I STILL watch SNL

Saturday Night Live, September 24th 2011

2011-09-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live, September 24th 2011
Host: Alec Baldwin. Musical Guest: Radiohead.

Opening:
Sorta happy Kristen Wiig isn’t as funny as Michele Bachmann, as Tina Fey was with Sara Palin. Because I’d rather never see anyone ever mention Michele Bachmann ever again.

Credits:
Glad that Nasim Pedrad is finally an official cast member.

Red Flag:
Always glad to see a new commercial parody after the monologue!

All My Children Finale.
For a one-joke idea, this worked better than expected thanks to the power of funny faces.

News Delay:
Loved the snake poking Kristen Wiig in the chest and silly visual ending.

Radiohead.
In general, I’m a fan, even if I’m not in love with the recent “King of Limbs” album.

Weekend Update.
Rather enjoyed Alec Baldwin’s Tony Bennett, even if it did start veering toward Will Ferrell’s Harry Cary impression.

The 2nd song Radiohead performed worked better live than it does on the album. It’s cooler too see 2 human drummers recreate the sound of electronic rhythms.

Not sure why they need to have the TCM bumper. Couldn’t they just have an army sketch?

Saturday Night Live, April 2nd, 2011

2011-04-02T22:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live, April 2nd, 2011
Host and Musical Guest: Elton John.

The only time I’ve ever seen Elton John act is in The Country Bears movie!

ESPN Classic.
I love that that audience did not cheer or clap for the return of Will Forte. No one even noticed he left the show! Doesn’t help when the same sketches keep coming back with little to no changes.

BBC Special Report: Knights of the Realm.
Fairly entertaining because I like fantasy plotlines. And I enjoyed Elton John’s shameless plug for The Lion King.

Digital Short: Lazer Cats the Musical.
That was…too long! I've never been that into the lazer cats. I remember the last one being okay, but this one just dragged.

I guess Tom Hanks is the secret co-host?

Royal Wedding.
Kind of liked the punk song at the end. But way too much build up.

The Silver Screen.
Elton John was actually really funny in this! I also enjoyed the setup/contrast of classic films to Suckerpunch.

Gay Cowboy.
This could have just been really obvious, but it was surprisingly funny. Partially just because of Elton John’s strange voice and delivery. He kinda reminds me of Paul Williams. Also the twist actually made for a good ending.

Closing thought: Not a lot for the female actresses to do in this episode.

Saturday Night Live, February 13th, 2011

2011-03-12T22:05:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live, February 13th, 2011
Host: Zack Galifianakis
Music: Jessie J.

Monolog.
‘A’ for effort!

The Talk.
At first I thought they’d just start doing The Talk instead of The View sketches, but I liked how there was a bit of commentary to it. And it was actually pretty funny. Not sure why they didn’t have Jay Pharaoh play Holly Robinson.

Kings of Catchphrase Comedy.
I was ready to write this off, but the gags picked up in the last round.

Scared Straight.
Really? I guess it’s been a while. But really? Just for the decent “Colon First” gag?

Digital Short.
Those kids could have been funnier.

Jessie J.
Decent enough. Not much more to say.

Weekend Update.
Julie Taymor was the funniest thing Kristen Wiig has done in a while.
Loved Liam, the teenager who just woke up.

Dead Dog.
This one also came together in the end.

Celebrity Scoop.
Not the best Canadian accents, but charming, none the less. Not sure about Zack Galifianakis’ extended “ohhhhs.”

Saturday Night Live, February 12th, 2011

2011-02-12T22:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live, February 12th, 2011
Host: Russell Brand
Music: Chris Brown

Cold Open.
Decent Bill O’Reilly impression by Jason Sudeikis.

Monologue.
I know it’s an SNL tradition for stand up comedians to do their “material” for the opening monologue, but it’s always made me a bit squeamish.

Gublin & Green.
Since they’ve already made plenty of jokes about the injuries related to Spider-man: Turn of the Dark, it was refreshing to see a joke about how the show “insulted the Legacy of Spider-man.”

Publishers Clearance House.
It must save a lot of time not having to write new sketches for every episode. Swapping out 2-5 words from the previous Kristen Wiig Publishers Clearance House sketch and replacing the people she interacts with, is really not worth sitting through, though. I tune out once I see the start of the sketch.

Digital Short: Don' You Go Rounin' Roun To Re Ro
A lot of time spent on a single joke.

Royal Taster.
The most dialog Taran Gillam has ever had in a sketch?

Chris Brown.
Considering Rihanna has been on SNL twice, I’m surprised the producers would invite the guy who beat her up on the show.
Weekend Update.

Taran Gillam’s Eminem impression was the best thing he’s done on the show so far. Hope he doesn’t get knifed! And of all the overly repetitious SNL characters, Bill Hader’s Stefon manages to make me laugh. And these last two appearances have at least changed it up in small ways. Mostly in the little moments between Hader and Myers.

Livin’ Single.
It’s probably the wrong attitude to view every new sketch through the lens of “I hope this doesn’t become a recurring thing because I already see how it would play out.” Points for Kristen Wiig not being the main character. Random thought: Russell Brand looked like magician David Copperfield.

A Spot of Tea.
Not exactly Monty Python.
Chris Brown.
I feel bad for any girl who gets that song sent to her on a mixtape.

George Washington travels through time.
That was kinda good! Good thing they hid it at the end so no one will see it.

Saturday Night Live, February 5th, 2011

2011-02-05T22:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live, February 5th, 2011
Host: Dana Carvey
Musical Guest: Linkin Park

Cold Opening: Wayne’s World. Considering their ages, Dana Carvey and Mike Myers managed to pull this off pretty seamlessly. The material even managed to feel very of the time, despite the current references. Very satisfying for this SNL nerd.

Monologue.
It’s a bit weird how Dana Carvey’s mannerisms are starting to resemble his impression of Johnny Carson. Considering I first started watching SNL in the late 80s, I totally agree that Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz’s cast WAS the best. But I’m sure if Bill Murray came out at the end it would have been equally true. Also, I was expecting to see G.E. Smith!

VH1: Celebrity Teen Crisis Center
Yet another lame excuse for cast members to dole out their most overdone impressions. Abby Elliot still hanging on to that semi-obscure Anna Farris impression.

Digital Short.
Roommate horror film parody. Surprisingly straightforward with no real twist. Since Justin Bieber was around I guess it makes sense to film another thing with him in the hopes it could get linked to on Facebook. I wonder of Linkin Park fell left out.

Linkin Park.
I really liked the effect of projecting all those stars and lines on the band members. I’ve never really seen anyone do that before without wearing any kind of special outfit. The song sounded like 80s synth music, but with less keyboard.

Weekend Update.
Paul Brittain’s James Franco impression was just okay. This is a really off year for Kristen Wiig. She’s becoming the new Will Forte.

Live! With Regis and Kelly.
I wish Nasim Pedrad’s voice didn’t grate on me with 40% of her impressions. Otherwise she's risen to the top of the cast this year.

Kids Beauty Pageant.
This felt like it could have been funnier, but it at least seemed to be trying.

Abby Elliot thing.
I’m starting to wonder if she can play someone who isn’t kinda ditzy or Angelina Jolie. But at least this was sort of a character and pretty much worked as a sketch.

Linkin Park Intro.
It makes me happy to see Jon Lovitz, Mike Myers and Dana Carvey together. And it’s been a long time since Mike Myers has done anything to make me happy.

Sports Bar.
Speaking of synth-pop… I actually really liked the song. Dana Carvey’s mustache seemed out of place My wife said Paul Brittain looked like Matt Smith’s Doctor Who. Maybe SNL they should do a Doctor Who parody?

Final thoughts:
Dana Carvey hasn’t been on SNL for years and he’s way better at not looking like he’s reading the teleprompter compared to all the current cast members. He’s also better at fully inhabiting his celebrity impressions so they feel like fleshed out characters. In so many current SNL sketches, the cast members do celebrity impressions that can only be sustained for a minute before they have to cut to ANOTHER cast member doing another limited impression.

Saturday Night Live December 19th, 2010

2010-12-18T21:59:00.000-08:00

December 19th, 2010
Host: Jeff Bridges.
Musical Guest: Eminem and Lil’ Wayne.

Cold Open.
One of the best political ones they’ve done in a while.

Monologue.
Not sure it was the best use of Cookie Monster, but I’m a sucker for Christmas songs.

Miley Cyrus Show.
Not as tightly written as the last installment, but still a decent sketch. The clips from Miley’s acting are always the best. It still makes me laugh to think about the clip of her and Batman. Also. I know it’s weird to say as a longtime SNL watcher, but I always find it weird when one celebrity plays another celebrity within their peer group.

Digital Short.
The rap and R&B songs still seem to be their strength.

Larry King. Great make-up job on Kenan as Jermaine Jackson.

Crunkmas.
I don’t really want to like these sketches, but usually there are 2 random things that make me laugh. Like a 2-D screening of Owls of Ga’Hoole.

Weekend Update.
Kenan’s impression of Michael Steel almost makes me feel sorry for him. Tarran Killam’s Brad Pitt impression just confused me. I guess I haven’t seen Brad Pitt in a long time. Patterson, Stefon and Snookie are the new Tarzan, Tonto, Frankenstein.

It’s a Wonderful Life.
The movie parody was so-so, but I’m a nerd for TCM host impressions.

Jeff’d.
I liked how calm and relaxing this was. I could watch 10 more minutes of the narration segments.

Old Western Gift Wrapping.
Not sure what they were going for, but aI’ll give them credit for trying something different.

Holiday Message from Kardashians.
I almost like their impression of these people I don’t know, except the voices get a bit grating.

Ack! They showed Cookie Monster's performer in the farewell!

Saturday Night Live October 2nd, 2010

2010-10-04T15:50:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live, Season 36, Episode 2
October 2nd, 2010
Bryan Cranston
Musical Guest: Kanye West

Cold Open.
Andy Samberg and Bobby Moynihan show the contrast between the former and new White House Chief of Staff. Points to the SNL writers for pointing out what should have been obvious, but I hadn’t thought too much about before the sketch.

Monologue.
It’s sad whenever the monologue’s central joke is no one knowing whom the host is. Admittedly I didn’t recognize his name at first either, since it’s been a while since I watched Malcom in the Middle and don’t currently have cable! So I’m guilty of “Oh, yeah, that guy!”

Commercial Parody: Pepto Bismol Ice. I can imagine a world where this product is real. Enjoyable, if only moderately funny satire.

Miley Cyrus Show.
I was surprised that the first full sketch of the night starred two of the new featured players. Vanessa Bayer was great and the theme song was also great. The sketch is sort of a nice compliment to Amy Poehler’s Dakota Fanning Show….similar, but with enough of a different take to make it enjoyable. Paul Brittain’s Johnny Depp was serviceable enough but didn’t get too many great lines.

What Up With That? Back to School Edition.
If they are going to keep doing these, they need to push them a lot further. I wanna see Kenan Thompson working up a crazy sweat and singing his heart out. It’s starting to feel phoned in with its paint by numbers formula. The only part I never get tired of is Jason Sudeikis’ dancing. Minor thing: Is one of the new guys playing the same character Will Forte did? That seems unnecessary.

Sexy/Not So Much.
I was okay with them retreading this Kristen Wiig sketch from last year, but it’s weird that they followed the structure so closely. They didn’t need to have the same exact amount of characters/types/etc. If you are going to change the setting, go a bit further and change some more elements as well! Don’t fall into the SNL rut.

Digital Short.
I like how it started out as a parody of annoying pop up ads/cell phone services, but then had a silly/cute/violent twist that actually tied it all together rather than being completely random. I’m all about strategic randomness.

Kanye West.
Because of the white backdrop that blocked the entire stage and all the models on stage, this was the most an SNL musical performance has looked like a music video. It was interesting, but I prefer that musicians save the theatrics for the MTV Music Video Awards.
Weekend Update
I sorta liked the secondhand news guy by Bobby Moynihan. But it’s a mild like. Andy Samberg’s Cathy comic strip impersonation is still inspired. Part of me wishes they rigged something in the wig to automatically make the hair fly up rather than have him lift it with his hands. But that’s probably over-thinking it.

Game Show: Kidz Smart.
Another sketch where the main gag seems to be watching two male performers kissing each other (like the Vogelcheck family). The additional premise of the host being a pervert is funny mainly because Kenan Thompson’s kid character beats the crap out of him. The most distracting part was Vanessa Bayer being a bit too obvious in her cue card reading. Hopefully she’ll get over that.

The Bjelland Brothers.
Well, at least the performers seemed like they were having fun—even if I wasn’t. This lame sketch about lame performers didn’t go anywhere new or interesting. First time they sang the “sparkling apple juice” lyrics wasn’t so bad, but of course they have run it into the ground with forced repetition. These are the types of sketches that make you think they already burned through the good material and it’s time to flip the channel. In fact, I decided to go to sleep and watch the rest of the show later.

Henry Basement Karate.
This was my favorite sketch of the episode (and of course it was the second to last one! If it wasn’t for my DVR I would have completely missed it). Mostly because I like that Nasim Pedrad keeps trying out new non-celebrity characters. The voice is a tad annoying, but she really can pass for an elementary school boy. Henry is like a mashup of Amy Poehler’s Kaitlin, Mike Myers’ Wayne, Rachel Dratch’s Sheldon (from Wakeup Wakefield), Martin Short’s Ed Grimley (from SCTV), and Bruce McCullough’s Gavin (from Kids in The Hall). All characters I love! The thing I like best isn’t the character’s potential catch phrase “I’m Way Small,” but the way he overanalyzes his own life with complete objectivity. Sorta like a sports commentator explaining why he is the way he is. It’s a subtle trait for a comedy character, and it took a few exchanges to really gel. I re-watched it and noticed how the audience didn’t really laugh at first but started laugh more as it went. Luckily there was also the physical comedy of this little kid being repeatedly punched in the face by his own father for you to latch onto if you don’t like dialog-based humor as much as I do! I’m interested to see a reprise of this sketch—but hopefully placing the character in a completely new scenario. Luckily the dad was played by the host, so it’s unlikely they’d repeat that aspect.

Commercial Parody: I-Sleep Pro.
My second favorite sketch (and the last of the evening!). The conceit of Black Noise vs. White Noise is total genius. Even if the natural payoff is [arguably] racist humor—it’s undeniably funny!
Final thoughts. Nasim Pedrad is my new favorite performer on the show. Vanessa Bayer seems to have the most potential of this year’s new featured players. She’s already contributing the most, so I’m looking forward to seeing more.

Saturday Night Live September 26th, 2010

2010-09-25T22:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
September 22nd, 2010
Host: Amy Poehler
Musical Guest: Katy Perry.

Cold Open.
Kristen Wiig as Christine O’Donnell. I was worried this sketch wouldn’t have an ending beyond the Live From NY callout, but luckily there were cables attached for a cheesy but satisfying visual gag of her flying off on a broom.

Credits.
I’m surprised Nasim Pedrad didn’t get bumped up to a full cast member with Bobby Moynihan and Abby Elliott. I guess you have to be on for longer than a year before you get a promotion?

Monologue.
I’ve always been a fan of these types of openings, ever since Tom Hanks passed out and dreamt of Abe Lincoln. Justin Timberlake is totally SNL’s new Steve Martin. Yay, Dratch Bear! Yay, ex-SNL cast that still works in the building!

Boo! No commercial parody. There should always be a commercial parody after the monologue. I’m stubborn.

Bronx Beat.
I enjoy these characters more now then when Amy and Maya Rudolf were on the show. I wonder how much the four new cast members appreciate all the cameos from old cast members.

COMMERCIAL PARODY: Bosley Hair Restoration.
Disturbing but brilliant.

Maternity Matters.
This was basically the same sketch as “Woman to Woman” from November 2009. Only now it features photos of Vanessa Bayer in the intro. It’s actually not a bad premise so I don’t them bringing back once more. Not sure it’s worth doing a third time though.

Gay Wedding/Mosque at Ground Zero.
Silly but enjoyable.

Half an hour in and Vanessa Bayer has been seen twice but hasn’t spoken. I assume there was a photo of Jay Pharaoh. No sign of the other two new featured players.

Katy Perry.
Everything about the performance felt like it should have been a drag queen act. I’m kinda hoping her fiancée Russell Brand makes a cameo (assuming he’s no longer in jail).

Weekend Update.
Not a bad Will Smith impersonation from Jay Pharaoh, but I hope we get to see some original stuff soon. Gov. Paterson’s cameo should have been a bit funnier, but I still give anyone credit for coming on the show and dueling their impersonator.

Showtime: Women with secrets.
Enjoyed this for the Amy Poehler interview segments. What? How? Her? Yes! “I always thought the best titles mean two things.”

Another new cast member got to play the straight man/doctor….but not memorable enough for me to go and check which guy he was.

Digital Short: Boogerman.
At first I assumed this was some homage to Howard Stern’s Fartman. But it was just lame completely on its own merits.

Little hats at Chez Henri.
I liked it. Kristen Wiig eating out of defeated frustration was great. Hope Vanessa Bayer doesn’t end up the new Casey Wilson playing the “other friend” in these types of sketches.

Actor II Actor.
I appreciate how short this was. Except having to sit through more commercials immediately after.

The Expendables Spinoffs.
Best gag: “From Fast Car Tracy Chapman.”You could tell the audience was really happy to see Hooch. I was too.

No real stand out sketches, but far from a bad episode. Fingers crossed this will be a decent season! Hopefully more chances for the new performers next week when the cameos shouldn’t be so frequent.

SNL 36th season pre-show analysis

2010-09-25T13:14:00.000-07:00

Even though the premier of a new SNL season historically underwhelms (or occasionally frightens) me, I’m excited about tonight’s new episode. There is enough cast turnover to make things interesting! This is where SNL becomes the only sport I watch. Which of the new performers will rise or fall? What characters are gone for good? How many opportunities and talented people will be wasted?

THE PERFORMERS WHO WERE FIRED/QUIT THIS SEASON:

Will Forte. I’m glad he’s gone. Anyone who reads this blog, knows he’s the cast member who consistently irks me most. I certainly didn’t dislike him as much as Jim Bruer (sorry Goat Boy fans), and I’m honest enough to admit he had good moments…even a few brilliant scenes. But 8 seasons is a long time and his misses were physically painful and increasingly frequent. Even though Kristen Wiig is still on the show I can hope this means no more Gilly sketches (since his mustache talked more than the main character).

Jenny Slate. One season wasn’t enough for me to have strong opinions about her. I’ll admit I had to double-check if it was Jenny Slate or Nasim Pedrad in many cases. She’s probably best known for using the F-word in her first sketch (which I liked) and the Tina-Tina Chaneuse informercials which were brought back too many times. But overall, I thought Jenny Slate had potential. Especially if her web video Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is any indication. That was better than anything she did on the show! Maybe they should have let her do some digital shorts.

THE NEW PERFORMERS ARE: Vanessa Bayer, Paul Brittain, Taran Killam, Jay Pharoah.

I’m not familiar with any of them, which is good. That means they have a clean slate. Sometimes with Upright Citizens Brigade performers, like Rob Riggle, I want them to be as funny on SNL as they were doing improv and it doesn’t translate. Then again, Amy Poehler is one of the best people ever on the show, so you never know.

So, I’m hoping for the best…yet not expecting too much!

MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES ON from Dean Fleischer-Camp on Vimeo.

Saturday Night Live May 15th, 2010

2010-05-15T22:01:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
May 15th, 2010
Host: Alec Baldwin
Musical Guest: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Opening: BP Gas Spill Conference.
Only two minutes. Shortest cold opening ever?

Monologue.
Kind of a week intro, but he’s right, “It’s an incredible voice.”

Digital Short.
Another bit that felt straight out of The Lonely Island’s “Awesometown” pilot. Great cinematography, choreography, and songwriting made this simple idea of a down and out coke addict singing fairly entertaining.

Starfish the Script Girl.
One my least favorite sketch formats is the “Okay, let’s do ANOTHER take” because someone keeps messing up their lines, walking into the shot, etc. Occasionally it can be kinda funny like the Brian Williams teen drama or Fred Armisen’s “I’m your MOTHER,” but this one didn’t really cut it. Yet another weak new character from the growingly inconsistent Kristen Wiig. Is the character supposed to be funny because she makes mistakes and has bad teeth?

Hudson Valley Swim Team.
Are there that many kids on a school swim team? This felt like the type of half thought out piece of a sketch they would have at 12:55. Felt pointless.

Bedelia.
Holy crap. Nasim Pedrad debuting another actually funny character! I enjoyed her “Talk Show with Ravish” from a few months ago and this was even better. Not only was it a well-defined character, but the entire sketch had lots of great writing with quotable lines. I wouldn’t mind seeing more, but hope they don’t run it into the ground!

EDIT: My friend Andre informed me that Bedelia actually debuted during the Tina Fey episode! I saw MOST of that episode but sadly missed the sketch, so I'll be tracking it down ASAP.

Commercial Parody: Sally Field.
Brilliant. A clever parody of all medicine commercials. “Fanning out your magazines” was my favorite bit.

Grady Wilson’s Intimate and International.
I’ve enjoyed these in the past, but I guess they can’t all be winners.

Tom Petty.
It's been a lot time since I've even thought about Tom Petty.

Weekend Update.
“My freakin’ brains is in there!”

At first I thought it was too soon for a return from Stefon, but then it kinda cracked me up. I just wish Bill Hader would vary up the intro rather than the repetitive default “NY’s hottest club is…” On the flipside I DO like when he says “It’s like that thing where…”
“Puppets in Disguise” was the best thing I’ve EVER heard.

I really wish Fred Armisen and Kristen Wiig would stop with Garth and Cath. It might be funny when they do this bit at parties but not on TV.

Timecrowave.
I really liked the idea and generally enjoyed the sketch. Not as funny as I would have hoped but still decent. I’m glad they found another use for the Planet of the Apes mask from the Charlton Heston episode!

TCM.
That’s a whole lotta set up!

Army Dudes Take the Shot.
It was no Canteen Boy.

M.I.A.

2010-05-15T19:09:00.000-07:00

Sorry, I haven't been updating this site! I've been busy traveling and often catching SNL on DVR a week or two after the fact. But I promise to write some a summary of thoughts AFTER this week's finale. In the meantime, here are some pics I took from my first visit to the Second City theater in Chicago! It was a blast to FINALLY see what I've read and heard so much about. The show I saw was a compilation of sketches from over the years starring the touring group. Kind of the perfect thing for someone playing catch up. Definitely hope to go back again and maybe also check out Improv Olympic.

Saturday Night Live 13th, 2009

2010-03-13T22:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
March 13th, 2009
Host: Jude Law
Musical Guest: Pearl Jam

Opening: Tickle Party
“NO!” Yes!

Monologue.
I love Hamlet, but this recap seemed pointless.

Commercial Parody: Ford Hybrid.
Well filmed!

Game Show Parody.
I hate to admit it, but the concept behind this Kristen Wiig character (albeit stupid) kinda makes me laugh.

Commercial Parody: Another Security System commercial.
Not hilarious, but it worked well enough.

Parody of Vicky Christina Barcelona?
One joke, mildly executed. Second sketch about potential abuse against women.

Digital Short: Another Andy Samberg music video.
Had no idea who the other singer was. A notch below the “Threw it on the Ground” song.

Weekend Update.
Jerry Seinfield is a perfect fit for the “Really?!” segments.

Twilight Zone Parody.
Is this the first time SNL has riffed on the episode "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet"? Seems like everyone else already has. I do always like when the bands show up in sketches.

Hamlet Audition.
Just an excuse for celebrity impressions, but Andy Samberg’s Nick Cage STILL makes me smile.

Kicksplit Underground Music Festival.
This was the same exact sketch as last time, right? Seems a bit long for a total commercial repeat. Did they really not have any other ideas for new sketches?

Pearl Jam.
It’s been a while since I’ve listened to Pearl Jam and was mostly disappointed by these newer songs. I remember liking the song they played on Conan last year, though.

Court Stenographer, Round Two.
Sorry, Fred Armisen. I still hate this character.

Ravish.
I’ll never understand why they choose to break out a new character/sketch in the last ten minutes of the show. Not hilarious, but more interesting than a lot of the other things they’ve tried out this year. I enjoyed the “Jay Leno Walking” segment and the violin-playing sister.

Saturday Night Live March 7th, 2010

2010-03-06T22:01:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
March 6th, 2009
Host: Zach Galifianakis
Musical Guest: Vampire Weekend

Opening.
Intentionally giving fodder to Conservatives?

Monologue.
I haven’t seen his stand up routine in a while so I’m not sure if it was new material or not.

Vogelcheck Family Funeral.
You think they spend a lot of time practicing these sketches? I hope they washed that dog’s mouth! I loved how the audience had such a strong reaction to Fred Armisen the minute he started walking over toward the casket. And the corpse kissing back definitely cracked me up. But I was disappointed James Franco didn’t do a cameo since he was in the last one.

Bidet Crazy.
Not really enough material to warrant an entire sketch. I fear that means it will become a reoccurring sketch.

Zack on the set.
Kinda fun. Kid with beard was a good climax.

Kathie Lee and Hoda Kotb.
One of the meaner parodies on SNL. Makes me worry that the real Hoda is equally abused by the real Kathie Lee (considering most of what I’ve seen in the previous sketches has turned out to be too close for comfort).

Vampire Weekend.
I always think this band sounds interesting when I first hear them. But I find I tire of them fairly quickly. But this song was short enough to go down easy.

Weekend Update.
Kenan’s hairstyle and impression didn’t really come across as Mo’nique.
A lot of set up for another annoying Will Forte nonsense song. I’m fair enough to admit that this was actually one of his more tolerable ones. Points for the Miss Piggy reference.

What Up With That?
I really wish they could find a way to change these up a bit more beyond just loading up random guests and background dancers. They can never get back the initial surprise factor and energy of the original. But this one seemed better than last time, mostly because grown-up Baby Jessica in the well was brilliant.

The Situation Room.
Kind of an obvious commentary on the overuse of social media on CNN…but well played. Well played.

Vampire Weekend.
Another okay song.

Pageant Song.
Did the makeup artists cover Zach’s beard? Did he shave between sketches?

Saturday Night Live February 28th, 2010

2010-02-27T22:04:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
February 27th, 2009
Host: Jennifer Lopez
Musical Guest: Jennifer Lopez

I was caught off guard, not expecting a new episode till after the Olympics. But here’s what I did catch. I’ll watch the rest on DVR later.

Romance Commentary 2
Second time out, I was ready to write off this reoccurring sketch as semi-stupid, semi-guilty pleasure. But Kenan found new ways to really sell it, and kept it from being a total repeat of last time. I found myself laughing several times, so I guess I’m a fan. I even liked Jennifer Lopez as the weird ventriloquist.

Smashmouth in the Closet.
Totally ridiculous in the best possible way. Surprisingly pitch perfect. I’ll never hear those songs the same way again.

Custom Car Horns.
I’m still not sure what nationality this racial stereotype is supposed to be. I guess Puerto Rican, because of the Jennifer Lopez connection? The car horns are a bit funnier than the doorbells but still not as genius as Scarlett Johanson in the chandelier sketch.

Saturday Night Live February 6th, 2010

2010-02-06T22:08:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
February 6th, 2009
Host: Ashton Kutcher
Musical Guest: Them Crooked Vultures

Cold Open.
Moderately funny! I like the idea of random "attractive blonde lady," and there were some decent lines including Karl Rove only having a problem with gay men, not gay women.

Monologue.
I can't believe he's hosted 3 other times. Not sure I remember any of those episodes. I didn't catch who was dressed as the old lady break dancing. I liked the set up of Ashton trying not to react to the "awesome" stuff in the audience. And most of the examples were good up till Mark Twain getting punched in the nuts. What's he have against Mark Twain?

Pool boy at reading of the will.
The only thing the sketch had going for it was "gross out" humor, and yet it felt surprisingly tame. Even the STD names weren’t very imaginative. “Foreigner’s Cough”?

The View.
Second sketch to address "Don't Ask Don't Tell." I guess Elisabeth Hasselback likes to repeat things for emphasis? I don't remember that from previous View sketches, but I’ll roll with it. I did like Kenan/Whoopie's complaint about not liking to go to the movies because they play at different times. Overall, this was another decent View sketch, one of he more reliable repeating bits.

Commercial Parody: Cialis for threeways. Almost made me smile, but mostly made me roll my eyes.

Rome/Grapes
Will Forte seemed to be playing a villain in a Hanna Barbera cartoon. I’ll give them credit for doing an old-fashioned style sketch.

Musical Guest: Them Crooked Vultures.
I usually like Dave Grohl’s various bands, but this song didn’t really do anything for me.
Didn’t sound so great and the lyrics were pretty unintelligible.

Weekend Update.
Fairly long segment this week.
Andy Samberg’s new character “Liam, the teenager who just woke up” was surprisingly funny (and real).

Game Show: What is Burn Notice?
Snarky! But accurate!

Access Hollywood/Oscar Nominations.
Also accurate?

Statement from Rahm Emanuel.
More of a rant than a sketch, but it felt fresh and different! Kind of amazing, actually.

Wedding Band.
Crisis of Conformity rocked it. Worked because the song “Fistfight in the parking lot” was actually pretty good and Fred Armisen is a good singer. And of course Dave Grohl on drums. Nice live moment where his mic didn’t work.

Saturday Night Live January 30th, 2010

2010-01-30T21:58:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 30th 2009
Host: Jon Hamm
Musical Guest: Michael Buble.

Cold Open: State of the Union.
Not too many actual jokes or insight. Just a lot of cuts to audience from the actual event with one random shot of Brendan Fraser thrown in for good measure.

Monologue.
The idea of putting the bleak character from Mad Men into other shows was probably a bit funnier in concept than execution.

Don’t Make Me Sing.
It feels like the SNL writers just sit around brainstorming catch phrases to run into the ground. If the sketch was 1 minutelong, it might have been JUST okay. But instead they just dragged it out, with the only redeeming element being the dancing cats on the balcony.

Digital Short: Sergio.
The final image was strangely satisfying.

(Is Ashton Kutcher hosting SNL to promote his Coolpix commercials?)

Democrats meet Scott Brown.
Mostly an eye-roller, but I give them credit for not having the Barney Frank fantasy be the final twist.

Musical Guest: Michael Bublé.
BLAAAH. ZZZZZZZ

Weekend Update.
Bobby Moynihan returns as Snookie from the Jersey Shore with even more red face paint.

ESPN: Greg the Alien co-host.
Only Bill Hader can pull off the freaky alien stuff. The other guys just looked stiff.

Hamm & Bublé.
A silly idea pulled off purely on the conviction of the performers.

Commercial Parody: Zip-do Closet Organizer.
It’s no Bathroom Monkey. Kind of a weak commercial (usually I love them).

Courtroom Stenographer.
“I can’t find my crackers” is an even more annoying catch phrase than “Don’t make me sing.” Don’t go printing up any T-shirts, just yet.

Musical Guest: Michael Bublé.
Cute performance, boring song. I’d rather just see more Sharon Jones. She’s great!

Two Guys in a Bar.
Has SNL ever done a follow up to one of the commercials in one of the sketches before?
That was sort of interesting, for SNL…very much in the sprit of Mr. Show and the Upright Citizens Brigade TV show.

Barnes & Noble.
Actually pretty funny! Although maybe less so if you don’t live in NYC?
God bless Barnes and Noble’s free bathrooms!

Saturday Night Live January 16th, 2010

2010-01-16T22:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 16th 2009
Host: Sigourney Weaver
Musical Guest: The Ting Tings

Cold Open: Larry King Live.
Not much insight or commentary on the Late Night controversy, but several good impressions! I can’t remember if Daryl Hammond ever did Jay Leno when he was a cast member on the show, but he came back for this. The best part was Jason Sudeikis, who was brilliantly deranged as Dave Letterman. I wonder if he told him he’d be doing it when he was on his show earlier in the week. Bill Hader was surprisingly serious as Conan, but he got the look down perfect. Another good bit was Larry King explaining how to access his blog on the internet.

Monologue.
Confident, classy and surprisingly funny. The idea of Sigourney Weaver being scared of everything shouldn’t have worked, but something about her delivery sold it for me.
“Are you an alien? You have to tell me if you are.” I also had no idea about her parents.

ESPN Classic: Women’s Darts
The way Jason Sudeikis says “Summer’s Eve” just isn’t as funny as “Tampax” or “Vagisil.” I guess that’s why he had to add the qualifier “douche,” but still not funny enough to warrant a third incarnation of the sketch.

Digital Short: Laser Cats 5
A fun homage to a bunch of James Cameron movies, and obviously a nice SNL touch to have the real director do a cameo. I appreciated the callouts to Ash and Bishop from the Alien films, and the fact that there was a character named Admiral Spaceship. But the Unobtanium reference at the end almost killed it.

Disco Booty Junction.
I love the way it opened with Kenan Thompson talking to someone off camera about his dressing room. But I didn’t care for the way it segued into a short song a la the Deep House Dish sketches before it devolved into an inane debate about the guests’ names: Amber and Cream. But the ending was pretty good as Kenan asked why he had to show up to work again if the show was cancelled.

Musical Guest: The Ting Tings.
I like the song (after first hearing it in a Puppetbenders web video), but the performance was underwhelming. And the outfit looked a little second-hand Lady Gaga.

Weekend Update.
Abby Elliot’s impression reminds me of someone else’s impression/commentary of Diane Keaton—but I can’t remember whose!
Seth’s Best line: “I can’t go back to being in a sketch every 3 weeks!”

Avatar Sex.
I guess they couldn’t resist playing into the growing nerd interest in Navi sex.
The fake legs were a nice touch. And it was interesting to see how they adapted the CGI characters into live action costumes and make up. A nice testament to the production values of the show’s crew.

Riley.
This was the introduction to a horrible character that I hope they never bring back. It almost makes Gilly seem like a good idea.
I’m guessing Fred Armisen was supposed to be channeling Harvey Fierstein? Cartman from South Park? I’m sure someone thought it was funny every time he said “bitch” but I thought it was flat and totally forced. I expect more from Fred Armisen.

Sigourney Weaver reads her online comments.
This was ADORABLE and endearing. My favorite sketch of the night. I wonder if they modeled the set off her real apartment and she told them to put up the Lolita poster.

Musical Guest: The Ting Tings.
Overall, I like their sound but wish their songs weren’t AS repetitive as they are. Just a tad more variation would go a long way. Was the cowbell SNL pandering?

Fire and Rice.
Something about this performance evoked Jan Hooks—in a good way.

Saturday Night Live January 9th, 2010

2010-01-09T22:51:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 09th 2009
Host: Charles Barkley
Musical Guest: Alicia Keys

Cold Open.
Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.
Like so many politically-themed cold opens: Sad but probably true. But this one also had some actual laughs. Fred Armisen was great as the Yemeni President.

Monologue.
My wife commented that Charles Barkley was like an awkward middle school student on stage. I doubt that’s what he was going for, but it worked for us.

Commercial Parody: Thomas Peepers Insurance.
Bill Hader’s facial expressions made this a good sketch. His pervy reactions very similar to his raised eyebrow Chris Hansen impression.

Game Show: Reel Quotes.
Considering how many game shows they’ve done where the only joke that is the contestants are idiots, I was surprised how often this sketch cracked me up. There was a surprising logic to it, and both Charles Barkley and Kristen Wiig had tons of great material to work. They both sold the gags with conviction and perfect comic timing.
Great quotes: “Shark BAG!” “You shouldn’t be looking at kids, Rege.”

Sexy Woman.
This sketch was close to brilliance. Kristen Wiig as a Marilyn Monroe-style sexpot who turns out to be more awkward than seductive. Lots of great moments like the way she giggles when she gets over excited and the stilted pole dance moves. Jenny Slate was also good as the contrasting “straight woman.” As was Charles Barkley as the one person turned on by Kristen Wiig’s antics. It’s a shame that he tripped up some of his lines, because they were funny! “That was superior.”

MacGruber.
I surprisingly enjoyed the first two installments. Maybe they’re growing on me just because they are so short.

NBA Booth.
Eh. I’m not a fan of sketches where someone keeps saying the same thing over and over. Except when it was Fred Armisen saying “I’m YOUR mother!” Seems like the fumbling likes were contagious.

Alicia Keys.
Obviously talented, but her songs do nothing for me.

Weekend Update.
Bill Hader still does a good James Carville, but this appearance wasn’t as funny as the first time.
Considering how in his first episode they made fun of Andy Samberg not being good with impressions, I’ve been surprised at how good he’s been at it lately. His Nicholas Cage is dead on.

The Haney Project.
A little too predictable. Just having Charles Barkley fumble at everyday things wasn’t funny enough.

Booty Call.
Alicia did a good job with her half, but the Andy Samberg bits just seemed too over the top to be funny.

Alicia Keys.
I didn’t realize there was a full song to go with the “New York” chorus from the Jay Z rap anthem. Does that make it a sample? Or did Alicia Keys flesh out the rest of the song AFTER the Jay Z bits were recorded? I guess that’s what Wikipedia is for…

Scared Straight.
I really wish they’d stop doing this. The first 5 times were sporadically amusing, but they’ve pretty much run it into the ground. The only redeeming quality is watching people try to keep a straight face.

Barkley’s Banks.
Did they cut to the title card screen too soon? The sketch ended abruptly but I thought I heard mumbling.

Saturday Night Live December 20th, 2009

2009-12-19T22:02:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
December 19th, 2009
Host: James Franco
Musical Guest: Muse.

I missed the beginning because I was watching the snow storm on the news. Hope the audience gets home okay.

What Up With That?
Third time out, it’s getting a bit tired, but I still get some enjoyment from it. Sadly, this installment felt the most off. Maybe because everyone seemed tired. I’d like to see them find a way to change up the format or at least the song. The best part was just seeing Jack McBrayer sitting next to Mike Tyson.

Awkwardly kissing family.
You gotta give them all credit for going at it with such vigor. Something about it seems to be a classic SNL sketch.

Digital Short: Jammy Party.
Not much of an original spin on the innocent kid show going horribly wrong…but it still worked for me.

Manuel Ortiz Show.
How many Spanish television parodies is Fred Armisen in? Mildly amusing if just for the amount of energy the cast put into the non-stop dancing.

Musical Guest: Muse.
I don’t know that much about the band except that they sometimes sound like old Radiohead and a bit like the band, Ours. Something about this particular song reminds me a bit of Brian Setzer with an electronic twist. I like it well enough.

Weekend Update.
Bill Hader as the Jersey Shore’s The Situation had a tight six pack on his back!
I enjoyed Fred Armisen and Kristen Wiig’s matching outfits and wigs for Garth & Cat. Not sure I got what they were trying to do though.

College Kids.
Kind of zoned out during this one.

Vincent Price Christmas Special.
Still using that Harry Potter font. I’ve never been a big fan of this reoccurring sketch but I enjoyed this one a bit more than normal. Mostly because of Katherine Hepburn fighting the raccoon.

Christmas Tree Lot.
James Franco is a man who really loves his Christmas trees. I LOVED THIS SKETCH!

“Carol, Hold My Calls” is one SNL quote that will never be on a t-shirt (god willing).

Mark Walberg talks to Christmas animals.
Not much new here. But it's short enough that it goes down easy.

FAVORITE CLIP:

SNL Christmas: good news/bad news

2009-12-08T07:34:00.000-08:00

So I WOULD HAVE been very excited about the upcoming SNL Christmas Special, since it combines two of my favorite things: SNL & Christmas specials...but then I heard it's going to be hosted by my LEAST FAVORITE SNL character: Gilly.

FULL STORY

I think Kristen Wiig is one of the most talented people on SNL, but I can't express how much I HATE Gilly! And not just because teh sketches have a lot of Will Forte. The character itself makes me nauseous and the inane repetition of it makes me crazy.
Even the Target lady would have been a better host. And it would make for easy corporate sponsorship!
I guess I'll just have to record it and fast forward through the Gilly intros.

I'm mostly hoping the new special will include all of the Horatio Sanz Christmas songs and any stuff that isn't already on the SNL Christmas collection DVD.

Saturday Night Live December 6th, 2009

2009-12-05T22:08:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
November 21th, 2009
Host: Blake Lively
Musical Guest: Rihanna

Cold Open.
Funny for about 1 minute and then dragged on too long.

Monologue.
The cast members seem to really like playing the Muppets. You get the sense that Bill Hader really gets into playing Animal. And I really appreciate how the make up artists do Gonzo’s nose. I wish they did more than the old hand-up-the-ass jokes, though.
Random fact: Blake Lively is the 4th young blonde woman to host this season so far.

ESPN Classic/Women’s bowling.
Basically the same format as the Women’s Pool sketch from a few weeks back. Like last time the best part is the way Jason Sudeikis repeatedly emphasizes the word “Vagisil” (a la Tampax) and comes up with new ways to plug the product sponsor.

The Situation Room: Tiger Woods.
I have a feeling that Kenan’s impression of Tiger Woods was way off, and yet I think it added a strange charm to the sketch.

Digital Short: Rihanna and Shy Ronnie.
This was a fun bit, well executed. I loved hearing Rihanna sing random sentences like “Speak up!” and “I forgot my purse.”

Gossip Girl Staten Island.
I thought Bobby Moynihan was pretty good in this. His dog/baby tanning booth was the best gag. Bill Hader’s Staten Island accent is pretty much his New Jersey one.

Kicksplit Rock Festival
I think they tried too hard with this. Nasim Pedrad did a decent Amy Poehler impression, though.

Musical Guest: Rihanna.
Yikes, chainmail, and comfy couch! The mood and content of the song “Russian Roulette” seems like it would make a good Depeche Mode song.

Weekend Update.
Kenan does a good Bill Cosby impression, but his rapping felt rushed and didn’t hit the mark. But I like when he complained about “Kanye Kangaroo.”
Seth Meyer’s best line: “How can you expect Cookie Monster to resist that much brown sugar?”

Department Store.
Not much about this sketch stood out to me. I’m not even sure what it was really about except Kenan in drag playing Blake Lively’s mother.

UPS Commercial.
I don’t think I’ve seen the commercial they were referencing (assuming it was a parody). But I like that they sorta played the Postal Service in the background without paying the royalty fees.

Late Night with Chris Hansen.
This is one of those SNL sketches that I can’t exactly peg why I like.
But the back and forth moments between Tony Blades and Chris Hansen made me happy.
Also Andy Samberg was a surprisingly good Keanu Reeves.

UPS Commercial.
This one was funnier.

Musical Guest: Rihanna.
Something about her outfit seemed to evoke Rufio from the movie Hook. And I guess ripped pants are back in style? This was actually the first Rihanna song that I’ve heard that I didn’t at least like the beat to.

NASA interview.
This sketch made me want to kill myself. I thought it was one of the worst sketches in the history of the show. Yes, even worse than the January Jones farting in Rear Window sketch from two weeks ago. That at least had decent celebrity impressions. This just had random yelling and excruciating pointlessness. I thought was over my dislike of Will Forte, but after this episode I think I would pay money to have him leave the show.

Saturday Night Live November 21st, 2009

2009-11-21T22:07:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
November 21th, 2009
Host: Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Musical Guest: Dave Matthews Band

I missed the first half of the episode. Hope they upload the What Up With That sketch soon!

Weekend Update.
Seemed really short this week. Al Gore seemed even dryer than usual and certainly not very funny.

Thanksgiving Family.
Painful and confusing. I liked it better when they did it the first time (10 years ago?):

Woman to Woman.
Fred Armisen as a sexist jerk filling in on an advice show for women.
It mostly worked for me, even though it didn’t actually make me laugh.

Dave Matthews Band.
I kind of tuned out. But my wife commented that Dave Matthews still looks exactly the same as he did when he first started out.

Say Anything.
This felt like a Dane Cook stand-up routine turned into a sketch.

Closing.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt needs to calm down before he turns into Mickey Dolenz.

I wish I cold watch that other Will Ferrell dinner sketch where he keeps tossing his plate and says "F$^K this, I'M LEAVING!"

Saturday Night Live November 14th, 2009

2009-11-14T22:02:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
November 14th, 2009
Host: January Jones
Musical Guest: Black Eyed Peas

Cold Open.
It’s kind of cool that Jason Sudeikis’ Joe Biden is more of a character than a straight-up impersonation. But it still only mildly amuses me.

Monologue.
Nice and short!

Kathie Lee and Hoda Kotb.
Jenny Slate stepped in as Hoda, but didn’t add too much to the straight-woman role.
I was surprised to find out that that song Everyone Has a Story was not made up for this sketch! I think the real version is even funnier!

Rear Window.
One joke: Pretty girl farting. Jason Sudeikis’ Jimmy Stewart was pretty good, but it made me think of Dana Carvey. Bobby Moynihan was decent as Hitchcock.

WIIX/Michelle Dison
“I like it!” Kristen Wiig at her absolute best. Rare example of a one-joke character managing to milk a surprising amount of material. I laughed through the whole thing. When January Jones walked away, freaked out, I was disappointed there wasn’t a twist ending. But then the bee gag made up for it.

Crown Instructional Films: Dinner Party
Really nice use of color. And the bit got better as it went along.
Best line: “Cats are girls, and dogs are boys.”

Black Eyed Peas.
Probably the definition of “guilty pleasure.” The song is getting overplayed, but I’m not exactly tired of it just yet. Still a bit too catchy!

Weekend Update.
Nice of Daryl Hammond to stop by his own show!
My heart dies a little every time the Bon Jovi opposite band comes back.

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde.
An okay sketch that would have seemed clever 10-15 years earlier.

Digital Short.
Lot of bathroom humor in this episode. The visual ending made the sketch worthwhile.

First Date.
A simple, but very enjoyable sketch.

Third song by Black Eyed Peas.
Some of the lyrics are cheesy, but I love the beats on this one.

Closing thoughts.
January Jones was a solid host, but it seemed like she played a naive wife or girlfriend in every other sketch. There seemed to be no sight of Kenan Thompson, just his voice singing a song on Weekend Update.

Exactly.

2009-11-14T18:03:00.000-08:00

Plug for my friend's new website:

http://sowhatifladygagaisaman.com/

Saturday Night Live November 7th, 2009

2009-11-07T22:02:00.001-08:00

Saturday Night Live
November 7th, 2009
Host: Taylor Swift
Musical Guest: Taylor Swift

Cold Open.
Moderately funny jab at Fox News. Kristen Wiig’s Greta Van Susteren impression was perfect, but Jason Sudeikis’ Glenn Beck felt a bit light after Jon Stewarts extended riff on him earlier this week. Ironic since, Stewart’s definitely not known for impersonations.

Monologue.
I found this painful. Especially every time her voice cracked. Taylor Swift is no Laurie Berkner.

Commercial Parody: Swine Fever.
Even though I didn’t think much of the bit, I found Bobby Moynihan a bit more appealing than usual for some reason.

The View.
Jenny Slate stepping into the role of Barbara Walters (formerly played by Michaela Watkins) did a pretty good job. The mannerisms are perfect, but the voice seems too high pitch.
I feel guilty that every word Fred Armisen says as Joy Behar still makes me smile after all this time.

Digital Short.
Weak Twilight parody that seemed straight out of Cracked magazine.

Hollywood Dish.
Not really a funny enough idea to sustain a whole sketch. And what a twist ending!

T.R.A.A.A.P.E.D.
This sketch made me fear the episode was intentionally written to appeal to the Disney Channel audience.

Taylor Swift.
I hate this song partially because I don’t hate it as much as my teenage self would want me to. It’s obvious and cheesy but a bit too catchy to be completely evil. Sigh.

Weekend Update.
I give them credit for not bringing Nicholas Fehn back till at least the 5th episode of the season. If any SNL character should get a movie—it’s this one! Just to see Fred Armisen rise to the challenge. I, too, am glad they banned Claymation in the 70’s.
Abby Elliot was pitch perfect as Sarah McLaclan talking about molested dogs.
Happiness every time Amy Poehler pops in.

Penelope at a wedding.
Still one of Kristen Wiig’s most consistently funny characters. This installment had quite a few laughs.

Scared Straight.
They’ve done this bit one too many times. And Taylor Swift added absolutely nothing.

Roommate.
There was something really old-timey, classic SNL about this sketch, without being funny to me.

Taylor Swift.
Her voice alternates between good and excruciating, like playing around with the knobs on a radio.

Bunny Business Soundtrack.
Decent excuse for hit-and-miss celebrity impressions.
Winner: Kristen Wiig as Natalie Merchant.

Saturday Night Live October 17th, 2009

2009-10-17T22:03:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
October 17th, 2009
Host: Gerard Butler
Musical Guest: Shakira

Cold Open.
The return of The Rock Obama was surprisingly enjoyable. I think I smiled through the whole thing.

Monologue.
There was something very early 90s about this bit. I mostly liked when Kristen Wiig screamed "take your shirt off!"

Urban Champagne.
I'm not sure I buy Kenan Thompson as "gangsta," but this was still funny.

SNL Flashback/promotional gimmick.
Felt like a random DVD extra. The Jason Sudeikis intro made it sound like there wouldn't be any other commercials thanks to Bud Light, but it was followed by a car commercial.

Game Time with Randy and Greg.
I spent most of the sketch wondering if Greg the alien was a character created while Bill Hader was drunk at a party.

SNL Backstage/promotional gimmick.
Tim Meadows in "Perspectives" still cracks me up.

First time I've ever seen Comedy Central advertise on NBC.

Beauty and the Beast
Follow up to the Aladdin sketch? For the most part this was a really strong sketch. But for some reason by the time Bobby Moynihan showed up as the clock it ran out of steam.

SNL Backstage/promotional gimmick.
I was surprised I didn't remember the Harvey Keitel episode.

Musical Guest: Shakira.
Her performance came across as surprising shy and awkward. The stretching came across like she was trying it out for the first time. The howling was also borderline cheesy.

SNL Backstage/promotional gimmick.
Blooper reel.

Weekend Update.
Return of two guys from NJ. Bill Hader and Fred Armisen make a cute couple.
The balloon from Colorado sounded like a character from Pee-wee's Playhouse.
Kristen Wiig as Tamara Parks was funny, but I hope they don't make her a reoccurring character more than once more.

SNL Backstage/promotional gimmick.
More assorted blooper reels.

300 Parody.
Gets credit for being timely. Had some funny bits to it.

What Up With That?
The most amazing sketch so far this year. Kenan seemed to be channeling Eddie Murphy's classic "James Brown's Hot Tub" but made it totally his own. Everything about it made me laugh out loud. I couldn't take my eyes off Jason Sudeikis dancing in the background. And the randomness of the James Franco cameo added to the greatness.
Best line of the night: "ET likes Reese's Pieces."

SNL Backstage/promotional gimmick.
That robot eats old people's medicine for food.

Trina.
Kristen Wiig certainly has her share of brilliant performances, but this wasn't one of them. Not exactly as painful as her Gilly character, but still pretty bad.

Musical Performance: Shakira.
I liked this song better. Good use of the taiko drums for a hip hop beat. Not sure the Beyonce hairstyle works on Shakira.

Daveheart.
Started off a bit lame, but actually got better!
"Whew! It's just a goat. I thought it was a dragon!"

Closing thought.
A fairly consistent episode. I've never seen a Gerard Butler movie, but I was impressed by his effort. He certainly threw himself into as many different characters and sketches as possible.

CLIP:

Saturday Night Live October 10th, 2009

2009-10-10T22:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
October 10th, 2009
Host: Drew Barrymore
Musical Guest: Regina Spektor

Cold Open.
Pretty weak intro about President Obama winning the Nobel Prize. The joke about him also winning the lottery already seems old only a day after the events in question.

Monologue.
Clips of people doing Drew Barrymore impressions making fun of the way she talks. I guess she deserves the credit of being a good sport.

No commercial parody here.

Gilly.
From the moment I heard the tone of Will Forte's voice I started cringing…not another Gilly sketch. I instantly guessed that Drew Barrymore was gonna play a variation on Gilly; and sadly I was correct. Although, I thought she would be an arch-rival instead of it being a team up. Either way, it was twice as annoying (although Drew's Gilly isn't as freakish as Kristen Wiigs!) If I wasn't writing this blog I would have changed the channel just so I wouldn't have nightmares.

What's with all the old SNL cast members in the T-Mobile commercial?

Celebrity Ghost Stories.
As if to pay off the gag of the opening monologue, Drew Barrymore's Sharon Osborne impersonation highlights her inability to do an English accent. The mannerisms were good though.
What is with the hosts' significant others making cameos? Didn't she broke up with Justin Long? I guess I don't keep up. Kenan as Ray Parker Jr. admitting that he is, in fact, afraid of ghosts was the best part. I'm surprised I haven't seen that joke before.

Commercial Parody: University of Westfield Online.
I thought this was a decent idea, even though it didn't make me laugh.

La Rivista Della Televisione.
These sketches are usually okay, but I thought this installment was unfunny and ended awkwardly.
My wife's revelation: The only time Bobby Moynihan plays something other than the straight man in a sketch, it's to play a child.

Musical Guest: Regina Spektor.
I'm glad that Drew Barrymore told us that she was "talented" when she introduced her.
The song sounded like Fiona Apple covering Vanessa Carlton.

Weekend Update.
Bill Hader as James Carville was perfect. They should make a whole show around him.
I like that Andy Samberg keeps finding new cartoon characters to impersonate. His Scrooge McDuck was creepy but effective.

Women's Billiards.
Will Forte was actually pretty decent in this. But I mostly just liked the way Jason Sudeikis says "Tampax".

Best line of the night: Speaking of pulling some strings…Tampax!

Cooking Al Fresco.
The only good part was the puppet crow dipping bread in the marinara sauce. Drew Barrymore forget to mess up her hair during the cut scenes and ended up doing so on camera, making the sketch more pathetic than funny.

Larry King Live.
It took me a moment to figure out if it was Drew Barrymore or Abby Elliot!
The word "wieners" isn't as funny as it should be. But I guess the sketch was okay.

Digital Short.
They got a lot of use out of those crow puppets.

Book Reading.
Ugh. Not as painful as the Gilly sketch, but still pretty bad.

Closing thoughts…
I kind of felt bad for Drew Barrymore. This was the least funny episode of the season so far. Hope things pick up next week.

Saturday Night Live October 3rd, 2009

2009-10-03T22:16:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
October 3rd, 2009
Host: Ryan Reynolds
Musical Guest: Lady Gaga

Cold Open.
Like many presidential openings of the past: sad but true.

Monologue.
Sad, but not funny. Although I liked the lantern jab.

Commercial Parody: Mostly Garbage Dog Food.
Great delivery from Jason Sudeikis made the moderately funny idea more enjoyable.

Celebrity Family Feud.
As soon as they introduced the Phillips family I thought this sketch was going to be pretty awkward. But it showed restraint and was surprisingly short.

Digital Short: Threw It On the Floor.
Will probably rank pretty low on the spectrum of songs by The Lonely Island…but they can't all be "On a Boat." I still enjoyed it for being silly.

Mike's Fountainry.
I love that they made a sequel to the "You gotta get a chandelier" sketch from last year, possibly just because Scarlett Johannsen is married to Ryan Reynolds? If so it's all worth it. I wanna get a porcelain fountain.

Deep Dish.
Kristen Wiig's had the best song and interview segment. Did they have to show a Facebook screencap to explain Ryan Reynold's "status update" song? The Madonna & Lady Gaga catfight seemed more awkward than funny. Probably should have practiced more. But everyone piling on Kenan was a cute ending.

Musical Guest: Lady Gaga.
As a fan of dance music and freestyle, I like most of the Lady Gaga songs I've heard so far. She seemed dizzy and off balance, but there's something charming about how hard she tries to be weird in that 80s kind of way, that is a far contrast from most current pop acts.

Weekend Update.
I sometimes forget that Daryl Hammond is still on SNL!
A bit surprised they told an A-Rod joke with Madonna in the house.

2nd best line of the night:

"Oh my God, 'Ghostbusters 2' was right!"
-Charles Barkley (played by Kenan Thompson)

You Committed a Crime & You Think You Can Dance?
Nice to see a sketch that has various funny aspects and performances by most of the cast.

Best line of the night:

"Remember when I made an album?"
-Kevin Federline (played by Andy Samberg)

International Masterworks.
I thought this was all around weak. The worst sketch of the season so far.

Musical Guest: Lady Gaga.
I like the piano bits, but would have liked to see it framed by the dance beats.

Closing thoughts…
Ryan Reynolds didn't really win me over because he didn't seem to have any memorable performances.
I liked that Andy Samberg wore the same bubble outfit as Lady Gaga.

Best Clip:

Saturday Night Live September 26th 2009

2009-10-03T18:04:00.000-07:00

Here are some quick notes on LAST WEEK'S episode, which I watched in a hotel room (and missed the beginning of).

Saturday Night Live
September 26th, 2009
Host: Megan Fox
Musical Guest: U2

Overall...
I thought this was an okay episode. Lots of focus on random humor, which is okay by me. But nothing really worth getting too excited about. It's always telling when the host plays themselves in every sketch. "Your Mom Talks to Megan Fox," "Megan's Roommate," etc.

Flight Announcement.
Some funny moments, but dragged on a bit too long. Reminded me of a lot so-so sketches from mid 90s SNL.

Digital Short: The Date.
Definitely the most random bit of the episode. Will Forte at his most cringe-worthy--but mostly to good effect here.

Grady Wilson's Burning Bedsheets.
Having watched Kenan Thompson grow up on Nickelodeon, I'm not sure I really wanted to ever think about the different ways he has sex. But this was still a pretty funny sketch that was just ridiculous enough.

Digital Short: Megan's Roomate.
The blurred out, slow naked transforming was what made the bit work for me.

Weekend Update.
I'm surprised I'm still fond of Jean K. Jean. Kenan seems to find ways of keeping it from seeming too redundant.
Judy Grimes is borderline. I'm mostly just impressed by how fast Kristen Wiig can read the teleprompter.

Russian Brides.
Moderately funny, but also went on a bit too long.

CLIP:

NEWS & COMMENTARY: Hello and Goodbye

2009-09-07T08:22:00.000-07:00

TV Guide's website has a story about SNL's newest cast members Jenny Slate and Nasim Pedrad...

I've never seen either of these two performers before, so I'm hoping they bring something new and different to the show!
I'm always happy to give the featured players a chance, and enjoy seeing if they can work their way to the front.

But I also enjoyed reading all the comments below the article complaining about not hiring an African American actress. Not that they should hire someone just because they are black and can impersonate Michele Obama...but I imagine there must be some funny black women that would kill for that kind of break.

Yahoo.com has a story about which cast members were fired: Michaela Watkins and Casey Wilson.

I'm not particularly disappointed by either of these loses. Casey Wilson always seemed to have potential, but only her Katy Perry parody "I Held a Cat" stood out to me as genuinely funny. The rest of the time she was playing a random "cougar" and "friend to the main character".

I never had too much nice to say about Michaela Watkins, beyond her decent impression of Barbara Walters. Her blogger character really annoyed me, and I can't remember much else she did. Sorry!

Saturday Night Live May 16th, 2009

2009-05-16T22:08:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
May 16th, 2009
Host: Will Ferrell
Musical Guest: Green Day

Cold Open.
Dick Cheney and Will Ferrell are adorable. Watching this sketch felt like putting on an old warn in sweater.

Monologue.
First time I've ever heard the phrase "Goofbag."
"Please, no laughter" best set up ever. I'm sure this sort of showboating won't win Will Ferrel any new fans, but I enjoy it.

Wade Blaisengane.
An old commercial, but one that still cracks me up. Nice to see Chris Parnel and Tracey Morgan, even in reruns.

Lawrence Welk show (round 2).
"And by wonderful, I mean interesting."
Still borderline offensive, but moving closer to guilty pleasure.

I might have to watch the MTV Movie Awards this year!

Celebrity Jeopardy
When I saw that Tom Hanks was doing a guest appearance, I declared this to be quite the episode for SNL nostalgia. Sure he was there because he's hyping a big summer movie, but he was silly in that old Tom Hanks hosting SNL way (it's been too long!). He even said "sibilance" into a microphone! But holy crap Norm MacDonald showed it up, and it just tipped the scales. For an SNLphile like myself, it's a pleasure to see current stars like Kristen Wiig playing with the old guard. And this installment of Jeopardy had as many brilliant gags as ever.

Sidenote: Next season, I'd love to see Tom Hanks host, and have lots of cameos from Jon Lovitz.

Off topic: I never thought I'd see a Sleestak in a commercial for Subway.

Football commentary.
I loved this sketch! Charles Barkley laughing at 'Mark' dancing in the lower half of the screen was genius, and it just kept getting better. "It's just playfulness!"

Green Day.
Aged like fine wine. But who were the extra guys playing with the trio?

Weekend Update.
Not sure if Amy Poehler has been gone long enough to get that nostalgic, but it's always great to see her back and add to the fan service. To that end: Hey! It's Harry Carey!
Aww, hugs at the end.

Funeral speakers.
Talent show format with lots of silliness. Fred Armisen was my favorite of the batch. I love Maya Rudolph, but her cameo felt a bit forced by this point in the episode.

Vietnam song.
It's sketches like this that remind you that SNL really is the only true variety show on TV.
Was it THAT funny? No, but it was different, and I enjoyed the heck of it. Too many cameos to list, but Artie Lang and Bobby Moynihan together is like worlds colliding.
The music number was so over the top, you'd think this was the last episode of SNL ever!
It wouldn't have been a bad way to go out. The sketch even had an ending!

A great finale, that left we wanting more.

Saturday Night Live May 9th, 2009

2009-05-09T22:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
April 9, 2009
Host: Justin Timberlake
Musical Guest: Ciara

Cold Open: Geitner’s Stress Test on the Banks.
Mildly amusing, but never really took off and petered out at the end.

Monologue.
One of the better monologue song-and-dance numbers. I give Justin credit for sitting on that dude's lap and for giving shout outs to all the other hosts these past years. Classy.

Commercial: Mom celebrity translator.
Totally need one. Wherever mom product are sold.

Target Lady.
Felt a bit phoned in. But, nice use of the classic cartoon speed-away visual gag (wind blowing, etc.).

Immigrants.
A little self-serving and self-congratulatory, and yet I can't deny I laughed a few times.
Where DID sexy go before his grandson brought it back? I liked Andy Samberg's set up for the digital short.

Digital Short: Dick In A Box follow up.
Motherlover. Lightening strikes twice? The Lonely Island keeps pumping out the hits for Justin Timberlake. By the time I make this post I'm sure Motherlover will be all over the internet.

Take it on down to Plasticville.
Will Forte was just dead weight in this sketch; not exactly the straight man or a funny contrast to Timberlake.

Ciara.
Introduced by Justin Timberlake's girlfriend?
Straight up now tell me that this didn't feel like a Janet Jackson and/or Paul Abdul and/or Madonna dance number from the 90s?

Weekend Update.
Patterson and Spitzer are a good comedy team!
It seems in bad taste for the new Star Trek cast to make fun of the old show's fanbase the weekend the new movie opens. I know there's a long history of making fun of Trekkies, but I thought they came across as even more condescending and sincerely dismissive than intended.

Barry and Robin Gibbs show.
Jimmy Fallon returns. I shrug my shoulders. I guess they tried their best?

Pirates vs. Pirates.
Loved Fred Armisen's parrot ventriloquism and Kristen Wiig taking out the tourists.

CLIP:

Saturday Night Live April 11th, 2009

2009-04-11T22:10:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
April 11, 2009
Host: Zac Effron
Musical Guest: Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Cold Open.
Joe Biden chews Obama's ear off for mild comic effect. I found it an almost-cute dramatization of the awkward conversations that Obama and Biden probably have. The vice president putting his family photos on the president's desk while he was away was a nice touch. I also liked Obama saying "Relax, Joe. You've already got the job."

Monologue.
"Hey, Tweens!" seems like a condescending way to address your fan base in an attempt to appeal to the older audience. Do tweens refer to themselves as such?

Today.
Kristen Wiig is (expectedly) perfect as the completely out of touch Kathy Lee Gifford. When she mentioned her son Cody, I had flashbacks to Dana Carvey and Jan Hooks as Regis and Kathy Lee. I haven't thought much about Cody since then. I guess he would be Zac Effron's age by now!
Mikhaela Watkins is a decent straight-woman co-host (even if I can't remember the name of who she's playing).

Science Fair: Gilly returns.
The first thing this sketch did was remind me how rarely Bobby Moynihan is on the show these days (not a great sign for a featured player). The second thing this sketch did is remind me that not everything Kristen Wiig does is enjoyable.
Gilly is easily the most disturbing of her characters. It makes me glad that the trend of SNL character-based movies is on a downturn so I don't have to know the fear that would be an hour and a half of Gilly on the big screen. Although in the right hands I guess it COULD be the next POPEYE.

Junk Mail Commercial.
A bit more of a straight up rant than the usual SNL satirical approach, but a noble attempt at relevancy compared to the inane sketch that preceded it.

Kids at the Bar.
Totally hilarious. It had a funny set up, and the images of the kids drinking at the bar is pretty classic.
I wonder if they made up the phrase "Gerbils are the opposite of cougars"?

Musical Guest: Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
I've always been indifferent to this band, despite their critical acclaim. The singer reminds me of a mild PJ Harvey without the passion. But I did like the overall shoegazing sound of the song they played.

Weekend Update.
I assume Devil's Due comics are stoked that their Barrack the Barbarian series got plugged.
Considering the overloading of stereotypes, Bill Hader and Fred Armisen as the Gay Couple from New Jersey are funnier than I would have expected.
I still don't get who exactly is being parodied by Mikhaela Watkins' Angie Tempura, the snarky blogger character. The nasal voice and way of stretching out her "snotty comments" and saying "bitch, please" in an out of breath manner, just makes me scratch my head in confusion. Reminds me of Molly Shannon's "Don't even get me started. Don't EVEN get me started."
As soon as Seth Meyers said the words "Jon Bovi" my heart shrank in my chest. I can't believe how much time they wasted with the opposite of humor. Bitch, pleeeaaase. Slurp.

High School Musical 4
I'm surprised they didn't do this as one of the beginning sketches for the kids.
Mostly cute and predictable exceptnfor Daryl Hammond as an unfrozen, racist Walt Disney. Seems like Daryl just does "surprise cameos" the way he casually walks in at the end of sketches.

Going off to war.
Totally random, but I enjoyed Casey Wilson running next to a moving train with a fish in her mouth.

Gino's Pizza Rolls.
Fred Armisen's performance hit a little too close for home for me. They dragged it out a bit, but still cracked me up. Not bad for the often worn out "let's do that scene over" format

Next week: Hey Rick! It's the Best of Amy Poehler.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
I liked the heavy guitar parts at the end of the song.

Brotherly foot rub.
A solid, well written, stand alone sketch. It evoked some of the best Kids in the Hall awkward sexual scenes. Just imagine Scott Thompson playing the role of Jason Sudeikis (who was really good in this). It seems to be one of SNL's worst traditions to push the original scenes for the end of the night and annoy us with reoccurring one-note characters like Gilly at the start of the show.

CLIP:

2009-04-04T22:33:00.000-07:00

The show following SNL called LX-First Look (which always reminds me of a Human Giant Sketch called Let's Go!) had profiles on Amy Poehler and the UCB Theater and other notable impov comedy clubs. It was nice to see Chat Carter (formerly of Respecto Montalban) get some screen time!

Saturday Night Live, April 4th 2009

2009-04-04T22:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
April 4, 2009
Host: Seth Rogen
Musical Guest: Phoenix

Cold Open.
Whenever I hear Obama speak now, I can't help but hear Fred Armisen's impression of him in my head. Which means Armisen must be doing something right. Does he even put the dot on his nose for this impersonation, or is that just a natural coincidence?!

Monologue.
Seth Rogen sure fluctuates weight a lot. Does he do that on purpose for his various film roles? I'm glad they're addressing the frequency of mall cop movies these days.

Commercial Parody.
Looks like a live-action yaoi manga adaptation.

Save the Funnies.
They finally wrote a sketch to put Cathy into besides Weekend Update, I guess? Farside was a random throw-away gag--is that strip even in syndication anymore?

La Riviste della Televisiona.
This sketch reminded me how often Seth Rogen and Bill Hader appear in movies together.

Digital Short.
Musically reminded me a lot of the Natalie Portman digital short. I thought it was the weakest of the Lonely Island raps so far, but it still had a couple of laughs.

Girlfriend voice.
Started out good, but they kind of dragged it out too long. Mogwai singing is always worthwhile, though.

Remember GE Smith? I haven't for a long time. But something made me think of the old days during this break.

Phoenix.
Reminded me of a calmer version of the band Of Montreal.

Weekend Update.
I enjoyed Seth's jabs about the gift exchange with the Queen of England.
Madonna and Angelina Jolie's baby-off was good stuff. Especially Abby Eliott's exit.

Business Meeting.
Felt like the lamest sketch SNL has ever done. Nothing but people sitting around listening to a song from Grease. The "twist" ending was predictable in way that wouldn't have been surprising on a preschool show. It was more like, NBC had the rights to that song and wanted to use it AND waste TV time simultaneously, to save costs.

Milestone High.
ALMOST funny.

Bad country music commercial.
Three strikes. It's sad to see such talented people like Kristen Wiig and Seth Rogen stoop to Will Forte's level of non-comedy. Totally painful. The kind of sketch that makes it hard to justify SNL to your friends. Someone really needs to tell Will Forte that just singing random stuff in a "funny voice" isn't enough.

Phoenix.
The singer looks like some random guy that walked off the street and a rock band let him join them on stage. But the song was pretty decent!

SNL really has had a thing about Muppet parodies over the years. Some of the costumes were pretty fun, but everything else was a bit too average. Seemed like a lot of trouble visually for so little amount of actual parody or humor.

Third song by a band that isn't Coldplay? Craziness.

Clips:

Saturday Night Live, March 14th, 2009

2009-03-14T22:08:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
March 14th, 2009
Host: Tracy Morgan
Musical Guest: Kelly Clarkson

Cold Open.
Was this the first time they did a digital short style opening? I thought everything about it was great. I wonder if it was inspired by real events.

Monologue.
Probably the best monologue I've seen in years. Great jab about being in more sketches than his 7 years as a cast member. And tons of fantastic quotes like, "I'm not actually a ridiculous person," and images of Tracey frying chicken in his shark tank.

Commercial parody.
I guess it's better to show a repeat than cut immediately to a real commercial. But seriously, they need to make more parodies per year.

The return of Brian Fellows.
I'm glad they went right to what everyone wanted to see. I assume that was the same intro and not a new one. I wonder how much of the set was held on to "just in case." This felt a bit phoned in, but I could care less. My only complaint was that it didn't last long enough.

The View.
I guess it's pretty funny to have Tracy Morgan play a different host on The View since he was well known for playing Star Jones. I guess he could play anyone and it would make me laugh. The naivte could have been annoying if not so pitch perfect. "I know what stem cells are, but what is research?" Kristen Wiig's take on Elisabeth Hassleback is also growing on me. One of the best View sketches in a while.

Scared Straight a 3rd time.
It's nice just to see Kenan and Tracy performing together. There's a lot to like about series of sketches, even if the repetition of format still annoys me a bit. But there's more pro than con. This also seemed like the first time in a while where the cast members really cracked each other up and almost broke character.

Dateline.
Bill Hader really has something with this character. It's hard to not smile through the whole sketch.

Astronaut Jones.
The opening sequence and theme song is still one my favorite things of all time (SNL or otherwise). They could show an Astronaut Jones bit every week and I wouldn't complain.

Kelly Clarkson.
Another American Idol winner. I guess I should be embarrassed that I've still never watched that show. The song didn't do that much for me, but I'd say Clarkson has a good voice.

Weekend Update.
Good impersonation of John Malkovich. But does he really have that chin hair?
There was an inexplicable camera shot of Seth before Tracy Morgan showed up for his "Really" bit. Barbie is no Cathy. But I liked the shout out to Black Barbie. All the other jokes about the doll seemed really old though. Did they not see Toy Story 2?

Big Love.
I'm not familiar with the show, but still enjoyed the sketch.

Digital Short.
Visualizing insults for people at a party. Great execution of an idea I can't believe no one else has done before.

Suppressex.
Total Brilliance. Will Forte's "This is the wrong time for an erection" was the best use of him all year (makes up for all those MacGrubers). Anti-erection medication is another seemingly obvious idea I'm surprised I've never seen before.
Laying face down on a waterslide can be a problem!

High I.Q.
Is it wrong that Beth's dancing made me wish I had some Suppressex? It was pretty hot.
Not a lot to think about, but the sketch had the right mix of escalating randomness to win the game.

Kelly Clarkson didn't seem dressed like someone who would have that much rock guitar playing behind her.

Family Flix: Rocket Dog.
I can't really explain why this sketch cracked me up from start to end. But it got the biggest laughs of the night. It's horrible to laugh at the idea of dead dogs, but they made it work.

Gas Right.
Was this a new commercial parody? Why didn't they show this at the beginning of the episode?

A great episode. Sorry for all the Tracy Morgan fanboy gushing. But he's the best!

CLIPS:

Saturday Night Live, March 7th, 2009

2009-03-07T22:05:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
March 7th, 2009
Host: Dwayne Johnston
Musical Guest: Ray LaMontane

Cold Open.
Yet another "sad but true" commentary, rather than full-on attempt at gags. Had some good moments though.

Monologue.
I'm glad "Dwayne" addressed his name evolution since last time he hosted. Something about his tattoo really grossed me out and made me question if he's doing okay.

MacGruber.
So after appearing in a series of Pepsi commercial tie ins, the real MacGuyver appears in an actual MacGruber sketch. Ideally that should be the final note and they should retire the character--but I doubt it.

Obama and Emanuel.
Andy Samberg's delivery and devious smile totally sold it; The Rock's tattoo almost ruined it. The Incredible Hulk parody was kind of a stupid premise and yet totally cracked me up. For some reason it reminded me of SNL's late 80s political sketches.

Another Activia Yogurt sketch.
Guess I don't feel strongly enough about poop jokes to form a solid (pun!) opinion about this sketch.

Hooray for Tracey Morgan hosting next week! Even if he just retreads old characters like Brian Fellows and Astronaut Jones, I'll probably be happy!

Hawaiian resort performers.
Nothing like employees randomly making fun of customers and then doing a silly dance, and repeating till annoying.

Ray LaMontane.
He wins the "old-timey-sounding" award for recent acts who play music that evokes retro stylings. It'd be adult contemporary if it came out 30 years ago. Or maybe smooth jazz? White R&B?

Weekend Update.
For some reason I don't look forward to this segment as much as I used to. Could be the lack of Amy and/or Tina. I have nothing against Seth Myers, but something about him solo seems less enjoyable.
--Good bit with Michael Steele.
--The Cathy parody would be funnier if the hair went up without Andy's hands. Do people know comic iconography like sweat drop by name? Are Andy and Justin Timberlake total BFFs? Do SNL cast members appreciate how often he steals their potential parts? I guess Jessica Biel cosplayed a good Jessica Rabbit.
-Jon Bovi. UGH!

GameTime with Dave and Greg.
I actually liked the premise of callers speculating on the alien co-host. And Bill Hader's reaction to the water spilling on him was pretty great. I can't believe how many sketches cut to Kenan just for a silly reaction shot.

The return of Donald Trump mini commercials.
Daryl Hammond sticks around long enough to convince SNL to bring this sketch back from the dead. Not sure if these were celebrities actually on Celebrity Apprentice, or just people the performers wanted to impersonate.

Lighthouse.
UGH again! Sketches like this only interest me because I have a hard time believing they made it on screen. So random.
I wonder if it was bounced from an earlier episode. I feel like a year from now this one will at least seem funny in retrospect.

Overall a pretty unsatisfying episode with no real memorable sketch beyond the Obama Incredible Hulk parody.

Saturday Night Live, February 14th, 2009

2009-02-14T22:04:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
February 14, 2009
Host: Alec Baldwin.
Musical Guest: Jonas Brothers

Cold Open.
Not hilarious, but an insightful commentary on the current mindset of the Republican party. Featuring another random cameo from Dan Akroyd (did he do one last year?).

Monologue.
Yay for Jack McBrayer! I've liked his goofy southern schtick ever since seeing him at the UCB theater (performing as a fill-in guest with Respecto Montalban), so I think it's great that he finally gets to be on SNL and is getting so much TV love!

Oldest Jonas Brother.
I guess this one was for the fans. And ONLY the fans. Not up to par with the Bon Jovi sketch from last year (where the revealed the origin of their band name).

I love the commercial for The Lonely Island featuring ****in My Pants and ****in a Box!

Cougar Den.
It's a bad sign it's 20 minutes in and the first real laugh of the episode is just a Kenan reaction shot. Why does Cameron Diaz keep coming back? Does she think this is a popular character or re-occurring sketch? She's not bad in it, but I just find it weird.

Digital Short.
Putting the VHS tape in the DVD player was totally brilliant. The rest of the sketch, not so much (nothing against the wizard). It would have been funnier if Andy Samberg and the Lonely Island guys tried to convince the super-pure Jonas Brothers to try and record a song like Dick in a Box.

Sir Mix-A-Lot's Photoshop
Funny in a guilty-pleasure kind of way. So silly it's hard to keep from smiling. I tried my best to resist it, but Kenan always manages to pull these things off.

Jonas Brothers.
Pretty harmless pop, but the brother who plays guitar and was singing back up sounded like he was really straining to hit those high notes. Cringe!

Weekend Update.
With all the financial crisis news, I find myself thinking about this Oscar Rogers "Fix It" character at weird times. I guess that means it’s growing on me. I like the way he says ValenTIME.
--I guess for people who liked Abby Elliot's Angelina Jolie impersonation, they brought it back for absolutely no reason.
--Blogger character was just painful to watch. I couldn't tell if she was supposed to be a dumb college kid or a weird old lady with a disease.

Vincent Price Valentine's Day Special.
I find it funny that they use a Harry Potter knock-off font for the title sequence. I know a lot of people are fond of this re-occurring sketch and I wish I was, too! It's funny in concept and everyone seems like they are having fun, but it never seems to come together for me.

Business Meeting.
The first time Will Forte's character asked his secretary to "hold his calls," I wondered, why?? They're in the middle of a meeting? And then he kept doing it, getting more annoying each time. My feelings about Will Forte can run hot and cold, but this sketch broke the camel's back…and I now will go on record as hoping this is his last season on the show. Sorry!

Wii Sketch.
I feel embarrassed that I saw where this sketch was going as soon as it started. I guess someone had to make the connection between wiimotes and masturbation, and the result was funny enough mostly because of the climax.

Virginia Horsen's Hot Air Balloon
Was this a repeat of the original hot air balloon commercial? It's funny enough that I didn't care.

First Coughs.
Um. Sure. Why not?

On a boat...reading comics

2009-02-08T20:15:00.000-08:00

Sorry, no reviews this week. I missed the episode because of the New York Comic Con!

But I enjoyed the new music video from The Lonely Island. After Jorma Taccone's star turn in "Jizz in my Pants" it's great to see Akiva Schaffer also got to sing a song on SNL and just get some screen time in general. I guess I should check out the new album.

I also liked it on a personal level because I write a comic series called Teen Boat!

Saturday Night Live, January 31st, 2009

2009-01-31T22:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 31st, 2009
Host: Steve Martin
Musical Guest: Jason Mraz

Cold Open.
First cold opening with Obama as the president. I think Fred Armisen keeps getting better with his Obama impression, and the whitening of his hair is a nice detail. It's going to be hard to follow up all the years of great George Bush openings, but considering Obama gives writers less to work with it, it turned out okay!

Monologue.
Steve Martin's 15th time! I think I prefer when he does a song or interacts behind the stage. His stand up ended up a bit awkward.

Chewable Diapers.
A new classic to add to the rich history of brilliant commercial parodies! Along the lines of the Jiffy Pop airbag.

Only one real commercial, and suddenly a McGruber sketch? And with the real McGuyver doing a surprise cameo? And wait, it WAS actually a commercial? I'm confused! I wonder if it will air on the Super Bowl tomorrow?

Super Bowl.
The return of Will Forte and Kristen Wiig characters I sort of remember them doing once before but find it hard to describe exactly how to describe them. Boring? Out of touch? I guess the passing of time is the extra angle, morphing the characters from timid to random. Subtle comedy to be sure.

Digital Short: Laser Cats 4.
I definitely want to like the laser cats. It doesn't make me laugh, but it evokes the kind of low-budget nonsense I usually enjoy.

Issues.
I loved this sketch! Similar setup as the Will Forte-Kristen Wiig "Good Excuse" sketch from last week, except PERFECTLY executed! Great new character from Kenan, who can crack me up by just lowering his eyes (as seen with his Whoopi Goldberg on The View). But there were tons of great lines like "What can we glean from this?" "Can I squeeze one of them?" And I was glad there were lots of variations to the running gag rather than copping out to a single catch phrase. I'd certainly look forward to them bringing this bit back at least once more.

McGruber Commercial 2.
Maybe I've just been beat into submission but I really liked this one! Will Forte's reaction to "Are you sponsored by Pepsi?" was genuinely funny.

Bernie Madoff.
Good impersonation, but boring execution.

Casey Wilson and Steve Martin.
I love how Abraham Lincoln is always walking around in the background. At first I thought Casey Wilson singing the Carpenters was going to be a reference to the movie Parenthood. This ended up being a showcase of the current female cast members' singing abilities. I still don't have any strong opinions on any of the newer cast members.

McGruber Commercial 3.
I was convinced that this one was going to be lame but then I laughed at the end line.

Jason Mraz.
This song sounded like Israel Kamakawiwo'ole cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" that they always play on New Years after the ball falls in Times Square. Not really my cup of tea, and yet it went down easy enough.

Weekend Update
Not a great impersonation of Rod Blagojevich by Jason Sudeikis (the accent was totally off), but he was still kind of funny and you can't go wrong with Brushy.

Abby Elliott was surprisingly great as Angelina Jolie looking for babies. I guess I have more of an opinion about her now!

After all the controversy last time, I can’t believe they had the balls to bring back Fred Armisen as Governor Patterson again. It's pretty amazing how unafraid of being offensive they are! Feels almost like a throwback to the original years.

ASIDE: I wasn't sure how to spell "Blagojevich," so I clicked on CNN and there he was talking to Larry King.

Husband and Wife.
I give Kristen Wiig credit for trying out so many new characters, but between this and Gilly, she's been crashing and burning lately. Steve Martin seemed like he had no idea what to do, where to stand, or what cue cards to read.

I flipped the channels during the commercial and The Swell Season (with the rest of the Frames as back up!) were performing on Austin City Limits (PBS) so I watched that instead of the last part of SNL. Sorry, but they are one of my most favorite bands! As Glen Hansard would say, "Fookin' brilliant!"

Saturday Night Live January 17th, 2009

2009-01-17T22:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 17th, 2009
Host: Rosario Dawson
Musical Guest: Fleet Foxes

Cold Open.
Diane Sawyer interviews Vice President Dick Cheney.
One joke repeated for four minutes. I REGRET sitting through it.

Monologue.
Featuring the return of Fred Armisen's stereotype of Latin comedy. I'm not sure if I'd say I MISSED him, but it made me laugh with a mild sense of nostalgia.

North American Savings.
Not exactly hilarious, but completely accurate.

Da Learning Train.
It's a bit sad how SNL's rap culture is eternally stuck in the early 90's (except for the Kanye West glasses on the DJ). But I guess that's part of the point? Giant clock necklaces and Fresh Prince video backdrops aside, this sketch ended up being kind of okay.

Guantanamo Bay Commercial.
This sketch was all the in execution. On paper another going out of business commercial parody would have seemed pretty lame, but they managed to pull it off. Lots of great delivery and visual gags. I need some C-C-Car Batteries.

Aladdin and Jasmine.
Wow. This was like the ultimate Disney fanfic. Obviously written by someone really familiar with the movie. Lots of great lines and jabs at Robin Williams.
"I wish I was dead. But I already used all my wishes."
Probably the highlight of the episode.

Digital Short.
This sketched reeked of Will Forte's overconfident singing/songwriting before he even showed up on screen. Not even his bare ass could save this one.

Gilly.
Started off as another sketch with Will Forte's creepy mustache, then segued into an even creepier new character from Kristen Wiig. She's sort of a live action hybrid of comic strip characters Nancy and Dennis the Menace. She causes trouble, makes shifty eyes, and only says one-word responses. I found this sketch utterly painful and thought it broke Kristen Wiig's winning character creation streak.

Musical Guest: The Fleet Foxes.
I like the Fleet Foxes. They sound like they could have been on the soundtrack to The Last Unicorn This is the first band that's played on SNL all year whose album I actually own (or at least my wife does!). Great harmonies and old-timey Renaissance Faire rhythms. Beards ahoy!

Weekend Update.
Fred Armisen was good as Bernie Madoff. I'm not sure how the teleprompter can keep up with Kristen Wiig's Julie Grimes character. I loved Seth Meyer's questioning of Larry the Goose's pop culture references.

La Policia.
It took me a few seconds to get it. But it was cute.
Random thought I had while watching: Why is Bill Hader with a mustache much funnier thanWill Forte?

The View.
I'm not sure why I love SNL's take on The View, but it seems to hit all the right notes. The impersonations are heightened enough that they get more mileage compared to many of the other celebrity parody setups. It is almost enough to distract from the fact that they didn't have a point to this sketch.

Good Excuse.
Sometimes they save the most creative and original sketches for the end. This is not one of those nights The sketch had an okay premise, but the characters created by Will Forte and Kristen Wiig just seemed pointlessly weird and out of place. The only inspired part was the cut away to the cats in the audience.

GREAT CLIP:

Saturday Night Live, January 10th, 2009

2009-01-10T22:09:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
January 10th, 2009
Host: Neil Patrick Harris
Musical Guest: Taylor Swift

First off: Thanks to my wife, Raina for blogging the last few episodes before the break!
Sadly I missed the first two sketches of this week's episode too. I was watching the end of the Carey Grant movie "His Girl Friday," which was too hilarious not to finish up!

Broadway meeting.
A few years ago it seemed like every week SNL would do a sketch that was just an excuse to show off the cast's celebrity impressions. This was like that except with Broadway characters. It's just about the viewer going, "Wow, he looks just like that guy!" Or "She sounds exactly the same as her!" But if you are a hardcore fan of Broadway shows, I'm sure this sketch would have been AMAZING. As a moderate fan I'd say it was cute.

Penelope the Bragger in group therapy.
I'm sure at some point I'll get tired of this reoccurring character, but it hasn't happened yet.
Kristen Wiig manages to get a lot of mileage and genuine laughs. Showing up at the door as the girl was trying to leave was my favorite moment. "I'm having a panic attack, too." That, and having Liza Minelli show up with their friend the tomato.

Doogie Howser M.D. Orchestra
Another sketch I'd summarize as cute. I'm sure a lot of people who grew up watching the Doogie Howser Show will be sharing the clip on Youtube from here till eternity. I did grow up watching the show, but don't really have any nostalgia for it, ironic or otherwise. But I liked that the cast for the most part played it straight--or pretended like they were having fun and smiling. Neil Patrick Harris' lone tear at the end helped the endeavor.

Taylor Swift.
Another musical guest I've never heard of, so I'll assume she's from American Idol.
She gets 10 points for playing an instrument. Sorta like Jewel-light, with hints of Scarlet Johansson.

Weekend Update.
Another song from Will Forte. When will he realize he's not Adam Sandler? They're okay sometimes. But, only SOMETIMES. This was not one of those times. But I did like him asking if we could switch over to HBO for a sec so he could curse. Also bee jokes are usually good.

A repeat of the SNL presidential bash on Sunday? At 9PM prime time? Is NBC that desperate? Do they really expect the ratings to be that good? Who hasn't seen those sketches by this point?

Two First Names.
I'm glad someone had to produce a song parody of Destiny's Child's "Say My Name."
This sketch was another example of the cast just showing off their celebrity impersonations just for one quick gag or word ("yogurt"). Most of the impressions were good (as they often are), so I'm not really knocking them--just the format. The ad for Kangols hats with Billy Bob Thorton and Joey Pants was greatness.

This Push movie looks like it has Airbending in it.

Two Ladies with long nails.
At first this reminded me of the Kids in the Hall Cathy/Kathie sketches, in part because of the drag aspect, but also just in the catty nature of Kristen Wiig and Neil Patrick Harris' characterizations. But once it started to focus more on doing things with long nails, it became more about the visual comedy. And there was something surreal about how the two of them kept doing parallel actions. So even though it never really got any big laughs there was an ambitious approach to whatever it was they were trying to do!

Frost/Other People.
Another series of random impressions. By this point in the episode it was feeling pretty sad.

Whopper Virgins
Parody of Burger King commercials I haven't seen but someone told me about. Seemed kind of funny. I'm kind of sickened by the idea of the original commercials, though. I like that McDonald's was okay with paying to advertise on an episode that basically gave free ad time to Burger King.

December 13, 2008

2008-12-13T21:51:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
December 13, 2008
Host: Hugh Laurie
Musical Guest: Kanye West

Dave's wife Raina here, guest-blogging again while Dave is away on family business. Sorry we missed updating last week; we were actually out on a Saturday night. I know, weird. But we caught a lot of the sketches online.

Cold Open.
I missed it.

Monologue.
Christmas songs medley! Should've been longer.

Bronx Beat.
So, are Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolf officially on the show again? Or is that the joke? I always enjoy this sketch--New Yorker ladies never fail to crack me up. They do no have ladies like this where I am from. Hugh Laurie is a funny foil to their characters.

Christmas Dinner.
This sketch didn't really have a point, but I feel like I've been to a few too many dinners like this one. "It was your tone."

Culhane Wedding Speeches.
Wow, Fred Armisen pulls off the 90s burnout look pretty well. I shouldn't be laughing at Kristen Wiig's character, but I AM. Will Forte looks like Owen Wilson in that wig and glasses. And, come on, give those new girls something to do or say that's longer than a single line or an annoyed look.

Kanye, Act 1.
Everything he does I am judging against Stephen Colbert, of course. He looks like Lionel Richie meets Michael Jackson in this outfit--I'm guessing this is intentional? His singing during the verses is kinda flat but the song is okay, and the snowstorm setpiece is neat.

Weekend Update.
Oh lord Fred Armisen looks WAY too much like Governor Patterson. Ha ha ha! Aw, Amy Poehler! Tearing up while saying good-bye…and Armisen keeps walking into frame. Hehe.

Lamp Store Musical.
Ridiculous enough from the outset that I like this sketch just fine. Less funny past the 'dark' twist, but I'm still impressed they made those costumes.

Christmas Letter from a Dead Cat.
Cat Ladies are crazy? Hugh Laurie looks like he doesn't actually know how to type.

Layoffs Meeting.
Oh look, it's Kenan Thompson. He should be on this show more.

Kanye, Act 2.
Setpiece projection: iPod Ad, Plus.

November 22, 2008

2008-11-22T22:07:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live
November 22, 2008
Host: Tim McGraw
Musical Guest: Ludacris & T-Pain

Hi, this is Dave's wife Raina, guest-blogging for the evening. I've been watching SNL pretty consistently since about 1993, when Kevin Nealon was hosting Weekend Update, and Wayne's World was in its heyday.

Cold Open.
Financial bailout meeting. Maybe this is TOO timely--I'm not finding it especially funny.

Opening Credits.
I don't know much about country music, but Tim McGraw is driving home the ol' cowboy hat stereotype. I'm surprised his quick song was as sincere as it was--maybe now that Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are gone from the show, there's no one to write wacky dancing ladies into the guest's opener.

Clear Rite.
A dental sketch! Yay! Kristen Wiig does affected characters well. I know how her character feels. Whoa, and one of the new girls is in this sketch. I still have no idea if she is funny or not, after 20 seconds of screentime.

Dateline: Real-Life Crimes.
I'm not even sure who Bill Hader is impersonating, but it's funny.

Turkey Escape.
I was hoping for a Sarah Palin turkey-pardoning parody, but no dice. Actually, the real thing was parody enough.

(Real actual commercial.)
Tim McGraw has an actual cologne! I'm guessing it smells like cowboy hat.

James Bond.
We were just watching Dr. No last night, and we watched Casino Royale last week, and I was pondering whether they always play cards in JB movies. Verdict: I guess so. Bill Hader plays the part surprisingly well. Throwing a redneck with a camera phone into the mix is mildly amusing.

Musical Guest.
Aw, classy to advertise the release date of your album before you start rapping! At least he introduced T-Pain. The chorus is very 1992; I'm digging it.

Weekend Update.
For a split second whenever Daryl Hammond does his Bill Clinton impression, I have to check whether it's actually Bill Clinton or not. That's how ubiquitous it's become. New girl's Ariana Huffington impression: not bad. Remember Zell Miller? Didn't Will Forte used to impersonate him and go red in the face? It was more enjoyable when Zell Miller was actually newsworthy. Vote Clementine Dimpleflibby!

Ludacris Recording Session.
Dave asks, "Didn't they already do this? With Ludacris?" Ludacris and T-Pain need to be in more sketches, they're pretty great.

(Dave likes to flip channels during commercials, which only confirms to me that there is NEVER ANYTHING ELSE good on TV on Saturday nights.)

Sex offender/mental escapee goes to Thanksgiving dinner.
Oh, Will Forte. Sadly a sex offender character plays to his strengths. Dave says, "I'm glad YOU'RE blogging."

Prank Phone Calls on CD.
This one's an eye-roller. I guess Southerners are funny?

Musical Guest Round 2.
Weird Tron statue women dancing. Their metallic hair is freaking me out. I'm not even paying attention to the song.

Uno Pizzeria Bartender.
Oh boy, Dave's FAVORITE character is back. The Peppa-Up-In-Heah character made Dave cringe immediately upon the season opener, and yet somehow it's gotten funnier after marinating for a couple months. Oh, life.

Closing Credits.
No cowboy hat!

Saturday Night Live, November 15, 2008

2008-11-15T22:08:00.000-08:00

Saturday Night Live.
November 15, 2008
Host: Paul Rudd
Musical Guest: Beyonce

Cold Open.
It probably would have been funnier if they got the real Joe Biden to come out and say almost the exact same stuff. As it was: it felt more true than funny.

Opening Credits.
Included two new 'featuring' players who were barely used this episode. I didn't get a chance to write their names down and they don't seem to have bios on the SNL site just yet.

Commercial Parody: Sproingo.
I liked it! A perfect compliment to the Boner Juice commercial from a few years back.

Volgechecks.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone in Baseketball was the first time I remember two guys making out on camera for the sake of comedy. It's been quite a few years since then, but I still appreciate comedians who aren't afraid to lock lips for laughs. Paul Rudd always seems game for anything and made for a great SNL host overall.

Scared Straight Sketch TAKE 2.
I don't remember if all of Kenan's examples were movie references last time he did this character. I think I laughed at least once last time, this version not so much. Nothing against Teen Wolf or Bill and Ted references!

Digital Short: Paul Rudd and Andy Samberg painting each other.
A good example of taking a silly premise and pushing it as far as possible. The ending could have been a cop-out but they went the extra mile and threw in as many gags as possible. Great job!

Slow-Moving Country Song.
Singing about a package delivery to an apartment is funnier in concept than execution, but I found the bit mildly amusing. I'm easily sold on musical sketches and the cutting over to reaction shots from Will Forte was nice touch.

Road Trip version of the re-occurring sketch where dudes sit around and tell messed up stories and then sing the chorus to songs.
This sketch always feels like a weak version of one of the oldest Kids in The Hall sketches. The addition of the moving landscape over the usual bar setting was an improvement…but not by much.

Musical Guest.
Beyonce gets angry. I wasn't into her new song, but I think Beyonce is a better singer and performer than any other female singer who has been on SNL this season.

Weekend Update.
Isn't it time to take Amy Poehler out of the credit sequence? Is it a contractual obligation to keep it for the rest of the season?
I was thinking "does anyone even remember Snagglepuss?" and then my wife asked, "was that a real character?" I guess she didn't grow up on Hanna Barbera cartoons like me. I give them points for superimposing a miniature Great Gazoo. My favorite quote: "Barbara Walters is easily fascinated." Why Justin Timberlake? Thanks for randomly coming out to make fun of SNL's most predictable aspects. I smiled at his impersonation of Fred Armisen's Nicholas Fehn character though.

Beyonce video shoot.
From the line "We're warmed up like biscuits," I was sold. This sketch was pretty much perfect from start to finish and had the biggest laughs of the episode. It even had a funny ending. Justin Timberlake earned his keep, and Bobby Moynihan gave his best performance to date. And it wasn't JUST seeing guys dancing around in leotards; there was actually some good lines and delivery too. Even Beyonce had some good moments. Was the woman with the slate one of the new featured players or just a random extra?

Jumper.
Having Will Forte repeat the word "don't" through a megaphone until people get annoyed doesn't seem like a great way to make people laugh.

Musical Guest.
I assume Beyonce was just performing to a lip-synched chorus and was singing the rest?
Those outfits sure were something.

Prop 8 commentary.
Could have been a typical "gay joke" sketch but ended up being pretty cute thanks to the fun performances by Paul Rudd and Bill Hader and the almost sincere ending.

A Short Film.
Repetitive words. No No No No. Yes. Yes. Yes. Lots of editing and zooms.
I'm impressed that they convinced someone to film something so pointless.

Closing.
Nice of the cast members to point at the two new girls who barely appeared on screen the whole episode.

Saturday Night Live November 1st 2008

2008-11-01T22:06:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live
November 1st, 2008
Host: Ben Affleck
Musical Guest: David Cook.

Kind of a low-key episode with some solid moments.

Cold Open.
I always enjoyed John McCain's many appearances on SNL, and thought he was a great host (loved the McCain Sings CD ad). He's a natural comedian and it's the context in which I like him best. The QVC follow-up to Obama's paid programming was an inspired idea and well executed. Creepy cameo by Cindy McCain modeling McCain's Fine Gold (cute pun).

Commercial.
They FINALLY show a commercial parody after the monologue and it's a repeat from earlier in the season? They really need to make some new fake commercials!! And bring back TV Funhouse!

The View.
An okay sketch made great by really funny impersonations by all the players. Kenan's Whoopi stare is priceless.

Countdown with Keith Olbermann.
Keith used to be a pretty tongue-in-cheek personality, who I equated with John Stewart and Stephen Colbert. But considering how intense and over the top he's gotten lately, he's pretty ripe for parody. Because as much as I agree with a lot of his politics, he's been hard to watch go off the handle on a daily basis. I imagine Ben Affleck and Keith Olbermann are on good terms and Keith won't lose too much sleep over the parody. It reveals how much political TV I watch, that I mostly appreciated Fred Armisen's imitation of Newsweek's Richard Wolf.

[I can't believe I just saw a commercial for the notoriously delayed Guns n' Roses album, Chinese Democracy. Is it a sign of the apocalypse? ]

Return of the Target Lady.
For a second, I thought Ben Affleck was reprising Bobby Moynihan's Pepper Sketch character. It was kind of creepy. I like the Target Lady's reaction to having a day off, "They make me take one!"

Staten Island Zoo.
The Giraffe with a forked tongue made the video worthwhile. I forget what animal they did a similar video for last time.

David Cook.
SNL makes it darn near impossible not to say something snarky about their musical guests lately. I kind of feel bad about being out of touch and not knowing who they are…and yet I can't imagine ever sitting through them again.

Weekend Update.
It's felt weird not to have a co-host for Seth Meyers, until I remember that Weekend Update only had one host for years and years! But for some reason Seth comes across as nervous and unsure without Amy there. I’m glad John McCain came back to show off his new campaign strategy, "The Sad Grandpa."

I started rolling my eyes at Will Forte and Fred Armisen doing another one of their stupid songs. But this one was better than most.

She used to annoy me, but much to my own surprise, Kristen Wiig's reoccurring Aunt Linda is actually starting to grow on me.

Night School Musical.
A decent idea that just barely came together. I liked Andy Samberg needing a time out and Bill Hader's narration. Always nice of Darrel Hammond to make a cameo on his own show.

Disney Pitch Meeting.
A solid character showpiece for Bill Hader. I liked it.

Times Square Coat.
Another funny idea, that wasn't all that funny to watch. I liked the idea of the coat turning into a tent. Two guys screaming at the screen with Austrian accents gave the sketch echoes of Hanz and Franz.

Credits.
Tina Fey looked awkward around Cindy McCain. I was sad Obama didn't do a last minute surprise cameo.

Saturday Night Live October 25th, 2008

2008-10-25T22:04:00.001-07:00

Saturday Night Live, October 25th, 2008
Host: Jon Hamm
Musical Guest: Coldplay

I found this to be the least consistent episode since this season's premier.

Joe Biden and John Murtha on the stump.
The weakest of all the political sketches they've done so far this year. It felt like they used up all their good ideas on this week's Weekend Update Thursday. Nothing said in this sketch is as crazy as what was said by the real people involved and not enough of a twist was added. The whole thing just felt awkward.

No Commercial Parody.
So I'm complaining about it.

Sex Offender for Halloween.
Will Forte tries out a new character, what? It's surprising how little it takes for Will Forte to come across as creepy. I'm not sure why the sex offender had a catch phrase, but for the most part the sketch had some good laughs.

Andy Samberg as a Rasta guy.
It was definitely something. I don't know if it was funny…but it was definitely something. On a personal note, Andy Samberg looked like my hippie cousin Dan. So extra points on that personal note.

Mad Men 2/A-holes Crossover.
I was nervous at first because I still haven't watched Mad Men. Then I was nervous because the return of the two A-hole characters did nothing for me. I certainly enjoyed their first two appearances but now it feels like they're stretching the schtick way too thin.

Obama Variety Hour.
It was nice to see Maya Rudolf back on the show, even if her impersonation of Michelle Obama didn't seem that accurate or funny. Some cute moments like Bill Clinton singing "Don't You Forget About Me" and Reverend Wright and Bill Ayers performing together. Also a better use of Jason Sudekis as Joe Biden with the foot in mouth gag.

Another Mad Men parody.
This sketch definitely worked better, even without any knowledge of the show. "Blow people away any time you say anything" is great advice.

Coldplay song 1.
Did Chris Martin always dance around like the guy from Midnight Oil? Their current rock outfits with mismatched armbands and toast patches look like fashion school rejects. Especially since they follow in the footsteps of My Chemical Romance's marching band jackets (a la Sgt. Pepper) which made more sense for them, since their album was called the Black Parade.

Weekend Update.
Seth Meyers hosts alone because Amy Poehler is having her baby. Congrats! I'm impressed she made it this far into the season. I wonder if there's time to make a Robo-call costume for Halloween? Bill Hader does a great Ralph Nader, and sock puppets are always comedy gold. My admiration for Fred Armisen's Nicolas Fehn political comedian continues to grow. I can't believe he can still get mileage out of saying so much nothing time after time.
Kenan can really sing! A surprisingly sincere end note as he and Maya Rudolf sing a sweet love song to Amy and her baby. Very appropriate since Maya herself was pregnant on the show for quite a while before finally taking a leave.

Vincent Price Halloween Special.
A friend of mine pointed out how little Bill Hader's impersonation actually sounds like Vincent Price, so I spent most of the sketch focusing on it and eventually agreeing it's too nasal. And yet, I want to like this re-occurring sketch for some reason…even though it doesn't do much for me.

Jon Hamm's John Ham.
Inspired. Further proof that SNL's best bits are often further into the show.

Coldplay song 2.
I liked their second song better.

Finger in Butts.
Um. Sure.

Coldplay song 3.
It's been a long time since a band has gotten to play a 3rd song. I guess Coldplay is the biggest band that's been on the show for a while? "Yellow" still holds up as one of their better songs. Barack Obama!

CLIP:

SNL Weekend Update Thursday October 23rd, 2008

2008-10-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

SNL Weekend Update Thursday
October 23rd, 2008

Opening Debate Sketch.
I'm not sure why, but I was hoping that Will Ferrell would come back and play George W. Bush for old time's sake. Seeing it happen is sorta like comfort food to this longtime SNL fan. And as a bonus, it frees Jason Sudeikis up to play Todd Palin again. He just has to let the goatee do the talking and it cracks me up. Now if they could just have Dana Carvey come back and play George Bush Sr., I'd be a happy camper. The sketch felt a bit more partisan than any of the openers so far, and considering how close the election is getting, that's FINE BY ME. Great timing since a lot of the news today focused on McCain trying to distance himself from W.

Weekend Update part 1.
Fred Armisen's interactive electoral map reminded me of a Daily Show bit, but it won me over by the time he moved Oregon so it was surrounded by water (dangerous). My favorite joke was about Madonna's adopted child heading off to Baby Yoga, but I don't know if it was smart to end on a retread of Kenan Thompson's "fix it" financial expert. It was cute the first time, but not strong enough to milk again without something good to follow it up.

Weekend Update part 2.
Andy threw up on Jorma! It's always nice to see cameos by the writing staff.

It's lame that Amy and Seth say that they'll be right back just so we are forced to watch commercials until they return to say the show is over (I guess a lot of other shows do that, too these days--but I don't notice it as much). I guess it's worth it to see Tina and Will be silly on the set pieces.

And what's this about an SNL Presidential Bash on November 3rd?

CLIP:

Saturday Night Live October 4th, 2008

2008-10-18T22:03:00.000-07:00

Saturday Night Live October 18th, 2008
Host: Josh Brolin
Musical Guest: Adele

Opening.
Even when their "surprise events" are highly publicized beforehand, SNL still manages to live up to the anticipation. It's been exciting to see the show become so relevant again not only in pop culture, but the world at large. I guess the trade-off for Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin is they get to plug 30 Rock, which will hopefully benefit from all the exposure (since Emmys don't seem to help ratings).

McGruber.
When all eyes are on SNL, why do they always choose to do more McGruber sketches?
I spend too much time wondering how long ago McGuyver was even on TV.

Easily Excited Woman.
More solid character acting from Kristen Wiig. The sketch wasn't as funny as I wanted it to be, but it certainly made me laugh, so it's hard to complain.

Suze Orman show.
I actually learned about Suze Orman through Kristen Wiig's impersonation last year. So now whenever I see her on TV (which, as they accurately mentioned, is ALL THE TIME) I laugh and have a hard time believe she's a real person.

Mark Walberg redeems himself.
After his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel this week, I hoped that Mark Walberg was setting up a joke appearance on SNL. It was either that or the guy had no sense of humor at all. I was glad to be proven wrong. Another great cameo and I'm glad they mentioned Josh Brolin was in Goonies. Because any Goonies reference is a good one.

I'm No Angel.
Josh Brolin with a mustache looking into the camera and saying "perfect" = my new favorite thing ever.

Musical Guest: Adele.
I guess it really is a trend right now for female singers to sound like they are from the 1920s. With husky, sultry singing of non-memorable songs. Between Duffy, Lily Allen, and whoever sang the song in the Chevy commercial that followed the performance…I have a hard time telling the Amy Whinehouse wannabes apart. Adele's no Tracy Turnblad.

Weekend Update.
I thought they missed a good opportunity to have Sarah Palin play Tina Fey and co-host the beginning of Weekend Update as a nod to the old lineup. But I figured the less Sarah Palin the better...until she came back. It would have made me sad, if not for the excuse to see a pregnant Amy Poehler rap. Holy crap, why are SNL cast members (and Natalie Portman) gangsta rapping on SNL always so good? This thing is going to be all over the internets, for sure.

The first time Will Forte played Tim Calhoun I thought it was a slow build but eventually funny (I still laugh when I think of his Chinababy). That said, I would happily sign a petition to make sure he never shows up ever again. Jean K. Jean is Kenan Thompson's most high concept character and it never ceases to amaze me. Just thinking of Kenan reading up on French culture to write the material cracks me up.

Fartface.
I don't even know what to think about this sketch. Some sketches tend to get funnier to me after I digest them for a while, but I'm not so sure this one ever will.

Narc School.
Great idea. Even if 21 Jump Street is as old as McGuyver. Nice of Darrel Hammond to make a single appearance this episode.

Reditrade.
Timely satire of stock trading commercials. I like how they whispered "sell drugs."

Interesting and well-filmed set up for a pointless musical performance by Fred Armisen. I would have rather seen "Sciencefinger."

Fall Foliage.
Sure were a lot of sketches about businessmen in this episode. Wasn't sure if this sketch was going to save itself from its one-note, but Kenan's "Oh he was nice about it" was another one of the best-delivered lines of the evening.

Closing thought
I'm surprised the SNL site didn't have some official clips up IMMEDIATELY afterwards considering the Sarah Pain stuff is probably already viral the minute it aired.

EDIT: Looks like as of Sunday 1L09 AM it's on some of the political sites:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/18/sarah-palin-on-snl-with-t_n_135887.html

-there was a great response in the comment section:

Sardonica says:
"Oh my god - that weekend update sketch is unbelieveable. The VP candidate for the REPUBLICAN PARTY was sitting and nodding her head to a pregnant Amy Poehler rapping in front of eskimos and shooting at a guy in a moose costume. I am glad I did not watch this while high."

CLIPS:

SNL Weekend Update Thursday October 9th, 2008

2008-10-16T19:23:00.000-07:00

October 16th, 2008

Opening Debate Sketch.
It's a little strange that Chris Parnel came back again to play a different presidential debate moderator. I worried for a second that they were repeating the same sketch from last week. I very much enjoyed the business about the notorious Joe the Plumber being John McCain's imaginary friend. It was just the right amount of silly and timely.

Weekend Update part 1.
Weekend Update felt consistently stronger than it has in the past few weeks. We liked it!
Especially the video games vs. MRI gag, and the bit about pumpkin racing.
The highlight of course was Kristen Wiig as the crazy woman from the McCain rally. I hope Obama DOES change the White House to a pyramid.

Weekend Update part 2.
So short of a segment, it almost felt pointless. Although, I liked the gag about the follow-up question as to whether or not people would vote for a black president.

I’m glad there's a new episode of the full show this week.

CLIPS:

SNL Weekend Update Thursday October 9th, 2008

2008-10-09T22:04:00.000-07:00

Opening Debate Sketch.
Not as funny as the previous debate sketches, but hard to complain when there's a Bill Murray cameo--and hey, it's new content mid-week! McCain pacing about in the background and calling the audience members by their wrong names were nice attentions to detail (if you watched the debate, of course!)

Weekend Update.
Two segments that made up the rest of the half hour special. Sadly, not a lot of memorable bits, especially compared to your average episode of the Daily Show and Colbert Report. The "Really?" bit might be funnier to people watching SNL for the first time in a while.
But I did like the "Oh, my god are you serious" twist.

Will Forte and Fred Armisen performing their Hall and Oates political song was the highlight of the evening for me. Especially Fred Armisen. "Okay, I'm back, you convinced me!"

CLIPS:

Saturday Night Live October 4th, 2008

2008-10-06T16:44:00.000-07:00

SNL Season 34, Episode 4
Host: Anne Hathaway
Musical Guest: The Killers

A consistently enjoyable episode with some of the most memorable bits so far this season.

Opening: Vice Presidential Debate.
This wasn't just good…it was CATHARTIC. Queen Latifah was a delightful surprise as moderator, Gwen Ifill. I loved her shilling for her new book and her large-eyed silent reactions to Tina Fey as Sarah Palin. Jason Sudeikis' Joe Biden still isn't a great impersonation but I liked the running gag about how he'd take a bullet for John McCain. Both VP candidates closing remarks were enjoyable as well, as was almost everything about this sketch. It was exactly the kind of spot-on commentary that helps me stay sane in this crazy world.

Monologue.
Predictable yet unavoidable parody of Anne Hathaway's embarrassing relationship with a con artist.

Lawrence Welk Show.
Kristen Wiig filling Rachel Dratch's role of pushing the limits of how gross and unattractive they can portray themselves. The bit seemed mean-spirited, since there wasn't any point beyond laughing at people with birth defects--which never really leaves you feeling great.

Economic Bailout Sketch.
Perfect impersonations of Nancy Pelosi by Kristen Wiig, and Barney Frank by Fred Armisen. Is this the first time Jason Sudeikis has played George Bush instead of Will Forte? It was a good trade-off, as I liked Forte as the billionaire left in charge of the economy.

Weekend Update.
Nothing too memorable this week, but I always enjoy Amy Poehler laughing at her own jokes.

Digital Short.
Almost pointless and yet COMPLETELY enjoyable series of silly competitions in a Monty Python-meets-Wes Anderson style. Add 2 points if you are fan of Kristen Wiig and Awesometown--which, I am!

Mary Poppins.
It's fun to see Anne Hathaway parody the role made famous by her Princess Diaries co-star, Julie Andrews. And Bill Hader was a perfect Dick Van Dyke. The sketch wasn't all that clever but the great performances made it memorable.

Mark Wahlberg talks to Animals.
Despite the obvious overtones to Tracy Morgan as Brian Fellows, you can't help but laugh at Andy Samberg's take on the Mark Wahlberg persona. Say hello to your mom, indeed!
I imagine they'll do a variation of this bit in weeks to come--so hopefully Samberg can find a creative twist to build off of.

Gay Best Friend.
It's nice to see yet another tightly written, traditional-style sketch on SNL, following up last week's Beer Garden/Ex-Boyfriend scene.

The less Provocative Songs Of Katy Perry (I Kissed a Girl parody).
This was the funniest thing I've seen from featured player, Casey Wilson so far. I haven't even heard the original Katy Perry song, but all her variations on it were hilarious. My wife and friend who saw it with us have been singing, "I held a cat" and "I saw a boat" ever since. A masterstroke of randomness, closing out a very enjoyable episode. In fact, this week was the first time in a while where I've noticed people talking about sketches beyond the political parodies, so hats off the writers and cast for one of the most balanced episodes in a long time! I'm very much looking forward to Thursday's special episode.

CLIPS:

Saturday Night Live: September 27th, 2008

2008-09-27T22:08:00.000-07:00

SNL Season 34, Episode 3
Host: Anna Farris
Musical Guest: Duffy

Opening.
More Tina Fey = more YAY! And she is more "adorable!" Still, I hope people don't elect McCain president because they like seeing Sarah Palin sketches. Tina has her own show to work on!

Monologue.
I don't know if I've seen Anna Farris before except in commercials for the House Bunny.
She reminds me of Britney Spears crossed with Courtney Love.

Driving Home.
Best ending to a pointless sketch ever! I also liked the line about suicide puns.

Debate.
It took me about a minute before I remembered Chris Parnel is no longer on SNL!I like that he KEEPS coming back though!
I was glad they did a bit about last night's debate because it shows that SNL can still write a sketch in less than 14 hours. If you watched the event it was a pretty good parody of it, and I liked the running gag about McCain trying to come up with alternatives to debating. And it was good they threw in some jabs at Obama to avoid seeming too biased. Fred Armisen’s impersonation is getting a lot better.

Lake Singing.
Gossip Girl, she's always gossiping! This was a super cute sketch and that would have been FUNNY ENOUGH but the singing took it over the edge to ACTUALLY FUNNY! Great lyrics and perfect delivery. I could actually watch this one again! It kind of reminded me of the Tracy Morgan homeless guy sketch with Britney Spears. Hope that doesn’t make me racist!

Musical Guest: Seemed like Amy Winehouse without the catchy hooks. When I squinted my eyes I thought I was watching Charo. I don't enjoy being snarky about musicians I've never heard of, but I wasn't impressed.

Weekend Update.
A pretty great Weekend Update overall. Darrel Hammond as Bill Clinton is always enjoyable and this week, extremely relevant. It built off Chris Rock's material in two completely different ways. I can already see this clip showing up on a lot of political pundit shows. I love Kristen Wiig, but I think her Judy Grimes character freaks me out.

Scores.
Moderately funny sketch, but I found all the obvious reading of teleprompters distracting.

Deep House Dish.
This is one my favorite Kenan Thompson re-occurring sketches. I just wish the performer's songs were longer. “GRRL PLEASE” is my new favorite song ever. Goodness throughout.

Slightly stained wedding dresses.
PVC pipe is comedy gold. And in SNL tradition, they found another way to sort of curse and not get censored. By this sketch I felt like I was okay with Anna Farris and will look forward to seeing more from her.

Beer Garden
Astoria Represent!
I thought this was a great sketch that most everyone can relate to it on some level with a great visual gag as its climax. A genuine laugh-out-loud moment to end a completely solid episode.

Closing thought: With this episode it feels like the SNL cast and writers are finally hitting their groove. But no commercial parodies or Digital Short? Are they still doing TV funhouse?

SNL HIGHLIGHT CLIPS:

SNL: September 20th, 2008

2008-09-20T22:09:00.000-07:00

SNL Season 34, Episode 2
September 20th, 2009
Host: James Franco
Musical Guest: Kings of Leon

This episode certainly felt better than last week's. Not many laugh out loud moments, but nothing really made me cringe so that’s always a huge plus!

Opening.
A subtle satire on negative campaign ads. It mostly worked thanks to Bill Hader as the announcer with the most sarcastic voice. The examples of commercials didn't feel too far off from the truth but they were still funny!

Monologue.
James Franco was on Freaks and Geeks, therefore he is awesome forever. I'm easily amused by his stoner smile and delivery. Although, I never noticed how much he's got that squinty eye thing like French Stewart. Go K-Wo!

The Cougar Den.
Glad they didn't cut commercials. I can't remember how many times they've done these characters, or how many sketches there are of TV shows where Kenan plays the straight person off camera. Okay sketch, with a sort of random Cameron Diaz cameo. Mmm, shapewear. James Franco makes a good Chris Gaines and I liked his saggy boobies gesture.

Agent 420.
What if James Bond was replaced by a stoner? Wouldn't that be hilarious? If high school students conceived this sketch 20 years ago, I wouldn't be surprised. Somehow James Franco managed to come across unnatural as a stoner. How is that possible?

OJ Jury Selection.
A much better performance from James Franco in this one. Him screaming "Wait, am I…?" cracked me up. Kristen Wiig made me laugh from the moment she was on screen (not really a surprise). The rest kind of petered out, but it was an okay premise, and they didn't drag it out, thankfully.

Digital Short.
Pretty low-key short with not much content to discuss. But I appreciated the serious tone and it made me laugh at least once.
Not sure if I got the 'man voice' from the Gossip Girl.

The Looker.
I love that Fred Armisen didn't say anything till the end of the sketch. Just total deadpan Penny Marshall performed with subtle brilliance.

Musical Guest.
I don't think I've ever heard Kings of Leon before. I already can't remember what they sound like…but I think I liked their second song better.

Weekend Update.
Wearing a barrel--how old-timey! Rosie Perez as Dora was great--and ironic since she does a voice on the spinoff show, Go Diego Go. I've never seen him but my wife claims Fred Armisen's portrayal of the American Apparel owner is very accurate. It kind of reminded me of a funny Will Ferrell sketch.
I wonder who's going to replace Amy as anchor in November? I hope it's Kristen Wiig!

New York Times.
Not exactly an unfunny sketch, but it didn't make me laugh so I was disappointed. I'm sure the folks at Fox News will love to see the liberal media making fun of the liberal media. Polar bears don't seem to be as funny as regular bears.

Of Mice and Men.
I spent the first part of this sketch wondering how many variations/parodies of this book SNL has done and how they shouldn't try top the John Malkovich episode. I'm not sure I really understand what they were going for but by the end I was reflecting on the "do you smell the Peppa up in here?" bit from last week.

Yankee Stadium Stories.
Cute, throwaway video featuring the second Rosie Perez of the evening (more convincing when it's just a vocal impression). Fred Armisen does a good Scorsese. This ended up being a good showcase episode for him, overall.

Bill Hader vs. Andy Samberg, Round 2.
This sketch was super silly and I liked it a lot. Bill Hader is dead on as Willem Dafoe and I like when he makes fun of Andy Samberg (which was sort of a retread of their first Weekend Update appearance). Everything about the scene worked for me. A good note to end on. But I can't get used to the fact that Showtime at the Apollo doesn't follow SNL anymore!

SNL: September 13, 2008

2008-09-15T10:10:00.000-07:00

SNL Season 34, Episode 1.
September 13, 2008
Host: Michael Phelps
Musical Guest: Lil’ Wayne

OPENING: After weeks of cracking out on political coverage, I was really excited about the season premiere of SNL. And like many others, I had my fingers crossed that Tina Fey would do a cameo as Sarah Palin—and ideally face off against Amy Poehler as Hillary Clinton. Much to my delight, the opening sketch was EXACTLY what I wanted to see. Fey’s delivery was spot on (love the accent!) and there were lots of great gags.
Palin: Can you believe it, Hillary?
Hillary: I CANNOT!
Hillary: I probably should have wanted it more.

I really WANT Tina Fey to come back for more!

MONOLOGUE: I usually don’t pay close attention to monologues and don’t expect much from the guest, except for them to not come across as a jerk (see Ashton Kutcher’s recent monologue). Michael Phelps certainly passed that test, and seemed enthused enough. POSITIVE NOTE: Amy Poehler as Phelp’s mom was cute.

COMMERCIAL BREAK: I’m always cranky when the first commercial of the show is a REAL one and not a parody. It’s a lost opportunity.

QUIZ BOWL: With so much anticipation about a new season of SNL, in part due to all the political news and my ongoing desire to see the show hit new creative heights, I couldn’t help but be disappointed when I saw the first sketch was ANOTHER game show about stupid contestants. A million new viewers checking you out and this is how you want to lose them? It wasn’t a horrible sketch, but it felt like a parody of SNL itself. POSITIVE NOTE: Kristen Wiig and some funny answers from the home schooled contestants.

LOCKER ROOM: This was like a dare to change the channel and stop watching the show forever. They already did this exact same sketch last year. Changing the sport and celebrity guest doesn’t warrant doing it again! I know it’s a long tradition of SNL to bring back popular characters and scenarios. But I somehow doubt the Peyton Manning bit was so beloved that people were begging them for more. And to start the show off with such derivative material is a bad show of faith from the writing staff. This sketch may have been the death nail in my growing dislike of Will Forte. I think he is a funny guy, but he is currently most guilty of beating the same jokes and characters to death (Tim Calhoun, McGruber, The Falconer). POSITIVE NOTE: Glad Michael Phelps got to dance—but it was too little too late.

I SAID WEEE! Last year, Kristen Wiig became my favorite cast member on SNL. But this ugly girl character doesn’t do it for me. It feels too derivative of stuff by Gilda Radner, Cheri Oteri, and a million others. Just slurring words and being short tempered isn’t enough of a twist on an old formula. It also felt more mean-for-meanness’-sake than funny. This sketch would have felt more at home on Mad TV but it still would’ve been a waste of talent. POSITIVE NOTE: Reaction shots of Kenan Thompson looking terrified.

COMMERCIAL: Not their best, but I’m always glad when they have a commercial parody.

MUSICAL GUEST: Didn't watch.

WEEKEND UPDATE: I can’t believe how little political humor there was! Will Forte as a Lumberjack and then the next thing you know it’s all bizarre local news and whatnot. After a whole summer off, this was all the news they had to comment on? I was very disappointed. Andy Samberg as Cathy was okay, if not completely dated. Not a lot of people keeping up with comic strips these days (sadly). But he gets points for the sweat drop reference. POSITIVE NOTE: Fred Armison’s political commentator character always surprises me in a good way. I usually roll my eyes when I see him, and then find myself very impressed by how many variations on the beginnings of sentences he can do. I’d love to read his script for these bits.

CHARLES BARKLEY SHOW: Always good to see Kenan Thompson in anything. This sketch had good moments but never really found a groove. Darrel Hammond as Béla Károlyi was a solid impersonation of my favorite Olympic personality and yet kind of wasted because he had no good lines. I did like the gag about the Jamaican runner coming and going too fast, and Barkley reflecting on his Olympic memories.

DIGITAL SHORT: As a fan of randomness and power ballads I wanted to like Space Olympics. But adding the word "space" to things doesn’t guarantee it’s funny (ask the Jetsons...or Astronaut Elementary). So even though it made me smile toward the end, the overall vibe it gave off was pointlessness. If Space Olympics was a random clip on Awesometown it would have been OKAY, and not memorable. But in the context of SNL it just feels out of place and more of a let down.

PEPPER SKETCH: This ALMOST made me laugh in between the moments of agony. “Come on, let’s just go see The Women” may be the most forced dialogue ever. POSITIVE NOTE: I always give new performers the benefit of the doubt and give them a few weeks to find their footing. I hope this pepper/hostess character isn’t the reason why Bobby Moynihan got hired. I’ll be very happy to never see that again. My sister pointed out that Moynihan looks like a young Artie Lang.

T-MOBILE COMMERCIAL: This should have been right after the monologue, or at least a lot earlier in the show. It was one of their strongest sketches because everyone who saw the commercial about “who’s in your five” probably had the same reaction to the dad character. This is the kind of funny-because-it’s-true observational humor that goes over very well! Much more so than Will Forte dancing for 10 minutes. NEGATIVE NOTE: the commercial is kind of old at this point.

MICHEAL PHELPS’ DIET: Not really much to comment on this one. I’m sure some people found it cute. Definitely belonged at the end of the episode.

CLOSING THOUGHTS: I’m really surprised that Casey Wilson is still a featured player considering how much screen time she got! I hope Amy Poehler’s baby isn’t due until at least mid November!

A blog about Saturday Night Live and sketch comedy.

2008-09-14T08:21:00.000-07:00

I pretty much still watch SNL every week. Mostly for the “you just never know...” factor. And because I’m a huge fan of the sketch comedy format. It probably started with You Can’t Do That on Television and Turkey Television as a kid! I remember other kids quoting Hanz and Franz in elementary school and feeling left out for not knowing who they were. And when I finally started watching I fell in love with Dana Carvey, John Lovitz, Phil Hartman and the rest of that cast. And it wasn’t long after that they started showing classic episodes of SNL in 30-minute chunks on Nick at Night (I think?) and soon I was fan of the entire SNL legacy. And that spun off into SCTV because of the cast crossover and misc. related projects and films (Three Amigos?) I didn’t have HBO as a kid but once I was in a hotel and caught an early episode of the Kids in the Hall, it totally blew my mind. Soon my dad was renting me compilation tapes of Monty Python, and my obsession with sketch comedy never wavered.

Going to college in New York City during the late 90s I discovered the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and got to see amazing live comedy for five dollars a show. The best part about going there is watching new comedians get their break, develop their skills and end up in various places. Rob Corddry from a group called the Naked Babies ends up on the Daily Show, and Rob Riggle from Respecto Montalbán ends up a cast member on SNL (and then later the Daily Show!)which makes me very happy! And that leads me to one of my favorite things about Saturday Night Live. Watching performers start out as “featuring,” then finding their footing, creating new characters, and becoming huge stars. I’m USUALLY rooting for them. If they came from the UCB or some other venue, then doubly so. Every now and then there’s a performer who I end up hating and hope they get no screen time on SNL. This is the closest thing I have to being a sports fan.

Most of my friends say they USED to watch SNL, “Back when it was funny.” For me the show never really stopped being funny. I fully admit there are dry periods. Weaker casts, weaker writers that come and go over the years. But what may be considered a golden age for some viewers is considered totally unfunny to others. A lot of time people don’t realize how much overlap there is between the good and the bad. Even during the seemingly worst times, there are still some amazing sketches in the mix. The commercial parodies and Weekend Updates are evergreen in their consistent quality. And because of the show’s esteemed history, you never know who is going to come back for a cameo, or an unannounced celebrity guest that will show up just for something silly. Tom Hanks joining the 5-Timers Club is still one of my favorite moments ever.
And I admit to having a teenage nerdgasm when Aerosmith was in Wayne's breakfast nook. That kind of stuff never happens anywhere else on TV. And when someone screws up a line or improvs because of the live format ALL THE BETTER! Is it worth suffering through the especially unfunny game show parodies? Maybe not! And yet I still do! Because I’ve already invested so much time into the legacy of SNL and I like that it’s something I’ve consistently watched since my childhood. Like a hardcore Mets fan who sticks with his team through thick and thin. Luckily I don’t watch a lot of primetime TV shows during the week, so an hour and half Saturday nights is not a huge investment of time for me! Plus I’m a pop culture nerd who doesn’t like to party. So if 1-3 sketches really hit, then I’m stoked. Judge me all you want!

Since I spend a lot of time thinking about the ins and outs of SNL, I figured I’d start a blog with reactions to episodes. And I figure I’ll also write about other sketch comedy I watch (currently enjoying the Human Giant Season 1 DVD). I don’t have a lot of people to talk about this stuff with, so all comments are welcome!