With our economy in utter collapse, election mudslinging muckier than an old outhouse and a candidate unable to pronounce her "-ng's" just an updo away from the presidency, one can only laugh.

Leave it to Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and Tina Fey to make us see the absurdities leading up to the End of (Campaign) Days and letting us forget - if just for a second - our fateful path toward doomsday.

This is not just an election year, it's one for the books. If you're a television comedy writer, it must feel like you've been handed a pot of gold. And if you haven't been taking advantage of it, you're an idiot who should pack up your typewriter and head home (did you hear us, Jay Leno?).

Fortunately, most political comedy shows have been spot on. Here's my take on how they have been doing.

"The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" (Monday through Thursday, midnight, Comedy Central) » Here it is, your moment of Zen. Always relevant, always insightful, Comedy Central's go-to satire has consistently been the funniest and most outrageous political comedy half-hour on television.

The writers, who have won a boatload of Emmys in the past five years, keep one finger on the pulse of America and another on our collective funny bone to produce classic bits on this country's political landscape.

In particular, their coverage of the Republican and Democratic national conventions was a welcome addition each night to the news, but the writers have found sport throughout the entire election season.

It's odd that Stewart has to interview the occasional Hollywood guest who's touting his or her movie, but who else can get people like Newt Gingrich and Brian Williams to laugh on camera?

Grade: A-

"The Colbert Report" (Monday through Thursday, 12:30 a.m., Comedy Central) » Listen up, Nation. Stephen Colbert still can skewer the best and brightest in Washington in the guise of a Bill O'Reilly-esque right-wing pundit.

Combined with "The Daily Show," Colbert's second half-hour completes a devastating one-two punch of political humor that's hilarious and stinging.

Two complaints, though: As though he's speaking to an audience at the community nursing home, Colbert likes to scream his opinions rather than state them, making for one ear-piercing evening. And we know he likes to hear himself talk (it's part of his shtick), but for heaven's sake, let the interviewees speak.

Grade: B+

Real Time with Bill Maher (Friday, midnight, HBO) » New rule: Comedian Maher's scathing and informative one-hour comedy/panel discussion should be required viewing for every political junkie. So fork over the extra 15 bucks for HBO now.

Maher's insight into politics may be full of perspective, but it's his mix of actors, comedians, authors, journalists and politicians in a roundtable discussion that adds real flavor and fun to the show.

And as if that weren't hilarious enough, Maher's "New Rules" segment at the end of each episode, where he establishes new guidelines for today's culture, puts us over the top.

Grade: A

Tina Fey as Sarah Palin, "Saturday Night Live" (Saturday, 10:35 p.m., KUCW Channel 30) » Fey's hilariously dead-on impersonation of vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin is so remarkably funny, it deserves its own space here.

Her first appearance, with Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton, may not have had the writing to support Fey's brilliant performance, but the second and third skits - especially the vice-presidential debate sketch - were knee-slapping good times.

It didn't take long for Fey to stand up to the likes of Chevy Chase's Gerald Ford or Dan Aykroyd's Richard Nixon as one of the best political impersonations ever.

Grade: A

"Saturday Night Live (Saturday, 10:35 p.m., KUCW Channel 30) » Then there is the rest of "SNL."

When Fey completes her skit, which has always been the first of the episode, it's like a switch is flipped and the laughter ends.

While the political writers have become keen on writing for Fey's Sarah Palin, they just can't stay in the groove for the rest of the night, including the other political skits and especially the "Weekend Update" segment.

In fact, only one sketch with John McCain approving a group of hateful and scandalous radio ads was as funny as any of the Palin bits. And that's probably because it was co-written by former "SNL" writer and political humorist Al Franken.

But most disappointing is that "Weekend Update," the center staple of the comedy variety show, has been repeatedly stale. Maybe it's partly because anchors Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers (who also is the show's head writer) are nowhere near as good as some of "Update's" past anchors, especially Chevy Chase.

Grade: C-

"Late Show with David Letterman" and "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" (Monday through Friday, 10:35 p.m., KUTV Channel 2 and KSL Channel 5, respectively) » OK, Dave, we get it. You're mad at John McCain. After two weeks of ranting about McCain snubbing you by canceling an appearance and lying about it, the joke has gotten stale.

Meanwhile, Leno has yet to make a more insightful joke about this year's elections other than the standard, musty quips he's been making for more than a decade.

Still, Letterman can occasionally be relevant - after all, the prospect of McCain coming on his show to apologize made headlines. As for Leno, when was last time his show made the papers for any of his guests?

Grade: Letterman, C; Leno, D