NRA PR called me today. They wanted to know why TTAG hadn’t given Colion Noir’s new show Noir any love. The simple answer: I didn’t have any love to give. While I wholeheartedly support the NRA’s campaign for the non-OFWG (Old Fat White Guy) demographic, while I’m glad the gun rights group hired an African-American spokesman, I found first Noir self-indulgent. Bland. Boring. Not in any big, dramatic way. In a “meh” kinda way – knowing that the show will get better with time. Once Mr. Noir grasps the Linda Ronstadt principle . . .

Before Heart Like A Wheel, country singer Linda Ronstadt struggled to find commercial success. Producer Peter Asher crafted the album according to a simple, over-riding principle: less is more. Asher made the audience wait for Ronstadt’s vocals. He balanced her astoundingly pure, powerful voice with equally mellifluous backup singers and lush instrumental accompaniment. He guided her to achingly beautiful songs that built to emotional crescendos. It was an enormous hit.

Noir needs to take a similar approach to his new show. His cocaine-fueled rants – or non-drug, pro-gun equivalent thereof – work well in small bytes. OK, they’ve grown a bit serious-minded of late. But 17:00 minutes of mucho macho machine-gun wit is about 15:00 too much. Noir (the person) needs to vary the pace and share the limelight. I mean really share the limelight. Not trade barbless barbs with a “who likes short shorts” Ed McMahon wanna-be.

Not to put too fine a point on it, Noir (the person) needs to chill the F out. Or at least feature a foil or two who can genuinely stand-up to, and disagree with, the Noirster. Think Top Gear’s trifecta of jobbing journos. In fact, Noir is the Jeremy Clarkson of guns: the alpha everyman who combines passion for product, a nose for cultural touchstones and good old-fashioned bombast. Yes but – Top Gear isn’t Jeremy Clarkson all the time, every time. And it isn’t called Clarkson.

The NRA PR flack said Noir was aimed at a non-gun guy mainstream audience. She didn’t specify minority or hipster newbies, but point taken. Taken, but not made. “Why the hell do I have to call up a guy to Cerakote my gun like I’m making some back alley drug deal?” Noir (the person) demands. “I can get on nike.com right now and make a pair of shoes with more colors than the colors of a Benetton ad.” And then something about expensive guns in cheap boxes. What’s cerakote? Who’s Benetton? Who cares? Not newbies.

But the Inside Baseball kvetching sure caught the eye of the anti-gun, left-leaning press. The NRA’s Hot New Web Show For Youngs Is Hilariously Bad Poser Garbage gawker.com pronounces.

The folks at Reason magazine, who love guns but know a bullshit pander when they see one, have a compelling list of all the problems with episode one of “Noir.” Well, almost all. They forgot to mention the faux-MTV rough cuts and self-consciously cool floaty camera shots, or the cringe-inducing “urban” script copy dropping out of Noir’s mouth like it was written by a white Mitch McConnell intern on summer break from Liberty University.

Needless to say, Gawker gets it hilariously, badly wrong (with a touch of Uncle Tom racism thrown in for good measure). Cringe-inducing or not – and the Smith & Wesson Shield review was laden with leaden metaphors – Colion writes his own scripts. And Noir (the show) isn’t pandering to anyone. Would that it were! At the risk of earning a Gawker diss for pretentious prose, Noir lacks firearms Fingerspitzengefühl. These aren’t the water cooler gun debates Noir is looking for. You know; if Noir was looking for a debate.  

Which he bloody well should. Enough with the monologues! I would dearly love to watch Colion enter the lion’s den to debate an anti-gunner. I know he’s never done it on camera before, but the man’s got lawyer chops. More than that, he needs to break out of his artistic strait jacket, take some chances and have some fun. And then STFU and let someone else have the floor.

F. Scott Fitzgerald famously pronounced there are no second acts in American lives. But there are double-acts. Noir (the person) needs at least one maybe two more people to balance his pistol-packing persona. The panel idea – for which our Nick Leghorn and Kirsten Joy Weiss auditioned – would have been far more effective than the debut’s format. The NRA’s playing coy about future episodes, or who’s producing Noir. I nominate Peter Asher. 

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98 COMMENTS

  2. I like him, I like her.

    I like the concept of the show, and I think it fills a niche (Ie: people who like guns but aren’t quite as hardcore as many of us).

    I LOVE the absolutely blatant unadulterated racism being shown by the left. It’s incredible how incredibly hypocritical those on the left are and it really shows that evil side to people in the middle.

    That said…

    I hated the show. It was stilted (the 2 of them don’t have “co-host chemistry”). It was filled with “time fillers” vs actual content. It’s a show oriented towards my generation, but frankly I think that a TV version of recoil magazine hosted by the 2 of them with more solid content would be more effective and interesting to watch. It has a ton of potential and I’m sure will get better over time.

    Instead of “Guns Cribs” show off some new or unique stuff. They showed him firing a Salient Arms Bennelli M4 but didn’t explain what it was. Bring on some trainers, competitors, and youtube “stars” that might appeal to the younger generation. Talk NFA and show off stuff people might not realize they can own.

    i hope it does well. I really do, but the show I watched tuesday night… it’s time is limited.

  3. I wouldn’t pay much attention to that Gawker author. He comes across like the most anti-gun, left-wing zealot imaginable. He uses the F-word multiple times, which tells me he is not some professional journalist.

    • “… He comes across like the most anti-gun, left-wing zealot imaginable. …”

      Well, yes. Him and several hundred of his gun-hate-spewing commenting friends.

  4. They didn’t have chemistry. I’m not sure that’s going to change…..so maybe someone has to go? I wonder who that would be. The show has huge potential, I hope they don’t screw it up. He’s funny and obviously likable, and the show tries to be everything to everyone (under a certain age, I’m 28 so I thought it was appropriate and applicable), that could hurt them in the end. It’s not a gun guys show, and the segments are too short and there isn’t any substance to the conversation. I like his YOUTUBE stuff, I really hope they figure this one out and develop it.

  5. Oh come now, Farago, Linda Ronstadt-‘principle’?? Really?

    To a target demographic that grew up on DubbStep??

    xD

    Now, some of your critique about being shorter-bite-sizes, and “sharing the limelight” has some merit.

    But really, citing Adam Weinstein at Gawker, the idiot statist fascist douchebag??

    First rule of thumb: those who comment on…about ‘being cool’ and those who aren’t… aren’t actually cool or ever one, themselves.

    Frankly, most professional writers are never-grew up/arrested-development, socially awkward nerds. And, not the cool nerds, mind you. You know: the passionate ones with life changing ideas, who manifest it in action.

    ‘Modern’ writers yap, while sipping trendy liquid elixir shit of the day, while dishing rather non-hardy har har sardonic, rhetorical, rarely thought provoking verbiage.

    Most blogs on pop culture, particularly those with statist ‘liberal’ bent (which, I suppose is arguably…probably most blogs, by volume) are an echo chamber of circular whino-fests with equally passe wannabes who have inflated image of themselves: No one’s gonna remember their name, beyond their 15minutes…hell, even ‘click-second’ attention span of the internet era.

    But the 1st black host of an NRA show? I’d submit that he’ll at least be a footnote.

    Frankly, while the NRA PR person may believe this is supposed to be an outreach to the millennial hipsters/wannbes/on-the-fencers, the YouTube gunnies (the audience whom Noir is bringing, which will make up the majority) will be just happy to have one of our own amplified with a bigger budget.

    If it fails, he still got his YouTube gig & TX Bar.

    With guns, you either ‘get’ it, or you don’t.

    The NRA marketing team…being the NRA, may not quite ‘get’ that about the Gen X, Y to the Millennials who grew up on 4Chan, YouTube and insane amount of video games, while watching the formerly nerdville of ComicCon becoming a bigger go-to Hollyweird Pilgrimage than the annual Cannes, SxSW, or even Sundance; ie. to the Millennials, nerds are cool, be they footnotes of history consumerist nerds in passing, or Steve Jobs.

    And let’s face it. Noir, is cool. But not arrogant, or self-absorbed, as you seem to be alluding.

    With Coolness, you either have it, or you don’t.

    Steve McQueen? Cool.
    Bruce Lee? Cool.
    Clint Eastwood? Cool.

    Current batch of central-casting? They can pretend they are, but not really.

    And you either ‘get’ it, or you don’t. Granted, the leggy Ms. Robbins, maybe an obvious unnecessary hook. But hey, as long as she doesn’t become a distracting neon but a pleasant eyecandy, no pop culture consumer minds.

    But really, a panel? A discussion panel?? When NOIR is more like post-Tsai, Ian Harrison RECOiL Mag’s shiny purrty pix come to life??

    Er.. no. Not his show.

    Perhaps the that, should be your show Robert, with KJ Weiss? Hells yeah, I’d watch. But, a panel, is not a pop show. You want the McLaughlin Hour for Guns, and…you’re here commenting on the how’s and why’s of NRA’s Millennial outreach… away from the FUDD demographic??

    xD

    Make no mistake, the show is an amplification for NOIR & YouTube gunnies’ pre-existent fanbase, not to garner new ones, though that maybe the aim of NRA.

    And, no, this wasn’t meant for the MSDNC idiots who are simply echoing the idiots at Gawker, a den of trendie morons, who’ve apparently self-declared themselves the arbiters of contemporary gun-cool. As if, if one were to label gravity, as being uncool/un-hip, it’ll stop dropping your ass at 9.8m/s.

    Or, Herr Farago, perhaps you ain’t as hipster-savvy as you once thought, you were.

    xD

    J/K

    I’m sure the gunnie Millennials ‘get’ what NOIR’s new show is all about.

    And oh, KOCHtopus Reason Mag, is as ‘libertarian’ as Rachel Madcow is a heterosexual. Reason, is the NRA, if Mises were the GOA.

    Milquetoast calling kettle black.

    And come on, no offense (yeah, rhetorical, so? lol), this is not the face of a ‘gun girl,’ let alone someone who is ‘cool;’ she’s someone (a hipster? sure) who comments on being ‘cool,’ a la the aforementioned ‘professional’-writer: http://elizabethnolanbrown.com

    Apparently, all these non-gunnie liberals thought NRA was making a show to attract them; check out these self-important delusional zero-audience MSDNC nobodies, yucking it up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R19kYNEMq7o

    I’d say, always be wary of the self-proclaimed definitive arbiters of subjective taste, especially on pop-‘culture.’

    • The reason.com criticism was no more anti-gun than Robert’s own criticisms.

      Or others in this very comments thread.

      It comes from the POV of an ally, saying, ‘Get your shit together because this is important to do right.”

      I’ve been a reader at reason.com for years and they are full out pro-2A. Once in a while they’ll publish an article by a contributor that flexes on some right (speech, guns etc) and they readers in the comments thread give them Hell for it, but I suspect it’s mostly them trolling for a reaction.

    • I will admit I have no friggin idea who Linda Ronstadt is.

      Then again, I think I’m about 20 years younger than RF and I would prefer to gouge my ears out with hot knitting needles than listen to country music.

  6. I would dearly love to watch Colion enter the lion’s den to debate an anti-gunner. I know he’s never done it on camera before

    Collins (his actual name) and his team won a regional moot court competition when he was in law school and went on to the nationals (what happened there I have no idea). He’s a lawyer and I think he can handle himself well enough to take down a gungrabber.

  7. Like all of Colin’s videos he tries way too hard to be clever and edgy and fails.

    He really needs to calm down.

  8. I like the show, but I agree, there’s still room for improvement. I still think the NRA hiring guys like Colion Noir, Amidst the Noise, Dom Raso, Gabby Franco, Chris Cheng, etc. are smart moves that really bring out more segments of the gun-owning community.

    Some quick suggestions I’d give…

    *Rotating set of guests, so there’s a 3 person conversation going. Maybe Nick and KJW can still get in!

    *Sharpen and narrow the focus of each show, maybe 3 extended topics max

    *Incorporate some short regular segments… just like Jay Leno had Jay-Walk, Letterman Top 10, TTAG has IGOTD, etc. NOIR needs some sort of short regular segments. Maybe since Colion is into firearms + fashion, he could use a short segment to highlight the many pro-2A apparel companies out there that make everything from shirts, jackets, hats, bags, pants, etc. He sounds like he has some ideas with “Gear Check”…

    And yeah, cardboard boxes for nice guns… ugh.

    • I would suggest… sorry, but NO NICK.

      And nothing says, “I just dropped $2700 on this hot new rifle… like a cardboard box! Why do they think that’s okay? WHY?

      • I even have that reaction with cheaper guns. Sig Sauer, Walther, even Smith M&Ps come in a nice sturdy lockable gun case. The Glock comes in a tupperware container…

        • Packaging matters. You will be hard-pressed to find a review of a Springfield XDm that doesn’t mention the great-looking, sturdy, awesome case it comes in. Of all my handguns, it’s the only case I still use with any regularity at all.

        • The soft case that came with the Lionheart has all the others beat hands down. Well, my USP Tactical came in a really great looking grey soft-case that resembles a laptop case, so I like it as well.

  9. Personally, I like it and look forward to watching it develop. I think it has broad appeal and will hopefully generate interest from the anti-gunners and those still on the fence.

  10. To each their own. I find him annoying. He has always been annoying. Machine gun paced talk with crazy M-TV camera angles. I have always found his youtube videos to be superficial and overly “artistic”. But for some reason, people fall all over themselves when talking about him. And really, do we always REALLY need to call him “MR.” Colion Noir? Come on, man. Its like watching a bunch of school girls with a crush. Get into some substance, become interesting, find some depth, and maybe the show and videos will not suck so much. Then again, i have never been faddish and am not a vapid teenager anymore, so what do I know.

  11. I think he should do his show in a Unitard. How bout you RF? Hooogah!
    Still time to get in on the “bottom” of NAMCLA, The North American Man Colion Love Association.

  12. I’m pretty sure that as long as the show has a “NRA” logo attached to it, this blog and most others will act snooty as hell talking about it.
    That’s not even a “haters gonna hate” type of comment. He’s damned no matter what he does, from pretty much all sides.
    My only genuine complaints? He spent very little time talking about the “fun” part of guns, and his scripts felt a lot more stifled than his usual content. He’ll probably get better with it over time.

    I love TTAG, but I’m pretty sure I couldn’t handle a TTAG show for more than about 30 seconds. It would be 2-minute review segments of why this gun is or isn’t as good as Nick’s FN, 20 minutes of Shannon WattsWatch, with a BREAKING every 5 mins or so, and maybe a KJW trick shot to lighten the mood, before another BREAKING.
    I would probably tune in for Matt’s Minute, but with all the MDA coverage I figure his content would run under the credits or something.

  14. As a man in his 50’s who has only just started to embrace firearms and self defense I have looked forward to his 2 minute snippets. I was excited for this show but I have to admit it bored the crap out of me. I give new TV shows 3 -4 episodes to find their way. He may only get 1 mire out of me. I buy the Top Gear analogy .

  15. I don’t get the criticism, Robert. The show’s fine. You’re holding something back. Come clean, dude.

    And the gratuitous Linda Rondstadt crap is absurdness personified. It’s not even Souther’s best song. And when I think LR, I think the Stone Ponys. I think BLUE BAYOU. I think WHY THE EFF IS SHE DATING JERRY BROWN CAN I PUNCH HIM NOW?

  17. Honestly I haven’t watched it yet, but Shannon Watts and Michael Bloomberg are all over it like white on rice. They practically accused Noir of rape for having a nice looking lady on the show with him.
    Media Matters is claiming violence against women, dogs cats, you name it.
    Maybe he is a bit slow out of the gate a bit, but dang he is trying.
    One thing for sure Noir is now a house hold name of the antis. I think they have them running scared because he isn’t a FOWG. Just like 1MMAGC, all they can do is claim they are an NRA shill, paid and bought which is a complete lie.

    • Bloomie and Le Shannon are irrelevant. Irrelevant. Say it.

      But we love anything that gets under their skin, do we not? Of course we do.

  18. I kind of agree. I like Colion Noir but this came across as a bit “try-hard.” I.e. trying too hard to be hip, trying too hard to be cool. I think if they just tone that part down a little bit they can find the right balance.

  19. Maybe it’s because I’m not a shallow metrosexual, but this Colion Noir crap just flies way over my head.

  20. “…Cerakote … back alley … cheap boxes. …”

    I think I saw that part of that ep, and that was about the point were I said, “meh.”

    • Everybody’s a fricken critic. Come on, man! This is a case of “if you can’t say something nice….”.

      Get your own stinkin’ show, Rich.

    • I thought you were a subject of Queen Shannon….and if she’s anything like Catherine the Great, I suppose that’s not so bad. You could be one of her young lieutenants…..

  22. I would like to point out that the first season of Top Gear was actually pretty damn horrible, so there is still hope.

    • For its faults, which are forgivable for a first ep, it wasn’t bad at all. I’d watch it again. Give the show a chance. Everyone: give it a fair chance, fer cryin’ out loud. It’s already better than Arsenio.

      • I agree, the 1st episode was more of an intro to the show and will get better. I really look forward to seeing how it improves and I feel like it is another means with which firearms ownership can be better “normalized” in our society for lack of a better term.

    • If you want to see cringe-worthy then look at the first episodes of your favorite TV shows. They almost universally suck starting out.

  23. I’ve watched many of his youtube videos, and enjoyed them. But I didn’t enjoy this show.

    The cohost was useless: I’m almost certain she’s just there to look pretty, but they could have at least found somebody with some personality, if she’s going to have a speaking part.

    The gun porn segment was lame: I can go look at much higher resolution pictures if I want to. The point of video is that it can capture action. So why not show some activity? Like shooting the fancy guns.

    The sports references were out of place: The only sports guy whose name I recognized was Tiger Woods. Why? Because I’m interested in guns, not basketball. Why does a show about guns have a segment about a basketball player? Does the NBA promote a basketball show that had a feature on Brian Enos?

    The gun review wasn’t very informative: A TTAG review describes the fit, function, accuracy, accessories, price, etc. of a gun. That’s useful data. I didn’t understand the reference about the guy who buys his groceries at CVS. Does that mean it’s a gun for lazy people? Impatient people? Poor people? People who aren’t picky about quality?

    Hopefully Colion will read this page and consider our (mostly) constructive criticism.

  24. The long legs of the co-host and Noir’s rants simply can’t carry the whole show. There needs to be some range time, blowing up watermelons, and anti-2A guests. Noir can cut to the chase, but doesn’t have the humor of Maher, the compassion and storytelling of Oprah, etc. Two people agreeing with each other without moving through any sort of resistance simply isn’t that interesting. I’d like to see Noir in some debates. He could profile Fast and Furious, Drug cartel guns, Leland Yee, etc.

    Without anything more interesting, the show will crash and burn.

    • I agree. The content was a bit lacking and unfocused. We always cry about the anti-gun left being an echo chamber, and his new show felt just that. Also, I don’t get how they wasted minutes just by thrown ARs and 1911s on airplanes?

      In addition, I was actually confused by Legs McGee. Who is she? Why is she on the show? Does she contribute anything besides those legs that go into next week?

      Maybe I’m disappointed because I wanted to see the show, but I went in with no expectations and left feeling I wasted 15 minutes and not really looking forward to the next one.

  25. I’d like to see CN do a reality show style production where he follows a group of young, hip, minority types through several hours of firearms training. Think of all the great points that could be made.

    • You’re close…..

      1) go into various leftist metrosexual hangouts
      2) pretend to interview and have them regurgitate the typical leftist tripe about their misconceptions
      3) then offer to take a handful of them to a firing range to show how evil those guns are
      4) Let them use them and some with giggle switches
      5) film the transformation

      It’s best to make a bunch of these and have them in the can before broadcasting any of them so that general public isn’t aware of the ploy

  26. Started up the video. Was finished after 30 seconds. Then I tried to watch “Noir”…

    Anyway, I was a big fan of Colion’s videos when I first discovered them. And I’ve liked some of the NRA videos he’s been in. And interviews I’ve seen. But this one I was not a fan of. And no, I’m not an NRA basher.

  27. IMO, we need not try to make guns “cool” or anything like that. I don’t think people should be owning guns just because it’s the new “in” thing to do or “cool” thing to do. To the contrary even, that could attract the wrong kind of people to gun ownership, because people who own guns tend to be individually-minded folk, not those who like to just go with what the collective does.

    What we need to focus on is education, and by that, I mean on guns, gun rights, the history of the right to keep and bear arms, statistics and studies regarding guns in society, etc… This needs to involve women, minorities, LGBTQ people, etc…who can be pro-gun ambassadors, but education is what’s most important. No need to make it seem “cool’ or hip. What is important is that people understand the facts, such as the nonsense of the term “assault weapon,” why magazine capacities should not be limited, that weapons like AR-15s are not powerful guns in the way the media tries to portray, the technical definition of an assault rifle, etc…

    We need the people who are considered the “millennials” and people overall to realize that the resistance to gun control is not based on a bunch of extremists who will not listen to reason but rather are due to very well-reasoned arguments. Even for those that disagree with us still but who are nonetheless reasonable people, they can at least come to understand their opposition better.

  28. It’s been said. Stilted, poor chemistry, tried way too hard. Almost uncomfortable to watch. That said, I’ll tune in every week and I know it’s going to get better.

  29. I’m a shield owner. I like hearing reviews and seeing what people think so I can look for it because it’s my first hand gun.

    His “review” reminded me of some poetry jam contest and not a review. Just like he’s ore show whatever that was he reviewed.

    Neither worked for me.

    I’ll watch again becuse it’s his first show. However it was too over the top for me. The gun cribs was nothing but expensive shit I’ll never owned panned over ken burns style. I would love to see a regular home and how people store stuff. What decorations hey use maybe.

    The co-host made me feel more like she was an eye candy vs substance. I feel that way about a lot of ” hosted” shows though.

    I will continue to watch and provide feed back. It’s the fist show. It’s a nice attempt and glad to see something.

  30. Curious if Colion Noir has ever watched That Metal Show.

    He should invite Jim Florentine or Adam Carolla

  31. I like the show. It causes the gun grabbers to foam at the mouth. And the true side of the left is shown: Elitist Racists. Show a democrat a black NRA member, and you’ll hear the old Democratic party come out. The real Democratic party that is. Once you get past the emotionalism, the Democratic elite are not only motivated by power, but also racism. You’ll hear things like, “well, something must be wrong with him/her,” or “they’ve been paid off, they aren’t “thinking right”. Its their position that minorities can’t think for themselves, they have to be toe the line leftists, or their scum of the earth.

  32. I like Colion, loved his pre-NRA videos & absolutely hated the “show” exactly because it was that, a show. Overproduced, side-shots talking off camera for the sake of cool. Won’t get those 20 minutes back. If it was a pilot on cable TV, it wouldn’t survive another episode. Meh

  33. I like Colion and I like the idea, but it is a show that panders to those in my generation, therefore I did not like the show. However don’t let the left fool you. This is the kind of stuff they love. If the show was the exact same except with an anti-gun angle instead of progun I bet all the money I will ever make in my life that the leftist blogs/sites hating on it would praise it as amazing, artistic, and new age blah blah blah.

  34. Personally, I find it refreshing as it has not yet become an “infomercial” like most gun shows on TV. Give it a chance, the guy is not a “TV guy” and not a “Gun Magazine guy” and doesn’t appear to have been purchased yet by any one particular gun maker (he seems to like them all, like me). I don’t judge websites such as this one based on the first viewing or any one particular article. So I’m not going to judge the show by the first outing. Let’s give him a chance for the grow the show and find his niche instead of bashing him as he comes out of the gate.

    • I’m one of the ones who found his first show not quite my cup of tea, but the fact that I’m not too interested in the fact that he’s miffed that his rifle came in a cardboard box (everything comes in a cardboard box these days), but I don’t want my ‘meh’ reaction to be construed as “bashing” him or the show. In fact, if it’s got appeal for the fence-sitters or whoever the NRA is trying to pander tobe inclusive of, I say go for it! Nobody is holding me at gunpoint forcing me to watch him, and Freedom for Everyone is the goal after all.

  35. Unlike Robert crapping all over the show, I like it. I just wish it was a hour long. Besides this is only one show! Why the hell is everyone acting like a so called tv show expert?!

  36. The NRA needs to get rid of Colion and bring in someone like Wayne LaPierre.

    Point taken?

  37. So go with the dems/current admin? Its all about packaging (messaging) and “crafting with no substance or reality? Ditch Noir. Need a Black guy hire someone that has done something. Perhaps Clarence Thomas

  38. I’d really be down with “Top Gear: Guns” for lack of a better word. I’m with you, Noir is great in small doses, but like Johnny Depp if he’s in the starring role it gets a little bland. A combination would not only balance things, but reach a much better audience. Noir, Hickok, and Kirsten? That’s more like it. All great spokesman all with different views all having a good time.

  39. Uncle Tom racism indeed. The article is absolutely drowning in it like boneless wings in Texas Pete hot sauce, as are the comments attached to it.

    But, what can you expect from a crowd that supports the same party and policies so deeply rooted in oppression and absolute destruction of civil rights and free will — and the deliberate dilution of whatever it is, if anything, that they might have missed?

    Nothing but bigotry and hatred. That’s what.

    As for the show and the host, I love it. Mind you, Noir has been doing this for over two years before the NRA even picked him up. It’s a good format with good speakers. Could it be better? Sure. Invite the anti-gunners and debate with them. He’s got the lawyer chops and could easily cut the legs out from under any argument they could ever make — legally or philosophically. And, when the anti’s invariably and inevitably break the ground rules for civility, boot ’em off the show and have ’em escorted off the premises.

    • I hate the show, I dislike Noir’s clips before it.
      I’m not a republican or a democrat.
      I’m black and under 30.

      Try not to paint in too broad of strokes.

  40. I really liked the show and looking forward to the next episode. I can see how it’s likely not for everybody but as a 26yo it speaks well to my taste in videos.

  41. I would disagree that he’s the Jeremy Clarkson of guns. If you think so, you have not watched enough Top Gear. Actually, that’s part of what’s missing. He’s kinda more like Richard Hammond. He’s trendy, well spoken, and speaks to the younger crowd. Clarkson is the over the top, buffoon. Captain Slow(James May) tends to be the knowledgeable one, but the others tease him for it. I think they need to team up with a comedian who likes guns. Also, they need to make it less scripted scripting. I mean it can be scripted, but don’t make it obvious that it’s scripted

    • That’s kind of my problem. Colion seems pretty cool. I’d like to hang out with him. But i can’t watch his videos. All of his monologues sound forced. He’s obviously reading it, and that pains me.

  42. Honestly I can’t stand Noir. I laughed the first time someone told me he was a lawyer. His strained way of speaking doesn’t sound or feel natural. Ever. And he keeps wearing makeup. WHY?

  43. Great Linda Ronstadt isn’t the aching ballads, it’s “Heatwave.” I saw her every time she came to the “Main Point” and only liked her when she went just a little Janis Joplin on us.

    Collion’s show was actually much better than the typical NRA video.

    And yes, $5,000 rifles are supposed to come in leather cases with straps and locks. Inside they’re supposed to have crimson velvet linings and a silver bottle for gun oil.

  44. Noir’s doing his thing his way. This article is yet another in the dimly lit constellation of wannabes and also rans who think they have all the answers and that those who are out there doing their own successful thing are all morons/sell-outs/missing-the-mark/insert your expedient, irrelevant swipe at someone else here. Get over yourselves, TTAG.

  45. Enormous elephant in the room: Colion Noir is mediocore at pretty much everything he does online, but because he’s black the NRA gives him much more credibility than he deserves. I’ve never found him to be particularly well spoken, he stumbles, runs on, is actually pretty hard to listen to. He reads off a script during Youtube videos, so whoever the bonehead in the NRA was that thought he’d be good live made a big mistake. The dude’s awkward, he doesn’t have the gravitas needed for this kind of presentation. Beyond that, he’s a willing tool and seems to have forgotten that the NRA is actually the orgnaization directly responsible for a lot of anti-gun legislation including the machine gun ban. I question anyone who so willingly co-mingles with that bunch of loosers.

  46. I was seriously disappointed. The show was horribly paced, and “Gun Pads” was dumb. The show seems strongly inspired by BBC Top Gear, but it is just too much too fast and nearly ADD inducing. I thought Noir’s rapier wit for a 2.5 minute video is paced well, but it’s wearying running minute after minute at that pace. His co-host does little other than smile.

    I’m confident that Noir can make a good show, but it is coming across as a show for guys who are “already there”. If it is supposed to attract fence sitters, I think we’re going to have a problem. It would be fun to see him go tit for tat with an outspoken anti-gunner every once in a while.

  47. Let’s cut the shit here.

    What we really want is 15 minutes of hot chicks in bikinis posing with guns. No dialogue needed.

    I expect the NRA to spend my dues responsibly and get this project started expeditiously.

    • “hot chicks in bikinis posing with guns”

      POSING? Whaddaya, a wussie? I want slomo of ’em blasting away on full giggle, those supple buttocks rippling in the shock waves of the repeated recoil, Pow! Pow! Pow! [leer, snort!]

  49. I haven’t seen the show yet (what channel is it on?!?). But for the record, I’m a fan of Colion Noir. Meeting him at media day @ SHOT show was a show highlight for me. I wish him all the best!

  50. I have a Bromance with Noir but he needs to rethink the entire Panel as well as the set, and the camera angles, lighting…

  51. If only Mr. Noir was actually as cool as he thinks he is, he might have something. The entire program was lacking in substance. I kept expecting to see a designer gun fashion show.

  52. I think they tried to fit too much in too little time. Maybe going forward they can dedicate an entire episode to one or two segments other than the three or four they had but go into greater detail on what they’re covering.

    The show was a little awkward, and I believe it’s because the host and cohost weren’t exactly used to each other, the dialogue came across as forced. And they could just in general polish the presentation package so that it’s more suited to wider audience. Having the panel would have been a good idea, as it would have allowed for more in depth discussion, maybe have a guest panel?

    One thing that was pretty dumb was several critics complaining about Noirs choice in headware. So what, eh guy likes ball caps, he wears them in every video of his. Who cares that all his hats seem to be from a different franchise? It just amazes me that people complained about that.

  53. They need to work with Tom Gresham and Michael Bane. Gresham knows how to modulate the message and Bane knows TV. All three of them could come up with something great.

  54. This week’s episode was a lot better flowing, and a lot less forced, much more conversational, which was nice. I hope they find their formula and start knocking them out of the park. This was much better than last week.

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