Author: Stooge

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November 2, 2013 – Kerry Washington / Eminem (S39 E5)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

OVAL OFFICE
SNL’s lack of black female cast members makes host busy; Al Sharpton cameo

— Oh, I absolutely LOVE the meta turn with Kerry Washington unhappily getting the hint that she’s going to have to change from Michelle Obama to Oprah because the show doesn’t have a black female cast member. I also love Kerry asking “And Kenan won’t….?”
— It’s funny hearing how long it takes the audience to realize just what exactly the meta turn in this cold opening is digging at.
— A very funny disclaimer lampshading what’s going on, and also acknowledging the backlash SNL was facing this season from not hiring a black female cast member while hiring five white male cast members. It’s nice that SNL can address this while being self-deprecating and NOT being passive-aggressive towards the critics (which is more than I can say for some of the other criticisms SNL has addressed in recent years, such as when Tina Fey’s 2018 monologue addressed complaints at the time about excessive cameos taking airtime away from the cast).
— Kerry re-entering the sketch in a different role after an extremely hasty quick change reminds me of the gag of Jan Hooks having to do the same thing in the famous Twin Peaks sketch from the season 16 Kyle MacLachlan episode, because, as mentioned in that sketch, SNL only had two female cast members at the time.
— I got a big laugh from Kerry knowingly asking Jay’s President Obama, in regards to the announcement that Beyonce is here, “Is Jay-Z with her?”, suggesting Jay himself would have to do a quick change to play that role, only for Jay’s Obama to proudly answer “Nope!”
— Great gag with six different Matthew McConaugheys played by the new male featured players…and Bobby, for some reason.
STARS: ****½


MONOLOGUE
BOM, VAB, KET ask host to fix indiscretions a la her Scandal character

— A predictable direction this monologue goes in, but it’s being executed well.
— A laugh from Vanessa’s straightforward way of stiffly saying “da club” in the middle of her sentence.
— Vanessa, after Kerry advises her to leave town immediately: “But…who will play Miley???” Kerry, in a comically sincere manner: “Haven’t you played Miley enough lately?”
— Great casual delivery from Kenan of the line “Oh my god, I’m covered in blood.”
STARS: ***½


CAREER WEEK
self-styled success Heshy (NAP) uses sound effects in motivational speech

— Second consecutive week in which the usually-underused Nasim gets to star in the lead-off sketch of the night, showing that things are getting better for her this season in terms of airtime.
— I think I recall hearing this is one of the very first sketches that Mikey Day penned as an SNL writer. Yeah, I can sense his familiar fingerprints on this sketch’s style.
— Hilarious performance from Kerry.
— I remember some online SNL fans back at this time tried to use this sketch as an example of how terrible, stiff, and uncharismatic Mike O’Brien is as a live performer. Not that I disagree about him, but this sketch isn’t a good example to use, as his character in this is supposed to be stiff and uncharismatic.
— The usual good character work from Nasim, and she’s both funny and well-timed in her constant thrusting to the various sound effects throughout this sketch.
STARS: ***½


MY GIRL
two sides of relationship in “The Fox” variant

— This truly takes me back to when that “what does the fox say” song was everywhere.
— I am loving this “The Fox” take-off. Really good work here, and another fun performance from Kerry.
— Solid turn halfway through the song, with it now being told from Kerry’s side of the relationship.
STARS: ****


HOW’S HE DOING?
Obama’s policy blunders don’t weaken his black support

— The return of a sketch from the season 37 Maya Rudolph episode.
— Even though they did this gag in this sketch’s previous appearance, I laughed at the part where Kenan, Jay, and Kerry’s character all break out in simultaneous hearty laughter after a pause when asked by Kenan if there was ever a time in this rough month President Obama’s been having that they ever thought they wish they voted for Mitt Romney.
— Jay has so many great lines here so far.
— Like last time, I’m finding this to be a fun black-centric sketch that feels very refreshing and much-needed for SNL. Unlike the last time this sketch appeared in season 37, we’re now in the Michael Che era of SNL’s writing, where we’ll thankfully be seeing well-done black-centric pieces appear more and more.
STARS: ****


MISS UNIVERSE MOSCOW 2013
contestants from undeveloped countries disrupt Miss Universe Pageant

— Decent premise of a Miss Universe pageant adding new contestants from less-developed countries.
— Yet another hilarious performance from Kerry, who has been killing it in tonight’s episode so far.
— Well, that girl-on-girl kiss between Kate and Nasim sure came out of nowhere.
— Poor Noel, relegated to having her only appearance of this entire episode be a forgettable throwaway bit in this sketch where she quickly ends up getting karate-chopped out of the scene by Aidy.
— Aidy’s attempt at a Greenland accent is a classic case of “So bad, it’s good”. Hell, her Greenland accent somehow turns into a full-on hillbilly accent towards the end of her spiel.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest & Rick Rubin [real] perform “Berzerk”


WEEKEND UPDATE
cellphone tapping revelations embarrass lonely Angela Merkel (KAM)

Charles Barkley (KET) & Shaquille O’Neal (JAP) give their NBA thoughts

— The debut of Kate’s Angela Merkel impression.
— A solid performance from Kate, as usual whenever she appears on Update in these early years of her SNL tenure. Her Angela Merkel has some good lines during the part about internet search history.
— Cecily’s Kanye West joke was easily one of her better jokes this season, though the rest of her Update jokes tonight (or at least her delivery of them) so far are the usual “meh” they’ve been this season.
— The first of a few Update appearances that Kenan and Jay’s Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal make together.
— Jay’s Shaq impression is hilarious.
— Some fun ad-libs between Kenan, Jay, and Seth during this Barkley/Shaq commentary.
— Funny Toni Braxton story from Kenan’s Barkley.
STARS: **½


IN MEMORIAM
a clip of Lou Reed on SNL marks his passing


CARTOON CATCHPHRASE
contestant’s (AIB) husband (TAK) is very unfaithful

— I recall absolutely loving this sketch when it originally aired, and deeming it to be one of the best sketches of this season. It’s also a turning point in Aidy’s SNL tenure, as I remember this sketch made me (and I’m sure certain others) fully realize how strong she is as a cast member (the preceding week’s Edward Norton-hosted episode put her on my radar a bit), and this sketch basically jumpstarted what ended up being her breakout season.
— Mike: “I’m a waiter at a steak restaurant.” Oh, is he playing the same character he played in the Ruth’s Chris sketch in the preceding episode?
— I love Aidy’s low-key delivery of “Oh, Duane. No, Duane” when initially realizing he’s having an affair.
— When an emotional Aidy mentions the lie her husband Duane told her about going to see the new Hobbit movie, I got a big laugh from Kerry responding to that by jovially saying, “That’s not out yet! 10 seconds on the clock, Diane!”
— Aidy: “Diamond, ya damn hussy. I hate that I need you, but I do.”
— Hilarious reveal of Duane also sleeping with Vanessa’s friend.
— Aidy: “Duane, what is this day of yours?!? Are you just goin’ door-to-door and ass-to-ass?!?”
— Good subversion in the third phone call, with Duane being at the pharmacy that Mike phones, buying tiny condoms.
— Aidy, angrily, when she’s asked to answer one of the game show questions: “Can you give me one second??? I’m havin’ a raw-ass time with my husband!”
— Even Aidy’s ending “Why did you marry me yesterday?!?” reveal is great.
— Overall, just as fantastic as I had remembered, and Aidy indeed gave a killer performance.
STARS: *****


FALL CARNIVAL
Principal Frye dresses down delinquents during high school carnival

— A decent change of scenery for this recurring sketch.
— Solid New York accent from Kerry here.
— Maybe it’s because I’m currently in the right mood, but Jay’s lines as Principal Frye are making me laugh more than usual.
— Kerry: “One of youse even turned on a hose…ON A BLACK LADY! Know your history! You little ass-baskets!”
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest & Skylar Grey [real] perform “Survival”


DATE OR DISS
trio of freaky MTV-chosen bachelorettes creeps out (TAK)

— Good lines from Aidy when introducing herself to Taran.
— Cecily: “Mirror, mirror on the wall, I’m num-num hungry for this guy’s balls.”
— While a fairly one-note sketch, and I remember some online SNL fans saying this fictional MTV show felt too dated for 2013, the disturbing nature of the girls’ one-liners is decent, and just about all of Kerry’s revelations are making me laugh.
STARS: ***


ICE CREAM
joke about ambulance response to sugar overdose doesn’t land

— I really don’t like how rare it’s become to see this season’s new cast members get a lead role. With so many new cast members and with the huge deal SNL made about them in the season premiere, it shouldn’t be so scarce to see ANY of them get noteworthy roles in an episode.
— Kyle’s offbeat, unsure initial facial reaction to Beck’s ambulance joke is very funny.
— I’m enjoying the increasingly convoluted introspection sequences that Kyle and Taran are having over the simple ambulance joke.
STARS: ***½


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Aside from the seemingly-perpetually-mediocre-this-season Weekend Update, this was an all-around good episode, with a season highlight (Cartoon Catchphrase) to boot. This is also the second consecutive episode with a host who really wowed me. Kerry Washington was absolutely great. (Didn’t I later find out she had sketch comedy experience back in high school or something?)


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Cartoon Catchphrase
Oval Office
How’s He Doing?
My Girl
Ice Cream
Career Week
Fall Carnival
Monologue
Miss Universe Moscow 2013
Date Or Diss
Weekend Update


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Edward Norton)
a slight step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Lady Gaga

Posted on

October 26, 2013 – Edward Norton / Janelle Monáe (S39 E4)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

OBAMACARE WEBSITE
Kathleen Sebelius (KAM) offers workarounds for faulty Obamacare website

— Some pretty good laughs from the pages we’re shown of healthcare.gov’s low-res website.
— The Kayak bit was very solid.
— Bobby steals this cold opening in his walk-on, smashing the computer monitor with a baseball bat and then proudly declaring “Fixed iiiit!” in a dopey voice while giving a sideways thumbs-up.
STARS: ***½


MONOLOGUE
Alec Baldwin & Miley Cyrus [real] warm up host for his first SNL gig

— A laugh from the bit with Edward Norton being under the wrong impression that Chris Kattan is still on the show.
— A funny passing compliment from Alec Baldwin about Edward being hilarious in American History X.
— The host warmup routine that Alec makes Edward do is fun, especially the part with Edward doing a string of celebrity impressions. I particularly love his absolutely spot-on Woody Harrelson impression.
— Wait, now we’re getting a very random Miley Cyrus cameo, just two episodes after she hosted? I don’t normally have anything against her, but I’m not exactly pleased to see her here, probably because I wasn’t too crazy about the hosting performance she gave earlier this season.
— So it turns out Miley’s just here to plug her upcoming concert? Really, SNL?
— Ugh at Miley making her then-trademark tongue-sticking-out, winky-eyed face into the camera. Didn’t we see enough of that in the episode she had just hosted?
— For some reason, Alec mentions that his very first hosting stint was in 1991. It was actually 1990.
— Throughout this monologue, Alec keeps comically plugging his then-current MSNBC show. Oof, this gag has not aged well AT ALL, given the fact that his MSNBC show would end up being canceled not too long after this episode, I think due to (I can’t remember for sure, so please forgive me if what I’m about to say is incorrect) behind-the-scenes drama caused by his well-known belligerent attitude.
STARS: **½


AUTUMN’S EVE PUMPKIN SPICE DOUCHE
Autumn’s Eve Pumpkin Spice Douche provides seasonal feminine freshness

— Good premise.
— A big laugh from the scene with Kate cleaning out a pumpkin that’s suggestively placed in front of her crotch while she’s casually speaking into the camera.
— Very funny swing scene between Cecily and Aidy.
— Another great Kate moment, with her little “Ooh!” wince in response to her peppermint douche.
STARS: ****


STRANGER AWARENESS
Shallon (NAP) inverts cop’s (host) stranger-safety elementary school talk

— This soon-to-be-recurring sketch makes its debut.
— Good characterization from Nasim here, and she’s carrying this sketch well.
— Funny conceit with the students gradually getting the completely wrong idea of what Edward’s trying to teach them about strangers in vans.
— Great delivery from Bobby of the line “No vans??? Ugh, I already hate THIS.”
— Nasim’s Shallon, when thinking Edward is her long-lost father: “What’s up, dad? I get why you left. Mom is a meeesssss….”
— Another well-delivered line from Bobby, when angrily telling Edward, “Be a man and take responsibility for your child!”
— An overall solid little sketch. Funnier than I had remembered.
STARS: ****


STEVE HARVEY
wordplay-based Halloween costumes fail to register with Steve Harvey (KET)

— Good bit with Kenan’s Steve Harvey telling us his annual Halloween routine.
— I like how, when having to guess what Kyle’s “cereal killer” costume is, Kenan-as-Harvey’s guesses are “Jeffrey Dahmer Toast Crunch” and “John Wayne Gacy Grahams”.
— I’m not 100% sure, but I think a short film that Kyle would do on SNL several seasons later would show a clip of him from this sketch as an example of how he sometimes struggles on SNL.
STARS: ***


THE MIDNIGHT COTERIE OF SINISTER INTRUDERS
horror flick per Wes Anderson

 

— A famous piece.
— Such a great premise of a Wes Anderson-directed horror movie.
— Solid Owen Wilson impression from Edward.
— I love the kindly-written “Dear Home Owner, can we kill you?” letter that Edward’s Wilson receives.
— Man, this Wes Anderson spoof is absolutely SPOT-ON and perfect, right down to every single little detail.
— Nice reveal of Alec having been the narrator all along.
— An overall classic.
STARS: *****


CRITTER CONTROL
possum in office ductwork enthralls pest control workers (BRW) & (host)

— When this originally aired, I remember being very surprised seeing Brooks playing a character that’s so different-looking and acting from his normal self, as I previously had him pegged as a cast member who would basically play himself in all of his appearance. I think I recall him even being quoted somewhere, shortly before this episode, as admitting he doesn’t know why SNL hired him as a cast member, given the fact that he doesn’t do characters.
— Brooks’ exaggerated reactions when initially seeing the possums inside the vent are cracking me up.
— Great characterization from Edward.
— I love that we’re getting a lot of camera angles from inside the vent, as that’s a very out-of-the-ordinary type of camera angle for a live SNL sketch from a recent season like this.
— Edward’s details and narration of what he’s witnessing from the possums inside the vent is hilarious.
— Solid line from Beck: “Can we stay? I kinda wanna see how this turns out.”
— Such a dumb but very funny conceit to this whole sketch, especially Edward and Brooks lightheartedly going on and on about how funny the possums are. The more and more lovably dumb this sketch is coming off, the more it feels like something Tim Robinson would’ve been great at performing had he still been in the cast. Given the fact that he’s a writer this season, I wonder if he wrote this.
— Great ending.
STARS: ****½


NUMBERS GUY
drug money counter (host) looks & acts like Rain Man but isn’t a savant

— Good reveal of Mike’s “numbers guy” being a very Rain Man-esque person. I really like the idea of this, given the fact that Rain Man is one of my all-time favorite movies.
— Edward does yet another spot-on impression tonight.
— Some good subversions regarding Edward’s counting skills, and there are some funny reactions to him from Bobby and Taran, despite the latter badly flubbing one of his laugh lines.
— What’s with Mike openly giggling in a Jimmy Fallon-esque manner when Kenan genuinely flubs his “Bumblebee” line?
— That’s the end of the sketch???
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Dance Apocalyptic”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Anthony Crispino relays another round of off-base scuttlebutt

— During the Anthony Crispino commentary, SNL makes their very first on-air mention of Seth’s upcoming Late Night hosting gig that’s starting in February.
— As usual, Bobby is very fun as Anthony Crispino, even if none of his false stories are standing out to me tonight.
— Okay, I did get a big laugh just now from the John Mayer/legislative body comment at the end of the Crispino commentary.
— Cecily’s Florida state flag joke seemed to be a throwback to state flag jokes that Seth used to do years prior.
— Wow, this Update is over ALREADY?!? This is one of the shortest Updates I’ve reviewed in a long time.
STARS: **½


12 DAYS NOT A SLAVE
newly-emancipated (JAP) misreads social change pace

— When this originally aired, it was a very rare novelty to see Jay leading a sketch in a non-impression role.
— Kate’s bug-eyed mugging (something she’s always had a bad habit of relying on) feels unnecessary in this sketch.
— A big laugh from Aidy’s great “These have been the best 12 days of my life!” line.
— Despite me liking certain aspects of this sketch, something about this sketch in general feels wanting. I can’t put my finger on what exactly the problem is, though. It’s not Jay, as I feel he’s doing decently in a then-rare non-impression role.
— ANOTHER unnecessary Miley Cyrus cameo in tonight’s episode, this time featuring her twerking as a 19th century woman. (*groan*)
STARS: **


RUTH’S CHRIS
virgin waiters (host), (NAP), (CES), (MOB) anticipate becoming sexperts

— I love Aidy’s delivery of “Ohh, please…don’t call me ‘son’.”
— Much like in that Rick’s Model T’s sketch from this season’s premiere, we have another display of Mike’s irksome habit of delivering his lines very slowly, unsurely, and haltingly, further showing what an awkward live performer he is.
— Funny brief walk-on from Beck.
— I have very mixed feelings on this sketch. The performances are fun, but the material itself is just too dumb for my likes, and not the funny kind of dumb (like the Critter Control sketch from earlier in this episode).
STARS: **


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Electric Lady”


HALLOWEEN CANDY
(host) comments on the items he intends to give to trick-or-treaters

— A variation of one of my all-time favorite sketches, the Christmas ornaments sketch from the season 37 Steve Buscemi episode.
— Edward is a blast in this sketch.
— I remember an online SNL fan pointing out that it almost seemed like Edward’s characterization in this sketch was him intentionally doing a Kevin Spacey impression. Not sure if I agree with that or not, but I do think he looks like Spacey here. This all brings up an interesting comparison I’ll make: much like in Spacey’s first hosting stint, Edward is displaying a fun knack for doing a lot of great impressions in this episode. In fact, Edward even did a brief William Hurt impression in the monologue, which Spacey also did in his first episode’s David Letterman sketch.
— A laugh from Bobby’s character calling his skeleton Halloween costume, “Bones!”
— Love the bit with Edward revealing the inside of the Cars 2 DVD box is empty, and then snarkily asking us, “Now who’s in control?!?”
— Funny cutaway to Aidy as “Adult Ruth”.
— A particularly great part with Edward showing us a package of razor blades still sealed, so “this time, they’ll have to arrest me for generosity!”
— For me, the only thing keeping this fantastic sketch from being as perfect as the Steve Buscemi version of this sketch is the fact that the side bits with Bobby are not quite as good to me as the side bits with Kristen Wiig decorating a Christmas tree in the Buscemi version. Some of Bobby’s bits here feel a little too forced, like the “I got T.P.-ed” bit.
STARS: ****½


BAND SHOT

— For our “10-to-1” in tonight’s episode, the show comes back from commercial only to show the SNL Band immediately playing the show back to commercial, which usually means a segment was scrapped at the last minute because the show ran long.


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A pretty strong first half, but a weak second half until the show rebounded nicely with a very strong final sketch. A good episode as a whole. Edward Norton was a fantastic host. I remember being wowed by him when this episode originally aired, and I still found him impressive in my re-watch just now. He not only did a great job, but he also served as a much-needed palate cleanser after Bruce Willis’ horrible hosting performance in the preceding episode. Definitely put Norton on the list of great one-time hosts who have sadly never hosted a second time.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
The Midnight Coterie Of Sinister Intruders
Halloween Candy
Critter Control
Stranger Awareness
Autumn’s Eve Pumpkin Spice Douche
Numbers Guy
Obamacare Website
Steve Harvey
Monologue
Weekend Update
Ruth’s Chris
12 Days Not A Slave


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Bruce Willis)
a big step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Kerry Washington

Posted on

October 12, 2013 – Bruce Willis / Katy Perry (S39 E3)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

NASA SHUTDOWN
government shutdown impacts NASA & Gravity astronauts (TAK) & (CES)

— Pretty funny non-verbal reaction Kenan’s night janitor character initially has to Taran and Cecily’s panicked call. I also like him answering that call by innocently asking a light-hearted “Yello?”
— SNL gets more good mileage out of the government shutdown.
— A good laugh from Taran’s delivery of “Why don’t we make this asphyxiation…an erotic one?”
STARS: ***½


MONOLOGUE
BOM plays harmonica poorly & fancies himself to be like host’s son

— Wasn’t too crazy about Bruce Willis’ joke about six Die Hards. His delivery of it was pretty awkward, which already sets a bad tone for how his hosting performance will go in tonight’s episode.
— Thank god Bobby has shown up to offer some much-needed comic relief.
— Despite the humor Bobby’s bringing to this, the interplay between him and Bruce feels kinda weird, thanks to Bruce’s lack of ANY kind of believable chemistry with Bobby.
— Much like Bruce’s last monologue from all the way back in 1989, we get a display of his harmonica-playing skills. Some entertaining tunes from him here.
— Love the gag with Bobby repeatedly breathing in and out of his harmonica because he’s out of breath and needs his inhaler.
STARS: **½


24-HOUR ENERGY FOR DATING ACTRESSES
harrowed boyfriends cope by drinking 24-Hour Energy For Dating Actresses

— Funny reveal of this being an energy drink ad for men who are dating actresses. A relatable premise, though I’m sure this resonates more with people who can relate to this more than I can.
— Cecily’s angry outburst is giving me some good laughs.
— Another amusing non-verbal reaction from Kenan tonight, this time when seeing his girlfriend Cecily do a physical romantic scene with a shirtless Jay.
— Good ending about an energy drink for women dating hacky comedians.
STARS: ***½


BLACK OPS
(host)’s unrealistically-cinematic attack plan sways fellow Navy SEALs

— A funny blunt, short, and to-the-point clarification from Beck after Bruce’s very long-winded and detailed first answer.
— I have mixed feelings on this sketch so far. Actually, the premise isn’t bad, and the cast members are doing good work. I think my problem with this sketch is Bruce’s delivery, especially how mumbly and low-talky he occasionally gets. John Milhiser would later disclose in an interview (I can’t remember who interviewed him) that, during the table read for this episode, people in the room called attention to Bruce’s habit of mumbling and low-talking his way through his line readings, and asked him to speak louder and more clearly. In response, Bruce nodded his head and gave a thumbs-up gesture, only to IMMEDIATELY continue mumbling and low-talking his way through his line readings. Looks like that habit of his has carried over into parts of the live show, as this sketch is showing.
— I’m loving Bobby’s over-excited reactions to Bruce’s details in his action movie-like plan.
STARS: **


THE OL’ BARBERSHOP
(host)’s unembellished anecdotes fall flat compared to fellow barbers’

— Very fun performances and delivery from Kenan and Jay, the latter of whom seems to intentionally be doing an impression of Eddie Murphy’s barber character from Coming To America.
— Bruce is wearing a wig that seems to be an intentional replica of his real hairstyle from his previous hosting stint in 1989 (side-by-side comparison below).

   

— The main comedic conceit of this sketch with Bruce’s weird, offbeat stories isn’t bad, but once AGAIN tonight, I am not caring much for Bruce’s delivery. Kenan and Jay’s side characters are amusing me far more than Bruce’s main character is.
— What the hell? Bruce completely fucked up the whole ending. He missed his cue to remove Bobby’s barber cape and started making his exit a little too early, forcing Bobby himself to awkwardly start removing the cape, only for Bruce to finally realize his mistake and come over to help Bobby remove the cape, revealing an orange prison jumpsuit that Bobby’s randomly wearing under the cape. That prison jumpsuit reveal, which was supposed to get a big laugh from the audience, falls completely flat and is met with confused silence from the audience because Bruce screwed up the timing it so damn badly. Then Bruce proceeds to completely botch his timing of his “It was Sheryl Crow” reveal right as he makes his scripted exit, leading to awkward silence before Kenan and Jay keep the ending of the sketch going. Man, Bruce has been a trainwreck-y host tonight so far.
STARS: **


BOY DANCE PARTY
regular guys bust a move when the ladies are away

— Oh, I’m eager to re-watch this right now. I remember this music video being a blast when I last saw it back when it originally aired 7 years ago.
— Yeah, so far, this is absolutely holding up for me. I’m loving this. The catchy music, the visuals, the gags, the performances…everything about this is working for me.
— Great bit with Taran continuing to spray Bobby with silly string while all the men are holding in a frozen pose when Vanessa briefly comes back in the apartment to get her purse.
— The “Shake that sack” part is priceless.
— Even the stiff-in-tonight’s-episode Bruce Willis is coming off silly and loose here, for once tonight. And, if you know me, you’ll know I appreciate Bruce’s Three Stooges reference with him doing Curly’s spinning-around-on the-floor routine at one point.
— A solid yell from Vanessa at the end.
STARS: ****½


THE LADY GAGA SHOW
Lady Gaga (VAB) interviews Michael Kors (host) & Penelope Cruz (KAM)

— Wait, Vanessa as Lady Gaga?!? Ooooookay, unexpected casting there.
— Yeesh. I love Vanessa as much as the next SNL fan, but in this sketch so far, her Lady Gaga impression is NOT working, especially not that voice she’s using, which is all wrong for this role.
— Oh, and it goes without saying how I’m not crazy about seeing yet another display of one of SNL’s laziest, most overrelied-upon crutches: a celebrity-hosted talk show sketch. Now that I think of it, however, it does feel like SNL has thankfully been cutting back on the number of celebrity-hosted talk show sketches the last few seasons prior to this.
— Oh…my…god at that insane, over-the-top, high-pitched, shrieky delivery Bruce is using here, basically playing a caricature of a caricature of a caricature of a gay stereotype. (From what I’ve heard from some other SNL fans, the real Michael Kors, who Bruce is playing in this sketch, sounds NOTHING like this.) It’s almost like Bruce heard my complaint about how stiff most of his performances in this episode have been, and is now overcompensating for that by going the opposite end of the extreme, giving a super over-the-top, animated performance in this sketch. Whatever he’s trying to do here, I can’t say it’s working for me.
— The gag with Kate’s Penelope Cruz mispronouncing shampoo ingredients in her thick accent is just repeating what SNL did the last time Kate’s Penelope Cruz appeared, which was actually in Kate’s very first episode. I enjoyed that Penelope-Cruz-mispronouncing-ingredients gag the first time, especially since it was Kate’s very first big showcase on SNL, but I didn’t need a reprisal of it being questionably shoehorned into this completely unrelated Lady Gaga Show sketch.
— Aidy’s reaction to her Gaga-style makeover is hilarious, and is the only real positive I can find in this bad sketch (aside from a chuckle or two I got from Taran’s DJ character).
STARS: *½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Roar”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Senate chaplain Barry Black (KET) wishes harm on obstructionist Congress

BRW gives the cautionary tales behind his three ill-advised tattoos

— Yeesh, Seth and Cecily’s jokes tonight are pretty awful so far.
— Good performance from Kenan, but I’m not all that crazy about the material in his commentary so far, aside from a laugh I got from the detail of his comment about beating someone with a pillowcase full of Skittles.
— Okay, Kenan’s commentary is getting better as it goes on.
— Speaking of getting better as it goes on, Seth and Cecily’s Update jokes are somewhat improving after a rough first two minutes. I especially liked Seth’s George Clooney joke. Cecily’s general Update delivery, however, still isn’t working much for me, aside from her comically-sleazy delivery during the punchline of her joke about sexual harassment.
— I like the return of the old recurring bit where Seth (and sometimes Amy Poehler, when she was his co-anchor) tell the same Update joke multiple times in a row, with a different punchline each time. Prior to tonight’s episode, Seth hadn’t done this bit in years.
— Cecily, in one of her and Seth’s multiple Jenner divorce jokes: “’It’s sad, but I’m excited to start my new life as a single middle-aged woman’, said Bruce.” The fact that the audience laughs hysterically at that joke just goes to show you how much society and standards have changed in the mere seven years since this episode originally aired.
— Great to see Brooks getting his own Update commentary as himself, especially given how the tradition of cast members doing stand-up-style Update commentaries as themselves had long been abandoned prior to this.
— Brooks is pretty solid here. He’s displaying good self-deprecating humor regarding the dumbness of his tattoos, and he’s coming off likable and relatable. It should’ve become a common occurrence for him to do Update commentaries as himself this season, but we end up only seeing him do one more, and it’s not until towards the end of this season.
STARS: **½


ARMAGEDDON
Kirby goes on about his heroic kitty cat during Armageddon-like mission

— The second and final appearance of Bobby’s Kirby character, a.k.a. the “I miss my little kitty cat” guy.
— Despite only appearing once prior to this, this character of Bobby’s surprisingly gets enthusiastic recognition cheers from the audience as soon as the camera first cuts to him in tonight’s installment.
— Like the last time this character appeared, Bobby has the amazing ability to make this very questionable character and material work for me, despite how unnecessary it feels to do this sketch a second time.
— (*groan*) Yet another instance tonight of Bruce hurting the timing of something by pausing for an awfully long time before delivering one of his lines.
— Also like the last time this character appeared, Kirby’s sudden panicked, emotional outburst when thinking his cat perished is making me laugh (even though it’s just a rehashed gag), though unlike last time, it’s not also making me almost shed a sad tear.
STARS: ***


CENTAURI VODKA
(host) is concerned about the back half of his centaur costume (JOM)

— A very funny brief shot of John Milhiser desperately gasping for air in the one second that Nasim lets his head out of the centaur costume. However, it’s sad that that one-second shot has been the ONLY noteworthy face time John has gotten in a live sketch so far in his SNL tenure. I recall hearing from some people who were familiar with John’s performance style at improv shows that he had a knack for physical comedy, which this sketch is somewhat utilizing, with the jerky, spastic leg movements John’s making in the back of the centaur costume. It’s just too bad his first (of what ends up being only TWO this entire season) noteworthy comedic showcase in a sketch has him hidden from the camera most of the sketch. Also, his chances for doing some good physical comedy in this sketch end up getting cut unexpectedly short, because Bruce…well, you’ll see a little later in this sketch review.
— Hilarious cutaway to Beck as Vin Diesel staring at a wall and then slowly turning his head away from it with a dumb, bewildered look on his face.
— Okay, we need to talk about that ending, folks, because boy, is there an interesting backstory to it. This sketch ends EXTREMELY abruptly and confusingly with Bruce suddenly making a comical exit, dragging John behind him inside the centaur costume, who suddenly goes from making jerky, spastic leg movements (because his character is running out of oxygen) to immediately acting like he’s dead, by making his legs be limp on the floor. As Bruce exits, Nasim comes back into the shot, looks confusedly at the exiting Bruce, then spins around in a lost manner, pauses awkwardly as if she doesn’t know what to do, and then randomly yells “Bruce Jenner…is horrified!” as the camera cuts to an exterior shot of the nightclub this sketch is set in, followed by the audience applauding and the sketch fading to black. Here’s the thing about all of that: the exit that Bruce made was mistakenly WAY TOO EARLY, when he still had minutes of material left to perform in this sketch. In the same John Milhiser interview I previously mentioned in my review of this episode’s Black Ops sketch, John talks about this incident. My memory of what John said is a little fuzzy, and thus, some of the details I’m about to relay might be a little off, but anyway, John explains that Bruce was apparently under the completely wrong impression of when he was supposed to exit this sketch. You see, in the script, after Nasim’s “Bruce Jenner…is horrified!” line, the camera was supposed to cut to Taran as Jenner making a comically horrified face, and then we were supposed to have a few more minutes of material dealing with Bruce (Willis) and John’s characters, with John’s character gradually dying from lack of oxygen, and his legs being seen lifelessly dragging on the floor by the culmination of the sketch (which is why John abruptly makes his legs be limp on the floor during the live version of this sketch’s ending when he realizes Bruce is making his exit way too early). All of that had to get scrapped on the fly because Bruce mistakenly exited the sketch very prematurely. That makes this the SECOND time tonight that Bruce completely fucked up the ending of a sketch. Oh, and you know that part I mentioned from this sketch about Nasim coming back into the shot, looking confusedly at the exiting Bruce, then spinning around in a lost manner, and then pausing awkwardly as if she doesn’t know what to do? She was not acting there, people. That was her GENUINE REACTION to Bruce mistakenly exiting this sketch early. In other words, Bruce botched the ending so badly that it resulted in a true professional like Nasim momentarily dropping character onscreen and physically expressing her genuine confusion (seen in the last above screencap for this sketch) over why the fuck Bruce is exiting the sketch early, leaving Nasim momentarily having no idea what to do next before she decides to go on with her scripted “Bruce Jenner…is horrified!” line that ends up not even getting the intended payoff. Yikes. This whole thing has got to be one of the most (if not THE most) botched sketch endings in SNL history.
— The botched ending of this sketch makes me wonder, did NBC ever re-air this episode? I think I recall hearing they didn’t, but I can’t say for sure. If they didn’t re-air this, I’m assuming it’s because they’re not proud of this episode (backing up that theory of mine is the fact that, according to what I once heard, practically NONE of this episode’s sketches are on YouTube), due to the weak quality of both the episode itself and Bruce’s hosting performance, not to mention all of the gaffes. If they did re-air this, does anyone know if they fixed the botched ending of both this and the Barbershop sketches by showing the dress rehearsal version of those, or did they just leave them unaltered?
STARS: Not even sure I can fairly rate this, given how much of the sketch we missed due to Bruce’s way-too-early exit. If I am supposed to give this a rating, I’ll give it a *½, but I feel bad for that, because if the sketch played out in full like it was supposed to, it most likely would’ve been a pretty good piece that got a decent rating from me.


PROTECTIVE SON
newly-fatherless Eddie mocks his mom’s (VAB) date’s (host) verbal slip-up

— Oh, geez. Look, I could tolerate a sequel to Bobby’s Kirby sketch, but I did NOT need a sequel to Taran’s Eddie sketch, a.k.a. the “glice” sketch, which I was iffy about in its first installment. Man, the writers must’ve been hard up for material this week if they’re resorting to bringing thin-as-hell characters like Kirby and Eddie back. I wonder if SNL intentionally only brings out this Eddie character whenever the show has a bad host (Justin Bieber, Bruce Willis). Well, I guess not, since SNL attempted to do an installment of this sketch when Zach Galifianakis (who is certainly nowhere near being a bad host) hosted the preceding season, but it got cut after dress rehearsal.
— Much like in the Kirby sketch earlier tonight, the audience surprisingly gives Taran’s entrance as Eddie a lot of recognition cheers, despite the fact that he previously only appeared in one sketch.
— “Chun”? That’s not even inherently comical-sounding like “glice” somewhat was. (Neither is “vrest”, for that matter, which was the slip-of-the-tongue word that the aforementioned cut-after-dress Zach Galifianakis installment of this sketch centered around.)
— Bruce, after Taran’s Eddie yells something in his face: “You’re spitting right in my mouth, Eddie.” The way Bruce said that line, I get the feeling it was an ad-lib.
— I like that we actually get continuity from the previous installment of this sketch, by mentioning the father character that Jason Sudeikis previously played, and writing him off in tonight’s installment by explaining he walked out on his family because he was sick of Eddie’s antics.
— Like the last time this sketch appeared, Taran’s doing his damnedest to milk laughs out of this nothing material, but, unlike the last installment of this sketch, there are a lot of moments here where Taran is unfortunately bordering on annoying the living HELL out of me. I know this Eddie character is supposed to be annoying, but he’s supposed to be annoying in a way that makes you laugh. I ain’t laughing. Instead, I’m almost more like how Bruce’s character is unhappily reacting to Eddie.
— Okay, I did get a laugh just now from Eddie tearfully saying Bruce’s character looks like he would take care of him if he were trapped inside a Japanese-named office building.
— Terrible ending.
STARS: *½


SIGMA
fraternity’s beer pong rules value whimsy over getting drunk

— At the very beginning of this, you can hear the SNL Band playing the show to commercial, before abruptly stopping when realizing their mistake. The decision to air this short film in this particular spot of the episode must’ve been made at LITERALLY the last minute (and the SNL Band must not have been notified), presumably because Bruce horribly botching the ending of the Centauri Vodka sketch threw this episode’s schedule out of whack, leaving the people at SNL scrambling to fill the unexpected extra airtime left in the show.
— Glad to see SNL continue to establish Beck and Kyle as SNL’s new short film guys.
— Kyle’s delivery in this is cracking me up so much.
— The convoluted, bizarre beer pong rules are hilarious. I especially love the “custom made baseball cards” one, and the “Chug! Chug! Chug!” bit with the toy train.
— In the preceding episode’s Beck/Kyle short, I praised the fast pacing of the gags within it. Well, that goes double for this, as the gags here come at you at a super rapid-fire speed, and I love that.
STARS: ****½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Walking On Air”


E-METH
Rerun from 9/28/13. The fact that this is airing in the 10-to-1 slot tonight is yet another sign that SNL is scrambling to fill the unexpected extra airtime left in the show from the botched ending of the Centauri Vodka sketch.


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A poor episode, and the two pre-taped shorts were the only standout strong things all night. (Pre-taped shorts being the only standout strong segments in an episode is something I recall sadly going on to be a frequent trait of this season. Hopefully, I’m wrong about that, but we’ll see.) The thing about this episode is that the writing, while definitely bad in certain segments, wasn’t all that bad in some of the things that didn’t work. Some of this episode’s sketches had potential, but were ruined by Bruce Willis’ poor delivery and performances. I remember, earlier in the week this episode originally aired, online SNL fans were nervous about how Bruce would turn out as a host, given his infamous reputation at the time for being completely humorless, grumpy, and difficult to work with on movie sets. While it turns out he occasionally (VERY occasionally) displayed a surprising willingness to get silly and loose in this episode, I did not enjoy him as a host AT ALL in this stint. In addition to the aforementioned two separate instances of him completely fucking up the ending of a sketch, I was also put off by how slow and delayed his timing came off in some sketches (resulting in brief moments of dead air). And in general, I just didn’t find him funny in the slightest. From what I recall of his previous hosting stint in 1989, he wasn’t exactly a laugh riot there either, and I remember I had some issues with his performances in the Wayne’s World and Johnny O’Connor sketches from that episode, and he also made a bad gaffe at one point in the The Man & His Music sketch. However, he certainly didn’t hurt that overall episode anywhere near as much as he did this overall one. It also helped that that 1989 episode didn’t utilize him all that heavily, as there were several live sketches that night that didn’t have him in it, which is something that tonight’s episode would’ve benefited greatly from.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Sigma
Boy Dance Party
24-Hour Energy For Dating Actresses
NASA Shutdown
Armageddon
Weekend Update
Monologue
The Ol’ Barbershop
Black Ops
Centauri Vodka
Protective Son
The Lady Gaga Show


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Miley Cyrus)
a big step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Edward Norton

Posted on

October 5, 2013 – Miley Cyrus (S39 E2)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

VMAS BACKSTAGE
backstage at the 2013 VMAs, host’s new image has former self (VAB) leery

— I don’t like how the typical pointless, unnecessary audience applause that always follows the first line delivered at the beginning of a cold opening (which has become a regular thing for SNL since sometime around the mid-2000s) forced Kenan to awkwardly repeat his “raccoon meat” line to Noel.
— Our obligatory spoof of Miley Cyrus’ VMAs incident. At least this means we’re not getting a political cold opening in this episode.
— Not a bad premise, and at least it’s a way to use Vanessa’s Miley impression without doing another Miley Cyrus Show sketch.
— A decent and well-timed part with both Mileys reciting the exact same speech in unison, which also reminds me of when Calista Flockhart and Rachel Dratch’s Ally McBeal did that in Flockhart’s season 26 monologue.
— Taran’s Robin Thicke, to Miley: “You ready to start grabbin’ at my junk while I half-sing?”
— Comically emotional outbursts from a teary-eyed Bobby never fail to kill.
— Good lines from Jay’s Will Smith.
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
for her SNL gig, host nixes Hannah Montana, twerking, BOM’s wrecking ball

— Pretty much immediately in this monologue, Miley promises no twerking tonight. Hmm, we’ll see.
— Uh…okay at Miley’s point-blank reveal that Hannah Montana was murdered.
— Hilarious cutaway to a shot of Bobby ready to do a Wrecking Ball spoof, only to be told there won’t be one.
— Wow, this monologue is over already? This was seriously only about a minute-and-a-half long. Easily one of the shortest monologues in recent years.
STARS: **½


FIFTY SHADES OF GREY AUDITIONS
screen tests for Fifty Shades Of Grey movie feature unkinky celebrities

— I love Noel’s Emma Stone impression.
— Taran’s Christoph Waltz impression is priceless, made even funnier by the fact that Taran presumably developed this impression from having worked with Waltz for a week earlier this same calendar year (2013) when Waltz hosted SNL. I always like when someone on SNL does an impression of a then-recent host or musical guest.
— Feels odd seeing Beck do a Philip Seymour Hoffman impression, because 1) that was one of the signature impressions of the recently-departed-from-SNL Jason Sudeikis, and 2) Hoffman would sadly end up passing away just a few months after this episode.
— Very strange how Aidy’s Rebel Wilson “impression” features her doing and saying nothing, aside from occasionally muttering half-audible “Yeah…”s. The Kristen Stewart impression that Noel did earlier in this pre-tape also featured her doing and saying nothing, but that was clearly the point of that impression. Aidy’s Rebel Wilson doing and saying nothing just shows that both Aidy and SNL were presumably aware that Aidy must not have been able to do a good Rebel Wilson impression and was seemingly only cast in the role because of her size.
— As usual for SNL’s screen test pre-tapes, this is lots of fun, even if nothing will ever match the Star Wars screen test pre-tapes from 1997.
STARS: ****


GIRLFRIENDS TALK SHOW
hip-hop wannabe (host) draws Kyra’s attention

— I’m not caring at all for Miley’s performance here.
— Geez, only one sketch into tonight’s episode, and Miley ALREADY breaks her promise of “no twerking tonight”.
— As usual, Aidy has the funniest moments here, especially her comments about consoling a divorcee, and the part with her making up a song.
— Another funny “My boyfriend’s crazy” story from Cecily.
STARS: ***


WE DID STOP
John Boehner (TAK) & Michele Bachmann (host) in “We Did Stop” music video

— The first of many music videos in this SNL season.
— Very fun idea to do a topical government shutdown-related spoof of Miley’s “We Can’t Stop”. I’ve never seen the music video for that song of Miley’s, but that’s not hurting my enjoyment of this spoof at all.
— Taran is a riot in his John Boehner performance here. He has an endless amount of funny moments all throughout this music video, and is displaying lots of Will Ferrell-esque fearlessness.
— Lots of fun visuals throughout this.
— Great shot of Jay’s President Obama peeking through the window with a worried look on his face.
STARS: ****


PIERS MORGAN LIVE
many Hillary Clinton biopics are in development

— Taran’s Piers Morgan: “Good evening, I’m Piers Morgan, and if I were in a cartoon, I would be the voice of a fancy hedgehog.”
— Feels odd seeing Nasim’s Arianna Huffington appearing outside of Weekend Update for once. By the way, it’s good to see Nasim getting some noteworthy roles tonight after being almost non-existent in the preceding week’s season premiere.
— Holy hell! I (and I’m sure just about everybody else) completely forgot until now that Beck played Bill Clinton once, early in his SNL tenure. Wow. It feels utterly bizarre seeing a post-1995 episode have anyone other than Darrell Hammond play Bill Clinton. This reminds me of that forgotten-among-SNL-fans one time in 2005 when George Bush Sr. was played by Fred Armisen (doing an actual accurate impression) instead of Dana Carvey.
— Beck’s not doing the best Bill Clinton I’ve ever seen, but man, it’s such an interesting novelty seeing him do this impression.
— An even more noteworthy moment right now, as we get the debut of Kate’s Hillary Clinton impression, though the only reason she’s playing her in this specific sketch is because this sketch has several different women portraying Hillary in separate biopic spoofs. Vanessa is technically still SNL’s regular Hillary impersonator at this point, and would remain so until the following season, where Kate officially takes over the impression.
— I could do without Nasim’s Huffington constantly calling Taran’s Morgan flirty pet names, as it’s just a rehash of when she does that towards Seth in her Weekend Update appearances.
— The concept of having various women portray Hillary Clinton in individually-themed biopic spoofs is pretty fun, and reminds me of how the season 18 Danny DeVito episode had a very fun running theme where, throughout the episode, each female cast member played Amy Fisher in individually-themed TV movie spoofs. I kinda wish these Hillary spoofs were done in the same manner as those Amy Fisher spoofs, with each spoof airing as its own individual sketch in separate parts of the show.
— Good bit at the end regarding Taran-as-Morgan’s accent being fake.
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
host performs “Wrecking Ball”


WEEKEND UPDATE
SEM & CES group government shutdown constituencies into Winners & Losers

Connecticut mom Pat Lynhart (KAM) loves being wild in Grand Theft Auto V

lip-smacking Shannon Sharpe (JAP) gets hyperbolic about NFL happenings

Jacob won’t deviate from script presenting Shabbat origin & light comedy

— Aww, they’re back to using a burgundy color motif for this season’s Update graphics. I preferred the new blue color motif they used in the preceding week’s season premiere. Why’d they change it back to burgundy after only one episode?
— Much like in the preceding episode, I’m still very iffy on Cecily’s general delivery of Update jokes. However, I absolutely loved her sly delivery of “That’s good weed” at the end of her weed-on-the-bus joke.
— Hmm, Cecily getting involved in a Winners/Losers segment, a segment that Seth usually does by himself.
— An overall good Winners/Losers segment tonight, and Cecily surprisingly fit well into it. I wonder why her delivery worked well there, but not so much when telling regular Update jokes.
— Kate is fantastic in this Grand Theft Auto commentary. When this originally aired, I was so wowed by her performance in this. Unfortunately, it would later become rather cliche to see Kate play this type of hardass, which kinda takes away the novelty of this Grand Theft Auto commentary of hers. It’s definitely still working for me, though.
— The goofy voice, constant lip-licking, and general gestures that Jay’s doing as Shannon Sharpe are cracking me up (and, yes, the real Shannon Sharpe’s voice truly does sound like that), and he has some funny lines here.
— I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s a certain something Cecily keeps doing at the end of a lot of her jokes that I dislike.
— Blah, the same-old same-old Jacob routine that, while it worked in his first Update commentary, never changes in his subsequent Update commentaries and gets increasingly old with each passing appearance. And, as I said in my review of the last Jacob commentary prior to tonight’s, I’m starting to really hate the constant (and I mean CONSTANT) gag within every one of his commentaries in which he never responds to Seth’s questions and instead just goes back to reading from his speech.
— Oh, we actually get something different for once in a Jacob commentary, with his endearingly nervous, unsure reaction when meeting Seth’s new co-anchor, Cecily. Although this moment is only brief, it’s a nice change of routine for this Jacob character.
STARS: **½


CHEER SQUAD
during practice, (host) sees fellow cheerleaders abducted by alien (KET)

— A laugh from the “I like to cheer – deal with it, dad!” lyric at the end of Taran’s cheer.
— Aww, the copy I’m currently watching of this episode must be the West Coast airing, as it’s missing a really bad technical error that happened during the live East Coast airing. (My memory of the technical error is fuzzy, but from what I recall, at one certain point of this sketch when the camera was on a close-up of Miley, the camera started glitching, making the screen flicker a green color, which forced SNL’s control room operators to hastily cut to a different camera, which then accidentally revealed an SNL stagehand on the set applying Nasim and Noel’s wires that will be lifting them in the air later in the sketch.) Call me crazy, but I was kinda looking forward to seeing that gaffe again. From what I recall of this sketch, the technical error was the only interesting thing in what was a painfully unfunny sketch.
— So far, I’m not caring at all for where this sketch in general is going, though, contrary to my negative memory of it, this sketch actually has a few amusing lines, mostly from Taran. Not enough to save this sketch, though.
— Now we get an alien appearance? Yeah, this sketch is NOT working for me.
— The whole bit with Kenan’s alien character announcing his demands in the style of a cheerleader-esque cheer is awful.
— A blah ending.
STARS: *½


MORNIN’ MIAMI
anchors (host), (BOM), (KAM) parcel jollity for Mornin’ Miami promo shoot

— A good laugh from the first instance of Miley, Bobby, and Kate following the director saying “Cut” by immediately slamming their coffee mugs down onto the table, dropping their cheery facades, and angrily sitting in miserable silence.
— The promos are increasingly hilarious and random, particularly the ones that Kate’s doing, as her delivery of them is great.
— Despite the constant repetition of the aforementioned gag with Miley, Bobby, and Kate sitting in miserable silence in between promos, it works as an amusing contrast to their cheery attitudes during their bizarre promos.
— During one of the “sitting in miserable silence” sequences, I love Bobby immediately cutting off Kate’s singing of “I’ll Stand By You” by telling her “Oh, shut it!”
— A particular funny promo from Kate about a racist foley artist
— Hilarious ending reveal of Bobby’s character’s “B.F.” nickname standing for Bitch Fantastic.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
host performs “We Can’t Stop”


POETRY CLASS
Miss Meadows (VAB) tries fueling high schoolers’ interest in poetry

— Good delivery from Mike on his “I have a job interview, thank Christ” line.
— Funny little mumbling Vanessa’s lightly doing at the end of her sentences. Not sure what to make of that loud, sharp sound she occasionally makes, though.
— Okay, I’m starting to find Vanessa’s odd characterization in general here to be cute and likable, even the aforementioned loud, sharp sound she occasionally makes.
— Some laughs from Kenan’s “Where my weed at?” poem.
STARS: ***


MILEY SEX TAPE
KYM’s unfounded hesitancy costs him perfect girlfriend host

— Ah, our very first Beck/Kyle short!
— I wonder if it’s intentional to have Bobby basically be a Nick Rutherford (the Good Neighbor member who SNL initially didn’t hire with his partners Beck and Kyle) surrogate here, given the fact that, at this early stage of their SNL tenures, Beck and Kyle were probably still so used to having Rutherford teamed up with them. I also wonder if they put Bobby in this role because they figured having a recognizable cast member like Bobby in a co-starring would help this inaugural SNL short of theirs make it on the air.
— This inaugural Beck/Kyle SNL short is displaying the usual quirky and fun brand of Good Neighbor-style humor, and I really like the fast-pacing of the gags in this. A pretty solid way to introduce Beck and Kyle’s humor to general SNL audiences.
STARS: ****


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Although not as strong as the season premiere, this was a pretty good episode, and had a few great highs. I wasn’t too thrilled with Miley Cyrus’ performance as a host in this episode. There was too much of a same-iness to some of the obnoxious roles she played, and I felt she both came off more likable and blended in with the show better in her previous hosting stint.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
We Did Stop
Mornin’ Miami
Fifty Shades Of Grey Auditions
Miley Sex Tape
Piers Morgan Live
VMAs Backstage
Girlfriends Talk Show
Poetry Class
Weekend Update
Monologue
Cheer Squad


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Tina Fey)
a step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Former one-time host Bruce Willis makes his return 24 years after his previous hosting stint

Posted on

September 28, 2013 – Tina Fey / Arcade Fire (S39 E1)

(Before you read this review, please read this message I recently posted regarding the comments section of this site if you haven’t already. Thank you.)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) helps Barack Obama (JAP) promote Obamacare

— Great bit from Aidy.
— New cast member Beck Bennett gets the somewhat rare honor of appearing in his first episode before being announced in the episode’s opening montage.
— Hilarious lines from Bobby regarding his good-for-nothing son, played by Beck.
— A funny topical spoof of Ted Cruz’s then-recent Green Eggs & Ham speech.
— Lots of funny walk-ons from the cast all throughout this. This feels like an even more fun variation of the Obama sequester press conference cold opening from the preceding season’s Kevin Hart episode.
— Now we get a solid appearance from Aaron Paul as his Breaking Bad character, just one day before the highly-anticipated Breaking Bad series finale.
STARS: ***½


OPENING MONTAGE
— Same montage from the preceding season.
— After I had gotten so used to Fred Armisen being the first-announced cast member in every single opening montage since season 30, it feels unusual seeing anyone else now be the first-announced cast member.
— Aidy Bryant, Kate McKinnon, and Cecily Strong have been promoted from featured players to repertory players. Aidy and Cecily’s promotions are particularly noteworthy, because they were promoted after only one season as featured players, which has been a rarity since the early 2000s.
— The photo of Cecily from the preceding season’s opening montage (first screencap below) has now been changed to a new photo (second screencap below).

— Beck Bennett, John Milhiser, Kyle Mooney, Mike O’Brien, Noel Wells, and Brooks Wheelan have all been added to the cast tonight, in the largest simultaneous influx of new cast members that the beginning of an SNL season has experienced since the big overhaul the show went through in 1995.


MONOLOGUE
TIF hazes new cast members BEB, JOM, KYM, MOB, NOW, BRW via dance routine

— I love the tongue-in-cheek bit regarding Tina Fey’s non-existent recurring characters.
— When talking about SNL’s hiring of six new cast members, Tina notably calls this a “rebuilding year”. Hmm. Interesting hearing that in hindsight, now being aware of how this season goes and how SNL’s original intention to transition into a new era that heavily features these six newbies sadly ends up not going the way SNL fans at the time hoped and assumed it would.
— I absolutely love that this monologue is focusing on the new cast members.
— Pretty fun seeing old clips of Tina and her female castmates doing humiliating dances in hosts’ monologues back in the early 2000s, as well as a bonus clip of Will Ferrell tap-dancing in Katie Holmes’ season 26 monologue. Interestingly, the Bernie Mac clip (the seventh above screencap for this monologue) clearly does not come from the aired version of that episode. I went into much more detail about this in my review of Bernie Mac’s monologue, seen here.
— Even though I’m aware it really rubs some SNL fans the wrong way, I’m enjoying the dumb dances Tina’s making the six new cast members do, and I personally feel that both Tina and SNL mean well in their good-natured “humiliating” and “hazing” of the newbies. I do have to admit, though, the fact that almost all of these newbies would end up getting severely underused over the course of this season and then get fired after the season sadly casts a pall over this monologue in hindsight for me, and makes it not hold up quite as well for me. A shame, given the fact that I remember absolutely loving this monologue when it originally aired, as I obviously wasn’t aware back then of how the newbies’ SNL tenures would turn out. I remember this monologue gave me so much hope for them.
— Some great moves from Beck.
— Tina, after the newbies’ dance number: “Congratulations, you’re done for the night.” Oh, Tina, you have no idea idea how true that statement would turn out to be in subsequent episodes this season, regarding the extreme under-utilization the newbies will find themselves facing, and how they’ll indeed be “done for the night” in each episode after doing very little in it.
STARS: ***


GIRLS
Albanian (TIF) rebuffs First World problems of Hannah (NOW) & other Girls

— I’ve never watched Girls, but I’m familiar enough with Lena Dunham’s voice to find Noel Wells’ impression of her to be pretty spot-on and fun, and the other female cast members are also fun in their performances as Girls characters. Given how, when it was initially announced Noel was joining SNL, some SNL fans who were familiar with her pre-SNL online work heavily hyped her skills as a celebrity impressionist, it’s nice to see Noel immediately getting a showcase for her impression skills tonight.
— Making this already-fun Girls spoof even better is the added-in Albanian character played by Tina, who’s absolutely perfect in this role.
— I got a particularly good laugh from Tina asking if she can eat the donut from Vanessa’s character’s head, referring to the odd-looking bun her hair is in.
STARS: ****


AIRPORT
(TAK) & (TIF) give special passengers priority during airplane boarding

— Love the “children traveling with small parents” bit, getting good mileage out of the huge size difference between John Milhiser and Brooks Wheelan.
— Very fun structure to this sketch, with lots of very amusing quick walk-ons from various cast members, much like the cold opening.
— Bobby’s mere facial expression as the “farter” is a riot; the kind of gag he’s always perfect at selling.
STARS: ****


NEW CAST MEMBER OR ARCADE FIRE?
KYM, NOW, MOB mistaken for musical guest

— Wow, yet ANOTHER segment tonight focused on the group of new cast members.
— Despite the fact that I’m aware of the fate that this season’s newbies would sadly end up suffering after tonight’s episode, I still absolutely love the meta concept of this game show sketch.
— A rarity at the time for Kenan to play a game show host, which is obviously being done tonight in light of Bill Hader’s departure. Game show host would end up becoming a fairly frequent role for Kenan after this.
— Was Kyle Mooney supposed to initially walk in the wrong direction when making his exit, or was that a real gaffe? I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the latter, remembering how green Kyle comes off as a live performer in this first season of his.
— Nasim makes her second of only two measly appearances tonight, both of them being extremely brief walk-ons that you’d be forgiven for completely missing because you blinked. In her walk-on in this particular sketch, she doesn’t even have any lines, and in the sketch she did have a line in during her walk-on (the Airport sketch), it was just her mumbling foreign gibberish.
— I admit to laughing at Kenan always scolding the newbies whenever any of them they try to say something or do a funny bit of business without having earned that right (as Kenan claims), even though, again, that pall that I mentioned in the monologue is looming.
— I love Tina’s various descriptions of Win Butler’s look, including “hipster Paul Bunyan” and “Civil War re-enactor.”
— When Kenan mentioned that a friend of Tina’s will be brought in as her lifeline, I was worried it would turn out to be YET ANOTHER Amy Poehler cameo, but thankfully, it’s just Lorne.
— A good laugh from Lorne guessing that, out of Win Butler and Mike O’Brien, the new cast member is actually “the black one”, Kenan, which leaves Kenan utterly shocked and upset.
— Kenan: “Well, the show is over.” Tina: “Oh, do I win anything?” Kenan: “Don’t you have enough?!?”
STARS: ****


E-METH
electronic pipe delivers methamphetamine but not social acceptance

— Funny concept.
— I love the visual of Kate laying in a bathtub in the middle of the road.
— Priceless bit with Taran casually yanking out one of his teeth to show us how perfectly white it is.
— Hilarious scene with Kenan chasing a half-naked Brooks Wheelan all around the living room.
— Solid ending appearance from Aaron Paul once again playing his Jesse Pinkman role.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Reflektor”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Weekend Update veteran TIF gives tips to new newsreader CES

hacky veteran stand-up Bruce Chandling (KYM) plies well-worn material

Drunk Uncle bewails back-to-school season with Meth Nephew (Aaron Paul)

— Cecily has become the new co-anchor to the on-his-way-out Seth, as an attempt to transition into a new Cecily Strong-led era of Update, an attempt that, as we know now, ends up going about as well as this general season’s aforementioned attempt at a “rebuilding” year.
— After the previous Update opening title sequence & theme song was used for so many years (2006-2013), it feels refreshing to finally get a new one.
— Even the color motif of the Update graphics is different this season, now being blue instead of burgundy.
— Boy, as I expected, it feels so odd seeing someone new delivering Update jokes after I had gotten so used to Seth doing that for so many endless seasons.
— I have very mixed feelings towards Cecily’s delivery of Update jokes so far. There’s somewhat of a straitlaced professionalism to her Update delivery that feels natural for this venue, but there’s also something in her delivery that feels wrong for Update.
— A good laugh from Tina sheepishly wheeling back out of the shot when the female Update anchor who she assumed Cecily was about to praise as an inspiration turns out to be Jane Curtin instead of her.
— Pretty solid bit with the very tense, prisoner-esque advice Tina gives to Cecily in regards to anchoring Update.
— Blah, I didn’t like Cecily’s big smile after her somewhat-cringey sushi joke. That smile also reminded me way too much of how annoyingly, over-the-top cutesy Amy Poehler came off in her very first Update.
— Seth and Cecily’s respective delivery styles of their Update jokes aren’t meshing together well. Part of that could be because, obviously, 1) you have a very established anchor who’s delivery style we had become accustomed to for years now being paired with the delivery style of a brand-new Update co-anchor who had displayed no prior on-air chemistry with the established anchor, and 2) this is only Cecily’s first Update, and thus, it’s understandable that things aren’t immediately meshing. I’d be more forgiving of that lack of immediate meshing if I knew Cecily would eventually grow into a solid and long-lasting anchor, but that doesn’t turn out to be the case at all.
— Great to see Kyle Mooney already getting his own Update piece, doing his Bruce Chandling character from his pre-SNL days.
— Fun performance from Kyle, and his intentionally bad, hacky stand-up comedy here is reminiscent of how strong early-era Fred Armisen used to be at pulling off anti-comedy pieces on Update (before he made that stale).
— Solid turn with Kyle’s Bruce Chandling suddenly getting depressed when reflecting on how he occasionally gets turned down after certain auditions. Actual character depth on display here, which feels rare for a recent SNL era like this.
— I actually really like Cecily’s performance during the O.J. Simpson bit she and Seth did together just now, especially her delivery of the line “You stay strong, Juice.”
— I howled at Drunk Uncle’s “Someone’s gotta watch the white sports, Seth” line.
— With Drunk Uncle’s memorable “They’re all just twerkin’ 9 to 5” line, SNL gets in their very first mention of “twerking”, the then-hot word that had recently become widespread thanks to, IIRC, Miley Cyrus’ infamous VMAs performance that summer.
— Drunk Uncle: “(singing) Bluurrred liiiiines. (speaking) The only blurred line *I* know is our border with Meh-hee-co [Mexico].”
— Yet ANOTHER fun appearance from Aaron Paul tonight, this time as Drunk Uncle’s Meth Nephew.
STARS: **½


CINEMA CLASSICS
clips from 1940 movie reveal influence of taxidermist

— The debut of both Cinema Classics and Kenan’s Reese De’What character.
— Kenan has noticeably been given quite a number of important utility roles tonight, obviously because of the departure of utility veterans Bill Hader and Jason Sudeikis. With the way Kenan’s been utilized in tonight’s episode, SNL is immediately making it clear who they’ll now be leaning on as the new utility player of the show.
— Dumb conceit with all of the taxidermy animals slowly taking over the movie scenes, but this dumbness is actually kinda working for me.
— The visual of a taxidermy animal driving the car that Tina, Taran, and Aidy are in is making me laugh more than I ever would’ve expected.
— Kenan is very solid here, especially the occasional comments that his Reese De’What character is making about his wife’s weight.
STARS: ***


RICK’S MODEL T’S
(MOB) & mad wife (TIF) sell Model Ts in world’s first used-car commercial

— The second consecutive sketch tonight set in an older time period.
— Mike: “Lots of firsts here today, folks.” Throwing in some reality subtext, are we, SNL?
— Hmm, not too sure Mike’s delivery is working me. And I’m not finding the old-timey salesman delivery he’s attempting to be very convincing.
— I do at least like the running bit with Mike excitedly only listing off one thing when touting his car dealership (e.g. “This car’s got everything: seats………….!”)
— Tina’s demented one-liners are great.
— Yeah, the more and more this sketch is going on, the more and more Mike’s delivery is sounding awkward. There’s this slow, unsure, halting style to his line readings that keeps kinda taking me out of the sketch. Our first sign of how ill-fitting Mike would often come off as a live performer this season. This sketch is still pretty enjoyable, but this solid material isn’t coming off as strong as it would’ve under a performer more comfortable-seeming on live TV. For example, Bill Hader, given how fantastic he always is at playing old-timey roles, would’ve absolutely killed it in this role of Mike’s had this sketch been done when Bill was still a cast member.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Afterlife”


MANOLO BLAHNIK
(TIF) & vacuous ex-porn stars endorse Manolo Blahnik shoes

— Feels a little odd seeing this recurring sketch appearing in two consecutive episodes. Granted, there was a whole summer break in between the preceding episode and this episode, but since I watch these episodes in chronological order on a day-to-day basis, it feels like SNL literally just did this sketch.
— Cecily: “You’ll feel like you’re riding in a glass blumpkin.”
— I love Vanessa’ delivery of “What the heck???” when telling us the reaction she once had to finding out her butt was amputated.
— Cecily: “I thought I got banged into a solar eclipse. But I was really just locked in a trunk lookin’ through the keyhole.”
— Vanessa, regarding getting banged by rapping gerbils in the back of a Kia: “I think some of them were people. Ya live and ya learn.”
— Tina, at the end of her message to her 8th grade gym teacher: “P.S.: I saw you on House Hunters, you picked the wrong house, bitch.”
— How did they go through this entire sketch WITHOUT having one of the “Manolo Blahnik” mispronunciations be “Mayim Bialik”? It writes itself, people!
— Overall, while this was still solid, this wasn’t quite as strong as these sketches usually are. This had a slow first minute-and-a-half or so.
STARS: ****


GOODNIGHTS

— Tina mentions that the network is letting them go long and Arcade Fire is about to do a show. Indeed, an Arcade Fire special (which, IIRC, was kinda like a concert, plus some interspersed comedy segments starring famous comedians like Zach Galifianakis and Aziz Ansari) immediately followed the original airing of this episode. Reruns of this SNL episode show the dress rehearsal version of these goodnights, because it features no mention from Tina of the Arcade Fire special, which reruns of this SNL episode obviously aren’t followed by.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A very solid and promising season premiere. Aside from Weekend Update, I liked every segment in this episode, and gave out a lot of four-star ratings, especially in the pre-Update half of the show. I remember how, when this originally aired, seeing so many new cast members peppered all throughout this season premiere gave the show such an exciting, fresh feel. Very sad how that ends up being a huge misnomer for how the rest of this season goes for the newbies. The strength of this episode in general also ends up being a huge misnomer for this season, as I recall this season going on to be dull and bland, with little-to-no standout strong episodes besides the one I just reviewed. We’ll see if that opinion of mine changes on my re-watch of this season.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Airport
Girls
e-meth
New Cast Member Or Arcade Fire?
Manolo Blahnik
Affordable Care Act
Rick’s Model T’s
Cinema Classics
Monologue
Weekend Update


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING SEASON (2012-13)
about the same


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Miley Cyrus

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The comments section of this site

It has recently been brought to my attention that some long-time readers of this blog have been put off by how the comments section of my reviews has been taking a bit of a toxic turn lately, mainly in the bullying of commenter Jody and the complaints about commenter SNLLover’s negative SNL-related opinions. It’s time for me to step in.

I’m only going to say all of this one time.

Be more respectful and civil in the comments you leave, everyone. I know that Jody’s comments can be a struggle to get through, but Jody means well and, at the end of the day, their comments aren’t hurting anyone. From what I’ve seen of some SNL boards Jody has posted in, they can’t help posting in that distinctive style. If you have problems with Jody’s comments, either keep it to yourself or just don’t read their comments. Another issue with the bullying towards Jody in the comments section is the fact that a certain commenter (I won’t reveal your identity) has been leaving a few messages lately under the username “Jodie”, imitating Jody’s usual commenting style in a mocking manner. I’ve just now deleted all of those “Jodie” comments.

Regarding the increasingly negative tone in SNLLover’s comments lately, in addition to how I want the complaints about and mocking of SNLLover to stop, I also want SNLLover to ease up on the negativity and try more often to tell us what you actually LIKED (if anything) about whatever episode you’re commenting on. (To your credit, SNLLover, you have done that in comments you’ve made these past few weeks in older episodes that I’ve reviewed months or years back. The negativity of yours that I’m addressing is in regards to the newer episodes I’ve reviewed.) You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, SNLLover, but commenting only to point out what you hated in each episode gets unpleasant to read after a while. I’m also aware there are some readers who have a hunch that some of SNLLover’s comments as of late have been posted by an impostor trying to mock SNLLover’s negativity, similar to the Jody/”Jodie” thing mentioned earlier. I admit, I myself initially wondered the same thing when I read SNLLover’s comment about Darrell’s House from the Zach Galifianakis episode I recently reviewed, as something about the writing of that comment seemed fishy. However, I’ve checked IP addresses and such, and that comment is from the real SNLLover. Oh, and let it be known: from here on out, any commenter who leaves a message that’s posing as another regular commenter in order to mock them will be banned.

I just want the comments section of this site to be civil, fun, and welcoming, which it certainly used to be, and certainly still is to an extent. Good-natured debating between commenters on SNL-related opinions is absolutely fine, but any outright hostility from one commenter towards another will no longer be tolerated. And if a new commenter shows up intentionally trolling the site, do NOT respond to that commenter. *I* will handle them.

Again, I will not be saying any of the above a second time. If any of the problems I addressed continue, I will be deleting the offending comments.

Posted on

May 18, 2013 – Ben Affleck / Kanye West (S38 E21)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

POLITICS NATION WITH AL SHARPTON
Al Sharpton (KET) explores the IRS targeting scandal

— The usual decent laughs from Kenan-as-Al-Sharpton’s constant mispronunciations.
— Funny bit with the Senator McConnell/Matthew McConaughey confusion.
— I love Kenan’s delivery of “They ain’t gonna Wesley Snipes me!”
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
host rephrases his Oscar acceptance speech nod to Jennifer Garner [real]

— Good bit with Ben Affleck mentioning how excited he is to have become a Five-Timer after seeing the big induction that Justin Timberlake was recently given into the Five-Timers Club, only for Ben’s induction to turn out to be an unceremonious one involving Bobby.
— Bobby doing his usual solid work. I especially like him being forced to make up a Five-Timers Club song after he assumed Ben would say no to his offer to sing one.
— Boy, this comical fake tension between Ben and Jennifer Garner in regards to their marriage has aged poorly, for obvious reasons.
STARS: **½


HBO FIRST LOOK
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (FRA) spites host with anti-Argo film

— A worrying beginning to this sketch, with it being yet ANOTHER translator bit, but thankfully, this sketch goes a completely different route after that beginning.
— An absolutely hilarious title of Fred-as-Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad’s Argo retaliation film: “Bengo F#*@ Yourself”.
— Very funny how Fred’s Mahmoud always quietly precedes each of his lines with “Pahk the cah in Havahd Yahd” in order to keep up the Boston accent he’s doing.
— I love the meta reference with one of the lines Fred’s Mahmoud says in a Boston accent being a random “You ah!”, ala SNL’s Boston Teens characters.
— Funny ironic twist with Ben himself playing the sound man in this anti-Argo movie.
— As usual whenever he hosts, Ben has the ability to make his habit of breaking during sketches come off charming instead of annoying.
— Also as usual whenever he hosts, Ben gives us a great display of self-deprecation, this time with his killer line about agreeing to appear in this anti-Argo film because he’s been looking to appear in a movie worse than Gigli.
— Overall, a very solid sketch, and is very welcome and much-needed in this final episode of Fred’s, given how bad he’s generally been these past few seasons. He was great in this sketch.
STARS: ****


XANAX FOR GAY SUMMER WEDDINGS
Xanax combats feelings of inadequacy produced by gay summer weddings

 

— Mixed feelings on this premise, given SNL’s general crutch for relying on gay humor for cheap laughs.
— Some funny lines and visuals during Bill’s testimonial.
— Good bit with Cecily regarding the outlandish, overly generous gifts she once received at a gay wedding.
— Turns out this commercial is actually having a lot of pretty funny moments all throughout. Not bad at all, given my initial worries.
STARS: ***½


DEPRESSION SCENE
during the Great Depression, (BIH) spurns (host)’s offer of honest work

— Our final display during Bill’s cast tenure of his great knack for perfectly playing old-timey roles. And I love how the voice he’s using in this particular sketch is very different from the ones we’ve heard him use in other sketches set around this time period.
— A funny and cute touch with Kate’s character imitating Bill’s gestures during his spiel.
— Good reveal of Kate’s seemingly-child character actually being a 40-year-old hooker with a gravelly voice.
— Very funny bit at the end.
STARS: ****


GAY CAMP
(host)’s summer camp is going to fail to turn gay teens straight

— Another gay-themed segment tonight, just mere minutes after that Xanax commercial???
— At least Ben’s fun as always here as the camp leader.
— I like Vanessa’s smiley-but-uncomfortable delivery of “Um, church. I’m always at church.”
— Funny cutaway to Jay.
— Overall, despite the above-mentioned high points, I didn’t care for this sketch as a whole. Definitely the lesser of the two gay-themed segments that have aired in this episode so far.
STARS: **


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Black Skinhead”


WEEKEND UPDATE
incredulous SEM & AMP say “Really!?!” to the IRS & groups it scrutinizes

SEM stops Stefon from wedding Anderson Cooper [real] a la The Graduate

recurring Weekend Update guests welcome SEM & Stefon back to the studio

— The final Weekend Update with Seth as a solo anchor.
— A sudden appearance from Amy Poehler, showing up to do another “Really!?!” segment.
— I think this ends up being the final “Really!?!” segment on SNL. I don’t recall Seth doing it the following season (his final season) with his new co-anchor, Cecily.
— Further proving that “Really!?!” is past its expiration date, a lot of Seth and Amy’s quips in tonight’s edition feel tepid, though there are still a few okay lines, and we also get a bit of the usual fun interplay between Seth and Amy.
— Much like the last time Amy cameod on Update (in the preceding season’s Maya Rudolph episode), they follow the “Really!?!” segment by doing a comedic segue with Seth “making” Amy stick around to tell Update jokes with him. It’s very odd how I had absolutely no memory of Amy being in this episode’s Update. I guess I was wrong when I said earlier that this is the final Update with Seth as a solo anchor. I mean, it’s still the final official Update during the solo Seth years, but the preceding episode’s Update is the final one where Seth doesn’t receive any assistance at all in anchoring Update.
— Hmm, Amy’s jokes tonight are pretty bad, even worse than Seth’s usual mild, bland jokes.
— Given the fact that this is Bill’s final episode, we get particularly WILD cheers from the audience while Seth is in the middle of introducing Stefon’s commentary.
— I love Stefon’s jealous reaction when seeing Amy with Seth.
— As always, great lines during Stefon’s usual routine. I especially love the Phil Jackson bit regarding the password of one of the clubs.
— Ooh, a very different turn in this Stefon commentary, with him suddenly telling off Seth and leaving in a huff without even finishing his Update commentary. The heartbroken audience reaction to that is pretty fascinating, and shows you the heights that Stefon’s popularity with viewers has reached over the years.
— Love the bit with Amy telling a distracted-after-Stefon’s-exit Seth a mock-dramatic “Go to him.”
— Oh, hell yes! Now we get an even more exciting turn with a pre-tape when Seth exits 30 Rock in search of Stefon.
— Great reveal that Stefon is getting married to Anderson Cooper.
— Ohho, I absolutely LOVE the detail of all the wedding guests being characters that were mentioned by Stefon in his previous Upate commentaries. Having all of those characters actually appear in this is absolutely excellent commitment.
— Speaking of excellent commitment, we even get a shot of Ben reprising his role as Stefon’s brother, as a great callback to the often-forgotten sketch that Stefon made his debut in.
— So fun how, when a now-married Stefon and Seth return to the SNL studio, various Update characters and impressions from the cast are standing at the Update set, throwing rice towards Stefon and Seth.
— Overall, wow, wow, WOW. That whole Stefon finale was absolutely INCREDIBLE. Just…what else can you say about it? One of the most epic things SNL has ever done, and this offered such perfect closure for Stefon as a character, as well as the story arc between him and Seth.
— The ending of tonight’s Stefon bit, coupled with the fact that Seth’s former co-anchor (Amy) was there tonight, honestly made it feel like this should’ve been Seth’s final Update. I know this was only intended as a send-off to Stefon/Bill, but it also would’ve given perfect closure to the Seth Meyers era of Update. Too bad I still have another half-season of him at the desk.
STARS: **** (Yes, the whole Stefon bit is the only reason this Update as a whole is getting such a high rating, and no, I’m not giving it an even higher rating than that. All of the non-Stefon portions of this Update were WAY too meh for me to fairly give this Update as a whole anything higher than four stars, and even those four stars are generous.)


GREG’S FUNERAL
poorly-disguised (host) attends his own funeral & rebuts anti-eulogies

— Funny conceit with Ben being in disguise at his own funeral, and trying to talk himself up to the funeral attendees.
— Ben’s delivery in that accent is hilarious-sounding, especially whenever he gets angry.
— Taran, regarding his skepticism over his father really being dead: “When I call his cellphone, he picks up and says ‘Oops!’”
— Another funny cutaway to Jay tonight (which happen to be the only things he gets to do in this episode).
STARS: ***½


HERMÈS HANDBAGS
(host) & vacuous ex-porn stars endorse Hermes Handbags

— One of the only (if not THE only) times this recurring sketch has ever aired before the 10-to-1 slot. On a similar note, contrary to popular belief, Kate’s Last Call sketches don’t always air in the 10-to-1 slot either (e.g. the season 42 Dave Chappelle episode).
— Vanessa: “You’ll feel like you’re spinning on a golden wiener.”
— Cecily: “You’ll feel like you’ve discovered a whole new world like Christopher Cumbus.”
— Cecily: “One time, I thought I banged E.T., but it was just an old Chinese man on a bike.”
— Cecily: “One time, I got banged through a glass ceiling. I changed everything for women. Turns out I’m a feminist. Thanks, Hermans!”
— Vanessa: “One of my eyes doesn’t work. It got sucked out by a butt.”
— Ben: “My pants should say Snickers on ’em. ‘Cuz they’re packed full of nuts and they always satisfy.”
— The whole herpes bit from Ben is hilarious.
— Ben: “Give that little girl what she really wants.” Vanessa and Cecily, intending to say the same answer in unison: “Hermans.” “Your whole hand in.”
— Overall, one of the absolute best installments of this reliable recurring sketch. Absolutely every single thing here clicked for me.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “New Slaves”


COP FAMILY
at her engagement party, (NAP)’s cop relatives keep emotions in check

— I absolutely love the cop voice Bill’s using.
— Some good laughs from all of the cops’ choked-up actions while having a hard time simultaneously expressing their emotions and maintaining their manliness.
— Taran’s trying-not-to-cry-while-speaking voice is hilarious.
— Good ending with the cops’ tearful, somber group singing of the “Bad Boys” theme song from Cops.
STARS: ***½


IT’S A LOVELY DAY
Ian Rubbish & The Bizzaros perform “It’s A Lovely Day”

Carrie Brownstein, Steve Jones, Kim Gordon, Aimee Mann, J. Mascis, Michael Penn [real] join Ian onstage

— Ah, Fred’s special farewell piece.
— You can tell from the abrupt way this sketch began (hell, it’s so abrupt that Taran is completely missing from the his place onstage at the beginning and doesn’t show up until about 10 seconds into this sketch, presumably due to not being able to get into costume fast enough) that SNL’s trying to squeeze this sketch in before the show runs long. I recall hearing that at dress rehearsal, this Ian Rubbish bit was presented as being a performance on Top Of The Pops, with Ben playing the host of that show, but the whole Top Of The Pops framing seemingly had to be cut from the live version of this sketch for time reasons.
— Jason has been added as a member of Ian Rubbish’s band, after not being part of that band in the previous Ian Rubbish piece from earlier this season. I remember a lot of SNL fans at the time, including myself, took Jason’s inclusion in this sketch as a sign that he’s leaving with Fred and Bill (one SNL fan also jokingly[?] asked, “Wait, so Taran’s leaving, too? After only three seasons?”, since Taran’s onstage with Fred, Bill, and Jason as part of the band). Fred and Bill both confirmed their departures a few days before this episode originally aired, but we knew nothing about whether Jason was leaving or not. He would confirm his departure several months later, after constantly telling people “I’m up in the air” in regards to whether he’s coming back to SNL or not. Before the confirmation of his departure, when SNL fans were speculating if he went out the door with Fred and Bill, a lot of fans were upset that he didn’t get an individual send-off piece in this episode like Bill and Fred separately got.
— A written message can be seen on Fred’s guitar strap, which states “TY LM I ❤ U” (seen in the second above screencap for this sketch), a great sign of appreciation from Fred to Lorne.
— During his opening speech, Fred’s Ian Rubbish poignantly mentions it’s his and his band’s last night here, and Bill’s character then mentions in a very somber and sincere manner that they’re still going to play together. Really nice reality subtext there, given Fred and Bill’s departures. You can tell that, even though those lines were delivered in character, the emotion in Fred and Bill’s delivery was 100% natural.
— A great and very special touch with the “friends” who Ian Rubbish brings up onstage to perform with him and his band. Knowing Fred’s real-life music tastes, I’m sure it means a lot to him having cameos from all these rockers in his final episode.
— A very solid, feel-good song for Fred to go out with. And I’m so glad that he’s had the lead role in TWO strong segments tonight (the HBO First Look sketch and this), as well as some good little moments in the Cop Family sketch. Considering all of the annoying recurring stuff of Fred’s that SNL could’ve bombarded us with in this final episode of his, it’s a relief that Fred instead kept away from the established recurring stuff, as well as any other annoying roles. With his strong showing tonight, and some other good things he’s done within the last handful of episodes, it feels nice to be reminded of how solid Fred can actually be, after how badly these later seasons of his SNL tenure soured me on him. Given how much I actually used to love him as a cast member in the first half of his SNL tenure (he and Will Forte were my top two favorite current cast members for most of the 2000s) before things soured, I’m glad he’s actually going out on a high note with this episode.
— I love how, after the performance has ended, the camera pulls back from this sketch’s set and shows a wider shot of the studio, which they rarely, if ever, do anymore at this point of the show’s run.
STARS: ****


GOODNIGHTS

— At one point in the middle of these goodnights, we get a shot of Fred, Bill, and Jason all hugging each other very tightly while fighting back tears (the last above screencap for these goodnights), which is a very poignant shot in retrospect, given how this ends up being the final episode for those three performers, and, as I mentioned earlier, neither SNL nor Jason himself knew for sure at the time if Jason was leaving or not.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A solid season finale. A lot of good stuff, some special things, and a phenomenal centerpiece with the Stefon’s Farewell segment. Ben Affleck was as strong as he always is as a host. Keeping in an odd tradition this season in which well-loved multiple-time hosts abruptly stop hosting after this season (e.g. Anne Hathaway, Justin Timberlake, Zach Galifianakis), this sadly ends up being Ben Affleck’s final hosting stint.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
the Stefon’s Farewell portion of Weekend Update
Hermès Handbags
HBO First Look
It’s A Lovely Day
Depression Scene
Greg’s Funeral
Cop Family
Xanax For Gay Summer Weddings
Politics Nation with Al Sharpton
Monologue
the rest of Weekend Update
Gay Camp


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Kristen Wiig)
a big step up


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS ENTIRE SEASON, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS OVERALL SEASON STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING SEASON (2011-12)
a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Season 39 begins, with host Tina Fey. We start out with a whopping six(!) new cast members, and a new co-anchor joining Seth Meyers on Weekend Update.

Posted on

May 11, 2013 – Kristen Wiig / Vampire Weekend (S38 E20)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

BENGHAZI HEARINGS
Jodi Arias (NAP) testifies at Benghazi hearings as a ratings stunt

— A fairly amusing concept of having Jodi Arias testify at the Benghazi hearings.
— Wait, what the hell? Why are the names that are displayed for the representatives on their respective desk nameplates completely different from 1) the names that Bill refers to them as, and 2) the names that are displayed for them respectively on a chyron on the bottom of the screen?
— I got a pretty good laugh from the lack of an answer when Nasim’s Jodi Arias asks why they’re holding these Benghazi hearings if we already know who the culprit of the Benghazi attack was.
— Nasim-as-Arias’ “You and the jury” line was kinda funny, but I didn’t find it to be anywhere near as clever as SNL wanted me to.
— I remember some online SNL fans considering it ballsy for SNL to spoof Ariel Castro. Too bad what SNL does with it here is absolutely nothing to write home about.
— What the fuck?!? Why in the world does Bill refer to Bobby’s Ariel Castro as “Mr. Ramsey”?!? Man, what is HAPPENING to this cold opening?
— Overall, aside from a laugh here and there, this cold opening didn’t work, the various attempts at topical satire felt tepid, and things were way too sloppy with the aforementioned confusing gaffes. Felt like this was thrown together a half-hour before airtime or something.
STARS: **


MONOLOGUE
KRW goes backstage & sings “I’m So Excited” variant; Jonah Hill & MAR cameos

— I’ve said this about some other former cast members when reviewing their monologues, but it sure feels odd to see Kristen Wiig standing on that home base stage as the host. Perhaps one of the reasons this feels odd is because a full season hasn’t even passed since Kristen left the cast. Practically yesterday, I was still reviewing her as a cast member.
— Meh, didn’t care for the very random joke with a photo of David Spade being shown as a younger version of Kristen.
— Ugh, several cast members playing backup singers, a known pet peeve of mine regarding musical monologues.
— I know I said in previous reviews that I’m always a sucker for former cast members doing monologues where they go around the studio and backstage while singing, but damn, does it have to become a requirement for EVERY former cast member to do that in their monologue in these early 2010s years? In just a year-and-a-half, we’ve had that type of monologue from Jimmy Fallon, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short, and now Kristen Wiig. The novelty has completely worn off by this Wiig episode, sad to say.
— Yeah, so far, I’m finding that this monologue is lacking the fun and exciting feel that former-cast-member-goes-around-the-studio-and-backstage-while-singing monologues typically have. Aside from maybe one or two things, I’m not all that crazy about anything that’s been going on in tonight’s monologue so far.
— Hmm, a rare instance of someone actually interacting with the Abraham Lincoln who’s traditionally seen in the background of SNL’s backstage pieces.
— Fred’s entrance as himself receives a big applause break from the audience, despite the fact that he’s, you know, STILL IN THE CAST.
— At least tonight’s Gilly appearance isn’t in a full-fledged sketch, even if I’ve surprisingly developed a modicum of tolerance towards Gilly in her last few appearances prior to this episode. (The actual final full-fledged Gilly sketch, from the preceding season’s Sofia Vergara episode, was actually perfect closure for that character.)
— I do at least like seeing the entire cast dancing together onstage at the end of this monologue (Taran in particular is doing some absolutely priceless dancing in the background), even though it’s a knock-off of the ending of Jimmy Fallon’s far-superior aforementioned monologue.
STARS: **


1-800-FLOWERS
1-800-Flowers mediates love-hate relationship between (KRW) & mom (KAM)

— Interesting pairing of Kristen and Kate, especially given the constant comparisons people made between them in Kate’s early days. Also interesting is seeing Kristen playing straight man to Kate.
— This commercial is showing how woefully underrated Kristen’s straight man skills are, and how much better she generally is at performing low-key stuff like this.
— Kate: “God, I wish I was a lesbian so I didn’t have to carry a purse.” An ironic line, given the performer who delivered it.
STARS: ***½


THE CALIFORNIANS
back-from-the-dead Karina (KRW) meets pregnant (MAR)

— (*groooooaaaaaaaan*) The first of what I’m sure will be various instances of me groaning at the return of a Wiig-involved terrible recurring sketch.
— Aaaaaand there goes the obligatory breaking, with Bill setting off a giggling fit for Kristen. Come to think of it, Kristen never could get through these Californians sketches without laughing her way through them, which I almost forgot until now, given the fact that Kristen previously only appeared in the first two installments of this sketch.
— Aaaaaaaaand we end with an extremely hammy, over-the-top, and unfunny mug-off between Maya Rudolph and Kristen. Ugh
— Overall, not a single redeeming factor to be found. Usually, I can find ONE very mild highlight in each Californians installment. No such luck here.
STARS: *


AW NUTS! MOM’S A GHOST!
Korean horror meets Disney Channel sitcom

— The basic style of this is a spot-on spoof of typical Disney Channel shows.
— The Korean water ghost thing is an interesting and unusual concept that I’m onboard for.
— Pretty funny how the very disturbing things Kristen’s Korean water ghost mom character is doing are being presented in such a lighthearted, corny-sitcom manner.
STARS: ***½


THE LAWRENCE WELK SHOW
Dooneese goes after (JAS) on the beach

— (*groooooaaaaaaaan*)
— I think this is the latest slot in an episode that a Lawrence Welk Show sketch has ever aired. IIRC, all previous installments of this sketch were either the first post-monologue live sketch or the cold opening.
— Ugh, there goes the obligatory lame, juvenile finger joke from Fred’s Lawrence Welk.
— Yeah, as usual, I have absolutely NOTHING to say about the same-old same-old Dooneese portion of this sketch, except that it somehow feels even more tired than usual.
— The bit with Dooneese’s arm appearing on the opposite side of the screen feels like a knock-off of a gag used in a few Herb Welch sketches.
STARS: *½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Diane Young”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Anthony Crispino raises his voice while propagating incorrect information

Garth & Kat offer characteristically-extemporaneous Mother’s Day songs

— Yikes, Seth’s voice sounding VERY hoarse tonight.
— I like the fun exchanges Bobby’s Anthony Crispino and Seth are having regarding Crispino always asking “Did you hear about this one?”
— Hmm, now they’ve begun using a vocal modulator on Crispino’s constant “I’m pretty sure”s, which would become a running gag in his subsequent Update commentaries. While I love the silliness of these Crispino commentaries in general, the vocal modulator gag may be a little TOO cartoonish for my likes.
— Tonight’s overall Crispino commentary was okay, but nowhere near as strong as usual. None of his false stories tonight stood out to me.
— Seth, when delivering a sincere Mother’s Day message towards his mother while looking into the straight-ahead camera: “Mom, I just wanted to let you know……..THAT GARTH AND KAT ARE HERE!!!” Oh, damn you, Seth. DAMN YOU. You might as well have introduced this Garth and Kat commentary by just saying, “Hey, happy Mother’s Day, mom, hope ya like crap!”
— Oh, and to continue the theme of this episode review of mine, let me greet tonight’s Garth and Kat commentary with a (*groooooaaaaaaaan*), with a side of (*Stooge grabs a blowtorch and burns the laptop he’s watching this on to ashes*)
STARS: **


TARGET
Target Lady takes pleasure in processing cash register transactions

— Yet another Wiig-involved recurring sketch tonight, but I won’t greet this particular one with a “(*groooooaaaaaaaan*)”, because, as I’ve previously disclosed, Target Lady has surprisingly grown on me towards the end of her original run, and, underneath her overly-broad and cartoonish voice, tics, and catchphrases, I’m finding a strangely endearing and human quality to her (which a lot of Kristen’s recurring characters lack big-time). But, damn, we’re more than halfway through this episode and Kristen has yet to do a single live sketch tonight where she plays an original character. The specific recurring characters this episode has been filled with are exactly some SNL fans’ worst nightmare on what a Kristen Wiig-hosted episode would look like.
— At least we get a change of pace at the beginning of this, regarding Target Lady starting her shift.
— No matter how much I come around on Target Lady, I’ll NEVER like that regular gag where she walks away from her cash register to get something while in the middle of ringing up a customer.
— Another change of pace in tonight’s Target Lady sketch, with her actually telling a customer, “Void” for once, instead of her usual “Approved!”
— Funny bit with Target Lady explaining why she cuts out the eyes from photos of models in issues of Sassy Magazine.
— Vanessa, when Kenan suggests they go to Kohl’s: “Kohl’s??? Who are you, Donald Trump???”
STARS: ***


ACUPUNCTURE
acupuncturists (KRW) & (AIB) cause blood to gush from (JAS)’s back

 

— Finally, a non-recurring live sketch tonight.
— Ah, a sketch in the tradition of SNL’s projectile bleeding sketches.
— Jason’s overly-calm, unaware reactions while bleeding profusely are very funny, as are Kristen, Aidy, and Kate’s various panicked reactions and resorts.
— I love Bobby’s off-camera yell of “Who’s blood is this?!?”, as well as Aidy passing it off to Jason as being cool street talk, “You know, like, ‘What’s up, blood?’”
— Absolutely hilarious how Kristen’s character is now desperately resorting to making Jason unwittingly drink a vase of his own blood to keep him from getting suspicious.
— I got a good laugh from how, when asked “Anything you’d like to contribute?” while he’s seeing the madness that Kristen and Aidy have created, Fred just grabs his hat & suitcase and casually dives out of the window.
— Another funny line from an off-camera Bobby: “Yo, man, who the hell this Chinese dude?!?”
— Aidy’s character attempting to deliver the term Shamwow in a fancy manner is very funny.
— Solid visual of a flesh bubble inflating out of Jason’s back, then exploding a spurt of blood. Man, this sketch is a riot.
STARS: ****½


MUSICAL GUEST INTRO

— Very nice and rare how the end of the preceding Acupuncture sketch carries over into this musical guest intro, with Kristen and Aidy still being in their wigs and blood-drenched costumes. It’s also a rarity to see a current cast member in a musical guest intro, not counting episodes where the musical guest is also that night’s host. Rather significant that the cast member in this particular musical guest intro is a first-year featured player. I remember some online SNL fans who, at the time, felt Aidy might end up a one-season wonder took her appearance in this musical guest intro as a sign that perhaps she might make it to a second season after all. As I mentioned in a previous episode review, those concerns some online SNL fans had at the time about Aidy supposedly not doing too well in her first season and having a chance of getting fired over the summer don’t hold up well, as I’m finding in my re-watch of this season that Aidy actually had a low-key impressive first season.
— This season’s been having some creative fun with a few of their musical guest intros, between Stefon introducing one of Bruno Mars’ performances, Justin Timberlake introducing one of his own performances, the Three Amigos introducing the other Timberlake performance that same night, and now this.


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Unbelievers”


DOUBLE DATE
on a double date, (KRW) & (CES) flirt with sixth graders (BOM) & (TIR)

— Hmm, not too excited about this premise.
— Bobby and Tim are at least convincing and cute in their portrayal of little boys.
— A laugh from Kristen’s out-of-nowhere dickhead line about her husband.
— Cecily is really solid here.
— I’m starting to love the voice Tim’s using. Sadly, this ends up being the final lead role he would ever get as a cast member.
— After my iffiness towards this sketch in the first minute-and-a-half or so, this sketch has really been growing on me. There’s actually an interesting tone to this sketch. Almost slice-of-life-ish, in fact, though nowhere near as low-key as SNL’s slice-of-life sketches typically are. All the performances are adding to the refreshing realism of this sketch, Cecily’s performance in particular.
— Pretty funny exaggerated laughter from Taran’s character in reaction to a very mild anecdote from Bobby.
STARS: ***½


CLASSY SEXY ELEGNACE
CD features autotuned reality show housewives

— Another sketch this season with a whole bunch of unfortunate James Anderson-isms jumping out in your face right from the start. Kristen’s first musical number in this sketch even feels a little reminiscent of typical musical performances in Deep House Dish (complete with two model-looking men as backup dancers), a recurring sketch written by James Anderson. I swear I recall there also being another sketch Anderson wrote that had someone saying, as one of the lyrics of a song they’re singing, “Did I already say (insert word here that they already said)?”, like Kristen does here.
— Aidy’s performance is at least funny (which, once again, continues this quietly solid first season of hers), though the actual lines/lyrics she’s been given here aren’t funny in the slightest.
— Overall, way too much of this sketch went by without a single laugh from me. Aidy’s performance and delivery during her solo number provided the only amusement I got from this whole thing.
STARS: *½


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— One of this season’s lesser episodes. As feared, quite a large chunk of this episode was filled with tired returning Kristen Wiig favorites (certainly not my favorites), most of them lousy as always. Some of the non-recurring stuff in the pre-Weekend Update half didn’t work, either, such as the cold opening and monologue. Thankfully, after this episode finally got all of the recurring stuff out of the way, there was a big upswing in quality towards the end of the show, with the funny and original Acupuncture and Double Date sketches, but that upswing in quality was short-lived, as things unfortunately bottomed-out again with the final sketch of the night.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Acupuncture
Double Date
1-800-Flowers
Aw Nuts! Mom’s A Ghost!
Target
Monologue
Weekend Update
Benghazi Hearings
Classy Sexy Elegnace
The Lawrence Welk Show
The Californians


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Zach Galifianakis)
a big step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Season 38 comes to an end, with host Ben Affleck. It’s the final episode for veterans Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, and Jason Sudeikis, as well as the final episode that newbie Tim Robinson spends in the cast before moving to the writers’ room.

Posted on

May 4, 2013 – Zach Galifianakis / Of Monsters And Men (S38 E19)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

FOX & FRIENDS
Michael Bloomberg (FRA) takes heat for gun & soda control

— Funny bit from Bobby’s Brian Kilmeade about french-kissing his hand.
— I got a big cheap laugh from the comment Vanessa’s Gretchen Carlson makes in regards to gay athletes and the guy in football who hikes the ball.
— Is Fred always the guest in these Fox & Friends sketches? This is either the third or fourth consecutive installment that’s happened in.
— Great bit with Bobby’s Kilmeade drinking the entire oversized Big Gulp, causing him to have a sugar rush.
STARS: ****


MONOLOGUE
host plays piano & does stand-up on myriad topics

— Interesting little detail with Zach Galifianakis entering with a rose in his hand and then placing it on the top of the piano.
— I love Zach saying “I haven’t really done anything, guys” when the audience is laughing endlessly over his comical opening line: “I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.”
— An absolutely priceless bit about a deaf couple being amazing at charades.
— Great sequence with Zach doing a whole bunch of set-ups with no punchlines.
— Zach: “The other day, I Googled how many Mexicans live in North Korea. (*pauses a little while*) Google didn’t know.”
— Zach: “Here’s something you’ll never see in braille: If You See Something, Say Something.”
— Hmm, no “Hoobastank is here” callback at the end of this monologue.
STARS: ****½


GAME OF GAME OF THRONES
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau [real] visits game show

— Not sure, but this may be the final instance of Bill playing a game show host during his tenure as a cast member.
— I don’t know why Aidy casually saying “bastard son” in a straitlaced voice tickled me so much just now, given the fact that it wasn’t even intended to be comedic. A testament to how naturally funny Aidy’s delivery is.
— After Zach states the obvious when saying “That’s a Game Of Thrones joke!” and Bill responds in an over-the-top mock-surprised manner, “It is?!?!?”, I love Bill immediately following that by making an eye-rolling-type face. It’s little touches like that that I’m going to miss about Bill’s game show host characterizations.
— Very funny subversion with the question Zach’s Game Of Thrones nerd character is asked turning out to be a non-Game Of Thrones real-world geography question, which naturally leaves him stumped.
— Another funny subversion, with Zach going out of his way to pick a definite Game Of Thrones-themed question, and the question initially starts out GOT-themed, only to suddenly turn into another non-GOT real-world question.
— Some laughs from the speed round.
— Ehh, the part with Zach glowingly making homoerotic comments to Nikolaj Coster-Waldau feels too typical and unnecessary.
— I got a good laugh from how, when asked to identify a photo of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Zach answers, “I don’t know, some old pilgrim?”
STARS: ***½


MATCH.COM
horny Martha Stewart (KAM) is amongst those looking for love on match.com

— Feels kinda odd seeing Kate playing Martha Stewart. Also, it goes without saying that, by nature, any non-Ana Gasteyer SNL impersonator of Martha Stewart pales in comparison to Ana.
— Blah, I’m not caring for how this is going the cliched route of “Martha Stewart says dirty things in a stiff, straitlaced manner”. Tired humor.
— I love how Taran, in between acting very casual towards Kate’s Martha Stewart, excitedly mouths “Martha Stewart!” into the camera. That’s exactly the type of little thing Taran’s always so good at getting laughs out of.
STARS: **


JENNIFER ANISTON LOOK-ALIKE COMPETITION
(Bradley Cooper), (Ed Helms) & others look more like Jennifer Aniston than (host)

— A good cheap laugh from Zach making his entrance looking like that.
— Zach, after receiving an offended reaction to his harsh comment about Helen Keller’s blindness: “Oh, shut up! She knew what she was doing! She was milking it!”
— Zach sure is stumbly with his lines throughout this sketch. He was a little stumbly in his appearances earlier tonight, too.
— I love the deep voice Bobby’s doing.
— I didn’t know Kenan still dressed in drag at this point of his SNL tenure, just a few months before he would publicly announce that summer that he was taking a stand against continuing to play black women on SNL. (Though in this Aniston Look-Alike sketch, Kenan’s technically playing a man dressed like Whoopi Goldberg.) Assuming he doesn’t dress in drag in the remaining two episodes of this season, I guess this sketch can be pinpointed as containing Kenan’s final drag role on SNL.
— Zach’s angry ranting throughout this sketch has me in absolute stitches, even with his constant line flubs.
— Hmm, has Jason’s microphone suddenly stopped working?
— Ah, we get our very first display of Vanessa’s spot-on and memorable Jennifer Aniston impression, which Vanessa would get good mileage out of on Weekend Update in her later seasons.
— Alongside Vanessa in this sketch, we also get good Aniston impressions from Nasim and Taran, the latter’s impression being especially funny.
— Oh, geez. Even in a mere cameo, Ed Helms is making a PAINFULLY long, awkward pause before delivering his line, which was something he occasionally did in the episode he hosted two seasons prior.
— Hilarious how the alleged Friends theme song that the Hangover guys sing together is actually “That’s What Friends Are For”.
STARS: ****½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Little Talks”


WEEKEND UPDATE
James Carville (BIH) analyzes the defeat of background checks for guns

tech correspondent’s (FRA) struggles belie unobtrusivity of Google Glass

The Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started A Conversation With At A Party is haughty & dippy

— This ends up being the final appearance of Bill’s always-fun James Carville impression.
— I love the ghost-walking-through-Obama sound effect (“Waauuuw”) that Bill’s Carville is doing.
— A hilarious harsh comment Bill’s Carville lightheartedly makes about his mother dying “peacefully” by falling into the propeller on a fan boat.
— Bill’s Carville is a freakin’ riot in his interactions with his mother’s ghost. Bill’s having so much fun here.
— Feels like Seth is doing an unusually low number of jokes between each guest commentary tonight, but I guess I can’t say that’s a bad thing, given how burned-out I’ve recently become on the solo Seth era of Update. Having to review SO MANY consecutive seasons of Blandy McBlanderson, a.k.a. Seth Meyers, solo at the Update desk has taken its toll on me lately. I’m craving a positive change at the Update desk, and the changes we get at the desk in the upcoming season 39 sure as hell ain’t it. Season 40 of Weekend Update cannot come soon enough for me.
— Interesting and rare seeing Fred do an Update commentary as a normal, one-off character in this late stage of his SNL tenure.
— Fred’s actually doing a good job here, making this the second consecutive episode in which he turns in a surprisingly solid performance during these way-past-his-prime years of his SNL tenure. Good to see him showing signs of new life in the homestretch of his SNL tenure.
— The Girl You Wish etc.: “There are 90-year-olds dying every single day. It’s like – oh, thanks, congress.”
— The Girl You Wish etc., to Seth: “For all intents and porpoises, you’re a facade.”
— I just realized this ends up being the last Update commentary this character of Cecily’s does before we get a year-long break from her, due to Cecily’s stint as an Update co-anchor.
STARS: **½


M&M STORE
at M&M’s World, racist greeter (host) apologizes to fellow employees

— A big laugh from Zach’s “How” bit towards Nasim’s Indian character.
— Zach, in how grossed-out he is by the thought of what his two allegedly-gay co-workers do together: “And I know I made that abundantly clear, often through song…”
— After Zach asks his co-workers to bury the hatchet, I laughed so much at him telling Nasim’s Indian character, “No offense.”
— The fact that this whole situation is happening in an M&M store, of all settings, is somehow making this even funnier.
— This sketch is such a riot that even Zach’s black-people-talking-in-a-movie-theater joke (making this the second consecutive episode with a joke about that, by the way) came off hilarious instead of hacky.
— Zach’s “Swing low…” bit towards Kenan had me howling.
STARS: ****½


DARRELL’S HOUSE
Darrell Sparks (host) plans to fix his cable access TV show in post

— I absolutely love the odd, low-budget opening title sequence and theme song, featuring a graphic of Zach’s head bouncing around the screen.
— A priceless sudden escalation to this sketch, with Zach’s heated exchange with Vanessa.
— A very fascinating and unique structure to this sketch, with Zach constantly stopping what he’s doing to give elaborate directions on what edits he wants made in post. It’s even more fascinating and unique in hindsight when you’re aware of what it’s going to lead to later in this episode.
— Kenan’s delivery of “I’m not Jon Hamm” while slyly smirking is great.
— So many things about this sketch are, on top of being fascinating, amusing the hell out of me. This is such a strong piece.
— Another great line delivery from Kenan, with his “I bet it’ll be me” when Zach tells him “You’re not going to be on, Jon Hamm’s gonna be on.”
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Mountain Sound”


MICHAEL JORDAN’S WEDDING
Charles Barkley (KET) & others toast Michael Jordan at his lavish wedding

— I like Kenan-as-Charles-Barkley’s comment about Michael Jordan’s infamous Hitler-esque mustache in that Hanes commercial.
— Funny visual of Zach and Jason returning with cocaine under their noses.
— Blah, a display of Fred playing a very typical foreigner role, which he’s done to death and beyond over the years.
— Zach and Jason’s cocaine-induced hyper behavior in their third scene is cracking me up.
— Jay is absolutely HILARIOUS as Dikembe Mutombo.
— Jay as Dikembe Mutombo: “You know what my wife gave me for our wedding? MALARIA.”
— Jay’s whole “taunting God” spiel in that accented, gravely voice is pure comedy gold.
STARS: ***½


NEW BALANCE
New Balance is the running shoe for out-of-shape guys who stand around

— Meh, lots of generic, forgettable humor here.
— I did get a pretty good laugh from Zach casually grabbing half of a passerby’s pretzel.
STARS: **


DARRELL’S HOUSE: THE FINAL CUT
clumsily-edited finished product features Jon Hamm [real]

— Oh, this is absolutely BRILLIANT, showing us the finished product of all the edits Zach’s character called for in the Darrell’s House sketch from earlier tonight. I always like the idea of waiting until later in the show to give us a delayed punchline to a certain sketch, much like what we got with the Z Shirts thing from earlier this season. What’s even more impressive and amazing about this second Darrell’s House piece is that SNL made this edited version on the fly after the first Darrell’s House sketch ended. HUGE props to SNL for pulling that off.
— I love how the voice of the edited-out-of-this-final-cut Vanessa is sloppily left in for a nanosecond.
— Even the little detail of loud, muffled, off-camera sounds in the badly spliced-in close-up of the now-filled snack tray is a very funny comedic touch.
— A huge laugh from the jarring dubbing-in of Zach saying “AL….JOL-SON.” in a monotone, robotic-sounding voice. Not to mention how inherently hilarious it is that Al Jolson is the only singer this Darrell’s House show could get cleared.
— Hilarious visual of Jon Hamm being very poorly edited into the same shots as Zach via a split-screen effect, including, at one point, a blink-and-miss-it full shot of Kenan as Jon’s placeholder flashing on screen for a quick second.
— Overall, simply excellent. Bravo.
STARS: *****


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A really solid episode with some VERY strong highs, including an all-timer with the Darrell’s House pieces. As usual whenever he hosts, Zach Galifianakis added to the episode’s strength. A damn shame he has yet to continue hosting any further after this episode, but if he had to stop hosting, at least this episode was a great way for him to go out.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Darrell’s House / Darrell’s House: The Final Cut (tie)
Monologue
M&M Store
Jennifer Aniston Look-Alike Competition
Fox & Friends
Michael Jordan’s Wedding
Game Of Game Of Thrones
Weekend Update
New Balance
Match.com


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Vince Vaughn)
a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Kristen Wiig

Posted on

April 13, 2013 – Vince Vaughn / Miguel (S38 E18)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

GUN CONTROL PRESS CONFERENCE
senators Joe Manchin (JAS) & Pat Toomey (BIH) offer weak gun legislation

— This pairing of Bill and Jason feels a little significant in hindsight, knowing we’re pretty much in the homestretch of their SNL tenure.
— I like Bill’s casual shrug when hearing he’s going to lose his job.
— A pretty funny bit about none of these gun restrictions applying to Florida.
— Good delivery from Bill on his “So, in summary…uh…you’re welcome???”
— Jay’s habit of flubbing his lines rears its head once again, with him having a rough time getting through his last few lines before his LFNY.
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
host leaves the stage to enlist individual audience members’ support

— Right out of the gate, Vince Vaughn is showing far more stage presence than he did in his previous monologue from 1998, where he basically just lifelessly stood there like a zombie while Darrell Hammond did all the heavy lifting as Alfred Hitchcock.
— I’m absolutely loving Vince’s one-on-one mingling with individual audience members. Vince is fantastic here, and I love how loose and genuine he’s making this feel, even though this is definitely scripted.
— Vince, when telling one audience member his phone can’t capture tonight’s episode as well as SNL’s cameras can: “I’m not saying it’s a bad-quality phone, I don’t want a lawsuit. I’m just saying–”
— Vince continues to kill it here. In fact, call me crazy, but I’m starting to get a bit of a Bill Murray vibe from his one-on-one mingling and general performance here.
— Showing what a big character Bobby’s Drunk Uncle has become, this is the third consecutive episode in which Drunk Uncle has either been mentioned or has appeared in.
— An overall very strong and underrated monologue. While not laugh-out-loud funny for the most part, nor was it trying to be, I found Vince’s execution of it to be enthralling.
STARS: ****½


THE AL PACINO ACCUSED MURDERER BIOPIC SERIES
Al Pacino (BIH) is the star of HBO’s accused murderer biopic series

— Fun concept with Bill’s Al Pacino playing various accused murderers.
— Very funny detail with Bill’s Pacino idiotically choosing to use a heavy Hispanic accent when playing the Menendez Brothers.
— Bill as Captain Francesco Schettino, in an over-the-top Italian accent: “NOW THAT’S-A SPICY BULLCRAP!”
— So far, lots of stupid fun here, which is something that Bill is typically great at pulling off. Similar to what I said about him and Jason in my review of this episode’s cold opening, there’s something kinda significant about seeing such a big Bill Hader showcase in which he plays so many different roles when you’re aware in hindsight that this ends up being his fourth-to-last episode as a cast member.
— Oh, that blackface scene………. I think I recall hearing that when a video of this scene resurfaced on Twitter last year (2019) or so, it resulted in typical Twitter outrage, though as far as I know, this particular outrage was nothing major that hurt Bill’s career or anything. I’ll argue that this blackface scene works because the whole POINT of the scene is calling out the wrongness of Bill’s Pacino doing that, unlike, say, the Jimmy Fallon/Chris Rock thing that’s been discussed to death. I also laughed in spite of myself at how Bill, in this blackface scene, said “I didn’t kill no one, mon!” in a ridiculous Jamaican accent (which you have to listen carefully for, because it gets kinda drowned out by the loud audience laughter in response to the initial sight of Bill in blackface).
STARS: ****


STORMY SKIES
Weather Channel soap opera has meteorological report tropes

— I recall this sketch coming off like an inferior knock-off of the Life We Lead sketch from Tom Arnold’s season 21 episode, which had a premise very similar to the “a hybrid of a weather report and a soap opera” premise of this Stormy Skies sketch (though that Life We Lead sketch covered a general newscast instead of just the weather part of the news like this sketch is doing).
— Yeah, so far, I’m finding that my memory of this sketch was not incorrect, as this indeed feels derivative of and inferior to the Life We Lead sketch, but there are a few original bits here that I kinda like.
— The gag with Cecily’s green dress unintentionally becoming transparent when she walks in front of the weather map greenscreen is interesting in hindsight, given the fact that she would later be on the receiving end of that gag in a sketch from Jonah Hill’s 2018 episode, where Cecily was a meteorologist and Jonah was a guy (can’t remember if he was Cecily’s boyfriend or just some guy she knew) who interrupted the newscast Cecily was on to propose to her on the air.
— The “Time and temp” bit is getting old and wasn’t necessary to repeat.
— I like Aidy spoofing typical people who ham it up in the background when a news reporter is giving a report outdoors.
— Blah, another appearance from Kenan as Bullwinkle Roker.
STARS: **


HISTORY OF PUNK – IAN RUBBISH & THE BIZZAROS
punk rocker Ian Rubbish (FRA) loved Margaret Thatcher; Steve Jones cameo

— Immediately, I’m absolutely loving the atmosphere and style of this mockumentary, and how it feels so different for SNL.
— Easily the best and most refreshing thing Fred has done on SNL in years by this point.
— I love Fred’s delivery of “Be deeeceeeeeent”, which would later be shown in a highlight reel (of, I think, short films) in SNL’s 40th Anniversary Special, which made me love that line of Fred’s even more.
— Fred-as-Ian-Rubbish’s constant favoritism towards Margaret Thatcher is a solid comedic conceit, even if it’s rather thin. The execution is making it work.
— Lots of great details all throughout this that are adding to the authentic feel of this mockumentary.
— Fun shots of Vanessa as Margaret Thatcher.
— Brilliant piece overall, and a favorite of mine. I loved pretty much every single thing about this.
STARS: *****


SHORT TERM MEMORY LOSS THEATRE
(BIH) gives prompts throughout short-term memory loss theater production

— Blah, an obvious twist with Bill having to feed lines to his short-term memory-having actors, after his long, glowing initial set-up with him touting those actors’ ability to easily remember their lines.
— Good lord, this sketch is so boringly one-note – a note that wasn’t funny to begin with.
— (*groan*) And now to make this sketch even worse, there goes yet another season 38 display of Fallon/Sanz-esque giggling between Bill and Fred.
— Jay’s scene initially seemed promising, but it ended up going the same unfunny route as the rest of the characters, as if that joke hadn’t already been beyond run into the ground by this point of the sketch.
— Overall, in a word: oof.
STARS: *


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Adorn”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Brad Paisley (JAS) & LL Cool J (KET) think their song has ended racism

Marina Chapman’s (KAM) behavior proves that she was raised by monkeys

— While not the best LL Cool J impression I’ve ever seen, Kenan’s take is cracking me up.
— I love Jason’s exaggerated, stretched-out way of saying Seth’s name in the southern accent he’s using as Brad Paisley.
— Funny line from Kenan’s LL Cool J about his reputation as the most lowdown, hardcore cast member of NCIS.
— There goes Seth’s obligatory display of a German accent after doing a joke about Germany.
— Kate’s raised-by-monkeys commentary seems a little promising for her.
— Hmm, as Kate’s commentary goes on, I’m seeing that the material itself is very scant and meh. Kate’s doing her best to try elevating it with a fun performance.
STARS: **½


JUNIOR PROM
rich neighbor (host) takes liberties with junior high prom he bankrolled

— Bill, Aidy, and Kenan’s ridiculously redundant opening conversation is already making me nervous for what kind of sketch awaits me.
— I kinda laughed at Bobby’s soft-spoken, monotone “Whaaaaaaaat?” when asked by Vince to dance with him.
— Boy, this sketch is fucking TERRIBLE so far. Absolutely unwatchable. What the hell is this even going for?!?
— Aww, poor Tim.
STARS: *


ROUNDBALL ROCK
NBC execs nix John Tesh’s (JAS) brother’s (TIR) “Roundball Rock” lyrics

— Ah, yes! YES! A sketch I fell deeply in love with ever since it originally aired. Hell, I basically already fell in love with it back in November 2012 when I read the description of it in an online dress rehearsal report for the Louis C.K. episode, as this sketch was originally cut from that episode.
— That sure was one long, awkward delay before Aidy made her entrance. I guess she missed her cue.
— Tim’s “Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-basketball, gimme-gimme etc.” singing is slaying me, made even funnier by the silly and exaggerated high-fives he and Jason give each other at the end of each verse.
— I love Tim’s delivery of “Uhhh, my gut is noooo.”
— A very funny little detail with Vince casually referring to the Tesh Brothers collectively as “Teshes”.
— I absolutely love the insane sequence with the Teshes going wild and destroying the office with tiny hammers and gasoline. Excellent absurdity there.
— Tim: “We did NOT want this to go this way.” Vince: “Then why did you bring little hammers and a can of gasoline?”
— A lot of SNL fans seem to think that Jason’s delay in miming his piano playing a few seconds after the dramatic piano music has started playing in the background during Tim’s poignant speech was a genuine blooper on Jason’s part. However, it always seemed like an intentional gag to me, like it was suggesting that, after hearing soft piano music playing in the background while Tim’s speaking dramatically, Jason’s John Tesh got the sneaky idea to make people think he’s the source of that background music. Either way, whether intentional or a blooper, it adds even more to the greatness of this sketch.
— Even the silly ending with Kenan’s fake freeze-frame and the hand of Vince waving in front of Kenan’s face is perfect to me.
— Overall, an absolutely excellent sketch, and yet another argument for why Tim should’ve been kept in the cast the following season.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “How Many Drinks?”


LAST CALL
at closing time, (host) & Sheila Sovage are each other’s only sex option

— This sketch has officially become recurring.
— I like Vince’s random line about being a Wasabi pee tester.
— Sheila Sovage, on herself: “Raised in Shanghai, deflowered in Wilmington, Delaware!”
— The audience was very quiet during the first third of this sketch, but they’re getting more into it now.
— A funny and gross “Pass the tequila shot” bit.
— Kate’s monkey bit is interesting, given the raised-by-monkeys commentary she did on Update earlier tonight.
— Tonight’s installment of this recurring sketch had a slow start, but has gotten better. However, this is one of the lesser installments of this recurring sketch (which just shows how strong a lot of the other installments are, since this one still isn’t too bad).
STARS: ***


GOODNIGHTS

— Great callback to/continuation of the monologue, with Vince returning the audience member’s phone as promised. Much like the refreshing change of pace with Melissa McCarthy’s monologue entrance in the preceding episode, it’s a huge rarity for overly-formulaic recent SNL eras like this one to do anything out-of-the-ordinary in the goodnights.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A wildly up-and-down episode, featuring some of the best AND worst segments of this entire season. (Kinda reminds me of how bipolar the season 28 Brittany Murphy episode was.) The stuff outside of the absolute best and absolute worst of this episode ranged from mediocre to pretty good. So, in other words, this episode was all OVER the place. The good does outnumber the bad, though.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Roundball Rock
History Of Punk – Ian Rubbish & The Bizzaros
Monologue
The Al Pacino Accused Murderer Biopic Series
Last Call
Gun Control Press Conference
Weekend Update
Stormy Skies
Short Term Memory Loss Theatre / Junior Prom (tie)


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Melissa McCarthy)
a little hard for me to figure, due to how wildly inconsistent tonight’s episode was, though I think I’d call this episode a slight step up, given how it has higher highs than the McCarthy episode


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Zach Galifianakis hosts for his third and, as of 2020, final time