Bill Burr’s spiritual breakthrough doesn’t impress Conan O’Brien

Comedian Bill Burr tried to show how he’s turned over a new leaf on Conan O’Brien’s podcast but the late night host wasn’t buying it.

The more episodes of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend  that get released, the harder the podcast becomes to predict. The premiere with Will Ferrell had a light tone as O’Brien expressed his admiration for Ferrell’s comedy. Next, Kristen Bell went a little deeper on Conan’s need for self-care. Now the third episode gives us a mellowed out Bill Burr.

At least, that’s what Burr wants us all to think. But not so fast, says Conan. Through his stand-up, his podcast the Monday Morning Podcast, and late night appearances Burr has become known for his rants. Nowhere has he done this better than on the couch at Conan. It’s part of the reason that O’Brien invited the comedian to be the third guest on his podcast.

So when Burr suggested that he had found the key to inner-peace just 10 days prior to sitting down with O’Brien, the host was eager to discover just what Burr had realized. The secret? Burr has given up on fighting with his wife or any inanimate object that annoys him.

It sounds simple enough but for anyone who is a fan of Burr or seen how quickly he can get worked up, it is a big step for the comedian. Earlier this year he explained how he knew the perfect way

to avoid confrontation when he was a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.

A big theme of the podcast was the commonalities between Burr and O’Brien. Both grew up outside of Boston as one of six children. Both struggled with the burden of having red hair. Both have some emotional baggage that bleeds into their comedy.

Conan may have been going with the “misery loves company” motto by immediately disparaging Burr’s spiritual realization. For O’Brien, simply doing whatever you’re told doesn’t exactly qualify as achieving peace. Burr admitted that he will probably relapse if he hasn’t already, but for those 10 days he was the happiest he’d ever been.

If Conan O’Brien really wants to make a friend, perhaps he should be a little supportive. If Bill Burr thinks that he’s unlocked the key to happiness, who is Conan to shut that down? So what if he’s had a front row to Burr losing his mind over the Patriots, Star Wars, and a thousand other things. Then again, maybe Conan knows that a mellowed out Burr won’t make a good talk show guest.