Saturday, April 6, 2013

Meilssa McCarthy/Phoenix - 4.6.2013

Okay, here’s my review. This is probably the most lackluster episode of the season. It wasn’t all bad. It had its moments here and there, but overall there was an air of not nearly enough effort being put into the show considering who the host was. The cast was great and everybody got roughly the same amount of airtime, but something still felt missing. Anyway…here.

Kim Jong-Un Address - I didn't care much for that cold open. Political addresses (especially "translated" ones) just feel too stale at this point. I did like the gay nephew bit, though. The Rodman cameo felt unnecessary, but his LFNY delivery was strangely funny to me. C-

Monologue - This was considerably better than McCarthy's first episode. It wasn't much premise-wise, but it's cool when they shake up the format of the monologue just a bit. This seems like something they haven't done since the late 80s/early 90s. Taran was a nice addition. B-

ESPN - This sketch left something to be desired. It was well performed, but I think I would've rather seen an actual fresh take on the Mike Rice controversy rather than seeing McCarthy reenact it. She was good in this as were Jay and Bill. I did like the classroom taser gag as well as hitting Cecily with the toaster. B-

Ham Bake Off - This sketch was pointless. It was only worth watching for the choreography and the silly visual of Taran and Bobby in pig suits. The ending was too predictable. C-

The Voice - This parody was just okay. The impressions of all the judges were great. I did especially like Jay as Usher and Kate as Shakira. Jason had some funny lines as Blake Shelton. Kenan's Cee-Lo is slipping but his bit was short. This probably isn't wither of the ones they tried at Maya Rudolph or Louis CK's dress rehearsals last year. This seems like they just wrote a new one. C+

Bathroom Office - This commercial wasn't quite as bad as I thought it was going to be. I did like the complex set up of the device and the twist of the "decency" PSA at the end. Other than that, it was nothing special. Strangely enough, my dad called me up right when it ended to tell me how funny he thought it was. C-

Update is turning out unmemorable so far. Seth's jokes aren't too horrible, but they’re not great either. Vanesa's Jewish boy was just a by-the-numbers rewrite, but I didn't hate it the first time. Seeing Kenan's Barkley again is nice. He didn't have great lines or anything, but the impression is still funny. I don't even remember the last time we saw Drunk Uncle, but they gave him some good lines this time. I did like the "Huey Lewis and the Jews" line. The Dinklage cameo is quite unexpected and creative and I like moments like those on SNL. He's doing quite well actually. I gotta admit. I was a little iffy about this and the Rodman cameo after they were essentially spoiled for me on Twitter and Facebook, but they turned out to be more enjoyable than I expected. C-

Million Dollar Wheel – This sketch was just bad. This was just running one bad joke into the ground, although I did like Fred solving the puzzle with the wrong answer when the puzzle was clearly revealed. This is starting to feel too much like McCarthy's last episode except she is getting less chances to show off her real performance skills. Anyway, go on YouTube and look up The Whitest Kids U'Know sketch "Wheel of Money" for a better "Wheel of Fortune" sketch. It might remind you of something SNL would do during '94-'95, but they execute it better. D-

Pizza Business Loan - This was only worth watching for McCarthy's goofy accent and Sudekis's talent as a utility man. Otherwise, it's just going nowhere. The difference between this and the "wheel" sketch is that "Wheel" knew where to end, but this pizza thing has a good payoff with Fred. D+

Dating Tips - This was probably the best thing of the night by default given the played out comedy tropes of it. I liked the real low key absurdity of it. Cecily and Kate were great in it. The cereal exchange between Taran and Meilssa was also great as were Bobby and Tim's cameos at the end. If Kevin McDonald got anything on this week, it was probably this. C+

Well, that certainly was. Vince Vaughn hosts next week. Considering how long it’s been I have no idea of what to expect. See ya. Ratings…whatever.

1. Justin Timberlake
2. Martin Short/Paul McCartney
3. Seth MacFarlane/Frank Ocean
4. Louis CK/fun.
5. Anne Hathaway/Rhianna
6. Christina Applegate/Passion Pit
7. Christoph Waltz/Alabama Shakes
8. Kevin Hart/Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
9. Bruno Mars
10. Daniel Craig/Muse
11. Jaime Foxx/Ne-Yo
12. Jennifer Lawrence/The Lumineers
13. Joseph Gordon-Levitt/Mumford and Sons
14. Justin Bieber
15. Adam Levine/Kendrick Lamar
16. Melissa McCarthy/Phoenix
17. Jeremy Renner/Maroon 5

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