Olbermann’s ‘Countdown’: the early reviews

TV Newser collects the overnights of Keith Olbermann’s “Countdown” show debut on Current TV. They’re rather mixed, although there appears to be general agreement that the set and production values aren’t what the Mouth that Roared was accustomed to at MSNBC. A sampling:

NYT: “Even on the air, he looks as if at any minute he could lose his anchorman cool — a little like Jack Paar, who was famous for tearing up and sometimes walking out in the early days of the “The Tonight Show.”

Time: “The biggest differences with the MSNBC version of Countdown were cosmetic. The production level at Current is decidedly a step down, and even though the show itself was largely unchanged, the generic New York backdrop and the graphics had a 1980s-local-newscast look to them.”

The Wrap: “Acting like a liberal cartoon drawn by Ann Coulter – president of the not-helping-their-cause-club – Olbermann ranged from dry and dull to overblown and pompous.”