Late night hosts struggle to find jokes in the surprisingly good COVID-19 vaccine news

Seth Meyers
(Image credit: screenshot/YouTube/Late Night)

"We've now been in lockdown for over 11 months and if you're beginning to get the crazy feeling that isolation is starting to drive you crazy, you're not crazy — you are crazy," Stephen Colbert said on Wednesday's Late Show. Yes, according to CNN, "pandemic paranoia is a real thing — or is it? Who paid you to say that, CNN? How would you know I'm paranoid — are you watching me?"

Now, "one guy who actually has a really good reason to be paranoid" is Rudy Giuliani, who's "running like a frightened toddler" from a $1.3 billion defamation lawsuit, Colbert recounted with some glee. But when it comes to COVID-19, "we got another injection of positive vaccine news today," with the Johnson & Johnson getting the FDA's near-approval. "That's amazing, soon we'll have as much choice in vaccine brands as we do flavors of Mountain Dew," he joked. "Unlike the ones currently out there, Johnson & Johnson's is single shot — although the company itself still requires a double Johnson."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.