The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse

I can't remember the last time I sat through a complete SNL, much less stayed up until 1 a.m. to watch TV. This weekend I'll make an exception (or at least program the VCR.)

Finally admitting that the rest of what they spew up every week is, well, crap, Lorne Michaels and his gang have given the entire 90 minutes to Robert Smigel for "The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse," the show's only funny creation in at least five years.

According to a Variety reviewer who has seen the show, The Ambiguously Gay and deliriously funny) Duo are featured prominently and in new segments. We'll also get visits from the ex-presidents and the Divertor, who deflects public attention away from failed GOP policies by directing his powerful scandal-causing ray at Hollywood celebrities.

And he'll again test the limits of taste by taking on the latest made-for-video "Bambi" sequel and affixing anatomically correct genitalia to Hanna-Barbera characters.

My favorite Smigel creations are when he starts with an audio tape, usually something from Stern or at least on that level of maturity, then creates his own visuals which spiral out of control and end up somewhere we never expected.

His cartoons aren't always funny, but they always hit hard and look great with that '70 nostalgia in high gear. And best of all, even if they fall flat, they rarely run more than about 2 minutes apiece.

I miss the real "TV Funhouse" series on Comedy Central. It only seemed to make it for about 10 episodes or so, but it was pure Smigel, and very, very funny. I especially loved his animal creations, which started where Triumph left off and just got more and more foul.

I had heard rumblings that Smigel was teaming up with Tony Millionaire to bring his Maakies strip to Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network. All Tony says on the Maakies site is this: "All of the Saturday Night Live animations are on hiatus, due to an upcoming project!"

Here's hoping that's Maakies on TV, the beginning of Drinky Crow's campaign to rule the earth. For anyone who doesn't know Maakies, here a sample that's (barely) fit for a blog linked from a family newspaper. Click to enlarge and enjoy!