Paul Rudd/One Direction (12.7.2013)

Okay, here’s my review. While this episode really fell apart toward most of the second half, it still had some very enjoyable moments that kept it from being an early contender for the absolute worst of the season so far. Although it was probably his weakest episode, Paul Rudd got to actually shine in sketches for once and prove himself as a host without being totally upstaged. Ironically, the people we all expected to upstage him weren’t nearly on screen long enough to do so (or if you’re like me you’re actively trying to block half of them from your memories as we speak). They all seemed content to stand back and let Rudd do his damndest to save the show from itself. Still, as I watched this episode I couldn’t help being a little worried about the direction (no pun intended) it took. It seems like they tried to use the obligatory fuck load of cameos to hide the some weak writing or bring some unwelcome recurring sketches out of mothballs in a failed attempt to cover for their “creative bankruptcy” (as jojo so eloquently put it). Hell, this episode seemed to have some serious timing issues and gaps to fill and they couldn’t even distract us from how light it felt on material. The most generous assessment I can make of this episode was that they came out as strong as they possibly could’ve given what they had (which was clearly more focused on pleasing the crowd than anything else) and completely disintegrated by the second half even thought it was starting to rapidly fall apart before that. Let’s just get on with it since I’m really starting to ramble.

Sound of Music - Seeing Wiig again (and as “Doonise” no less) really disappoints me, but I guess we should've expected something like this as Wiig does also apparently have a substantial role in Anchorman 2. Seeing Armisen again also disappointed me, but not nearly as much. His cameo felt a little too tacked on for my liking. Admittedly, it was kinda clever the way they worked her into The Sound Of Music, but if they were going to tackle THAT whole mess they should've at least tried to get in some good Carrie Underwood jabs or something. Still, I also have to give Kate, Bobby and Taran for having good lines here and there. C-

Monologue - This felt a little predictable considering they've done this sort of thing before (i.e. Ben Stiller 1998, Paul Rudd 2010), but it's got a lot better as it went along. Seeing Koechner, Ferell and Carell all together again was particularly exciting. It was particularly cool of them to acknowledge how they "overshadowed" Rudd and after seeing the lads from One Direction tackle "Afternoon Delight" with the Anchorman cast, I do admit I have just a little bit more respect for them. I mean, I'd rather not have to see them in sketches but I kind of understand why they would've had to and this was probably the best way they could've done so. B+

Politics Nation IV - This is a particularly horrible way to open the show. It was the same old shtick from Kenan we've seen before. I did like the shot of the tracksuit and the knockout game joke. Thankfully, it was shorter than expected. D+

Dan Charles: One Direction’s #1 Fan - This Matt and Oz short film was interesting. Paul’s interaction with little girls was actually pretty funny and I liked his "basic facts" line as well as the crowd chanting bit. His wife's pregnancy phone call was also a nice touch. The guys also played straight man to him well enough. This was another decent way to do the "obligatory" One Direction sketch while still giving Rudd some real face time. It does kind of remind me of a sketch that I heard got cut from the Louis CK episode last year. I liked it well enough. B-

Diner Divorce - I didn't quite know what to make of this, but the song made it seem kinda repetitive. Paul and Vanessa really gave it their all here. The ending was decent and I did like the Duncan Danish and Pooh Bear lines. C-

Story Of My Life - After watching One Direction actually perform, I have just two things to say. One, their first number sounds like it may actually be their least terrible song by default. Also, how are they allowed to have THREE band members with facial hair? I actually see how one of them might need it, but they can't really have three designated "bad boys" but I guess they have completely different standards in England.

Update seemed to step up its game just a little bit. Cecily actually did okay tonight and seems to be finding her own voice a little more. I did like the Walmart towels/panda/romance novel string of jokes. As soon as Seth uttered the phrase "Hannukah", I knew Vanessas' Bar Mitzvah boy was going to make an appearance. That was pretty much the same thing again, but I did like the bit about the older brother. It might be a little too soon to bring back Taran's 1860s critic but it was pretty awesome of them to acknowledge that and it still made me laugh my ass off (especially the Family Guy/Snoopy reference and the Natl. Lampoon/linear time joke). This could’ve been one of the better Updates this season if not for a couple of minor things weighing it down. C+

Michelangelo’s David - This sketch was way too predictable, but still had its moments. Still, I am quite surprised that even at 12:30 AM Est on network TV they could show a close up of a sculpted anatomically correct penis on network TV. Jay and Bobby had some great lines and I liked Nassim as Mona Lisa. C-

White Christmas - This was kind of shaky premise, but it was somewhat original and executed well enough. Did anyone else think that was Samberg and not Rudd at first doing Madea? Still, they did a fine job of dissecting a film genre and providing an oppositional reading. I did like the Vibe/Essence reviews at the end. C+

Slimmed Down Santa - I have to say Milheiser, Moony and Wells are perfectly cast as elves in this sketch and they did everything they could’ve to save it. That's really my only commentary on it because it was by far the weakest premise of the night and went pretty much nowhere. D-

Past Lovers - This also meandering, but Rudd and especially Moynihan are great in it even if Cecily hasn’t quite shown the range necessary to play a lead in any sketch yet. C+

One Direction's Second Performance – This was expectedly pretty lame. Now, this is a song of theirs that I can’t say I’ve heard before anywhere nor do I care to look up the title of but I honestly wish they had actually performed "Best Song Ever" just so I could make the obligatory joke "Best Song Ever?!? More like Least Accurate Title for a Song Ever! Ha!" Hey, remember what I said earlier about the show being light on material? Yeah, you know that’s GOTTA be true if I find myself being compelled to comment on the musical performances (which I do rarely if ever) for no good reason other than to entertain MYSELF.

Tales Of Bill Brasky VII – This was obviously the highlight of THIS episode. Taran, Paul and even Kenan were great additions. Sure, it may not be able to hold a candle to the classic McKinney era sketches of 1996-97 (or even the one with just Goodman and Baldwin from 1998) but it was still very funny and it was nice even just to see Ferrell and Koechner again. There were probably too many good lines to list separately here but I did like a lot of the ones from Kilam and Koechner as well as Kenan's "true meaning of Kwanza" line and Cecily's reveal that they were at a Chuck E. Cheese. Still, it might have been better if they had just waited until next week and let Goodman take Rudd's place. A-

Well, that was that. It sure felt nice to judge Paul Rudd on his merits as a host and comedic performer rather than how well he carried the cameos scattered through his episode. For once, they carried him. Next week, John Goodman (a man who hasn’t appeared on this show in 10 years) hosts for his thirteenth time. He is another host who will do well with the material they give him no matter what but let’s still hope the writing doesn’t drag him down.

Now, it’s time once again to update my rankings for this season.

1. Kerry Washington/Eminem
2. Miley Cyrus
3. Lady Gaga
4. Bruce Willis/Katy Perry
5. Tina Fey/Arcade Fire
6. Paul Rudd/One Direction
7. Josh Hutcherson/Haim
8. Edward Norton/Janelle Monae

See you soon!