The series follows Louie, a fictionalized version of C.K., a comedian and newly divorced father raising his two daughters in New York City.
The next morning, his manager Doug (Edward Gelbinovich) informs him that his comedy set went viral, and that CBS wants to meet him in an hour.
The Chairman of CBS, Lars Tardigan (Garry Marshall), privately informs Louie that David Letterman is retiring from his late show.
He offers him going back to New York City and meet with his right-hand man, Jack Dall, to get him in shape, and they will try a test show in two months.
Back in New York City, Louie breaks the non-disclosure agreement by telling Janet (Susan Kelechi Watson) about the offer.
He visits the Ed Sullivan Theater to meet with Dall (David Lynch), but makes a poor impression when it takes him over a minute to read from a cue card.
Back home, Louie watches television, finding a news report about Letterman's possible retirement, and discovering that Chris Rock is also in consideration for the job.
At a bar, Louie sees a news report that reveals that Letterman had just signed a new contract extending his tenure to ten years.
In August 2012, FX confirmed that the tenth, eleventh and twelfth episodes of the season would be titled "Late Show", and that it would be written and directed by series creator and lead actor Louis C.K.
[1][2][3] The character of Jack Dall was originally conceived for Ben Gazzara, but the actor died by the time the crew tried to contact him.
[4] In its original American broadcast, "Late Show Part 1" was seen by an estimated 0.60 million household viewers with a 0.3 in the 18-49 demographics.
[6] In its original American broadcast, "Late Show Part 2" was seen by an estimated 0.48 million household viewers with a 0.2 in the 18-49 demographics.
Club gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "'Late Show (Part 1)' is fundamentally concerned with the dark side of success, with the seamy, shadowy underbelly of exceeding expectations, both internal and external.
On the other hand, because we know that he can drop an idea at any moment, this story doesn’t automatically have to end with Louie blowing it and losing the job to Jerry Seinfeld.
This is the show's final run at making a big mark in 2012 — the kind of impression that could help re-up all those Best Comedy of the Year accolades and Most Original Thing on TV superlatives.
This last leg began solidly with the type of installment typically reserved for those series that embrace things like continuity and extended plots: the setup episode.
"[13] Neal Lynch of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4 star out of 5 rating and wrote, "It's kind of amazing this show is only 22 minutes.
Eric Goldman of IGN gave the episode an "amazing" 9.5 out of 10 and wrote, "Twin Peaks is one of my favorite TV series of all time, so I was delighted to see David Lynch of all people not only show up on Louie, but play a very Gordon Cole-like character.
Louie and its creator are confident and secure enough to forgo laughs and jokes in favor of a larger, more ambitious, and more meticulously observed creative vision, the full scope of which will only become apparent next week when this fascinating, gloriously bittersweet three-episode arc concludes.
"[16] Alan Sepinwall of HitFix wrote, "Given where this episode went, it’s hard to imagine Louie having a plausible shot at the job in the conclusion of this trilogy, but it's been a pleasure to watch (and listen to, as I love the melancholy music used on the score) so far.
"[19] Neal Lynch of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4 star out of 5 rating and wrote, "The journey should be fun (and painful) to watch.
"[23] Zach Dionne of Vulture wrote, "The contemplative do-or-die music revs into a horn-blasting triumph theme, Louie walks off into the sunset of Times Square, and we get the show's biggest — one of its only — heart-warming moments since Louie took his daughters out to a sunrise breakfast at the end of season one and that absurdly uplifting 'Bad Night' song played.
"[24] Paste gave the episode a 9.4 out of 10 and wrote, "This arc, with its myriad of celebrities and far more plot-based structure than the rest of the show, has been in some ways the most ambitious thing Louie has done so far.
"[25] Neal Lynch of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 3 star out of 5 rating and wrote, "Seems like a pretty decent finale, right?