The 1/2 Hour News Hour

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Season 1
Season #: 2, 1
User Score
2.8

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 380 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 97 out of 380
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 380
  3. Negative: 273 out of 380

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User Reviews

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  1. Rightwad
    Feb 23, 2007
    0
    As laugh-out-loud funny as a typical episode of "24" -- not coincidentally, both are from the same producers. Lots of material that was fresh in 1993.
  2. DavidP
    Feb 20, 2007
    0
    Chewing on tinfoil and repeatedly whacking my big toe with a sledgehammer would be more fun than watching this again. Good Lord, was this show horrible.
  3. jonm
    Feb 27, 2007
    0
    obvious, lame, boring, and just simple minded
  4. JeffK
    Feb 20, 2007
    1
    The only thing I really found funny was how poorly the laugh track was applied.
  5. PoDawg
    Feb 20, 2007
    0
    Awful
  6. bk
    Mar 10, 2007
    1
    i didn't expected in to be 'daily show' quality but i did expect a lot more than this. is there such a thing as a funny conservative?
  7. BoydP
    Mar 12, 2007
    1
    The 1 is for production values--this show is well-produced and looks much like The Daily Show and others you'd find on Comedy Central. But that is the problem: those shows are on COMEDY CENTRAL! This is on FOX NEWS! A news channel should not be airing comedy (as if to say Fox News's coverage isn't funny enough already). The Daily Show and The Colbert Report both air very The 1 is for production values--this show is well-produced and looks much like The Daily Show and others you'd find on Comedy Central. But that is the problem: those shows are on COMEDY CENTRAL! This is on FOX NEWS! A news channel should not be airing comedy (as if to say Fox News's coverage isn't funny enough already). The Daily Show and The Colbert Report both air very late at night, which is why they get lower ratings than a show airing at 7pm. That said, The Daily Show pulls in better ratings than this one--a midnight show trumping a prime time show? That takes some work. I watched two episodes back-to-back with my conservative parents. In the entire hour, I laughed only because it was attempting comedy and failing miserably; my parents laughed once. It is a sure sign of comedic failure when my conservative parents ask to change the channel. I'll give Joel Surnow credit for 24, which I watch and enjoy. But this Half-Hour News Hour is PAINFULLY unfunny. The show is filmed before a live studio audience and still needs to rely on canned laughter. Wow... that really says it all.… Expand
  8. BenW
    Mar 13, 2007
    0
    This was by far the worst half hour of television ever, just awful. It's fine to do right wing humor however this was so unfunny it was shocking. I have never EVER watched a comedy that was so unfunny. I actually thought about sucide after watching this it was so bad.
  9. RobertH
    Mar 13, 2007
    0
    WOW! does anyone know what the meaning of left winged is? First this show is not funny, the jokes are so predictable, and just NOT funny. Second, the daily show is not left winged, it makes fun of both sides, and in recent weeks I've seen TONS more material on Democrats. Third, most networks are NOT left winged, it's just not in their financial interest, they may be democratic WOW! does anyone know what the meaning of left winged is? First this show is not funny, the jokes are so predictable, and just NOT funny. Second, the daily show is not left winged, it makes fun of both sides, and in recent weeks I've seen TONS more material on Democrats. Third, most networks are NOT left winged, it's just not in their financial interest, they may be democratic just because of their beliefs, but democrats are not left winged, they're between Republicans and Independents who are left winged.… Expand
  10. TonyB
    Mar 1, 2007
    0
    It was just ridiculous.
  11. Lance
    Mar 15, 2007
    2
    The satire is pedestrian and lame. It's "Weekend Update" at its very worst. It's very sad to know that people actually think this stuff is funny and that this show is getting good ratings. I knew conservatives had bad taste in comedy, but not THIS bad. Along with "Red Eye", another example of FoxNews' decline.
  12. CherryVanilla
    Mar 16, 2007
    0
    Why would Republicans want to blantantly rip off a LIBERAL show?
  13. JessicaK
    Mar 2, 2007
    0
    This marks the end of civilization.
  14. ColinH
    Mar 23, 2007
    0
    Oh my god. It's just an agenda show made to give Conservo-Bots something to watch. There isn't anything funny on this! It's just another echo-chamber to reside in. RUN, SAVE YOURSELF.
  15. ChrisE
    Mar 28, 2007
    3
    Jokes and satire not very witty, predictable most of the time. Wish there could be a funny right wing show that could make fun of the other side while poking fun at themselves. There is plenty of material out there and "1/2 Hour" seem to miss most of it
  16. jackie
    Mar 4, 2007
    0
    this hurt. literally. :( the second episode was alright, until it became entirely bigoted. oh, haha, all the terrorists have been muslim, this means islam is not a religion, it's a terrorist organization. wow. congrats guys.
  17. JamesM
    Mar 5, 2007
    0
    This thing is truly horrible, but it will play to the lowest common denominator, which is where it's aiming. Funny is hard work and it is difficult to write material that is satirical but not actually cruel or sophomoric. The Daily Show and Colbert have the unique ability to laugh at themselves which the right completely lacks. Also, Colbert and Stuart are much better at making fun This thing is truly horrible, but it will play to the lowest common denominator, which is where it's aiming. Funny is hard work and it is difficult to write material that is satirical but not actually cruel or sophomoric. The Daily Show and Colbert have the unique ability to laugh at themselves which the right completely lacks. Also, Colbert and Stuart are much better at making fun of the left. Their priority is humor. It works because politics, politicians and the media are all absurd and funny- on both sides. BTW I read the Wa Po article and I would hardly call it a rave review. He basically said it might not be a total disaster. He is probably right, Fox viewers are used to doing what they are told to do. If they are told to watch this crap, they will. I hope this show dies very quickly.… Expand
  18. Josh
    Mar 5, 2007
    0
    Why is everyone making this a political issue? I'm an ultra conservative and I still thought this sucked because it just wasn't funny. I happen to LIKE The Daily Show because it is, in fact, funny. I don't agree with Jon Stewart's opinions, but he does a funny show. This is just stupid.
  19. StephenC.
    Mar 5, 2007
    0
    Why do people hate America? For a start, how about a show being aired on a cable NEWS network that spends 7 minutes making fun of Muslim names for no apparent reason than that they are alien and funny, that allows Ann Coulter to make jokes about wondering "which countries have we not bombed yet?", and... well, that should be just about enough.
  20. ChrisM
    Mar 7, 2007
    1
    I can't imagine the producers/writers do a worse job on this. However, I'm sure it's possibleolbutt, so I gave it a 1/10. I also cannot imagine anyone, on the right, on the left, or in the middle (where the majority sit) finding this anything but painful to watch. What's with all the trolls on here spamming this site with positive ratings? If you want great humor with I can't imagine the producers/writers do a worse job on this. However, I'm sure it's possibleolbutt, so I gave it a 1/10. I also cannot imagine anyone, on the right, on the left, or in the middle (where the majority sit) finding this anything but painful to watch. What's with all the trolls on here spamming this site with positive ratings? If you want great humor with a right wing slant, go read some PJ O'Rourke. It just doesn't get stinkier than this.… Expand
  21. CharlesW
    Mar 7, 2007
    0
    This is supposed to be a comedy show - a conservative answer to "The Daily Show". I think Fox News has finally realized that its elderly current audience is going to eventually die (Bill O'Reilly's views median age is somewhere in the 60's and rising) and "The Daily Show" is attracting more and more young people every day. Of late most conservatives just plain avoid the This is supposed to be a comedy show - a conservative answer to "The Daily Show". I think Fox News has finally realized that its elderly current audience is going to eventually die (Bill O'Reilly's views median age is somewhere in the 60's and rising) and "The Daily Show" is attracting more and more young people every day. Of late most conservatives just plain avoid the tag-team of comic virtuosity that is Stewart followed by Colbert. Bill O'Reilly tried his hand on Colbert but I think Bill just realized that like most things that involve complex thought processes and ideas and concepts that aren't 100% with us or against us black or white type concepts - that he just didn't understand what Colbert was saying. Colbert just tired Bill out and left him looking like an old man gasping for some kind of gusto to propel a counter attack that never came. Cue - The Half Hour News Hour - Fox's own "Daily Show" for Conservatives. The supposed humor is kind of like President Bush's "Barneycam Christmas" videos. I can't help but feel that it probably has a similar effect on others as it did on me. It kind of engenders the same feeling as is someone forced you to watch a tape of your mom and dad attempting some form of passionate looking Latin Dance like "The Lambada" in a packed club on their wedding anniversary 15 years ago. You want to smile and politely cheer them on but it's so bad and so grindingly embarrassing that you just can't stand it. The anchors are so artificial they might as well have the name of a major japanese auto maker printed on their plastic chests. I suppose the funniest joke is when they do a bitter and mean-spirited attack on Barrack Obama and they give him an Oprah style magazine called BO Magazine (BO - Body Odor - Funny huh?) but the best bit is actually the fact that on the cover of the magazine one of the articles is "A life in politics: My 18 month journey". If they had more stuff like that which was actually true - Obama has little experience - and had some kind of comic punch, timing and talent this might have been a two. The show could never be more than a two because that would require that they actually have the ability to laugh at themselves - that they have humility, empathy, and good comic delivery. They have none of that. 1/2HNH Is doing a wonderful job of one thing - showing American conservatism up to be what it is - Out of touch with reality, regressive, hate and fear driven, arrogant and ignorant. This show is like pulling your own teeth. Slowly. With fingernail clippers. And no anesthetic. I hope Fox don't cancel it. I hope it's on forever. In the future this show will be used as a teaching tool for students of comedy. It's like one of those "How many fire hazards are in this picture?" type exercises - how many comic timing mistakes, tired out-of-date jokes and just plain bad attempts at humor can you spot? 0/10 - It's awful… Expand
  22. MichaelN
    May 6, 2007
    0
    This show is a humiliating failure.
  23. ChristineNYC
    May 7, 2007
    1
    This is really terrible. Daily Show is funny because it finds all politics funny. It finds humor anywhere it can find it and makes fun of democrats regularly. HHNH has an agenda and is trying way too hard. Just a train wreck to watch.
  24. libertarian
    Jun 11, 2007
    0
    I found Dennis Millers insistence that not finding WMD's was a good thing and had no impact on the analysis of the effects of American Foreign policy to be terrifying to say the least. And how can conservatives hate the ACLU so much. Who can be against some lawyers constantly being devils advocate in the name of defending our basic constitutional rights.
  25. WarneG.
    Jun 3, 2007
    0
    Apparently Dennis Miller believes there's good money in being a fascist.
  26. TimC.
    Jun 4, 2007
    0
    Truly awful. I watch it because I get pleasure out of watching tripe, but the last episode crossed the line from lame to banal. There wasn't one genuine laugh to be had. Even Dennis Miller--who's occasionally good for a smirk--was a cold as a two day dead fish.
  27. GooberL.
    Jun 9, 2007
    0
    HHNH is exactly the sound I make when I'm squeezing out a very large dookie. The fascinating thing about this show is that everyone who loves it is saying the same thing: "Ha, take that you PC Democrats!" as if TDC and Colbert are political soapboxes. No, they're just REALLY brilliant and funny shows that just happen to lean left because making fun of pompous blowhards is really HHNH is exactly the sound I make when I'm squeezing out a very large dookie. The fascinating thing about this show is that everyone who loves it is saying the same thing: "Ha, take that you PC Democrats!" as if TDC and Colbert are political soapboxes. No, they're just REALLY brilliant and funny shows that just happen to lean left because making fun of pompous blowhards is really funny, and most of the most supercilious, self-righteous, pompous blowhards (but certainly not all) tend to be Republicans. It takes a colossally unfunny ignoramus to think that it's a good idea to base a comedy show on political ideology.… Expand
  28. ChristopherB
    Jun 9, 2007
    0
    Do these folks really think that a comedy show should have an ideological agenda? It's astonishingly stupid to think that the Daily Show and Colbert are just liberal platforms that happen to be funny. Um, no. They are brilliantly written and performed shows that make incessant fun of idiocy in power. They are leaning left right now (at least to the seething neocons) because the right Do these folks really think that a comedy show should have an ideological agenda? It's astonishingly stupid to think that the Daily Show and Colbert are just liberal platforms that happen to be funny. Um, no. They are brilliantly written and performed shows that make incessant fun of idiocy in power. They are leaning left right now (at least to the seething neocons) because the right wing has nearly cornered the market on self-righteous ignorance. Don't worry, though, Democrats will always have their hands in the trough, too, and Jon and Stephen will be there to give them a high colonic of truth!!… Expand
  29. TImR.
    Jul 11, 2007
    0
    Derivative of other news satires, but not as satirical. Or funny.
  30. JohnW
    Jul 27, 2007
    0
    I'm pretty sure I never laughed while watching this show. It was bad.
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Awards & Rankings

100
#100 Best TV Season of 2007
3
#3 Most Discussed TV Season of 2007
41
#41 Most Shared TV Season of 2007

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
13

Overwhelming dislike - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 11
  3. Negative: 10 out of 11
  1. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Barry Garron
    20
    A look at the first episode suggests that, just as A.M. radio is the unassailable province of the right, TV might better be left to the left.
    Read full review
  2. Orlando Sentinel
    Reviewed by: Hal Boedeker
    0
    "Weekend Update" on its worst night isn't this bad.
    Read full review
  3. Slate
    Reviewed by: Troy Patterson
    0
    You couldn't skewer a cube of tofu with material this dull.
    Read full review
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