, especially alcohol.
Ryan, not topping that: “Me? I myself…don’t drink!”

Also, I love that Ryan’s idea to grow vegetables in space happened about 10 months before the release of The Martian, a film where Matt Damon grows potatoes on Mars

Ryan, after some ‘greens’ scarfed down: “you know…of all the things i’ve had shoved down my mouth, that wasn’t too bad!”

So, Bill’s a little out of his element here, and he can only do so much as a support. I think he knows this, cause he’s a little more reserved, but he’s not saying no, which is nice

Ryan, with Colin about to give him a mystery potion in a test tube: “who knows who this is?”
Bill: [downs his with no problem]
Ryan, after downing his: “…still a mystery”
Bill does have some genuine blowback to it, which is a nice choice. Ryan responds in turn.
Ryan: ‘aaaagh, gimme a shot of toothpaste, quick…”

As Ryan attempts to get the toothpaste back into the bottle, Aisha buzzes

Bill does leave with the vodka bottle, which is a fun move.

An alright HH. There were a few creative bits and moments, but this was a pretty basic ‘shoving things into Ryan’s mouth’ one, Bill only did so much in support, and it still sort of limped along. Bill wasn’t the problem the fact that we’ve had Helping Hands every taping since S5 is the problem. Some of these games are gonna be exactly the same, and this was one of them, Bill or no Bill.

Overall: An okay show disrupted by a shockingly great middle. WN, Newsflash and Helping Hands were all really basic games with glints of really funny moments, and Duet and SFAH were really fun, energetic games that deserved a better all-around show. Bill Nye was a fun presence but it felt at times like he was better than a lot of the proceedings, especially in Helping Hands. Greg was edited alright, and had decent moments throughout, but his more straight-laced, straight-man nature continues to allow the editors to short-shrift him.

Show Winners: All four
Best Performer: Another one for Ryan. This one started off in WN and just kept trucking throughout for him. He might be having his strongest season in YEARS.
Worst Performer: Greg, as discussed, only really did support stuff tonight except for some choice moments.
Best Game: Scenes from a Hat was fantastic, with two classic all-around scenes.
Worst Game: Helping Hands didn’t have much that set it apart from most playings.
Guest Star Rating: 8/10. He tries his damndest, but improv isn’t his strongest suit. He still seemed to have a really good time, especially in Duet.

COMING UP NEXT: Our third and last Keegan show of the season, and a guestless one at that

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E16, or Keep Explaining Til They Laugh!

Last season gave us two alright Brad shows, but both were with guests. This season has given us two great Brad shows, and now are nice enough to throw in a guestless show along with it. Thanks, Dan and Mark!

Let’s Make a Date: Brad must choose from:
Wayne – Robocop gone bad, embarking on a one-man crime-wave
Colin – Frantic castaway driven mad by hunger and lust
Ryan – Nervous gazelle being hunted on the African plain

It’s always nice to hear Brad’s LMAD voice. It will never not be.

Wayne has nice little evil robocop details, like slapping a kid and kicking a dog away. He then goes up to an audience member’s purse and goes “it’s mine now, bitch.”

Wayne, getting back to his stool:

Colin spots Wayne…and starts nibbling on his ear:

Ryan has been doing characters like these for years, and:

…yeah, he’s still got it

We don’t really get a second round, but we get an edited in highlight of, as Colin’s continuing to torture Wayne,

And then…the carnage happens:

The use of camera angles like those to depict Colin coming over and chowing down on Ryan is why this show’s editing is still great.
This one as well. And then, suddenly the other two feel left out:
That’s the best part. EVEN BRAD HAS TO RUN OVER THERE.
So damn funny

Aisha buzzes and all four saunter back to the stools. I love that all four were in on the chaos

Brad guesses Wayne as “Robocop that had a glitch that turned him to a life of crime”, which is pretty spot on. Wayne rips off the sunglasses and goes “WHAT??”

Brad: “Colin, I think, was a shipwrecked cannibal who…loves having sex with his dinner.”
Funnier than what it says on the card, but still accurate

Brad guesses Ryan was a gazelle because he’s done this bit before. Aisha is STUNNED that Brad could get all three spot-on.

I love how excited Aisha is about this as well.

Brad gets ‘one giant lifetime point’, which he gives back during the Kathie-Lee show.

Yeah, a pretty damn good LMAD. The collaborative nature of that climax was hysterical, Brad’s guessing makes this a memorable one, and also all three did funny stuff with relatively simple quirks.

Props: Ryan and Brad vs. Colin and Wayne

Right off the bat, Ryan and Brad do the Lost in Space one I was thinking they’d do, complete with Brad’s Dr. Smith impression

Some of these work not because of the creativity, but because of how it’s executed. Wayne does one as King Tut and plays him as Jewish, which cracks up Colin

Wayne trying to do the parallel bars with two unstable props AUDIBLY CRACKS UP AISHA.

Ryan draws out a ‘one long nosehair’ joke until the audience gets it. “IT’S JUST ONE FUCKING HAIR COMING OUT OF MY NOSE.”

Colin, way too happy: “HEY, JERRY, THESE NEW PENIS GUARDS ARE GREAT!”

Wayne: “COLIN…QUICKSAND…”
Audience: […]
Wayne: “BECAUSE YOU’RE HALFWAY IN IT.”
Audience: […]
Colin: “KEEP EXPLAINING UNTIL THEY LAUGH.”
PFFFFF

Ryan: “Whatever animal that was, that had to almost KILL him…”
I’m glad we get the angle that shows how hard Wayne laughs at that

Wayne: “WHYYYY YOOOOU VARMINT…I’M THE ROOTINIST TOOTINIST COWBOY THIS SIDE OF THE RIO GRANDE…”
Yeah, that’s spot on, that’s exactly how they draw Yosemite Sam’s legs…

The timing of Wayne and Colin’s boomerang gag, staying on them after Wayne launches it and waits for someone offscreen to throw it back, is perfect. The pause on their camera shot makes the eventual throw back to Colin work even better

A really fun Props. It felt a lot like the Drew version in how creative and how back-and-forth seamless a lot of these felt, and it had goofy moments all around [that ending boomerang gag].

Secret: From Star Wars, Ryan is Luke Skywalker and Colin is Princess Leia. The secret is lingerie and sex toys

Aisha: “…which is normally how the gender roles work out on this show”

Ryan, who has not seen Star Wars in years: “what’s wrong, my little princess?”
Colin, who has: “WE’RE BROTHER AND SISTER.”

Colin: “just remember that..”
Ryan: ‘I’VE SEEN IT.”
Colin: “Sometimes I wonder if you have.”
That’s a perfect exchange. Colin, who watches all the movies, and Ryan, who doesn’t, have to inhabit the same reality a lot of the time without some of the same shared knowledge.

Ryan: “It’s called love between a brother and a sister, that’s all!”
Colin: “I know, you’re just making it creepy.”

Colin pulls out lingerie, fuzzy handcuffs, etc
Ryan: “let me explain…sometimes it’s hard to get Chewbacca to come back to the ship…what do you think makes him go [Chewbacca noise]”
Man, if only he could sub in Wayne again like last time

Colin, trying to get on the bra: “is this the Aisha Tyler Collection?”
Possibly a callback to WN

Ryan tries hitting Colin with the stick, which confuses Colin. “I have experience, the force is with me.”

Ryan tries writing in a loophole so that Colin isn’t actually his sister
Colin, trying to follow Ryan’s logic: “so…your dad and you…PICKED ME UP.”
Ryan, now cracking: ‘right…”
Colin: “GO ON.”
Colin, like in Narrate, is just beckoning Ryan to improvise his way out of this
Ryan: “LET ME EXPLAIN HOW THIS WORKS…”

I love Colin in this scene. “No, I wanna hear this, this sounds really good..”

Ryan figures out a better ending, shutting the case and letting Colin slap him on the ass with the stick. This backfires, as Colin actually puts a lot of, heh, force into it and Ryan draws back in pain.
Ryan: “…oh FUCK…”
PFFFFFF

Ryan, inspecting post-buzzer: “there’s LEATHER hidden in here…thought it was just a feather..”

A WILD secret. It wasn’t entirely the most coherent, and it needed some meta-improv work with Colin making Ryan explain to really sell it. But the funniest parts came from Ryan and Colin knowing each other and breaking each other, so it was a good scene from that respect.

Scenes from a Hat:

“Bad names for a battleship”
Wayne: “YOU WILL NEVER SINK THE SINKABLE.”
Ryan: “my sister went down on the USS Clinton”
PFFFFFF

“If famous movie scenes were performed drunk”
Brad does a good one as a munchkin passing out. Colin and Wayne boost it by stealing his money

“Things you can say about your furniture that you cannot say about your partner”
Ryan: “found this at a swap meet.”
Aisha, iconically: “Not as hard as it used to be..”

Honestly a kind of blah SFAH. Scenes just sort of went by without making an impact.

Greatest Hits: Songs of the Hospital v2

Ryan, pained: “either I’ve got bad gas or I’m having a baby, Colin…”
Colin: “either way, I don’t wanna be here..”

Wayne makes a FANTASTIC callback, goes over to the audience member he took the purse from earlier and grabs the sunglasses back so he can be Stevie Wonder

Wayne and Brad’s Stevie and Bruce are still as strong as they were in the Drew version

The Bruce/Stevie number is alright, but I love the ending where Wayne as Stevie randomly has a gun [“I really shouldn’t have this”], and a horrified Brad has to duck as the song ends.

As established, Wayne’s Beastie Boys voice is pretty great, as is Brad’s, though Brad’s is more a regular white-guy-rapping kinda thing.

Still, the ‘Obamacare’ Beasties number is the better of the two, has great energy from both, and a great impressive rap run ending from Brad.

An alright GH. Not as good as the other one from this taping, though Brad and Wayne were in good form.

Overall: This show started strong and petered off as it went on. LMAD and Props were great show starters and had some of the live energy that the previous two shows from this taping had tons of. Secret also had some of it without being as good of an improv game. Then SFAH and GH felt like lower-tier offerings from this taping, and brought the show back to earth a bit. Not that it was a bad show, and the early heights boosted it a lot, as well as some great Ryan-Colin moments and Brad’s usual strong fourth seater stuff. It just finished a lot more blahly than it started.

Show Winners: Colin and Brad
Best Performer: Colin was on fire all night, having great reactions and responses, and lifting others’ material all night.
Worst Performer: Honestly, Ryan served up more than he gave this show.
Best Game: Let’s Make a Date had the most live moments, and the most going on in general.
Worst Game: Scenes from a Hat was very basic.

COMING UP NEXT: Our second of two Greg shows this season, with one supernova of a guest star booking.

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E15, or Women Can Be Doctors Too

For our first taste at S11’s Heather Anne Campbell taping, we feature a guest star appearance from Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Nina Agdal. She wasn’t doing any acting or anything, she was just…a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Man, I think the last one of those that truly became a household name was Kate Upton, because we’ve begun, as a society, to rely on women for more than just being on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition [as we’ll find out in SFAH]

World’s Worst: Roommate

Ryan does an ‘aah’ when this game is announced which he even makes fun of a few seconds later. Sounds like he’s doing an impression.

Wayne’s initial one, a way too happy, wide-eyed ‘G’MORNING’ sets the tone for the game, and this show, perfectly.

Heather, reminding me why I love her on this show:

“Hey, I spent the whole night UNDER YOUR BED…”

Wayne: “top bunk, mine…bottom bunk, mine…FLOOR…that’s mine.”
The delivery of this feels like a movie delivery

Colin: ‘good news is, I have the rent money…bad news is I sold your girlfriend..”
Heather: [hisses]

Ryan, flipping burgers: “no, I haven’t seen the dog.”
Audience: AWWWWWW
Ryan: “I’m not saying I BARBECUED the dog, I mean I haven’t SEEN THE DOG…I just happen to be barbecuing at the same time.”
The dark humor in this game is really working for me, even if the audience doesn’t seem to be as into it

Wayne: “I don’t know how to say this…I’m banging your mom…”

Colin: “Don’t ask how…I’ve accidentally pooped in all your underwear.”

Ryan’s song is the most iconic bit of this. He does this whole ‘GOOD MORNING, GOOD MORNING, GOOD MORNING TO YOU’ song and keeps going for several verses…then does a reprise. WAYNE SPRINGS IN:

Ryan is initially caught off guard, but they do another verse perfectly together. Wayne’s even doing his wide-eyed overly happy character from his first one. It’s such a silly moment.

Wayne, bringing us RIGHT BACK TO THE DARKNESS:

“Dude, close your eyes!”
Audience: *GROANING*
Wayne, doing another ace callback: “IT’S YOUR *MOM*.”
Heather:

The extra mile.

Colin: “Hey, can I borrow your testicles for, like, an hour?”

Heather, confusing herself about 3/4ths of the way through: “I don’t have money but I’ll pay you in vomit or se..x??”

Wayne, hopping on yet another golden opportunity:
“DUDE, CLOSE YOUR EYES.”

Ryan, with like the 90th callback this round: “gooood night, good night, good night to you…HAVE A GOOD SLEEPY, GOODNIGHT TO YOU…”

Wayne does one more dark one with smothering the roommate with a pillow. “Shhh….[thinks of the only idea he CAN use]…I love your mom…”

Dear god, that’s a phenomenal World’s Worst round. That should be studied, right up there with 9×03’s. Every joke basically hit, there were so many callbacks and returning jokes, everyone had amazing material, and it just kept getting funnier even with the lengthened runtime. So impressed.

Song Styles: Wayne sings a latin pop song to Nina

Ryan does his usual ‘go up and say hello to the pretty woman’ gag. Nina subverts this by asking Heather and Colin if they want a hug as well. Damn, a decades-long running gag thwarted by a genuinely nice and pretty woman.
Heather: “hello, I feel bad about myself…”

Wayne, after Nina starts the song with a very sexy eating motion: “I LOVE MY JOB!”

This is a fun number solely because of how game Nina is, and how much fun she’s having. Even when Wayne says ‘you want a bit of my calzone-y’, Nina gives him an impressed look rather than the shocked look we get from celebs in this game
Also, at the calzone line, Ryan full-on facepalms and Colin does his usual ‘hmmm’ expression

Wayne: “can I feed you, put something down your throat?”
Nina:

Wayne: “that you might enjoy, HEY IT’S NOT DIRTY, no, please, please I hope…”

Wayne does a ‘what do you like to eat’, and Nina mimes taking a bite of Wayne.
Wayne: “OH…that’s great, you love chocolate, I’ll give it to ya…”

So yeah, really fun number with a lot of great touches from Wayne, and some fun dancing and gameness from Nina.

Aisha: “and she was…adorable…and I have a little bit of a crush on her, so…”
[sounds ‘you’re not fooling anyone’ alarm]

Dead Bodies: High school sweethearts Ryan and Nina are making out in Ryan’s car and suddenly a werewolf, Heather, breaks in to attack them

We’re doing a Teen Wolf scene NOW? We had Adelaide Kane on 13 episodes ago! Either that or this is what gave Heather’s partner the idea for Monsterland

Aisha: “are making out in Ryan’s car…Ryan…wrote this card apparently…”
Ryan: “JUST READ IT”

Colin’s initial Ryan neck movement is one that makes an audible crack, and Ryan even has a quiet ‘aagh’, which cracks up Colin. They have to break for a moment.
Ryan: “did you hear that??”
Colin: “YES!”

Colin, getting into the scene: “I’m not really a high school student…I’m a mature student who’s trying to make his way through college..I’m 87…”

Colin, as Ryan: “my last erection broke my hip”
PFFFFF
Ryan:

Colin, as Nina: “kiss me, you fool”
Colin, as Ryan: “I would…my nose always gets in the way…”
Ryan:

Wayne, at Colin’s bizarre kissing noises:

Also, the running gag of both Nina and Heather’s characters having the same silly, arm-flailing walk

I love Colin choreographing Nina and Heather’s fighting. “I HAVE CLAAAWWS” “I have nails by Chanel!”

I love this shot:

Heather, by the way, is having a great episode despite getting the usual 3-game cut for fourth seaters in guest shows. She’s just really standing out, and just her stifled reaction to placing her head on Nina’s shoulder here is funny enough

Colin picks up Ryan, who’s been crumpled on the floor for a good minute: “I ONLY HAVE 3 SECONDS TO LIVE…I NEED IMMEDIATE SEX!”
Colin ends with his usual ‘getting someone to spank Ryan’ gag. Once Aisha buzzes, Heather breaks out into immediate laughter. I don’t blame her

Honestly, a better Dead Bodies game than the Kathie Lee one. This one worked because Nina did just enough in between playing dead and knowing how to functionally help Colin, and also because there were lots of amusing lines and moments.

Also, I love Heather’s reaction to not getting a hug from Nina after the game, just sort of hugging the air awkwardly.

Aisha: “how are you feeling after that game? Do you need to lie down?”
Colin: “yes, CAUSE I’M SO OLD…i could take you any day and YOU KNOW IT.”

Scenes from a Hat:

“Unexpected Things to Read in a First Aid Manual”
Ryan: “…I owe you one first aid kit..shiiit…”
Ryan, coming back after a second: “…DIE FUCKER DIE.”
Heather: “if you’d like to save your friend, go to page 26. If you’d like to go on an ADVENTURE…”

I’ll stress again how much I enjoy Heather on this show

Ryan: “Pop-up doctor?”
And he does the ‘opening’ motion, hesitating because he’s not sure who or what is gonna pop up

Ryan: “…that’s a nurse!”
Heather echoes the audience’s groans at that move.

Ryan: “…that’s not a doctor…”
Wayne: “I’M AN ORDERLY.”
Ryan, as Wayne rushes back: “Where’s my BALD DOCTOR?”
Obviously wanting Colin in there. But Heather gives him what he wants in the funniest way:

Ryan: “AAAAH, there it is…”

“If people in a hospital spoke like Dr. Seuss”
Wayne, to Colin: “Mr. Thompson…I’m sorry
I cannot cure you on a plane…I cannot cure you on a train
I cannot cure you on a jet…the correct vaccine has not been found yet.”
10/10

Heather, with the ultimate bait-and-switch
“I’m afraid since you have slept with your maids
you have come down with a nasty case…of chlamidiya”

Ryan: “My blood is red, my head is blue…WOMEN CAN BE DOCTORS TOO.”
BOOM. What is with this show and callbacks?
Wayne: “HAPPY NOW?”
Ryan: “EVERYBODY HAPPY??”

Aisha does a great one with Colin:
“Dear sir, you must have been real irked
because it seems your pipe don’t work
but do not worry, you are not ill
you just need to take that little blue pill”
Colin: “I’ll take your pill when nature calls
…it’s work much faster if you cup my balls..”
Aisha: [bursts out laughing]
Wayne: [rushes to buzz]
PERFECT

A really strong SFAH. Again, this is a nice show but the fact that the only non-guest games are quickfire, AND they’re both really good, speaks volumes about the show, and the taping’s, quality

Helping Hands: Ryan, hands by Colin, is a flamboyant wedding planner going through the arrangements for a wedding with nervous bride-to-be Nina

Nina has a faux pas by going “NOT ME” to the expectation of her getting married. Ryan has to go ‘LET’S PRETEND’. So that’s a major no-but from Nina, even though she was having a nice show so far

Ryan: “let me grab a cup here, which are right in front here by my penis-”
JESUS. Nina cracks up but JESUS

I have no idea why but Ryan’s voice for this character sounds exactly like Charles Nelson Reilly

I love Ryan’s reaction to Colin spilling orange juice on the table. ‘JUST ENTIRELY MISSED THAT, DIDN’T I?”

Ryan has to direct Colin SPECIFICALLY to where the shaker top is.
Nina: “Have YOU been drinking??”
Ryan: “I have a little bit”

Also, I love Ryan’s dance as Colin tries his best to contain what’s in the shaker without the lid but ends up getting a lot of it outside of his hand.

Nina, taking a sip of the clamato-based concoction: “oooh, that’s disgusting..”

Colin ends up pouring the entire bowl of sprinkles in Ryan’s mouth

Ryan ends up shoving cake in his mouth…only to realize that his kryptonite, cream cheese, was on there…and he just sinks as he has to attempt to swallow it
Ryan: “lets pray” [spits into Colin’s hands]

Nina challenges the idea that Denmark is all ice. “We have grass too.”
Ryan, of course: “I BET YOU DO HAVE A LITTLE GRASS…”

An okay Helping Hands. Nina was a minimal support, these were the usual gross food and drink gags, and there wasn’t a lot that hasn’t been done in other games of this.

Overall: Another strong show, even if Helping Hands did sour things slightly. World’s Worst and SFAH are the big takeaways, some of the best quickfire rounds of the season with great callback work and great stuff from Heather as well, who was pretty well displaced in this show. Dead Bodies was the best of the guest games, though Duet wasn’t bad either. Nina was a game, fun guest star whose lack of true improv experience showed in HH. The strongest points of this one truly impressed me and boost this up to the higher tiers of this season.

Show Winners: All four
Best Performer: Ryan continues his strong S11 with another win, barely nudging out Wayne for his strong start. His stuff in WW and SFAH was very strong.
Worst Performer: I hate to do this, but Wayne, Colin and Ryan all dominated games for me, and even if she was still edited better and had great moments, Heather was still a bit too shut out in terms of the actual improv games.
Best Game: World’s Worst felt iconic. Absolutely iconic top-to-bottom.
Worst Game: Helping Hands was…every Helping Hands playing.
Guest Star Rating: 8/10. Nina was great in the first two games and less good in HH.

COMING UP NEXT: At long last, a guestless Brad Sherwood show.

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E14, or YOU LOOK LIKE A PIG.

We now enter a new Gary taping from the second half of the season, and the producers were nice enough to give us a guestless show first, before any guest star shows. Knowing how well-liked this episode is, I’m all for it. Like…Spence 12Medbe has told me that this is the first truly great episode of the CW run, which…considering that we’ve already had the Byamba episode, the Kathie Lee episode and the Randy Couture episode, is high praise.

World’s Worst: News anchor or reporter

Wayne’s fire one: “…godd I hate this job….”
Gary knows how to save it, cause it’s only getting a few laughs, so he does a vocal cameo: “UM. WE HEAR YOU.”
Wayne: “Oh, I KNOW YOU HEAR ME…”

Colin: “WE’RE STANDING OUT HERE REPORTING ON THE SNIPER-”

Wayne: [just up and rolls a joint…then hides it once he realizes the camera’s on him]
Gary: “and apparently the brothers fell…50 feet from the tightrope, and now for our black audience…DEM BROTHERS BE TRIPPIN, Y’ALL.”

Ryan, whispering under the desk: “WE’RE ON!”
It’s a simple joke, like the sniper one, but I laughed

Colin: “…read a paper.”

Gary does a great one, miming for like 10 seconds then yelling off-camera “OH, I’M GONNA *USE* MY MIME SKILLS…”. I have no idea why his stuff is killing me so far, but he’s doing great

Ryan: “rain heading over the Pomona area, which is where my ex-wife lives…bitch gonna get WET…”
I think he tried doing a Gary type delivery with a very Ryan-type joke, and it worked out for him.
Wayne: “This just in from our sister station…uh, BITCH GONNA GET WET.”
PERFECT

A pretty good World’s Worst. Lot of basic suggestions done in fresh, interesting ways, and a lot of good stuff from Gary.

Ryan: “You know where the word news comes from? North, East, West and South.”
Aisha: “…NO, THAT IS NOT WHERE IT COMES FROM.”
Ryan: “It’s true, it could have been the 6’o’clock SWEN.”
Ryan is barely keeping from cracking up throughout this

Whose Line: Spiderman, Ryan, has come to rescue his girlfriend Mary Jane, Colin, from the Green Goblin

As Ryan takes his lines, he goes “Thank ya EYE-SHA”, which cracks up Aisha for a second. I have no idea where this came from. Maybe an earlier game in the taping?

The second that Aisha announces that Ryan is Spider-Man, Colin looks back to Wayne, already knowing he’s gonna be the woman.

I love Ryan’s initial twist that “me and the Green Goblin have teamed up. I’ve…decided to go bad. I wanna be a bad spider, not a good spider.”

Colin, explaining that Spider-Man is a symbol of good, “scaring…do-badders with your battle cry…’IT’S TIME FOR YOUR BED-BATH MR. WINKY!”

Ryan, explaining he’s gone evil: “just this morning, I saw a baby outside of a store…and I walked up to that baby, looked it in the eye and said ‘Can you rub it for me?”
I love the split-second’s realization Ryan has before going all in with it. That is INSANE. The audience is in tatters.
Colin: “YOU ARE EVIL!”
Ryan: “IT’S THE ONLY WAY TO WAKE MR. WINKY UP!”
PFFFF
Ryan, cracking a little: “the baby couldn’t understand me, he was only 6 months old.”
Yes, perhaps he did this so this game could air and not go all-in with the connotation of an infant giving a handy to a 57-year-old.

I love Colin smirking as Ryan’s next line turns into Colin’s tramp stamp. Then, Ryan’s ‘wow, that fit’ expression:

“‘My thong is too tight.”
Sometimes lines just come together. Ryan even shows Colin the line to make sure he knows he’s not bluffing

Ryan: “remember…the old song you used to sing to put me to sleep at night?”
Colin, not helping: “Nope.”
Ryan does end up starting it for Colin, cause it’s his line:
“I love you Spidey, I love you so
I love you Spidey, don’t ever go”
And he motions to Colin
Colin: “…YOOOOU LOOK LIKE A *PIG.*”

Ryan has my reaction: “WHAT???”
Colin, like Ryan did before, shows him the line. And the scene ends beautifully on that really funny note.

A great Whose Line scene. I could have used a bit more Colin-Ryan interplay, but they had great responses to the lines, and they took the scene in really fun places.

Aisha’s still cracking up back at the seats. Wayne’s just doing a lovely song backing, knowing how ill-fitting that last line was.
Ryan: “such a beautiful song for a minute…”
Aisha: “you really put your back into that line, Colin…”

Aisha: “and then another 6 and a half points to Ryan for saying the worst thing to a baby I’ve ever heard…”
Ryan: “HAD I KNOWN WHAT THE LINE WAS GONNA BE, I wouldn’t have made it a baby! I would have made it a SENIOR.”

Irish Drinking Song: Affair

Gary’s second IDS. This one is the product of several playings, I think.

I believe this is the first time we see the new lineup of Wayne-Gary-RYAN-Colin. Colin must have been sick of always needing to end it so he gave it to Ryan.

Aisha aska for a ‘REAL REASON’ for a marriage to fail, and someone goes with ‘adultery’.
Wayne: “That’s a REAL REASON…”
Aisha: “yes, that is a REAL AND ACTUAL REASON. Does it feel a little close to the bone?”
Wayne: [sinks]
Ryan: “YOU’RE gonna be close to the bone in a second, I think”
Gary: “oh, OHHHH. OHHHHHHH.”
I am so happy this made air

Wayne: “I met a lass in Kilkenny”
Gary: “I loved her, all my heart”
Ryan: “then she went and left”
Colin, affirming what I hoped he’d do: “when we made love, she’d fart!”

Ryan: “I think I might divorce her.”
Colin: “and then I’ll get real high!”
His stuff still works for first-verse enders

The second verse comes from a different playing, as there’s a different story
Gary: “I said what are ya doing?”
Ryan: “you’re breaking us up here”
Colin: “YOU’RE SCREWING ALL OVER TOWN”
Wayne: “giving away your rear!”
PFF

Ryan: “I hate the sound of your face”
Colin, being himself: “go and put out a fire”
We cut back to Wayne, who has NOTHING.

so he just…says something: “HAAAAAA…….BEEEITTCH…”
Ryan: “OHHH”

Like a bomb went off. Usually this doesn’t happen til the end of the song. Ryan is the most composed, but not by much. Which means IT GOT COLIN.
Ryan: “DID I MENTION SHE’S A BITCH??”
Colin: “she’s very small and…tall.”

Obviously there’s a cut there, as they didn’t match tempos, but it’s Wayne still cracking up, and Gary trying to sheepishly rhyme with tall while also still cracking up [“urrrghhhhDONEITALL”] And then we cut to another rendition of this game when all four are more composed

Ryan: “I’ll never forget that woman”
Colin: “She ran off with my doctor”
Wayne: “Now I realize.”
And Gary has a similar moment to Wayne. Oh, he HAS SOMETHING…but he’s not sure if it’s the best move. But he goes with it reluctantly: “I NEVER SHOULD HAVE SOCKED HER.”

Colin and Wayne hint that they could get back together. “Who knows, life is funny.”
Ryan, with a rhyme that gets away with him: “I think I’ll buy a bunny.”
Colin, confusedly looking at Ryan: “I don’t know really what that means.”
Wayne: “cheating ain’t my thing”
Gary: “It’s just not who I am”
Ryan, perhaps bringing it back to WL: “just HOLD MY DING-A-LING. OHHHH”
Not much crack up to end it, but the middle of the song had most of that

Aisha: “I swear to god, on Tuesday I will wake up in the middle of the night laughing at ‘HAAAAA, BITCH!'”
Wayne: “It’s like my mouth and brain weren’t connected for a second…”

A weirdly-edited mess of an IDS, but it still worked. There were funny lines and moments and the middle BITCH moment is classic. Less was done about the actual song story, but there were good lines [Gary’s poor ender], and a good ending.

Props: Wayne and Colin vs. Ryan and Gary

Wayne: “you…you’re the FLASH…[turns to camera] ON THE CW.”
HA

Wayne: “Zeus, keep your lightning bolts out of my lawn.”
Colin: “WELL, YOU KEEP YOUR WIFE OUT OF MY SHORTS!”
Wayne: “WELL-……”
Hey, it’s mythologically accurate

I like to think Wayne was doing an impression of Cleavon Little from Blazing Saddles for this next one:

Wayne: “oh…I’M at the wrong party…”

Ryan: “My breasts are firm but my nipples are drippin…”
Gary, who’s having too much fun in this round: “DID YOU SAY DROOPIN?”
Ryan: “I MEANT DROOPIN..and they’re DRIPPIN AS WELL.”

Ryan: “THANK YOU, DOCTOR!”
Perfect

Wayne, with a bitingly funny topical joke:

Wayne, South African accent: “your honor, I did not kill my wife.”
Yep, an Oscar Pistorius joke. Fantastic. Wayne cracks up after doing this one, not believing he can get away with it [sorta like Oscar himself].

Ryan and Gary follow that olympic-related one with a curling mime. Colin, the Canadian and therefore the expert on curling, even goes “aw, that’s good!”

Wayne does an elephant mime and Colin just rips off his tusks. “Hey, man, that’s the life cycle.”
PFFF

For the record, they did a round of pickups for this game but only the elephant one actually made it from that round.

A pretty good Props. Lots of fun suggestions, all four were having a ball, and some really inspired stuff all around.

Doo-Wop: Wayne, Gary and Colin sing about Cynthia, who died tragically in a hockey-related accident

Wayne, with the obvious joke: “we had to part, because hockey’s not played by most brothers”
There’s actually another Wayne who’d be really offended by that statement.

Gary does add the cause of death: “til you dropped down into your ice-hole”
OF COURSE

Colin: “Oh Cynthia…I love your bum…”

HE’S even confused by that. Wayne stifles a chuckle
“You looked so lovely, I miss your thumb.”

And Colin does another obvious “I wish you were still alive playing with my zamboni.”

Also, I love how Colin realizes there’s two basses with Gary and just does some mid-range ‘A-BUBBA-DE’ every few notes. It’s much sillier.

A good Doo-Wop. Nothing too special, and the hockey jokes were pretty easy, but they were all in sync and it didn’t fall apart.

Greatest Hits: Songs of the Cab Driver

This one starts out quickly and exuberantly with frantic energy from Colin and Ryan back and forth. Which is a good sign. Ryan is trying to rush through the whole thing, even in Colin’s standup.
Colin, with a very meta improv line: “…don’t feel you have to support.”

Then, as Colin’s trying to think of a title, he keeps turning it back over to Ryan, who just goes ‘OH’. It’s so goofily timed and funny

Wayne, in the ragtime number: “And I know the best way to LAX, and this ain’t it.”

Both Wayne and Gary have the end-of-verse trill down for Ragtime perfectly. Both of them are in sync, and absolutely nail a bit where they sing on top of each other. There’s even some fantastic harmony for the ending. Yes, I’ve talked about how funny this duo can be [“EVEN THAT….”], but they’re also just really talented musically as well

Ryan: “and when I think Barry White, and when I think…mmmmsexy Barry White lovin sonngs…”
Colin: “please never do that again.”
Ryan: “THAT’S for the ladies in their sixties…”

The Two Barry Whites number is just as good, again owing to Wayne and Gary’s excellent stage dynamic and how well they work together.

Wayne does throw in a ‘shut your mouth’. Wayne…that’s Isaac Hayes, not Barry White. And you should know that.

Also, when Gary does his ‘separated by glass’ move, he goes “I’M USIN MY MIME AGAIN”, it’s a reference to World’s Worst. THAT’S RIGHT. THE LAST SONG OF GH BRINGS US ALLLLL THE WAY BACK TO THE FIRST GAME OF THE SHOW. That is fantastic.

Gary: “OHHHH I wish I had a glass cutter…I wish I had one right now…”
Wayne: “I got one in the front seat..”
And they make the act of cutting through glass into a sexy act together. That’s the power of great improv

A really strong Barry White number, capping off a really good WW just for the strength of the Gary-Wayne songs. They weren’t as funny as E1’s, but they were excellently done all around, and proof of how great Gary and Wayne are together.

Overall: A strong show. Perhaps I’m not as high on it as Spence, because some games, like Doo-Wop and the pieced-together quality of IDS, aren’t perfect to me, but I agree that the heights of this show, like Whose Line and GH, are fantastic and make this feel like a well-curated picture of a fun taping. Props and World’s Worst even felt really elevated for quickfire rounds. Whose Line was a great Colin-Ryan scene that the fans seem to like. And GH was an awesome showcase for Wayne and Gary’s abilities while also featuring some great banter. So yeah, I like this one a lot, and think it’s a really nice guestless show with a lot of nice qualities.

Show Winner: Wayne
Best Performer: Ryan had a strong night overall. Gary was gaining on him late, though.
Worst Performer: Wayne made the most mistakes, and had to be saved the most times.
Best Game: Whose Line, by a hair. That ending, and Ryan’s way of legitimizing his lines, impressed me
Worst Game: Doo-Wop was pretty basic.

COMING UP NEXT: Our first Heather show of the season, featuring a Sports Illustrated Model as a guest

Whose Watchdown is it Anyway: S11E13, or I’m Gonna Stand Here and Bask in it

I’ve mentioned earlier in the season that because of the success of the show, the quality of the bookings got slightly better starting in S11. For instance, this episode still counts as a CW corporate synergy booking, but it’s Gina Rodriguez, star of Jane the Virgin, one of the biggest shows on the network at that time. Gina Rodriguez is a name actress, she’s been in movies, she’s made something of a career for herself despite dropping the n-word in a viral video.

So it’s a big deal that she made it to Whose Line. Even in 2015 it was a pretty good booking. This is the first episode from a new Jeff taping, the third of three he did over the course of this season.

Like last show, as we zoom in, Ryan is setting up

Colin, as usual, is just amused

Eventually:

Weird Newscasters: Colin anchors, Jeff, Colin’s sexy french maid, co-anchors, Wayne, GI Joe action figure rescuing Barbie from danger, does sports while Ryan, a dramatic boxing movie in 60 seconds, does weather

Colin: “I’m your anchor, Brock and a Hard Place”
The faintest smile from Jeff

Once Jeff starts speaking in a very high-pitched French accent, Colin:

Just…returning the favor. I confuse you, you confuse me

Jeff, of course, goes all out for his:

[Table for Satan’s grandfather?]

Colin: “…this just in, sexy has a different meaning in French…”

Wayne’s owes itself both to his love of nerdy stuff growing up and his knowledge of the Toy Story movies, because this seems within the same vein as the green army guys from Toy Story, with enough GI Joe bits thrown in. It’s a perfectly functional and fun quirk of his, and he puts his all into his.

I love that Ryan’s knowledge of Rocky is great enough that he can job up the audience steps and get applause.

Ryan even uses Colin’s fist to reenact the TKO, which is a nice move.

A perfectly alright WN. Every quirk did exactly what they were supposed to. It just wasn’t an outwardly funny one, and it didn’t have anything that truly wowed me.

I did enjoy Jeff making fun of Ryan’s Rocky run, and then Ryan reenacting it. “it’s one of the special features on the DVD…”

Duet: Wayne and Jeff sing a Beastie Boys song to Gina

Oh good, they’re playing white rappers, Gina won’t get scared.

Wayne: “if Jane wasn’t a virgin she’d be Jane the what?”
Gina, going with the first thing that comes to mind: “Jane the Organic Corn Farmer”
and Jeff loses it

Jeff and Wayne’s Beasties voices are awesome, getting the sort of Brooklyn whine down but also mixing it with definite skills. All of these corn-raps are pretty fun, and well organized, and it’s really just a throwback to the UK era’s penchant of having people rap about random things, only this one is less cringey and more impressive.

Wayne: “Look at that booty, the popcorn’s a treat.”
Gina, who’s been on hype duty for a lot of this, has a good mouth-cover at that. Caught off guard somehow.

Gina does some general fast-paced rapping but gets stuck [perhaps she hit a word she’s only supposed to say on her Insta]
Wayne covers by doing some incoherent rapping [which sounds a lot like…I forget the name of it, but the song that sounds entirely like gibberish]

So that was an okay Duet. I feel like they were trying to bring Gina out of her comfort zone but she really wasn’t very good at rapping [except for….you know], and wanted to stay back in what she was comfortable doing. Which made for an uneasy tug between Wayne and Jeff doing a strong number and Gina not really wanting to collaborate. Which isn’t great improv practice. She’s in three games tonight. The CW banked hard on her. And already I’ve, for lack of a better term, got the heebie-jeebies.

Aisha gives Wayne points for ‘your ridiculous dick jokes’ most of which seemed to be edited out
Wayne: “I don’t make dick jokes, I make promises.

Themed Restaurant: Jeff and Gina are a young couple having a romantic meal in a lovely restaurant- Ryan, Colin and Wayne are servers. It’s a Firefighting themed restaurant 

Yep, Themed Restaurant has been thrown in as an alternate guest game, and I’m here for it

Aisha explains the game wrong. She explains it like ‘Old Job New Job’, saying that Ryan, Colin and Wayne ‘USED TO BE’ firefighters, but it’s the…theme of the…restaurant. How Dan didn’t make them do it over I have no idea

Colin: [breaks down door with axe] “rolls.”
It’s that simple.

Ryan, in with the menus: “sadly, the special today is Dalmatian.”
I LOVE THAT JOKE. The audience AWWS but it’s so funny
Jeff: “they do a great dalmatian piccata here, it’s fantastic…”

Wayne lights some candles, which are immediately extinguished by Colin. I do love Colin’s reaction:

Jeff has to do ALL OF THE HEAVY LIFTING in the scenes with Gina. She is just not getting the collaborative aspect of improv.
Gina: “why did we come here again?”
EEESH NOT A GREAT WAY OF SUPPORTING YOUR PARTNER

Wayne comes in as a pissed off dalmatian seeing what they’re eating and taking it away
Jeff: “I come here because the dogs walk on two legs..”

This does have a fantastic ending, though, when Ryan and Colin enter, as they’ve seated Jeff and Gina at the wrong table.

Gina seems caught off guard, but it’s a great ending.

An alright Themed Restaurant. Pretty good for being the first of the CW version, but I’m usually tough on these because it’s a tricky game that only works for me if it grabs me from the start, and this one didn’t grab me til the dalmatian runner. Also, Gina’s improv is still terrible.

Aisha: “Colin Mochrie, deceptively strong.”
Second show in a row with Colin randomly lifting a guest star
Ryan: “he’s like an altoid!”
THROWBACK TO THE DREW VERSION!
Wayne, cracking: “he’s curiously…deceptively strong.”|
Ryan: “NOT THAT I’M TRYING TO PLUG ALTOIDS OR ANYTHING” [pops one in his mouth]

Jeff: “I only weigh 85 pounds though”
Colin: “…you’re kidding yourself..”

Scenes from a Hat:

“Times when a touchdown celebration isn’t appropriate”
[I feel as though Jeff has aced this suggestion before]
Hell, Wayne’s is almost an exact copy of Jeff’s from S3. Helping deliver a baby and then throwing it down in celebration. Okay, Mr. Mencia…

Ryan does an easy pooping one, but boosts it “let’s go for the extra point”
Jeff: “FLAG ON THE PLAY”

I also love Colin’s funeral one, just from the contrast and how spirited Colin’s leg movements went

“bad times to get food poisoning”
Wayne and Colin do a ‘date’ one which Colin sells with a random high voice.
Wayne: “gurgle- UH OH…”

Ryan, to Colin: “okay, here’s the 20 bucks, put the bear suit on and go entertain the kids”
Colin: [vomits]
Ryan, who still has the head mask: “WAIT…”

Wayne and Jeff do a great ‘football hike’ one with Wayne just horrifiedly running away from Jeff’s ass
Ryan: “TOUCHDOWN!”

Ryan and Colin, reprising a gag from Season 5:

Ryan: [hums here comes the bride]

Wayne enters as the priest:

“Things you can say about your breakfast that you can’t say about your partner”
Wayne: “nonono, I couldn’t get the whole thing in my mouth…”
Colin, smiling too wide: “the smell woke me up.”
Jeff, Ryan and Wayne all love this one

And now…Aisha Tyler does her first-ever SFAH suggestion: “Aah, my fingers are all sticky!”
Jeff, as the audience gasps, rushes to buzz

Jeff: “well, that’s gonna need more butter”
Wayne: “what, no eggs?”
UNIVERSAL DISGUST. One guy in the audience does a VERY AUDIBLE ‘AAAAAUUUUGH’ from the back.
Wayne: “wow…I’m gonna stand here and bask in it…”
Jeff: “eat it quick before it gets soggy.”
LONG BUZZ FROM AISHA

A SFAH that got better as it went on. I got some nice energy from this one, especially during the food poisoning scenes. And the breakfast one was one of the better ‘not your partner’ scenes we’ve had lately

Helping Hands: Ryan, hands by Colin, and Gina have come to a luxury hotel for an affair

Already, the tiny alcohol bottle causes some spurtage over Ryan’s hands.

Ryan: “a toast to us…to reasonable rates, and to HBO…”
[And yet THIS VERSION isn’t the one that’s on HBO max…]

Ryan has taken out a slice of watermelon. Gina, please keep it to yourself.
Ryan: “they say watermelon is like an aphrodisiac…I like to tie it to my penis…”

Gina does seem to do well in her misses to Colin’s grape-throwing.

Gina does swerve Ryan’s hand in making him put the apple down. “That looks scary.”
Apples always give her heebie-jeebies, apparently.

I do, however, get a laugh out of Ryan and Gina opening bananas and going ‘WOW’ in unison. And then Ryan’s banana dropping right off the peel
Ryan: “I have that problem once in a while.”

I got a laugh out of Colin launching the bag of nuts in a way that they all individually go flying towards Gina. Gina is just generally caught off guard by most of this game and is saying no more often than not. Not a great improv presence.
Gina, with the easy joke: “your nuts went everywhere!”
Ryan, chuckling: “first my banana falls and then my nuts fall on the floor!”

Then, Ryan tries putting a chocolate in his mouth only for it to just fall to the floor comically. This scene is growing on me in its hot-mess feeling.
Ryan, finally having one: “oh, there’s SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE…I DON’T KNOW WHAT IT IS…[souring] buuut it’s not very good…”

Colin squirts a TON OF SHAMPOO in Ryan’s face, it all spurting out so suddenly.

So…an okay Helping Hands. Boosted late thanks to Ryan’s work and the succession of badly timed throws. Gina wasn’t a great support because she’s not good at improv, and she said no a lot here, so the scene couldn’t go places that weren’t ‘Ryan having food’. A shallow scene…that at least was funny, but still…shallow.

Overall: Splat. After two classics, we hurtle back down to earth with a decidedly meh show featuring a guest star that could not for the life of her do improv despite having a golden globe to her name. I feel bad, because the CW must have really put a lot into having one of their big stars of the 2015 season on Whose Line, and it was a very big get, but big gets work more when the person can actually work in an improv environment. There’s a CW synergy get next season, a marquee star, where the person is clearly a big fan of Whose Line and has improv ability. It is gonna take us a bit to get there, but those kind of CW STAR bookings exist. But Gina Rodriguez just sunk under the circumstances, barely had any good improv moments, and sunk some games that were otherwise nice like Duet and Helping Hands.

The show itself was also just pretty meh on its own. WN, Duet and Themed Restaurant felt very basic and didn’t do too much out of the ordinary. Helping Hands was a normal playing that at least had funny moments from Ryan. SFAH was the only point where the show felt fresh, and even then it took a suggestion or so to really get going.

I hate to say that we’ve hit a bad episode, because S11 has really been delivering, but this one just felt really meh compared to the last stretch. And possibly the sole true dud of the season.

It just felt…numb. And that’s not the only n-word that plagues this episode.

Show Winners: All four
Best Performer: Wayne wins another one for dominating the first half and giving some great moments in SFAH.
Worst Performer: Colin was at the mercy of other improvisers all night tonight.
Best Game: Scenes from a Hat was the comedic apex of the show. It was funny pretty much all the way through, had great stuff from everyone, and Gina wasn’t in it.
Worst Game: Gina’s no-but attitude got to me the most in Duet, which felt like a tug of war between two people trying their hardest and Gina not trying at all.
Guest Star Rating: 6/10. Have to really think if she was worse than Vernon Davis. Vernon at least did some improv things right in Dubbing and Duet. Gina didn’t feel like she accomplished anything positively this show. Also, Vernon is allowed to say the n-word.

COMING UP NEXT: Our first glimpse of a new Gary taping is, well, a guestless show! And thank the gods, it’s a much better one.