Customer Reviews

Saturday Night Live - The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse

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The comedy at Saturday Night Live comes and goes in spurts and currently (Jan. 2007) it is rare for an episode, let alone an entire season, to be all that funny. However, for over a decade there is one portion of the show that has remained consistently funny and that is when one of Robert Smigel's Saturday TV Funhouse cartoons air. The Saturday TV Funhouse cartoon first began showing up on SNL in the mid-1990s. The cartoons have always been a welcome break in the usual format of the show and when first seen brought a new dimension of comedy to the famed sketch-comedy series, the type of witty satire that first made SNL a staple of American culture.

THE BEST OF SATURDAY TV FUNHOUSE was a special that aired on SNL in spring of 2006. The special was a collection of some of the best Saturday TV Funhouse cartoons ever. From the Award-winning (I think it was even nominated for an Emmy) "Saddam and Osama" to the Ambiguously Gay Due and X-Presidents cartoon, THE BEST OF SATURDAY TV FUNHOUSE DVD is filled with hilarious, short snippets of satirical animation that both critique and comment on our society and culture. Some of the cartoons are nothing more than teasing nostalgia, such as the "Globetrotters Christmas" episode (found on the special features) or "The New Adventures of Mr. T." Others are clearly aimed at ridiculing powerful corporations in attempt to awaken public awareness, such as the many Disney parodies found on the disc--"Inside the Disney Vault" and "Titey" are the best of these--and the Schoolhouse Rock spoof, "Conspiracy Theory Rock" that shows the corruption of powerful media companies such as NBC. Other gems on the disc include "Smurfette" and "The Narrator That Ruined Christmas" and the delightful "Santa and the States" found on the special features.

There are many, many, many funny cartoons found on this disc. It's something that anyone whom is a fan of good SNL or satirical animation, e.g. THE SIMPSONS, SOUTH PARK, or ROBOT CHICKEN, will probably enjoy. I enjoyed almost all of the cartoons on the disc. However, I only purchased the disc because of one cartoon that is contained: "Fun With Real Audio Christmas". As Robert Smigel points out on the commentary, this is the most popular Saturday TV Funhouse cartoon of them all. The cartoon involves Jesus and the Peanuts, but its message is universal and isn't just limited to Christians are Charles Schultz fans. I remember watching the cartoon the first time it aired. Watching SNL was a rare occurrence for me then, but for whatever reason I saw the "Fun With Real Audio Christmas" and it stuck to me. Like the images from certain television specials, lines from popular movies, are snippets of overplayed songs, the cartoon has always remained with me. This DVD is worth owning for that one little cartoon alone and everything else is just bonus.

The DVD includes over an hour of extra cartoons, some of which are even better than the ones in the main feature. The entire main feature has a commentary mostly with Smigel and his chief animators. However, other guests, such as Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert, also comment at parts. Surprisingly, most of the extra cartoons also include commentary.

Robert Smigel was one of the new writers brought on board when SNL was retaken-over by Lorne Michaels in the mid-80s. Even though he left for Conan a few years afterward, he continued to write cartoons for the show, and in recent years, these cartoons have often been the funniest part of the show. This disc is definitely worth buying since it contains a pretty good sampling of the various cartoons Smigel created: the X-Presidents has the four former presidents as wisecracking superheroes; Mr. T is back, and he's looking for work; Fun with Real Audio takes shots at not-so-beloved celebrities; and, of course, there's the Ambiguously Gay Duo (voiced by Daily Show alums Steve Carrell and Stephen Colbert), who fight crime while spreading innuendo as regards the nature of their real relationship. All in all, if The Best of Jimmy Fallon isn't up your alley, it's worth checking out.

The Best of TV Funhouse consists of a main feature, and a number of bonus clips. In the main feature Ace and Gary, the Ambiguously Gay Duo (AGD), are hosting SNL. It's a good idea, but the show features just a couple of episodes of the AGD. The rest consists of a few Fun with Real Audio (FRA) cartoons, an assortment of TV Funhouse clips, miscellaneous sketches, and some bits featuring Ace and Gary, interacting with various members of the SNL cast. These bits are mostly based on Ace and Gary's affection for Jimmy Fallon (who at this time is no longer with SNL), and unfortunately, are not too funny. As Ace and Gray are the co-hosts, a lot more of the AGD would have been nice, but this 83 minute production is mainly concerned with providing a nice variety.

The bonus materials really upgrades this collection, with additional episodes of AGD (3), FRA (3), and The X-Presidents (6). There are also uncut versions of some of the cartoons that appear in the main feature, as well as nearly a dozen other assorted TV Funhouse cartoons. Commentary is provided for almost everything, by Robert Smigel and those who worked on the cartoon or sketch. The comments range from somewhat informative, to slightly amusing, to completely inane.

Any 'best of' compilation of SNL material is typically open to debate. Robert Smigel, is a creative man, with a biting, irreverent sense of humor. Focusing on political, pop culture, and social satire, few will find everything he does funny, or even tasteful. The enjoyment of this collection may be hit and miss, but Smigel's work, for good or bad, has probably been an influence on contemporary animation. This is a pretty good representation of his various works, through those seeking more of Ace and Gary may be disappointed.

While Saturday Night Live certainly seems to have its periods of peaks and lows, a segment that is always a highlight when it is included on the program is the Saturday TV Funhouse cartoon shorts written by Robert Smigel. Short and subversive, every cartoon is guaranteed at least one laugh (and often many more).

This disc features a "Best Of" special that aired on television last season that runs for about an hour and a half, as well as about another hour of "bonus" cartoons. Highlights include the Ambiguously Gay Duo, X-Presidents, and Fun with Real Audio shorts as a whole, as well as the "Saddam and Osama" and "Inside the Disney Vault" segments. Also of note is the commentary by Smigel who is accompanied by guests pertaining to which short is being aired, ranging from Steve Carell and Stephen Colbert (the Ambiguously Gay Duo) to Al Franken and Mr. T. This runs throughout the entire feature segment and--to my surprise and delight--many of the "bonus" cartoons are also accompanied by commentary.

Some shorts are funnier than others, and some of the "extra" cartoons were better than ones included in the featured program, but all in all you are paying $15 for over two and a half hours of hilarious content PLUS a good two hours of commentary. I wish a little more had been included regarding the production process of the cartoons themselves, but I'm a film buff and that kind of thing interests me.

Not a perfect set by any means, but apart from buying a full season of the better television comedies (South Park, Arrested Development, Seinfeld, The Simpsons) you're not likely to find more laughs or variety of jokes in a single purchase. For the price of the latest lame "rom-com" that's been dumped on the public this year, you can have a truly worthwhile collection of comedy.

Very highly recommended.

Saturday TV Funhouse has consistently been the best part of SNL for the past few years now. Focused, topical, biting, smart, and hilarious, Robert Smigel and company knock it out of the park on a regular basis. So naturally, when I saw that Universal was releasing a DVD of the special that Smigel prepared for an off week in 2006, I jumped at the oppurtunity to add it to my collection.

Simply put, it's one of the smartest DVD purchases I've ever made. Not only for the program, highlights of which include 'Saddam and Osama' and 'The X-Presidents,' but for the additional HOUR of extra cartoons (including the controversial 'Conspiracy Theory Rock') and the "All-Star" commentary, which is one of the best I've ever heard: it's intelligent, insightful, and funny in its own right.

This is a must own for any fan of Robert Smigel, TV Funhouse, or SNL period.

Very very VERY funny DVD! In my opinion SNL has been kinda stale for a while so I haven't watched it in years. When I seen this DVD here on Amazon I knew I had to buy it! It had some of my old favorites on there. Who doesn't love Ace and Gary? They "hosted" the special but the whole time they where more concered about the whereabouts of Jimmy Fallon. I was most excited to see the X-Presidents! You also have Fun with Real Audio! Icluding some clips of the good ol' Clinton Scandal! There are also a whol hour of cartoons in the special features. I only have one complaint about this - I wish there was more Ambiguously Gay Duo. All in all you can't go wrong with this, especially for the price!

I always ejoyed these clips on Saturday Night Live. There's more to Smigel than The Ambiguously Gay Duo, particularly the Ex-Presidents and those cartoon parodies that look so real, but have very adult themes.

I bust a gut over Shazang's sadism.

This DVD is loaded with extras, clips that didn't make it on to the 2 hour feature.

It's great for home viewing, but make sure your guests don't require a lot of political correctness before showing it to them.

...the one where he's trying to catapult himself into the kiddie pool in the compound and ends up reaming himself (to his delight) on the flagpole? The one with Marlon Brando? What kind of rights issues kept that one off the DVD, but not the second one that's in this collection. Also, I hope the Speed Racer parody with George Clooney and the Paparazzi can clear rights sometime in the future. Otherwise, an essential companion to the season sets, which won't be getting around to the Funhouse-era anytime soon--perhaps ever.

First let me say that this is a great compilation. There's really nothing bad on this dvd. One glaring omission for me personally, however, is bjork at the oscars (or whatever awards show that was) when Charlton Heston gets up and tries to shoot her after her swan dress comes to life. Does anyone know where I can see that?

Gimme that bjork cartoon now. Don't you want my money?

Wished they had the first Michael Jackson cartoon in particular - "Ixnay on the erversionpay, ixnay on the erversionpay"

Hopefully when Robert creates enough new ones or stops creating new cartoons altogether, some of the uncollected old ones will be included on a volume 2.