His Legs Bestrid the Colossus, His Reared Arm Crested the World

Did anyone else feel sorry for Bill O’Reilly on the Colbert Report? O’Reilly doesn’t seem to have counted on just how alien he’d feel in a sanctum created and supported by the sensibility he hates. He looked apprehensive when he made his entrance, and when he got some boos, he looked sad and trapped, like the most uncool kid in school being taunted by the coolest. And when Colbert pulled out a copy of his, O’Reilly’s, book with a big “30% Off” sticker on the cover, O’Reilly’s face froze in chagrin at his own naivete.

But also, it was a misstep on Colbert’s part. Colbert’s shtick revolves around how much he reveres O’Reilly, so why was he insulting him to his face? His entire persona is buttressed nightly by reverent mentions of O’Reilly. It was out of character for him to show a mocked up photograph of O’Reilly in leather bondage, squatting, with something that looked like his genitals exposed to ridicule. Was Colbert pandering to people who would want him to take shots at O’Reilly? But he doesn’t pander to them any other time. He stays rigorously in character – it’s part of his ballsiness.

Colbert is usually right on, someone you marvel at's swiftness, a comic genius with an uber-nerd's storehouse of knowledge. Something seemed off that night, though.