By Samantha Werkheiser

Editor-in-Chief

Joel McHale has returned with a brand new talk show focusing on pop culture.

McHale hosted “The Soup” on the E! Network for 11 years, from 2004 to 2015. When the show was cancelled by the network, rumors ran rampid that they were trying to censor McHale, who often criticized shows on E!.

On “The Soup”, he often approached pop culture, in particular reality TV, with a satirical and sarcastic view. He takes this same approach with his new Netflix show, “The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale”.

The format for his new show is almost identical to that of his old one, except it is more raunchier.

McHale can broach topics that he was unable to when he was on cable TV. Not only does he release a slew of curse words, he also goes more in-depth with sexual innuendos and references.

Though the show is the same basic idea as it predecessor, it still has a breath of fresh air.

The show has all new segments, which are simpler (and more amusing) than the old ones.

That being said, some of these segments do fall flat, as they did on the old show as well. The same can be said for the skits, which are funny for the first 30 seconds. After that, they get tiring and overplayed, despite just being introduced.

Another thing that gets annoying is the promotion of Netflix and its shows. This was funny when it was introduced in the first episode, but now that it’s on episode nine, it has become too much. The audience understands the joke, and it’s liking beating a dead horse every time it happens.

McHale proves to still have his old charm. He is truly the heart and soul (and name) of the show.

It’s obvious to say that this show wouldn’t be what it is without him, but no one has been able to recreate what he had done and still continues to do today. He has the perfect humor required for a show of this type.

His mannerisims and delivery of jokes are another portion of the show that make it what it is.

Overall, “The Joel McHale Show” is better than “The Soup” because its host is allowed to speak more freely. This results in more laughs all around.

A new episode of the show premieres every Sunday on Netflix.

Email Samantha at

swerkheis4@live.esu.edu