BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
(FOUR) BOBBY LEE’s “KIM JONG-IL”
Bobby Lee can be funny in small doses. Anything longer than that limit is WAY too long. I like the dude, but his humor is a little too “in your face” /slash/ abrasive for my liking. That’s not saying he can’t be awesome. This is one of those cases. As fallen North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il he played the character over the top and very funny. The whole “Kim Jong-il Show” was really underrated. It should have been a bigger sketch for sure.
(THREE) STONERS > ARIES SPEARS’s “SHAQ”
Spears was a really big part of the show. He’s often slept on when discussing MadTV, but then again who the hell discusses MadTV? Aries had some great characters and moments. I think his best impression was Shaq. It became a staple and I know he did it other places than this show. Still, it’s one of my fondest impressions from the show.
(TWO) PAT KILBANE’S “HOWARD STERN”
Every impression I’ve ever heard of Howard Stern is a bad impression of Pat Kilbane’s amazing character work. He nailed the voice and the mannerisms. It also helps he’s a taller and slender man so tossing a wig on him with that voice makes for a great impersonation. I know he did it a few times on the show, but it was never as pushed on us as it should have been. They could have done a lot with that one. Kilbane should be in more things.
(ONE) WILL SASSO’s “KENNY ROGERS”
Will Sasso could be on this list on his own. Michael McDonald was the anchor for the show, but Sasso was show’s best star. He did everything. His collection of sketch impressions matches up to the majority of SNL’s lineage. I could have listed his Bill Clinton, Steven Segal, Bruce Vilanch, or William Shatner impressions. I have to go with his Kenny Rogers. His Kenny Rogers was great. I’d pay to see Will Sasso’s Kenny Rogers in concert. The sucky part would be all of the Kenny Roger songs that aren’t “Know When to Hold ‘Em”.
|
