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Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele

KEY & PEELE

Friendly Rating: Teens, boys especially

Safety Rating: Language, bleeped and not, drug jokes, prison jokes, two jokes about someone getting knifed, some might find it offensive

Quality Rating: Dang, it’s funny

New sketch comedy series premieres tonight at 10:30 p.m. on Comedy Central.

This is kind of a tough one because Key & Peele is not for younger viewers. But it is a classic example of just how much you can get away with if you’re funny. It’s not shock humor for the sake of being shocking. It’s just funny with a genuinely mature edge. That might make it okay for your older teens, although you’ll definitely want to watch it with them or anyone younger in the household.

This is a sketch comedy show featuring comics Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, and a lot of the comedy comes from the fact that they are bi-racial, with Black fathers and White mothers. They poke fun at pretty much everyone and everything, although a lot of their humor is informed (and pokes fun at) their Black culture.

In an early sketch, for example, Key is talking on the phone with a very White attitude about getting tickets for a classical music concert until Peele comes along, talking on his phone. The two start sounding increasingly Black, until Peele wanders away, expressing fear about the Brotha next to him.

You’ve got Peele impersonating rapper L’il Wayne in jail rapping about how bad he is, only he’s getting his backside kicked. And Peele’s impersonation of President Obama is freaking scary because he sounds so much like the president.

There bitch word is used liberally, and that’s not bleeped, but other words are. L’il Wayne is stabbed repeatedly, as is a cooking show contestant who is stabbed by Key doing a Gordon Ramsey take off that is beyond silly.

In short, most of the foul language comes in places where it’s reasonable to expect it, such as two husbands whose wives always seem to hear them calling them bitches. Or Wayne rapping in prison. Or Obama’s “anger translator.” It’s not about the shock as it is being funny – and that’s why these guys can get away with it. Just be sure the little ones are in bed.

Yes, there really isn’t that much on tonight. So may as well pull out a good book or two and have fun reading to each other.

I, personally, am in a The Wizard of Oz mood. What are you reading?

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga

GREAT PERFORMANCES: TONY BENNETT: DUETS II

This is a programming note since I was not able to review the show.

Quick note here about this one. Just wanted to make sure that it got at least some play since it is pretty cool that all the stars your kids are into, such as Lady Gaga, are singing with a guy old enough to be my grandfather. Seriously, Bennett is 85 and still performing like nobody’s business – and PBS brought him to us live. If I had half his energy now…

I have seen the duet he did with Lady Gaga, singing The Lady is a Tramp – which is delightful. Gaga, whatever her issues with hypersexualization, is still a darned good musician, and I have to give her props. But there’s a whole series of these, including Bennett’s work with the late Amy Winehouse, Michael Buble, Queen Latifah (who may be a little old school for your kids) and a host of others who’ve been around the block a few more times.

It’s on PBS tonight. Check your local listings for times.

David Steinberg and Jerry Seinfeld

INSIDE COMEDY

Friendly Rating: Elementary and older

Safety Rating: Some talk of drinking and the odd innuendo – but can’t promise there won’t be language issues

Quality Rating: Interesting, but not interesting enough

Series premieres tonight on Showtime at 11 p.m.

When I was a kid, I loved shows like these, where the comedians I saw on TV sat down and just talked about themselves and their lives. I wanted to find out all about Bill Cosby and Mel Brooks and Don Rickles. Okay, maybe not Rickles so much because I didn’t think he was that funny. And there was part of me that wanted to be a stand-up comedian, as well.

The problem with David Steinberg’s new look at comedy and the comedians who make it is that it’s not that riveting. It’s just two guys chatting and laughing a little. There’s not much here about comedy that I didn’t already know. The one surprise was that it was pretty safe. I saw one innuendo from some of Seinfeld’s concert footage. But otherwise, the worst word I heard was hell. Can’t promise that will continue, however.

That being said, if you’ve got a kid who’s new to this whole thing, it might be just the ticket. You’ll probably have to explain about the Seinfeld show and Don Rickles. Other masters coming up include Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Tim Conway and Jonathan Winters. Chris Rock and Sarah Silverman are also coming up. Not all of these are folks you’ll find funny or even appropriate. Others will be very interesting to see.

David Mazouz and Kiefer Sutherland, courtesy Fox

TOUCH

Friendly Rating: Elementary age and up

Safety Rating: Some fist fighting and potential bombing, but may get worse

Quality Rating: Really, really good

Special preview tonight at 9 p.m. after American Idol, series premieres on March 19.

It’s not often that I get really excited about a show, and as I write this, I do so with some decidedly bated breath. I’ve seen terrific pilots go south – and this story of a widower with a son who appears to have autism, but who can see the interconnectedness of the universe in numbers – is a truly terrific pilot.

Created by Tim Kring, who brought us Herois, the pilot starring Keifer Sutherland as Martin Bohm is dynamite. Martin is a former award-winning reporter who’s doing other stuff now (gee, does that sound familiar). Well, Martin is having a tough time of it. His wife died in the World Trade Center on September 11, leaving him and their son Jake (David Mazouz). Jake, who has never said a word, it trying to connect in the only way he can, via numeric patterns.

But these numeric patterns have meaning for a wide swath of humanity all over the world, and in tonight’s episode, a string brought together as only Kring can do. Jake can’t quite see the future, but he can see connections and how they all will land in terms of future events.

So far, the show isn’t nearly as convoluted at Heroes. Better yet, it is extremely positive – the implication being that we can all choose to do something good for each other.

Violence was a decided problem with Heroes, but the worst violence in this show are a couple fist fights and one suicide bombing that doesn’t come off. I truly hope that they can keep this up, with a view to a world that can be made better. I would not be surprised if it goes the way of all thrillers, but in the meantime, I can hope.