With Portlandia returning for its fifth season tonight, we felt it’s high time to recognize the variety of sketch comedy shows on TV right now. Here are 12 for you to check out — from granddaddy Saturday Night Live in its 40th season to TruTV’s new Friends of the People. And the best part? Since sketches are tailored to the attention-span-challenged, we’ve got some tasty samples for you to try right here.
The show: Saturday Night Live set the standard for TV sketch comedy. Since 1975, the show has introduced numerous comedic talents to the world, such as Steve Martin, Will Ferrell, and Tina Fey. Wacky characters like The Blues Brothers, slacker rock fans Wayne and Garth, and neurotic Catholic school girl Mary Katherine Gallagher are now deeply ingrained in our pop culture. Though every generation likes to say that SNL isn’t as good as it used to be, the show keeps churning out promising, new talent. The current cast includes the likes of Taran Killam, who brings a delightful weirdness to every character, Kate McKinnon, whose spot-on celebrity impressions earned her an Emmy nomination in 2014, and Cecily Strong, whose “Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party” is so funny because it’s so true. With the promise of a star-studded, three-hour 40th anniversary special on February 15, you’ll want to bone up on your SNL knowledge.
Notable cast: Kenan Thompson, Taran Killam, Cecily Strong, Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant.
Where to see it: Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. EST on NBC.
The show: Remember those stop-motion animation Christmas specials you loved as a kid? Robot Chicken is just like those, except for being the stuff that nightmares are made of, that is. This long-running Adult Swim show created by Seth Green takes a perverse look at pop culture through its sketches. Though it may look like something kids would enjoy, that couldn’t be further from the truth. You’ll quickly learn that the show’s crudely molded figures, violence, and vulgar language are for adults only. Watch Robot Chicken long enough, and you’ll never look at the Disney Princesses, Superman, or old Nickelodeon shows the same way again.
Notable cast: Seth Green, Breckin Meyer, and Seth MacFarlane.
Where to see it: Production is underway for season eight on Adult Swim. Select clips are available to stream now on AdultSwim.com.
The show: The hipster haven of Portland, OR provides the backdrop and inspiration for this sketch comedy show, co-created by Saturday Night Live alum Fred Armisen, Sleater-Kinney member Carrie Brownstein, and writer-director Jonathan Krisel. Portlandia first began as a series of videos released online under the name “Thunderant” in which Armisen and Brownstein poked fun at the city’s famously eccentric and liberal inhabitants. By 2010, the duo brought the concept to IFC, with Armisen and Brownstein often portraying couples, from feminist bookstore owners to sanitation inspectors to a version of themselves. Celebrity guest stars such as Olivia Wilde, Steve Buscemi, and Eddie Vedder often visit Portlandia. It’s just impossible to resist its charm.
Notable cast: Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein.
Where to see it: Season five premieres Thursday, January 8, at 10 p.m. on IFC.
The show: Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele go way back. The pair got their first big break on the dearly departed TV sketch comedy show MADtv, which they starred in during the mid- to late-2000s. Key and Peele then appeared in the Groundlings’ group The Black Version before venturing out to start their own Comedy Central show. Though they’re probably most famous for the sketch where Key plays Luther, the anger translator for Peele’s President Obama, their comedy goes much deeper than just lampooning famous figures, tackling such topics as politics, race and gender. Key & Peele of course makes you laugh, but it also makes you think.
Notable cast: Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele.
Where to see it: Key & Peele has traditionally aired on Wednesdays at 10:30 p.m. Watch season four on Comedy Central’s website until new episodes come back in 2015.
The show: Comedy Bang! Bang! comes in many forms. It’s a podcast, a web series, and a stage show, but the IFC version is a great way to get an idea of what this whole thing is about. But just as Comedy Bang! Bang! comes in many flavors, the show is a bit all over the place as well. The late-night talk show format is at the heart of Comedy Bang! Bang!, complete with celebrity guests, such as Jon Hamm, Amy Poehler and Paul Rudd, and musical accompaniment from Reggie Watts. However, the talk show usually takes a wry turn very similar to Zach Galifianakis’ Between Two Ferns videos, which Comedy Bang! Bang!‘s Scott Aukerman co-created. You can also expect some surreal sketches throughout.
Notable cast: Scott Aukerman and Reggie Watts.
Where to see it: Season four premieres Friday, January 9, at 11 p.m. EST on IFC.
The show: It’s not easy being a woman, and no one shows how true that statement is more hilariously than Amy Schumer on her Comedy Central sketch show. Just like in her stand-up routine, Schumer doesn’t hold anything back, bringing her bawdy humor to sketches that deal with issues ranging from female interaction to sexual assault in the military to sexting. Laughing at Schumer’s sketches helps us not cry from all of the truth bombs she lays down.
Notable cast: Amy Schumer
Where to see it: New episodes return to Comedy Central on Tuesday, April 21 at 10:30 p.m. EST.
The show: Every week, comedian Eric Andre tries so hard to host a normal, everyday, late-night talk show. Somehow, it always goes horribly wrong with Andre usually finding himself hurt, destroying the set, or having a meltdown. Andre fits in some street sketches in between all the shenanigans, where he’s often joined by co-host Hannibal Buress to wreak havoc on the unsuspecting public with their repertoire of antagonistic characters.
Notable cast: Eric Andre and Hannibal Buress.
Where to see it: Fridays at 12:15 a.m. EST on Adult Swim.
The show: Nick Kroll is that comedian/actor you’ve seen a million times but still don’t know his name. That’s all about to change now that Kroll has his own Comedy Central show where he exposes just how ridiculous our celebrity-obsessed culture has become. Kroll has a penchant for playing the more obnoxious, rude, and egotistical among us, such as the sleazy Bobby Bottleservice, ditzy Liz, or one half of The Rich Dicks. These characters are fun to laugh at, but you definitely wouldn’t want to come across anyone like them in real life.
Notable cast: Nick Kroll, Jon Daly, and Jenny Slate.
Where to see it: New episodes return to Comedy Central on Tuesday, Janaury 13.
The show: Long before The Birthday Boys was a series on IFC, it was a sketch comedy group formed in 2007 at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles. Six years later, high-profile executive producers Ben Stiller and Bob Odenkirk helped bring The Birthday Boys to TV. The group mostly pokes fun at totally relatable, quotidian situations, but it turns them into something wonderfully weird.
Notable cast: Mike Hanford, Tim Kalapakis, Matt Kowalick, and Mike Mitchell.
Where to see it: Fridays at 11:30 p.m. EST on IFC.
The show: Workaholics‘ Adam DeVine steps out on his own to host this stand-up comedy showcase. But the show isn’t just about seeing up-and-coming comics do their thing. We also get a glimpse into what goes down at DeVine’s fictional New Orleans mansion through short sketches about his latest house party, fully exploiting his frat bro humor. However, you should tune into this show for the stand-up comedy, which is most impressive.
Notable cast: Adam DeVine.
Where to see it: Stream clips from the first two seasons on CC.com.
The show: Freestyle Love Supreme is unlike any other sketch comedy show on TV. The hip-hop infused variety show began as a stage production co-created by Lin-Manuel Miranda of Tony-winning In the Heights fame. Freestyle Love Supreme now brings its unique brand of improv and sketch comedy to the small screen, which always comes with a beat.
Notable cast: Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Where to see it: Fridays at 10:30 p.m. EST on Pivot.
The show: TruTV is getting into the sketch comedy game with its inaugural effort Friends of the People, part of its new line-up of comedy and reality series. Friends of the People is full of fresh faces (and some cool guest stars) and shows promise. Still finding its footing, Friends of the People should pick up some steam with its recently announced renewal.
Notable cast: The Lucas Bros., Lil Rel Howery, Kevin Barnett, and Jennifer Bartels.
Where to see it: Catch up on season one online while awaiting new episodes in 2015.
