Writers Strike = Best Late Night TV in YEARS

Go to your DVR now and set it to record some of the late-night shows (Conan O'Brien first and foremost). Do it now. Really.

With the writers on strike for 2 months now and no talks planned, NBC has sent it's late night shows back on the air without writers and the result is perfect comedy. No pre-written bits or jokes, just great comedy, honesty, and ad-libbing. Conan really shined on Wednesday night's show - his unfiltered thoughts and jokes were right off the cuff, and he was in his element.

Conan also did a tribute to his "strike beard", followed by a video of what he does in his office each day (this included Conan strapping on an electric guitar and trying to thwart co-workers playing Rock Band, and then singing the Beastie Boys' Sabotage as Edith Bunker).

Jay Leno did a segment where random people asked questions and Jay had to quickly quip back - even though Jay normally does this, the people and questions are pre-screened and setup, but this was completely random. The questions were so pointless that Jay had to really try hard to make a joke, and even offended one audience member who retorted "Bite me!" three times over. It was so simple that it was brilliant.

So, can this last? Jimmy Kimmel made an interesting point in a podcast last week with Bill Simmons. Jimmy figures that the novelty of the shows sans writers will be fun at first, but will wane as weeks pass. Jimmy thinks we'll miss the setups, hosts reading jokes, and pre-filmed bits. I think he's wrong, but time will tell.

True, writers are essential to dramas, sitcoms, and even "reality" shows, but late-night TV was meant to be writer-less, the last frontier of television, the wild-west of programming, the SeaQuestDSV of sea exploration (and I have derailed...). The hosts leads and we follow. Keep the jokes coming boys...