Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars
AMERICAN IDOL
judges criticize animals for their poor performances
— Wait, what’s this? Seth IN A SKETCH?!? And in a lead role here?!? During his Weekend Update-only years?!?
— A laugh from Maya’s successful audition only being shown for a split second before getting cut off to show bad auditions.
— Mm, not sure I care for this premise of animals auditioning for American Idol.
— Solid Simon Cowell impression from Jason.
— Yeah, these constant reveals of animals being critiqued by the Idol judges aren’t working for me.
— Why do I hear Kenan laughing off-camera during one of the scene transitions (right after the donkey scene)?
— An unintentional chuckle from the two cats both looking alarmed when a sound effect of meowing cats is played.
— I do like the gag with the auditioning dog’s family of dogs waiting for him outside of the audition room.
— Yet another strong and energetic “Live from New York…” delivery from Seth.
STARS: **
MONOLOGUE
host’s backstage encounter with ANS follows romantic comedy boilerplate
— Drew sets up her backstage visit by claiming she’s going to take us to the Five-Timers Club, as this is her fifth time hosting, only for this monologue to blindside us with a cookie-cutter rom-com spoof that has nothing to do with the Five-Timers Club. Really, SNL? I don’t have too much of a problem with SNL doing this kind of monologue spoofing rom-coms, but why lie to us by prefacing it with an exciting-sounding Five-Timers Club visit?
— Hmm, I see SNL still has binders with the old circular SNL logo from 1988-1995 (as seen held by Amy in the third above screencap for this monologue). Ellen Cleghorne was seen with that same green binder in the backstage cold opening from the season 20 finale, back when that was still the current SNL logo. I think there’s a later backstage monologue/sketch sometime after tonight’s Drew Barrymore episode where that same green binder with the 88-95 SNL logo is also seen, but I can’t remember which episode.
— Pretty funny lines from Will, perfectly playing the douche of typical rom-coms.
— I like the slow-motion montage of backstage scenes that had literally just happened.
— Am I crazy, or does the look of Andy’s hair keep changing back-and-forth throughout this monologue? (side-by-side comparison a little below) Are some portions of this monologue pre-taped for whatever reason? I’m currently watching the live version of this episode, so this isn’t a case of a dress rehearsal substitution being made in reruns.
— Wait, what? Now this randomly turns into a questions-from-the-audience monologue? This monologue, while pretty funny, is an unfocused mess.
— Ah, never mind. The questions-from-the-audience bit is just a set-up for Andy to interrupt with a Say Anything spoof. Lots of odd fake-outs throughout this monologue.
— Ugh, I see a Target set in the background during the shot of Andy holding a radio up in the air ala John Cusack, which gives away the fact that there’s going to be a damn Target Lady sketch tonight. Didn’t they just DO one, like, 2 episodes ago?
STARS: ***
THE DAKOTA FANNING SHOW
Dakota Fanning (AMP) is mature beyond her years
— Oh, I absolute LOVE how SNL transitions from the monologue to this sketch by having the camera pan over from the home base stage to the set where this sketch is taking place. Reminiscent of what SNL did after the monologue in the season 25 Christina Ricci episode and the season 27 Gwyneth Paltrow episode.
— Boy, Amy sure got changed fast from her appearance in the middle of the monologue.
— “The” Family Guy? What’s with Kenan referring to the show Family Guy as that?
— Kenan’s slow burn facial reactions to Amy-as-Dakota-Fanning’s backhanded remarks to him throughout this sketch are freakin’ perfect.
— Why does Bill’s shirt look so insanely wrinkly?
— For obvious reasons, it’s fitting to have Drew Barrymore play a child actress.
— The tenseness from Amy’s Dakota during the Abigail Breslin interview is solid.
— I love the “Thank you, Catherine” “Okay, you can just call me mom” exchange between Amy’s Dakota and Kristen’s snack-providing character.
— A killer way to end this sketch, with Drew-as-Abigail-Breslin’s bragging about her important upcoming movie role being responded to by Amy’s Dakota saying a casual, fake-gleeful “I get raped in my next movie! Anyway…”
STARS: ****
POISON THERAPY
therapist (KRW) counsels (WLF) & the wife (host) who poisons him
— Interesting facial prosthetics on a poisoned Will.
— I absolutely love the oddball, absurdist, creative premise of this sketch, especially for a sketch placed in such an early spot in this episode.
— Very strong understated performances from all involved in this sketch. A perfect mix of a great premise and great execution by the writers and performers.
— Funny reveal of Will being a model.
STARS: ****½
BODY FUZION
’80s exercise tape has low-impact workout & softcore porn
— A change of pace for a Digital Short.
— Funny random detail of two of the girls being named Donna.
— I love Maya’s aggressive brief shout of “WOO!” during one exercise.
— Kristen giving us an early display of her future Triangle Sally dance.
— So many hilarious little gags all throughout this.
— The recreation of the look of a typical video from an old, worn-out 1980s VHS tape is absolutely DEAD ON, right down to the littlest details like the occasional bad tracking.
STARS: ****½
TARGET
Target Lady teaches trainee (host) how to ring up items at the checkout
— (*sigh*) And here’s our Target Lady sketch that was spoiled earlier in this episode.
— I do somewhat like Target Lady’s subtly disappointed/heartbroken reaction when Jason decides to buy something she really wants that is now out of stock, which I kinda appreciate just because it’s a change of pace from the usual tired dreck we see with Target Lady.
— This was mercifully somewhat short for a Target Lady sketch.
STARS: **
JOB INTERVIEW
hyper job applicant (host) digs a deeper hole following botched interview
— This is a sketch that I recall getting a lot of acclaim from online SNL fans back in 2007, but I’ve also seen online SNL fans in recent years have a negative reaction to this sketch and say it comes off like a bad James Anderson-written one-note Kristen Wiig-starring sketch. In my original 2007 review of this episode back when this episode originally aired (seen here), I didn’t care much for this sketch. I’m curious how I’ll react to this sketch during my current viewing, after what I just said about how wildly differing the reaction from fans in 2007 and 2020 are.
— Shaundra Shart? Is this a sister character to future cast member Mikey Day’s character Matt Schatt?
— Never mind, Drew’s character reveals that she messed up her last name, which is actually Sharpe.
— I love Drew calling Kenan “Grown-Up Webster”.
— Drew is selling her character’s tenseness, hyperness, and antsiness really well.
— Did I just hear Amy pronounce the first name of Drew’s character completely differently from how Drew herself pronounced it?
— A fart gag in this sketch? Oof. As this sketch goes along, I’m starting to get more and more of a James Anderson vibe from it.
— Didn’t care for the ending at all.
— I’m torn on this overall sketch. One one hand, I loved Drew’s performance, she did a great job with the material, some of the material itself was really funny, and the structure to this sketch was interesting and unique. On the other hand, some portions of this sketch kinda rubbed me the wrong way and reeked of bad James Anderson trademarks, and I hated the ending.
STARS: ***
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Smile”
WEEKEND UPDATE
menacing nanny Barbara Birmingham (KET) is against spanking ban
— Kenan In A Dress alert.
— The debut of a very short-lived and forgotten Kenan Thompson recurring Update character.
— At least Kenan’s playing this particular black female role differently from the interchangeable way he portrays most black female roles.
— I love Kenan angrily lunging over the desk at Seth.
— Seth’s mean-spirited joke about his grandmother dying was odd but very solid.
— I like Amy’s hints at her small chest size during the breast-enlarging shampoos/soaps/lotions bit with her and Seth. However, she almost ruined it in typical Amy-Poehler-on-Weekend-Update fashion by making an annoyingly corny, hammy, cutesy ad-lib at the end of the bit.
STARS: ***½
VERSACE SUPER BOWL PARTY
Elton John (HOS) attends Donatella Versace’s (MAR) Super Bowl Party
— Jesus Christ, they’re still trotting out these way-past-their-prime Versace sketches in 2007? By this point, I had forgotten these sketches were even a thing. After all, the last Versace sketch prior to this was two seasons ago when Johnny Knovxille hosted. Tonight’s Versace sketch also (mercifully) ends up being the final one.
— Maya’s Versace explains her long absence by saying she was in rehab for two years. Meh, SNL could’ve come up with a funnier reason for her two-year absence.
— Somewhat interesting to see Fred’s Prince outside of those tired and formulaic Prince Show sketches, but I’m not sure putting him in a Versace sketch is the way to add new life to this impression.
— They’re even repeating the tired “Hey, where did Prince go?” gag from the Prince Show sketches, though I guess that adds up, as James Anderson is, I believe, the writer of both the Prince Show and these Versace sketches.
— The atmosphere of this sketch feels kinda dead so far, which is further proof of how way-past-their-prime these Versace sketches are.
— Wow, TWO big sketch appearances tonight from the Weekend Update-only Seth!
— Seth’s high-pitched British accent as David Beckham reminds me of Dana Carvey, for some reason. Anyway, Seth’s adding some much-needed fun life to this otherwise laughless tripe.
— Was that a “Da Bearrrsssss” self-reference SNL randomly made just now, with Versace telling the Beckhams that they’re so boring, if they were a football team, they’d be called “Da Borrrreeeesssss” (ugh, what an awful, hacky joke).
— As if this sketch weren’t insufferable enough, we now get a random Horatio Sanz cameo? And as Elton John? (*groan*)
— Horatio is noticeably a little thinner here compared to how he looked in his days as a cast member. As we now know, this is only the beginning of a drastic weight loss that would eventually result in a legitimately thin and healthy-looking Horatio. Maybe getting fired from SNL was the best thing to happen to his health.
— Ugh at that joke about Elton John being a “musical fruit”, not to mention the subsequent barrage of hacky gay jokes about Elton John that these Versace sketches always bombard us with.
STARS: *½
JO-JO THE VALET
at a country club, valet (AMP) woos out-of-his-league divorcee (host)
— Amy playing a character that, in hindsight, comes off as a very Kate McKinnon type of character. After having gotten so used to seeing Kate play roles like this in recent years, it feels odd now seeing Amy play it in an old sketch that I hadn’t seen since 2007.
— Amy’s portrayal of this character is solid.
— Amy as Jo-Jo: “I don’t have a fancy house…or a house.”
— Funny snobbish voices from Will and the sadly-very-underused Bill Hader, reminding me of the snobbish voices they used in that great tennis sketch from the preceding season’s Tom Hanks episode.
— A very odd sketch, but Amy’s performance is definitely making it work for me.
— SNL would later attempt to bring this Jo-Jo character back in an episode later this season (I think the Peyton Manning episode, but I’m not sure), in a sketch where Jo-Jo is a waiter at a restaurant, but the sketch would end up getting cut after dress rehearsal. I think I recall hearing that the sketch can be seen in the bonus features of SNL’s “Best Of 2006-2007” DVD.
STARS: ***½
FIRESTARTER BRAND SMOKED SAUSAGES
pyrokinetic Charlie McGee (host) hawks Firestarter-brand smoked sausages
— SNL keeps the unique and oddball sketch concepts going tonight, as we now get this wonderfully-absurd and creative piece.
— Great callback to a childhood movie role of Drew’s.
— I absolutely love Jason’s performance as this bizarre singer character, a very Will Ferrell-esque role.
— This was cut after dress rehearsal from Drew’s season 29 episode. I’m VERY curious as to who played Jason’s role in that version of this sketch, given the fact that Jason was only a writer that season and wasn’t in the cast yet. The only season 29 cast member I can picture playing this role is Will Forte (and I’m sure he would’ve killed it in this role just as much as Jason, if not moreso), but he’s still on the show by this point in 2007, and I doubt SNL would take the role away from him. Then again, maybe Jason himself was the one who wrote this sketch back in season 29, and perhaps that’s the reason for SNL now letting him play this singer role.
STARS: ****
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “LDN”
FORMOSA CAFE
Peter O’Toole (BIH) & progenal sot host elegize drinking’s glory days
— Ah, Bill Hader front-and-center as the lead in a sketch. Sad how that feels rare at this stage of his SNL tenure.
— Great to see Bill’s Peter O’Toole impression back, after that very solid Weekend Update commentary he did earlier this season.
— I love the style of this sketch, as well as the interplay between Bill and Drew. Bill also has lots of great lines here. I especially love his line about flashing his “O’Toole”.
STARS: ****
NELSON’S BABY TOUPEES
— They’re still re-running this commercial from the preceding season?
GOODNIGHTS
IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A pretty solid episode, despite two typical weak recurring things (Target Lady, Versace), and a tepid American Idol cold opening. A big part of what I admire about this episode is how it tried a lot of different, unconventional sketches (especially in the post-Weekend Update half of the show), all of which worked for me to varying degrees.
MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS
HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Jeremy Piven)
a very slight step down
My full set of screencaps for this episode is here
TOMORROW
Forest Whitaker
This was a solid episode, even if some of it comes off more than a little S30. I thought the first half of the show in particular was fun, and I loved Lily Allen’s musical performances. Bonus points for that visual of Seth with the tiger too. The vibe that’s set up with the apolitical cold open and the monologue start the show off on the right foot, which makes the weaker sketches up top easier to sit through.
Having a good—or at least energetic and quick—cold open and monologue are important for setting the tone of the episode. I don’t know why they feel obligated to open nearly every show with a sluggish political open. They’ve been doing that for like 20+ years at this point. I doubt people care THAT much.
Regarding the heavy use of sluggish political cold opens – starting around the early-mid 2000s, whenever SNL did one, no matter whether it was good or bad, the cable news networks would constantly replay clips from it all day Sunday on the pundit shows as well as the regular newscasts. Since then, I imagine SNL feels obligated to do them, even though I really miss how the show used to “mix it up” in the cold opens.
A fairly entertaining episode–it doesn’t have a ton of highs and the lows are bad, but it mostly hits line drive singles. Drew does a very solid job this episode as host (in terms of performances, I think it’s probably the best time she hosted, but probably not the best episode overall).
The Versace sketch feels like a holdover from previous eras–you’ve got Seth in a sketch, a played out recurring character, and Sanz returning! You could easily have fooled me in saying this was a season 30 sketch.
I’m always stunned by how little screen time Bill Hader got in these early episodes. Samberg carved out a niche for himself after looking like he was DOA early, but the SNL writers apparently haven’t recognized Bill’s gift for playing insane original characters or game show hosts.
Kenan in the Dakota Fanning Show sketch is one of the earliest examples I can think of where he plays a very solid straight man. What exactly were these Dakota Fanning sketches referencing? If I recall, there was some interview in which Dakota brushed off always playing like some abused, troubled child in films.
Body Fuzion is a great example of the Amy/Kristen/Maya trio, a great female cast that kind of slips through the woodwork. I’d rank them at their best easily with the peak female trios (Jane/Laraine/Gilda, Jan/Nora/Victoria, Cheri/Molly/Ana), but they also had some pretty bad excesses at times (I would argue that in this season they are generally very solid though).
Many do seem to remember Maya/Kristen/Amy fondly as part of the cast, but I think they may have needed another season to gel more as a trio.
For me Jane/Laraine/Gilda (because they all contrasted each other so perfectly and the show wouldn’t have worked without them) and Nora/Jan/Victoria (they also contrasted, and while they don’t serve as effectively together as J/L/G, it’s made up for by the wonderful recurring duos Nora and Jan) are the strongest. Several pieces from this season, like Body Fuzion and the Santa cold open, might make me put Kristen/Maya/Amy above Molly/Ana/Cheri, as I don’t think the latter had a great deal of strong work together and were generally better on their own or in male/female duos.
They’ve tried to bring that vibe back in recent years, with so much Kate/Aidy and to a lesser degree Kate/Aidy/Cecily, but between cast bloat and self-indulgent performances and shaky writing, it’s a very mixed bag for me (not helped by K/A/C often being James Anderson pieces). If/when we get more cast turnover I’m hoping the next generation of female cast members might get to bring back some of those stronger dynamics.
Dakota was in the news around this period as apparently she played a rape victim in a film and was also in some kind of controversial ad campaign. There’s an interview from 2008 where she says she never saw the sketches but she gave the usual answer (it’s an honor, the show is funny, etc.). Some woman also has her own version of this sketch on her Youtube channel, as she did it as a showcase at the time.
She was going to be in a movie where her character gets raped, and I think there was so much controversy about it that the project was scrapped. Could be wrong though.
J.B. Smoove wrote the Firestarter Sausages sketch, with Horatio as the singer. He gets an “add’l sketch” credit at the end of this show.
The Peyton Manning dress sketch on the ’06-’07 DVD was another Virginiaca go-around with Kenan hitting on Peyton at a party. I would’ve rather seen JoJo.
Interesting. BMI credits Erik Kenward with the jingles.
The online version of “Body Fuzion” had a different ending – a parody of The Ring!
You are correct, Stooge. Another JoJo sketch gets cut from the Peyton Manning episode but as FeaturingEmilyPrager pointed out it’s the Virginiaca sketch that appears on the 06-07 DVD.
Drew specifically requested to do another Versace sketch because she loved doing the one in her previous episode.
Of all the Kenan in a dress pieces, Barbara Birmingham is my favorite. Virginiaca however, is simultaneously the best and worst of Kenan in one sketch, overall it’s more good than bad though.
Body Fuzion was written by Amy, Maya & Kristen. It’s a testament to Amy’s versatility to be a part of two female trios during her time as a cast member first with Tina & Rachel and now with Maya & Kristen. It’s a shame next season gets cut short because Maya might have stayed if there wasn’t a writers strike and then once Amy leaves it’s 3 1/2 seasons of Kristen just towering over the other women in the cast.
One of my favorites of the season, once you skip past the middling stuff. My favorite of the episode is the Job Interview sketch, which is just spectacularly performed by Drew, who is at her best throughout the episode (minus the Versace and Target Lady sketches which I, of course, memory-holed). The fart joke doesn’t particularly rub me the wrong way. It’s a bit like the fart joke from JLD’s morning show piece, but it actually moves along even quicker. Same with the ending. It’s not a stunner, but it’s barely debilitating. The sketch is all centered on Drew, who gives the kind of performance that more than justifies her five-tuner status. I know it’s not a unique setting or a highly creative format, but it’s basically a perfectly executed piece.
My other favorite is the Dakota Fanning Show. It’s only flaw is it’s dusty formatting. Then again, I was down with the Miley Cyrus Show, so…when the sketch works it works, This, like the Kaitlyn sketches, is an example of Amy doing great work with a something that seems insufficient on paper.
I also love the JoJo sketch, but more in the way a song stays stuck in your head. For some reason, the sketch never left me.
Body Fuzion is a great bit of proto-Tim and Eric, whose show actually premiered a week after this episode.
Joy, Horatio’s Elton John returned. I figured those Versace sketches would’ve ended when he left, because he was a big part of the later sketches.
Sorry for the double post, but they probably made a “Da Bears” reference because the Bears were in the Super Bowl that year against the Colts and Peyton Manning whose episode should be coming up soon.
I still don’t understand why Seth suddenly pops up in sketches again this week (not that I’m complaining). It makes me wish he’d tried this more often, especially by the end of the decade when the show sputters from autopilot decay.
Who would’ve guessed in 2007 that Lily Allen would end up having more involvement with SNL these days than Drew Barrymore…
There is usually something “off” for me with Drew’s episodes, but in spite of my being chilly toward this episode from most of Update onward, I’d say this is near the top – it’s at the same level as her 2004 appearance, perhaps a tad bit better. Drew seemed to gel with this cast in a way she never did with the late ’90s/early ’00s crew.
I don’t enjoy Idol-related material on SNL, as Idol was too much of a self-parody to be parodied, but this is probably one of the more tolerable versions. I would probably give Chris Parnell a kidney if he asked (don’t hold me to that…), but Jason’s Simon Cowell is effortlessly better, and the whole sequence of him badgering the turtle (“other door…other door…other door”) is the one genuinely funny moment in 5 years of these things. And it’s nice to see the dogs running around, seemingly content, unlike so many dog-related sketches on SNL over the years where they look absolutely terrified and we’re still meant to laugh along.
The monologue is fun and inventive (and a good sendup of Drew’s romcom bread and butter) – Andy’s hair being soaking wet and his saying he stuck it in a bucket of water amuses me, as does Will’s performance and the frequent use of “Just Like a Star.” If not for the hacky, cheap as hell lolgay ending I’d have a much higher opinion of this.
It took me a rewatch to appreciate the Dakota Fanning sketch more – initially I thought it was just more of Amy’s cutesy pandering, but it’s actually got a good cutting tone to it, and the back-and-forth with Kenan as she humiliates him is a good warmup to Kenan’s best use in later years. This is also Drew’s best performance in the episode. Bill’s use is a bit ??? to me, but I guess they figured he could whip out a quick British accent and they just ran with it.
Body Fuzion is a lot of fun – good detail work on period-appropriate hair and wardrobe, good performances, good visual effects with the grainy VHS, and a few very funny moments (Maya’s random outburst is the type of thing you do get on those tapes).
The therapy sketch is great, perfectly paced and performed by Kristen and Will – Will really sets the tone here. Drew is solid, although she nearly breaks character several times with her sheer enjoyment.
Target Lady is thin gruel – I keep waiting for something to happen with Drew’s character, but it never does. I guess I should praise the slice-of-life element, but Target Lady herself is always too rigid of a caricature for the sketch to work that way. The most I can say is the wig makes Drew look a lot like Valerie Berinelli.
The interview sketch is just too Kristen Wiig for me to enjoy. Wiig would go on to do this exact type of piece on Update about 10 times.
Update this time just seems a little too tryhard for me, not helped by the Kenan character.
JoJo, I don’t know, it’s muggy and yes, very McKinnon-esque.
The Firestarter sketch is too thin a concept to make much out of. I do like Jason’s punchy performance, but it’s just too long for me.
The Donatella sketch is rough going. I will say Seth and Drew add some enjoyment, but the rest, especially the lame as hell gay jokes with Horatio, is awful. The “da Bears” reference did make me smile – it was nice they remembered.
I’m normally a fan of taking Update characters into new settings, and while Bill’s performance warranted the experiment, I’m not fond of Drew’s performance. It’s way too smiley and cute to work in the role, and sort of reinforces the downside of having a host who is too comfortable with SNL to the point of sloppiness.
Promo:
I do remember being pleasantly surprised by Seth’s appearance in the Cold Open but not any of the Versace sketch. “The Dakota Fanning Show”, “Job Interview”, both of Lily Allen’s performances (later bought her CB with I found out the more explicit word she used in “Smile”!), “Firestarter Brand Smoked Sausages”, and “Formosa Cafe”, all of which I enjoyed. This was probably Drew’s best show…
I get the sense that all of the non-Seth portions of the cold open were pretaped as that may have been the only way it would’ve worked. Also, is it just me or does that American Idol cold open seem like something Tim Kazurinsky would’ve done had American Idol been a thing back in the early ’80s (or like a sketch Cecily Strong would champion and play current Idol judge Katy Perry in for some inexplicable reason the show wanted to parody Idol in its’ current incarnation on ABC?)
There was indeed a big controversy about Dakota Fanning playing a rape victim despite still being underage. I don’t know why SNL decided to make a talk show sketch about it, but , what are you gonna do?
I have a feeling Amy was mostly drawn to the contrast between a precious child actress and dark roles. Ironically this sketch ends up leading to a lot of soul-searching for Amy in a future installment (I guess Stooge will comment on that when we get to Ellen Page’s episode).
*precocious, not precious – sorry
The Dakota Fanning movie was “Hound Dog.” IIRC, the scene was carefully edited, but the movie still died a quick death at the box office in 2008.
I still struggle to disagree; the cold open was terrible, the recurring sketches were weak, but nearly everything else was a banger.
Five-Timers Individual Rankings:
6.8 – Drew Barrymore/Garbage (24.16)
6.6 – Drew Barrymore/Lily Allen (32.12)
5.8 – Drew Barrymore/Macy Gray (27.03)
5.3 – Drew Barrymore/Squeeze (8.07)
5.0 – Drew Barrymore / Kelis (29.12)
That mean joke Seth did about his grandma here is the type of thing I wished they leaned into further on his Updates. Or, you know, if they just gave him ANY kind of a persona. That’d have been nice, too.