dave chappelle

On July 9, Comedy Central will kick off the third and final season of Chappelle's Show, a cobbled-together farewell consisting of segments Dave taped before he walked away from the show because, well, for whatever reasons he might have had. I saw an advance copy of the premiere episode, but before I talk about it in vague terms so as not to reveal anything, I should preface this by saying I was never as fanatical about the show as most people. I think most sketch shows falls into two categories: those that are consistently funny throughout (Mr. Show, Kids in the Hall) and those that aren't consistent but still have some great moments (Saturday Night Live). I think Chappelle's Show has always fallen in the latter category, but that's only the show itself I'm talking about. The man, however, is as sharp and irreverent as any working comic today, and his show had moments of brilliance when everything jelled and the sketches were able to bring to life the same thoughts and insights that made his stand-up specials so hysterical. Moreover, at the risk of succumbing to that blog tendency of talking about celebrities as if I know them personally, I've always liked Dave Chappelle the "regular guy." There's a reason his show was so popular and the DVDs have sold so well. Besides being funny, Chappelle comes across as a very genuine personality. He was able to transcend the gap between himself and the home audience, so watching the show was like seeing a bunch of friends performing for friends. If one sketch didn't quite work, it didn't matter. You just sat back and waited for the next one.

And such is this final season, it would seem. The premiere episode, with segments introduced by series regulars Charlie Murphy and Donnell Rawlings, has some very funny moments, many centering around a Dave who has been driven crazy with greed and revenge from all the money he made. Still, though, without Dave to bookend the segments and offer up that kind of "kick back, open a beer and chill with your friends" vibe, the show just isn't the same. Is it worth watching anyway? Well, that's for you to decide, but no fan of this show is going to tune into these "Lost Episodes" without knowing it's not going to be like it was before.

• ABC has two new episodes of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, starting at 7pm, followed by a new Desperate Housewives and a new Grey's Anatomy.
• CBS has a new 60 Minutes, followed by a repeat Cold Case and then The Sum of All Fears, with Ben Affleck.
• NBC has The Olympics, of course.
• FOX has a new Malcolm at 7, but then everything else is repeats: King of the Hill, The Simpsons, War At Home, Family Guy, and American Dad.
• The WB has two repeat eps of Reba, then two repeats of Charmed. 
• At 8, some movies: TBS has Gene Hackman and Keanu Reeves in The Replacements, AMC has Rambo, TCM has Out of Africa, and Oxygen has Dirty Dancing.
• Dave Chappelle is the guest on a new two hour Inside The Actors Studio, on Bravo at 8. 
• Nickelodeon has a new Zoey 101, also at 8. 
• Interesting lineup on TLC, starting at 9: It's Not Easy Being A Wolf Boy, followed by The Man With The Exploding Arms and Wild Child: The Story of the Feral Children. 
• Comedy Central has Zoolander at 9.
• Also at 9, Lifetime has something called The Waiting Game, a film about the art world...with Paula Abdul?! 
• At 10, MSNBC repeats today's Meet The Press.
• On Sundance, it's The Last Seduction, with Linda Fiorentino and Peter Berg.
• Also at 10, E! has a new ep of Lisa Loeb's Number 1 Single.
• At 11, HBO has Kevin Costner and Joan Allen in The Upside of Anger, while Showtime has a new ep of The L Word.
• Cartoon Network has a new Boondocks, also at 11.
• At midnight, more chocolate madness on Emeril Live, on Food Network.

The show won't run until later this morning (or this afternoon, if you're in a place like Boston, as I am), but Oprah's site has some preview clips. Oprah actually does ask the tough questions (what happened? where did he go? was he on drugs? is his show coming back?), and Chappelle does answer them.

Click here for the clips. Or don't click there and just watch the show later today.

[via USA Today's Pop Candy]

You wanna pour your heart out? Or maybe explain yourself or apologize (*cough* James Frey *cough*)? You go on Oprah, of course! And Dave Chappelle will explain all this Friday on Oprah's show. This is what Oprah's site says:

He was the hottest comedian in the country. Then he mysteriously disappeared. Why did Dave Chappelle walk away from $50 million? He addresses the widely reported rumors in his first television interview. And the big question...will he go back to his show?