This is just bad.

It's not for every taste. I've not revisited it in several years but remember it as having much more sophisticated sketch comedy than anything you're likely to see on SNL--either in the early 90's or today. Ben Stiller was a huge fan of SCTV and its multi-level parodies and you can definitely see that show's impact in the way the sketches are structured. It surprised everyone when it won an Emmy for writing at a time when it was one of the lowest-rated series on the air. My major gripe would be the "filler" nonsense with Ben playing himself and chatting with guest stars in between the sketches. To me, these were completely unfunny, though you can see Stiller refining his nebbishy persona that he eventually used to great effect in Flirting With Disaster and There's Something About Mary (the latter the film that made him an unlikely star). And he's working with a very talented ensemble almost all of whom went on to successes of their own (my favorites being Bob Odenkirk and David Cross). Oliver Stoneland, the Monkees parody that simultaneously is a parody of the Seattle grunge scene of the early 90's, the dark comedy of the Kreepy Board commercial, Stiller's on-the-nose skewering of the pretentious Bono (some things never change), the sock-puppet sitcom parody Skank, Bob Odenkirk's hilarious impression of Manson (that's what first sold me on the show when it aired on Comedy Central in the mid-90's: I fell to the floor in helpless laughter)--all of these were great and would have been quite at home with the original SCTV. I'm almost afraid to watch it again. I don't want to taint my fond memories of it.

I remember trying to watch it and trying to laugh but I just couldn't.

Can you say, nepotism.