Revived Whose Line... a Hit, But Something's Missing

Whose Line is it Anyway
Hearing screams coming from my mother’s apartment, her neighbor ran down the hall and banged on her door.

My mom answered, reassured her pal that everything was fine — and quickly got rid of her.

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Her show was on!

My mother wasn’t being raped or murdered or anything, just laughing at one of her favorite TV programs (and mine): the “old” Whose Line Is It Anyway?

That is, the American improv comedy series hosted by Drew Carey that aired for nine seasons starting in 1998.

Whose Line Is It Anyway? was one of those British television imports-adaptations (like All in the Family and Chico and the Man) that surpassed the original.

Improv purists won’t agree.

(Hell, they hate pretty much everything.)

For them, Whose Line…? is to “real” long form improv what the Partridge Family were to the Beatles.

For the rest of us, though, it was appointment television.

Few shows have ever made me laugh so hard.

So I was thrilled yet worried when I heard that CW was reviving Whose Line…? with almost all its original cast members: Ryan Stiles, Wayne Brady and Colin Mochrie — even musicians Laura Hall and Linda Taylor.

The big difference? Aisha Tyler has replaced Drew Carey as host.

So the new Whose Line…? is just as great as the old iteration, right?

Well, no.

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Tyler is definitely NOT Carey, and it’s amazing what a difference that one change has made.

Or maybe my brain has aged poorly, or my hormones are out of whack.

Or the show makes me think of my mom, who died a few years ago.

Whatever the reason, I don’t laugh as loudly and as long as I once did.

However, I couldn’t be happier for the cast members, because after only a couple of episodes, CW has already ordered another season of Whose Line Is It Anyway?

In fact, this is great news for other comedians too, because the show’s success has apparently convinced the network brass to increase its comedy offerings.

(So here’s my pitch: Give Nick DiPaolo his own series.)

Anyhow, here’s to “the show where everything’s made up and the points don’t matter.”

Whose Line…? still has its moments:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILRb7VHPrw8

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