March 3, 2018 – Charles Barkley / Migos (S43 E14)

by Carson

BIPARTISAN MEETING
at bipartisan meeting, Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) addresses gun violence

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— I want to break a little bit from the traditional sketch rundown to address what I think is the two-fold problem with SNL during the Trump era.
— First, we have the problem of Donald Trump. In the late 80s and early 90s, Phil Hartman was handed the reins of SNL’s original Donald Trump impersonation. He portrayed him as a loutish and aloof low-level New York City conman/mogul. Pretty bang on, but subtly vicious in the way that only Hartman could nail. It wasn’t a signature impression, but it was another in a string of pointedly silly late-80s/early-90s culture critiques that SNL was able to frequently achieve at the time. Over a decade later, Darrell Hammond brought his own spin to Trump, who was now an even more inflated pop culture, um, entity. Hammond’s take was more densely caricatured and cartoonish. It was one of Hammond’s more fun impressions, as he portrayed Trump in more of a self-satisfied moron role. Again, fairly bang on, if a bit more benign. It was, admittedly, one of Hammond’s more iconic moments. Now we’re a decade past Hammond’s peak Trump years and…let’s put it this way: imagine if someone in 2017 tried making a brand new Bill Clinton impression happen. Who’s here for it? No one, right? We’ve seen it, we’ve done it. We laughed at Hartman’s Clinton, endured Mckean’s, and enjoyed Hammond’s. But at some point, we don’t need any more takes on Bill Clinton. The book’s been written. That’s where we are with Alec Baldwin’s Trump. Sure, the impression popped pre-election day, but by the time the election was over, the audience had endured two decades of Trump material. The guy is an unrepentant, delusional asshole. What else is left to say? Unfortunately, SNL made the decision to keep saying it. I get that you can’t simply sidestep the elephant in the room, but we’ve already spent a full generation or two yakking about him. Either you come up with a fresh take (which is impossible, especially to a show confined to normie sensibilities) or you simply ignore it.
— Second, sketch writing. In this cold open, you have a handful of things happening at once. First, you have the premise of Trump addressing gun violence from the perspective of a guy with no discernible ethos, thereby forcing both sides (Mike Pence and Diane Feinstein) to gauge the president’s political pliability. It’s not a brilliant concept, but it’s something to work with. Then the writers are caught in a monkey’s paw situation where there is SO MUCH potential material to work with just with the persona of Trump that they are gifted with a handful of juicy one-liners that, unfortunately, don’t really fit within the structure of the scene. That’s the big caveat of the Trump-era sketches: there are solid jokes to be found throughout and SNL’s writer’s are really solid joke writers (which is why Update still rolls along relatively unscathed); they’re just bad at sketch formation. As a contrast, you have the Obama era, where the writers couldn’t come up with a solid laugh line to save their lives, but thrived when given a strong premise to work with (Obama as the Incredible Hulk, Obama as a standup, the Obamas in The Cosby Show). Then you have the appearance of Kate’s deeply wacky Jeff Sessions impression, which is always a spice too strong and distracting for any of these pieces. In the end, you have superfluous jokes and characters all working against the concept. The sketches are too busy, too noisy and too messy to deliver any kind of significant satirical and comedic impact. So what’s my advice? Ride or die with the concept you brought to the table. You might not make a classic, but you’ll at least have a proper, functioning, sound piece of sketch comedy on your hands.
— Anyways, this was whatever.
STARS: **

MONOLOGUE
outspoken athlete host rejects the suggestion to “shut up & dribble”

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— I’m not sure what to make of SNL’s hard pivot to bare bones “Resistance” monologues. I don’t miss the singing nothing monologues, but these, while truer in spirit to the concept of “monologue,” seem to take even less effort.
— Barkley, in his clunky way, is an absolute charmer when just talking.
— “I’m hosting for the fourth time…for no reason!”
— I love how Barkley keeps saying “ath-a-lete.”
— Michael Che enters to add…something. I missed his last comment though.
— This is nothing particularly earth-shattering, but Barkley is such a likable presence, he makes it entirely endearing.
— “Buckle up, it’s going to be a real hip-hop barbecue here tonight.” Great callback.
STARS: ***½

THE GRABBIES
award show recognizes problematic male-female interactions

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— Fun concept. Beck is already a lot of fun.
— Beck: “Who are you wearing tonight?” Pete: “Thin sweatpants with no underwear.”
— The “Cecil B. Molestin” gag is stupid, but I snickered.
— Pretty decent gag with them constantly replacing the male co-host.
— Aidy’s piece about being the first female Grabbie nominee is decent, with a little unintended callback to the Tiffany Haddish episode (the first episode I reviewed) about being tasked with making fish horny.
— Luke Null!
— Honestly, everything in this sketch worked well enough, but as with a lot of pieces in the last five years, there was something lacking in the, I don’t know, energy? Maybe it’s just the audience. Either way, it was a solid sketch that never really rose above that imaginary line of excellence.
STARS: ***½

NED’S ROACH AWAY
Ned’s (host) Roach Away pivots infestation to insect-on-insect gunplay

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— Hmm, a little soft satire following a mass shooting.
— Luke Null gets another blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance as an exterminator. He got all dressed up and did a little comic business for all of three seconds of screen time.
— “And none of my roaches are gay.” OK. Not sure what they were going for there.
— The brief part about creating a cycle is smart.
— Kind of a middling and muddled piece of social satire. Easy enough to smile through, but none of the barbs really stung.
STARS: **½

HOMEWORK HOTLINE
prank callers target tutor (host) on public access TV

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— We are mere seconds into this sketch and they’ve already given away the comedic conceit.
— I like Barkley’s use of the word “turkey.”
— Barkley’s character seems to oscillate between being aware of the prank calls and being unaware.
— Barkley’s mild inability to keep a straight face is fun at least, but beyond that this is a classic case of “Mikey Day’s Sketch Comedy 101.” Although even this one betrays some basic rules of sketch comedy by side-stepping any element of surprise.
STARS: **½

THE CHAMPIONS
the NFL took a toll on (KET)’s brain; Alex Rodriguez cameo

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— Very helpful for Kenan to wear that Steelers T-shirt to help the audience know he’s a football player.
— A-Rod seems to be having fun here, but he doesn’t have the dopey charm of a Barkley.
— Ah, a return of Kenan’s DC Timmons character from the Woody Harrelson episode.
— Kenan is making a meal out of this sketch. I feel like he loves playing addled old-timers who love to talk but don’t really say anything.
— Barkley dutifully holds the audience’s hand by letting us know that Kenan keeps referring to all the other characters as “Greg.” Very helpful, writers. Can you also maybe flash a little light every time a line of dialogue should be recognized as a joke?
— Love Barkley dismissing his time playing for Houston.
— Great reveal that Kenan’s character only played nine games.
— Ha. A-Rod said “endorshments.”
— Pretty boilerplate, but Kenan’s effectively did his thing.
STARS: ***½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Stir Fry”

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— Blue: Okay, I can tell already I’m not going to care for this. Hip hop can be hit or miss with me.
— The stage looks fantastic, I will say that. The red and gold color scheme is very pleasing to my eye and it suits the musicians’ outfits.
— So far I have not understood a single lyric in this song.
— The descending synth lines are nice.
— Chorus is pretty repetitive and is not holding my attention.
— I actually like the instrumental backing… shame the rapping did nothing for me.
STARS: **

WEEKEND UPDATE
Hope Hicks (CES) reads a farewell note to former White House co-workers

Unlike MIC, KYM wasn’t invigted to COJ’s Oscar party, and he’s upset

LEJ snubs COJ in favor of Hillary Knight [real] regarding hockey know-how

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— Colin gets in a priest sex joke, which elicits the expected shocked groans. At what point do we collectively stop acting so shocked when a priest joke turns out to be about molestation? That’s, like, standard issue now, isn’t it?
— Michael does some “hunting’s not a sport” material, which also, is pretty standard, no?
— Fun little bit with Cecily’s Hope Hicks comparing the Trump White House to summer camp and then reading personalized goodbye letters. Like all SNL Trump material, some of the material is pretty sharp and pointed, and some of it kind of lame and insta-dated.
— I love when Kyle plays a social outcast desperately trying to fit in. It’s especially funny that he’s playing himself here.
— I love how well all three guys are playing the awkwardness of cool people trying to avoid having to hang out with someone they don’t like. Colin is doing a good job here.
— Colin stage mutters “Please don’t tell him.” Ah yes, making the subtext text as we gently guide the audience through a joke that is already abundantly apparent.
— I love how uncomfortable handsy Kyle is with Michael. Great little performance detail.
— Love Kyle revealing his off-brand “Beeboks.”
— Ha, that dumb “March” joke.
— Leslie’s here. Lots of energy. More energy than jokes.
— LOTS of energy. Almost no jokes.
— Hillary Knight cameo. She, like A-Rod before her, amiably laughs her way through a non-performance.
STARS: ***

HUMP OR DUMP
(host) woos bachelorette (AIB) by threatening suicide

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— Aidy: “I just ended a six-year relationship, so I’m looking to get slammed by some trash.”
— The inevitable turn with Barkley being the “weird” contestant is not quite clear, but his opening line is a hoot.
— Alex seems to be loosely approximating his Guy Who Owns A Boat character.
— Charles: “Let me put this plainly, Amanda: If you don’t pick me, Imma kill myself.”
— I love that Barkley is threatening suicide purely as a strategic method.
— Barkley’s deadpan is just about perfect. Yes, he’s about as loose a host as you’re ever going to find, but his dead-eyed line readings always tickle me.
— The ending just kind of happens. Wish we could have gotten a beat or two more out of a fun little piece, even if it was pretty boilerplate.
STARS: ***1/2

CONSTRUCTION WORKERS
construction workers speculate on what they would wear if they were women

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— One thing I like about this era is how some of the recurring pieces are more conceptual than character-driven. These pieces where a certain subset of people talk in a way that subverts their stereotype are always pretty fun. They almost remind me of the Kids In The Hall “Womyn” sketch, where the guys play poker and talk about the benefits of having a period. These SNL pieces are a little more broadly acted (and Charles Barkley is no Dave Foley), but they scratch a similar itch.
— I love how when Kenan is describing how he would dress on the red carpet, he poses each of his statements with a questioning tone, as if he’s too insecure to fully say what he means.
— Great speech by Beck.
— “A shawl? Is my daughter getting married?”
— Great slice-of-life piece.
STARS: ****

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Narcos”

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— Blue: The beat at the beginning sounded pretty basic, but I like the little disco/funk guitar flourishes that quickly showed up.
— Now I’m hearing what sounds like a zither (?). Cool.
— Okay, Takeoff’s rap is pretty great. The first time I’ve sat up and paid attention during this performance. I think I like it the best because there are no effects on his voice, unlike his bandmates’ vocals.
— Another song with an interesting backing track and a comparatively uninteresting rap. Safe to say Migos is not my thing.
STARS: **

LAST CALL
alone again at last call, Sheila Sauvage settles for necking with (host)

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— Right off the bat, Kate gets some great lines, which results in a Top 10 “Kenan Reacts” moment with him spitting out his spaghetti. Barkley immediately seems on the verge of giggling. Barkley is the king of almost breaking, but not fully breaking.
— “Let’s go back to my place and do missionary, huh. That’s where you try to teach me English until you get frustrated and leave the country.”
— “I’m ungorged.”
— The dentist contraption bit is pretty incredible. Barkley looks hysterical and the audience is loving it.
— The sketch just kind of ends, but really, what the hell else do you even do?
— I know the Sauvage pieces have run their course, but this one holds up to the very best. As always, there’s something extra charming about watching Barkley try to hold it together.
STARS: ****

GOODNIGHTS

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IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— God, I love Charles Barkley. This episode was one big shrug, but I can’t help but love the big lug. Tonight’s best pieces were basically pre-batched recurring pieces with stronger-than-usual shelf lives. The rest were heavily templated, Sketch Comedy 101 pieces that couldn’t help telegraphing the joke. Still, re-watching this just makes me want to see Barkley come on the show again.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Construction Workers
Last Call
Hump Or Dump
The Champions
Monologue
The Grabbies
Weekend Update
Homework Hotline
Ned’s Roach Away
Bipartisan Meeting

TOMORROW
The brilliant Vax Novier takes on the Sterling K. Brown/James Bay episode.