The expected outrage over the SNL Peanuts spoof

[robert]

As you would expected, the complaints are starting to come in about the Peanuts spoof on Saturday Night Live a few weeks back, and of course, they're most angry about the lesbian joke. Here's a sample.

Although a recent parody by Saturday Night Live cartoon creator Robert Smigel outraged numerous Peanuts fans when it depicted a grown-up Peppermint Patty and Marcie as voluptuous lesbians, it appears unlikely that anyone connected with the Charles Schulz organization will sue the program or NBC for copyright infringement, the Knight Ridder News Service said today (Thursday). Melissa Menta, a spokeswoman for United Media, which, with the Schulz family, holds the rights to Peanuts, observed that SNL did not swipe any actual scenes from Peanuts TV cartoons. "They created their own animations," Menta said. However, Edna Poehner, Schulz's former secretary, who now works at the Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, CA, told the wire service, "I think it's terrible. ... I've had several calls ... from people who were just horrified."

And in case you didn't watch this sketch or forgot about much of it, the transcript is at http://snltranscripts.jt.org/02/02hfunhouse.phtml

[Kryten]

Great... they achieved exactly what they set out to do!

[Mek]

That was... interesting to say the least.

And I've read the Bible millions of times, and I don't recall ever seeing the passage Linus says... then again, this is humor... Oi vey... =/

[TimTwoFace]

Hmmm - as distasteful as this may appear to some, I think these comedy troupes have every right to make fun of anything they please. Nothing is sacred any more - and in terms of comedy, that's how it should be. Just because some people find it offensive, it doesn't mean it shouldn't be done at all.

PS - I didn't see this particular sketch (as I'm not a big SNL fan) but I kinda wish I did, just so I'd have a better idea of what I'm defending, here.

-Tim

[Galaxia]

Holy crap.....I mean, I thought it was funny, but I didn't think that the lesbian joke was necessary.

[Lucky Bob]

That Peppermint Patty/Marcie thing was just...distasteful.

Sorry, SNL has hit a new all-time low. Maybe they have a legal right to do it, but in the end, they have to answer to a whole bunch of fans.

[Behonkiss]

I thought everything else was funny, but...damn, I agree the lesbian joke was distasteful. I'm pretty sure Schultz himself said he never intended anything like that.

[mbaker]

Isn't "South Park" considered A twisted version of "Peanuts"? If so, than this parody stuff isn't nothing new.

[The Xenos]

I thought it was funny. The lesbian gag could have been done better and more taseful though. I've heard comments about them before, kinda like all those comments aobut Ernie and Bert. Then again if you look at it as making fun of the male fantasy of lesbians I think the joke has more merit.

Oh and if you're interested in a more respectful homage to Peanuts, check out the strange DC/Wildstorm comic book Automatic Kafka #4. It's a stand alone issue that follows one of the losing contestants from Kafka's game show home. There are some nameless grown up characters who look very familiar. It's a little dark and psychological, but an interesting issue. Please note it is a mature readers comic and does have some naughty language.

-Xenos

[Anthonynotes]

Not being a current-SNL fan, I didn't see this parody, but the whole "Peppermint Patty-and-Marcie-are-lesbians" joke is (for me anyway) pretty old/stale by now (having seen it used a zillion times before...). Eh...

-B.

[The Xenos]

Ok, speaking of the old Peperment Patty and Marcy thing reminded me of the old Bert and Ernie thing. This reminded me of a picture a freind of mine made here . (This is for all you fans of the comic book Authority and everyone's favorite gay Superman/Batman-like couple.)
-Xenos