Admittedly, it looks like a nonstarter on paper. So imagine our pleasant surprise when the advance screener of the premiere episode of the fourth season of Puppets Who Kill (airing tonight [March 2] at 10 p.m. on the Comedy Network) arrived and it was actually pretty funny. Apparently we were the last to know, because since its 2002 debut, this dark, live-action-with-puppets comedy series has won three Geminis, a Canadian Comedy Award, and a best-sitcom nod from the Rose d'Or international television festival in Switzerland. Deadpan comedian Dan Redican anchors the cast as social worker Dan Barlow, living in a halfway house for criminally wayward puppets voiced by Bruce Hunter, Bob Martin, Jim Rankin, and Gordon Robertson. In tonight's episode, "The Joyride", the furry felons steal an unattended car, only to discover a dead body in the back seat. Soon, a very live mobster, played by Tom McCamus, is in hot pursuit of their bad puppet selves. Some of the humour is mildly offensive (it's definitely not for children), but there's also a balance of smart commentary blended into each episode.

On Sunday night (March 5), The Daily Show's Jon Stewart takes on the prestigious (if dubious) job of hosting the 78th Annual Academy Awards, simulcast on CTV and ABC starting at 5 p.m. Although helming the glitzy telecast is considered a milestone in a comic's career, it is more often than not an invitation to fail. Billy Crystal and the late Bob Hope may have excelled at the gig, but Oscars history is littered with the dashed hopes of former hosts like Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock, and, most spectacularly, David Letterman. Three different red-carpet pre-shows kick off between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. on CTV, ABC, and Citytv for your channel-surfing pleasure.

SNL producer Lorne Michaels might just be ready for prime time with Sons & Daughters, a new series starring Fred Goss (Significant Others) and premiering on Citytv and ABC this Tuesday (March 7) at 9 p.m. The families-are-crazy-themed sitcom mixes scripted jokes with improv and costars Mad TV's Gillian Vigman and Max Gail, who played Det. Stan "Wojo" Wojciehowicz in the late-'70s cop comedy Barney Miller. Canadian viewers of a certain age will also recognize former MuchMusic VJ Amanda Walsh in the role of cute stepdaughter Jenna.