Jon Stewart tributes Stephen Colbert in last ‘Daily Show’ of 2014

For his final send-off to Stephen Colbert ever, we have to say, we almost expected something grander from Jon Stewart tonight.

Rather than going with something completely dramatic and over-the-top, the two hosts’ banter at the end of “The Daily Show” tonight was almost simple and understated. Colbert acted like it was any ordinary show … at least while Jon was with him. It was only later that the craziness really started.

In a way, this ending for Jon and Stephen together may be most emblematic of who Colbert is as a person: Someone who is not always that fond of the spotlight, and is mostly generous and willing to share with others. He is a quieter guy, someone who doesn’t flock to the press, and probably does not want to make an enormous deal of his transition. However, his character will definitely do that and then some.

Jon and Stephen’s relationship obviously goes back well over a decade. Colbert was one of the first prominent correspondents on Jon’s version of “The Daily Show” alongside Steve Carell and others, and really built his brand and a name for himself there. He then moved over to his own show, which was then mostly a chance for Comedy Central to try and capitalize on their lead-in. Nobody had any clue he was going to become the epic sensation that he is now.

Colbert is leaving in order to host “The Late Show,” which he will start to do in the summer / early fall of next year. As for the future of Stewart, he has not said when or if he plans on stepping down on “The Daily Show” in the near future.

Update: Stewart did return to sing at the end of “The Colbert Report.” Huzzah!

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