Nothing beats an introspective review of the Three Stooges by a good critic - here is one by Richard von Busack that tickled my fancy. He makes a nice comparison of the Stooges to their comedy contemporaries, and points out how popular they remain in comparison to the highbrow artists of their day.

That's what a lot of their appeal is - they were roll-up-your-sleeve, blue collar heroes. They were also underrated comic minimalists who practiced a particular brand of mahem and sadism - especially to their critics.