Tag: Bill Murray

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February 20, 1999 – Bill Murray / Lucinda Williams (S24 E14)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

THE LADIES’ MAN
Stephanie Seymour [real] helps Leon teach love lessons

— The various demonstrations from Leon Phelps and Stephanie Seymour are providing some laughs.
— Overall, not bad, but not one of the more noteworthy Ladies’ Man installments.
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
inspired by the Footloose musical, BIM sings & dances around the stage

 

— Funny bit with Bill saying he got inspired for tonight’s show by seeing Footloose the Musical.
— Hilarious comment from Bill about America being built on a dance.
— Bill’s dancing when singing Footloose is fantastic, very funny, and perfectly Bill Murray-esque. There’s shades of Nick the Lounger Singer here, which is nice compensation for us not getting an actual Nick the Lounger Singer sketch tonight.
— I absolutely love how all out Bill is going on this, now climbing up the railing on the side of the home base stage while singing into a boom mic. Very impressive and fun.
STARS: ****½


YAHTZEE
competitive couple (BIM) & (MOS) challenges dinner guests to Yahtzee

— Bill and Molly look a bit odd as a couple. Maybe because Bill is a lot older-looking and has gray hair.
— This almost turned into a Zimmermans sketch just now, with the inappropriate way Molly and Bill passionately made out in front of Will and Ana.
— Bill is perfect for this role. I’m enjoying how overly competitive he and Molly are, eventually getting to point where Bill angrily pushes a lamp and flower pot off of the table with one swipe of the arm when losing a game.
— Will’s “This is just kinda gettin’ creepy” when Bill desperately keeps challenging Will and Ana to various games was very funny.
— A huge laugh from Bill’s competitiveness now getting to the point where he offers to play Russian Roulette and says “Ladies first.”
— I love Molly angrily throwing a whole plate of dessert at Will.
STARS: ****


KNICKS CITY DANCERS
(BIM) leads fellow male Knicks City Dancers in front of unfriendly crowd

— As I said in my review of the Men’s Jazz Ensemble sketch from the last episode that Bill hosted, this Knicks City Dancers sketch feels kinda like a spiritual successor to that. Funny how Tim, the only cast member to be in both of these last two Bill Murray episodes, is one of the male dancers in both sketches.
— I like Tim’s delivery of “Hey, Woody Allen just gave me the finger!”
— As I said in an earlier review, I always get a kick out of Parnell dancing comically.
— This sketch is starting to feel dead. Not even Tracy choking Parnell could get as big a laugh out of me as it should’ve.
— Yeah, this sketch isn’t working. Pales badly in comparison to that aforementioned Men’s Jazz Ensemble sketch.
— Okay, I got a big laugh just now from the reveal of Will Ferrell randomly playing himself, when Bill was referring to each of the male dancers by name.
— A weak text crawl ending.
STARS: *½


SWILL

— Alright! They’re doing an encore presentation of this classic Bill Murray fake ad from season 3! It’s fun to see this being re-aired in a Bill Murray-hosted episode from two decades later in 1999.
— Nice touch with them leaving in the original audience’s laughter from when this commercial first aired in 1977.
— For my thoughts on this commercial, read my original review of it in this episode review.


THE QUOTABLE CADDYSHACK
BIM & CHC explain the reference work’s utility

— A fun and solid premise.
— I love Darrell quoting Rodney Dangerfield’s “We’re all gonna get laid!”
— Chevy Chase cameo. Meh. Pretty nice to see him and Bill together, though.
— The quality of this sketch is now kinda starting to die down a little (thanks for that, Chevy), but I did love Bill’s passing mention of “The Ted Knight Slowburn Foundation”.
STARS: ****


MORNING LATTE
minor celebrity (BIM) engages Tom & Cass in vapid banter

— A bit of a change of pace for these Morning Latte sketches.
— When Cheri is explaining to Will the premise of the sitcom Sister Sister, I love Will telling her in a friendly-but-blunt manner “Yeah, I’ve seen the show. Turn around.”
— Bill’s reason for not wanting Cheri to babysit his daughter is very funny.
— The audience has been pretty dead during this sketch.
— Odd bit with Cheri being bleeped out when talking vulgarly in regards to Robin Williams. That feels kinda out of place for this recurring sketch.
STARS: ***


WEEKEND UPDATE
wistful for coverage, Bill Clinton (DAH) asks media to dig for some dirt
freshly snubbed by Academy nominators, BIM gives his Oscar picks

— The audience’s deadness from the Morning Latte sketch has carried over into this Update, as Colin’s first two jokes tonight bombed.
— I love the “Yessss!” soundbyte used for the Marv Albert punchline of Colin’s joke just now.
— Okay, the audience has been getting a little more lively.
— Darrell-as-President-Clinton’s desperation to get back into the newspapers now that the Lewinsky scandal and impeachment trial is over is pretty funny.
— Yes! The return of Bill Murray’s traditional Oscar picks!
— Very funny comment from Bill about how unbearable Tom Hanks would be if he won his third Oscar.
— As always, I love Bill’s unorthodox method for choosing Oscar winners.
— Great ad-lib from Bill when he messes up the whole joke about Gwyneth Paltrow being English.
— And there’s the always-funny tradition of Bill giving short-shrift to the supporting actors/actresses categories.
STARS: **½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Can’t Let Go”


A BEAR ATE MY PARENTS!
because (HOS)’s parents were eaten by a bear, (CHP)’s party is ruined

— Early on in the sketch after we opened on a relaxed party, I howled at Horatio’s sudden yell of “You all can just kiss my ass!”
— The first thought that any viewer would naturally have about this sketch is that it feels like a leftover Chris Farley shoutfest sketch (specifically from the infamous 94-95 season, which notoriously overused Farley’s screaming shtick in badly-written sketches). However, this is actually a leftover Jim Breuer sketch that got cut after dress rehearsal during Jim’s time on the show. I think I heard it was cut from the Sting episode from 1997, but I can’t remember for sure. I can kinda picture Jim performing this sketch. After all, there were one or two times early in his tenure when SNL gave him Chris Farley-esque sketches (e.g. that office sketch with Jim violently punishing himself whenever he screwed something up).
— I love Bill’s sarcastic delivery of “Oh, that’s a great idea: take him outside… WHERE THE BEARS ARE??!??!” Otherwise, it feels like they’re kinda wasting Bill in this role.
— I used to absolutely HATE this sketch and considered it a prime example of how bad tonight’s episode is, but during this current viewing, I’m finding a “So dumb, it’s funny” quality to this sketch that’s kinda working for me.
— I got a good laugh from Will’s delivery of “He missed the couch” after Horatio jumps out the window. (He threw a couch out the window earlier in the sketch.)
STARS: ***


BOOK STORE
(BIM) spouts gibberish while trying to pose as owner of mystic curio shop

— I love Bill’s line “We’ve got Yin Yang Thought Pendants up the Yin Yang.”
— Bill’s obviously false statements are pretty funny, though once again tonight, the audience is kinda dead.
— Good bit with Bill repeatedly hitting Tim with the stick.
— This sketch is pretty good and Bill is doing his usual masterful job, but something about this sketch feels like it should be better.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten”


STEVE BAXTER, HOLLYWOOD GYNECOLOGIST
Hollywood gynecologist (BIM) has casual attitude toward patients’ privacy

— The featured players have been dominating tonight’s episode…. well, just Parnell and Horatio. Parnell in particular is having his biggest night of the season.
— Speaking of cast members’ airtime, here’s something I just realized: has Chris Kattan appeared in ANYTHING tonight??? I can’t remember seeing him at all. His airtime has surprisingly been pretty scarce in general during the second half of this season.
— I absolutely love Parnell’s over-the-top performance of the Steve Baxter: Hollywood Gynecologist theme song. He is a riot in this sketch.
— A solid premise for Bill.
— Watching this sketch in today’s climate, I can’t help but get a bit of a #MeToo reminder, but I’ll ignore that and put myself in a 1999 mindset for this sketch.
— Overall, short but sweet.
STARS: ***½


GOODNIGHTS

— Why is Bill dressed as a fireman?

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Not bad, but felt a little below standards for this strong season, and certainly a little below standards for a Bill Murray-hosted episode. As I said in a review earlier this season, I used to consider this season’s Kelsey Grammer, Vince Vaughn, and Bill Murray episodes to be this season’s “Trifecta of Suck”. (Actually, I should’ve called it a “Quadfecta of Suck”, because a few days ago, I remembered that I’ve also always found the John Goodman episode from later this season to be unusually bad for this season’s standards. We’ll see if that one holds up better than I previously deemed it.) Doing these reviews have made me come around on this season’s Grammer and Vaughn episodes, both of which I was pleasantly surprised to discover are actually pretty good. I had wondered if I would have that same change of heart towards this Bill Murray episode, and it turns out that I only did to an extent. While I found this episode to be better than I used to, it didn’t feel like there was much in it that stood out as noteworthy, and something felt a little off about the show. Perhaps the latter was due to how dead the audience was in certain portions of the show.
— Bill Murray did his usual great job hosting the show, though I wish some of the material he was given was a little better-written. As I’ve often said about Bill’s hosting gigs, it’s interesting and fun seeing how he works with different casts in the episodes he’s hosted in various eras. It’s a shame this ends up being the last time he’s ever hosted… at least to this day in 2020. Maybe that’ll change in the future.


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


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Brendan Fraser)
a step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Ray Romano

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February 20, 1993 – Bill Murray / Sting (S18 E14)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
Beverly Hills residents question Bill Clinton (PHH) about his policies

— Amusing detail of Kevin-as-Michael-Eisner’s Mickey Mouse tie.
— Sting’s Rod Stewart impression is really funny.
— Impressions aren’t usually Farley’s strong suit, but I like his Rob Reiner.
STARS: ***


OPENING MONTAGE
— Father Guido Sarducci is credited as a featured player, for the first time since season 11.


MONOLOGUE
BIM talks about the good vibes of the past week as the truth scrolls by

— As always, a fun, energetic entrance from Bill.
— I appreciate Bill pointing out names of familiar faces from the original SNL staff who are still working there today.
— It’s the classic Buck Henry screen crawl monologue gag! I love that they’re doing this for a Bill Murray monologue, as it truly makes it feel like a throwback to the old days.
— I always like when Bill speaks in what I call his “Bill Murray-isms” (it’s a little hard to describe, but he just has a certain distinctive way of wording things).
— A lot of laughs from the screen crawl refuting every positive thing Bill is saying about then-modern-day SNL. The “He made Kevin Nealon cry” disclaimer especially got a huge laugh.
— Great how Bill is doing a very Nick the Lounge Singer-esque rendition of I Will Always Love You, which is nice compensation for the fact that we’re not getting a Nick the Lounger Singer sketch tonight.
STARS: ****


HIBERNOL
long-term cold & flu medicine lets (CHF) sleep through sickness

— Great visual of the oversized cup of medicine.
— Strong concept for a fake ad, and I like the graphic showing the colds and flus coming and going through Farley’s body as he sleeps through the winter.
— Very funny visual of Farley waking up with his hair, beard, and fingernails all being long.
— Overall, the early 90s era knocks one out of the park again with yet another very memorable fake ad.
STARS: ****½


THE WHIPMASTER
a not-so-proficient actor (BIM) takes over the title role

 

— Hilarious reveal of Farley with red marks all over his face after Bill’s repeated attempts to whip the cigar out of his mouth.
— Lots of funny instances of Bill’s unskilled whipping.
— I love Phil’s reaction to getting whipped in the crotch.
— Very funny bit with Bill using his whip to knock down an obvious dummy of Julia.
— Nice touch immediately after this sketch, with G.E. Smith and the SNL Band being shown playing an instrumental version of the Whipmaster theme song.
STARS: ****


FREQUENT FLYER
Frequent Flyer (BIM) gives unsolicited tips to his fellow passengers

— Second sketch in a row with Bill playing a character with his own theme song.
— Some trivia: this sketch was cut from the preceding week’s Alec Baldwin episode, where the Frequent Flyer character was played by Phil. Alec played the role that Mike is playing here.
— Bill’s getting laughs from his constant tips to fellow passengers. Not a hilarious concept, but Bill is solid in this role and is making this sketch work. I can’t help but be curious how Phil’s unaired version of this character compares to Bill’s. I’m sure Phil pulled off this role well in his own right.
— I like the ending with Frequent Flyer even giving tips to a terrorist hijacker.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “If I Ever Lose My Faith In You”


WEEKEND UPDATE
moron Hank Fielding gives perspective on Bill Clinton’s economic address
Father Guido Sarducci reviews Groundhog Day & relates a recurring dream
Hollywood Minute- Steve Martin [real] gives DAS his comeuppance

— After getting cut after dress rehearsal many times since his first appearance earlier this season, Robert Smigel’s Hank Fielding character finally makes it on the air again.
— I haven’t been enjoying tonight’s Hank Fielding commentary quite as much as the first one, but there are still laughs from this, especially him naming Gomer Pyle as an example of gays in the military.
— I like the idea of Father Guido Sarducci doing a review of Bill’s new movie Groundhog Day.
— Much like a lot of his commentaries from the past, tonight’s Guido Sarducci commentary is going on a really long time. However, he’s cracking me up throughout this one, with a lot of funny little comments.
— David’s Hollywood Minute is providing the usual laughs, especially the comment about Stevie Nicks. However, I didn’t get David’s “I don’t care what he said, I never touched the freak” quote when Brooke Shields’ pic came up.
— A memorable Steve Martin appearance during David’s Hollywood Minute, even if it is the type of “sneaker-upper” bit (I think that’s what it’s called, when a celebrity makes a “surprise” appearance to confront a cast member making fun of them) that would go on to be a tired, corny SNL trope.
— We’ve gotten quite a number of nice throwbacks to the original era in tonight’s episode, between Bill Murray’s presence, a Buck Henry-esque monologue, a Father Guido Sarducci commentary on Update, and now a Steve Martin appearance.
— What was with Steve at the very end of this Update? After signing off, Kevin turns to Steve and tries to start a conversation, but Steve snubs him by rudely turning away with an arrogant look on his face. I’d like to think that was just Steve doing a “bit”, but it doesn’t make any sense in this context.
STARS: ***½


MEN’S JAZZ ENSEMBLE
Tommy Two-Step (BIM) readies men’s jazz dancing ensemble for big show

— The pre-taped rehearsal montage is pretty fun.
— A good laugh from the ending of Bill’s inspiring story, where he reveals he puked into the orchestra pit.
— I love the goofy gleeful looks on Farley and Mike’s faces during their simultaneous choreography at front of the stage during the big show at the end of the sketch.
— An overall charming, cute, and enjoyable sketch, even if it wasn’t intended to be all laugh-out-loud funny. The next time Bill hosts in 1999, they do a sketch that feels like a spiritual successor to this, in which Bill is the leader of an all-male group of Knicks City Dancers performing for an unruly crowd. Unfortunately, I recall that sketch being really weak, though I haven’t seen it in ages, so maybe my opinion will change when I eventually cover that episode. I used to think that episode in general was surprisingly pretty wretched for a Bill Murray-hosted show, but now that I’m thinking back on it, I can recall a number of pretty solid things from that episode.
STARS: ***½


COFFEE TALK WITH LINDA RICHMAN
Linda & neighbor (BIM) discuss the year’s Oscar nominations

— Funny line about how Barbra Streisand deserves an Oscar just for keeping her nose.
— Bill’s character discussing that year’s Oscar nominees makes me have a disappointed realization that we didn’t see Bill do his trademark Oscar picks tonight. It would’ve been a treat to see that again.
— Overall, I kinda liked Bill’s characterization, but this sketch as a whole kept me largely uninterested, as usual for Coffee Talk.
STARS: **


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Love Is Stronger Than Justice”


I’M CHILLIN’
today’s mother joke & a plug for Bitch Come Running cologne

— First time this recurring sketch has appeared all season. This also ends up being the last time we’ll ever see this sketch during Farley and Rock’s tenure as cast members (not counting when they bring the sketch back in Rock’s season 22 hosting stint, in which Jim Breuer replaces Farley’s character).
— A big laugh from the sponsor Bitch Come Runnin’ Cologne.
— I liked Farley’s line “Marky Mark ain’t nothin’ but Vanilla Ice in his drawers.”
— Very funny confused look that Rock gives Farley after Farley namedrops Gertrude Stein.
— Rock unfortunately stumbled over his delivery of the Mother Joke of the Day.
STARS: ***½


MCDONALD’S
to get free food, Honker poses as meat inspector testing for tainted beef

— Always nice to see Bill’s lesser-known Honker character.
— Bill’s delivery as this character always consistently cracks me up, especially the way he just now repeatedly said “salt” with his mouth full of food.
— Honker’s scheme to getting free food is pretty funny.
— During Ellen and Rob’s grossed-out reactions to Bill jamming a thermometer into the burger’s “rectum”, I liked Rob repeatedly saying “Shouldn’t have done that!”
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Every Breath You Take”


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A fairly solid episode. There were no real classics, but this was a fine and consistently good episode (minus Coffee Talk). Bill Murray was a great, fun, laid-back, and expert host as always, and it’s always interesting seeing him work with different casts whenever he comes back to the show.


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


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Alec Baldwin)
a mild step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Our annual John Goodman episode

Posted on

March 21, 1987 – Bill Murray / Percy Sledge (S12 E14)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
LOM & his lawyers convince BIM to fulfill missing show in his contract

— A good and clever premise with Lorne claiming Bill owes them one episode from his days as a cast member, which leads to tonight’s hosting gig.
— Some good laughs from Bill’s reaction to possibly having to do the show for 10 years.
— Bill seemed to make Lorne crack up just now. (second screencap above)
— This cold opening would later be cut from all reruns and be replaced with the dress rehearsal version of the first “Liberace in Heaven” cold opening from earlier this season (the one where Liberace’s by himself, not the one where he’s interviewed by Robin Leach).
STARS: ***½


MONOLOGUE
BIM intends to help the USA regain its comedic supremacy

— Great energetic entrance from Bill.
— He mentions this is the 500th broadcast of SNL. Obviously, he’s counting reruns, because as far as just new episodes go, this episode is only somewhere in the two hundreds.
— Great comment about how the French “used to be funny, but all they have now is Jerry Lewis and the Smurfs.”
— Overall, a very solid monologue. Bill was excellent, and this featured him speaking in his usual Bill Murray-isms that never fail to crack me up.
STARS: ****


NEW YORK TELEPHONE
compulsive gambler (JOL) reaches out & touches his bookie

— Here’s something else that would also later be removed from reruns.
— Interesting camera angles throughout this.
— I love Phil’s sleazy voice on the other end of the phone.
— Good punchline with this seedy gambling ad unexpectedly turning out to be a New York Telephone promo.
STARS: ***


ONE-NIGHT STAND
obnoxious (BIM) won’t leave (JAH)’s apartment after a one-night stand

— Love Bill’s dancing and lip-syncing while he’s setting up the blaring stereo speakers.
— Bill is so perfect in this role, and I like how oblivious he is to Jan’s aggravation towards him.
— Dennis’ Def Leppard(?) shirt looks familiar (screencap below), but I’m not sure why. I think I remember seeing that same shirt being worn by someone in a sketch from the early 90s era.

— I liked this overall sketch a lot, and Bill and Jan were both strong in their performances.
STARS: ****


DONAHUE
monologue drifts away from & back to “The New Celibacy”

— Great to see this back.
— In the live version I’m watching of this episode, Nora reveals her horrible sole sexual experience was with Joe Piscopo, which is hilarious though mean (after all, this is only THREE YEARS after the man left SNL). However, in the reruns of this episode, they show the dress rehearsal version of this sketch, where Nora’s bad sexual experience is revealed to be with stand-up comedian Gallagher instead of Joe Piscopo.
— More evidence that they show a different version of this sketch in reruns: Victoria’s hair looks kinda different in both versions. (side-by-side comparison below)

— I like the title of Jan’s softcore porn films, especially “Debbie Hugs Dallas”.
— A lot of laughs from the part with Jon explaining his celibacy wasn’t a conscious choice, and how even prostitutes “wouldn’t go for it”.
— When asked about the risk of STDs, I loved Jon responding “I would take that chance in a SECOND! Be–lieve me!”
— I absolutely love how Phil, while delivering a very rambly rant, heads backstage, grabs a bite from the snack table, walks back to the Donahue set, and then suddenly throws to Victoria after he’s finished speaking. However, there was a technical error, where the camera fails to follow Phil when he first heads backstage, which hurt the gag a bit. I wonder if this is one of the reasons why this sketch is replaced with the dress version in reruns.
STARS: **** (the dress version shown in reruns gets ****½)


NICK SLAMMER
Nick “Slammer” & Marc Shaiman [real] entertain prisoners behind bars

— Yes! Nick the Lounge Singer!
— Good setting for him this time, in a prison.
— Yet another change that would later be made to this episode in reruns: Kevin’s hilarious “This is my bitch” line regarding Jon’s Ivan Boesky (a topical bit) would be bleeped out in reruns. I don’t know if it’s because of the context the word “bitch” was used in, or if it’s because maybe the real Ivan Boesky complained to the show.
— Kevin reminiscing about when he first fell in love with Jon’s Boesky is providing some good laughs.
— Bill’s Nick has some particularly strong transitions into the songs he’s relating to situations in this sketch.
— I especially like the part now with Bill’s Nick breaking out into Party Like It’s 1999.
— Overall, the usual great Nick the Lounge Singer piece. That being said, I’ve always kinda felt it was a missed opportunity to not pair Nick with the Sweeney Sisters. The Sweeney Sisters were basically the Nick the Lounge Singer of the late 80s, and it would’ve been interesting seeing team together.
STARS: ****


WEEKEND UPDATE
after a six-year absence, BIM returns with his Oscar picks for 1987

— I’m liking all the jokes about the televangelists scandal (which SNL will get even more great mileage out of in the following week’s episode, especially in a memorable Church Chat sketch).
— Aside from two lame photo-based jokes (which I feel Dennis unfairly gets a bad rap for over-relying on; he’s barely done ANY photo-based jokes in the Updates I’ve covered so far, but then again, I am pretty early in his Update tenure), Dennis is on fire with a lot of these jokes so far tonight.
— Good bit with Dennis demonstrating a Rubik’s Condom.
— Alright! The return of Bill’s Oscar picks!
— And there’s goes the tradition of Bill giving short-shrift to the supporting actors/actresses category.
— Bill dismissing movie sequels and saying he’ll probably never do a Ghostbusters 2 is certainly funny to hear in hindsight, considering…
— I got a good laugh from Bill saying Platoon and Hannah & Her Sisters are basically the same movie.
— Bill’s overall Oscars segment was the usual great stuff.
STARS: ****


IT’S A GIRL
an obstetrician (PHH) delivers only girls- he removes testes if necessary

— Some laughs from Bill’s frustrated reaction to hearing his baby’s going to be a girl.
— Very dark reveal that many of the “female” babies Phil’s delivered have had to receive a special operation to remove their penis and testicles.
— Funny walk-on from Jon as a grown-up version of one of the “female” babies Phil’s delivered.
— I love how this is now taking an even darker turn with Phil’s tense “ boys are bad” monologue, complete with dramatic background music.
— Overall, a sketch that I’ve always loved, for its humorously dark subject matter and fantastic Phil Hartman performance.
STARS: ****½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “When A Man Loves A Woman”


IL RETURNO DE HERCULES
the out-of-shape demigod (BIM) can’t lift a rock

— The usually-impeccable Phil Hartman actually has a hard time delivering his opening narration, stumbling over a few words. Very rare to see Phil giving a clumsy performance. This would result in YET ANOTHER change made to reruns of tonight’s episode: Phil’s narration is replaced with Al Franken doing a flub-less take.
— Dana’s facial expressions and badly-dubbed American voice are hilarious.
— Funny visual with Bill’s gut hanging out.
— I love the deadpan dubbed voice Jim Downey is using for Bill.
STARS: ****


TOUGH PARENTS
(DAC) feels pressured by his overdemanding parents (BIM) & (NOD)

— I like how tense this is increasingly getting.
— Geez, now Dana pulls out a pistol.
— Funny how Bill is instructing Dana on how to properly attempt to shoot him.
— Excellent very dark ending with Dana shooting Nora and Bill, followed by Bill happily concluding that “Mikey can shoot.”
— Overall, I liked this for similar reasons I liked the disturbing It’s A Girl sketch earlier tonight, only with the darkness reaching a full 11 this time.
STARS: ***½


TAXI
cab driver Honker & fare (DAC) relate their recent experiences

— The return of Bill’s Honker character.
— Funny story from Honker about kidnapping a prostitute to save her from a pimp. I also like how Dana is hesitantly going along with the story.
— Pretty poor greenscreen work at the end when Honker was “driving” away.
— Overall, a decent sketch that offered amusing weirdness.
STARS: ***


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— A great episode, as expected with Bill Murray hosting. There weren’t any sketches I disliked tonight, and a lot of the sketches were strong. I also like how several of the post-Update sketches took on a more dark, disturbing tone than we’re used to seeing on SNL. This overall episode has always been one of my personal favorites from this whole era, though I might be biased because it’s one of the earliest episodes I recall ever seeing in a Comedy Central rerun, very early in my SNL fandom when I had mostly only seen new episodes (this was in 1999, by the way) and hadn’t yet been exposed to a lot of reruns of older seasons on Comedy Central. Because of that, I have very fond memories of this episode.
— Bill Murray was his usual great self. One of the things I always like about seeing a former cast member hosting is seeing how well they work with a completely different cast. Bill had a really good chemistry with this cast and fit well in this era’s style.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Valerie Bertinelli):
— a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW:
Charlton Heston

Posted on

December 12, 1981 – Bill Murray / The Spinners (S7 E8)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
SNL sponsored by Phone Company- “Faking progress so we can charge more”

— Decent tagline, but I’m still finding it kinda lazy to use these quick disclaimer gags as a cold opening. Hope there’s a change with these in the second half of the season.
STARS: ***


OPENING MONTAGE
— Announcer Mel Brandt’s gruff-sounding fill-in from the last episode is doing the announcements again tonight.
— This fill-in announcer still sounds ridiculously out of place in this opening montage. Like I said in the last review, it’s almost comical in itself.
— I think this is the very first instance of Eddie and Joe receiving noticeably more audience cheers than the rest of the cast.
— A lot of special guests credited tonight.


MONOLOGUE
BIM has nothing but good things to say about Santa Claus (Andy Murphy)

— There’s no Talent Entrance tonight.
— A more tame, straightforward entrance from Bill this time, compared to the usual high-energy entrances he’s made in his monologues from other episodes he’s hosted.
— Good concept with Bill bringing out Santa Claus as a special guest. This is one of the most well-known roles for frequent SNL extra Andy Murphy.
— I’m loving Bill’s very Bill Murray-esque rapport with Santa. Lots of fun lines from Bill here.
STARS: ****


TALES OF THE UNLIKELY
Libyan terrorists try to assassinate the president

   

— Interesting concept and intro to this.
— The pamphlets bit with Joe is pretty funny.
— Bill: “[Reagan] likes expensive gifts”. Tony (playing Reagan’s national security adviser): “Well, don’t we all?” *big laughs from the audience* I don’t get it. Must be a very topical political reference. Reminds me of how overly topical the constant Trump material on modern-day SNL is. (Imagine future SNL fans 30 years from now trying to follow those Trump sketches in reruns; it’s gonna be HORRIBLY aged and hard to follow).
— Overall, a pretty solid sketch.
STARS: ***½


HOTEL ROOM
a washed-up Tom Snyder (JOP) has delusions in a dumpy hotel room

   

— First time we’re seeing Joe play Normal Tom Snyder, after his funny appearance as Spanish Tom Snyder earlier this season.
— I kinda knocked Joe as an impressionist in my last review (calling him a poor man’s precursor to Phil Hartman and Darrell Hammond), but I admit he does a good Tom Snyder, especially the trademark Snyder laugh.
— I like how Joe’s Snyder is deliriously treating his room visitors as famous interviewees on his show “Tomorrow”.
— Pretty funny sequence with Joe’s Snyder interacting with the spirit of Rona Barrett.
— The ending actually kinda came off touching.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
The Spinners perform “Then Came You”
The Spinners perform “I’ll Be Around”
The Spinners perform “Working My Way Back to You”


MX-5 TAMPONS
Father Guido Sarducci endorses MX-5 tampons

— The return of Father Guido Sarducci. Can’t say I’m thrilled; the oversaturation of him in seasons 4 and 5 permanently ruined him for me. It’s hard for me to even laugh at this character anymore (and he was never all that hilarious to begin with, honestly).
— All that being said, this commercial with him is actually funny. Hilarious concept with randomly having him tout a brand of tampons.
— Overall, short and sweet.
STARS: ***


DESIGNER FAIRY TALES
elves make clothes for Ralph Lauren (BIM)

     

— Another SNL parody of Brooke Shields’ famous Calvin Klein commercials from those days.
— I was about to say that Gail Matthius’ Brooke Shields was more attractive to me, but honestly, Mary looks good in this. Mary can surprisingly be quite attractive in certain roles, like this and Marilyn Monroe.
— Oh, this is segueing into a sketch. I thought it was just going to be a straightforward Calvin Klein Jeans fake ad.
— Isn’t there a story about how they weren’t able to remove makeup that Eddie wore for an earlier Muhammad Ali appearance in time for this sketch? I do notice that there’s a few weird light-skinned splotches on his face in this, and it looks like he’s kinda trying to hide some parts of his face from the camera. Bill gives him a funny look at one point. However, the copy of the episode I’m watching hasn’t even HAD a Muhammad Ali bit yet. I guess the order of sketches has been shuffled around in the rerun version I’m watching (which is very common for this season).
— The increasingly ridiculous contorted poses Mary’s Brooke is shown in whenever the camera cuts back to her are really funny.
— Overall, a pretty good sketch. Not much else I can say about it, though.
STARS: ***


SNL NEWSBREAK
the many spellings of “Kaddafi”
footage of an early JOP interview of Cassius Clay (EDM)
JOP asks Muhammad Ali (EDM) if he’s taken too many punches
MAG asks jaded children about the meaning of Christmas

         

— My copy of this episode is missing the beginning of SNL Newsbreak and starts towards the end of Brian’s sign-on. Anyone know if this opened with the “falling logo letters” gag once again? Also, is Mary even there? The camera has just been on Brian in my copy of this Newsbreak so far.
— Uh-oh, Brian’s long-winded joke about the spelling of Khaddafi seems to be our very first instance of the “long screen crawl gag”, which is something I’m aware becomes an UNBEARABLE regular part of SNL Newsbreak for the remainder of the season. Ugh.
— That being said, I admit to laughing at some of the ridiculous Khaddafi misspellings, and this particular screen crawl didn’t go on TOO long. I know it gets worse later this season, though.
— The audience loved the “Khadaffy Duck” comic book bit, but I personally found it to be lame.
— I guess Mary really isn’t at the desk tonight. Brian has been the only one doing jokes in tonight’s Newsbreak so far. So SNL has ALREADY re-removed Mary from the desk, after going through the trouble of re-instating her as an anchor in the last episode? This is insane; SNL doesn’t know what they’re doing with this segment anymore.
— Okay, here’s the Muhammad Ali bit I mentioned earlier. However, this segment is clearly pre-taped, plus Eddie’s not even wearing any special kind of makeup here. This can’t be the bit that caused the makeup mishap in the Designer Fairy Tales sketch.
— Eddie’s impression of Young Ali (Cassius Clay) is hilarious.
— Ah, now we’re getting a live interview with Eddie as Older Ali. So THIS is what the aforementioned makeup mishap was all about. And oh my god, Eddie looks unrecognizable under all that makeup.
— Eddie’s voice as Older Ali is cracking me up.
— There’s Mary, doing a pre-taped remote on what Christmas means to children.
— The first kid being interviewed is a young Seth Green! (second-to-last screencap above)
— One kid complains that people have started putting Christmas decorations up way too early. Interesting how that was a complaint even back in those days; I thought that only started in more recent years.
— There’s the same curly-haired little girl from the Hidden Photo sketch from earlier this season.
— The whole “What Christmas Means to Me” segment is funny, with the children’s adult-esque grumpy complaints.
STARS: **½


PREDICTIONS
BIM talks with Father Guido Sarducci about his psychic predictive powers

— Another segment with Father Guido Sarducci tonight. Is this REALLY necessary?
— “Chicklets”?
— (*sigh*) This seems to be turning into the usual long-winded Guido Sarducci bit.
— Some of the psychic predictions are mildly funny.
— God, this is starting to get really long and boring. Sarducci made an actual FUNNY appearance earlier tonight that was short and sweet, so why’d they have to ruin it by following it up with one of his typical long-winded, never-ending talkfests? Until now, it had been refreshing no longer having to worry about reviewing these Sarducci bits on a regular basis after I finished my coverage of season 5. (Then again, I do have to worry about his semi-regular appearances in the upcoming season 11).
— Loved Bill’s random dig at the New York Post.
— Okay, Sarducci’s “The waves are gonna be bitchin’” comment got a chuckle out of me.
STARS: **


MICHAEL DAVIS
in response to a fan letter, Michael Davis [real] juggles 3 bowling balls

     

— Great opening stunt, throwing a red ball in the air and catching it on his nose while perfectly balancing it.
— Ha, turns out the red ball is a clown nose.
— Funny reveal with the fan who unsuccessfully tried to juggle three axes signing his letter to Michael under the name “Lefty”.
— Loved Michael’s “or does the earth suck” line during his bowling ball gravity test.
— Some good laughs from his difficulties in lifting the three bowling balls off the floor.
— And now he actually juggled the three bowling balls successfully. That was great.
STARS: ****


FRACAS
by Timothy Hittle- a battle between a man & a claymation foe

     

— Hmm, a claymation short.
— Haha, I got a big laugh from the part with the clay figure stabbing the guy’s foot with a fork, making the guy scream hilariously.
— Overall, I found this film to be very funny.
STARS: ****


THE ECONOMICS OF CHRISTMAS
(JOP) & (CHE) explain trickle-down economics to Honker via a song

   

— The return of Bill’s Honker character!
— Looks like this has turned into our obligatory season 7 musical sketch of the week. Considering this is the Christmas show, I can excuse it this time.
— Overall, nothing really to say about this, but this was fine for what it was.
STARS: ***


AT HOME WITH THE PSYCHOS
a nuclear family is prepared for the blow hole

       

— Oh, I’ve been looking forward to this. This is known as a very dark, controversial Michael O’Donoghue-written sketch that has a lot of notoriety, and I believe is one of the things that contributed to O’Donoghue’s mid-season firing over the Christmas break. I’m eager to finally see this insane sketch for myself.
— Loved Bill’s casual “Hey, what’s eating you?” after Christine randomly shot a rifle at him.
— Mary’s pretty funny as the blind ballerina daughter.
— Holy hell, that father-daughter make-out session between Bill and Mary…
— Oh my god, Christine’s randomly bleeding hands…
— I like Eddie’s walk-on as a dynamite-covered militant son.
— Boy, this is one hell of a dark, crazy, unsettling sketch as expected. The studio audience doesn’t know WHAT to make of this.
— Aw, damn NBC censors. Thanks to them, we can’t even see the blowhole prop that Bill is displaying to Brian.
— Speaking of NBC, this is a good time to mention that back in the original airing of this episode, this sketch got interrupted at some point for breaking news about Poland being invaded by Russia; news that no doubt must’ve really startled viewers back then. The copy I’m watching of this episode doesn’t have the breaking news report, but supposedly in the old Netflix/Seeso version of this episode, they bizarrely left the breaking news report intact!
— By the way, I believe this is the only time in SNL history where a live episode got interrupted by a breaking news report. During the summer of 1997, an NBC rerun of a then-recent season 22 episode (Rob Lowe/Spice Girls, I believe) was interrupted for breaking news of Princess Diana’s death.
— Nice touch with the green nuclear glow in the room during Bill’s whole mock-dramatic speech at the end.
— Overall, wow, that sketch DEFINITELY lived up to its bizarre reputation. I liked this sketch overall, though I wonder if I enjoyed it more for how daringly strange it was than for how good it actually was (which is how I felt about O’Donoghue’s equally-strange Nick the Knock sketch earlier this season).  I will say that Bill was perfect for this sketch, and took charge of it better than most hosts would’ve.
STARS: ***


THE YALE WHIFFENPOOFS
Yale Wiffenpoofs perform Christmas carols with host & cast

     

— For some reason, this is reminding me of when The Singing Idlers performed on the show back in season 1 (Jill Clayburgh episode).
— The singers’ SAT scores randomly being displayed onscreen has some pretty funny jokes (e.g. “Dates Kennedys You’ve Never Even Heard Of”, “Dad Made a Few Calls”).
— Hey, now Bill and the SNL cast have joined in on the song.
— Uh, why do the cast have sped-up chipmunk singing voices?
— Boy, is Tony hamming it up.
— There’s Robin’s Laraine Newman-esque hairstyle again. I keep having to do a double-take whenever I see her hair like that, because it keeps initially making me think I’m watching the original SNL cast again.
STARS: N/A (not a rateable segment)


GOODNIGHTS
BIM expresses solidarity with Poland in wake of martial law

  

— My copy of this episode abruptly joins these goodnights in progress while Bill’s in the middle of awkwardly addressing the Poland situation. Bill somberly says, among other things, “There’s still a bargain to be had in Fort Lee, New Jersey” and “Our hearts should be with, are ARE with, the good people of Poland. God bless them.”
— My copy is missing an interesting-sounding comment that Bill supposedly made about the Poland situation early on in these goodnights: “I guess that means this is World War III.” However, I’m not sure if that comment from Bill even occurred; I heard it as a recounting from someone who saw the original airing of this episode as a little kid, and I think his memory of it is understandably a little faulty.
— After Bill’s somber announcement, Christine noticeably looks very emotional. Damn.
— Aww, now I noticed Robin looks really sad too.
— Geez, what a depressing end to a Christmas episode.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— An overly-average episode. Most of the sketches were decent, but nothing in the show stood out at all aside from the monologue, the Michael Davis spot, and a claymation short that wasn’t even originally aired in this episode (it was added for the rerun). Not even the insane “At Home With The Psychos” sketch could garner more than an average three-star rating.
— The overly-average, nothing-special nature of this episode is evidenced by the fact that I had a hard time coming up with stuff to say about some of the sketches. At least this episode never really bottomed-out too hard, though; the only thing I came close to kinda hating was the overlong Father Guido Sarducci psychic predictions sketch.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Tim Curry):
— a fairly big step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW:
We enter 1982, with host Robert Conrad

Posted on

March 7, 1981 – Bill Murray / Delbert McClinton (S6 E12)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars


COLD OPENING
BIM convinces the cast that the bad SNL aura “just doesn’t matter”

    

— After having finished my coverage of the original SNL era a few weeks ago, only to find myself having to deal with this difficult season, it certainly feels refreshing seeing Bill Murray on SNL again.
— Gilbert’s jew-fro looks a lot shorter tonight.
— A reference to the “Saturday Night Dead” criticism that the media famously used throughout this season.
— Ha, loved Bill saying to Charles “People are telling me you imitate me.”
— Bill’s “Watch your mouth” advice to Charles is a hilarious passing reference to a certain notorious incident from the last episode.
— Ha, Bill advises Gilbert to “Cheer up”, referring to Gilbert’s sullen, mopey attitude we’ve been seeing a lot in the second half of the season.
— Some good laughs from Bill telling the cast tales of how he “saved” the original cast.
— Love the excited “It just doesn’t matter” chanting.
— A very energetic LFNY from the whole cast.
STARS: ****½


MONOLOGUE
after a manic entrance, BIM describes his partnership with EDM- “We bad”

     

— Whoa, Bill’s actually making his entrance through the home base stage’s elevator, which has never happened until now (though Elliott Gould jokingly tried to do it back in the season premiere). Cool.
— A fantastic fun, energetic entrance from Bill, practically bouncing off the walls, going into the audience, carrying an “audience member” (who I think I remember hearing is SNL staffer Audrey Peart Dickman; not 100% sure about that) over his shoulder, and even getting the SNL Band to replay the SNL theme music.
— Bill and Eddie’s whole “we bad” bit is great.
— I’m loving seeing Bill and Eddie working together. They’re having great chemistry, which is making me wish they did end up doing some kind of buddy movie together in the 80s.
— Overall, this was awesome. This feels like the first actual funny monologue of the whole season. Didn’t even realize until now how consistently awful this season’s monologues have been before tonight.
STARS: ****½


FORMULA FOR THE GOOD LIFE
Paulie Herman loves the chemical industry

     

— This pre-taped documentary bit is a very interesting use of Jersey Guy (a.k.a. proto-Jay Leno), and a nice change-of-pace for him.
— I love this scene right now with him at the mall.
STARS: ***


SCRIPT IN DEVELOPMENT
actors struggle to play out a writer’s (BIM) script as he makes revisions

   

— I’m loving the format of this, with the cast acting out Bill’s script and trying to keep up with constant revisions he keeps making. Though maybe I’m crazy, but I could swear I remember the Carol Burnett Show had a recurring sketch using this same concept the previous decade. I think it was during the later, weaker years of that show (sometime after Harvey Korman left the cast). Maybe I’m mistaken.
— Ha, C.R. gets shot for the second episode in a row.
— Hilarious part with Ann as an increasingly disgusting maid character.
— Love the bit with the actors having a hard time keeping their freeze-frame pose during Bill’s long pause break.
— This is all being pulled off very well.
— Oh, this part right now is fantastic with the actors doing a fast-motion re-enactment of everything they had just performed as Bill is quickly re-reading everything he just wrote.
— Overall, this whole sketch was excellent and feels so atypical of this season. This proved that this cast was actually capable of pulling off the type of classic sketch that I can easily imagine appearing during some of the best eras of the show.
STARS: *****


ALTERED WALTER
Dan Rather (JOP) lambastes stoned & tanked Cronkite (BIM)

       

— I’m now finally starting to see some accuracy in Joe’s Dan Rather impression.
— I’ve always wanted to to see this sketch. I’m not familiar with the movie “Altered States”, but everything I’ve heard about this parody of it has always sounded to me like an interesting, weird concept and a unique use of Bill’s Walter Cronkite impression.
— Ha, they didn’t even attempt to make Bill’s suit look wet after he came out of the “water”.
— Wow, the audience has been absolutely silent during this so far. I guess this sketch is a little too weird and talk-y for their likes, but I’m personally enjoying it.
— Hmm, a big scene change mid-sketch.
— Is that Matthew Laurance as the Indian?
— Bill’s trippy hallucination sequence is freakin’ hilarious. I’m loving all the different random images and stock footage shots they’re throwing in there.
— This is looking to be possibly one of the longest sketches in SNL history. Feels weird seeing such a long sketch after I’ve gotten so used to this season’s format of cramming in as many short sketches as they could possibly fit into 90 minutes (taking a page out of season 1’s playbook, perhaps?). This long Cronkite sketch makes me feel like I’m watching something from seasons 4 and 5, back when it became a regular thing to do long sketches that feel like epic mini-movies.
— Very funny part with Bill’s Cronkite receiving a phone call from his mind telling him “I’m leaving.”
— I’m really liking where this whole thing is going. It’s getting weirder and weirder.
— Bill’s strange singing when re-entering the water tank is hilarious.
— Overall, the length of this could’ve been trimmed a little, but I found the overall sketch to be really enjoyable, fun, delightfully bizarre, and well-performed.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Givin’ It Up For Your Love”


SATURDAY NIGHT NEWSLINE
Dr. Jonathan Lear (Mark King) displays photos of DNA molecules

   

— Uh… what in the WORLD is this??? And who the heck IS this guy on my screen right now?
— This guy looks kinda like a panicked Andy Samberg in a wig.
— Is tonight ANOTHER episode where we get mini Weekend Update knock-offs scattered throughout the show, much like the Eddie Murphy-hosted “Newsbreak” segments from the Deborah Harry episode? If so, it’s becoming more and more painfully obvious that the show seems to be trying to phase out the traditional Weekend Update. It’s been a sad experience seeing the once-dependable, beloved Weekend Update segment gradually die a miserable, depressing death over the course of this season.
— This bit with the different types of DNA examples being displayed on individual cards is fairly funny. It feels like the type of thing that upcoming SNL hire Tim Kazurinsky would soon do regularly on the show.
STARS: ***


CHAP STICK
Sammy Davis, Jr. (EDM) & other notables adopt “Chapstick” as a last name

   

— I almost thought that was a white guy in blackface playing Sammy Davis Jr. (which is something we’ll be regularly seeing on the show a few seasons later), before I recognized that as Eddie.
— What the hell?  Strange sketch so far. I’m not getting all this “celebrities changing their name to chapstick” stuff.
— Whoa at the ending with Gilbert as Roman Polanski sleazily walking off with the teen girls.
— Overall, I didn’t get this at all, nor did I get any real laughs. I assume it’s a topical parody of a commercial from back in those days.
STARS: *½


SATURDAY NIGHT NEWSLINE
BIM picks the Oscars & gives awards to original SNL castmembers

    

— Another Newsline segment tonight.
— Oh, hell yeah! We’re getting the return of Bill’s annual Oscar predictions that he always did as a cast member!
— Heh, as always, he continues his tradition of giving short-shrift to the supporting actors/actresses category.
— Wow, he’s speeding through this whole thing.
— Oh, turns out the reason he sped through it is because he wants to focus on doing a “new awards” segment.
— Ah, it’s a meta bit, with him nominating his original SNL castmates under various Oscars categories. Very classy, and it warms my heart seeing this after the attachment and affection I’ve recently developed for the original cast from reviewing the first five seasons on a daily basis. Ah, my sweet, beloved original cast…
— I almost thought he was going to skip poor Garrett, before he jokingly nominated Garrett for his work with the “guardian angels”. I guess that’s their way of working around the fact that at this point in early 1981, Garrett had yet to do ANYTHING in his post-SNL career (which Eddie Murphy got in a harsh-but-funny dig at earlier this season).
STARS: ***½


CUT FLOWERS
by Mary Pat Kelly- finicky (BDM) visits florist (BIM)

   

— Whoa, a short film starring Bill and his brother, the soon-to-be-rejoining-the-SNL-cast-next-season Brian Doyle-Murray.
— Always interesting to see Bill and Brian acting onscreen together, which is one of the things I liked about season 5 when they were both in the cast.
— Very nice visual quality to this film.
— For some reason, the “Brian sniffing different kinds of flowers one-by-one” sequence is making me laugh, even though I’m not even sure if it’s being played for laughs.
— Fairly funny surprise ending with Brian eating the flower.
STARS: ***


NICK RIVERS
Nick “Rivers” & PAS entertain while floating down the Mississippi

     

— The return of Nick the Lounger Singer.
— After getting so used to reviewing these Nick sketches back when I covered the original SNL era, it’s quite a different experience for me seeing this sketch appearing in THIS season. It’s actually pretty fun seeing the new cast appearing in a Nick sketch.
— I got a big laugh from Bill’s story about ladies of the south being forced to eat rat flash.
— Haha, I absolutely LOVE Bill’s performance of Kool & The Gang’s “Celebration”, complete with some great funky dancing.
— Very funny reaction from Bill when finding out that Yvonne as a former Iran hostage is actually one of the black hostages who was freed early on.
— My god, Bill’s high-pitched singing of The Rolling Stones’ “Emotional Rescue” is truly hilarious!
— Overall, a very welcome return and a very solid installment of this recurring sketch.
STARS: ****


SATURDAY NIGHT NEWSLINE
JOP proposes softer sticks as the solution to hockey violence

    

— Now this Update knock-off segment is being hosted by Mr. Update Anchor himself, Charles Rocket. I’m more confused than EVER now. So has the actual Weekend Update been dropped from the show this week? If so, this is DEFINITELY their way of acknowledging how truly unwatchable Update had gradually become over the course of this season.
— So will Gail be getting her own “Saturday Night Newsline” segment later tonight, or are they trying to erase her embarrassing tenure as an Update anchor from our memories?
— Hmm, Charles’ delivery of the jokes doesn’t seem as bad as usual.
— The jokes themselves are still pretty damn weak, though.
— Here’s our weekly Joe Piscopo SNL Sports commentary.
— Hey, it’s stand-up comic Dom Irrera, in a big role as one of the hockey players! He’s actually appeared as an extra at least twice earlier this season (as one of the jurors in the Televised Trial sketch from the Sally Kellerman episode, and as one of the mobsters in the “Is Frank Sinatra a Hoodlum?” cold opening from the Deborah Harry episode), but I didn’t notice those appearances until they were pointed out to me after I had posted those respective episode reviews. This hockey player bit is the first time I’ve caught an Irrera sighting on my own.
— Never mind what I said about this being a big role for Irrera; the scene with him ended almost as soon as it began, and he had no lines. It’s still the most noteworthy thing he’s done so far, though, during his stint as a recurring SNL extra.
— Eh, Joe’s overall commentary was below par and felt kinda pointless.
— Charles to Joe: “Did you say ‘puck’???” Ha, another funny Rocket f-bomb reference, and this one got a great reaction from the audience.
STARS: **


NO SEX WITH MARY
co-workers clear the air- “we’re not sleeping with Mary Cunningham (GLM)”

   

— Much like the earlier “chapstick” thing, this is another bit that seems too topical for me to understand.
— This does seem KINDA funny, at least.
— Yet another ethnic role for Gilbert.
STARS: **


CAT’S NAME
house guests (BIM) & (ANR) try to remember (MAL)’s beloved cat’s name

   

— With all the noteworthy roles Matthew Laurance has been getting tonight, why didn’t he receive his usual featured player credit in tonight’s opening montage? In fact, none of the featured players were credited tonight.
— That looks like the same white cat that Gilda Radner held throughout the Canadian Wizard of Oz sketch from the previous season’s Elliott Gould episode. (a side-by-side comparison is below)

 

— I liked the small part with Bill and Ann rapidly going through random movie character names, trying to remember which character the cat was named after.
— While I find the premise to be kinda flimsy (honestly, why would it be so horrible for Bill and Ann to just admit to Matthew that they can’t remember his cat’s name?), this is being pulled off well by both Bill and (surprisingly) Ann.
— Loved Bill’s sudden intense “WHAT IS THE DAMN CAT’S NAME?!?” outburst over the phone.
— Herman’s the cat’s name? I thought they established earlier in the sketch that this cat’s a female.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guests perform “Shotgun Rider”


BUBBA’S WASH FAYETTA’S DRY
divorce settlement forces Bubba (BIM) & Fayetta (DED) to share laundromat

  

— Some really good character work from Denny and Bill in this.
— Interesting concept with a divorced couple owning two separate parts of the same laundromat, as part of their divorce settlement.
— The random part about the metal plate in Bill’s head is really funny.
— Funny bit at the end.
— Overall, a very well-written and well-performed slice-of-life piece.
STARS: ****


GOODNIGHTS
BIM apologizes to the original SNL castmembers for doing the show

  

— Speaking to the camera, Bill calls out his original SNL castmates’ names one-by-one and says “I’m sorry for what I’ve done”, as a mock apology for betraying them by hosting “the new SNL”. Funny bit. He would later say something in a similar vein during the goodnights of the season 12 episode he hosted, where he urges his original castmates to come back and host the show because “they kiss your butt all week here”.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— What a complete 180 from the long string of dreary episodes that preceded this. Tonight’s episode was consistently strong, had a fun vibe, contained lots of sketches with good, creative premises, had lots of great performances from the cast, and featured the return of some old favorites from Bill. It also felt really good being able to praise plenty of things throughout this review after being so consistently negative in my reviews of the last few episodes.
— Bill’s hosting performance was excellent as expected, and showed a lot of why he was such a great cast member back in the day. Also, he surprisingly had chemistry with this new cast. His presence added a lot of spirit to the episode, which seemed to boost the cast’s energy and confidence levels.
— This would end up being the last episode before NBC steps in and puts SNL on an impromptu month-long hiatus (canceling the following week’s scheduled Robert Guillaume-hosted episode in the process) while they fire producer Jean Doumanian and bring a certain new producer in to begin making massive changes to the show, which includes firing several of the cast members and writers. Of the cast, tonight’s episode ended up being the final one for Charles Rocket, Ann Risley, and Gilbert Gottfried. No big loss at all with those first two names, though I admit Charles sometimes had his moments and Ann at least went out on a decent note with surprisingly good performances in her final episode. Still, I can’t say I’m gonna miss either one of them. As for Gilbert, his tenure on the show was strange, gradually going from a confident-looking new kid to a sullen-looking sourpuss who was clearly miserable working on the show. Even stranger, some of his sketches during his “sullen sourpuss” phase (Italian Comedian, Big Brother, Pillow Pets) were actually some of the better sketches from the string of tepid episodes that preceded tonight’s show. While Gilbert may not have had a very noticeable presence on the show this season, I’m think I’m kinda gonna miss him in a weird way.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Charlene Tilton):
— a huge step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW:
Dick Ebersol’s tenure as SNL producer begins, several new faces in the cast make their debut, and a hastily-retooled version of SNL hits the airwaves, in what ends up being the final episode of the season thanks to a writers strike. I’ve always been curious to see this episode; from all the things I’ve read about it, it sounds like a strange mish-mash of the original SNL era, season 6, and what was soon to come in season 7. Seems like a pretty fascinating one-off episode.