‘The View’: Joy Behar kisses Meredith Vieira, Barbara Walters, and more upon exit

Today marked Joy Behar’s final day on “The View,” and we have to say that this did not quite end up going the way in which we or probably anyone else had probably expected it to beforehand. We knew that her final show would be a combination of teary moments, heartfelt thoughts, and also times to laugh; but kisses? Even in the darkest chambers of the mind, did you really imagine that something like this was going to happen?

What happened here is that following a montage of the show’s long history of kisses, former panelist Meredith Vieira turned and planted a big one on Joy’s lips. Then, saying that she’d never done it before, she went out to the audience and kissed Barbara Walters. Eventually, guest Regis Philbin got in on the fun, and just about everyone was kissing everyone else before the segment was over … and it’s hard for a show like this to recover, even when there are times for tears.

When it comes to Joy, though, she was (excuse the bad pun) pretty joyful about getting the opportunity to leave on her own terms. There was no drama between her and some of the other panelists, and she was ready to move on to the next phase of her life after spending over a decade and a half of it on here. That is a very, very long time to be situated anywhere in the world of television, and she is clearly aware of that.

In the end, ABC already has made some quick moves when it comes to shoring up the future of their panel. Jenny McCarthy is going to be Behar’s replacement come the start of the fall season, and there is still a hunt going on for the woman to take over for the already-departed Elisabeth Hasselbeck.

Photo: ABC