Mad TV season 13
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| Mad TV | |
|---|---|
| Season 13 | |
 Digital purchase image | |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Release | |
| Original network | Fox |
| Original release | September 15, 2007 – May 17, 2008 |
| Season chronology | |
The thirteenth season of Mad TV, an American sketch comedy series, originally aired in the United States on the Fox Network between September 15, 2007, and May 17, 2008.
Summary
The 13th season of Mad TV saw more changes in show format and cast members.
Repertory players Ike Barinholtz, Frank Caeti, and Nicole Randall Johnson and feature player Lisa Donovan were let go from the cast (Barinholtz left due to creative differences while Caeti, Johnson, and Donovan were fired). Johnny Sanchez (the first Latino male hired since season six's Nelson Ascencio) joined the cast as a repertory player, while Dan Oster, Anjelah Johnson, and Daheli Hall (all of whom didn't premiere on the show until after the show's hiatus brought on by the WGA strike of 2007-2008) were hired as feature players.
The show format had also undergone major changes. Brian Fairlee giving an episode preview was phased out and replaced with the return of the cold opening sketches (mostly music video parodies, fake commercials, mock movie trailers, and TV show promos). John Crane and Bruce Leddy -- the series showrunners, head writers, and executive producers — directed most of the episodes. The show itself was relocated to a new studio (The Henry Fonda Music Box Theater) in order to give the show the feel of a live event (due in part to FOX's extensive budget cuts and competition from Saturday Night Live and its growing popularity from The Lonely Island's "Digital Shorts" on that show). MADtv's pretaped sketches shown this season were very minimal, using little to no elaborate props, settings, or costumes.
Between November 24 and February 2, Mad TV became one of many scripted, current (at the time) television shows to be put on hiatus due to the 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike. Even though the WGA strike did not end until February 12, 2008, three "new" episodes aired on February 2, February 9, and February 16. These "new" episodes were little more than pretaped sketches from canceled episodes and repeats of old sketches from seasons eight to ten (with no segments from the Music Box Theater). The show returned to its normal format on March 29, 2008.
This season was also the first of only two seasons to have "Best of..." clip shows a la Saturday Night Live, four of which aired prior to the show's official season premiere: Mad TV Ruined My Life (where Nicole Parker appears on a fictional episode of The Jerry Springer Show to defend the audience's claims that Mad TV's raunchy and politically incorrect sketches have traumatized and disgusted them), Survivor: Mad TV (where Jeff Probst and Keegan-Michael Key host a collection of Mad TV's best TV and movie parodies), I Want My Mad TV (Perez Hilton and Bobby Lee's Johnny Gan character host a collection of Mad TV's best celebrity caricatures and swipes at pop culture), and Mad TV's Most Wanted (where Michael McDonald and Susan Sarandon host a collection of the show's best recurring sketches and characters).
Notable celebrity appearances this season (besides the ones from the clip show episodes) include: Carlos Mencia, Neil Patrick Harris, Dave Novarro, John Reep, Kathy Griffin, Serena Williams, and former MADtv cast members Debra Wilson and Mo Collins.
Opening montage
The opening title sequence for season thirteen has been dramatically redesigned. The original Mad TV song used for the previous twelve seasons has been completely replaced by an instrumental rock guitar version. The show also has a new announcer.
Cast
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Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Guest(s) | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 289 | 1 | "Mad TV Ruined My Life: The Sketches That Shocked a Nation" | Jerry Springer | September 15, 2007 |
| 290 | 2 | "Mad TV's All-Time Best TV Parodies" | Jeff Probst | September 22, 2007 |
| 291 | 3 | "I Want My Mad TV" | Perez Hilton | September 29, 2007 |
| 292 | 4 | "Mad TV's Most Wanted" | Susan Sarandon | October 6, 2007 |
| 293 | 5 | "Episode 5" | Carlos Mencia | November 3, 2007 |
| 294 | 6 | "Episode 6" | Joey Fatone | November 10, 2007 |
| 295 | 7 | "Episode 7" | Mo Collins, Debra Wilson | November 17, 2007 |
| 296 | 8 | "Episode 8" | Kathy Griffin, Jon Reep | November 24, 2007 |
| 297 | 9 | "Episode 9" | Serena Williams | February 2, 2008 |
| 298 | 10 | "Episode 10" | TBA | February 7, 2008 |
| 299 | 11 | "Episode 11" | TBA | February 16, 2008 |
| 300 | 12 | "Episode 12" | TBA | March 29, 2008 |
| 301 | 13 | "Episode 13" | Kat Von D, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans, Cedric the Entertainer | April 5, 2008 |
| 302 | 14 | "Episode 14" | Neil Patrick Harris | April 19, 2008 |
| 303 | 15 | "Episode 15" | Dominic Monaghan | April 26, 2008 |
| 304 | 16 | "Episode 16" | Dave Navarro | May 17, 2008 |
References
External links
