Back in the Cone-Zone

Last night, Conan O'Brien made his debut as host of "The Tonight Show"— giving hardcore fans some overdue time with the zany redhead and introducing him to a new demographic of viewers. While I can't speak for the latter, longtime viewers were thrilled to have O'Brien back on television after he had handed the "Late Night" torch over to Jimmy Fallon in March.

As one of my friends put it, "This is what I have been missing for the last three months of my life— my life is complete now that Conan's back on." Amen, sister. I got chills when the gravity-defying loop of hair peeked onto the stage followed by O'Brien himself. The number of viewers who tuned in last night has yet to be reported, but if the Nielsen ratings are to be believed, "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" blew the competition out of the water.

Watching O'Brien dance around the stage and banter with his first-ever guest, Will Ferrell (sorry, no Leprechaun striptease) felt tenderly familiar and eased my worry that LA and the earlier time-slot would change the tenor of the show. But while some details have remained unaltered, others have changed. Here's a shorthand list of what's new and what's the same:

1. Classic: Max Weinberg, LaBamba and the rest of the gang have followed O'Brien to California.
New: They're no longer called the Max Weinberg 7, but The Tonight Show Band.

2. Classic: The opening music is the same little ditty.
New: The montage features images of LA instead of NYC (well, duh)

3. Classic: O'Brien still films hilarious little shorts, like taking his '92 Ford Taurus for a spin and hosting a Universal Studios trolley tour (sorry no links for either of those; NBC.com is slow uploading videos).
New: It's unlikely that any of these shorts will feature the more colorful recurring characters from "Late Night"— is the Masturbating Bear still on the lam with Carrie Fisher?

4. Classic: O'Brien still bounces parts of his monologue off a costar.
New: With Andy Richter back as the announcer, we might see fewer exchanges with Max Weinberg whose chill demeanor and blank stares enhanced O'Brien's exuberant humor.

5. Classic: O'Brien still does his invisible string dance despite Stephen Colbert's attempt to steal them back in February (the two are now in competing time slots, boo).
New: No sizzling nipple caresses...at least not yet.

Still want more Conan? Check out these surprising facts that a friend e-mailed me— the superhero stint is hilarious. The second episode of "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" airs tonight at 11:35 p.m. with guests Tom Hanks and Green Day.