‘Louie’ Recap (Season 3, Episode 12): “Late Show (Part 3)”

Louie finally gets his shot as a late night host in a wonderful episode of FX’s LOUIE

I’m never going to doubt Louis C.K. ever again.

Last week I was worried that this ambitious three-part “Late Show” story C.K. was telling wasn’t going to come together. The first two-parts were almost all set-up, with Louie trying to get a job everyone else (including the audience) knew he probably wasn’t going to get. And while he doesn’t get the job, he does get the shot – and in a way, he does what he set out to do. He overcomes his fear and he succeeds, and it’s absolutely wonderful.

Despite all of his training, Louie’s mentor (David Lynch, still fantastic) still doesn’t think Louie has the potential to be a good late night host, especially because he can’t be funny on the spot (Lynch says he thought Louie was a “news man”). Louie somehow manages to impress his mentor and he gets the opportunity to film a pilot.

A few minutes before he’s about to go on, Louie is visited by Jerry Seinfeld (I knew he had to appear eventually), who tells him that he’s already been given the job and that he thought Louie would want to know. He tells Louie to keep it a secret and leaves but Louie remembers a key piece of advice his mentor gave him: if someone tells you to keep a secret, it’s a lie. If Seinfeld is lying about already getting the job, then Louie still has a shot, which gives him the confidence to pull off a great pilot, complete with Susan Sarandon and Paul Rudd as guests.

Louie celebrates with his fellow comedians in a bar until his young agent arrives and explains that David Letterman has renewed his contract for another 10 years and that they were just using Seinfeld and Louie as bargaining chips. Louie sadly walks the streets of New York until he comes across the Late Show with David Letterman building, prompting him to shout at Letterman, “I did it! Fuck you!”

The episode ends with Louie returning to the gym and training with Clay Davis, which implies that he’s now more motivated than ever before. I can’t wait to see where he goes next.

Last week I also said that most of the “Late Show” story had been laugh-free and while it hasn’t been as funny as previous episodes, there were a few hilarious bits in this third part (especially everything David Lynch said). I actually found this conclusion to be quite emotional, particularly when Louie started tearing up, the first when he was struggling to impress his mentor and the second when his daughters gave him the “good luck” card. Sometimes I forget that Louie is more than just a normal sitcom; sometimes it can be just as much a drama as a comedy, and C.K. is effective at both. He is a talented man and “Late Show (Part 3)” would have to be one of my favourite episodes of Louie this season, and possibly of the show so far.

While this episode did seem like it could be a finale, there’s still one more episode next week titled “New Year’s Eve.” Hm. C.K. seemed to go all out with “Late Show,” so I wonder what he’s got left. One thing’s for sure, I’m never going to doubt Louis C.K. ever again.

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