Episode XXXIII:

Random Acts of Comedy

Go To Episode XXXIII

An Editorial By Jonas Lydon

As I was flying back home from my recent trip to see my family in Israel, I realized that one of the creature-comforts that I have come to expect is a tape of Sketch Karma in the mailbox every month or so. I missed those days. Of course, when I got home from my seemingly infinitely long journey, there was 3 VHS tapes and 4 DVDs waiting for me. DVDs?? I thought it was a joke, but there it was. So without much background as to what's been going on, here is the latest review on Episode XXXIII.

SK Creator Bill Elliott in
"Pamphlet Madness"

I'm told this episode is the final episode of the fourth season. And with it comes some new material that seems quite random, but all good. It wasn't hard for me to pick my favorites in this one. Once I picked myself off the floor, I wrote down some notes and wiped my eyes.

Starting with a parody of the eighties "Snap into a Slimjim" commercials, you immediately get a sense that the crew is having a good time with this show. The language here leaves something to be desired, but hey, I have kids out there somewhere. Plus, making parodies of commercials that are long gone, but are still part of pop-culture is a good idea. (See the spoof on Folgers Coffee back in Season 1 somewhere)

A testimony to camera phones brings Mike LeClair back to his old days as Cleatus, but only in candor. Taking pictures of his "evacuations" and mailing them to his friends is not only disturbing, it's gross. Good for him, that's what we need. A little reminder that SK is actually behaving as a whole.

Mike LeClair in
"Camera Phones"

Dr. Rollo Gigante is odd. He is a doctor who is clearly jaded by his job. He fails to listen to the problems of his patients, then proceed to hand the patient a pamphlet on a completely unrelated disease or condition. What I found odd is that Dr. Rollo Gigante is a dark-skinned white doctor who has a Spanish name, while the opening sequence displays a Japanese graphic with Chinese music in the background. What the hell are they trying to do, make me racist all over again?

Before I mentioned that it was not difficult for me to mention my favorites. Near the end of the episode, ELCOM Realtors came on. This sketch was fundamentally one of the most well-thought, genuinely funny segments I've seen in a long time. Surely one of SK's greatest hits ever. It features Bill selling his real-estate business as a no-frills, get-you-a-house-now-cause-I've-got-sh**-to-do agent. Well done. And I also have to mention the segment after it was also well done, where the entire sketch is played backwards, and the evil words are transcribed on the bottom of the screen. I think Bill's going to hell.

Annie and Dana in
"Dinner Interruption"

Screw off was a great idea, poking fun at the fact that miracle products generally only save you a few seconds of time. And by the time you are done talking about them and finding them in the piles of cabinets and drawers, you could have already solved the problem through less-efficient means. Plus, it was a rare sketch with Dan Watson and Branden Morris, both of which we don't see enough of any longer.

There was a great news reel on the feline that was going to commit suicide. Clearly a spur-of-the-moment sketch, this segment had me laughing quite a bit. Not to be out-done, Bill's cat actually introduces the segment and claims that he wasn't harmed in the making of the sketch.

Round this out with some new Mafia Citizens Bank commercials, which spoof their newest offerings plastered all over television, and more commercials and situations, and you've got yourself a great episode of Sketch Karma! How great is it? I don't know, because I have a pile of tapes and DVDs here, and I've got some catching up to do!

The outtakes segments are great, as usual! There's plenty to laugh at in this latest offering by the Sketch Karma crew. I hope you get the chance to see it on TV soon! Enjoy!
Go To Episode XXIII

Mike, Jason, and Bill in
"Step into a Slimjim"