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The funniest moments occur when the show embraces absurdity - like when Cynthia and Lady Anne (voiced by Carey Mulligan, “Inside Llewyn Davis”), who is a mannequin and Devon’s wife, have a showdown over brunch at the Morehouse estate. Perhaps some of the humor is lost on me, a millennial college student who wasn’t even alive during the height of miniseries popularity, but the entire six-episode collection feels a bit stretched - like an overlong “SNL” sketch that could use a caffeine injection. The campy humor succeeds in parodying a genre, but fails to consistently reach heights that transcend the context of that parody. Unfortunately, great performances aren’t enough to support a flimsy script. Maguire also delivers a surprisingly commendable comedic performance, playing a character he describes as a satirical version of Nick Carraway from “The Great Gatsby.” Even the more “serious” guest stars, like Val Kilmer and Tim Robbins, are totally game, most notably the criminally underused Michael Sheen, who plays Wiig’s husband in one episode and may be the best part of this entire series. Like in “Saturday Night Live” ’s “Californians” sketch, her exaggerated facial expressions and body movements make a perfect match for the melodramatic parody.
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The performances in “Spoils” are undoubtedly the highlight of the series. “The Spoils of Babylon” follows Cynthia and Devon through the ups and downs of their love affair over the course of several decades. As Devon integrates into the family, a forbidden romance between he and his adoptive sister begins to blossom. One day he comes across an orphan boy named Devon (Tobey Maguire, “The Great Gatsby”) and, out of the goodness of his heart, adopts him as his own. A hardworking optimist, Jonas spends every day in the field, searching for oil so he can save his estate and family. Jonas Morehouse (Tim Robbins, “The Shawshank Redemption”) is a poor oil driller who lives in middle-of-nowhere Texas with his daughter, Cynthia (Kristen Wiig, “Bridesmaids”).