Live has entered a new era. On Tuesday, April 17, Mark Consuelos joined the morning show as wife Kelly Ripa's new co-host following the departure of Ryan Seacrest. Consuelos has guest-hosted several times over the years, and now he has a permanent seat on stage. Unfortunately, while the couple has many fans—some tracing all the way back to their days co-starring on All My Children–they also have some detractors. And after Consuelos' first episode aired, some viewers took to social media to voice complaints about the pair's chemistry as co-hosts. Read on to see why their debut didn't please every daytime fan.
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Consuelos was announced as Ripa's new co-host in February.
Debby Wong / ShutterstockRipa has hosted Live with three co-hosts since she joined the show in 2001. From 2001 to 2011, she appeared alongside Regis Philbin. From 2012 to 2016, Michael Strahan was her co-host. Then, from 2017 until just recently, she was joined by Seacrest. There were also periods in between permanent co-hosts during which Ripa was was joined by guests, including her husband.
Soon after Consuelos was announced as the new permanent host, Ripa reflected on their soap opera days and told Us Weekly, "So many wonderful moments have happened while with ABC, so it only makes sense for us to come full circle and work together once again for the show that has given us so much joy and so many years of memories."
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Fans criticized Ripa for talking over her husband.
After the first episode of Live with Kelly and Mark aired, some viewers took to Twitter to express their grievances about the new pairing. In particular, some people found that Ripa interrupted Consuelos too much.
"Kelly please LET Mark finish his sentences. Otherwise, this is gonna be hard to watch every day," wrote one Twitter user. Another said, "Boring first day! @KellyRipa for the life of God can you please LET MARK FINISH HIS SENTENCES before you interrupt him! This is a huge mistake. I mean literally won’t be watching this ridiculous now show anymore."
Another user wrote, "KELLY PLEASE LET MARK SPEAK LET THE POOR GUY FINISH A SENTENCE. ITS PAINFUL TO WATCH. THIS IS A DIFFICULT TRANSITION FOR ALOT OF US."
There were also complaints about Ripa and Consuelos bringing in too much of their personal lives. "Its time for a clean slate with hosts that make sense, are more concerned in the show than with themselves and don't turn it into inappropriate discussions about their 'private' time," a viewer posted. One viewer wrote simply, "It was boring and ridiculous."
Other viewers defended them.
Lorenzo Bevilaqua/Disney General EntertainmentNot everyone was upset about Consuelos joining the show. One fan mentioned the negative tweets and wrote, "Why R people SO mean? I'm embarrassed. Let them find their 'niche.' It's the 1st day. For God's sake."
Another said, "I loved the show! Always loved it when Mark would cohost. Don't listen to all the hateful tweets, you guys did great!!"
Another fan wrote, "I really enjoyed watching the show today, and it was totally awesome! Welcome to @kellymarklive, @MarkConsuelos! And of course, well done, kudos and congrats, @KellyRipa, Mark and everyone at 'Live'!"
The transition back to working together again has been easy for the couple.
Kathy Hutchins / ShutterstockRipa and Consuelos are excited to be working together once again. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, they said that they made a pros and cons list when deciding whether he should accept the offer and came to realize that they were only listing pros.
"I know the schedule at Live—it's a really great one," Consuelos said. "It's conducive to a life after the show, as far as the afternoons. We prioritize family time—not that we have too many kids running around anymore, but every now and then we have one coming through or staying with us, so we get to do that. Or we get to go visit a kid somewhere if they have something going on. So, all the pros stacked up against the cons."
"I really do trust Mark completely," Ripa said in the same interview. "I know how good he is at this job—I've done it with him many, many times over the years. I know all of our producers and camera people and the props guys. It's like, daddy's coming home. You know what I mean? It doesn't feel like a lot of work, and it didn't feel like a lot of work before—it's like switching out my brother for my husband."
