Crisis brings out the best and the worst in people, in all areas. As uncomfortable as I was with The Onion doing a whole issue about 9/11, I thought it was some of the most brilliant writing they’ve ever done. Biting, and laser-focused on the absurdities that came from this event. On the other hand, Saturday Night Live over the weekend opened with a painfully unfunny sketch of Dick Cheney opening his chest to show his bionic heart. Best and worst.
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I couldn’t agree more. I was hoping the Onion would handle the situation tactfully. They met and exceeded my expectations. Probably their best edition in a very long time.
I don’t even usually like the Onion, and I really liked this. There is a time after a while when black humor is not only appropriate, but therapeutic, and they really hit the mark.
It wasn’t exactly black humor — it wasn’t exactly humor, for that matter. No one was in a funny mood, and The Onion appropriately used its format to express grief, fear and anger. It was a completely unexpected and brilliant move.
I don’t entirely blame SNL, given that you just can’t adapt that approach for a ninety-minute variety format. Maybe one sketch meant to be touching instead of funny would work, but no more.