Conan O'Brien is back! And he's on ... basic cable. O'Brien's new series 'Conan' won't debut until November 8th, but tonight, he tested out his new digs on TBS -- by making a surprise appearance on the set of 'Lopez Tonight' (weeknights, 11PM ET on TBS).

The red-haired comic was greeted with loud cheers and applause. "I never heard basic cable get shrieks of excitement [before,]" he quipped. Famously, Conan previously feuded with rival Jay Leno -- who left 'The Tonight Show,' then supposedly "stole" the show back from O'Brien.

There are still a lot of lingering bad memories from the Conan/Leno late night wars. But now, O'Brien is on the same network as George Lopez. Maybe "Conan vs. Lopez" could be the new angry battleground for talk show supremacy.

... Or maybe not. Lopez gladly welcomed Conan to TBS, and Conan returned the favor. O'Brien was even so polite as to speak in Spanish, George's native tongue. The host claimed that Spanish was his first language was well, much to George's surprise. But Conan's use of such random phrases as "My fig has 8 bathrooms" and "My wrist has sex" seemed to disprove his mastery of the language.

If we could make a metaphor here, Conan's move to basic cable could be a lot like learning a new language. There may be a few rookie mistakes along the way. But Conan is such a low-key, amiable presence. And TBS might be a much better home for him, now that he's left the high-stakes, high-pressure environment of 'The Tonight Show.'