Tag: R.E.M.

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December 11, 1999 – Danny DeVito / R.E.M. (S25 E8)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

NBC SPECIAL REPORT
Arnold Schwarzenegger (DAH) says the world will be unaffected by Y2k

— The debut of Darrell’s Arnold Schwarzenegger impression.
— I’m finding Darrell’s Arnold impression better here than it would later be. Even though it’s still not all that spot-on here, his impression is a lot funnier to me than his later version.
— Some laughs from the odd things Darrell’s Arnold says are going to be the same when the new millennium enters.
STARS: ***


OPENING MONTAGE
— After mysteriously not appearing in the last episode’s opening montage, the 25th anniversary SNL logo and Jimmy Fallon’s season 25 opening montage photo is back. However, Chris Kattan’s opening montage photo hasn’t been changed back to the season 25 version, though it eventually would.
— A noteworthy Don Pardo blooper, in which he accidentally announces the SNL Band as “Musical guest R.E.M.”. Then when R.E.M.’s picture shows up afterwards, Pardo pauses silently when realizing his mistake and then awkwardly just says “R.E.M.”. Then when Danny DeVito’s picture shows up afterwards, Pardo again pauses silently and then says kinda half-heartedly “Your host Danny DeVito”, without preceding “your host” with the usual “and”. SNL would later fix all of these mistakes in reruns.


MONOLOGUE
host is sprayed with apple after receiving Mr. Peepers as a gift

— Great to see Danny DeVito hosting for the first (and what would end up being only) time in this era.
— Danny mentions that this is his fifth time hosting, and that he’s joined “The Five Club”, as he calls it. Someone at SNL didn’t do their research, as this is actually Danny’s SIXTH time hosting, not fifth. Some people have a theory that SNL isn’t counting Danny’s season 9 episode, because he didn’t host it alone – Rhea Perlman co-hosted with him. However, I think it’s a real stretch that SNL wouldn’t count that. Co-hosting the show with someone else still counts as hosting. After all, Alec Baldwin’s fifth hosting stint had him mention in passing in his monologue that it was his fifth time hosting, which means they were counting his fourth episode, in which he co-hosted with Kim Basinger.
— I like how Danny’s making a big deal about how he’s the last guy in the millennium to host SNL.
— Will, on the gift SNL is giving to Danny: “We asked Lorne to chip in, but he refused.”
— They waste the prestigious so-called final monologue of the millennium on a Mr. Peepers bit??? And right after we just saw him a mere two episodes ago?
— I got a laugh from Mr. Peepers ripping right through the winter backdrop.
— Danny is a blast in this monologue and is helping make this Mr. Peepers bit more tolerable than usual.
— Danny, on this whole Mr. Peepers bit: “Trust me, my kids are at home and they love this, so screw it!” If that’s truly the case, then who am I to argue?
STARS: *** (mainly just for what Danny brought to this)


PRESS CONFERENCE PLAY SET
kids can practice media relations with the Press Conference Play Set

— Ehh, not too sure about this premise, though the execution has its charm at points. However, this commercial feels a little out of place on SNL.
— I laughed at the messy-haired kid at the end who panickedly said “I will no longer be trying new foods.”
STARS: **½


THE DELICIOUS DISH
after Y2k meltdown, chef (host) is permanent guest of Margaret Jo & Terry

— Surprisingly, this is the first time this sketch has appeared in a year. This also ends up being the only installment of this sketch that we’ll be seeing this season.
— A great scenario of Delicious Dish dealing with the apocalyptic aftermath of Y2K.
— I like the passing mention of a roving sex gang.
— Funny line about Danny being Delicious Dish’s only guest in every episode ever since Y2K struck.
— A great dark turn this takes with Danny’s character and his defeated demeanor.
— A good laugh from Molly’s line about spending the night with bikers in exchange for a packet of ketchup, and how Ana immediately changes the subject.
— A hilarious reveal of Danny’s clam chowder having been made out of whiteout and dice.
STARS: ****½


MANGO
Christmas Fairy (Michael Stipe) shows why Mango’s dad (host) rebukes him

 

— Mango continues to be shoved down our throats this season. Oh, and also, do we really need Mr. Peepers AND Mango in the same episode? A certain somebody in the cast needs to come up with some new characters.
— Kattan’s portrayal of Mango seems to be getting increasingly more goofy and animated with each passing appearance this season.
— This feels like the first time in a while we’ve seen Horatio. His airtime has been getting pretty bad these last few episodes. He wasn’t even in any sketches in the preceding Christina Ricci episode.
— I guess it’s fairly interesting seeing Mango’s family.
— Danny’s anger towards Mango is making me laugh.
— Nice inclusion of Michael Stipe as the Christmas Fairy.
— In the black-and-white 1944 scene, I like the detail of Guava’s admirers outside of his dressing room being sailors.
— Funny Jimmy Stewart impression from Jimmy.
— Decent running bit with the occasional references to R.E.M. songs.
— Overall, not too bad for a season 25 Mango sketch, even if I still wasn’t all that crazy about this as a whole.
STARS: **½


METAL SHOP
in shop class, Sully & Denise videotape an interview with teacher (host)

— This sketch officially becomes recurring.
— Jimmy’s Sully character becomes more defined, as this is the first time we see him wearing his traditional Nomar Garciaparra Red Sox jersey.
— The debut of Horatio’s Boston Teens character, Frankie. With this addition, I like that this recurring sketch stars three of the four newer people in the cast (Jimmy, Rachel, and Horatio), giving this recurring sketch a “new SNL generation” feel.
— Sully’s line about getting Denise nipple warmers for a Christmas gift was very funny.
— Horatio’s performance is providing good amusement.
— Funny bit with Danny showing his glass eye to the camera.
STARS: ***½


HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM THE LADIES’ MAN
Leon Phelps sings “Merry Christmas To The Ladies”

— A nice change of pace for The Ladies Man.
— Fun song from Leon Phelps. I especially like the dirty lyric about licking his candy cane.
— Nice assistance from the two backup dancers.
— Leon: “Santa Claus comes but once a year, whereas yours truly has been known to come a lot more often than that.”
STARS: ***½


TV FUNHOUSE
“Fun With Real Audio” by RBS- intrusive journalists dominated 1999

— I’m getting good laughs from the raunchy direction the opening Barbara Walters scene is going.
— I like how this TV Funhouse is an amalgamation of various big news stories of the year.
— Funny visual of a fat guy loudly chomping on a hoagie in the background of President Clinton’s Early Show interview.
— Wow, a Columbine scene? Even for Robert Smigel’s daring standards, I’m kinda surprised he’s touching Columbine, though the scene is actually pretty tame.
— The Barbara Walters scene now gets even raunchier, with her hilariously bringing out a vibrator that has a replica of her own face on the top of it.
— Overall, some really funny stuff here and there, but in my opinion, Smigel has yet to have a great TV Funhouse so far this season. And why have all of his TV Funhouses this season so far been “Fun With Real Audio”?
STARS: ***½


WEEKEND UPDATE
ALF & bitter teen Joe Franken [real] introduce the Al Franken Millennium

— I absolutely love that SNL is continuing the 10-year tradition of Al Franken declaring who the upcoming new decade will belong to, with us now seeing a middle-aged Al and teenaged Joe Franken, after the last decade bit they did together on Update 10 years earlier.
— I’m enjoying Joe Franken acting like a typical angsty teen who’s embarrassed of his father.
— Joe Franken, on how viewers don’t care about Al’s decade bit: “They just wanna see Jimmy Fallon, not some sad old guy with a tired bit.” Al’s frozen unhappy stare at Joe afterwards is also great.
— The overall Al/Joe Franken commentary was nice official closure to the traditional Franken decade storyline. Al’s declaration of “The Al Franken Millennium” guarantees that SNL will no longer do 10-year follow-ups on this.
— Funny bit with Colin accidentally pronouncing “dictator” as “dictrader”, and then making an ad-lib towards the audience’s reaction to that.
— The first of many Elian Gonzalez references that we’ll be seeing on SNL this season.
— I’m surprised we went through this entire Update without having a final “The Millennium” segment (a recurring segment they’ve been occasionally doing on Update this season), considering tonight would’ve been their last opportunity to do one. I thought I had remembered there being one more left that I haven’t reviewed yet.
STARS: **½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “The Great Beyond”


ROCKETTES AUDITIONS
50 year-old Sally O’Malley (MOS) tries out for the Rockettes

— The first original, non-recurring sketch all night. Until now, this episode was shaping up to rival season 22’s Rosie O’Donnell episode as an episode comprised entirely of recurring sketches.
— There’s the debut of Sally O’Malley, who, as we know, would eventually become recurring.
— It feels weird calling Sally O’Malley a new character, probably due to her already feeling like a tired character that’s appeared many times before. Maybe that’s because of how Molly’s using basically the same voice she uses for her Helen Madden character, or maybe because of how increasingly one-note Molly has been becoming as a performer in general lately.
— Another fun performance from Danny tonight, who’s giving me my only real amusement in this sketch.
— The one Rockette on the left end of the screen screwed up the ending of the choreographed dance that she and the other Rockettes do in unison when making their entrance.
STARS: **


TRIAL
in court, Mrs. Parker & (host) show motherly love for their hoodlum sons

— After a one-sketch break, we’re back to non-stop recurring characters tonight.
— I like the tense back-and-forth exchanges between Tracy and Danny’s mother characters.
— This ends up going in the same direction as the last installment of this sketch, where Tracy’s character breaks out into a tender song, but I kinda like how the song has become a duet with both Tracy and Danny.
— The ending of this sketch gets awkwardly cut off due to the show starting to run long. There’s still a second R.E.M. musical performance remaining after this sketch, but because of how significant and relevant the particular song that R.E.M.’s about to perform is (“Man On The Moon”, as this is when the Andy Kaufman biopic of the same title was released and featured said R.E.M. song), I guess SNL didn’t want to risk it getting cut short for time, so they instead cut off the ending of this sketch. I believe they would later show this sketch’s full ending in reruns.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Man On The Moon”


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— An okay Christmas episode. Nothing special to me, and no sketches stood out as particularly great other than Delicious Dish, but I enjoyed the show enough, even with the overload on recurring sketches. Danny DeVito added his always-fun charm and energy to the show, in what unfortunately ends up being his last hosting stint to this day.


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


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Christina Ricci)
a slight step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
We enter a new decade and century. Jamie Foxx hosts the first SNL of both the 2000s and the 21st century.

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November 12, 1994 – Sarah Jessica Parker / R.E.M. (S20 E5)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

DECISION 94
incumbent Democrat (CSE) gives concession speech amidst GOP landslide win

— My copy is missing the beginning of this cold opening, in which Kevin plays a news anchor introducing the concession speech that Elliott’s character gives. I only point this out because that ends up being Kevin’s ONLY appearance all night, and anyone watching the same copy I’m watching of this episode would think Kevin was completely absent all night. After getting a decent amount of airtime in the first four episodes of this season, I think tonight is the turning point where Kevin’s airtime takes a turn for the worse and he starts coming off invisible and unnecessary this season.
— A good laugh from Elliott’s mention of a murdered nun attack ad run against him.
— An okay walk-on from Jay’s Mickey Rourke and Tim’s Rick James.
— I liked Elliott’s “I honestly just felt people read more” line.
— Elliott sets up his delivery of “Live from New York…” by saying he has one more big regret. Much like Rob Schneider revealing “Live from New York…” as bad news in an apologetic manner in the preceding season’s Singapore Caning cold opening, this seems to be a self-referential way for SNL to acknowledge their own declining quality and the ire that viewers had developed towards the show lately.
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
ex-Annie host sings “Tomorrow” for loser Democrats, MIM & DAS say “stop”

— Sarah: “This has not been a great week.” She ain’t kidding (see my post-show thoughts to understand what I’m referring to), though she’s not referring to SNL here.
— David: “We really don’t like the Annie song.” That makes two of us. I despise “Tomorrow”, and that includes Sarah’s parody of it here.
— David and Mike are doing nothing to help this tepid monologue. Even David’s comical line about even Ellen Cleghorne being a republican was delivered awkwardly.
STARS: *½


ETERNA REST
Eterna Rest coffin mattress is well-suited for your loved one’s remains

— It feels like every fake ad this season stars Janeane and/or Michael.
— Ugh, that disgusting animated graphic of a corpse slowly rotting. Only in season 20 would you see something like that. I remember an SNL fan once making a post on a (now-defunct) SNL message board, listing this animated rotting corpse among some of the many vile, tasteless things that season 20 contains. I always crack up when I think of that post. I recall the tasteless things listed off in that post being something like “…anal-raping UFOs, vomiting cops, a graphic of a rotting corpse, a sketch ending with two men being murdered just for pitching a commercial containing an interracial kiss, a sketch ending with 19th century children agreeing to be raped by a devil behind a shed, etc.” Seriously, someone could make a complete long list out of every single vile, tasteless thing this season contains.
— Didn’t care much for this overall ad, though the performances were fine, and I guess Michael’s ending line about how long the coffin air freshener lasts (“Just for the period where it would really stink”) was kinda funny.
STARS: **


GOOD MORNING BROOKLYN
(host) & James Barone (JAM) offer local flavor

— Here comes Jay Mohr’s attempt at a recurring sketch as an original character. I like Jay as a celebrity impressionist, but as for his character skills, ehhh, I dunno…
— This sketch so far – oof. Just a whole bunch of “fuhgettaboutit”s and other tiresome, lazy, cliched stereotypical New York humor.
— Adam’s walk-on gets a huge reaction from the audience.
— The clip of Adam’s Sleepless in Seattle “appearance” got a pretty good laugh from me.
— Adam’s interview ended weakly.
— Aaaaaand there goes our obligatory Farley pratfall of the night.
— Overall, a poor attempt at a recurring sketch. Unfortunately, they end up bringing this sketch back anyway, later this season. I guess I can understand, as the studio audience did seem into this.
STARS: *½


ALTERNATING GUITARISTS
host alternately sings duets with nice (MMK) & naughty (ADS) guitarists

— Okay, I can appreciate the change of pace they’re going for here, with the unique structure and the use of the home base stage, but man, this sketch is not coming off well AT ALL.
— The novelty of Sarah’s back-and-forth transitioning between Michael and Adam’s vastly different singing styles has gotten old fast, and Adam’s just doing his tired loud, crass shtick, immediately following a sketch where he had just played a loud, crass character.
— I kinda like the random inclusion of Tim as a Midas guy, but nothing funny is actually being done with him.
— Adam and Tim, to Michael: “(singing) We were only having fun, please put away your gun.” Uh, what gun? Geez, this sketch is so half-assed, they couldn’t even be bothered to give McKean a prop gun.
— Overall, I wanted to like this so much more than I did.
— Tonight’s episode has gotten off to a terrible start.
STARS: *


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Gil Graham relates more of his hard-luck concert-going experiences

— Thank god Norm has come along to give me SOMETHING to laugh at tonight.
— Norm has developed what would go on to be his trademark of staring down the camera in a deadpan manner while the audience is reacting to the punchlines.
— Speaking of audience reactions, I love hearing their reactions to some of Norm’s very Norm-esque jokes, such as the one about a hangover-free vodka that causes “massive anal bleeding”. Much like “whore”, “anal” is another word that’s always inherently funny when delivered by Norm.
— I really could do without Gil Graham becoming a recurring character, though this thankfully ends up being his final appearance.
— I was a little lenient on the season premiere’s Gil Graham commentary, but his commentary tonight is noticeably weaker and is going on even longer. Adam’s cracking up at his own material more than I am.
STARS: ***½


FORTUNE COOKIE FACTORY
Confucius (CHF) visits the abusive owner of a fortune cookie shop (MIM)

— Oh, god, here begins a long streak of consecutive episodes featuring Mike “Should’ve Left With Phil Hartman” Myers playing bad Asian stereotype characters, almost all of whom have the EXACT SAME look and voice. (I’ll let it slide in the classic soon-to-come Japanese Game Show sketch, but don’t expect me to be lenient towards it in other sketches from this season.)
— What was with David’s Gap Girls-esque delivery of “Whatevaaarrr!” before angrily exiting the scene?
— Are Mike’s relentless insults to his employees even intended to be funny? This sketch is god-awful.
— Now they throw in Farley as Confucius to “save” the sketch.
— Farley’s exaggerated performance is doing nothing for me. He also keeps doing that certain over-the-top, hammy laugh that we would hear from him A LOT this season. I’ve always gone back-and-forth on that laugh; sometimes I find it kinda goofily endearing, other times I find it just plain annoying. Guess which side I fall on in this sketch.
— Confucius getting his wisdom from Bazooka Joe would’ve been a clever ironic twist in a better sketch, but is just falling flat in THIS sketch.
STARS: *


THE CASTING COUCH
Robert Evans (MMK) gives starlet (host) showbiz lesson

— Tonight’s episode continues to get more and more offensive and questionable, as we now get an uncomfortably skeevy sketch that has too much of a rape-y feel. Even if that’s the idea, there’s nothing laugh-worthy about this premise.
— The bit with one of the callers being a female oncologist expressing concern over the state of Robert Evans’ skin was a pretty funny idea, but even THAT’S not working. And what was with the oncologist initially speaking in a sultry voice before clearing her throat and suddenly speaking in a stern, professional voice? An odd gag that landed with a thud.
— Speaking of the uncomfortable nature of this sketch, the silence from the studio audience during the particularly skeevy portions of this sketch is UNSETTLING. This is a comedy sketch I’m watching?!?
STARS: *


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Bang & Blame”


MUNCHKINLAND
the Munchkins want nothing to do with accidental hero Dorothy (JAG)

— (*sigh*) As if this episode hasn’t already been unbearable enough, here comes a notorious sketch that’s often cited as a prime example of this disastrous season’s faults, as well as how ridiculous it is that they built such a fancy, elaborate, expensive-looking set for such an abysmal sketch that lasted no longer than two-and-a-half minutes.
— I feel bad watching Janeane in this sketch after once hearing about a backstage story that another SNL fan read in a Laura Kightlinger autobiographical book. My memory of the story is fuzzy, but basically, sometime before this Munchkinland sketch was performed in the live show, Laura, Adam, Farley, and Janeane (the latter already wearing her Dorothy costume) complained to Lorne in his office about having to do this sketch. During that complaining, Janeane had an emotional breakdown, at one point yelling in tears “Why am I doing this?!? I’m killing my career!!” This sketch can pretty much be pinpointed as what officially broke Janeane and would lead to her looking miserable and joyless in a large number of her performances for the remainder of her short-lived SNL stint.
— We’re in the last 15-20 minutes of tonight’s episode, and Ellen is making her first and ONLY appearance of the whole night, just playing a small role in this tripe. She (understandably) looks just as miserable as Janeane must feel.
— Some of the other cast members also don’t look too happy performing this, especially David (though that’s par for the course for him this season).
— Sarah-as-Glinda-the-Good-Witch’s cheerfully delivered line about getting “pissed off” is only time I’ve come close to cracking a smile.
— Ohhh, god, this sketch is insufferable so far.
— Awful ending.
— Overall, yep, this sketch definitely lived up to its negative reputation, and truly does epitomize some of season 20’s problems. Jesus Christ, it’s almost becoming morbidly fascinating to see how low tonight’s episode can continue to sink.
STARS: *


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “I Don’t Sleep, I Dream”


MICHAEL O’DONOGHUE TRIBUTE
BIM eulogizes the recently-deceased MOD
LAN sings Madam Butterfly aria while MOD makes a Soiled Kimono {rerun}

— Sudden Bill Murray appearance. I should be excited by an SNL legend like him appearing, but I just feel sorry for him having to be associated with tonight’s trainwreck of an episode. I can’t even imagine what must’ve gone through his mind as he sat backstage witnessing tonight’s episode.
— As I chronologically go through SNL’s timeline in this daily SNL project of mine and become attached to so many cast members, it’s always sad to hear a mention of a cast member’s death.
— Some good dark humor from Bill, regarding Michael O’Donoghue going straight to hell.
— Bill’s tribute speech is simultaneously well-done, funny, and heartfelt. So nice to have Bill to add much-needed class to the proceedings tonight.
— A solid choice for a Mr. Mike sketch to show an encore presentation of as a tribute to him. For my thoughts on the original sketch, read it in this episode review.
— As I said in my afore-linked review of the original sketch, the encore presentation of this sketch really emphasizes how far SNL’s quality has fallen by this point in 1994. The contrast between the quality of this Mr. Mike encore and the rest of tonight’s episode is jarring and sad.


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Aaaaaand the turning point of season 20 has officially begun. After a string of episodes ranging from decent to strong, the true reality of season 20 has suddenly come crashing down HARD. A dreadful, dreadful episode tonight, one that felt like it got worse and worse as the night progressed, culminating in a particularly abysmal and notorious Wizard of Oz sketch that practically destroyed Janeane Garofalo’s soul just for having to perform it. Not counting the cold opening, there wasn’t a single sketch that I came remotely close to liking all night. Not one. single. sketch. This may be the first time that’s happened since I covered the also-infamous season 11. Hell, this may even top the worst of season 11, and maybe even the worst of season 6. I mean, Jesus Christ, none of the actual sketches tonight got a rating higher than one-and-a-half stars. That’s GOTTA be a first in this SNL project. I don’t calculate average sketch ratings for each episode review, but if someone were to do that for every episode I’ve reviewed up to this point (or at least for every notoriously bad episode), I’m pretty sure tonight’s episode would be the one with the lowest rating average. If it wasn’t for Norm’s Weekend Update, I shudder to think how even more unwatchable I would’ve found this episode. I’m aware that this was a bad week for the show behind the scenes, between Michael O’Donoghue’s aforementioned death and Lorne’s baby being born with complications. Knowing all of that just adds to the already depressing vibe of this episode. What’s even more depressing is knowing that as bad as this episode was, it doesn’t even end up being what I feel is the worst of the season. Yes, there are a few soon-to-come instances of this season sinking even lower than tonight. (*shudder*)


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


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Dana Carvey)
a colossal step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
John Turturro

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April 13, 1991 – Catherine O’Hara / R.E.M. (S16 E17)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
Frank Sinatra (PHH) & Nancy (JAH) Reagan cuckold Ronald (PHH)

 

— Great reveal of the delivery boy being Sinatra in disguise.
— Very funny part with Sinatra flimsily disguising himself as a coat rack.
— Sinatra to Nancy Reagan, regarding the First Ladies he’s slept with: “You got the best rack, but a guy could eat off of Bess Truman’s ass.”
— Funny decision with Nancy choosing to have Ronald’s address to the nation playing on the TV during her and Sinatra’s lovemaking.
— Good gag with parts of the ceiling caving in on Ronald from the raunchy lovemaking going on in the room above him.
STARS: ***½


MONOLOGUE
improv troupe translates host’s song based on Presumed Innocent

— Unsurprisingly, Catherine is coming off as a total pro here and is getting good laughs from lots of little things.
— Her interaction with the SNL Band has some really funny moments.
— I love her bizarre-yet-strangely-catchy foreign language singing, as well as the translations from the improv group.
STARS: ****


THE DANCER
— Rerun


SPROCKETS
actress’ (host) films involve rusty metal box & caribou

— I like the titles shown of Catherine’s various movies, such as “Pasta & Screams” and “This Squid Has One Too Many Arms”.
— Dieter: “I feel spent, like a man who is forced to wear his genitals like a pendant.”
— The bizarre movie clips starring Catherine are all very funny, especially “He Loves Me, He Loves My Caribou”.
STARS: ****


MTV SPRING BREAK 1991
drunken Kennedys & partygoers mix at compound

— Very funny how this is being held live from the Kennedy Compound.
— I like how Phil as a drunk and rowdy Ted Kennedy is the guest VJ.
— Rock is cracking me up as Flavor Flav, and he fits the role more than Tim did earlier this season.
— Some good laughs from Jan’s performance as a very old Rose Kennedy.
— Kinda surprised this sketch has ended already. I had remembered this being longer and involving more of the cast. Maybe I’m getting parts of this mixed up with the U.K. Spring Break sketch from Miranda Richardson’s episode two seasons later.
STARS: ***½


IT’S PAT
druggist (host) fails to discern androgynous Pat’s sex from purchases

— This is only Pat’s third appearance, and the character is already getting recognition applause. That’s more than I can say for Richmeister in HIS third appearance from the previous week’s episode.
— We get the debut of the “It’s Pat” opening title sequence and theme song.
— I like how in the opening title sequence, the headshot circles shown of various people reacting to Pat remind me of Mr. Short Term Memory’s opening credits, where we see headshot circles of various people reacting to him. (comparison below)

— This one guy in the audience has a very distinctive laugh that stands out far above the rest of the audience’s laughter.
— I got a good laugh from Catherine suggesting Secret deodorant to Pat because, as the deodorant’s slogan goes, “Strong enough for a woman but made for a man.”
— Overall, not my favorite Pat sketch so far, but still decent and featured a good straightman performance from Catherine.
STARS: ***


DEEP THOUGHTS BY JACK HANDEY
on what to do upon falling from Sears Tower


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Losing My Religion”


WEEKEND UPDATE
DAS gives more thoughts on what’s in & what’s out

   

— Dennis’ lethargic delivery from the last two Updates has pretty much become a regular weekly thing now. It’s sad seeing this legendary Update anchor limp towards the finish line of his SNL tenure. I will say that his delivery is slightly less lethargic tonight, and the jokes themselves aren’t bad.
— Good to see David’s “What’s in and out” segment return.
— Hmm, this edition of “What’s in and out” isn’t as good as David’s previous one.
— Okay, I got a big laugh from David just now, with his bit about not enunciating the phrase “gettin’ some pussy” so the censors can’t bust him.
— Another big laugh from David, with his bit about “kissing ass to the host so you can get into the Home Alone sequel”. That’s even funnier in hindsight, considering a certain castmate of David’s would end up getting a part in that very same Home Alone sequel.
— I always love the camaraderie between Dennis and David whenever David’s Update commentaries end. Something about it feels like there was an intended passing-of-the-torch between them (you can particularly see it in the screencap below).

After all, both Dennis and David have a similar laid-back, wiseass, meta, self-aware sensibility. Makes one wonder what it would’ve been like had young David succeeded Dennis as an Update anchor instead of Kevin Nealon. And before anyone says that a Spade-anchored Weekend Update might’ve been too much like the dreaded “Spade in America” segments from season 21, I’m talking about 1991 David Spade, back when he was new, fresh, and actually gave a damn and put effort into his snarky performances. “Spade in America”-era David Spade, on the other hand, was at a time when David’s snarky shtick had gotten beyond played-out and he was giving lethargic, tired, and half-assed performances all the time… hmm, kinda like Dennis Miller himself at the point we’re currently in, at the homestretch of HIS tenure.
— David’s overall commentary tonight began slow, but took off after a while.
— I loved the mean-but-funny punchline to Dennis’ “Tales From the Crypt” joke about Jon Lovitz playing a desperate down-and-out actor in an upcoming episode: “Hmm, since when did HBO start doing documentaries?”
— Hmm, a child actor from “Eight is Enough” was recently arrested for trying to rob a pharmacy? I’m betting SNL’s writers were kicking themselves for not including him as one of the criminals in the recent America’s Most Wanted Child Stars sketch. By the way, what the hell is with so many former child stars robbing stores around this time anyway? First Dana Plato, now the “Eight is Enough” guy.
— Very odd, random mock-serious bit with Dennis having varying reactions to learning Merv Griffin may possibly be gay. Not quite sure what to make of that bit.
STARS: ***


JUSTICE LEAGUE
Fantastic Woman’s (host) flight scrutinized by Justice League of America

— Something about the visual of Chris Rock in a lizard costume constantly moving his tongue in and out in a lizard-esque manner is priceless to me.
— Tom Davis’ superhero character being revealed as “The Incredible Kiss Ass” was worth a laugh.
— This sketch in general isn’t too funny so far.
— I kinda got a laugh from the line about Catherine using her x-ray superpower to ruin people’s film.
— Kevin looks completely unrecognizable in that zombie make-up (last screencap above). I can only tell it’s him by the voice.
— A very weak ending to an overall dud of a sketch. Seriously, what was the POINT of this sketch? Not even Catherine’s usually reliable sketch comedy skills could do anything for this.
STARS: *½


FRANK GANNON, P.I. P.I.
politically incorrect P.I. (KEN) investigates murder of a black professor

— The debut of a short-lived but memorable Kevin Nealon recurring character. I love the “Politically Incorrect Private Investigator” concept. As I often say about Kevin Nealon sketches, this is a very Kevin Nealon-y premise that could only have come from him (though I stand corrected if this sketch was written by somebody else).
— Kevin’s great at playing this jackass character, with his various idiotic assumptions and incredulous reactions due to his sexist and racist viewpoints.
— This sketch is ending ALREADY?
— The “preview of next week’s episode” scene with Kevin trying to wrap his mind around the concept of same-sex parents (played by Jan and Julia) was decent.
— Overall, this was definitely fine, but I prefer the second installment they’d later do in a Woody Harrelson-hosted episode from next season. It was much more fleshed-out and had even funnier lines.
STARS: ***½


IN CONCLUSION THEATRE
last act of play doesn’t make sense; RAQ cameo

— I feel like I’m saying this a lot tonight, but I love this sketch’s concept.
— We get another occurrence of Jack Handey’s great fake sponsors trademark. My favorite of the sponsors tonight was Post-Coital Chewing Gum.
— Ha, a random Randy Quaid appearance! Feels kinda weird reviewing him again for the first time since I regularly reviewed him when covering season 11.
— It also feels weird seeing Randy Quaid and Phil Hartman in the same scene, standing beside each other, considering their similarities as SNL utility men who’s tenures were back-to-back.
— I love the gag with Randy’s tiny legs.
— A gruesome but very funny visual of Dana with his eye hanging out of his socket. Great make-up there.
— I’m enjoying all the bizarre, unanswered visual details in general.
— Great part with a crutches-confined Farley getting shot out of nowhere.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest & Kate Pierson [real] perform “Shiny Happy People”


DAILY AFFIRMATION WITH STUART SMALLEY
the Kurds should forgive George Bush & Saddam Hussein

— Random observation: Stuart Smalley has the same hair that Catherine O’Hara has had tonight. Same style, color, and everything. (side-by-side comparison below)

— Stuart’s message to the Kurds has some pretty good laughs.
— This overall sketch felt a little too short and a bit empty, though still decent.
STARS: ***


WEDDING AND A FUNERAL
(host) causes ritual dilemma by wearing wedding dress to fiance’s funeral

— I like the opening conversations between various funeral guests, especially the exchange between Farley and Rock.
— An odd but clever turn with Catherine suddenly entering in a wedding dress, forcing Mike to do a clumsy hybrid of a wedding speech and a funeral speech.
— Very interesting structure to this sketch. Doesn’t feel typical for this era. In my previous viewings, I found this sketch a little too hard to understand what it was going for, but I’m appreciating it more now.
— Catherine’s frozen, oblivious smile throughout this is good.
— I got a laugh from Mike’s emphasis to Catherine when saying, as part of his wedding/funeral speech, “…stand here ALONE!”
— Hilarious part with the guests simultaneously screaming in horror when Catherine throws the bouquet behind her.
STARS: ***½


GOODNIGHTS

— Dennis holds up a sign saying “LOVITZ- I WAS JUST KIDDING”, as damage control for the earlier harsh-but-good-natured joke about Jon Lovitz on Weekend Update.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A mostly good episode. As one might expect, Catherine O’Hara was an ideal host and the show utilized her talents pretty well, catering to her comedic styles in creative and oddball stuff like the monologue, Sprockets, In Conclusion Theatre, and Wedding And A Funeral.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Jeremy Irons)
a very slight step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Oh, no. STEVEN FREAKIN’ SEAGAL.