SalonHeather Havrilesky

Not only does Colbert maintain his persona without skipping a beat throughout the entire show, but he's got great comic timing, the show's writers are brilliant, and the whole thing is pure foolish, bizarre, idiotic fun at Bill O'Reilly's expense.

Los Angeles TimesPaul Brownfield

In the run-up to the show it all sounded a bit hard to get your head around, but in the flesh the show zinged, at least this first week.

The New York TimesAlessandra Stanley

Mr. Colbert's on-camera persona may not wear well over the long term, but for now at least "The Colbert Report" is a worthy spinoff, an icy-cold beer chaser to the shot of whiskey that is "The Daily Show."

Entertainment WeeklyGilbert Cruz

Colbert proves that the line between serious TV journalism and utter nonsense is a very thin one indeed. [4 Nov 2005, p.67]

VarietyBrian Lowry

"The Daily Show" spinoff has gotten off to an impressive start with a topnotch premiere followed by a respectable second outing that underscores just how challenging it will be to sustain this half-hour high-wire act four nights a week.

Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan

The biggest question hanging over "The Colbert Report" is whether the show’s sendup of the pomposity and fear-mongering of cable news blowhards will be as appealing in the long term as "The Daily Show’s" satire of public figures and the news media as a whole.

Boston GlobeMatthew Gilbert

One of Colbert's strengths has always been wordplay, which is in full force on ''The Colbert Report" and gives the show an added level of wit.

New York Daily NewsDavid Hinckley

It's got a way to go to become a polished program, but made a very solid and affable first impression.

People WeeklyTom Gliatto

Unlike Daily anchorman Jon Stewart, he's not only ridiculing the headlines but mocking himself. This is closer to acting than comedy, and it may be tougher. But Stephen Colbert is a great American and deserves our support. And suppore. [7 Nov 2005, p.41]

Houston ChronicleMike McDaniel

When it is clicking, The Colbert Report is Countdown on mescaline -- occasionally brilliant, occasionally loopy, definitely entertaining.

Hollywood ReporterBarry Garron

The new show dovetails nicely with its lead-in to present a solid hour of skewered news and punctured pomposity.

SlateDana Stevens

By its very nature, the position Colbert occupies—the butt of his own show's joke—seems more difficult to sustain than Stewart's role as the eternal observer.

USA TodayRobert Bianco

Colbert was an invaluable part of the Daily Show, but as the whole show, he's not enough and too much simultaneously.

Seattle Post-IntelligencerMelanie McFarland

A few kinks are painfully apparent. Foremost among them is the blowhard persona Colbert forces on us for half an hour. It feels like a weaker extension of "The Daily Show."

Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen

It's more an intellectual, in your head, "hey, that's clever," than a laugh-out-loud funny.

The New YorkerNancy Franklin

Colbert is very skillful at parodying people who are already parodies of themselves, and his show is a lot sharper than most of what passes for comedy on TV. At the end of the day, though--a day, say, on which a President says something foolish, or a Supreme Court nominee has to step aside, or a White House aide is indicted--the voice you’ll most want to hear is still Jon Stewart’s.

TV GuideMatt Roush

Smart fun.... But Report often feels like an overlong, overindulged sketch.

Kansas City StarAaron Barnhart

Monday’s premiere was one of the most nearly perfect half-hours of television I’ve ever seen.... [But] I can’t imagine tuning in “The Colbert Report” four nights a week just to watch a caricature.

New York PostLinda Stasi

This would be hilarious, except that political talk TV has become such a parody of itself that watching them is more than enough comedy for anybody.

The New RepublicKeelin McDonell

It turns out that it's a lot easier to make fun of the news than to parody the people who deliver it.

Baltimore SunStephen Kiehl

What worked so well in short Daily Show-sized bites wears thin over a half-hour program.

New York MagazineAdam Sternbergh

It’s an astute parody, but it suffocates the show, sealing The Colbert Report under a hermetic layer of irony.