Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Wednesday, March 12th, 2025

The comedy trollosphere explained in one paragraph

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Monday, March 10th, 2025:

DISCOVERY+ GETS A TECH STACK UPGRADE
If you have recently signed into Discovery+, you likely noticed that the app looked very different. Warner Bros. Discovery has migrated the app over to the existing Max tech stack. Which depending on your level of cynicism, either means it will be easier to run two apps if they are using the same back end. Or this is the first step in getting current Discovery+ subscribers used to the interface so they'll be more open to moving permanently to Max.

Here is how the Discovery+ folks describe the changes:

• Refined Homepage and Navigation

• Enhanced Personalization Recommendations

• In-Player Discovery Improvements: In player discovery allows viewers to effortlessly switch between episodes and personalized content recommendations within the video player, streamlining the viewing experience and making it easier to enjoy the content they love.

• User sign-in via QR code

• Mobile Social Sharing: The content detail on the mobile app now includes a “Share” button for adult profile users to easily share show recommendations via text or social media.

My take - and I haven't had tons of time to play around with it - is that it definitely looks like Max. The biggest change you'll notice is that top navigation bar is gone, which sucks because that was the quickest way to navigate to a specific genre of programming. Now you have to scroll down to a "genre" horizontal section, which is a lot less intuitive.

If you're a subscriber, let me know what you think.

THE COMEDY TROLLOSPHERE EXPLAINED IN ONE PARAGRAPH
I've written a lot lately about this strain of right wing adjacent comedy that is mostly just a bunch of racist and sexist jokes that are designed more to be "triggering" to the what they consider to be the woke people than actually funny.

Fox News host Greg Gutfeld was interviewed by NPR's Scott Simon last weekend, and as Latenighter reports, the interview quickly went sideways when Gutfeld was asked about a Nazi joke he told on his talks show. Gutfeld did the now-familiar hemming and hawing you often hear from comics who tell these jokes. Then he said the quiet part out loud:

“Some things you’re not going to like,” Gutfeld allowed. “In fact, I’m certain there are many things in my show you’re not going to like. That’s your right. And there are a lot of jokes that just aren’t funny to some people. But to other people, they are funny. Those make me laugh. And they make me laugh because I’m pointing out how upsetting it is to people like you. Even when I point it out, it’s still upsetting to you. I find that funny. It’s a meta joke, if you will.”

And that's the real goal. The joke itself wasn't especially funny. But Gutfeld thought the fact it would upset some people was incredibly hilarious.

As you know, I've been writing about some of the jokes you'll hear on a bunch of Netflix comedy specials and the biggest response I've received negatively all sound like variations of Gutfeld's explanation. "Oh, it was just a joke...I said I didn't believe it..." The eventually they admit it's mostly about triggering the Left. Or anyone who isn't especially impressed with jokes whose entire premise is "Look how big of a racist I am."

I've been writing about this stuff recently and it's not because I'm "triggered" or looking to censor anyone. I just want to highlight the jokes and let viewers know what is out there.

For instance, watching a 2023 Shane Gillis Netflix special earlier today was a fairly depressing experience. Here was one of the bits that jumped out me:

"Australia also gave us 'Love On The Spectrum.' Thank you Australia. Incredible show. Actually incredible. How did this show get made? That's an insane show. Only Australia could have come up with this. Only Australians would be like (Australian accent). 'Allright. Know how autistic people are extremely uncomfortable in social settings? Stick a camera in these fuckin retards' face and watch them talk."

Yes, on one level the joke irritated me because I have a son on the Spectrum and if someone called him a "retard" in real life, I'd drop him like a cheap sack of potatoes.

But mostly, I was just struck with the feeling that it's a sad way to live. Making a great living telling gay jokes and black jokes and whatever you call this bit:

"Nobody fears my dick. Other than like, women in parking garages. Get me in a parking garage, all of the sudden my dick's top of the food chain. See me lurking behind a pillar in there, just with a Gamestop bag."

I know it's popular with a certain subset of comedy fans. But I'm still disappointed that Netflix is leaning so heavily into this strain of humor.

TWEET OF THE DAY

I have no idea if Nina was referring to the new deal with Obamas have made with Prime Video. But it is disappointing that someone who continues to have a strong following worldwide, someone who has the clout to get difficult projects made even in this environment is choosing to waste that clout on a Tiger Woods biopic.

I'M HONESTLY NOT SURE WHAT TO MAKE OF THIS NEWS
Tastemade announced today it had been acquired by Wonder, which describes itself as a "new kind of food hall."

If you're not familiar with Tastemade, it's a media company that has really focused its energy on being a younger, hipper alternative to legacy food media like The Food Network. It runs four lifestyle-focused FAST Channels, programmed with a combination of original shows and licensed titles featuring familiar names like Jamie Oliver and Andrew Zimmern. They also sell a subscription-based Tastemade+, which offers on-demand programming and is available through Amazon Channels, YouTube Primetime Channels and others.

Tastemade Productions has also been producing programming for outside platforms, including Disney+ and Amazon Prime, which signed a first-look deal with the company last year.

As for Wonder, you likely aren't familiar with the company. I certainly wasn't and after digging around, I'm still a bit unclear on what they are trying to build. There is a Wonder dining app, which seems to offer meals from some local restaurants in "NY, NJ, and PA" as well as meals produced by Wonder-owned virtual kitchens across the country that feature food created by well-known chefs such as Bobby Flay, Jose Andres, Nancy Silverton, and Marcus Samuelsson. Wonder also acquired Blue Apron in 2023 and Grubhub in 2025.

It appears that Wonder wants to use the Tastemade library to build out an accompanying video offering of some sort, perhaps in conjunction with its Wonder+ subscription product, which offers free delivery for $7.99 a month.

I'll keep this on my radar, I'm interested to see how this plays out.

ODDS AND SODS
* Caught is another series in the Harlan Coben television universe and it will premiere Wednesday, March 26th on Netflix. Here is the official logline: "Reporter Ema Garay gains visibility in digital journalism by catching criminals who tend to evade justice. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Leo Mercer, a social worker who ends up being the main suspect in her investigation of the disappearance of a 16-year-old girl."

* Season two of Poker Face will premiere on Thursday, May 8th.

* Also on March 26th, PBS is premiering the new four-part series The Future Of Nature. Here is that logline: "Narrated by Uma Thurman, the nature series takes a rare look at the vital role of carbon in our planet, and the power of nature in helping to restore and stabilize our ecosystems. By blending compelling science with cutting-edge graphics and cinematic shots of oceans, grasslands, forests and metropolises, it brings the invisible element of carbon into view. These stories provide audiences with a unique visual representation of the planet’s ecosystems, uncovering the role that animals, plants and people have on carbon and solutions that could help stabilize environmental shifts. Featuring contributors from all corners of the globe, the series follows climatologists, ecologists, Indigenous leaders and economists. Their stories reveal how nature is helping to rebalance Earth’s delicate systems and heal itself."

* Paramount+ has officially renewed the Billy Bob Thornton series Landman for a second season.

* Hulu has ordered a new unscripted series from Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper and I suppose in some weird way it's refreshing to discover that while Cooper comes from the podcast world, Overboard For Love doesn't sound all that different than a dozen other shows already on the air: "Get ready to hit the high seas with “Overboard for Love” (wt)! Presented by Alex Cooper, step aboard the ultimate luxury yacht, where sexy singles are ready to mix and mingle … and find love. But there's a twist … gaining access to the yacht's extravagant amenities won't be so simple. As the journey unfolds, romance ignites; alliances form; and hearts are shattered. In the end, only one couple will reign supreme. Who will rise to the top, and who will be left stranded?"

* Netflix has renewed the series Tyler Perry's Beauty In Black for a second season.

* Later this year, Eric Deggans will take over as the next John S. and James L. Knight Chair in Journalism and Media Ethics at Washington and Lee University in Virginia, while remaining a critic-at-large at NPR.

* The theatrical move Y2K will premiere Friday, April 4th on Max.

* And in the category of "I'm pretty sure I am not the target audience for this show," ESPN announced Wednesday that the new series Stephanie's Place will premiere Wednesday, March 26th. Here is how the network describes the show: "it follows WWE icon Stephanie McMahon as she explores the pockets of America that helped shape the journeys of some of the most famous names in WWE history."

WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 12TH:
Am I Being Unreasonable? Season Two Premiere (Hulu)
Everybody's Live With John Mulaney Series Premiere (Netflix)
Love You To Death Season One Finale (Apple TV+)
Married To Real Estate Season Premiere (HGTV)
Temptation Island Series Premiere (Netflix)
Welcome To The Family Series Premiere (Netflix)

THURSDAY, MARCH 13TH:
Adolescence (Netflix)
Control Freak (Hulu)
Long Bright River Series Premiere (Peacock)
Mystery Island: Winner Takes All (Hallmark Mysteries)
Ruthless (BET)
Secrets At Red Rocks Series Premiere (BYUtv)
The Parenting (Max)
The Wheel Of Time Season Two Premiere (Prime Video)
Top Chef Season Twenty Two Premiere (Bravo)

SEE YOU ON THURSDAY!