By Kathleen Newman-Bremang
Jimmy Fallon is that affable goof you can't help but root for. Maybe it's because we're nostalgic for his days on "Saturday Night Live" or because we feel bad about his fleeting movie career. (Remember "Fever Pitch"? Yeah, me neither.) Whatever the reason, I couldn't help but want Fallon to be brilliant on his "Late Night" debut last night. Unfortunately, that's not what happened. OK, it wasn't that bad, but come on, Jimmy — impersonating De Niro to his face? Really?
But there were some bright spots amid Fallon's nervous twitching and uncomfortable blinking. So, without further ado, here's the breakdown of the best and worst moments from the first episode of "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon":
The Lows
» The opening monologue. With jokes that seemed to be recycled from Jay Leno and really bad TelePrompTer reading — like, really bad — Fallon fell flat.
» "Lick it for Ten." In the first game of the night, Fallon pulled three audience members onstage to lick various objects for $10. Seriously. It had the potential for some gross-out humor, but the contestants were asked to lick lawn mowers and kitchen supplies instead of, say, dog poo?
» Robert De Niro. Two words: excruciatingly awkward.
The Highs
» Conan O'Brien. The show started off strong as Conan O'Brien passed the proverbial torch to Fallon in an opening skit where the two hosts run into each other in a dressing room. Conan was deadpan; Fallon was nervous. Hilarity ensued.
» The Roots. Half of the millions of viewers were probably tuning in just to see how the unlikely pairing of a legendary hip-hop group and Jimmy Fallon would play out. During a "Slow Jammin' the News" segment, it was clear that this is the start of something special. Plus, Jimmy just looks cooler with ?uestlove and the boys rocking out behind him.
» Justin Timberlake. Is there anything JT can't do? Justin came in cool and confident as usual, bantered with Fallon like they were high-school buddies and stole the show. A throwback to their memorable "Barry Gibb Talk Show" "SNL" skit and Justin's dead-on John Mayer impersonation almost made up for the De Niro interview. Almost.
Let's just say Fallon will have to bring his A-game this week, when he welcomes upcoming guests Tina Fey and Cameron Diaz.