March 30, 2019 – Sandra Oh / Tame Impala (S44 E16)

by Matt

THE MUELLER REPORT
Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) digs Robert Mueller’s (Robert De Niro) report

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— Welp… looks like it’s my turn to put up with Mueller.
— Something that always annoys me about how these sketches are directed nowadays: if De Niro’s Mueller is reading from a letter during this cold open, why is he staring into the distance at cue cards? Why can’t he just read from, y’know, the physical letter that has the words that he’s saying?
— I do somewhat appreciate the format of this cold open and how it’s trying something a bit different—cutting between Mueller, Trumpwin, and Aidy’s William Barr as they disseminate and interpret the same basic information—but no amount of changing presentation masks the weak, watery-ass writing at the heart of it.
— Oh, speaking of watery-ass writing: Trumpwin singing Smash Mouth’s “All Star” for no discernible reason besides… funny?
— De Niro has been reading his lines lifelessly but dutifully enough that this is probably one of his better live performances on the show. High praise for Bobby!
— For heaven’s sake, why has Kate-as-Giuliani come into this cold open? Admittedly, the line about him actually being Rumpelstiltskin would probably get a laugh out of me in Update, but I’m tired of this sort of joke delivery.
— Yeesh, a pretty lousy LFNY for this cold open, with only De Niro’s Mueller being properly mic’d up, Kate entering the frame later, and De Niro missing the first half of the chant entirely. Not a good way to get the energy up for the show like it’s supposed to, guys.
STARS: *½

MONOLOGUE
LEJ helps host overcome her Asian-Canadian self-deprecation propensity

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— “I’m Sandra Oh, and if you don’t know, ‘Oh’ in Korean means, ‘Huh.’”
— Not too much to say about this monologue, but Sandra is coming off very enthusiastic and excited—the show already feels like it’s in good hands for the night. Leslie offered a nice assist as well without feeling like back-up.
STARS: ***

DISCOVER
Red (EGN) is Adelaide’s (EGN) tether & her Discover Card operator

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— A really fun combination of those identical twin Discover card commercials and the concept behind the movie Us.
— It’s really refreshing to see Ego leading this commercial pretape off, and she’s doing a fantastic job portraying her Us variant. I remember being blown away by her acting in this sketch the first time I saw it, having been unfamiliar with her work prior to being hired by the show; it felt like a window into her capacity, and it makes me all the more happy that we get to see that every week all these years later.
— Shout-out to the cinematography as well, which is adding delightfully to the horror-fueled atmosphere of the piece.
STARS: ****

EMPIRE MEETING
Jussie Smollett (CRR) fabricates attack to avoid being fired from Empire

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— The return of Chris’ Jussie Smollett impression. 
— I love Jussie reacting in shock to his “discovery” that he’s holding a “bag of clues,” and the premise is enabling some fun, stupid visual gags, but there’s nothing too special or unpredictable about what this sketch is going for.
— If nothing else, this is a great display of Chris’ comedic face acting; he’s cracking me up more than the material is.
— Jussie: “Oh, a Telly-Tubby?? And it’s the gay one.”
— Sandra playing a strangely thankless role here.
STARS: **

THE DUEL
“The Duel”- suitors (BEB) & (PED) repeatedly shoot (host) by mistake

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— Ah, the latest of SNL’s gore fiestas. I’m usually not the biggest fan of these because I’m very squeamish at over-the-top gore, but while I haven’t revisited this one since the first time I saw it, I think I’ll like it more than usual given the other concepts surrounding the piece.
— I’m immediately a huge fan of the 19th-century flavor here, which the cinematography once again does a great job of capturing. Feels like a rare sort of visual style for SNL to utilize.
— Hmm, it seems like the focus of this piece is shifting around a lot. On one hand, you have the joke of Pete and Beck’s dueling suitors (refereed by Kenan) constantly trying to shoot each other, cheat each other, or accidentally firing their guns, all of which redirect violently onto Sandra, but you also have Sandra chastely accepting the pain inflicted on herself as being secondary to the pan her suitors feel, deflecting any autonomy over the situation as a “lady.” There’s a curious satirical element that occasionally props up throughout the scene, but the fact that it never fully devotes itself to that angle leaves me a bit curious about what sort of perspective I should walk away from the sketch with, if any perspective at all—maybe the violence is supposed to be the ultimate point. I’m enjoying the sketch’s attempts at something a bit different, at least.
— A particularly sick visual of Sandra’s leg detaching from underneath her dress as she limps out of frame.
— Not sure how to feel about the overly-cartoonish ending of Sandra shooting herself and her body flying into the distant lake but points for being unexpected.
STARS: ***½ 

FUTURE SELF
teen’s (MID) future selves (ALM) & (BEB) love middle-aged weirdo (host)

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— This is a very Seiday sort of piece for sure, featuring Mikey as the befuddled straight man and some crazy character, but it’s always worked for me better than most. A lot of that is just Sandra’s acting as Tishy, which is both insanely improbable and something that she executes perfectly.
— I like the revelation that Tishy met Mikey’s character the night he got beat up, and she was the person beating him up.
— Another good laugh from the fact that even twenty years in the future, Tishy’s arm is still broken.
— The ending that Tishy owns Samsung and is actually a billionaire is pretty abrupt, though I like that this sketch tried for an ending; I don’t think she works as well as a Kevin Roberts or a David S. Pumpkins in terms of being enhanced by their enigma.
STARS: ***

KREMLIN MEETING
lack of Trump collusion calls Vladimir Putin’s (BEB) clout into question

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— I’m just gonna say upfront: this sketch is pretty bleh for a number of reasons, and I doubt I’ll have a ton to say about it leading up to a very crucial and exciting moment towards the midpoint.
— The central premise of this sketch, with Putin’s aides reacting in disappointment and shock that Trump didn’t collude with Russia, is alright for a good laugh but it’s proven to be very aimless. It does feel somewhat interesting for SNL to basically admit to the erroneous nature of all of the jokes it’s made of Trump being a pawn for Putin, but it isn’t reading as particularly introspective of the show.
— A major moment: writer Bowen Yang walks on as Kim Jong-un!! It’s not uncommon to see writers appear in sketches here and there, but this is the first time in what feels like ages for a writer to step out and play a pivotal role in a sketch akin to a proper cast member instead of merely a glorified extra.
— Bowen is making an amazing impression, even if he’s just quietly uttering Korean that’s being translated by Sandra; the way he’s able to express his demeanor through the language and make catty faces is killing me. I believe Bowen also went on to say that he learned his lines in Korean with Sandra’s help, which is all the more impressive.
— Overall, a nothing-burger of a sketch saved by a star-making performance from Bowen. When I saw this, I instantly knew Bowen was gonna make the cast next season, and as an Asian person who’s always felt unrepresented by the media he enjoys, that filled my heart with joy. That he’s gone on to become one of the most regarded and loved current cast members is just the icing on the cake! I can’t wait to cover some of his highlights next season and beyond.
STARS: *** (at least * for Bowen)

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Patience”

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— Blue: Strong piano chords to open the song.
— The lighting here sure is eye-catching, though I can’t decide if I mean that as a compliment or not.
— Oh hell yeah at the introduction of the percussion… this sounds like something you’d hear in a 70’s/80’s dance club.
— I love the wash of colors saturating the stage.
— Kevin Parker sounds amazing live, just like he does on Tame Impala’s records, although I can’t be sure if he’s genuinely an excellent singer or if the heavy use of effects is exaggerating his talent. Either way, he’s doing a great job.
— I like when the percussion drops out at the end of the first verse, so the listeners’ ears don’t get used to it and tune it out.
— Nice to see an actual conga player in the back.
— That fat, squelchy synth coming in on the second half of the chorus is really hitting the spot.
— Love the bass’s reentrance after the first couple lines of the second verse.
— Kevin’s now picked up a guitar, but it’s barely audible. The keyboard is drowning it out. However, I love the eighth notes that the keyboardist is playing, down in the bass register. I wish the camera would pan out so I could see which keyboardist is playing.
— All the synth sounds colliding into each other is pure bliss for the eardrums. I’m absolutely vibing to this.
— Kind of an abrupt ending.
STARS: ****½

WEEKEND UPDATE
Trump exoneration narrative has Jeanine Pirro (CES) head over heels

astronaut Anne McClain (AIB) claims to be fine with spacesuit snafu

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— Colin, regarding the mass happiness on Fox News regarding the outcome of the Mueller Report: “I haven’t seen Fox News anchors smile like that since ICE agents pulled into a Home Depot parking lot.”
— Continuing tonight’s strange theme of trying to bounce back unscathed from how much SNL was banking on the Mueller Report, Michael is doing a bit on Update about white people’s “toxic optimism.”
— The debut of Cecily’s Jeanine Pirro on Update!
— “Mama’s got one volume, and it’s three Chardonnays deep at a crowded party!”
— Even though I’m absolutely burned out from this episode on its Mueller material, Cecily’s selling everything with her performance, which is far overpowering any of the politically-oriented things she’s saying.
— Every Pirro segment at Update finds some fun way for Cecily to overreact to a piece of news regarding the president, but the simplicity of her inaugural flopping out of the chair remains my absolute favorite. Cecily is crushing it.
— Aidy’s Update piece as Anne McClain, the female astronaut who couldn’t go on a space walk because there wasn’t another female-fitting spacesuit, is a lot more enjoyable than I was anticipating it would be. Aidy plays a lot of pitiful characters but her performance here feels very different from the sort we usually see from her; it’s reminding me a lot of how Heidi would play a character with the sorts of ticks that she has. 
— “To all the little girls out there, I just wanna say you can all become astronauts. Just, not at the same time!”
STARS: ***½

LOUISE’S BIRTHDAY
for her 85th birthday, (KAM) wants to watch co-workers kiss each other

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— Kate in extensive old woman prosthetics. We’ve hit that weird point where sketches are seemingly written as an excuse for Kate to just play dress-up and go ham.
— The central joke of Kate just telling multiple people to kiss is, um… not great? I don’t think this is dreadful but this is incredibly pointless, and not in some absurdist way. It relies on the goodwill that the audience has in Kate doing her thing, and while I’m sure a lot of people who don’t follow the show as religiously as me and a lot of other diehard fans do, this just feels like exploitation of that goodwill to create complacent, indulgent material rather than to challenge us or craft something more nuanced.
— The idea is at least escalating appropriately, but I remain generally unsold because the aspects that are being escalated, like Kate taking out a clipboard and dictating more elaborate and erotic instructions, aren’t really advancing things into a more engaging place.
— Kate’s character dying and the other characters deciding to kiss after all is an alright ending, but the lack of commitment on that, followed by the close-up of Kate winking (apparently alive again) weakens it significantly.
STARS: **

CHEQUES
cheques are the form of payment most suitable for illicit transactions

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— Ah fuck yeah, a Julio sketch! (Also co-penned by Bowen Yang; credit where credit’s due.)
— Cecily’s commercial voiceover shift from light-hearted to aloof and melodramatic when the sketch shifts into its primary focus, cheques, is perfect.
— The dialogue is so quintessentially Julio, lovingly-crafted and painfully specific with that air of sophistication, and Sandra and the female cast’s acting in it is fantastic; we rarely see sketches that allow them to shift into this mode of acting, and it’s something I’ve felt Kate, Aidy, and Cecily have always pulled off super well when granted the opportunity.
— Oh, I forgot Ego was in this one! Great to see her getting into the fun, too.
— Sandra breaking down the blank spaces on the cheque is something I’ve always remembered very vividly. (“Here, how much. Here, the same, but in letters.”)
— I love the out-of-context dramatic scenes carried out by the cast, with other cast members fading in and simply uttering, “Cheques.”
— This is probably one of Julio’s lesser-remembered works, but as is standard for him, it is excellent.
STARS: ****½

ROOTS OF ROCK
1966 footage shows (KET)’s endless encores preempting blues singer (LEJ)

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— Kyle playing a role that he’s always been strangely capable of: that weird old guy who knows a lot about music.
— Kenan is, to nobody’s surprise, fantastic, channeling every ounce of his infectious, Diondre Cole energy into his role in the sketch. It feels rare to see a sketch these days that’s just willed into working out of pure energy but hot damn is it working. 
— I love how you can hear the live band playing immediately try to quiet themselves whenever the camera cuts back from the “archival footage” to Kyle.
— A fantastic reveal of Kenan hiding in the jazz band and taking over Leslie’s performance.
— God, I love how this sketch even has Kenan running around the studio audience! It’s weird to say for a show that is usually 70% live, but it’s great how much this sketch is really feeding off of the benefits of being able to perform a sketch live; it’s so high-energy and silly that it feels like a legitimate spectacle.
— I could honestly go for another round of Kenan’s show-stealing but the ending, with him running out and continuing the song next to Kyle “15 years later” was a fun little button. For all I know my enjoyment of “Electric Shoes” might be an unpopular opinion because this sketch features a lot of Kenan mugging, but I feel like he’s one of only a few cast members who can pull that off with this current cast and be endearing rather than draining. Perhaps it’s because I find he’s usually a more generous performer, and cutting loose feels like a treat from him rather than a tired expectation.
— All in all, an underrated, forgotten little gem.
STARS: ****½ 

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Borderline”

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— Blue: Great choice of sound for the keys. It’s just a piano setting, but I love its tone.
— Hey, that’s the second time this season we’ve seen someone using a Hofner Beatle bass! 
— I like this chord progression.
— Interesting post-chorus, with every other line alternating between a high, ascending series of notes and a lower descending series of notes. There’s something hypnotic about the repetition. I feel like I’m being put into a trance.
— Could do with more of the fuzzy synth eighth notes that appear every four bars.
— Just like in the first song, I’m loving the texture of all the synth parts together. It’s creating a great soundscape.
— Okay, now the post-chorus is starting to sound overly repetitive.
STARS: ****

TEST PREP
high schoolers give lengthy & dramatic answers to SAT test prep questions

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— Although this sketch is held down by another pairing of Kate and Aidy, making things feel dangerously indulgent, I enjoy the premise at play, with Sandra’s class answering SAT 2 prep questions with deeply personal, teen drama-esque speeches. It really is a game of trying to supercede their performances with the writing, though.
— The extra behind Aidy is acting way too hard in this sketch and distracting me a bit…
— Kyle’s speech as a football player is fantastic, and he’s far and away the highlight of this sketch.
— Sandra’s substitute teacher doing an emotional speech is a predictable way for the sketch to escalate, but it’s fine, if nothing special. 
— Kyle: “Wow, I guess I learned a lot today. But the thing I learned the most… was each other.”
STARS: ***

GOODNIGHTS

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CUT FOR TIME: COLLEGE ADMISSIONS
college admissions board favors familial connections over hard-earned academia

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— This sketch is clearly based off of the Lori Laughlin college admissions scandal that was going on at the time.
 — The first reveal of this sketch with them discussing Lou Ferrigno’s son “Johnny Ferigno” as a candidate isn’t too funny, but we’re getting the wheels greased up.
— I like how the photo of “Jackie Keebler, heir to the Keebler Elves’ fortune” features a hand in the corner inexplicably holding several hundred-dollar bills.
— Another great reveal that Jackie Keebler’s sole extra-curricular was “snails.” The characterizations from everyone up to this point have been fairly one-note (if enjoyable enough), so a lot of the humor for me is coming in from the peppering in of those sorts of details.
— Alright, now things are getting pretty delightfully absurd with the whole discussion over if an applicant with the last name “Jeffries” has a relationship to Geoffrey, the Toys “R” Us mascot. (Cecily: “Well, Toys ‘R’ Us is currently bankrupt, so I would say a donation from their cartoon giraffe is highly unlikely.”)
— A strange joke about how the college’s current mascot is the “gay Redskin.” I get how it’s poking fun at poorly-aged mascots, but it feels like a bit of an indulgent jab that distracts from the sketch’s overall conceit.
— Heidi, regarding a picture of an applicant’s face poorly photoshopped onto Stephen Hawking’s body: “I know I’m not supposed to say this about the applicants, but… would bang.”
— All of the college admissions board turning on the first applicant, who lacked any family connections, is pretty funny. (Kenan: “Listen to her essay: ‘I would be the first person in my family to go to college.’—it’s not a race.”)
— Aidy’s walk-on as the coach of the women’s crew team is a bit on-the-nose with the Laughlin scandal, but she’s doing her usual good, low-key badass characterization. I love her declaration that a horse is a “land boat.”
— I’m amused by Kenan’s voice crack when saying “Is this a trap?” and his little, acknowledging smirk afterwards.
— A surprisingly solid ending to this piece, with Sandra revealing that she’s part of the “Admissions Police” and putting everyone under arrest. I love Chris’ ending line, too: “You mean this whole time she wasn’t really Asian? God…”
— This sketch is a bit too long, but I feel like with the right cuts being made, this could’ve been a lot leaner, and ultimately a good addition to the episode. It would’ve been a nice way to add to the overall ensemble feel a lot of the night had.
STARS: ***½

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A pretty alright S44 episode, if assisted by one great live and pretaped sketch that helps it stick the landing. Sandra was an energetic and game host, though I wish she was served more material that utilized her skills. 

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Cheques
Roots of Rock
Discover
Weekend Update
(CFT: College Admissions)
The Duel
Kremlin Meeting
Future Self
Test Prep
Monologue
Empire Meeting
Louise’s Birthday
The Mueller Report

TOMORROW
John rides out the last wave of Game of Thrones hype with Kit Harington

March 9, 2019 – Idris Elba / Khalid (S44 E15)

by John

THE GAYLE KING INTERVIEW WITH R. KELLY
R. Kelly (KET) is unhinged during his interview with Gayle King (LEJ)

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— As I am writing this review, I see the news about R. Kelly’s guilty verdict. As always, SNL has eerie timing…
— This is the last topical, non-political cold open until, I believe, the Super Bowl cold open from the Dan Levy episode. (I know the one in Sandler’s episode makes a production of not being political, but it tries so hard to not be anything that it is difficult to count) 
— One of the rare cold opens of recent years where we know the writing credits—Michael Che and Gary Richardson. 
— Right off the bat we get one of those lines (“individual who Number Ones”) typical of modern episodes, which is clever on paper but feels a bit too clever and doesn’t get much out of the audience.
— As is often the case with SNL when it tries to tackle a serious social or topical issue, it’s a bit difficult to separate their rhetoric with their past conduct. In spite of their roasting of R. Kelly here, they had him appear as a special guest with Lady Gaga in 2013, many years after everything he was accused of had been well and truly known by the public. With that said, none of the people involved in writing or performing this had any involvement with that decision, so I am not going to judge them. 
— Kenan is a lot of fun here, right off the bat, and it shows how much he’s matured over his years in the cast that he can believably play this part. 
— Leslie’s a tad stumbly, but she is also showing how far she’s come as a performer with her effective straight woman role.
— I get a guilty laugh out of Kenan repeatedly insisting he be called, “Victim.”
— “My lawyer was telling me no, but my ego…my ego was telling me yes.” 
— “What’s that word…starts with a q?” “You mean cult?” 
— “Maybe I can’t read…or write…or math…”
— “More than millions…thousands.”
— I assume Kenan repeatedly bursting out into song with the red spotlight on him is based on R. Kelly himself (apparently it’s from “Trapped in the Closet”). This mostly works, helped by the revelation after a few numbers that Leslie has heard him the entire time. 
— I love the shock in the audience when Kenan marvels at them for keeping their cameras out in the open. You don’t get that reaction a lot with the show these days.
— I like that Leslie eventually just starts going along with his belief that every word starts with a Q and guesses “Big Macs.”
— The part where Kenan stands up to recreate R. Kelly’s tantrum is surprisingly well-shot for modern SNL—much of the time, the camera would have just cut to Leslie while we heard Kenan ranting.
— Kenan’s delivery really makes this part come alive, especially when he talks about all the songs he left behind as clues. 
— I know this was based on the actual interview, but the part where Chris as the makeup guy pops in takes away some of the momentum, not helped by Chris’ hesitancy in live sketch (which will take him a while longer to shake off).
— Since I mentioned Leslie’s stumbles above, I should say Chris and Kenan have a few as well—Kenan right before his LFNY, no less. Fortunately, none of them seriously derail the sketch. 
— In an interview after Leslie left, she said the one thing she missed from the show was Kenan. You can really see that connection here, probably for the last time. That makes this feel special in hindsight, similar to many Leslie moments in this season.
— I laughed at Kenan initially trying to say LFNY to the wall before Leslie turns him around. A natural way to conclude all the jokes about how stupid R. Kelly is.
— Some of the Youtube comments for this sketch point out that it is not as crazy, or possibly even as funny, as the real interview. This has been a sustained problem for SNL in recent years—either they get to something long after many other comedians have, or the original content is so crazy, they just feel like they are giving a pale imitation for the sake of getting a headline. However, this is a genuinely funny piece that holds up in its own right—there’s a reason it has 21 million views on Youtube. It’s also refreshing to see a cold open start the night with energy, rather than dread. 
STARS: ****

MONOLOGUE
host recounts his 20-year career arc from bouncer to successful actor

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— One of the best decisions the show made  in season 44 is the number of monologues where hosts get the chance to (with a writer’s help, of course) talk about themselves and for themselves. I’m sure it might have been easier to just do the old musical monologues, audience Q&As, or having a few cast members emerge to tell Idris how hot he is or ask why he isn’t playing Bond (we’ll get to that one soon…), but I think if would have shown a lack of confidence in the host.
— Some well-told details about finding a career in America, working as a bouncer, going to a Biggie memorial, etc.
— The bit where he said he tried to reassure his mother that if his acting career failed he would be a DJ is amusing, and also something of an oblique plug for his short-lived Netflix show.
— The muted response when he mentions being on The Wire reminds you that those two fandoms don’t quite mix, but considering some of the HBO shows that did get hosts on SNL, it’s nice to see one Wire alum get to name-drop the show.
— This isn’t anything for the ages, but Idris is likeable and full of nervous energy, keeping the momentum from the cold open going. 
— Idris also appears in a video diary on his week at the show, which I believe is the last of those up to this point. 
STARS: ***

CAN I PLAY THAT? 
actors (BEB), (CES), (host) assess role suitability

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— This was written by Colin Jost, which he details in his memoir. You may think his reasons are down to all the controversy his future wife received over some of her roles, but his official reasons were, “There were so many actors getting burned for doing parts they ‘shouldn’t do’ that I started wondering how far it would go,” and that, “It seemed like the fundamental definition of acting was changing.” 
— You might also think this type of sketch would be an apt time for SNL to address it’s lengthy history of casting…erm…in a race-blind manner, but that is something the show is not especially eager to talk about (and when they do, in Will Ferrell’s upcoming episode, the results probably prove them right…).
— Kenan seems to have some type of splotch or something on his temple, near his wig.
— Kenan’s response when asked if the game is real: “Oh it’s real, because this game is produced by Twitter.” A cheap shot, maybe, but a very deserving one.
— Another guilty laugh with Kenan’s response to Idris saying he can play a blind person: “God took their sight, and now you want to take their job.”
— Idris is a little stiff in this role, although it doesn’t really take away from the rest of the sketch.
— Good laugh when Beck’s “no bueno” gets a warning from Kenan.
— The whole section about how any Asian actor can play a Japanese character because of being “generally Asian” is a bit sharper of a take than you’d expect from Jost’s pen.
— I like the segment with Cecily and Beck having to guess what roles they are allowed to play, especially Cecily having to specify she can only play the President in a comedy. 
— The whole part about Michael Jackson as a ghost feels very forced and distracting.
— The Lion King part feels too bogged down in easily dated material, although I liked the audience groans when Kenan explains why John Oliver is playing Zazu.
— You knew they were going to put that can-Idris-play-Bond joke somewhere—saving it to the end was the best idea, and features a perfect Kenan closer (“Do you, though?”). This debate is still going on (right at the time of my review), and I still don’t know if I’ve seen a better response.
— This needed a fat-trimming, but considering how easily these types of pieces can devolve into defensive ranting about “cancel culture,” the sketch is, overall, funny, well-acted, and mostly avoids stridency. 
STARS: ***½ 

BOK BOK’S
mascot of Bok Bok’s chicken restaurant looks suspiciously like Momo (KAM)

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— Hard to believe that whole weird Momo thing was only three years ago. It feels much longer. 
— Putting Kate side-by-side with the “real” Momo is a mistake, as it just kind of shows you that they don’t look that much alike and spoils the joke.
— While Kate is very expressive and committed, as always, I question the choice of casting her in this role. She inherently plays her characters in a likeable manner—even monstrous figures who are far worse than a “scary” meme. That is probably one of the reasons she is so popular with a number of fans, but it doesn’t work here. I would say Heidi could have done a better job getting the unsettling qualities needed—not that she would have been leading a pre-tape at this point (if ever—I guess you can count the Michael Jordan pre-tape from the Keegan Michael Key episode). 
— This role is another for the KATE CAN PLAY ANYTHING!!! folder. The problem is she can’t—no one can. Every cast member should have a specific voice, and is best served when honing that voice while still being able to find some type of freshness in the material. Trite as it sounds, when you try to be everything, you risk being nothing. 
— We are now treated to repetitive scenes of parents being unsettled or running away in terror, and on top of that, Beck narration that lays out the entire joke for us just in case we couldn’t figure it out already. It’s so funny, let’s do it three more times…
— When I watched this, I couldn’t help thinking of the pre-tapes of season 7, which had genuinely disturbing moments involving people being stuck in human flypaper, people in fur coats being bashed over the head and dragged away, etc. They were excellent at capturing the atmosphere and leaving you feeling disturbed. In comparison, this pre-tape is just very flat… meaningless… as disposable as fast food. 
— As a piece of corporate entertainment, ”Bok Bok” is brilliant—capitalizing on a popular trend, starring a beloved cast member. The Youtube video has over 4 million views, with mostly positive comments and a large majority of likes. 
— The above is less a criticism than an observation, as SNL is by and large a corporate product, and has been for decades now. I could go on about SNL “selling out” but you could make arguments going all the way back to the first few seasons of “selling out.” That’s how a show stays on the air. In some cases a very slick sketch or pre-tape can work for me. Unfortunately, this is not one of those occasions. 
— I don’t quite know how to rate this piece. There’s nothing BAD, nothing offensive, nothing beyond a forgettable few minutes designed with surgical precision to ride a wave long crested by now. A part of me almost wishes there was. I will just leave it at mediocre, and if you want comedic gore and horror in poultry pre-tape form, ask you to watch Cluckin Chicken (thanks to Anthony for the reminder) instead.
STARS: **

POWERPOINT WORKSHOP
inept Henriette (AIB) & Nan (KAM) create incoherent PowerPoint slideshow

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— Written by Anna Drezen, Alison Gates, Aidy Bryant, Kate McKinnon. Variations of this grouping contribute many sketches over seasons 44 and 45 (less so in 46, for various reasons), to diminishing returns. 
— This is one of those sketches where Mikey narrates wacky goings-on for us. These types of roles are likely one of the reasons some fans think he and Streeter Seidell have written much more of the last few seasons than they actually have. 
— Kate and Aidy immediately dissolving into tears at their first presentation is amusing. 
— This goes on to repeat the same bit over and over, as most Kate’n’Aidy ain’t-we-adorable fests do, but I enjoy some parts, like the page with Carole King’s name written over and over and a small photo of Wayne Brady (“He was already there…we tried to get rid of him!”), and when Kate says they will be, “fired and slapped.” 
— The use of visuals, like the two pie charts (a clock on a wall) help to give this a little more vitality. 
— We’re now in the part where Kate and Aidy say a few crude things to, I guess, try to shock us in contrast to their wholesome characters. I did laugh at, “I wipe as best I can…but there’s always more.” Reaction to this line is also one of the only times Heidi, Alex, Chris or Leslie have much to do in the sketch. 
— Can’t tell if Leslie’s reaction is a break or not, but with Leslie, we can guess…
— The ending is…OK? 
— How you feel about this probably depends on how much you enjoy watching Kate and Aidy together in these types of sketches. For me it’s somewhere in the middle of that list. At least it isn’t one of the many “Kate and Aidy run a business and rattle off 50 names in between bouts of breaking” pieces to come.
— The character names and attire are different, but this sketch gets a revival (complete with a photo of Wayne Brady) for the first at-home episode. Rewatching both now, I think I like that one a little more, as the Zoom-related humor, done to death as it is, allows for a better mix of visual humor and the expected meltdowns—it also means we get to see the other characters reacting throughout, which really helps. 
STARS: **½ 

THE IMPOSSIBLE HULK
Bruce Banner (host) becomes angry white lady (CES)

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— Written by Michael Che. The idea of this reminds me of “Inner White Girl,” a Cut For Time piece from season 40. I wonder if he wrote both of these. 
— It’s interesting to see Melissa in the role of the increasingly antagonistic store clerk, as she usually doesn’t get those parts. 
— I’m not sure if they are intended to be funny, but Idris’ faces while turning into the Hulk are making me laugh. It doesn’t help that they remind me of various Bill Cosby impressions over the years.
— Cecily’s doing the “brittle white woman on the verge of a breakdown” performance that she uses more and more in her later seasons (a Youtube commenter once called it, “a mom on pills vibe”), but it’s well-modulated here. 
— Love the visual effects, especially the comic book style intro.
— Idris has a stilted, off-center way of delivering his lines (in this episode…not really making aspersions on his entire career) which is put to perfect use in this format. 
— The whole sequence with him turning into Cecily and having a full meltdown at the noisy apartment is great. 
— Cecily’s work gets better with each appearance. The end, with her histrionics as the cop backs away (“I’m filming you, assholel!!!”) is perfect.
— I haven’t seen this pre-tape since soon after it first aired; I wasn’t hugely impressed at the time, but it’s much more enjoyable on rewatch, and not as aimless as I had remembered it being. 
— Ryan McGee criticized the sketch in his old Rolling Stone column for not asking tough questions over the way black men are treated by authority figures, as well as not being more harsh toward Cecily’s “Barbecue Becky” esque-role. I understand the criticism, but I’m not really sure how much I want or need to see SNL, or a very erratic writer like Che, tackling that subject. I think this is fine for being just what it is.
— If you want a little more of Cecily and Idris…well, you won’t get Idris, but here is a fun interview from last year where Cecily talks about doing an impression of Idris in front of him at the host dinner.
STARS: ****

THE GOLD DIGGERS OF THE WNBA
guys pursue modestly-wealthy athletes

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— This sketch may be best remembered for how much heat it received from various WNBA players and personnel, so much so it was later removed from Youtube (why it was not the sketch removed from the repeat airing I would love to know) .
— As is often the case, Kenan’s charisma and ability to get laughs out of lines is a saving grace. He’s particularly good during the part about “beautiful middle class women traveling from mid-major city to mid-major city.” 
— Idris is stumbly, but the swagger he plays the role with makes this a little less bad than it would have been otherwise. I will say if this is anything they had in mothballs and burnt off because he was hosting that week— they did him dirty. 
— Cecily’s part is…interesting. 
— The prop work to make it look like Leslie is towering over the guys stands out more than any of her material does.
— Once again the moments with the mundane listings of things that the guys think are exciting with a WNBA salary are the only bits that I sort of enjoy.
— The whole part where Leslie leaves with Kate, who corrects her on her speech, just feels sour and off, and too specific for the rest of the sketch.
— I do like, “I got news for you—you’re pregnant and it’s mine!” 
— Don’t love the ending which basically just feels like “lol they’re all lesbians.” 
— I have no idea who wrote this sketch (the incoherent feel reminds me of Michael Che…), but the one compelling idea (about the salary issues compared to NBA players) is awash with shaky performances, a grimy atmosphere, and too many side tracks. At times this feels like something you would have seen in one of the lower rungs of seasons 19-20, but fortunately the lows never get quite that low (and there are no rape jokes, so, yay!). 
— The season 46 premiere has an equally weak sketch about basketball girlfriends which receives a slightly more muted version of the same backlash. Maybe just leave this topic alone, SNL… 
STARS: *½ 

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Talk”

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— Blue: Khalid’s voice is very pleasant to listen to.
— Nice entrance of the beat breaking up the verse’s chill atmosphere.
— Not a fan of the effects on the backing vocals. It has the effect of appearing lip-synced.
— Interesting sight of the drummer playing what sounds like electronic drums, while sitting behind an acoustic set. I guess there’s an electronic set behind it that I can’t see.
— Now the drummer has switched to the acoustic set for the chorus. I’m liking his performance. He knows exactly when to let loose and when to back off.
— Very nice vocal runs from Khalid to end the song.
STARS: ***

WEEKEND UPDATE
Goop employee & her supervisor (Gwyneth Paltrow) lack product knowledge

Michael Jackson & R. Kelly sins lead PED to separate art from the artist

specs for LEJ’s naked-corpse funeral include eulogist, singer, cremator

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— “Here’s how bad Trump’s Presidency is going…” Even hearing that late night staple again gives me PTSD.
— The lengthy section on Paul Manafort’s sentencing mostly leaves me bored…or confused (Che’s segment), but I did enjoy Jost’s Third Eye Blind joke about “Otherwise blameless life.” 
— Jost’s whole bit on Hillary running again is the epitome of something that seems much funnier when alone and is actually somewhat awkward to deliver in front of an audience. 
— The second and final appearance of Heidi’s Baskin Johns character.
— The first appearance of Baskin contains the same social awkwardness of Heidi’s Bailey Gismert role, but is much more fragile emotionally, and with a much more irritating voice. Heidi’s vocal tics don’t annoy me as much as they do some people, but in that performance, they were at their worst. 
— This second routine isn’t really anything which stands out, but Heidi’s delivery is not as irritating, which means some of the jokes (like trying to tie “ashwagandha” to “Wakanda”) at least make me smile.
— Now we get to what is likely the main reason for Baskin’s return—Gwyneth Paltrow cameo. 
— The first version of this was not exactly savage, but, coming in on the heels of some less-than-flattering Goop headlines, has a few silly barbs about Goop workers having to test products on themselves and on being afraid of Gwyneth. What better way for SNL to rectify this very timid moment than to allow Gwyneth to laugh at herself (and generate positive headlines)?
— Gwyneth was actually a great host the first time around (in season 24), but her return appearances are a mix of trying too hard and the same polished apathy she has mostly become known for in her intermittent acting work. This is not a particularly embarrassing display—she even gets a few decent line readings (like the one about “conscious unemployment”), but it also isn’t anything special. Worse, there’s just a very patronizing feel to this particular type of cameo, although at least it doesn’t reach Zuckerberg levels of PR gone very wrong. 
— I’m glad that this is the last we see of Baskin, and I’m glad that Heidi has, other than Bailey, retired her old Update characters and now just seems to do one-offs. It tests her more and allows for less stale, catchphrase-driven writing. 
— The Ash Wednesday/21 Savage joke amuses me (and Che’s “that was a good joke” makes me wonder if he wrote it). 
— Che just flat out trolling viewers, as he does best, with the Michael Jackson and flight attendant jokes. 
— A good laugh from Jost’s “show feet” joke about HRH’s first Instagram post.
— Here is Pete Davidson, giving a commentary on R. Kelly I forgot aired here (for some reason I connect it to Sandra Oh’s episode). 
— Pete’s commentaries are rarely anything that memorable in terms of the material, and live or die based on how committed he is. Fortunately, he seems to be into this one. 
— “‘How can you listen to him?’ I dunno…headphones?”
— The whole routine with Pete insisting Charlie Chaplin couldn’t talk (“I saw all the footage—he didn’t talk once…he’s a silent film star.”) cracks me up. 
— Much as the whole “reject the artist, not the art,” conversation has been run into the ground many times over the…well, decades, Pete’s unique personality helps make this work.
— Sadly, a very solid bit ends with Pete’s personal life being shoehorned into the show yet again via a clumsy question from Jost, leading to Pete talking about his short-lived relationship with Kate Beckinsale. The whole thing just gives me bad vibes, especially when Pete would later mention his unhappiness over jokes about him getting into the show. 
— If I take off the last part, this is one of my favorite Pete Update pieces. 
— Andrew Dismukes naked on a roller coaster (third screencap from the bottom)!!! 
— That Rudy swamp monster joke gave me more of a laugh than it probably should’ve.
— I love Leslie’s jacket.
— Weird to see Leslie sitting beside Che (as even she acknowledges). 
— It’s interesting to see Leslie’s journey on Update start with talk about sex and wind down with talk about her funeral arrangements. 
— I like the part where she says her casket will be timed to explode after 90 minutes. 
— “J-Lo and A-Rod…” I’ve got some news for you, Leslie. 
— She fumbled the joke, but I laughed when she ordered J-Lo not to sing at her funeral.
— More talk of Fantasia from the show here than when Fantasia actually won Idol or had a big music career…
— The whole Jason Mamoa part is a little too long. 
— This feels thrown together; it is well-served by Leslie’s trademark enthusiasm, but nothing you will remember.
— As a whole this Update really picked up once they got past Trump and Goop, which, given its length, is fortunate. 
STARS: ***½ 

SKY SPORTS
pro soccer player (host) joins broadcast team & makes unuseful comments

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— Our Seiday of the night, and our latest journey with Mikey on his noble quest to get a British accent right. 
— The hair and makeup people went to some effort to age Mikey a bit. I’m not sure why, but it does make you appreciate how talented they are and how far the show has come from just slapping a wig on. 
— Always nice to see more of the increasingly fleeting Mikey-Alex double act.
— It’s interesting how the timing of these sketches go in pop culture. If this had aired only a few seasons later, I imagine someone would have claimed it as a ripoff of Ted Lasso.
— Idris seems much more comfortable in this role than he has in most of the other live sketches, possibly due to being able to use his natural accent. 
— The crudity of Idris’ character is immediately giving me cheap laughs. Idris is fun as the guileless player, and there’s something which feels much more natural about his stream of crude comments than some of these sketches are. 
— Even Mikey’s usual reactions (“don’t say that,” “wish you had not said that”) feel funny rather than forced. 
— The part where Idris goes on about “smashing” another player’s wife, and her mother, is funny enough on its own, but the next step, where Alex and Mikey tell him his wife is sitting by them and he praises her for being “faithful,” just makes it even better.
— Now we get to the funniest part of the sketch for me, where his reply upon being asked about another player is, “He’s got a massive knob for a white bloke.”
— The conversation where Alex and Mikey try to get his coaching advice is normally the time a sketch would start to seem padded, but that isn’t the case here. I especially like the part where Mikey tries to pretend to be his player, and Idris tells him to get off his team because he’s too small, then tells Alex he’s sorry he had to trade his mate for being small, etc. This ending in him saying, after all their attempts to get him to understand, he goes right back to “That’s the coach’s job,” is the perfect circular conclusion.
— The end note, with Idris now insulting the sponsor, is a decent enough way to wrap up.
— I’m sure many would just throw this one into the large “Mikey reacts!” pile, but I enjoy pretty much everything in this sketch, and I have on multiple viewings. A great use of a host’s natural abilities, and good sketch construction from start to end. Formulaic writing can become very dispiriting, but this is a case of Seiday done right.
— “Soccer Broadcast” was removed from the repeat airing, replaced by “New Cast Member.” At the time of this writing it’s the last sketch to be replaced in a rerun. As far as I know a reason has not been given.
STARS: *****

MAGIC SHOW
magician (host) uses casino owner’s (KET) wife (LEJ) as his assistant

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— Written by Bryan Tucker, Michael Koman, Leslie Jones.
— A very broad performance from Leslie. I’d love to know what she intended with this role. It’s certainly a departure from the overbearing wife parts she played more than a few times.
— I remember at the time this aired, some fans felt the sketch was degrading to Leslie. As she co-wrote it, clearly that was not the intent, but as I see her struggling with intense physical material (while wearing her knee brace, which just further shows the physical risk), I can understand possible viewer unease.
— Idris, once again putting through a great deal of energy but seeming shaky performance-wise, never really sells his role…what there even is to sell. 
— Kenan is left to keep the pace going, which he can do in his sleep at this point.
— I guess you can’t criticize the writing for being too confusing—you can surmise early on that Kenan’s character wants his wife dead—but that doesn’t make any of it particularly worth watching. 
— I wonder if the end we get here was planned, or if something had to be cut.
— Leslie said that if she was nominated for an Emmy, she would submit Idris’ episode (she wasn’t nominated). Clearly this episode was special to her, and has several standout moments for her. I just wish that the last showcase sketch with her I will be able to rate was a little less pointless. 
— I’ve never been sure what to make of this sketch, and I hope some of those involved tell us someday. All I can do is grade what I see.
STARS: *

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Better”

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— Blue: Once again, Khalid is sounding in fine voice. The backing vocalists also thankfully sound less artificial.
— The piano in this song is really nice.
— Khalid seems completely lost in the song, not focused on connecting with the audience. At least that means he’s turning in a great performance.
— Khalid’s a little flat on the phrase leading up to the second chorus. 
— I wish there was a bit more “oomph” to the chorus, but I like its seductive, low-key feel.
— Great moment following the second chorus with Khalid belting an extended high note while the backing vocalists jump up an octave, increasing the song’s intensity.
— This downtempo song probably would have lulled me to sleep if I’d seen it in the context of this episode’s airing. Still, I liked it more than the first song.
STARS: ***½

SUPPORTIVE FRIEND
(BEB) poorly hides his jealousy toward fellow actor’s (host) success

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— Written by Beck. 
— Beck, in a post-exit interview, mentioned a “smaller, darker and intense” version of this he failed to get on in his first season.
— This is a very loud performance from Beck, but for the most part I think it works, and allows viewers to connect with the material in spite of a truncated runtime. The part I enjoy most if probably when he shouts out the McDonald’s line (“I’m lovin’ it.”) 
— Again, the part where he’s screaming outside while his friends are wondering if he’s actually fine with Idris’ career break or not is very over the top, but fits the tone just right.
— The ending, with Beck doing bad karate while Mikey and extras marvel, comes out of nowhere, and means the sketch does not come to a natural conclusion. It really takes away from what could have been a dumb fun Beck piece.
— The non-conclusion was clear even on the night, but (thanks to Matt for finding this) a dress report reveals the original ending—Kyle as Jerry Bruckheimer walking in and after seeing Beck’s karate, giving him the lead role on CSI (which is why Idris had the second lead). 
— This is one of those occasions where I wish they had put the dress version up on Youtube, but I never understand their reasons for doing that or not doing it. We’ll just have to imagine it for ourselves. 
STARS: ** 

GOODNIGHTS

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— Early in the goodnights, Leslie points out Ego, with other cast members, and finally Idris, following suit. As she had little to do in the episode, this was likely down to her birthday. A nice moment, and an example of some of the kindness Leslie showed toward Ego that Ego referenced in interviews at the time.

CUT FOR TIME: NEW CAST MEMBER
A new cast member (KYM) struggles to ingratiate himself with the cast

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— Written by Sudi Green, Fran Gillespie, Kyle Mooney.
— I first saw this pre-tape when I was still getting back into SNL after a long hiatus. I knew who Kyle was, because of the wonderful sitcom sketch he and Beck did with Claire Foy (also cut for time…), but it still amuses me to see him making it even more difficult for me to tell cast members apart.
— I often get this title mixed up with A New Kyle, the pre-tape from the season 44 premiere. I am not a fan of that one…
— Earlier this year, there was a thread on Reddit questioning whether this pre-tape was based on Luke Null, who was infamous for receiving little airtime in his one season. There’s no way of knowing this, just as there’s no real way of knowing whether he intended to look like Dustin Diamond (RIP), but if I had to guess, I’d say Kyle had plenty of his own SNL experience to draw from—hell, in the original airing of this episode, he was completely shut out. 
— The scene where “Adam” gets advice from Kenan and responds with way too much (including a vaguely racist intonation of “love yo’ ass”) is not only funny, but also a concisely written way of showing just why the rest of the cast can’t deal with him. 
— Love that Adam even gets his own (pathetic and off-putting) opening credits shot. 
— I also love that the bit where we just hear Leslie tell him to fuck off. 
— Some great dismissive acting from Mikey in this. 
— Adam being given the drawing he’d thrown away of himself winning an Emmy is cringe comedy on a level Jonah Hill might step back from.
— The carnival is such a fun way to invent new life for the backstage stories, similar to the masked ball a season earlier.
— If you take time to look at some of the prizes on the strongman game, like “Hug the host at goodnights,” or, “Break character in a sketch,” they are surprisingly bleak in summing up the struggles of new cast members and the gimmicks used to get airtime. 
— Funny bit with Aidy throwing her dart into Beck’s arm after he mocks her – also a good callback to their story on Shrill around this time.
— There’s something a bit sad about seeing Alex working at the carnival rather than participating in it, considering how infrequently he’s been used over the last few seasons. 
— The short has done a good job of making you feel sorry for Adam, annoying as he is, which makes his hitting the bell and getting the big prize a truly nice moment. For now…
— When Adam is on Update, Jost re-uses his old Drunk Uncle line (“Stoned Cowboy, I think you’re a little too stoned.”). Nice touch. 
— After asking us to sympathize with Adam, his swift downfall could seem callous, but they solve this by making it completely ridiculous—everything from the oversized mallet he very much did not use in the previous footage, to Idris coming out of nowhere to claim Adam stole his idea, to the true absurdity of him being arrested and dragged away (Idris’ delivery of, “You’re going to jail, mate,” is one of his best moments in the episode). 
— A perfect ending would have been Adam being removed by the cops, but Kyle flatly revealing that he died in prison and introducing another horribly awkward cast member (played by Beck) is still fine. Kyle’s quiet contempt at the new new guy being such an idiot is nice subtle work from him.
— Kyle gets a lot of criticism for just doing the same thing over and over, but, as I mentioned above with Kate, one of the keys to finding your place on SNL is honing what you are good at. This pre-tape is one I would use as a key example of how terrific Kyle is at utilizing his range. He doesn’t try to go through a Big Transformation, he just tailors his various tics into a different persona. 
— As repetitive as Kyle’s backstage pieces can start to feel (especially in the last few seasons), he is the main cast member who tries to keep some semblance of using the backstage life for comic material. I think this piece is one of the most unique and compelling backstage bits the show has done in a long time, and I’m glad that, in a repeat anyway, Adam Zekeman got his moment in the sun. 
STARS: *****

DRESS REHEARSAL CUTS
— The dress report includes a return of Melissa’s Mrs. Gomez character from the Sterling K. Brown episode (which was also cut from Liev Schreiber), The Kevin Show (Idris as a reality show host who reunites high school crushes—at the end his high school crush shows up with his son), and Hookup (Chris and Heidi are going to hook up, but she has to talk with his father [Idris] to get his blessing). 

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— This episode suffers from airing right after John Mulaney’s second stint, which for me is one of the strongest installments of recent years. John’s episode is the one that convinced me to start back with the show full time. With the passing of a few years, the comparison fades and the strengths of Idris’ episode stand out a little more. SNL is always more compelling as a rollercoaster rather than an assembly line. There’s plenty to chew over in this episode—dreck and delight, good solid stuff, and the type of numbing product (Gwyneth) that gets those sellout accusations up and running one more time. I’m glad I got the chance to review this and reassess my old opinion.
— As for Idris, he’s your classic host who mostly just hosts so that box can be checked off, rather than someone who seems to have a flair for the format or is likely to be seen again. He certainly didn’t hurt anything, but other than the football sketch and his scene-stealing line in the New Cast Member cut piece, he didn’t contribute a great deal either. 

MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” FROM THIS EPISODE, COMPLETE WITH SCREENCAPS

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Soccer Broadcast
(CFT: New Cast Member)
The Impossible Hulk
The Gayle King Interview With R. Kelly
Can I Play That?
Weekend Update
Monologue
PowerPoint Workshop
Supportive Friend
Bok Bok’s
The Gold Diggers of the WNBA
Magic Show

TOMORROW
The iconic Matthew returns to review Sandra Oh/Tame Impala

March 2, 2019 – John Mulaney / Thomas Rhett (S44 E14)

by Matt

COHEN HEARING
at House hearing, Michael Cohen (BES) testifies to Donald Trump’s faults

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— Ha, during the first shot of the cold open you can see tonight’s special guest ducking his head so that nobody recognizes him prematurely (first screencap). Too bad he has such a distinct forehead.
— Ben Stiller appears in the cold open of this episode, after making his debut as SNL’s Michael Cohen impersonator in Mulaney’s first hosting stint. I’ve always found him to be one of the more palatable, out-sourced political impressions (big praise, right?), and it’s nice that Ben Stiller, someone well-versed in sketch comedy, has very good comedic timing.
— Hell yeah, Bill Hader!! Good on him for not making too many return appearances after leaving the show; he’s always a welcome cameo. Bill mentioned in an interview that he was already in the building for a sketch later on in the night, but after the Michael Cohen hearings he was so perfect for Jim Jordan’s role that he got written into the cold open as well.
— If it’s any testament to how legendary Bill is as a sketch performer, he’s able to sell a line as lame on-paper as “I’m so angry I couldn’t even wear a JACKET today!” perfectly.
— A surprisingly fun conceit to this cold open, with the various congressmen yielding Bill their time so that he can keep humiliating himself with what he’s saying.
— Kyle as Paul Gosar is hilarious and the prototypical Kyle character. He’s probably the part of this cold open that I’ve remembered the most, Bill Hader cameo notwithstanding. 
— Kyle: “If you lie, pants are fire. If you troof, pants are goof.” Ben: “Do you need medical attention?”
— The first fully-enjoyable cold open from the show in a while! If I recall, next week’s non-political cold open is even better, too; too bad that hot streak is two episodes long.
STARS: ***½ 

MONOLOGUE
host does stand-up about subway announcements & police sirens

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— As always, an incredibly HOT crowd for John Mulaney. There’s a string of woops in the audience for almost ten seconds after he starts talking.
— Feels a bit weird to hear Mulaney talking about how he used to do cocaine in light of his recent relapse, but it’s certainly not a strike against the material.
— Mulaney’s entire run about how his parents want his Jewish then-wife to convert to Roman Catholicism is phenomenal (“Don’t Google us!”).
— Another great story/visual of Mulaney’s then-wife pushing their dog in a stroller and getting into a stare-off with Woody Allen and Sun-Yi Preven.
— Yet another highlight of this monologue: Mulaney’s bit about the male and female subway announcers, and then his dissection of the city’s new versus old police sirens.
— Mulaney: “I was watching this old movie on Turner Classic Movies—because I was not an athletic child…”
— I love Mulaney’s impression of an old-timey police siren and saying that it sounds like “an old gay cat was dying.” 
— Mulaney’s monologues are some of my favorite from this era of the show, and this one may be his best.
STARS: *****

WHAT’S THAT NAME?
What’s That Name?- female acquaintances cause contestants to draw a blank

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— The return of a series of underrated recurring sketches from Mulaney’s time as a writer, co-written with Simon Rich and Marika Sawyer.
— As expected, Bill is killing it as Vince Blake. I love the devilish deadpan with which he goes from handing out $5 for correct answers to $250,000.
— Unrelated as it is, I love how Mulaney’s incorrect name guess of “Missy” sounds coming from his weird, old-timey Chicago voice.
— After Mulaney apologizes to Mikey for getting his wife’s name wrong, I love Vince Blake pointing out that he apologized to him and not her: “Guess you just don’t consider her a human being.”
— Aidy’s miffed delivery of “But Lil Xan you know” is strangely similar to Kristen Wiig’s delivery of “But Steve Zahn you know” from the very first iteration of the sketch (Xan/Zahn). I wonder if there was something about the way those lines sound that spoke to Mulaney.
— Vince Blake’s aside about how he rolls with “a crew of problematic bachelors” called “The Squad” is hilarious, and it feels like it could’ve been a last-minute addition to the script (in true Mulaney fashion) to trip Bill up based on how he almost breaks.
— Another killer digression in this sketch when Vince Blake criticizes Mulaney’s message to young girls watching, and then delivers his own to uproarious applause. I’m loving how much this “What’s That Name?” is deviating from the formula; it really feels like the definitive, end-all be-all version of the sketch.
— Vince Blake: “No, you’re not seeing double. There’s three women up there.”
— Another great twist on this sketch’s formula with Vince Blake giving Mulaney all the letters to someone’s name except for the first (_ A R A), leading to him shouting off a series of potential -ara names (“JARA?!”), only for her name to be one that he said but doesn’t get points for because he didn’t really know it.
— Vince Blake’s climactic announcement that the point of the game is “In a word: chaos” is the perfect, epic closer to a perfect sketch. 
STARS: *****

TOILET DEATH EJECTOR
Toilet Death Ejector gives elderly a questionably more dignified demise

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— I believe this was either originally a cut Mulaney/Rich/Sawyer piece, or one that never made it past the table read. It’s always a delight to see him dredge up his old favorites, even though I don’t believe that tradition has persisted beyond his first two hosting stints.
— Mulaney’s weird outfit is a far funnier visual than it has any right to be.
— I love the 0-to-100 visual of Mikey’s old man being violently flung by the toilet into his bed.
— A great gag of a “smart book” falling from the ceiling to imply wisdom. I especially love Kyle’s tearful delivery of “She was so wise.” after seeing a copy of Thoreau’s Walden on his dead mother (Heidi).
— Another fantastically-horrifying visual of several inaccurate, violent body launches.
STARS: ****

SHARK TANK: LEGAL EDITION
Shark Tank: Legal Edition- scandalous celebrities seek representation

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— Bleh. If I recall this is the one bad sketch of the night, but at least the good cold open up top sort of balances it out (even if this brings the episode’s hot streak to a screeching halt).
— The debut of Pete’s Michael Avenatti impression which I have no real opinions on.
— Oh yay! Kate’s insufferable Guliani impression! Great way to round this already-iffy sketch out.
— Chris’ appearance as Jussie Smollett is alright; I like Cecily’s Jeanine Pirro saying that she’s written Fox News fanfiction about “a gay black man lying about an attack.” He’ll go on to repeat the role in a sketch more centered around Jussie two episodes from now.
— Only two walk-ons for this sketch? Feels like it was majorly cut down, not that I have any complaints about that.
— I feel like this was set up to be a recurring sketch, but I’m glad that it ultimately never returned. It’s at least a touch better than the show’s usual political material, though it still equates to a lazy round-up of that week’s events.
STARS: **

THE UNKNOWN CALLER
“The Unknown Caller”- (host) menaces unfazeable pool boy Chad a la Scream

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— Another Chad sketch.
— Mulaney’s casting as a Scream-esque villain is unexpected but surprisingly fitting. There’s inevitably a lot you can do with that distinctive voice, which makes it a bit curious that Mulaney’s next two stints nail him down with a lot of olden day/classic movie sketches.
— Mulaney: “Tell me, Chad, what’s your biggest fear?” Chad: “Dick falls off.”
— A nicely gruesome visual of Mikey’s pizza man being slashed in the chest.
— While there’s only a certain height that a Chad sketch can reach and only so much that can be said, I think this is the most well-executed and interesting variant on the formula. I’m a bit bummed that future installments have stopped finding ways of topping the character, at least until his final appearance. 
STARS: ***½ 

CHA CHA SLIDE
(EGN)’s beau (host) fits right in at African American wedding reception

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— Something I really like about these first two Mulaney episodes is how much he seemed to make a deliberate effort to highlight the show’s newest cast members, what with how last episode spotlighted Heidi and especially Luke (even if his biggest piece of the night, and his entire tenure got cut), and with this sketch highlighting Ego. Unfortunately, that tradition doesn’t carry over noticeably to his next two hosting stints.
— I love the structure of this sketch, alternating between Mulaney interacting with his girlfriend’s extended family and dancing to the increasingly-absurd directions of the 12” club remix.
— Ha, you can see a church fan fall out of one of the background extras’ pockets early, though he saves it well. 
— A funny reveal that Mulaney and Chris were fraternity buds at Howard University.
— Leslie is a ton of fun as Ego’s aunt, and I love their conversation about the Starz network and her foot.
— A perfect out for the scene, with the wedding DJ giving a shout-out to Mulaney for producing his first mixtape.
— When I originally saw this sketch, I remember wishing that it focused more on the surreal changes to the “Cha Cha Slide,” but as I’ve watched it more, I’ve fallen in love with the slice-of-life feel to it and how much character work and commentary there is in the piece with Mulaney’s knowledgeable and respectful understanding of the Black culture he’s surrounded by. Sketches like this are an amazing reflection of how far SNL has come with both its representation and its ability to pen sketches about race that feel insightful and sweet instead of hacky. (All of the GIFs this sketch gave to excitable Mulaney stans are merely a nice benefit.)
STARS: *****

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Look What God Gave Her”

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— Matt: Possibly the most uncharacteristic musical guest for a Mulaney episode we’ve ever gotten. I think it’s cute that they invited a church camp counselor to hang out for the week, though… if not cute enough to make this song not give me a headache.
— Blue: I remember being very confused, the first (and only) time I saw this performance, as to how Thomas Rhett is classified, musically speaking. The lyrics to this are reminiscent of a country song, but the instrumentation is pretty pop-y, and Thomas looks like he’s trying to pull off an alt-rocker look. I know now that he’s officially classified as a country artist, but I still feel confused.
— Catchy beat here.
— Tight harmonies on the second half of the chorus.
— I really love the diamond-shaped laser lights. Pretty much the only thing about this performance that I’m feeling very strongly about.
— Okay, I also love the rhythm guitarist’s sparkly red instrument. Can’t really hear what’s coming out of it, though…
— I had next to nothing to say about that. So bland.
STARS: **

WEEKEND UPDATE
clips of Donald Trump’s CPAC speech document his strange behavior

animals at Starkie sisters’ (KAM) & (AIB) meat farm are unsympathetic

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— After a warmed-over start from Colin, I really love how Michael is addressing the Cohen hearings by complaining about Cohen’s feigned vulnerability in comparison to Trump’s continued insanity. (“At least Donald Trump has the decency to slowly fall apart until he’s dragged off in handcuffs, like a boss. I mean, that’s how I wanna leave SNL.”)
— I liked Colin referring to Trump cringily hugging that American flag at the CPAC convention as a “patriotic #MeToo moment.”
— Ah, the debut of Kate and Aidy’s recurring Smokery Farms Update pieces. This was just before SNL got revved up with pairing the two in very indulgent sketches, and the novelty feels a bit odd to look back on when you know what lies ahead for the next two seasons.
— The premise of these bits, of Smokery Farms products only featuring animals that are “individually stupid and bad,” is good fun, and I love the listing of the various slaughtered animals’ misdemeanors. 
— So much of the greatness of this Update piece is the fact that the meat basket used for the bit, made with real meat, was left out between dress and air, causing it to smell absolutely rank. I don’t think there’s a better example of SNL’s aborted attempts to recapture the magic of something, though, than them choosing to rehash this bit two more times with that just becoming a deliberate part of the segments. This one works wonderfully because it’s truly unexpected, but when you make that a part of the game, the magic is completely lost, and everything becomes annoyingly indulgent all over again.
— The detail of one of their meat samples being from a duck “that could spell, but the only word it spelled was the r-word, and when corrected, it doubled down hard” has stuck with me.
— Michael: “R. Kelly has faced a string of financial problems including unpaid child support, although for R. Kelly, unpaid child support is also alimony.”
— An incredibly short but good Update.
STARS: ***½ 

BIG NICK’S BODEGA
(PED)’s pursuit of a gross bodega bathroom spurs educational theatrics

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— The second in Mulaney’s fan-favorite or controversial series of New York-centric musical sketches, depending on who you ask. I’m actually a sucker for these, even if I acknowledge some of the faults of the future installments (the lessened focus compared to the original, instant-classic “Diner Lobster” sketch), and even if I wish that these were kept as a trilogy without the souvenir shop variant from his S46 episode.
— I love all of the elaborate set-pieces here, and I’m a sucker for the bodega walls rotating to reveal the bathroom (a gigantic toilet flanked by Melissa and Cecily as singing roaches). Mulaney also mentioned in an interview with Conan that his bowtie falls off at one point in this sketch, and he has to lean over to pick it up to keep it from jamming the rotating floors, which you can see happen pretty quick.
— I’m surprised that this sketch uses such elaborate, timing specific word effects for the Oompa Loompa sequence given how much they biffed the timing on the sing-along ending of “Diner Lobster” in the live airing of the sketch. 
— It feels really odd to see Beck joining into the sketch-closing sing-along, even though he voiced the bodega bathroom toilet, considering he never makes an in-person appearance prior.
— I liked the cutaway to Alex as “the guy who doesn’t work here, just sitting and watching soccer.”
— Hell yes! Closing out the sketch with everyone walking off set is always an epic closer!
— Controversial as my opinion may be, while I don’t think this comes close to topping the simple brilliance of “Diner Lobster,” I feel like this is a worthy sequel. I’m not too bothered by its extended scope, and I feel like even though it eventually becomes about more than just the titular bodega bathroom, turning it into Pete becoming the owner of the bodega is a solid and fun turn for the sketch that helps it retain that epic feel.
STARS: ****

CINEMA CLASSICS
Cinema Classics- awkwardness followed Lauren Bacall’s (KAM) whistle flirt

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— Kenan’s Reese D’What is as much of a joy as always. 
— I got a good laugh from Mulaney and Kate’s incredibly stiff kissing.
— The conceit of this sketch being Lauren Bacall’s character from To Have and Have Not not knowing how to whistle and failing several ways is a very flat premise, and the idea of a sketch becoming a Kate mugfest is also something worthy of a certain level of dread, but against all odds, this is a sketch that’s always worked for me. I feel like I couldn’t begin to explain why, but something about Mulaney’s straight man work and the number of ways that Kate fails to whistle, and how they escalate, keeps the piece feeling energized and silly at every step in an overwhelmingly good way.
— Something about Kate re-entering the scene and saying “Hi it’s me again, just from before” kills me. 
— I’m usually not the biggest fan of sketches with Kate having a random, uncharacteristic bit of reality subtext acknowledge Kate being gay, but I thoroughly enjoyed it in this instance as well. God, the baffling comedic alchemy of this sketch for me!
— Kate: “I just wanted to tell you that… you’re a little stinker, and if you want a little stink, you know where to find me. You just follow that nose all the way down to that stink… I should go to school.”
STARS: ****½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Don’t Threaten Me With A Good Time”

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— Blue: Ugh, those opening lyrics…
— Having a brass section onstage shows some promise. I can’t wait to hear them.
— The backing vocals and the organ are really lifting up the chorus. And of course, the brass is a welcome addition to the song! They could be mixed a little higher, though.
— Nice spotlight on the first backing vocalist, as she steps forward to sing part of the second verse. I don’t like that the other backing vocalist is still harmonizing with her, though. 
— After the chorus, the second backing vocalist comes forward to duet with Thomas on the bridge. Not sure why, but while the interaction with the first backing vocalist felt natural, this rom-com-dialogue-esque duet feels cheesy to me. She looks like she’s really enjoying herself, though.
— Thomas hanging onto his lead guitarist and miming the guitar strums during the solo is giving me a good laugh.
— The ending looks a little weird, with Thomas putting his arm around the first backing vocalist while all of them sing the final line. He should have come up behind them and positioned himself between them, as it oddly looks like he’s cutting the second backing vocalist out of the shot. 
— An improvement over the first song—I probably wouldn’t listen to this on my own, but I would definitely dance to it if it came on at a bar.
STARS: ***

IN MEMORIAM
a photo of SNL wardrober Margaret Karolyi marks her passing

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— Aww, seeing Mulaney, Kenan, and Bill huddled together makes me feel so warm.

CUT FOR TIME: DIANNE FEINSTEIN MESSAGE
Dianne Feinstein (CES) is nonplussed by young climate activists and their teacher (HEG)

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— This sketch is a riff on a then-recent, infamous video of Dianne Feinstein providing a very prickly, combative response to young climate activists trying to get her to vote yes on the Green New Deal. While I tend to question SNL’s insistence on directly parodying something this specific, I’m going into this one with a bit more optimism, thanks in no small part to my review buddy John talking this one up—it feels like it could have more bite than usual.
— I think the little girl featured prominently at the start of this pretape would go onto play Stephanie Giannopolous in “Weird Little Flute” from Carey Mulligan’s S46 episode. I don’t think I’ve seen her in any other pretapes, though.
— I really like Cecily’s hunched-over body language as Dianne Feinstein. Maybe it’s just being so predisposed to seeing SNL just slap prosthetics onto her, Kate, and Aidy instead of doing legitimate impression work, but I dig how much it feels like she’s inhibiting the character here.
— Cecily’s excessively patronizing attitude is offering a lot of laughs, as well as her immediately asking for a do-over after she realizes she’s set herself up again.
— I don’t know why Melissa was cast as one of the kids in this pretape. I’m happy to see her getting any work on the show as always, but it feels a bit jarring given how much this sketch has been emphasizing the use of real kids, which I think is playing a huge part in how much it’s working.
— Little kid: “You’re mean!” Cecily: “Yeah? Well your dad wishes you were bullied more. Toughen you up a little bit.”
— The beat with Cecily interrogating Heidi, the kids’ teacher, was solid. These bits aren’t really escalating, but it’s also granting the sketch a fun, almost-improvisational vibe, and Cecily is selling every line perfectly.
— In an era where SNL’s political material is something to be dreaded, this was a sturdy, stealthy little sketch. I get why it would be cut from this specific episode even if it’s up to par with or better than a lot of the other material, but it would’ve deserved to be a part of any other episode. (The Mulaney focus of the night just steals the spotlight away too much from something like this.) SNL rarely goes after Democratic politicians this scathingly, but that also helps make this piece so great; you can tell that it’s not being met by the sort of blanket indifference that defines your average, obligated cold open. There’s actually a fiery passion to it that, combined with Cecily’s strong performance (no pun intended there), turns this sketch into a fine piece of character assassination.
STARS: ****

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A fantastic episode, and a quintessential one for this era of the show. It’s hard to say if this one’s highs reach the highs of his first, but this outing is more consistent, and yet again, Mulaney’s presence brings out the best of the show. Aside from “Legal Shark Tank,” I enjoyed every sketch from this episode and awarded very high rankings to at least half of the written material. Maybe that just makes me the easy critic around these parts, but dammit, I’ll stand by this episode’s strengths!

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
What’s That Name?
Monologue
Cha Cha Slide
Cinema Classics
Bodega Bathroom
(CFT: Dianne Feinstein Message)
Toilet Death Ejector
Weekend Update
The Unknown Caller
Cohen Hearing
Shark Tank: Legal Edition

TOMORROW
John covers Idris Elba

February 16, 2019 – Don Cheadle / Gary Clark Jr. (S44 E13)

by Carson

TRUMP DECLARES NATIONAL EMERGENCY
Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) declares a national emergency to build wall

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— The annoying audience applause at the beginning of every SNL makes it seem like Trump is some kind of beloved figure. It’s weird.
— A direct address to the camera almost feels refreshingly quaint in this era of blown-out cold opens.
— The Dinner For Schmucks line probably deserved a bit more than it got.
— I like how Trump is skirting basic syntax to get across his wall message. I can’t remember if that is a specific reference, but I think it’s a slightly fun quirk.
— Trump references the Mueller Report crumbling Trump’s house of cards. Oh, 2019, you gullible idiot.
— The callback to Trump saying he wasn’t going to do the voice when he starts into his Chuck Schumer impression is pretty good.
— Beck Bennett is given a near non-speaking role as Attorney General William Barr. Apparently, they were waiting for an ace impressionist like Aidy to take on such a meaty role.
— Listen, this Trump stuff has aged like milk, but I have to give credit to how nice it is to have a simple, unadorned press conference sketch open the show. It gives off a strong 2001-2002 vibe and even if it wasn’t lights out hilarious, I admire the simplicity of it all.
STARS: ***

MONOLOGUE
LEJ’s selfie encounter with host represents a typical NYC fan experience

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— Cheadle’s weird dance and ill-fitting 1983 couch cushion attire are already putting me on edge.
— There’s a relatively new trend of the host getting off a couple B- jokes to kick off their monologue. I mean, I know it goes back to the beginning of the entire show’s history. But it’s really kicked into overdrive as of late.
— These jokes are a stealth way to incorporate Cheadle’s wide slate of credits.
— Leslie walk-on. It’s not great.
— Pure time-filler.
STARS: **

FRESH TAKES
teacher’s (host) attempts to be cool are inappropriate

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— The second installment of this sketch, which premiered in the previous season’s Larry David episode.
— Another strong 2001-02 vibe. This is very reminiscent of Wake Up, Wakefield, one of that era’s more beloved mediocrities. On the bright side, it could be akin to SCTV’s Pre-Teen World, which is absolutely essential “adults as kids” sketch comedy.
— Ha, 17-year-old Carson definitely relates to both Alex’s friendzoned character and Kate’s newly de-braced character.
— Cheadle as a teacher sharing gossip about his colleagues is a fun little conceit.
— Kyle was basically born to play this role. The “She Said Yes” screen popping up after Kate turns him down for the prom is perfect.
— Leslie has done some absolutely stellar work in a couple of this season’s highlights (House Hunters, Weezer Argument), but I still feel like she gets thrown into too many of these pieces where she’s required to just “be Leslie” without much in the way of actual jokes.
— Cheadle admitting to his curiosity about people’s bodies was a nice, tossed aside line.
— Cheadle’s character incriminating himself was a predictable conclusion to this sketch.
— While this was no Pre-Teen World, it was a more than worthy successor to Wake Up, Wakefield. There were a couple fun characterizations and it was far more joke heavy.
STARS: ***½

EXTREME BAKING CHAMPIONSHIP
cartoon-inspired cakes are many types of bad

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— I love the stupid scrambling the contestants are doing at the beginning of the sketch. I don’t think it was meant to be funny, but something about it is tickling me.
— The reveal of Leslie’s poorly made Olaf cake gets a laugh, but it’s not significantly off the mark from the typical reveal on Nailed It. That’s a tricky line for this sketch to navigate—this sketch is built on a sort of escalation, but the source of parody is already meant to be viewed in somewhat comedic terms.
— Leslie: “I think my nerves get the best of me and also I’m bad.”
— Small, nearly unnoticeable joke: Cheadle’s character is referred to as a “go-to-work dad.” I liked that.
— Great response from Aidy to Cheadle’s non sequitur Tickle Me Elmo transition.
— Great reveal of Cheadle’s monstrous Cookie Monster creation. I also love that the cake inexplicably has the name “Sean” written on it.
— I love how the judges are completely unphased by Heidi’s more-than proficient Spongebob cake. You can’t heighten much from Cheadle’s cake, so this was a really effective turn.
— Cheadle’s cake being a sentient puke monster (wonderfully voiced by Kenan) is a huge turn. I love it.
— Kenan and Alex’s misogynistic retorts to Heidi’s understandable protestations is another really fun detail. This piece is just packed with jokes.
— Kyle: “My cartoon is Yoda the pesky elf.”
— Usually breaking from the comedy “Rule of threes” is a risk, but this fourth reveal of Kyle’s cake is a perfect touch.
— Beck: “And what’s that he’s holding?” Kyle: “Why that’s his famous penis of course!” The way Kyle delivers that line is impeccable. Looks like it caught Aidy a bit too because she starts to subtly corpse.
— I remember the first time I watched this sketch, I thought it was a mess, but with enough jokes to keep it afloat. I think that view comes from how tricky it was for the show to escalate the comedy. In this re-watch, I’m actually quite impressed by how the show executed each escalation, jumping into absurdity early, but pushing and releasing on the ways this kind of parody could be funny. It’s not the most coherent sketch you’ll ever see, but I think it tracks as much as it needs to. Plus, it’s still an absolute joke machine. Tons to laugh at here.
STARS: *****

POUND PUPPY
dog-shaped sex tent shields canines from owners’ intercourse

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— The dogs watching the couples trying to make love is a funny, relatable bit. Can confirm that this is the case with cats too. Those horny bastards are also trying to catch a glimpse.
— OK, I don’t actually love the giant dog tent gag, but everything’s executed with efficiency—and of course the requisite inclusion of the real dog trying to hump the fake dog.
— “So throw your dog—and yourself—a bone” is a good one-liner. So is “Your dog will smile while you doggy style.” But for my money the best line is the concluding “Available in the adult section of PetCo.”
STARS: ***½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Pearl Cadillac”

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— Blue: Nice falsetto from Gary.
— Strong chorus. There’s a nice laid-back intensity to the groove.
— I’m never going to complain about hearing falsetto vocals, but the few moments where Gary reaches into his lower register at the end of each phrase leave me curious to know if he’d sound even better singing in that range for the duration of a song.
— Good choice for several instruments to drop out on the bridge.
— Took a moment for Gary’s solo to heat up, but now it’s definitely on fire.
— The outro, stripped down to just Gary’s vocals and the organ, is really pretty.
STARS: ***½

WEEKEND UPDATE
builder of southern border wall (PED) accidentally created a ladder

Chuck Schumer (ALM) & Nancy Pelosi (KAM) gloat about outmaneuvering Trump

when it comes to the Oscars, Jules (BEB) sees things a little differently

Mort Fellner (MID) reports on the inexorable demise of supercentenarians

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— The Trump clips are probably the best way for them to kick off Update. They’re definitely better than some warmed-over one-liner. That run of Trump describing the legal challenge is honestly stunning.
— Jost ends his hot run with an absolute clunker about climate change.
— Che’s resigned take about the endless Trump inanity is actually really fun. It’s almost a pre-cursor to Che’s pre-pandemic exasperation routine.
— Fun quick hit by Pete accidentally building horizontal slats for the wall.
— Che goes in on a rant about America’s drug problem, effectively plowing through the bit’s clapter moment.
— I love Alex’s Chuck Schumer. Also Kate’s Nancy Pelosi is here.
— Eh. The gloating establishment Liberals routine is rubbing me the wrong way. Oh, they’re doing the condescending Pelosi clap thing now too. Yas Kween! And also, kill me.
— Ha, I liked that Ryan Adams joke.
— Ah yes, Jost’s second infamous pro-Amazon rant (following the first time Jost went down this road in the Steve Carrell episode). The joke itself is too innocuous to really get worked up about, but I guess the short-sighted view on Amazon’s employee relations is probably regrettable. In hindsight, it seems like the mild controversy was much ado about a mild joke with an iffy, and presumably hastily written, premise. Jost’s whole vibe also, unfairly I might add, screams out-of-touch privilege, so that would also be a strike against him, but I also bet he didn’t actually write the joke himself. I don’t necessarily like the neoliberal, corporate shill takes, but SNL can’t always be a reflection of our varied and nuanced political perspectives.
— Jules, Who Sees Things A Little Differently is not necessarily a fan favorite, but I kind of adore the absolute douche-chilliness of it all.
— Ha, Beck called a football a “football ball.”
— Beck’s calling Black Panther “Equal Panther” got a sort of eerie hush from the audience. I thought that was pretty great.
— Beck’s run describing the movie he wants to see is pretty wonderful.
— Not that they were too tight or anything at the beginning of Update, but Che and Jost are beginning to loosen up as things go. It gives everything a nice jolt of energy, especially as they veer away from political material.
— Mikey debuts his supercentenarian Mort Fellner character, an almost vaudevillian Tim Kazurinsky throwback. It’s a silly, almost throwaway one-note bit, but Mikey plays the beats perfectly.
— A pretty solid Update overall that was marred by the rotten Schumer-Pelosi bit and will live in some degree of infamy for a couple of lame jokes that Internet progressives deemed “problematic.”
STARS: ***

CELEBRITY FAMILY FEUD
Spike Lee (host) & Lady Gaga (MEV) helm Oscar nominee teams

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— There have been good, even great Family Feud installments. I’m of the mind that none of them have involved a carousel of impressions.
— Cheadle’s New York Knicks jab (as Spike Lee) got the kind of groan usually reserved for pedophile jokes. Funny what things hit a nerve.
— As I await an impression that raises above the level of “Yeah, sure, OK,” I am overwhelmed by the perpetual lameness of these bits.
— Kyle doing Bradley Cooper? Haha, that’s the funniest joke in the whole thing.
— Pete is a natural as Rami Malik. I mean, the impression itself is nothing, but they’ve both been gifted with the kind of butthole eyes people seem so taken with these days.
— Melissa as Lada Gaga: “Spike, I adore your films. I’d love to be in one sometime.”
Cheadle: “Oh that’s so nice. No.”
— Other than that one little exchange, this was as lousy as these things usually are.
STARS: *½

LOLLIPOP
“Lollipop” on jukebox makes a dance party of (host) vs. (BEB) bar fight

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— The wrong fight song playing on the jukebox is a gag lifted straight from the impeccable Dirty Work. The reveal in this sketch doesn’t hit like Dirty Work’s “If you like Pina Coladas…”
— I dig the subtle little dance shuffle Beck and Cheadle are doing as they square up to fight.
— I love how the two fighters have decided to wait out their fight until the song ends and break into dance to fill the time.
— Underrated part of Beck’s comedy arsenal is the way he gracefully moves his tuna can body around.
— I love how everyone is interpreting the lyrics.
— Wonderful turn with everyone jumping into a choreographed dance.
— Fun, silly and simple—and I don’t even know the source song.
— SNL would return to this general concept again in the Regé-Jean Page episode.
STARS: ****½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “This Land”

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— Blue: Interesting synth intro. This song has a very different feel from the last one.
— Ahh, now Gary is using his lower register that I was hoping I’d hear eventually. Great versatility, and he does sound better in this range. I like the rawness of his voice.
— The faint horn (?) sample on the verse is really cool.
— Wow, these lyrics are heavy. Gary’s selling it well with his facial expressions.
— I dig the hard rock-reggae rhythm of this song.
— While not super flashy, Gary’s solo gets the tone of the song across perfectly. 
— Since I enjoyed both performances a lot, I have to wonder… how have I never heard of this musician before?? This was some quality stuff.
STARS: ****

ROACH-EX PLUS
it ends family drama caused by a homewrecking insect (host)

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— This is a parody of a common kind of “clever” ad.
— Cheadle putting his hand on Heidi’s leg is a wonderful escalation.
— Turning this light ad into a harrowing domestic drama is a great touch. The climax is very nicely played, especially with the son being the one to ultimately kill Cheadle’s cuckolding roach.
— Love how the ad returns to its jaunty tone.
STARS: ****½

THE REGAL PROMENADE PAVILLION
the low-rent venue for your special event

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— A Kate/Aidy two-hander. These tend to run indulgent, but I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt.
— Oh, also, Kate in drag alert. We were spared in the cold open, but I knew it was too good to be true.
— A great gag about the loose outlet.
— Lots of great observations about shitty hotels. Very relatable material here.
— Another strong joke that gets nothing: the squeakiest green beans you’ll ever bite in your life.
— After a strong start, I feel like this is petering out slightly.
— Pretty solid for a 10-to-one piece. It would have been far better if it were half as long, but even as the strength of the joke subsided, I felt like it was still amiable enough.
STARS: ***½

IN MEMORIAM
A photo of SNL stage manager Joe Dicso marks his passing

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— Love that they use a still in Dicso’ performance during the “Tonight Song.” I miss how the show used to utilize their crew. Would love to have some of that freewheeling energy back. Dicso was a great onscreen presence.

GOODNIGHTS

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— Hmm, Cheadle has been sporting some very politically minded shirts through the course of tonight. First his “Protect Trans Kids” shirt during the second Gary Clark Jr. introduction (a good take, no doubt). And now his CCCP Trump hockey jersey, which is a bit of an eye-roller.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Honestly, full marks—a pretty strong episode. I think my positive feelings stemmed from the more contained cold open, which was so refreshingly modest (if comedically mild) that I wasn’t immediately put into a bad mood. One classic piece emerged plus a few more strong pieces that should be remembered. I think one of the benefits of the episode is how efficient some of the pieces were. From the Cold Open to Pound Puppy (a mediocre piece made stronger by its brevity) to Roach-Ex Plus. Only the final sketch felt hurt by being too long. Well, and Family Feud, but that was doomed to start with.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Extreme Baking Championship
Lollipop
Roach-Ex Plus
The Regal Promenade Pavilion
Fresh Takes
Pound Puppy
Trump Declares National Emergency
Weekend Update
Monologue
Celebrity Family Feud

TOMORROW
Matt, who is an excellent writer and an even better SNL critic (he also helps me with my screenshots, so I need to butter him up a bit), gets to mitts on John Mulaney/Thomas Rhett

February 9, 2019 – Halsey (S44 E12)

by Vax Novier

MEET THE PRESS
Chuck Todd (KYM) & panel consider Jeff Bezos’ penis

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— A very juvenile premise so far, with a couple of funny one liners sprinkled throughout.
— The return of Kate’s Wilbur Ross “impression”, which really just feels like a discount version of her “Giuliani” combined with “Lindsay Graham.” What I’m trying to say is, all of Kate’s “lil stinker” male politicians are very interchangeable.
— And now Aidy gets involved in the drag-fest, I completely forgot about this part as if I blocked it out for good reason. The main issue I have with the “female cast members playing male politicians” bit is that they always feel so pandering and hollow for the sake of creating media attention.
— Meanwhile, Kyle is doing a good job anchoring this piece. It’s not common to see him in this role, especially in a political cold open.
— A rare solo LFNY, and from Kyle of all people! In an era where everyone in the scene crowds together to say the line, no matter how awkward it plays out, it feels refreshing to have one designated person who says it, and while staying in character too.
— This felt pretty above average for the standards of these cold opens, apart from the tacked-on Kaidy (Kate and Aidy) sections. I remember the next installment as being a step down, though.
STARS: **½

MONOLOGUE
while growing up, New Jerseyite host was a fan of SNL’s women

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— Here we see Halsey during the red hair phase that started within the time between her hosting was announced and this episode.
— Good bit with the audience cheering after Halsey says she’s from New Jersey, and then requesting a bigger response for the state.
— One thing that stands out here is how symmetrical her body language looks.
— A short and sweet monologue with Halsey providing high energy and confidence in her performance for the night.
STARS: ***

THEM TRUMPS
black First Family isn’t immune from law enforcement’s reach

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— The first installment was a winner, but I don’t know how well it can work as a recurring bit when you know the main joke going in.
— This edition’s cutaway brand: Darius Trump’s Perm Academy.
— Halsey’s presence isn’t really adding anything, and only satisfies some self-imposed requisite to give the host a role in every sketch.
— As expected, this was a bit of a step down, but the payoff still worked in the way these “long setup-quick punchline” blackout pieces usually do.
STARS: ***

VIRGINIA STATE CAPITOL
Virginia state government officials can’t grasp blackface unacceptability

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— A daring premise to do here, considering the show’s own history of blackface that extends up to 2013, but addressing these flaws has never really been their strong suit.
— Off to a good start with everyone having a sheepishly hesitant reaction to Kenan asking if anyone wore blackface in college.
— Some good runners with them trying to ignorantly justify their blackface by saying it was alright in the 80’s and that it can be part of a Halloween costume.
— Beck: “But what if the costume won a contest?” Kenan: “What was the contest?” Beck: “Blackest face.” Kenan: “(exasperated) Am I in Hell!?!”
— Great delivery from Cecily when sharing her “fat Al Sharrpton” costume, and a desire to to wear blackface for a costume of a black woman “for next time”.
— Another good runner of Pete calling Kenan out for (rightly) getting mad over the blackface confessions.
— Funny bit with Halsey asking if it’s ok to be half-black, and then clarifying that she meant dressing up as “both Michael Jacksons”.
— Kenan: “Everybody here that’s worn blackface in the 80’s raise your hands.” (everyone, except Alex, raises their hand) “Or the 90’s.” (Alex slowly and proudly raises his hand)
— In spite of the touchy subject, this ended up being a fantastic sketch with standout performances from Kenan and the ensemble of clueless delegates!
STARS: ****½

VALENTINE’S SONG
(AIB), (host), (KAM) sing about unwanted non-romantic valentines

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— The required Valentine’s Day sketch for every episode that airs near the holiday.
— I like the setup to the verse about Halsey dealing with Heidi as her horny boss.
— Good line from Kenan to end the song on.
— An average. forgettable piece that I couldn’t find too much to say about. The song had a decent hook, yet nothing really stood out to put this one over.
STARS: **½

PARENTS PHONE CALL
via phone, (MID)’s parents (BEB) & (host) allude to traumatic injuries

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— There’s Halsey using her New Jersey accent from the monologue again.
— I got a laugh from Beck’s casual reveal that he broke his legs before hanging up.
— The line about “hot doggin’ it at the club and getting pancaked by a golf cart” is very Robinson-esque for the usual Day/Seidell outings.
— Chris, after the last conversation ends with the reveal Mikey’s mom got shot: “Yeah, I feel like we’re a part of this now.”
— A noticeable gaffe as Halsey’s broken hands are clearly revealed earlier than intended. This is followed by a funny little moment as we see Halsey putting on a hammy face before the camera was supposed to cut to her.
— Another amusing gaffe with Beck “falling down the stairs” only for his leg cast to still be visible in the corner of the frame (last screencap above).
— That final beat at the end about the long-lost brother didn’t land too well.
— I really liked the escalation of this piece. Beck and Halsey gave some fun performances too!
STARS: ****

WOMEN OF CONGRESS
they represent backlash against Donald Trump

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— The Charlie’s Angels premise has the potential to give a more refreshing take on the usual political filling, and it serves as a good excuse to utilize all of the women.
— We get an unwanted voice cameo from Trumpwin as the Charlie stand-in.
— Another pre-tape done in the style of having an extended intro with a short payoff. I really would’ve enjoyed seeing more of this instead of having it end on the group devolving into irrational women stereotypes.
STARS: ***½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
host performs “Without Me”

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— Blue: The stage is darkened, featuring only Halsey and a pianist.
— Interesting choice to start off the night’s performances with a ballad, although I’ve never heard this song so maybe it picks up the pace later.
— Halsey is giving a really good vocal performance. From the husky alto tones that open the song, to the strong belting in her mixed range on the chorus, with a few added growls for emotional effect and some vibrato at the end of choice phrases… She’s pulling it all off flawlessly. 
— One note on the vibrato, though: it always feels strange when I see singers adding vibrato through jaw movements. As a singer who’s always relied on the throat to provide vibrato, I always wonder where they learned that technique and how they pull it off.
— As the second verse begins, the stage lights partially come up to reveal a message painted across the backdrop: “I’m so sorry, Ashley [Halsey’s real first name], I cheated,” with a list of all the towns where (presumably) Halsey’s ex cheated on her. Not knowing anything about Halsey’s personal life, this pointed message is lost on me and at its worst, feels like fuel for the celebrity-gossip crowd rather than the raw emotional statement it’s intended to be. 
— Really appreciating Halsey’s proper mic technique.
— Huh, so that was just a straightforward ballad all the way through. I wonder if the next song will be upbeat, adhering to the “one ballad and one upbeat song” format, but in the reverse order from the norm.
STARS: Gotta give it **** for an excellent performance from Halsey, although I feel inclined to knock off a star just for the personal drama brought to the stage. I would never say an artist shouldn’t express their feelings through their art, but the way Halsey did it feels more like she knew that those who’ve been following her publicized relationship closely would be watching and expecting her to make a statement, not as a true means of self-expression. Of course, I’m watching this performance divorced of all context (not only the context of Halsey’s life/career, but the context of the episode itself), so for those who are more familiar with Halsey, it’s probably easier to read the statement as genuine.

WEEKEND UPDATE
MEV uses Grammy picks as an excuse to do her Lady Gaga impression

in real life, Instagram couple Nico (MID) & Brie (HEG) bickers nonstop

Guy Who Just Bought A Boat gives supposedly-respectful dating tips

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— A ton of comments that stood out during this week’s opening rant. Between Che responding to the blackface scandals, and Jost dissecting the infamous yearbook photo, the two of them are really on fire tonight!
— Here’s a standout piece from Melissa! 
— As John mentioned before, this was a sketch cut from the previous episode which got retooled into an Update piece.
— Off to a great start with Melissa confidently acting like her Grammy picks are an established tradition.
— Melissa, on why she’s dressed up like Lady Gaga: “I just wore this for all my Melissa Monsters out there.”
— Some funny nonchalant comments from Colin as Melissa begins to sing.
— Kyle makes a quick walk-on as Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born character.
— Colin points out how the show can’t afford the rights to perform “Shallow”, meaning this would become unavailable on mainstream outlets. But this piece ended up going over so well that SNL paid off the music rights and posted it on their Youtube channel.
— The Grammys preface has been dropped by this point to sing “Shallow”, and Melissa is nailing the performance! I especially like how she makes it a bit unique by adding a few extra notes to the bridge.
— An excellent piece and a well-needed showcase for Melissa! The attention this ends up getting leads to a reprisal the following week in a Family Feud sketch.
— This might also be the closest Melissa ever got to having a real breakout, as this gave her a consistent increase in airtime that lasted until the end of the season.
— This commentary felt like it should’ve closed out the segment, yet we still have two more desk pieces. Even Michael comments on the odd placement by saying “I’m supposed to tell a joke after that?”
— Good callback to Ralph Northam during that joke about the Grammys.
— The debut of Mikey and Heidi’s Instagram couple.
— I got a laugh from Heidi calling Jost and Che “your Newsboys” when telling Mikey that he’s trying to look cool in front of them.
— After saying that they got together in first grade, you can hear someone in the audience go “Aw”, as if they were watching an actual couple!?
— Good tense delivery from Heidi, acting triggered when Mikey calls her crazy. I also liked her bringing attention to Mikey being “in your hat-hole”.
— Funny blooper with Heidi’s hat falling off, followed by her reaching over to pick it up while she and Mikey are arguing. Something that Colin makes an ad-lib to point out after the commentary.
— The two of them did a great job with this piece, capturing specific nuances of the characters while providing a lived-in characterization.
— We get two Norm Macdonald-esque punchlines in a row (“you guessed it” and “proves my theory”).
— Alex’s Guy Who Just Bought A Boat makes its first appearance in over a year.
— A good chuckle from him bluntly responding, “Believe women!” to Colin’s remark.
— Alex is always good at delivering the smarmy lingo while portraying these type of douchebags. Cutting back on the tiny penis references this time around helped it flow better than usual.
STARS: ****

SORORITY KARAOKE
sorority pledges (MEV), (host), (CES) sing “What’s Up?” at karaoke bar

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— Good opening bit with Kate.
— Now this, unlike the Melissa piece, is not easily available online due to a lack of securing the music rights.
— I like Kyle’s reaction over getting his food pushed off the table.
— Funny how in the world of this sketch, Beck is expecting something sexy to happen, even after their intrusive behavior had already been established. It’s a small nitpick, but interesting nonetheless.
— A notable mishap with the cockatoo as the audio becomes all jumbled, causing the bird’s line (delivered by Kenan) to come out unintelligible, and ruining the intended gag of it being racist. 
— It felt like this ended rather abruptly before the sketch could take off. At least the use of “What’s Up” worked well, as it will stick in your head for a while.
STARS: ***

BLACK HISTORY MONTH
KYM interrupts SNL Black History Month tribute to do some whitesplaining

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— A very out of the ordinary piece, delivered straight to the camera on the homebase stage.
— Always a thrill to have SNL history be reflected on the show, this even includes a shoutout to lesser known cast members Garrett Morris and Ellen Cleghorne.
— Great turn with Kyle taking over what started out as a straightforward tribute and carelessly interjecting his perspective of Black History. 
— And now Beck joins in, as this becomes a variation of the classic “A Sketch For The Women” from two seasons prior.
— Kenan: “It really means the world to us that you Googled all those names.” Beck: “And memorized them!”
— A good laugh from Beck and Kyle’s takeaway of everyone explaining their ignorance towards African American milestones being that they have black friends, followed by them getting thanked, after they leave, sarcastically as “Kyle and second dummy”.
— A very funny standout piece that provided comedic input while serving as a genuine tribute at times.
STARS: *****

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
host performs “Eastside” while painting a self-portrait

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— Blue: As the camera pans over to the stage, Halsey is seen seated on the floor, painting on a large canvas stretched beneath her. This is certainly different.
— I was right about the second song being more upbeat than the first.
— I almost thought Halsey was lip-syncing her first lines, because she sounds astonishingly good for singing in a crouched position, while also reaching for the paint and bending over to apply it to the canvas. 
— Even though Halsey is focusing on her painting, she makes sure to acknowledge the audience with little gestures every time she has to dip the paintbrush in the bucket or move to another part of the canvas.
— Hearing this song while seeing a work of visual art being created simultaneously is a jarring experience. I think I might find it less strange if the painting was explicitly connected to the lyrics of the song, rather than just being a self-portrait.
— It’s impressive that Halsey is managing to paint upside down, for the benefit of the audience’s perspective rather than her own.
— The lyrics to this song are heartwarming, but the track isn’t very interesting, and it’s not doing much to show off Halsey’s vocal talent. I don’t like how the chorus stays in the same melodic range as the verse.
— Halsey is all smiles as she paints, which reminds me of a child with a coloring book.
— Now she’s finally moved from black and white to red, although the song is winding down so she won’t get to use much of it.
— Great bird’s eye shot at the end, showing the finished product.
STARS: *** (extra star just for the interesting presentation)

MAURICE
family learns that patriarch (KET) is an online gay porn celebrity

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— Good reveal of Kenan being fully aware that he’s a gay porn star.
— Another sketch tonight where Halsey’s presence feels unnecessary, apart from giving the host something to do. Her role could’ve easily been split up between Chris and Ego.
— I like how Leslie gradually becomes supportive of Kenan’s career after discovering how much it pays.
— Ignore my earlier note about her needless part, Halsey is actually providing some contrast to Chris and Ego’s opposition, by supporting his work on the porn site.
— The runner of a “cake sit” being Kenan’s speciality is decent.
STARS: ***

RIVERDALE
on the set of Riverdale, actor playing corpse (PED) is loud & convulsive

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— Hilarious turn of Pete playing the corpse as a method actor.
— This gets even funnier with the different ways that Pete portrays, according to him, an accurate corpse.
— The cliche, cringey Riverdale lines like “I wanted to be the queen bae of this drop hive.”, “Death is sad.” and “Poor, sweet Devin. What a cousin.” are providing some good laughs.
— Pete, on why he prepared for the role by living in a morgue for three months: “It just sort of worked out for me…rentwise.”
— An exceptional performance from Pete, who did such a great job at staying in character and committing to the material that it’s probably some of his best character work to date (although he’s had some remarkable outings in the recent season 46).
STARS: ****

GOODNIGHTS

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IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— An outstanding effort for the show, with the worst segments coming out at average! Halsey excelled at the double duty, providing some memorable musical performances and committing to what she was given (even if the writers didn’t know how to properly include her every time). The amount of shorter sketches allowed the opportunity to fit in a wide variety of content throughout the night. The lack of any (physical) cameos for the first time in our section of the project, I believe, definitely contributed to the high spirits I had while watching this episode.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Black History Month
Virginia State Capitol
Weekend Update
Riverdale
Parents Phone Call
Women of Congress
Monologue
Maurice
Sorority Karaoke
Them Trumps
Valentine’s Song
Meet The Press

TOMORROW:
Carson covers the Don Cheadle episode, with an advertised Trumpwin appearance

January 26, 2019 – James McAvoy / Meek Mill (S44 E11)

by John

TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT
Roger Stone (Steve Martin) is wild & crazy

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— Always nice to see Alex leading off an episode, rare as that sight is. 
— I have read some criticism of Alex’s impression of Tucker—that it’s too generic, and so on —but I think he does a good job here with the mannerisms and voice. I especially like when he turns his head to the side to do the Tucker look. There is certainly room for a more vicious parody, but SNL doesn’t really do that anymore.
— One thing I do not like, as per usual with modern SNL, is that the writing has him literally telling viewers about the changes in his tone of voice or why he is tilting his head, because apparently we’re idiots. 
— Cecily’s Pirro returns for the third time in a few months, a sign of the impression’s growing popularity. 
— Right off the bat, Cecily is in her element, delivering some great lines and getting the audience going. My favorites are her response to Tucker asking if workers were willing to go without pay for Trump and the border wall (“definitely not but absolutely yes”), her mention of workers doing a jerkoff motion to her as a sign of their excitement over the shutdown, and the final, deeply histrionic, “I KNOW!!!!” There’s something so brilliant about the way Cecily throws her voice and manages to play right on the edge—pathetic yet engrossing in just how vivid the experience is. I’m reminded of Catherine O’Hara’s Lola Heatheron on SCTV.
— Oh look, Kate debuting yet another impression of a male Trump ally/Cabinet member. I think she gets just about every one but Ben Carson, because, thankfully, we are not still in 1978, or 1984, or 1995, or 2006, or 2013…
— A few fun lines in here (I like the one where Wilbur recommends, as a money-saving method, sending your horse to public school instead of private), but this just feels redundant, especially with Kate in the role. 
— Steve Martin! 
— This is Steve’s (up to today) final cameo. In case anyone remembers I also had the final (up to today) appearances for Bill Murray and John Goodman, but I swear that was not intentional—I do not have a fetish for SNL legends going out sad.  
— I get what they were going for with Steve’s makeup, but it’s just distracting. Having him basically as himself, only with glasses and whatever voice he was doing, might have been a better idea.
— I do like the line where he says how old he is by pointing out he’s the same age as Sting.
— Steve does have a lot of energy, which is nice, but he is also doing the overacting he tends to do in his SNL appearances of the last few decades. Admittedly, there isn’t a great deal else to do with the script—much of the writing is hacky and not funny—even the audience isn’t as into it as you might think. The “go fug yourself” and “pardon me” bits are especially bad.
— I had forgotten this ended with him saying, “I’m just a normal and straightforward guy.” I’m not sure how I feel about that. The wink-wink meta never works for me, but this is a better use of the Festrunk legend than the last few appearances he made with Dan Aykroyd.
— Overall, this is passable enough—never really hits any dead spots, even though Kate and Steve both veer toward that direction from time to time. Steve’s cameo also isn’t as bad as I originally remembered it being, even if it’s still not very good. Cecily’s performance, however, is on another level entirely, and is also given just the right amount of focus. For her alone this ends up being worth more of a watch than a number of cold opens this season. 
STARS: **½ 

MONOLOGUE
host differentiates himself from Ewan McGregor & gives a Scotland primer

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— James is, I believe, the first host to wear a kilt in a monologue, which he makes good use of by acting like he’s going to flash the audience. 
— James is also the third, and last, cast member of It 2 (which was released later in 2019) to host. 
— James has a good energy from the start, which helps mask that the audience isn’t really that involved. It doesn’t help that the material feels tepid. This sets up a pattern we’ll see a few more times tonight.
— Have you ever seen anyone confuse Ewan McGregor and James McAvoy? Am I just very sheltered?
— Finally, the audience wakes up more when James screws up a line and says he’ll be doing that all night. A good way to close it out. 
— A dress rehearsal report mentions that Beck was supposed to come out for 15 seconds, also wearing a kilt and asking what his design meant. 
— One of the reasons I miss the behind the scenes content (even if I understand why it’s not feasible with COVID) is because it can allow the host to ingratiate himself more than the monologues do. That was the case with James, so I’m linking to his promo and video diary.
STARS: **½ 

VIRGIN HUNK
ditzy bachelorettes compete to deflower abstinent guy (host)

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— Our perennial “can I steal him for a sec?” sketch. We’ve had variations of this from season 40 to season 46 (there are marked differences with the last one, but it’s probably still close enough to count)
— These sketches tend to get stuck between a thin parody of The Bachelor’s racism, ageism, misogyny, etc. (which is what they were more about in the first few versions), and a reason to have a bunch of the cast deliver unsettling lines, something this era of the show tends to love. The mix is…shaky. 
— The “lol my town has a stupid name” stuff early in this is especially annoying for some reason.
— Cecily, Kate and Aidy take the most turns, as they often do in these sketches. That was a mistake this time around, as they have some of the weaker material (aside from Kate shaking her keys to hypnotize Aidy into leaving).  
— Heidi, Melissa and Ego are the standouts. Heidi is the best performer at what the sketch was likely intended to be—she has the one genuine laugh of all this for me (when she says she has never been herself even once). Yet she also manages to find the melancholy, as she so often does. Melissa and Ego are more out of place with the rest of the sketch—jarringly so—but they help add some life to a weary concept. Melissa boasting about being an immigrant who is anti-immigration, and Ego changing her name to something whiter-sounding for the hunk before admitting she has no chance of staying—it’s all sad, and dark, but it works for some other piece out there I would have rather watched. 
— James gives a good performance—he nails the stunted, slimy vibe of this type of guy, and the flat American accent that British actors are so fond of using also works well enough. He’s especially good in the bit with Ego (his terse, “never gonna say that,” when he hears her name). The problem is that this just isn’t very funny—you’re just watching a prick and waiting for it to be over. This type of role is much more suited for a non-actor who is mostly just amiably going through the motions—JJ Watt, for instance. (I don’t mean the comments as a dig, as that’s one of the better versions of the sketch for me)
— Overall this is the most tonally incoherent of The Bachelor sketches. It’s also, after the Felicity Jones installment, my least favorite. 
STARS: **

MR. H
student’s (CRR) alley meet-up with teacher (host) isn’t cliched

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— Our first Seiday piece of the night. 
— This is the second time Chris has played a character named Marcus. I guess you could headcanon that Marcus eventually leaves the streets, gets into porn, and finds true love with a closeted preacher’s son.
— This isn’t the first time Mikey and Streeter have had a pre-tape subverting pop culture tropes, but this is the first with Chris Redd. There’s something about the way Chris plays these types of roles (he’ll have another the following season in “That’s the Game”)—a certain frenzied optimism even as the tides turn—that makes them feel fresher.
— James is also doing a good job as the titular teacher, burnt out, but still encouraging. 
— “Subverting expectations!” has become something of a cliche in of itself, but the twist of Mr. H not being there to give a heartwarming talk and just needing to buy shrooms still works, probably because it’s not something SNL has done very often. 
— I could do without Pete, Mikey and Ego being there just to tell us how stupid Chris is (I think James and Chris were fine on their own), especially the part with him not knowing how to make change. Not terrible, but just redundant and a bit mean-spirited. 
— I’m sure some might say this idea HAS been done before, in pre-tapes like “The Champ” (one of the more infamous Jonah Hill humiliation pieces), but this does not feel anywhere near as cruel or as bloated—there is a steady progression in the humor, and Mr. H also clearly likes Marcus and wants what’s best for him. This could have easily been a very unpleasant piece, and I’m glad they avoided that cheap route.
— The end, when, upon hearing that his essay was, “all over the place,” Marcus smiles and says, “Just like me,” is a lovely closing note, and one of Chris’ best moments on the show. 
STARS: ****

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
doomed plane can’t understand Scottish air traffic controller (host)

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— Back-to-back Seiday.
— I felt a bit cheated seeing Mikey and Heidi at the start only for it to lead to nothing, as I enjoy most of their pairings. 
— Learning they work for Kylie’s lipliner line is an amusing way to get their vapidity across without overdoing it.
— Kate’s Scottish accent sounds decent (apparently she has a Scottish grandparent, which must have helped). 
— From perusing the Youtube comments, apparently James had a movie director ask him to speak with an American accent throughout filming because he couldn’t understand his natural accent, so he was a good sport to go along with this type of bit. 
— I like that, perhaps because of the backlash they got over various sketches in season 43 involving stereotypes about Irish people, they avoid trying to add any cheap joke affectations for the Scottish characters. 
— Mikey is always good at playing tantrums and frustrations. That helps with a bit that might be too repetitive otherwise. 
— Kenan’s showbiz character who is mostly there to shout, “NO!” feels like a throwback for him. 
— I did laugh when, at one point, he misunderstands and admits to eating Wendy’s, but asks them not to tell Kylie. 
— My years of watching Torchwood tell me Beck’s Welsh accent is spotty, but he’s doing better than I would, I’m sure.
— The end felt extremely abrupt and just felt like no one had a final idea beyond “lol accent.” 
STARS: **½ 

THE UES
happy Upper East Side resident LEJ raps about her adopted neighborhood

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— Written by Leslie Jones and Bryan  Tucker.
— Love the opening as Leslie reminds us of all the dangerous neighborhoods she’s lived in. Very effective way to set a scene.
— Let’s take a moment to acknowledge how rare it is to see a black woman taking center stage in a hip-hop pre-tape, with no trappings, just a sweatsuit to complete the old school vibe. For many years, she would have been standing behind Andy Samberg or Pete—but the appeal of Leslie from the start was that she stood behind no one. 
— Thanks to Anthony for telling me about Welcome to Atlanta, which sounds like it may have inspired this track. 
— The beat is so good, it takes a few listens to process, “I thought at 50 I’d be broke or dead.” The first time I did, it really stayed with me for a while. Leslie has always been open about her struggles, but being able to incorporate them into her art this way feels different.
— James’ night-of-many-accents continues, and on top of the German brogue he gets to use his considerable magnetism in the role of the baker. 
— I could say that Kate’s involvement is unnecessary, but I sort of like the silly “stay home with my cat” rap.
— “They say, ‘Leslie, you forget where you came from.’ Bitch, I live here because I REMEMBER where I came from.” This is the line that stays with me most.
— Usually the comedic hook in these is rapping about something weird or meaningless. I’m all for raps about liking Snapple, or whatever (and we’ll be getting one of those later in this episode), but seeing hip-hop used in such a powerful, autobiographical way on here feels special. 
— This is Leslie’s last season, and I would guess she knew this when she went through this idea. There are various occasions in this season where she tests her limits in sketch performance, but this is something more than that—she created this entire world for herself and allowed us to see her journey in a way tweets or Update appearances can’t fully realize. For that reason, and also because the end result is so well-crafted, this is my favorite thing Leslie ever did on the show, and is how I choose to remember her tenure. 
STARS: *****

CHARMIN
focus group’s feedback about Charmin’s Super Bowl commercial is unhelpful

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— While the idea here might seem similar to the Barbie and Ken Instagram sketches, those were by Julio Torres and James Anderson, whereas this is by Fran Gillespie, Sudi Green and Gary Richardson. 
— I keep trying to figure out where else Kyle did this vocal pattern—specifically, the part where he says one of James’ ideas is “naughty.” (That is also one of the more enjoyable moments here for me.) 
— I’ll leave it up to you to judge James’ latest accent (Philly), but the running order of the pieces here means there’s much less accent bleed than Bill Hader and Cecily suffered in his last episode. 
— The accent makes me sorry James didn’t get to appear in Inside SoCal over a certain other Kyle-and-Beck recurrer we’ll be seeing soon.
— Aidy can play these types of roles in her sleep, but still amuses me here, especially the way she says, “Not in one million years,” along with her later look of thinly veiled disgust when James is going on about “pee-pee and poo-poo creatures.”
— In Carson’s review of “Mother Knows Best” (from the Amy Schumer episode), he points out how needlessly convoluted the sketch became due to having so many different comedy beats. That isn’t quite as true here, but the roles for Kenan (as a pervert) and Kate (as one of those “I am white and am ashamed of my race, so very very ashamed…pay attention to me!!!” people) still feel unnecessary. 
— I do enjoy James’ performance—he is given a juicy central role here and plays it for all its worth, but without going too over the top. Little details like casually putting his finger in his ear or smacking his hand against the table or the stupid thumbs up when he says “Charmin” keep the sketch centered (even just the way he says “Charmin,” which is probably the main memory anyone would have of this sketch). 
— In more recent seasons, this social media campaign/focus group type of sketch has veered less into laughing at stupid people and more in the direction of “Sara Lee” (written by Torres and Bowen Yang). The graphic content and focus on an increasingly fed-up moderator here are forerunners to “What’s Wrong With This Picture?” which were also by Fran and Sudi (and Kent Sublette). I think the formula works better in those than it does here.
STARS: **½ 

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Going Bad”

musical guest & Fabolous [real] perform “Uptown Vibes”

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— Blue: Solid rapping from Meek Mill.
— Those backup dancers’ outfits are… a choice. Actually, the backup dancers themselves are a choice. I’m not sure their presence is necessary.
— Our fourth instance this season of “why not sing the pre-recorded vocals?”
— Very cool, swift transition into Meek’s second song. 
— The background horn sample is pretty catchy.
— Digging Fabolous’ verse. I prefer his rapping to Meek’s.
— Funny to see the musicians make their exit before the episode cuts to commercial. Usually the performers just stand there soaking up the applause. Meek and Fabolous don’t have time for that, apparently…
STARS: ***

WEEKEND UPDATE
Soulja Boy (CRR) releases videogame knock-offs & plans a presidential run

Cathy Anne thinks the shutdown shows Donald Trump is addicted to his wall

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— The opening bit with Colin playing different border wall clips from Trump and responding to them reminds me too much of various late night talk shows I avoid. I did like the part where, mid-routine, he quietly interjects, “He’s the President.”
— Che scolding Democrats for gloating feels very straw-mannish, but is, fortunately, brief. 
— Colin’s running jabs at Spirit Airlines still land (unlike Spiri…yeah, it doesn’t work when I do it). 
— You can tell how delighted Jost and Che are over getting to roast a cartoon villain like Roger Stone. There are a number of highlights here, but my favorites are Che gloating that an old white man is finally being humiliated by the police, Che saying he thought Stone looked like the type of guy who hires a black guy to have sex with his wife, only to find out he actually was, and Colin being amazed at how many people showed up at Stone’s press conference on a workday just to boo him. 
— Chris pops up to spoof the viral Soulja Boy interview. 
— The success of this appearance rests on how well you think Chris manages to make hay out of the, “Drake???” moment. Overall I think he does a great job there—the overall material is not as strong, but improves once we move away from more Trump talk. 
— And of course some talk about Soulja Boy’s video game. Some fun here too, especially when he starts going on about “the Manjeno brothers.” 
— Che cracking up just makes this even more fun. 
— Overall, mostly short and sweet. 
— The upskirt joke is nothing special, but I do like that they worked in James wearing his kilt. It makes Update feel less disconnected from the main show. 
— Colin’s reaction to the shock and smattering of boos at his Catholic Grindr joke is better than the joke itself. 
— Cathy Anne!
— Between Pirro and Cathy Anne, you could say that Cecily is just playing interchangeable crazy women. I do think that was true for most of season 46, sadly, but here, she manages to bring a depth and individuality to these characterizations. 
— What I like most about her turn as Cathy Anne is this is a character (in her Update guise, anyway) who could easily just be a cloying object of pity, or a liberal fantasy of the broken-but-noble heartland. Instead, Cecily manages to make Cathy Anne wise yet completely off-center, part mad libs and part pathos. 
— This isn’t as strong as some other installments, but the ramblings about why she had two ribs removed, about how penguins would be foiled by the wall (and her reaction when Che asks if she hates penguins) are good stuff, and the whole thing benefits from a steady flow and the usual strong spark between Cecily and Che. 
— By far my favorite Update of those I’ve covered so far. This is more what I was waiting for. 
—  Per the dress report, Aidy had a cut appearance as an OTT headmistress for a Catholic school (this was right after the Lincoln Memorial fiasco), saying things like “boys will be boys and they’ll play with their toys and when there’s no more toys they’ll have to poop.” I think they made the right decision.
STARS: ****

MR.  TUMNUS
in Narnia, (CES), (AIB), (KAM) fawn over girlhood crush Mr. Tumnus (host)

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— Co-written by Sudi, Bowen Yang, and Alison Gates.  
— When people wondered about which of his past characters James might reprise, I don’t think Mr. Tumnus was high on their list.
— This is one of those very specific sketches for those who wrote it (based on Sudi’s tweet, anyway), and your enjoyment may depend on whether you share their fondness/lust for the character. 
— I remember a number of fans having that same connection, especially the part where Aidy and Kate are described as “lazy Hermiones.” 
— Kate’s performance in this annoys me a little, but “Mr. Tumnus, I want to put my thumb-nus in your bum-nus,” made me laugh more than it probably should have. 
— Cecily has a brief Judy Grimes moment there when she rambles about wanting Tumnus to get her pregnant. 
— It’s remarkable that Aidy, Cecily and Kate do not break in this sketch, even once, which was becoming something of an anomaly by this point.
— The twist of Tumnus being gay could have and often would have been done for a cheap gag, but changing times, and a number of queer writers being on staff and in the cast by this point, makes a key difference. Even though the twist still doesn’t do a ton for me, I like how accepting the women are—of course he was gay, that’s their type. 
— This isn’t really a sketch I can connect to, which is a downside of having personal pieces on SNL rather than broad slots. With that said, this is (for the most part) a tightly written few minutes that has decent performances from the cast and a charming, understated performance from James. 
STARS: ***

ANOTHER BROTHERS
rowdy sons get hosed by their stepdad (host) during a Super Bowl party

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— Time for our latest installment of, “If it ain’t broke, break it.” This sketch was a well-received jolt of chaos in Liev Schriber’s episode, and for me, was a ton of fun due to the intense physical comedy you rarely get on the show now. Was it a good idea to bring this back only a few months later? Or at all? Let’s see… 
— James has similar hair, glasses and clothes to Liev in the first sketch, and has a vaguely similar accent. Yet he is playing a different character.  Not sure what happened there.
— The hose gag is also back, only now topped by a leaf-blower. 
— The leaf-blower, and the expressions (especially Beck’s) when directed right at their faces, is my favorite part of this reprisal.
— The previous chaos moments of a vase over the head and being thrown through a wall have been replaced by a chair and going through a TV. Doesn’t change that it just doesn’t land the same way twice. 
— The most noticeable difference, VERY noticeable, is that Aidy and Cecily are barely breaking this time around. A part of me wants to praise them—goodness knows I have done my share of panning them for breaking—but the way they (especially Cecily) immediately lost it the first time around helped add to the appeal. Don’t get me wrong, if they had done that again this time, it would have felt false, but that element being so important shows why this should have been a one-and-done.
— I’m actually not sure why Aidy and Kenan are back, as Mikey and Melissa take most of their roles this time around. I can only assume they were hoping Aidy was going to break again. 
— Beck and Kyle are trying their best, but this just feels very flat, particularly when we get the retread about Beck telling Kyle a terrible secret. 
— “But why though?”—Mikey Day, 2016-present. 
— I can’t tell if Cecily breaks a few times or if that’s just the voice she’s using for the  character. 
— Yeah, this should have been cut at dress. The only reason my grade won’t be lower is because Beck and Kyle do try, and this never gets bad—just not worth a repeat.
— Thanks to Matt for reminding me this is actually brought back a third time for the Scarjo episode, where she played their sister—that one IS cut in dress. 
STARS: **

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE 
musical guest performs “Championships”

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— Blue: Great piano in this song, and I’m very happy with how high the bass is in the mix.
— Some heartfelt lyrics here. Meek is performing them well.
— I’m always down for some tasteful cymbal crashes.
— There wasn’t much variation to that song, but it was well-performed and I enjoyed it.
STARS: ***½ 

I LOVE MY DOG
(PED), (CRR), (host), (KET) express love for their dogs in hip-hop video

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— Written by Will Stephen and Steven Castillo.
— I like the fakeout of thinking the guys are talking about the sexy women posing in the video, only for them to look increasingly confused until they and we realize the rap is about dogs. 
— Chris is, as always, smoother and more reliable, but I do sort of enjoy Pete’s rap about loving dogs in spite of being allergic to them (“Hype…Hype…Hypoallergenic”). 
— Kind of surprising Meek Mill isn’t in this, but no big loss.
— I tend to use this and “The UES” airing on the same night as an example of just how heavily this concept has overtaken the show, regardless of the host—I don’t think anyone would have expected seeing James McAvoy star in not one, but two hip-hop pre-tapes. 
— With that said, I do enjoy James’ role as the one who is so consumed with his love for dogs that all the other men just look on awkwardly. Great use of energy from him. 
— Kenan is very sweet as he goes on about his dog, complete with the pleading way he delivers “some say I rescued her but she really rescued me.”
— “RESPECT THIS DOG!” and “I’ve got shooters in the streets!” crack me up.
— Initially I was disconcerted seeing Ego doing thankless extra work in the back, but was thrilled to see her take over the last third of the song. Her bunny-loving rap is a frenetic tone shift, leading to fun visual images like “bunny on money” and wordplay like “I don’t give a shih tzu…a shih tzu.” 
— Ego never gets into as many hip-hop pieces as Chris, Pete, or even Kenan, but she makes her mark every time. It’s fitting, in that perpetually eerie SNL way, that she has her first moment in the same episode where Leslie has something of a defining goodbye piece. 
— I enjoyed this more than I had remembered. Everyone shines, and the weirder flourishes from Castillo and Stephen give us a hint of how even samey concepts can seem fresh with new voices. Unfortunately, I have just seen too many hip-hop pre-tapes over the last 10-15 years of episodes with this approach to appreciate it as much as I could have. 
STARS: ***½ 

NEW ORLEANS VACATION
(host) & Deirdre annoy friends with talk of their trip to New Orleans

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— Another recent recurrer, which is fairly out of the norm for modern SNL.
— In the first sketch, Aidy/Beck and Kenan/Melissa are seated together, and it feels implied that Kenan and Melissa have kids. This time, it’s Melissa/Beck and Aidy/Kenan, with Melissa and Beck expecting a child. Not sure if there was some continuity mixup or if I am just reading too much into seating arrangements. 
— Heidi is vamping even more than she did the first time she played this part. I’m not one of those, “She’s supposed to be annoying!” type of fans, because if something annoys you, it just annoys you. I will say this character provides one of my favorite Heidi performances—generally I prefer her in quasi-dramatic material, but of all the times she has tried to go broad, for me this is the one where she manages to get the affectations in the right flavor of grating, rather than seeming like she’s trying too hard in something that doesn’t suit her. 
— The part where they claim you go “ooooh,” when bit by a “Nawlins” mosquito amuses me.
— In weaker hands, the constant reminders of “I. Lived. There,” could be irritating, but Kenan plays them just right.
— The first time around, Seth and Heidi were very much in-sync. James, on the other hand, tends to lounge back more, exuding charisma (and somehow making an absolutely hideous outfit look good). Oh, and trying not to break. 
— This is probably the first and the last time I will call breaking sexy, but the languid way James works through his struggles here is really something. The last time a male host unintentionally added those elements to a sketch was Peter Sarsgaard in the hotel room piece with Rachel Dratch as the voice on the TV, and he was reportedly drunk…
— The end (with Ego as their waitress) seems like it was cut short for time. 
— I can see where this sketch would not be to all tastes, but for me, it’s a bit of a guilty pleasure, successfully carried by the performers…a breezy, satisfying enough way to wind down the night. 
— These characters are brought back for the at-home finale, with the husband played by Martin Short. (SNL…the only place where Seth Meyers, James McAvoy, and Martin Short play the same role.) Seth’s is probably better written, and Martin’s has some good moments, but James’ is my favorite installment of the three.
STARS: ***

GOODNIGHTS

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DRESS REHEARSAL CUTS
— The dress report gives a rundown for two sketches cut from the episode—Melissa and James as Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, babbling political jargon instead of singing “Shallow,” and a sketch in a Japanese restaurant where diners have  to pick leaves off a naked woman (Kate) who talks about how she has to pass gas. I wish the Gaga sketch had made it to air, although Melissa will still have a brief moment in the sun with that impression soon. 

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Ryan McGee, probably my favorite reviewer of recent SNL seasons (aside from everyone here, and Stooge, of course), described James as “saving” this episode. I’m not sure I’d go that far, but I can’t argue that he’s the backbone of an episode which would otherwise just fall right into the patterns of many shows of recent years (good Update, good pre-tapes…the rest, wade through as best you can). This episode had so many similar scores I am tempted to call it “Two and a Half McAvoys,” but many of these sketches would have struggled to get to that rating without the consistent work from James. Honestly, I might go as far as saying he was the most purely charismatic host since his fellow Scotsman Alan Cumming. I’m just sorry that he had so many recurring and retread sketches, but he at least got a good dramatic part in Mr. H. 
— There are other highlights in this episode, chief among them “The UES”, which is probably the main reason I wanted to review this episode, even more than wanting to talk about James. I don’t really think I can sell that one more than just watching it does, but I did my best.
— Due to Pirro and Cathy Anne, this is also an important episode in showing what a consistently strong season Cecily has even when not given big sketches, and how she manages to really break through with viewers after being something of a third behind Aidy and Kate.
— I have mixed feelings about hosts dominating episodes—it can be enthralling to watch, but can also expose the shakiness surrounding them (this seems to pop up with large cast seasons, as 19 and 20 also lived or died by hosts), and can shut out cast members (I blame the dominant male hosts of seasons 44 and 45 for one of the reasons why Alex Moffat disappeared more and more from the canvas). In this case, I decided to put my mixed feelings aside and just enjoy his work. 44 is such an aimless season, and aimless seasons very much need solid hosts to keep them remotely on track. They got one here. I still wish we’d gotten more. Unlikely as it is, given how few host more than once, and the current pandemic issues, I’d love to see James host again.

MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” FROM THIS EPISODE, COMPLETE WITH SCREENCAPS

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
The UES
Mr. H
Weekend Update
I Love My Dog
New Orleans Vacation
Mr. Tumnus
Tucker Carlson Tonight
Charmin
Monologue
Air Traffic Control
Virgin Hunk
Another Brothers

TOMORROW
The first-time hosts continue as Halsey gives us season 44’s double-duty episode. Reviewed by the one and only Vax Novier

January 19, 2019 – Rachel Brosnahan / Greta Van Fleet (S44 E10)

by Carson

DEAL OR NO DEAL
Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) does Deal Or No Deal with government shutdown

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— Alright, so they’re trying something a little different with their Trump cold open. Credit there, I guess.
— Weird choice to insert Kenan’s Steve Harvey impression in place of Howie Mandel. Really, NO ONE could do a Mandel? Or is Kenan’s Harvey really THAT precious to the show? Other than the Tracy Morgan Family Feud sketch, I can’t recall a Harvey sketch that really stands out to me (OK, to be fair, I had completely forgotten about Chance The Rapper’s 2017 edition. Now, I’m not going to shy away from the fact that it completely escaped my memory, but I will say that a recent re-watch confirms that Anthony’s review is pretty bang-on. It’s a good one)..
— Oh my gosh, the government shutdown—another blip on the radar of Trump-era calamities. Totally forgot about this.
— Kate is aggressively doing the camera glare with her Nancy Pelosi impression. This is a tick of Kate’s I could live without. The camera making a cut to “Kenan reacts” only underlines the limitations of this trope.
— I still dig Alex’s Chuck Schumer.
— The sponsorship portion makes me long for Jack Handey’s fake sponsors.
— Ugh, I hate the “interrupting a person when they’re about to curse” gag. It always seems so cheesy to me.
— Melissa does a terrific AOC.
— Pete makes his first appearance in the wake of his 2018 breakdown. More on that later.
— I appreciate that there was a little more clarity in the writing here, though I wouldn’t suggest anything was particularly hilarious. It trudged along inoffensively enough.
STARS: **½

MONOLOGUE
host, CES, KET, AIB musically resolve to have fun, but worries intrude

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— Cecily jumps in and we’re off to the races with…a musical monologue. *sigh*
— Ah, the “interrupted by socio-political insecurities” bit is not really that great. I think playing off the humor of fear and despair yields diminishing returns. Think of SNL during the Bush years. Whatever heat the anxiety of the moment had created was gone before the end of Bush’s second term. The Trump era just quadrupled the speed of fatigue. This feels fatigued.
— Fun walk-on by Kyle.
— The comedic conceit is pretty leaden and the forced charm is, at this point of the era, nigh-unbearable.
STARS: *

ACTION 9 NEWS AT FIVE
news report features name-change candidates affected by earthquake

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— Ha, I enjoyed Kate’s anchor’s cheeky attempt at a joke. Mikey pointing out its inappropriateness is very “Mikey explains.”
— Oh man, with that belaboured setup, we’ve got a funny names sketch—the lowest rung of the sketch comedy ladder. Your mileage may vary. Unfortunately, mine doesn’t.
— Brosnahan reads off a list of unfunny names that concludes with “Morgan Mindy,” which Pete follows up by saying “Nanu nanu” in the background. Pete’s entire delivery here is weirdly off-putting and I swear on my life that reference had to be explained to him before he performed it. Then again, why are we even doing Mork & Mindy references in 2019?
— I’m much preferring the game of Kate trying to insert punny comments.
— The “A. Hitler” switch-up is decent.
— The N-word bit didn’t really fly with the audience.
— OK, Kate’s character being named “Carol Kumdungeon” actually worked for me. Not a pun, just a funny name.
— So yeah, this is actually bottom of the barrel stuff, but points to the writers for including a couple table scraps of decent comedy.
STARS: **

LEAVE ME ALURN
prospect of cremains dissuades unwanted male attention

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— This is quite the premise. Feels like a bit of a stretch, but like so many filmed pieces, the execution is overcoming the material.
— Ha, loved Alex’s response to all the women having urns.
— The back spikes add-on was a bit heavy-handed, but I think the premise there is stronger than the urn.
STARS: ***

MILLENNIAL MILLIONS
Baby Boomers prevent contestants’ financial security

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— I tire of game show parodies, but this premise has some teeth to it.
— Lots of air time for Pete tonight.
— Great stupid song by Aidy explaining Baby Boomers.
— I love that the challenge is that the Millennial has to listen to the Boomer complain without saying anything.
— Kenan’s Gen-X comments are kind of allowing the writers to have things both ways. That said, some of his comments are quite funny.
— This is a minor quibble, but an issue with this era is that SNL sometimes makes its point a little too obtusely. I think that’s what’s keeping this very good sketch from being top-tier.
— Pretty quick ending to this. I don’t think it hurt anything, but I could have tolerated another beat or two.
— A strong piece with some nice digs at the generational divide.
STARS: ****

THE RAUNCHIEST MISS RITA
the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (host) mentors (LEJ)

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— Our inevitable Marvelous Mrs. Maisel parody of the night.
— It’s Leslie as an anachronistic Def Jam style comic. The conceit and the execution are exactly what you’d expect, complete with strategically placed bleeps to let you know how wildly raunchy Miss Rita is. It’s all a bit of a snooze.
— Weird seeing Aidy play Alex Borstein. This is the second time an SNL cast member has played a MadTV alumni after Chris played Jordan Peele in the Sterling K. Brown episode.
— Leslie drops the stock one-liner: “I bet your dick is so small you piss on your nuts.” They bleeped “piss” which kind of surprises me.
— The ending with Kenan’s Cosby was pretty ho-hum, which I guess is in keeping with the rest of the piece.
— This was about as perfunctory a Leslie sketch as you’re going to get. In that way, she’s in her element here, I guess. But none of the beats really made me laugh. Even her supposed “raunchiness” was a lot of bleeped “mothafuckaaaas,” which is nothing much.
STARS: **

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Black Smoke Rising”

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— Blue: What the hell is Josh Kiszka wearing?
— That is NOT the voice I expected to come out of this man. No wonder everyone compares Greta Van Fleet to Led Zeppelin.
— Nice guitar tone.
— Josh’s low notes at the end of the “woah-oh-oh-oh-yeah” phrase makes me curious to hear him sing a song entirely in that register, instead of relying on his identity as Knockoff Robert Plant.
— This is actually a pretty strong chorus—I like the introduction of the major chord to give it that uplifting, hopeful feeling.
— Josh might sound like Robert Plant, but he sure ain’t acting like him. His stage presence is rather awkward. It can be difficult to hit the right notes while moving around, so at least he’s concentrating on his vocal performance, but I’d like to see him use the space a bit more.
— That “wave the microphone near your mouth” thing that Josh is doing is a valid technique to cause vocal distortion, especially if you want to be more “organic” and not rely on added effects. However, that doesn’t mean I’m not laughing watching him do it.
— As if they couldn’t get more Zeppelinesque, the first couple notes of Jake Kiszka’s guitar solo sounded like the first few notes of the solo in “Stairway to Heaven.”
— More unintended laughs from Jake & Sam Kiszka strutting around the stage. They’re sure having fun.
— Ending seemed a little hesitant.
STARS: ***

WEEKEND UPDATE
battle-toughened Elizabeth Warren (KAM) will fight to become president

plot elements of The Mule left PED & John Mulaney [real] incredulous

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— Colin’s opening run on the government shutdown was exceedingly mild, but Michael had some funny comments (“That speech sucked”).
— There’s a pretty distinct contrast between Colin and Michael here. Michael is delivering some fun rants, while Colin is just delivering warmed-over Seth Meyers jokes.
— YAS KWEEN! It’s Kate’s Elizabeth Warren!
— OK, sarcasm aside, Kate can still bring the energy. It’s all very “Kate” but she hits the back of the room better than anyone else.
— “America, you will do everything you possibly can to not vote for a woman for president. All I am asking is that you let me be that woman.”
— Ha, Colin’s “Super Blood Wolf Moon” joke is great.
— I love how Michael throws Colin under the bus. Also, his Fleshlight joke is amazing.
— Uh-oh, here comes the now-infamous Pete Davidson/John Mulaney two-hander following Pete’s suicide threat.
— Pete already seems somewhat…off…in his performance here. I think having to address his recent troubles would be difficult—even if he’s doing it in a more sideways manner—but there’s a heightened manic agitation to his giggly performance here.
— Introducing Mulaney as the bastion of sobriety has, uh, not aged great.
— Yikes, Pete is really giving a self-consciously jittery performance.
— Some OK lines here about Andy Garcia and Pete smuggling drugs up his ass, but the rhythm of this piece is a bit much for me.
— Pete’s performance here is just incredibly distracting and disconcerting. This seems like the very height of the “Pete’s just not that into the show” era. We await another low point later this season.
— Overall, a decent Update with some strong individual jokes, but the Pete/Mulaney piece really left a bad taste in my mouth.
STARS: **½

TABITHA
videos show men react accordingly when shamed like dogs

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— I know it’s a daytime talk show parody, but I couldn’t help but find it funny that the audience actually sincerely applauded when Leslie announced that her fake book made the New York Times Bestseller list.
— Funny enough concept of equating men and dogs, especially with the male cast members actually taking on canine qualities (ie, Kenan standing in the corner, Mikey shamefully avoiding eye-contact).
— Decent escalation with Cecily scolding Beck for having a secret family.
— This moved by pretty quick but played its concept out decently. Not exactly a laugh-out-loud piece, but a sturdy filler.
STARS: ***

KOOL-AID
taking Gillette’s lead, Kool-Aid promotes social responsibility

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— Great visuals for the old Kool-Aid ad. There’s something about it that reminds me of Brigsby Bear, Kyle’s excellent film.
— Pretty clever angle to take on those hectoring Gilette ads.
— The sight of Beck running in his red jumpsuit with his stained lips all puffed out is really funny.
— Hilarious inclusion of Colin.
— Ha, now Michael’s getting in on the fun. Figures, he wrote the sketch.
— The piece didn’t quite explode of the screen the way I’d hoped, but this was a very solid parody.
STARS: ****

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “You’re The One”

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— Blue: Jake has switched over to an acoustic… looks like Greta Van Fleet are adhering to the “one upbeat rocker and one sensitive, lowkey song to display our versatility” rule of SNL.
— Huh, this acoustic number is actually more upbeat than I thought it might be.
— Oh my god, I feel bad for constantly laughing at this band but Josh’s scream came out of nowhere and killed me.
— Nice display of mic-sharing between Jake and Josh, although Jake’s vocals really aren’t audible.
— Man, I promise I’ll stop making fun of this band soon, but… Josh’s wordless high vocals sound like a theremin.
— The use of an organ on this song is really bringing the 70’s rock vibe, and I appreciate that.
— I like the high, fast strums of the acoustic guitar on the outro.
— So, if Greta Van Fleet are intended to kickstart the revival of rock music… I understand why folks are saying this, and I’m honestly glad that this band is out there doing their thing, and that they’ve got an audience for what they do. But I don’t know if this will kickstart anything. I genuinely don’t think their music is bad—I’ve just heard it a hundred and one times, and I would prefer to see innovation over obvious derivation. (Or maybe I just don’t care much for Led Zeppelin, anyway.)
STARS: ***

KEN’S INSTAGRAM
(host) & other Barbie interns suggest captions for Ken’s Instagram

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— The return of the clueless Barbie interns. These are sturdy little joke machines. SNL usually does quite well with depicting stupid people (save for the Trump stuff).
— When the interns incorrectly guess which Instagram account they would be providing input on despite Kenan and Cecily making it abundantly clear, I love that Pete quickly adds a guess of Cecily’s character’s name. The audience didn’t laugh, but it was a terrific delivery.
— Funny wallet/cellphone confusion.
— I’m never quite as crazy about the overly intense characters that the hosts are required to play. This one is really no different.
— I wouldn’t say this sputtered or anything, but the whole of the sketch was merely OK.
STARS: **½

GOODNIGHTS

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IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Like so many post-Christmas break episodes, this was a whole lot of nothing. Rachel Brosnahan was often sidelined in these largely innocuous sketches and was merely fine when given a chance to get out of first gear. The off-stage drama surrounding Pete Davidson at this time also influences some of this energy, capping off with a really troubling Update feature.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Millennial Millions
Kool-Aid
Tabitha
Leave Me Alurn
Deal Or No Deal
Ken’s Instagram
Weekend Update
The Raunchiest Miss Rita
Action 9 News At Five
Monologue

TOMORROW
John tackles James McAvoy/Meek Mill

December 15, 2018 – Matt Damon / Mark Ronson & Miley Cyrus (S44 E9)

by Anthony

IT’S A WONDERFUL TRUMP
Trump (Alec Baldwin)’s election loss improves everything

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— An It’s A Wonderful Life parody, huh? I guess it is the Christmas show. It should be noted Season 20 already went to this well with the Newt Gingrinch parody “It’s a Wonderful Newt”, which, despite the season it’s in, is actually a pretty solid sketch. Certainly a more memorable sketch than this at least, a sketch I can barely recall outside of vaguely disliking it in the way I do pretty much all Trumpwin opens. Opens that, by the way, have sunk to such depths season fucking 20 is outshining them.  
— My fellow reviewer John points out that Season 15, a season I haven’t seen (I’ve only really seen the Carvey/Hartman/Hooks era in streams, which I know I need to rectify) also used this format in a Cold Open for their John Goodman episode. So we’re really going back to the well here. 
— By the way, I’ve luckily avoided Trumpwin himself in my episodes I’ve covered up to this point. Guess my good fortune couldn’t last forever. 
— The first line out of Trumpwin’s mouth: “I don’t think I can do this anymore.” And considering his next line is “I might finally eat a salad and explode” – I’m right there with him.
— At least we pretty much immediately get Kenan walking on here in the angel role. Hopefully he can provide some laughs.
— Already the writing here feels so lazy. While the Gingrich sketch used It’s a Wonderful Life as a way to skewer conservatives’ perceptions of liberals in an at least somewhat clever way, this is just shrugging and saying “hey, wouldn’t everything be great if Trump wasn’t president?” Which, yes, SNL, some things would undeniably be better, but you’re not going to convince me it’s going to give Kellyanne Conway a sudden moral compass. Some things are just beyond the suspension of disbelief. 
— Decent line with “So Hillary is president?” “Yes, in this reality all she had to do to win was visit Wisconsin once.” 
— Oh nice, the Trump sons. As per usual, they’re providing me with far more laughs than their father, even in their too brief appearance. 
— Wait, if everyone is better off, why is Melania married to Papa John? That’s only a step up from Trump in the way that gum on your shoe is a step up from shit on your shoe. 
— Ben Stiller shows up to be applauded and leave. 
— A “Pence is gay” joke, because why come up with a second joke for one of the most hateful men in the country?
— Ooh, a joke about Trump’s hair. Scathing. Wonder if this is what got the man himself to negatively tweet about this episode both as it was airing and then again months later when it was repeated, which was a real thing that happened because remember when we elected a moron president? 
— I do like Kavanaugh walking in ready to party, holding a calendar. Also liked his friends’ names: “Needledick Nick” and “No Means Yes Nate”.
— Robert De Niro gets 20 uninterrupted seconds of applause for his walk on, which is longer than he can usually get into his cameos without flubbing a line.
— Predictable ending with Trump not learning his lesson. 
— The way Alec presents the picture of Mueller’s grandson when doing the intro makes me wonder if the kid in the photo is his nephew or something. 
— As is often the case with Trumpwin opens, this was a big batch of nothing with some stupid sprinkled in for good measure.
STARS: *½

MONOLOGUE
host talks about his family’s history of watching SNL, toasts moms & dads

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— Damon mentions this is his second time hosting, after his previous stint hosting the Season 28 premiere, but thankfully avoids the tired joke of “they liked me so much they waited 16 years to ask me back” and instead goes with the funnier “that’s like 5 Jason Bournes ago.”
— Funny quick bit with Beck.
— I always find it charming when hosts tell stories of watching the show as a kid, like Damon’s doing here. 
— A cute punchline to Matt’s story. This was a kind of slight monologue but Matt came off very charming here and made it work. 
STARS: ***

WESTMINSTER DADDY SHOW
hot middle-aged men are judged a la purebred dogs

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— I can see where this premise would make some groan, but this is just dumb enough that I can get with it.
— Interesting choice to have Damon play a host, instead of one of the ‘daddies’. 
— Aidy’s inspection of Beck’s “West Palm Golf Daddy” is really funny. 
— Alex and Kenan are a lot of fun together here. Makes me wish we saw this pairing more often.
— Ah, now Damon is getting involved in the competition. Guess that’s why he wasn’t one of the initial ‘daddies’.
— Love Damon’s galloping entrance. 
— Funny casual reveal that Kate’s character has no name.
— This was a fun little sketch, with everyone (besides Ego & Melissa, in typically thankless roles) getting a good bit of business to perform. I feel like the descriptive lines for the daddies could have used a little more sharpening as none of them stood out as too well observed or memorable. They were solid, just not strong enough to really push this over into classic territory. 
— This was a piece James Anderson co-wrote with Anna Drezen, once again showing he generally works best for me without Kent Sublette. 
— Apparently a sequel to this was cut from the Eddie Murphy episode. Probably a good call, this is a fun premise but I don’t see the need to return to this well. 
STARS: **** 

BEST CHRISTMAS EVER
(host) & (CES) fondly recap stressful family day

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— The second of these sugarcoated memories sketches, after “The Day You Were Born” from Amy Schumer’s season 43 episode. These are always fun, though the type of thing that feels more enjoyable if you’re actually a parent yourself.
— Haha, the 5-6 AM Christmas wakeup. Sorry Mom and Dad, I definitely put you through a couple of those myself.
— Mikey as a Trump supporting relative is relatable to 2018, but I feel like they could have thought of a more specific or interesting detail to represent that than “MAGA hat”. 
— Love Cecily putting her cigarette out in her glass of wine. 
— I’m with Carson on the Hallmark endings to these pieces. Damon wearing the gift his kids got him was already a sweet little touch at the end of this (that actually felt genuine); we absolutely didn’t need one of those. 
— I’d call this one of the weaker of these sugar coated memories pieces, with the Schumer and Murphy ones both being much stronger in my opinion. This one rarely felt like it got past “cute”. 
STARS: *** 

CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS 
flawed ornaments have been relegated to the back of the Christmas tree

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— This is certainly an interesting concept. This has the potential to be admirably out there, or to be super lame, or to never get past “cute” like the last sketch. Let’s see. 
— Kenan’s whole monologue was solid and provided some decent laughs. 
— Pretty funny that Damon is playing an old promotional ornament for Good Will Hunting. Though I don’t love him immediately explaining that it’s weird Good Will Hunting would have a Christmas ornament, since the movie has nothing to do with the holiday. This was another Seiday piece (they also write those sugar coated memories pieces), which makes sense, as explaining why their jokes/premises are funny is one of my main bugaboos with those two. 
— Damon makes a joke about how the Weinsteins produced his movies, because why not have your cake and eat it too?
— Interesting seeing Kate play an earlier version of Guiliani (note that I said ‘interesting’, not ‘funny’.)
— Yea this is losing me a bit as it goes. I like the central idea of a bunch of misfit ornaments, but I feel like we’re focusing more on easy laughs like Mikey’s Harry Potter’s wand looking like a penis, or the aforementioned Weinstein and Guiliani jokes, rather than serving the central premise in any real creative ways. 
— Okay, Aidy’s perpetually-in-agony macaroni…thing created by one of the kids made me laugh.
— And I love Cecily as the burnt out angel that’s been driven fully mad at this point. 
— Not sure why they keep calling Beck’s drunk Santa “Fish”. 
— I wanted to like this a lot more than I did, but there were enough interesting touches here that it still worked.
STARS: ***½  

OSCAR HOST AUDITIONS
celebrities audition to fill the emcee vacancy at the 91st Academy Awards

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— Well here’s a time capsule. Not only because it’s referencing the Kevin Hart Oscar scandal, but also because I feel like we may have officially moved on from award shows as a society since this aired…
— Ego starts this with a Tiffany Hadish impression where – well at least the energy is solid. 
— Is it just me, or is Kate sounding a bit more like the Vancome Lady than Michelle Wolf here?
— They didn’t even really give Damon’s Chris Hemsworth a joke.
— Aidy’s Hannah Gadsby is pretty funny. I feel like, outside of Hemsworth, we’re getting slightly more obscure impressions here than we typically do in these pieces, which I appreciate.
— Pete makes his first and only sketch appearance of the night here. This was the same day as Pete made an Instagram post in which he heavily implied he was suicidal. I’m sure the last thing Pete wants is some rando on the internet dredging up one of the darkest times of his life for his silly little review, so I’ll just say I’m very happy to see Pete seems to be in a much better place now and leave it at that.
— Interesting seeing Cecily play Rachel Brosnahan, as she would end up being the host of the following episode after the break.
— Melissa’s Sarah Silverman is always fun, though, as she points out, the real Silverman said way too much controversial stuff in the past to host at this point.
— Chris’s Kanye scene fell pretty flat. I think modern Kanye is a bit like Trump where the real guy is too ridiculous to be able to mock very effectively.
— Speaking of time capsules, a reference to Roseanne’s racist Tweet, and the fact that she defended it by saying she was on Ambien, another thing too ridiculous to properly parody. 
— Now we’re making fun of McConaughey’s Oscar speech from 2013? That’s less “time capsule” and more…I don’t even know what but it definitely feels like filler. Then again, these impression parades are pretty much filler by design.
— Yea Kate, use Ellen to call out Hart’s homophobic jokes. That’s gonna age real well….
— These pieces never really get past “serviceable” to me, and I’m not sure if this one even fully got to that.
STARS: **½ 

JINGLE BELLS
(CES) & (host) banter as she sings “Jingle Bells” a la Barbra Streisand

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— I love Kyle’s goofy face in that third screenshot above. 
— Hmm, a Cecily lounge act sketch. We’ll see how this goes. Surprisingly, this had no Anderlette involvement, and was written by Cecily herself with Bryan Tucker. 
— This sketch is apparently mocking this cover of “Jingle Bells” by Barbara Streisand. Like I said a couple times in the last sketch, sometimes the real thing is just too funny to parody. 
— While at this point in her tenure Cecily is still a very reliable player, you can definitely start to feel that we’ve seen a lot of what she can do already. This will culminate in her frankly awful year throughout most of season 46, though we’ll get there when we get there. 
— Boy, there’s really nothing here that’s working for me. Cecily is performing the material well enough, but this is just “Jingle Bronx Beat”. I actually kind of like the Bronx Beat sketches, but sadly that enjoyment hasn’t made its way over to this sketch. 
— Oh yea, and Damon’s here as Cecily’s effeminate, promiscuous ex lover. I could comment further on that, but I feel like that description alone might be enough to let you know why his lines don’t work. 
— Again, Cecily’s certainly performing the song well, but it just never feels the sketch has a purpose to exist beyond that. Honestly outside of that silly face Kyle made nothing in here made me as much as smirk, which is a shame. 
STARS: *½

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE 
musical guests performs “Nothing Breaks Like A Heart”

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— Anthony: Boy, between Teyana Taylor in the Driver ep and Miley here, my reviews are starting to get kinda NSFW. My next one is the Sandler ep, I wonder if there’s a moment I forget where Opera Man drops trou or something.
— Blue: Nice silver suit Miley’s wearing. And from the looks of it, she’s not wearing much else.
— Interesting drum pattern.
— I like the way the verse’s melody is constructed, rising from low to high via an interval of thirds.
— Getting a cool country/western vibe from Mark’s finger-picking.
— The occasional reverb on Miley’s vocals isn’t doing it for me.
— Those strings on the second verse are really adding to the western vibe.
— The screen projections are washing over me. I could take or leave them.
— I actually enjoyed that song. I’ve always found Miley’s voice pretty obnoxious so I would prefer to hear a different singer perform it, but the material was solid.
STARS: ***

WEEKEND UPDATE
Where’s Wes? (MID)- Hawaii location is accidentally divulged immediately

archetypal movie boxer’s (host) girlfriend Angel (HEG) has a change of heart

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— Interesting seeing a clapter line from Che. Feel like he’s typically above that kind of thing.
— Jost mocks Trump’s inauguration turnout as if that hadn’t happened almost 2 years prior to this episode. Your first line was about how much Trump news there’s been this week, why are you already resorting to punchlines from 2 seasons ago?
— Hmm, outside of Che’s line about Trump’s “alleged affairs” being a nice way to say “raw doggin’ pornstars”, none of these Update jokes have worked much for me so far.
— Mikey brings back his “Where’s Wes” segment from the Weekend Update summer shows. It’s a decent bit – basically one of those Astronaut Jones type sketches, where the joke is that the theme song’s much longer than the actual sketch – but unlike Astronaut Jones, this is absolutely not something I need to see more than once.
— Solid laugh from Jost commenting on the unfortunate transition from a joke about boy scouts to a joke about a “Sex Island”. This leads to another funny moment, when, after Jost jokes about Che going on a vacation to said island, you can hear someone in the audience loudly go “WOOOO!” This causes Che to laugh and go “see you there!”
— The return of Angel, Heidi’s boxer girlfriend character. This was solid enough the first time, but is another prime example to me of a character that doesn’t need to come back (though, admittedly, there’s at least a little more here than Where’s Wes).  
— Heidi’s performing this well as always, but this is doing nothing new for me.
— I did laugh at Angel’s sister living on “Donnie Wahlberg Way”.
— Okay, now we get a nice change of pace, with Damon coming out as the boxer Angel’s dating. 
— This is definitely more fun with Damon. I especially love him telling her that she’s pregnant. This was a solid way for this character to go out. 
— Che sets up a story about a frog study that I assumed was just there so he could be interrupted, only for it to actually be a story about a frog study.
— Yes! We get our first of Jost & Che’s beloved bi-annual joke swaps here. 
— Classic moment when Che has Jost read a particularly racist joke about the Nigerian President, followed by Che reacting in fake shock. This would go on to be a defining feature of these joke swaps.
— Hysterical moment when one of Jost’s jokes starts with a declaration that what he’s about to say isn’t on cards is coming straight from the heart.
— This Update certainly had a rough start, but the momentum kept picking up as it went, culminating in the wonderful depravity of the joke swap. 
STARS: **** 

WEEZER
at a holiday dinner, (host) & (LEJ) butt heads over Weezer

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— Talk about being on a high. We go from the joke swap to this, one of my favorite sketches of this whole era. 
— This was co-written by Eli Coyote Mandel (along with Alan Linic and Stephen Castillo). As I mentioned in my Driver review, the 2 sketches I’m aware of that Mandel got on air are both personal favorites, and it’s a real shame we couldn’t get more from him.
— Another similarity to the Driver ep I covered is that both sadly barely feature Leslie even though this is her 5th season. At least she gets a meaty role here.
— Part (a lot) of me wonders if this sketch hits as hard if you don’t care about Weezer. To briefly put it in perspective Weezer is a bit like the SNL of bands: everyone has their own opinions on when it was last good / if it’s still good, and often you find yourself wondering if it was ever any good, or if you just loved it so much because you found it when you were 13. Also, much like SNL, most people find it strange that this is the thing you’re so devoted to. 
— I love the subtle joke that Matt is dressed up to look like Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo. 
— After Matt says he’s “ride or die”, I love Cecily’s delivery of “For Weezer?”
— Matt’s character is really barking up the wrong tree trying to get people to appreciate modern Weezer by recommending fucking Raditude & Pacific Daydream (White & EWBAITE are where it’s at, for those curious).
— Love Leslie’s delivery of “Bitch, Rivers don’t understand what Rivers is going through!”
— The progression of the argument here is simply wonderful to watch. I feel like even if you know nothing about Weezer, you can appreciate this simply due to how well Leslie and Matt are playing it. 
— One of my favorite exchanges ever here: “You know what band I always liked? Yellowcard.” “No offense Tammy, but drink my blood.” “Good Lord, is that a Weezer reference?” “No, that’s a Todd original!” 
— Good reveal that Damon is Heidi’s ex and wasn’t even invited.
— Overall, this was a perfectly silly sketch. 
STARS: *****

COP CHRISTMAS 
in a bar, (KYM) excuses fellow cops’ teasing & genuine mistreatment

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— Looks like Alec’s sticking around for an actual sketch this time, like he’ll occasionally do after a Trumpwin open. Apparently he’s taken over a role here originally meant for Pete. I have to wonder if the character wasn’t originally the police chief when Pete was playing him, as that seems like a bit of a stretch.  
— I like the reveal that Kenan actually is having sex with Kyle’s sister.
— Decent premise here. None of these reveals are providing huge laughs, but this is chugging along amiably enough with a few chuckles in there. 
— “Any one of us could have shot his wife at that wedding.”
STARS: *** 

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
PED introduces musical guest

musical guest & Sean Ono Lennon [real] perform “Happy Xmas”

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— Blue: Pete introduces Mark & Miley. Given how he was understandably written out of the live show, this serves as a way of letting people know he was okay in the aftermath.
— A take on a John Lennon classic, with John’s son Sean himself sitting in on guitar. Let’s see how this goes.
— Miley’s sounding pretty good here.
— Not digging this drum pattern.
— Sean’s vocals are mixed MUCH too low.
— Say what you will about Miley (and I already have), but at least she’s got a good sense of pitch.
— I like the high backing harmonies from the singer in the back.
— Miley’s breath support could be better on the “war is over” part.
— Love the harmonization on the final chord.
— Nothing beats the original, but this was a harmless, inoffensive version that I’m sure I’ll forget in a day.
STARS: ***

HAPPY CHRISTMAS BRITAIN 
Theresa May (KAM) is reviled & beleaguered

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— Hmm, hoping this isn’t another “yas qween” fest dedicated to a female politician from Kate, especially considering Theresa May of all people doesn’t deserve that kind of hero worship.
— Damon’s doing a generic posh English accent here that doesn’t particularly sound like Cameron to me.
— Now here’s Aidy doing a walk-on as Elton John. At least it’s not Horatio…
— Speaking of “yas qween” they actually have Theresa say that to Elton. Elton does immediately call it out, but I’m still not a fan. 
— This sketch is about how much people hate Theresa May, but the sketch itself seems afraid to comment on if that’s justified or not. Which leads me to wonder what the point of this is anyway. 
— Interesting Mikey’s played both Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort in this ep.
— Mikey’s Voldemort bit apparently went on longer in dress, but what makes it to air ends up being a big bag of blah.
— This didn’t really work for me. Comedically it wasn’t very funny, and satirically it felt muddled at best. 
STARS: **

GOODNIGHTS

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CUT FOR TIME: GLITTER LITTER AUTOMATIC LITTER FACTORY
Glitter Litter Automatic Litter Factory turns cat droppings into jewelry

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— This is a cut sketch where cat poop is turned into jewelry. Now I can describe to you more things that happen within it, but that’s about as much thought as I want to expend on this.
— You can turn the poop into different kinds of jewelry. This is what we in the comedy business call heightening. (“Heightening” is when you introduce the set up for a joke, and then run through several variations of the same joke without ever expanding upon or increasing the absurdity of the main joke, right?)
— Speaking of hitting the same beats, we get the joke where someone offers to buy the poop jewelry with their own money twice.
— I guess Damon’s ok as the detached spokesman, by the way.
— Now Damon’s putting the poop in his mouth. Ho ho, that’s not where that goes.
— I’m not inherently against poopoocaca in a sketch like some (I mean, my first 5 for this project was Undercover Office Potty), but sketches like this—where the only joke is “shit”—help me understand why people are so against these types of pieces.
RATING: *

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A solid Christmas show, for the most part. Not everything hit, and there was only one sketch I’d really call above average, but there was enough enjoyable material here to make this easily one of the strongest and most consistent episodes of this troubled first half of the season. As for Damon, he was game throughout the night and remained consistently likable. 

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
Weezer
Westminster Daddy Show
Weekend Update
Christmas Ornaments 
Best Christmas Ever
Cop Christmas
Monologue
Oscar Host Auditions
Happy Christmas Britain 
It’s a Wonderful Trump 
Jingle Bells
(CFT: Glitter Litter Automatic Litter Factory)

TOMORROW:
Carson takes a look at Rachel Brosnahan and a high school Zeppelin cover band

December 8, 2018 – Jason Momoa / Mumford And Sons (S44 E8)

by Carson

MUELLER VISITS ERIC
Robert Mueller (Robert De Niro) visits Eric Trump (ALM) at bedtime

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— If you’re going to do a Trump family opening, best to run with the bit with the highest batting average. Though that being said, I tend to prefer the Update commentaries from the Trump brothers.
— I must say, the dynamic between Alex and Mikey is really strong in these pieces.
— The “Say ‘stop’ when you don’t understand a word” bit was pretty fun. Honestly, I would have extended it a lot longer, considering where this sketch is leading…
— Robert De Niro, ladies and gentlemen…and look, he brought his “I’m watching you” Meet The Fockers eye point schtick with him.
— Man, Alex almost seems to be trying to telepathically will the Oscar winner through this.
— Kind of a painful applause line before we get to the disconcertingly slow LFNY.
— Love how Alex mispronounces “live” (a small joke repeated from the prior season). That seems like a sincere error De Niro would make.
— The first half was pleasant enough, but unsurprisingly the Mueller staff was a terrible drag.
STARS: **

MONOLOGUE
funky KET, LEJ, CRR tell host “Aqua Boogie” should be Aquaman theme song

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— Jason Momoa is an absurd looking human.
— “I am so muscular to be hosting Saturday Night HUGE!”
— A bit of an absurdist bent to the beginning of this monologue. Not hilarious, but promising.
— OK, time for the cast walk-ons. First Aidy with the stock and trade “flirting with the host” routine.
— Second, we have Chris (in his first live appearance since the Seth Meyers episode), Leslie and Kenan insisting that Parliament’s “Aqua Boogie” be Aquaman’s theme song. That’s a nothing premise, but I welcome any and all P-Funk references.
— Yeah, this monologue was a mess, but the “Aqua Boogie” performance was pretty fun. I’ll be generous with my grading.
STARS: ***½

ELF ON THE SHELF
Elf On The Shelf (host) dislikes monitoring a masturbating 13 year-old

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— I don’t know what it says about me that I saw this reveal coming from a mile away. Possibly this is the downfall of watching too much damn sketch.
— Still, this is being executed decently. Jason’s voice sounds really funny all high pitched. It almost gives him a Walkenesque delivery.
— I liked Jason talking about the moral ambiguity of masturbation.
— “Oh Scrabby, you spelled ‘Flashlight’ wrong.”
— There’s an odd specificity to the way Jason talks about his 13-year-old’s frustration with his body.
— The premise may have been predictable, but Jason really did quite well with his performance, giving the piece a little bit more nuance than I would have expected.
STARS: ****

GE BIG BOY APPLIANCES
overengineered for macho house husbands

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— Another mild premise, though SNL’s film crew always does well to inject these with energy.
— Nice visual of a riding vacuum cleaner. I’m actually pretty tickled by such a silly concept.
— Not a lot to write home about, but the piece delivered well enough.
STARS: ***

KHAL DROGO’S GHOST DOJO
dead Game Of Thrones characters visit (host)

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— Shit, I’m in trouble now. I’ve never seen Game Of Thrones. Though I’m a firm believer that the best parodies don’t actually require a working knowledge of the source material. I don’t know how many SCTV sketches blew me away before I was even aware of what they were making fun of. It can be done. 
— A talk show format seems like a bad omen.
— Jason kills Kenan’s character and then Kenan just pops back to life, saying that he was saved by a witch. I would complain about the inanity of the writing, but I guess that’s directly a reference to the source material.
— Beck stumbles a bit when he sits down, which makes Kenan, who seems very loose here, giggle.
— Jason dumps molten gold on Pete’s head and I’m totally lost. I know it’s another reference, so that’s on me. 
— The anachronistic jokes are pretty lame.
— Some stumbly performances in this one. It’s just as well though, there’s basically nothing here to begin with.
— Bowen Yang spotting! 
— The fake ads are pretty mild too.
— Kate as King Joffrey, doing a “Catch me outside” bit as this thing suddenly turns into a Maury parody.
— Listen, maybe this thing was great and it’s simply a matter of me being the exact wrong audience. Or maybe it really was the mess it appeared to be. I’m thinking it’s the latter. In the immortal words of Nathan Thurm: “Is it me? It’s them, right?”
— I’ll give it one star with a half star hedge.
STARS: *½

THEM TRUMPS
black version of First Family is modeled on Empire

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— A silly, slightly hacky premise, but in the right hands, this could smash.
— The names (Darius Trump, Malika) are all pretty good.
— Love the cut to the Darius Trump Country Hams.
— Fabulous Katt Williamsesque characterization from Kenan.
— Ha, OK, it’s just a blackout.
— I like the premise that the true reality of Trump is that if he were black, things would play out far differently—though this is in spite of the fact that Trump would go on to be impeached twice.
STARS: ****

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Guiding Light”

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— Blue: Interesting to see Marcus Mumford playing so high up the fretboard on his guitar.
— Good restrained energy so far.
— Huh, I thought the chorus would sound more explosive than that. This is fairly dialed back for Mumford & Sons.
— Great percussion entrance, and I love the clicking sound of the drumsticks against the side of the drum.
— Wish the harmony vocals were louder in the mix.
— Speaking of things that could be mixed louder, I have never heard such a quiet banjo. I can’t tell if there’s an effect put on it or if that’s just what a banjo sounds like at low volume.
— I like the blinking overhead lights.
— Do they need to have so many musicians onstage? The guitarist in the back doesn’t even look like he’s playing.
— Leave it to a synth buildup of all things to introduce that anthemic Mumford & Sons sound to this song.
— Overall… it was a Mumford & Sons song, you know exactly what you’re getting when it comes to them. Doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it.
STARS: ****

WEEKEND UPDATE
7th grader Carrie Krum’s (AIB) personal experiences color her travel tips

bidet fan MIC endorses having ads for the bathroom devices in the subway

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— The opening “Trump: Endgame” joke is a total throwaway, but also an indication that Jost/Che are not above Fey/Poehler groaners.
— Oh my gosh, Jost’s stock market joke got nothing. A very palpable nothing.
— All this Mueller Report material is a whole lot of counting eggs before they hatch.
— The debut of Aidy’s Carrie Krum character, which I’ve always enjoyed. Aidy seems really well-connected to the spirit of this character’s specificity.
— Love the “Aunt Nancy’s bra was on the couch” bit. Some guy in the audience really dug it too.
— “Mumford and Sons gave me a bunch of Sierra Mist.”
— Whoa, Michael’s bit about the old man who refuses to quit smoking hit a brick wall. I wouldn’t say Che/Jost are having an off night, but they’ve left a couple jokes completely dangling.
— Nice recovery from Che with his bit about Kevin Hart’s Oscar controversy.
— Ha, Che hops to the other side of Jost for an Update feature about bidets.
— “Shut up, Colin! You white…guy. It’s better when Leslie does it.”
— Fun commentary by Che and a strong recovery from some wobbly moments.
STARS: ****

A CHRISTMAS CAROL
extra spirit (host) confuses Ebenezer Scrooge (MID) on Christmas Day

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— Very iffy premise here with Momoa being an “extra” Christmas spirit.
— Momoa’s weird “extra” dance at the beginning was pretty lame, but I have to admit that Mikey’s confused “Ooooookay” response made me chuckle.
— Also, once again, Jason Momoa has a…disconcerting look. Like, I don’t want to, uh, aesthetic-shame anyone, but he is a baffling sight.
— Momoa’s aimless comedic vamping is only matched by the “Mikey explains” of it all.
— Momoa’s dancing makes Tiny Tim walk. I guess that’s something.
— I understand the play on “extra” as a part of the modern vernacular, but this sketch was rail thin. A weird excuse for Momoa to sort of approximate sexy dancing without much of an overriding joke. This was a pretty flagrant miss.
STARS: *½

DAY OF THE DORKS
in a 1980s movie, (host)’s hatred of dorks is violently self-destructive

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— A Revenge of the Nerds parody. Timely.
— Momoa is shirtless again I see. Looks like we’re applying the Matthew McConaughey model to this episode.
— That said, Momoa looks pretty funny (intentionally this time) and he’s giving a fun performance.
— Momoa breaking stuff because of his anger at dorks is only so-so, but I kind of like the reveal that his character has been going to college for eight years and still can’t read.
— Fun performance from Mooney as the dork on the inside.
— Whoa, and it just ends. Feels like this sketch could have actually, you know, led up to something. Some individual pieces were OK, if insubstantial, but the rushed finish really undermined any potential this piece might have had.
STARS: **

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Delta”

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— Blue: You can tell this is a Serious Song because the stage is dark.
— Enjoying Marcus Mumford’s voice here. Past live recordings I’ve seen of him didn’t impress me, but here he sounds just like he does on the band’s studio recordings.
— Okay, don’t love his voice on the chorus—it sounds like the engineer put some effect on it that doesn’t jive with me.
— Ooh, this section with the driving drumbeat and the crisp guitar deserves to be a song all its own.
— Lots of passion from the band here on the repetition of the chorus. Winston Marshall and the keyboardist are especially getting into it.
— Marcus’ high notes hurt my throat to hear, even though that rasp is naturally part of his timbre—there’s nothing wrong with his technique.
— I respect how the band obviously enjoyed cutting loose here, but I dunno, this song didn’t do much for me. Like I said, it’s Mumford & Sons, you know what to expect. 
STARS: ***

SLEIGH RIDE
Gemma & her latest meathead boyfriend (host) shake up a sleigh ride

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— Funny opening business from Kenan and Leslie.
— Ah. Gemma. OK.
— “I’m Gemma. I’m British. I got a new vagina today.”
— I have my issues with these sketches and how they’re written, but I am always impressed by the specificity of Cecily’s performance.
— Funny how they keep assuming Kenan and Leslie are siblings, but between Gemma, Momoa’s brutish character, Kenan and Leslie’s dynamic and now Mikey’s asexuality, this sketch is full of too many spices. I guess it’s nice that everyone has something to work with, but it’s hard to figure out what the central premise is.
— A very weak ending to a very muddled sketch. 
STARS: **

FIRST IMPRESSION
(BEB) plays hide & seek with fiancee’s (MEV) parents

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— Nice to see Melissa get a sizable role.
— Momoa actually looks decent playing an older man.
— Love Beck’s playful baby voice.
— I love that Momoa is immediately buying into the Hide & Seek game. I am very into when characters completely buy into the absurdity of their situation.
— “Follow the little giggles hehehehe!”
— Ha, great gag with Beck’s pie-in-the-face booby trap not actually working.
— Great shift with Beck now greased up and stuck behind the TV.
— Haha, I love that Beck’s motivation in greasing himself up and hiding was because he wanted to look cool in front of Melissa’s parents.
— Beck: “I’m sorry I ruined your clothes with my pie trap.” Heidi: “You didn’t.” Beck: “Crap!”
— He’s had a couple strange performance choices tonight, but Momoa is terrific here.
— I love the turn with Momoa sizing up Beck’s near-naked body.
— So many wonderful absurdist turns here and I love how the sketch never really tips its hand in terms of tone. Lots to really love.
— It should be noted that this sketch was written by Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin (Tim’s co-writer on I Think You Should Leave), which might go a ways in explaining why I enjoyed it so much.
STARS: *****

RUDOLPH’S BIG NIGHT
after his promotion by Santa (host), Rudolph (PED) bullies other reindeer

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— Pete with a wonderful pivot as he switches from sincere to menacing.
— I don’t find this hilarious, but I admire the, what is it, effort(?) that Pete is showing here.
— Pretty wild turn with Pete forcing Beck to suck his nose and then Santa shooting Beck.
— Pete covers his face either to giggle or to put his nose back in place.
— Far and away Pete’s best live performance up to this point in his tenure. A low hurdle, I know, but baby steps.
— I enjoyed the conceit, but I still think this could have been fleshed out a little more.
STARS: ***½

GOODNIGHTS

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IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
—Really up and down episode—from the writing to the host. Momoa was either excellent or just kind of weird. But when the episode worked, it was a lot of fun. Kind of a wash, I guess.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
First Impression
Them Trumps
Weekend Update
Elf On The Shelf
Rudolph’s Big Night
Monologue
GE Big Boy Appliances
Day Of The Dorks
Sleigh Ride
Mueller Visits Eric
A Christmas Carol
Khal Drogo’s Ghost Dojo

TOMORROW
Anthony takes on Matt Damon/Mark Ronson & Miley Cyrus, which includes one of my favorite sketches

December 1, 2018 – Claire Foy / Anderson .Paak (S44 E7)

by Kabir

TRUMP IN ARGENTINA
Mohammad bin Salman (FRA) joins Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) in Argentina

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— Balcony? Argentina? I think we all know where this is going: “Evita” parody. How original.
— Weak response to “What did Nationalism ever do to Europe?” No history buffs in the audience, I guess.
— Nice exit from Kate’s Giuliani.
— Ben Stiller returns as Michael Cohen. Yawn. His entire characterization is just looking mildly surprised.
— Even current cast members are now getting applause for their entrances. Is this “Full House”?
— Fred Armisen gets a nice hand for showing up as Mohammad bin Salman. That makes more sense, at least.
— As I watch this conversation, with its constant use of casual expressions like “dude,” I’m realizing something: since the Lewinsky scandal, SNL has tried really hard to make world leaders just seem like lovable slacker bros. Why?
— Meta reference to Baldwin’s real-life parking spot dispute. Reviewer Matt finds these references to Baldwin’s behavior to be irritating, and I have to agree.
— And now the obligatory “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina.” Double yawn.
— Another cold open that, today, is just a history lesson with a half-dozen humorous lines.
STARS: *½

MONOLOGUE
host relishes regal roles & is comfortable with USA dysfunction

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— Nice little digs at the UK’s problems in comparison to the USA, but not overtly hilarious.
— Her story about meeting the Queen kind of just came and went without any real payoff.
— The audience enjoyed the shoutout to women running for office.
STARS: **

NETFLIX COMMERCIAL
Netflix is determined to generate an infinite amount of content

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— After the first pitch from Heidi, I thought this was going to be repetitive. But I like the direction it’s taking with the different shows.
— I was dying at the entire “Family Matters” spoof.  Another masterful Redd-led Rad-era TV parody. That gets an extra half-star. I wish they had just fleshed that out to an entire trailer, sketch or short film. The other parodies are nice but not as good.
— Kind of a weak ending—felt like they could have gone bigger, and the audience seems to agree since the applause began with hesitation.
STARS: ***

MORNING JOE
Morning Joe (ALM)- Congress is easy for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (MEV)

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— I’m sure people are sick of this sketch, but I haven’t seen it enough to get burned out. And I always enjoy Kate’s and Alex’s imitations here.
— “Well, I’m black and my name is Elijah.” Nice call-out.
— Okay, now they’re going to the salacious and awkward flirt between Joe and Mika. I forgot about this. I think THIS is why people get tired of this sketch.
— Wow—Melissa’s AOC is perfect and also exaggerates just the right notes. It’s going to up my rating by a half-star.
— Oh, that was short. I wish there was more of AOC and less of the sexual tension. Even the audience is creeped out by this.
— And Foy’s section also was kind of boring. “Donald Trump is a werewolf.” That’s the best they could do? Disappointing.
STARS: **½

THE WAR IN WORDS
WWI soldier’s (MID) wife’s (host) letters distress him

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— Good production design on this. I hope that’s not the best part of the sketch, though.
— I love the escalation of this, like a one-sided text conversation.
— Now they’re adding in the photos, and then a third person (Kenan as Henry), building up the joke.
— Good acting from Mikey throughout.
— Nice addendum of “P.S. How is World War I going?” However, the joke about “why are you calling it World War I?” was already used in a Family Guy episode from 2016 (during a parody of “The Great Gatsby”).
— The end was, as I have said too many times in this review, weak.  A good joke with soft execution. Still, this was overall a pretty good sketch.
STARS: ****

DAD CHRISTMAS
kids (PED) & (host) don’t enjoy post-divorce holiday

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— I like Aidy’s look as the quintessential movie “guardian angel.”
— Oh, wait, this isn’t going to be a parody of A Christmas Carol.
— Nice details with “a part of Florida that does not have a beach” and “lady who wants to be called by her first name.” However, this is coming off more sad than funny.
— The audience is dead for this.
— Now Aidy’s doing “Last Christmas” by Wham! but with lyrics about “Dad Christmas.” It’s a bad sign when the only big laugh here is for the use of the word “bitch.”
— The song portion itself was decent; they should have just expanded that into a music video and dispensed with the rest.
— Apparently, I’m not alone in viewing this sketch as sad: it turns out that some backlash at the time led to NBC scrubbing this from YouTube. However, it is included in the Hulu rerun.
STARS: **

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest & Kendrick Lamar [real] perform “Tints”

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— Blue: Wow, a drummer who sings! Wasn’t expecting that. Love to see his massive drum set at centerstage—it almost reminds me of a UFO that’s landed on Earth.
— Loving Anderson .Paak’s big smile as he plays.
— Great upbeat vibe to this song.
— Digging the piano and the guitar.
— Kendrick Lamar!! His rap verse is pretty good, although I was expecting a little more given that it’s Kendrick Lamar.
— Tayla Parx’ breathy vocals aren’t doing much for me, but she looks like she’s having fun.
STARS: ****

WEEKEND UPDATE
51 year-old LEJ is retiring from sex due to a move-thwarting knee injury

self-satisfied Jules (BEB) delights in seeing things a little differently

George Bush (DAC) & George Bush [real] clips mark the President’s passing

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— Many tepid responses to weak jokes which are simply functioning as a history lesson (or back then, a round up of the week’s news).  The first decent joke was about Putin’s “violent sack-tap.”
— Great joke about Bill Clinton decorating with leg lamps.
— Leslie is bringing up the energy level a lot. She’s also pretty charming throughout this, even if the content is racy enough that I’m surprised it got by censors.
— I feel like some of this is going over the audience’s heads.
— Wow, the whole back and forth with Michael insulting Leslie, who is being held back by Colin, was a little haphazardly done, but still funny. A nice change of pace.
— Nice run of jokes after Leslie, including a total Norm Macdonald (RIP) joke about the slaughterhouse.
— Beck’s coming off perfectly as a “free thinker.” The material is being elevated by his delivery.
— The mannerisms and inflection Beck uses are slaying me. 
— Great line: “The thing about getting hit by a car is that, for just a moment, I can fly.”
— The deforestation joke creeped out the audience, likely because of Michael’s delivery.
— Nice use of Bush’s season 20 (pre-taped) appearance as a memorial to the former president.
— This edition of WU was weak until Leslie showed up. After that, it’s one of the better ones of the Trump era.  I’d give the first portion one star, and maybe 3 or three-and-a-half for everything starting with Leslie. So I guess that averages out to:
STARS: **½

WILLY WONKA
Charlie Bucket’s (host) grandparents have rough sex in the communal bed

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— Nice to see the return of the show’s Willy Wonka parody, which was previously used in the season 42 Kristen Stewart episode.
— They got right to the main joke here, and it’s coming off pretty well: loud and chaotic, and that’s perfect for this material.
— Heidi’s facial expressions are great.
— Claire quickly turned her head after breaking just now.
— The ending was slightly predictable but kept this sketch from getting overlong, too.
STARS: ***

HOME SHOPPING NETWORK
(CES) self-flagellates after losing items meant for Home Shopping Network

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— Fun back-and-forth between Claire and Kenan. Not outright hilarious, just a nice place-setting for the sketch.
— I like Cecily’s increasingly unhinged character.
— Well that took a turn. Cecily’s numerous profane phrases are tickling me.
— Good escalation with the addition of Aidy’s Mother, though after a while she’s not adding much. Cecily’s repeated use of “ass” is getting a little tiresome, too.
— Good ending with Aidy coming back with her own items and saying “and I didn’t forget these,” then the unexpected “Homosexual Shopping Network” back-and-forth.  This should have seemed grating but it actually ended up being decent.
STARS: ***

MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Who R U?”

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— Blue: Cool staging here, with the stage bathed in red and Anderson Paak’s band in silhouette behind him.
— I like the mic Anderson .Paak is using.
— Love the solid, high-energy rapping!
— Awesome dance movies from Anderson .Paak on the chorus.
— ”Wonder why I really hate rap.” Backing vocalists: “Oh! What make you go and say that?” HA, love it!
— Anderson .Paak is spitting BARS after the second chorus.
— Is it just my computer speakers, or did the audio noticeably quiet right before the last chorus?
— Smooth dance moves at the end, though part of me is fixated on the leaning mic stand, waiting for it to fall.
— OUCH, and there’s the mic falling. All in the name of art…
— I was pretty much glued to the screen throughout that performance. Pretty simple in terms of staging, lighting, and presentation, but Anderon -Paak’s energy carried it through. 
STARS: ****

GOOD MORNING GOOMAH
kept women (host) & (KAM) sugarcoat beaus’ behavior

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— I have a bad feeling about this. How many more “New Yawk” talk show sketches do we need?
— The audience didn’t seem to notice the use of sound from Goodfellas.
— Okay, this isn’t so bad. It’s taking a different direction than the other, similar SNL talk show sketches.
— Pete’s section was pretty good.
— Wow, this was also short.  I assume they cut it down since the show was running long.
STARS: ***

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS
for Christmas, SNL’s women want some damning results from Robert Mueller

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— The opening voiceover from Steve Higgins reminded me of the “I Wish It Was Christmas Today” sketches the show did starting in season 26. Has it been that long? Wow.
— Nothing special here as it gets going. Maybe if I was watching this back in 2018, I would find it more enjoyable.  Again, just a history lesson at this point.  Or a look back at how excited some people were for something which didn’t turn out as they’d hoped.
— This feels like a cold open as opposed to a 10-to-1 sketch.
— I’m glad they’ve added Melissa, Ego, and Heidi part-way through.  Which reminds me: this is Ego’s only live appearance tonight, and only the second appearance for the other two.
— Cecily going off-the-rails would normally just add to the “history lesson” vibe, but it worked for me. Nice change of pace.
— I was going to rate this higher for the effort, but I’ve been told how it really doesn’t age well, and they’re absolutely right.
STARS: **

GOODNIGHTS

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CUT FOR TIME: CARS
Aunt Pinky (host) tries to help her nephew Danny (BEB) build a downhill derby car that will beat his bully Kenny (KYM) in the big race

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— John: A big thank you to Kabir for letting me review this hidden gem. 
— I had been on a long hiatus from SNL and had only started to come back around the time of John Mulaney’s first hosting stint. For the rest of 2018, I still didn’t quite feel any real interest in the cast itself, and my viewing usually amounted to the occasional clip on Youtube, if anything. It was this sketch which started to change my mind. 
— This is the fifth, and last, of the sitcom homages/parodies from Beck and Kyle. Oddly enough, only two of the five ever aired — I’m not sure if that is some kind of record for a recurring series with such a long run (seasons 39-44). 
— The “story” is based on a Full House episode, down to a number of lines of dialogue.
— This is also the first time this season SNL references Lori Loughlin, something that will happen far more often than anyone ever would have imagined.
— Most of these sketches benefited from hosts who fit in just about perfectly with the settings. This one is no exception, as Claire Foy manages to bring the right mix of warmth and vapidity to the role of Aunt Beck…er…Aunt Pinkie. I especially enjoy the completely vacuous reading of, “It’s my passion,” when Beck finds her repairing the derby car.
— A few of the touches here, like the extensive profanity and Kyle repeatedly smashing objects over Beck’s head, are a departure from most of the series — in a way it can be seen as a continuation of the end of “Beers” when Larry David stabbed Kyle, but this is the first time it’s treated so casually. It makes me wonder if there were any further, darker plans for these that never made it to dress or air.
— I just realized Kyle’s hair is either straightened or slicked back in all five of these. 
— The cutaways to completely random images aren’t as memorable as some of the past installments, but I do like them, particularly the cowboy near the end.
— Beck’s whiny, Olsen-esque reading of, “Kenny said girls can’t build cars,” cracks me up.
— Love the tonally jarring “I wish my dad was here,” from Kyle seconds after Beck hurls a stream of profanity his way. 
— Everything up to this point is fine, but the last minute is where we truly start to hit gold. The unsettling, robotic flag-waving from Claire, similar cheering from the two extras, Kyle’s car bursting into flames…
— The combo of Beck looking sickened at the smell of burning flesh, Claire woodenly yelling, “Go! Go! Go!” and Kyle hysterically running around telling everyone he’s on fire (with no one caring, other than a head shake from an extra) is the moment I have rewatched more than a few times. It is brilliant comedy escalation and always, always makes me laugh. 
— Even better is the ending, where, after the whole point being that girls can do anything, Beck shouts, “Boys rule!” and a shell shocked Claire tries to speak up just as credits cut in.
— Again, I’m so glad I got the chance to review this, as the other four were all pre-this project. “Cars” is probably the third or fourth out of the five for me (nothing can top “Wing” or “Cool”), but given the extremely high quality of all these, that is not an insult. 
— I know ‘80s and ‘90s kid sitcom nostalgia is not an untapped market, but Beck and  Kyle made these freel truly unique, every time. When I think of the two of them and what they brought to the show, I will always think of these sketches.
STARS: ****

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Once again, the strongest material was either politically absurd, or non-political. Simply covering the week’s events doesn’t work. Foy seemed happy to host, but like many serious actors who host SNL, she was in somewhat generic/straight roles all night while the cast did the heavy lifting.

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

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RATED SEGMENTS RANKED FROM BEST TO WORST
The War In Words
(CFT: Cars)
Willy Wonka
Netflix Commercial
Good Morning Goomah
Home Shopping Network
Morning Joe
Weekend Update
All I Want For Christmas
Monologue
Dad Christmas
Trump In Argentina

TOMORROW
Jason Momoa, as reviewed by Carson