Last Chance

“The Tangled Snarl” and “Murder Me Once”: Spuds Idaho is the cracked, hard-boiled hero of both of these plays, written by John Rustan and Frank Semerano and directed by James Reynolds. “Snarl,” the first component of this delightfully flat-footed satire, suggests Dashiell Hammett’s “The Maltese Falcon” as rewritten by Carl Reiner. Perpetually imbibing Spuds (an inspired Todd Babcock) greets us while removing a slug from his gut. “Murder” ups the ante, spinning Raymond Chandler through an Ernie Kovacs kaleidoscope. The farceurs commit first-degree hilarity.

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Ends Sunday at the Fremont Centre Theatre, 1000 Fremont Ave., South Pasadena. (626) 441-5977