David Spade hosts "Lights Out With David Spade"

Comedy Central added a familiar face to its lineup this week when David Spade ("Saturday Night Live") returned to television with a new talk show. The already stellar evening lineup welcomes "Lights Out With David Spade" to its ranks, and you can catch a new episode airing Thursday, Aug. 1.

"Lights Out" marks Spade's return to hosting duties on Comedy Central after more than a decade, and represents an experimental format for the network, which has plopped it right into the coveted time-slot immediately following "The Daily Show With Trevor Noah." 

For the first time in years, Comedy Central has decided to follow "The Daily Show" with a talk show focused on anything but political criticism and satire. The last three series to hold the slot were variations on the political humor formula patented by the long-running "Daily Show." From 2005 to 2014, "The Colbert Report" was the yin to "The Daily Show's" yang. Since Colbert departed in 2014, "The Nightly Show With Larry Wilmore" and "The Opposition With Jordan Klepper" have each attempted to fill that spot, but neither gained much traction, and neither series lasted longer than a season or two.

"Lights Out With David Spade" is a foray into new territory for this time-slot. It's described as an "apolitical" nightly talk show, and, like many talk shows before it, Spade's series focuses its discussions on celebrity gossip, Hollywood news and the world of entertainment in general. While that may not seem particularly fresh or exciting, you haven't seen Spade take on those subjects.

Spade is probably still best known for his 1990s output. In the first half of that decade, he emerged as one of the more successful "Saturday Night Live" cast members and collaborated with other legendary "SNL" alumni like Chris Rock ("Everybody Hates Chris"), Norm MacDonald ("Norm") and Adam Sandler ("The Wedding Singer," 1998). In 1995, he starred alongside Chris Farley in the now-classic "Tommy Boy" (the "little coat" to Farley's "fat guy"), and the duo teamed up again in 1996 for "Black Sheep."

In his decades-long career, Spade has amassed quite a following, and many point to one particular "SNL" performance as their favorite: Spade's valiant effort to keep a straight face in response to Farley's nutty character Matt Foley (who lives "in a van down by the river") embedded him in the public consciousness early in his career. His "SNL" days were full of big laughs, and his sardonic wit won him millions of fans. Spade hopes to recapture some of that magic in his new nightly talk show.

Spade left "SNL" in 1996, after six years of writing his own sketches and contributing to hundreds of memorable bits. A year later, he returned to NBC in "Just Shoot Me," a sitcom boasting a sparkling ensemble cast that depicted the work lives of a group of employees at a New York glamour magazine. "Just Shoot Me" garnered high ratings throughout its seven-season run and proved that Spade was just as capable of helming scripted comedy as he was at headlining a sketch-comedy series.

Trevor Noah as seen in "The Daily Show With Trevor Noah"

In between "Just Shoot Me" and his subsequent return to the sitcom world in 2007's "Rules of Engagement," Spade briefly hosted "The Showbiz Show With David Spade" on Comedy Central. "The Showbiz Show" was a parody of celebrity-centric newsmagazines like "Entertainment Tonight," and it featured Spade lambasting the celebrities of the era with an edgy, cutting tone. "The Showbiz Show" only survived for three seasons, but Spade's new project on Comedy Central resurrects some of the highlights of that series.

"Lights Out" is intended to be a humorous take on pop culture and celebrity news that avoids political content. Spade acknowledges that the political comedy dominating late-night television is often excellent, but he also asserts that he finds it exhausting to be constantly bombarded with politics. He wants to offer audiences something that is politics-free.

In this new series, Spade satirizes pop culture with the help of regular visits from his standup comedian friends (and occasional visits from other celebrities). Rather than structured interviews, these visits take a more free-form, conversational style. "Lights Out" also incorporates sketches and occasionally ventures outside of the studio for field segments.

Spade has mentioned that he has fond memories of his time working on "The Showbiz Show" and misses sitting around with his comedy friends to trash other celebs. The attempt at a new formula may or may not work, but it's certainly interesting that Comedy Central has decided to buck the trend of the last decade to try to offer a politically neutral talk show in the manner of some older, classic variety series.

"Lights Out With David Spade" premieres this week and runs Monday through Thursday nights. You can watch a new episode Thursday, Aug. 1. If you're curious about whether an old-school, apolitical comedy talk show can succeed in the contentious landscape of the current moment, make sure to check it out, and stay tuned to meet Spade's talented friends as the new show gets going and begins to stretch its legs.