LOS ANGELES (AP) - Robin Thede's face lights up when she hears that the deliciously clever humor of her "A Black Lady Sketch Show" provokes a laugh-out-loud response. "That means the most. That's the whole point," said Thede, who created, produces and acts in the HBO show, with its critical raves underlined by groundbreaking Emmy nominations. A tickled viewer demonstrates that "we connected at a human level ... and that is the biggest gift I can give to people, especially for Black women, because we just don't have it," Thede said. She cites the "duh" moments prompted by the show's rarity. "People are saying why didn't we exist? We had 'Chappelle's Show,' we had 'In Living Color,' we have these great sketch shows in Black media traditions," Thede said, "but never where women were at the forefront. And why not?" "A Black Lady Sketch Show" illustrates what's been missing. It offers a dizzying array of characters artfully played by Thede and fellow cast members Ashley Nicole Black, Gabrielle Dennis and Quinta Brunson. The stories can be satirically biting and at times surreal, such as the (spoiler alert!) soul food restaurant that's its own kind of purgatory. It's from the Black female perspective but with a comic sensibility inviting to all. Season-one sketches included a gang meeting with standard HR protocol; a wedding dinner hijacked by a severely woke family member, and a support group for women who are "bad (expletives)," as in rhymes-with-witches. A commanding Angela Bassett earned an Emmy nomination for her guest appearance. "A Black Lady Sketch Show" also received an unprecedented best variety sketch series bid for a Black female-led project and, for Dime Davis, the first sketch variety directing...