Jennifer Garner Hosts Fun Teaser Show for Michelle Obama's Netflix Series on Nutrition

You know what late-night shows need more of? Perky puppets, with Jennifer Garner telling food jokes, Timbaland as music director, guests like Jack Black, Anya Taylor-Joy, a talking mop, famous chefs and Michelle Obama.

Garner recently hosted such an extravaganza, “What’s Cooking Tonight?”, a long-form talk-show sendup for the preschool set and their parents. Developed by creative agency Giant Spoon (how apropos!) and Thinking Machine director Jared Lapidus, it promotes Waffles + Mochi, Obama’s Netflix series about healthy food and diverse cultures.

The fun, frenetic “What’s Cooking” streamed live over the weekend, and it remains posted on YouTube and Facebook.

You’ll get a taste for in this trailer …

… and perhaps you’ll want to move on to the 18-minute main course:

Waffles (a yeti/waffle hybrid) and Mochi (a frozen dessert) are puppets who hail from a strange, wintry land where everyone eats ice. Waffles + Mochi chronicles their quest to become chefs (even talking edibles have dreams!) as they hang out with Obama (who runs a supermarket) and learn valuable lessons about nutrition and kindness.

“What’s Cooking Tonight” previews such elements via silly skits and bits with highlights including:

• A plate of vegetables trouncing Jack Black in a game-show spoof (they eat his lunch!).
• Interludes from Timbaland’s house band, The Beet Club, consisting of … beets.
• A cooking segment with Obama goofing on her own pantsuit.
• A parody of The Queen’s Gambit (now, it’s “Yambit”) starring Taylor-Smith, of course.
• More foodie wordplay than you can shake a fork at (W&M write “flan-fiction,” naturally).

Let’s take a closer look at the former first lady’s fashion sense…

I hope you’ll tune-in today for What’s Cooking Tonight? — our Waffles + Mochi special!

You’ll hear from some wonderful guests and get to watch me try some new recipes, and a lot more!

Check it out: https://t.co/54DgVH2Rco ? pic.twitter.com/RctbUlVpT1

— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) March 27, 2021

The self-aware variety/talker format, mixing educational content with groaner gastronomic humor, goes down smooth, like familiar comfort food.

Enough said. We’ll beet it now.