‘SNL’ ISIS parody – funny or offensive?

It wasn’t too long ago when Broadway was abuzz over the play “The Producers” – Mel Brooks’ hit about 2 Broadway producers on a mission to create the worst show ever.

The show portrayed in the play was entitled “Springtime for Hitler” which became an unintended hit – as did both movie versions of "The Producers" and the Broadway play.

Brooks explained later on why he made Hitler look like a ridiculous character – and paraphrasing – said something to the effect that it was a vehicle to take away some of the immense pain caused by the dictator and his regime. In other words, not to make him human – but merely ridiculous.

Still, it’s very difficult to imagine mocking a genocidal maniac responsible for the murder of close to 10 million people.

Cut to SNL this past Saturday.

In the mockup of a Toyota commercial where a young girl is seemingly being dropped off at an airport to go to college – only to join the ranks of ISIS – the skit writers took a page out of the Brooks playbook and made a mockery of ISIS.

Funny?

Since ISIS’ savagery is of a more recent vintage, you may be thinking “no” – especially given the atrocities we’ve seen on an ever increasing basis.

And to back that up, this is just a random sample of reactions from Twitter following the skit:

“A father dropping his daughter off to join ISIS? Really #SNL? Not cool,” Randy Haas tweeted.

“Just saw maybe the most unfunny #SNL piece of all time,” Ed Tate fumed. “Is ISIS really a good subject for humor?”

Twitter user @Maxinerunner wrote, “Horrible, Inappropriate…”

“Wow. I found NOTHING funny about that ISIS #SNL skit,” user @JHawkintheSouth added. “Sorry, but no laughing matter. Ever.”

@AJisTweeting said, “ISIS sketches just make me uncomfortable. They behead people. I’m not ready to joke about it. *shrug*.”

But while nobody doubts ISIS is a real threat to the civilized world, why should they not be held up as objects of mockery – just as Hitler was in “The Producers?”

Edgy? Yes.
Funny?

You be the judge.