The Late Late Show with James Corden

Corden did a terrific job of showcasing all his talents, including singing a ballad at the end of this first night. He’s well on his way to being a nightly crowd-pleaser whom you may be talking about the next day.

Corden clearly appears to have the goods.... Most importantly, he has an obvious ability to perform bits that'll hold up in the cold light of dawn, or more specifically on the Internet.

Corden and bandleader Reggie Watts make a fantastic team, but they bear eerie resemblance to Fallon and his bandleader Questlove.... The total randomness of the stars made for some of the show’s alchemical appeal.... So, so often, these pre-recorded videos or rehearsed segments look and feel excruciatingly awkward or boring. It bodes very well for Corden, and for CBS, that he made these excursions into the absurd look like a lot of fun, both to be in and to watch.

For all that he would shamelessly borrow from them across the hour, he seemed markedly different from that pack he’s lumped in with. In fact, he was even refreshing.

As first nights go, this was a winner for Corden.... This is very much a show under construction.

Corden slipped easily into the chair vacated last December by Craig Ferguson. His easygoing manner fit well with his low-key banter, built more on everyday conversation than show biz flash.

Corden did a perfectly solid job. Last night's premiere went about as well as a premiere can go.

By the time Corden sang a wry little tune thanking us for watching, he seemed as comforting as a cup of tea and a biscuit. He may not be boldly going where no late-night host has gone before, but based on first impressions, Corden looks like he'll be making himself at home in no time.

One show isn't much of a test of what Corden's Late Late will be. But the premiere certainly suggests that fun is ahead.

There’s definitely something Fallonized about the new Late Late Show, not necessarily in a bad way at all.... The device of bringing both Hanks and Mila Kunis on at once cocktail-party style is promising, but we’ll see if it works with a wider range of guests.... Other elements of the show are embryonic. Musician-comedian Reggie Watts was an inspired choice for bandleader, and let’s hope the show gives him an active role.

Somehow, last night, the nice-guy role served him well with his first guests, Mila Kunis and Tom Hanks. He kicked back with them on the couch instead of conducting a formal interview from behind a desk, which made the conversation feel less stilted.... He will have to develop his own voice if he wants to compete.

It was an undeniably endearing, energetic and star-studded hour of television.

Corden isn’t as facile as Fallon, but he also isn’t as fawning. Instead of bringing guests out one at a time, he bunched them (a good move) but didn’t have enough experience to pull both into all conversations.

The show relied heavily on pre-taped sketches: First came an overlong, cameo-heavy bit about Corden’s unlikely path to the late-night lineup.... Corden bears an odd resemblance to a golden retriever—friendly, approachable, and desperately eager to please.

That's a lot of "new" happening at once, and this first-night attempt to carry on a three-way conversation did come across as a bit forced and awkward--though to be fair, it also produced something of a scoop, as Hanks prompted Kunis to admit she and Ashton Kutcher are married.

Mr. Corden, a portly British performer, was energetic, amiable and cheerfully self-assured, but not particularly special.

It all felt safe and predictable, a warm goodnight salvo without any of the tartness or twistedness of Ferguson or of the show’s lead-in host, David Letterman.

Corden comes across as natural and likable, including the self-effacing little song with which he closed the show.... Still, having landed that golden ticket is one thing; possessing the imagination to make it last is going to require not just good fortune, but based on first impressions, some ongoing tinkering with the assembly line.