Sketches are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars
DISCLAIMER
Grandma Walton Tries To Tie Her Shoelace will not be seen tonight
COLD OPENING
Oscar-winner Vanessa Redgrave (JAC) uses podium as a political forum
— Jane’s acceptance speech was pretty funny.
— LOL at John as Yasser Arafat.
— Pretty funny opening, and it helps that the premise of award winners using their acceptance speech as an excuse to go off on a political rant is more relevant than ever today, 40 years later.
STARS: ***½
MONOLOGUE
host’s manager Sid Biggs (host) kills time, puts two cats in his pants
— Michael coming out in character instead of as himself is a fun idea.
— His awkward stalling for time is making me laugh.
— Michael: “I have available a man who swallows live macaws! Wonderful act… disgusting to watch.”
— Haha, oh my god at him stuffing his pants with a salad and two cats. What a riot. Hilarious way to end this monologue.
STARS: ****½
LITTLE CHOCOLATE DONUTS
— Rerun
CONFESSION
IRS agent (DAA) questions a priest (host) about his tax deductions
H&L Brock solves moral dilemmas in addition to doing your taxes
— At first, I thought Dan was playing a mobster.
— This is pretty slow-moving so far. I’m starting to wonder where the big laughs are supposed to be coming from.
— Fairly funny visual with Bill in the thought bubble.
— Hilarious twist with this unexpectedly turning out to be a message from John’s H&L Brock character, which made the slow build-up worth it.
STARS: ***
THE SEAGULL
host tries to break record for escaping from a chest during Chekhov play
— Very funny and ambitious with Michael’s struggles to get out of the trunk and straitjacket while Bill and Jane are going on with the play and a timer is on the bottom of screen.
— Some pretty good laughs from Michael’s crazed rant about how he wanted to be a claims adjuster rather than an actor.
STARS: ****
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
WEEKEND UPDATE PREVIEW
WEEKEND UPDATE
actor (Leo Yoshimura) impersonates Tongsun Park to better his career
JOB wants the Rockefellers to spare Radio City Music Hall from demolition
— Dan’s opening “I’m in love… with this paper clip” bit was ruined by a badly-timed camera switch.
— Huh? Former president Gerald Ford announced plans for running again in the 1980 presidential race? I don’t know much about politics, but I thought that after a president leaves office, they couldn’t run in future elections.
— Hey, it’s Akira Yoshimura in his own Update commentary!
— I liked Jane’s “How quickly they turn” ad-lib in response to her bank robbers joke bombing.
— Another great John Belushi Update rant.
STARS: ***
NERDS MUSIC LESSON
piano teacher Mr. Brighton (host) gets fresh with Lisa during a lesson
— This appears to be our first traditional Nerds sketch, after their experimental first two appearances earlier this season.
— Gilda is even funnier in this than she usually is in these Nerds sketches.
— Heh, what was with Bill doing Steve Martin’s “excuuuuuse meeee!”? Was it all the rage at the time for EVERYBODY quote that?
— I got a good laugh from Michael suddenly throwing Gilda on the piano keys and starting to kiss her.
— Michael’s overdramatic “Yes, I know!” before leaving cracked me up for some reason.
— Good ending with the “lollipop kiss”.
— Overall, easily my favorite of the Nerds sketches that have aired up until this point.
STARS: ****
THE FORGOTTEN MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
Sherlock Holmes (host) investigates The Case of the Scarlet Membrane
— Michael’s pre-taped intro was weird, but the constant corrections from the off-camera voice made me laugh.
— LOL at whatever that is sticking out of Michael’s nose.
— When Michael randomly fired a loud gunshot at the target sheet, I’m pretty sure I could hear an audience member audibly say “Whoa, shit” in surprise.
— This is very funny so far, and has a very Monty Python feel, which I love.
— Bill’s raspy British accent is cracking me up.
— Overall, very funny sketch led by a great Michael Palin performance.
STARS: ****
PARTY NIGHT
(BIM)’s desire to have a good time at a party bothers his wife (LAN)
— I smell a Marilyn Suzanne Miller-written slice-of-life piece.
— This took a while to start getting funny, but I’m starting to get some laughs.
— Loved Bill’s exclamations and happy dance at the end.
— Overall, this was pretty good, though there have been better slice-of-life pieces in this era.
STARS: ***½
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
MR. BILL PAYS TAXES
by Walter Williams- an arm & a leg
— Another one so soon? Didn’t we just get a Mr. Bill film in the last episode?
— Mr. Bill’s voice sounds even higher-pitched than usual in this.
— Overall, this was fine, but I think it was too soon to do another Mr. Bill. These are probably better in small doses, as I didn’t laugh quite as much as I did in the last Mr. Bill film.
STARS: ***
DANGER PROBE
a fop (host) & his servant (GAM) provoke rednecks in a bar
— I recall this eventually becoming a recurring sketch later on.
— Franken’s exaggerated redneck accent is making me laugh out loud.
— Michael and Garrett are pretty funny as the fop and blackamoor.
— Haha, holy hell at the sudden wild scuffle between the cops and the rednecks. I love that for some reason.
STARS: ***
GOODNIGHTS
— Michael shows that the two cats from earlier are fine.
IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— A solid, fun episode that had something worthwhile in every sketch; nothing got a bad rating from me.
— It goes without saying that Michael Palin would be a natural as SNL host, and I like how he helped give this episode a strong Monty Python feeling, which makes this reminiscent of the times Eric Idle hosted prior to this.
HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Christopher Lee):
— a slight step down
My full set of screencaps for this episode is here
TOMORROW:
Michael Sarrazin