Okay, here’s my review. While not quite as bad or as dull as
last week, this episode did suffer from the same air of lack of effort or just plain
phoning it in that plagued the last two shows. Still, McCarthy was better as a
host in that she had some ability to mine some humor out of really dreadful
material where Vaughn didn’t seem to care. He’s an okay sketch performer, just
not a committed one. It was a good night for the cast (and certainly the
featured players). Anyway, here it is.
Gun Control Cold Open – This was just okay. It wasn't great,
but just a little better than last week. Hader and Sudekis had some decent
lines which were saved by their delivery. Jay as Obama was all right.
Thankfully, it didn't go on too long. B-
Monologue – This went nowhere, but much like McCarthy's
monologue last week it shakes up the format a little. I think the last host to
actually go into the audience and talk to random people was Jeremy Piven in
'07. He hasn't even finished talking to the first person yet, but it's already
gone on WAAAAY too long. It's reminding me too much of Jamie Foxx's monologue
from December already. C+
Al Pacino Accused Murderer Biopic Series - This had a paper
thin premise and reeked of a tired SNL impression trope, but it was another
piece saved by Hader's delivery. I did like him as both Menendez brothers and
even with the "is this cool?" line I'm shocked they could get away
with the Conrad Murray bit. I can already see angry commenters online and some
hack entertainment writer making a headline out of it. B-
Stormy Skies - This bit reminded me too much of the news
soap opera sketch from the Tom Arnold 95-96 episode, but Cecily, Taran, Kate
and Bill tried their damndest to save it while Bill just sleepwalks through it.
We really didn't need to see Kenan's Al Roker again. The alert at the bottom of
the screen was a nice touch, but I struggled to even feign interest after the
mention of the "Weather Channel". Thankfully, it didn't go on too long.
C+
History Of Punk Rock - This also went nowhere and much like
the sketch that proceeded it, they were just running one lame joke into the
ground. The timing of it seemed like they were just trying too hard to be super
timely. Still, I suppose it is neat that Fred could get and original member of
the Sex Pistols to be a part of this sketch and Vanessa as Thatcher was a nice
touch. C-
Short Term Memory Loss Theater - This thing also felt way
too predictable but surprisingly (and this is a phrase I never thought I would
type) Fred breathed some life into it. Jay's part was also a nice touch. I
don't understand exactly why Bill would be cracking up during this of all
sketches (unless he and Fred shared some private joke) but at least this sketch
knew exactly when to end. C-
Update can't be that good if I can predict the punchlines to
all of Seth's jokes this easily. That Accidental Racist commentary wasn't very
good. Not even Jason can save it and Kenan's LL Cool J has somehow gotten worse
if that is even possible but the singing at the end was okay. This isn't as
much the writer's fault. It's that in this media cycle that this story has been
commented on comedically enough (and the song itself is just so ridiculous)
that there's little to no room left for SNL to say anything that hasn't already
been said. Kate's monkey woman commentary is making me giggle even though it
too closely resembles everything else she's done on Update so far. Thankfully,
they knew how to keep this and the rest of Update short. C-
Prom - This sketch actually reeks of 85-86, but I did like
when Vaughn said "pass" to Tim. Halfway through it though, I started
to think that it might be one of the sketches Kevin MacDonald wrote. It just
has some absurd KITH feel to it. D+
Tesh Brothers It's nice to see the NBA on NBC sketch cut from
the Louis CK dress rehearsal make it to air. It's also great to see that they
finally threw Tim a bone by putting him in Louis's role. He and Sudekis
performed it well, but I can't help but wonder how Louis would've performed in
this role. He probably would've made it a lot funnier. Still, I did like the
destruction at the end as well as Vaughn's line asking them why they bought
hammers and gasoline and the dramatic keyboard gag at the end. I am wondering
about that awkward pause before Aidy's entrance though as it seems like she
just missed her cue or something. B+
Bar II - I’m genuinely surprised that they would try to recur
the bar sketch (also from the Louis CK episode) as that seems like it would
only work once. Kate gave it her all but this one just wasn’t as good because
it didn’t have Louie trying to match her insanity and Vaughn is just
sleepwalking through this one. Still, I did like the “pass the tequila shot” bit
as I thought that was tastefully done. It’s also kind of odd that they’re doing
two sketches originally from the Louis episode on the night his new HBO special
is supposed to air. C+
Well, that does it for April. At this point, I don't quite
know how to feel about Zach Galifinakis hosting again. I know the monologue
will be great, but in terms of sketches the writing never seemed to serve him
well at all. See you next month!
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. Vince Vaughn/Miguel
15. Justin Bieber
16. Adam Levine/Kendrick Lamar
17. Melissa McCarthy/Phoenix
18. Jeremy Renner/Maroon 5
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