coach | Michael McDonald | Brian Fellow | President

Curtain Call

by Joseph Guinto
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SATURDAY NIGHT SHOWDOWN


Loyal to that other late-night sketch-comedy show? We consider how three of the most memorable MADtv skits, past and present, stack up against similar Saturday Night Live favorites.


SKIT
PREMISE
CATCH
PHRASE

FUNNIER?
“Stuart” (stars Michael McDonald)
A pasty kid played by a six-foot-something man says inappropriate things to strangers, like, “My momma says if I behave, I can get cowboy boots, but I have to promise not to tell how much she drinks at night.”
“Look what I can do.”
Now that Morgan’s on 30 Rock, everything he has done previously seems funnier. So, his Brian Fellow wins.
VS..
“Brian Fellow’s Safari Planet” (stars Tracy Morgan)
A lip-gloss-loving TV host who knows nothing of the animal world but looks fabulous in an ascot is befuddled by actual animal experts and the variety of exotic creatures they bring to his show.
“That’s crazy.”
“Fericito” (stars Fred Armisen)
A Venezuelan nightclub comedian tells corny, outdated jokes such as, “Manuel is so dumb, when he hears it’s chilly outside, he grabs a spoon!”
“Dios mio!”
We have to go with the coach here. Otherwise, he might light us on fire.
VS...
“Coach Hines” (stars Keegan- Michael Key)
A mustachioed high school gym coach at an all-boys school dresses in too-small athletic shorts and rants at his students with threats such as, “Knock it off or I will set you on fire like a charcoal briquette.”
“I’m sick of it.”
“Attitudes and Feelings, Both Desirable and Sometimes Secretive” (stars Bobby Lee)
In this mock Korean soap opera, Lee’s love for a woman is constantly thwarted by the interference of a man called the President, and the audience is constantly thwarted by overly long subtitles that flash by too quickly to read.
“Huh?”
Laser cats are no match for the President.
VS..
“Laser Cats” (stars Bill Hader and Andy Samberg)
In the future, nuclear war gives cats the ability to shoot lasers -- out of their mouths.
“Oh no! Strays!”


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ISSUE: May 1, 2009
American Way Cover - 5/1/2009