Watch John Oliver’s Snap Judgments on Banjos, Bagels, Orgies
John Oliver and Last Week Tonight took a break on Sunday to honor Independence Day, our fireworks-heavy “annual American tradition of reminding the sky who runs shit.” But the crew still made time for an unconventional web-exclusive episode: Instead of devoting 15 minutes to one in-depth subject, Oliver took 15 topical “shallow dives” in one minute, firing off snap judgments and witticisms on everything from food to fashion.
Oliver takes cheap shots at banjos (“They’re just guitars whose parents are cousins”), flip-flops (“Clearly they are just lingerie for foot fetishists”), bagels (“Donuts that gave up on their dreams”) and ostriches (“Scary horse-birds. I don’t like them. Get away.”). He also vents his disdain for cinema subtitles (“No, thank you, subtitles. Stop trying to turn my movie into a book.”), points out a helpful similarity between food chains and orgies (“They’re only safe if you’re at the very top”) and blows his own mind with the revelatory tidbit that Al Roker and Lenny Kravitz are cousins.
After all that random opinion-sharing, Oliver doesn’t have time to tackle more complex issues, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership. But no worries: Last Week Tonight will return with a new episode in its regular format on July 12th.
In recent weeks, the acclaimed HBO show has taken deep dives on issues like transgender rights, the Senate’s torture report, revenge porn and the South’s polarizing relationship with the Confederate flag.