Now that the Oscar nominations have been announced, we can start grappling with the real puzzler: Is Jon Stewart going to blow? Daily Show fans, in other words, are enduring a serious case of the careful-what-you-wish-fors. Stewart hosting the Oscars has long been a fanboy daydream, but can he survive the format—and dour crowd—that tamed and shamed Chris Rock? Meanwhile, another darling comic, Sarah Silverman, just signed on for a new show with Comedy Central—which you’ll be excited for, unless you were disappointed by her massively hyped concert film. But it’s not just a season of measured optimism, cautious trepidation, or out-and-out fear. The on-a-roll Steve Carell has fans drooling for Sundance hit Little Miss Sunshine, and the equation of David Mamet plus The Shield’s Shawn Ryan plus 24’s Dennis Haysbert equals The Unit, the new thriller that everyone can get excited about.

Related:

• Archive: “Movie Features”
• Articles by Adam Sternbergh
• Table of Contents: February 13, 2006 issue of New York | Subscribe!