Fickle Fans: Ze Frank's The Show

First off, I love The Show by Ze Frank. I've watched 'em all, and they range from good to brilliant, with the curve skewed towards the latter end of the scale. Still trying to pin down the over/under on when Jon Stewart hires the guy. Anyway, on Friday he did an episode where he (drunkenly?) took reader Joseph to task in hysterical fashion (loses a ton in print, unfortunately). He then thought better of it and pulled that episode (leaving comments in place). Coincidentally, a couple days later (Sunday) a NY Times piece on Ze appeared. And then he got slashdotted.

So yesterday's show (Monday) features Ze "bleeping" profanity for the first time ("hard chargers...it's censored so that bonesaw could watch" - watch and understand), there's a still ad at the end of the video, and he says he'll put back the Friday episode featuring his bare ass if 50 folks post pictures of their own bare asses, with the words "sports racer" written on them (19 photos so far, but most are ignoring the key "you have to show your face too" rule, so I can't imagine they'll be counted).

Predictably (unfortunately) there was much wailing from the comment gallery. Accusations of selling out, cowardice, etc. I would leap to Ze's defense, but I don't have to. A reader going by Scarybug already said it best:

Ze, how dare you include a still, unobtrusive advertisement at the end of every show that you let me watch for free. As a person you've never met, you owe me the kind of entertainment that I've decided is your style. I'm now going to speculate on your personal motives based on a few links I've seen, and then call my fellow commentors whose opinions differ from my own a name that you sometimes use as a joke to deride authority figures. Furthermore, I fully intend to miss any intentional irony in your self-censorship, instead, I have decided that you are letting the promise of financial success change what I have decided was your previous personal ethos.

Amen. And since you won't be seeing me in the "your bare asses" gallery, I'm certainly in no position to beg for the Friday episode back, even if the loss of even a single episode is painful.

Keep 'em coming, Ze!

P.S. Could he have planned this whole thing? Setting up reader outrage at the episode's removal so he could throw down the gauntlet (or underpants, as the case may be)? Either way—premeditated or reflexive—very clever.

P.P.S. If you read this far here's a bonus: the best one-two episode punch to date: 5/30/06 and 5/31/06.