Stephen Colbert compares democratic debate to 'dwarfs offering Snow White a poison apple'

After the Democrats finished debating in Detroit on Tuesday, the late-night TV hosts put everything into perspective with some devastatingly accurate comedy.

"The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers" all had special live broadcasts that weighed in on the face-off at the Fox Theatre between 10 presidential candidates.

The results were more honest than the spin from partisans, and much more entertaining than the posturing of pundits. And who can resist a good Bernie Sanders impression? Here are the best jokes of the night:

'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'

Over on "The Late Show," Stephen Colbert zeroed in on the battle between low-polling moderates and front-runner progressives. "It's hard to sum up what happened tonight, but most of it was a bunch of guys with no chance to win the Democratic nomination yelling Republican talking points at the people who can," said Colbert. "It was like watching the seven dwarfs offering Snow White a poison apple."

Doing a pitch-perfect Bernie Sanders impression, Colbert riffed on the Vermont senator's road trip this week from Detroit to Windsor, Ontario, to highlight the low cost of prescription drugs in Canada: "It's a magical land where health care is free, hugs are mandatory, (and) the currency has been replaced with maple syrup that gets you high."

Pete Buttigieg's frequent references to his relative youthfulness at 37 weren't lost on Colbert, especially the South Bend, Indiana, mayor's observation that the same conversation about gun control has been taking place ever since he was in high school. "And that was almost three weeks ago," said Colbert.

Elizabeth Warren delivered a knockout punch when she blasted John Delaney by saying, “I don’t understand why anybody goes to all the trouble of running for president of the United States just to talk about what we really can’t do and shouldn’t fight for." After showing a clip of it, Colbert, sounding like Burgess Meredith's ancient boxing trainer in "Rocky," said, "Boom! Stay down, Delaney! Come on, stay down Delaney, you're bleeding now. You're blind in one eye. Come on, Elizabeth eats lightning and craps thunder."

More: Trevor Noah on Scarlett Johansson's comments: 'We take for granted how much representation means'

'The Daily Show with Trevor Noah'

"The Daily Show" featured correspondent Roy Wood Jr.'s succinct wrap-up of the debate's main flaw. "There's too many damn people on that (expletive) stage," Wood complained. "The last time I saw that many people on one stage was when 'Moonlight' and 'La La Land' was fighting over an Oscar."

Host Trevor Noah noted Detroit also was the site of the 2016 debate where Donald Trump brought up Marco Rubio's insult about him having small hands — and what they say about men with small hands. Watching the clip where Trump guaranteed he himself has no such problem, Noah remarked, "Ah, that's so embarrassing. Whatever happened to that guy?"

Sanders got everyone's attention with his feistiness on Tuesday while debating topics like health care. "Bernie was not messing around tonight, huh?" said Noah. "I thought he was going to send someone to the hospital, then pay the entire bill."

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'Late Night with Seth Meyers'

Seth Meyers devoted his regular "A Closer Look" segment to a rundown of debate highlights, including Warren's stern scolding to her opponents to stop using Republican talking points. Said Meyers, "Elizabeth Warren will turn this car around right now and nobody is going to Disneyland!"

The joke pretty much wrote itself when U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan told Sanders at one point that he didn't have to yell. As Meyers put it, "Oh no, he absolutely does have to yell. Bernie has been kicked out of every library in Vermont. He's like the bus in 'Speed.' If he goes under 100 decibels, his hair will explode."

Self-help guru Marianne Williamson has been the topic of many late-night quips about her new-age style. But at least a portion of her remarks about the broader injustices of the Flint water crisis had Meyers wondering if she is like a record that you have to listen to several times to get an idea of what the musicians are trying to do. "Is Marianne Williamson jazz?" asked Meyers.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Democratic debate: Stephen Colbert mocks showdown, impersonates Sanders