Jimmy Fallon/Harry Styles (4.15.2017)

Okay, here’s my review. This show was something of a step down from last week, but it was only a baby step down. Fallon was pretty much what you would expect of him as a host and a performer, but obviously they weren’t willing to take as many creatively wild chances with someone like him as they were with someone like Louis C.K. last week. Plus, this show was being broadcast live coast-to-coast and simultaneously all across the country. This meant that it was on at an earlier time in most time zones. This meant the further away you got from the east coast (the coast that SNL usually tapes and broadcasts from) the earlier the show was being aired. This show is literally trying to please everyone whereas last week they only seemed to be trying to please themselves. Also, for a show that was so hyped up as being…y’know, “LIVE” live across the entire country, they sure seemed to rely a lot on pretaped material to the point where it felt like I was watching an 84-85 era episode at times. Still, this show was just as enjoyable and fun to watch as last weeks outing. Perhaps it was the lack of tired old recurring sketches and unnecessary cameos (i.e people who aren’t beloved cast members from Jimmys’ era) compared to Fallons previous hosting stints that made this one feel so refreshing. Still, Fallons’ energy sure helped pick up some of the slack from the lapses in writing compared to last week and I’m sure he rubbed off on the cast. Speaking of which, good to see more of Kate, Alex, Pete, Cecily and Sasheer from previous weeks. Bobby still barely has any live presence in the show at all further indicating this may be his last season on the show. Anyway, let’s get right to it, shall we?

Trump, Bannon & Kushner – This cold open seemed pretty forgettable. Baldwins' Trump has officially slipped away from him almost entirely. Fallon as Kushner didn't add much but it seemed like a bit of a dick move toward Alex after hearing HIS Kushner got cut from dress last week. The Apprentice angle was all right but felt like something that had been done to death by now. Grim Bannon didn't add much here either and his being dragged off by a larger grim reaper deserved more of an explanation. Still, it was nice to see Becks’ Pence again and the “mother” jab was good. Overall, it felt like too much of a rehash of the cold open from Kristen Stewart's episode. C+

Monologue - This felt derivative too. I mean, I was more impressed by how they changed the lighting around the studio just for this one segment than anything. Also, it seemed like a little late for Fallon to be doing a Bowie tribute although he performed the song well. It just felt like a more under rehearsed non holiday specific rendition of his December 2011 monologue, but I guess something this safe was to be expected if the show is going out live at 8:30pm on the west coast. B-

Family Feud VIII: Celebrity Time Chasers - Okay, this is something I think we can all agree has been beaten to death (especially THIS season) but this was their most ambitious installment to date. That's not to say it didn't feel like somewhat of a wasted opportunity in spots. For one, no one attempted a Richard Dawson impression but I guess there was no room for one. As for the impressions, Cecily and Sasheer do serviceable Lizas with Zs and Ms. Rosses even though their takes in no way stood out from any other female cast member who played those roles on the show. Harry Styles handled his Mick Jagger impression competently but I still don't think we'll be seeing him host any time soon. Kudos to the writers for finding the one impersonation Pete can actually pull off. It was nice to see more strong impressions from Kate and Melissa. As for Fallon, it seems he still has a better handle on young Travolta than current Travolta but they handled the transition quite well. Other than that, it felt slightly underwritten considering they had the implications of time travel to play with. For instance, it bugged me that they would supposedly all the way back to 1977 to bring celebrities from that era 40 years into a future where they would ALL STILL BE ALIVE. It seems like that sort of thing defeats the entire purpose of time travel but I guess Fallons’ dual roles as Travolta could make up for that. B-

Before The Show - This short felt like an inferior rewrite of the Halloween Girls Night short from Tom Hanks' show but they left very little room for it to escalate. It was just another piece just for the theater geeks on the show, I guess. I suppose I could give them a pass since they're portraying middle schoolers here. C+

Doug Takes Jen To Take Him Back - This was worth it just for the payoff and even the additional mini payoff at the very end...just when you think they found out the exact right spot to end it. Fallons' falsetto was a little grating at first but then Mikey and Kyle appearances made the journey that much more worth it. Kudos to their continuing continuity with Becks’ character from last week as well. A-

Sean Spicer Easter Press Conference - I could tell exactly who was supposed to come out as soon as I heard the phrase "white house easter bunny". It was nice to see McCarthy again even if we're approaching over saturation with her Spicer at this point. Aside from a slight change of setting, it just felt like lather, rinse, repeat. Nothing really stood out and it felt like Melissa wasn't totally giving it her all. Well, either that or she had to tape this ahead of time. Seriously, this whole piece had an unsettling 85-86 era filmed and laugh track sweetened vibe. Still, it was nice to see them get their licks in right when Spicer reached critical mass with his gaffes. I did like how he used Veggitales dolls to illustrate the conflicts between the Jews and the Pharrohs. B-

Update was serviceable. It took until Che started riffing on the Trump/Bartiromo interview to really get going. Vanessas' bar mitzvah boy really pulled out all stops but Bruce Chandlings still got some fight in him. I do like how Kyle seems to keep making him more and more depressing each time. I also liked how Che kept questioning Kyle on the sheer gleeful stupidity of his attempted jokes. B-

Civil War Hook - This sketch felt like a very tired SNL trope by this point but Fallon and Bobby added something just silly enough to work. Harry Styles as a captured confederate (?!?) soldier was a bit confusing bit this whole sketch was obviously an excuse for him to sing. B-

Turtle Shirts - This seemed like a thin premise on paper but once it got fleshed out more in execution it started going places. It was impressive the way they pulled it off technically but to me at least the true highlights were the awkward moments that triggered Jimmy, Pete and Beck into shirt hiding and the anachronistic choice of “Turn Down For What” which didn’t work and didn’t go with anything. That added some humor to it. C+

Boston Teens XIV: Harvard Daze - This was worth watching for Kate and to see Dratch return. I do appreciate the continuity they are keeping up with Sully and Denises' age time line and family life and Kate fit right in with them in a very Lisa Simpsonesque way. C+

Basketball Scene - This was the best example of the "wildly incompetent extras/background players" trope they have ever pulled off. Even though this episode seemed to suffer from an over reliance on filmed material, this being filmed really behoove it's execution as it eliminated any potential pacing issues and allowed Jimmy and Mikey to really go crazy. A-

Now, for my updated rankings for this season…

1. Dave Chappelle/A Tribe Called Quest

2. Tom Hanks/Lady Gaga

3. Kristen Stewart/Alessia Cara

4. Lin Manuel Miranda/Twenty One Pilots

5. Louis C.K./The Chainsmokers

6. Jimmy Fallon/Harry Styles

7. Aziz Ansari/Big Sean

8. Alec Baldwin/Ed Sheeran

9. John Cena/Maren Morris

10. Scarlett Johansson/Lorde

11. Felicity Jones/Sturgil Simpson

12. Casey Affleck/Chance The Rapper

13. Octavia Spencer/Father John Misty

14. Margot Robbie/The Weeknd

15. Emily Blunt/Bruno Mars

16. Emma Stone/Shawn Mendes

17. Kristen Wiig/The xx

18. Benedict Cumberbatch/Solange

Now, for my rankings of every show that Jimmy Fallon has hosted…

1.     1. Jimmy Fallon/Michael Buble (12.17.2011)

2.     2. Jimmy Fallon/Harry Styles (4.15.2017)

3.     3. Jimmy Fallon/Justin Timberlake (12.21.2013)

Well, that was certainly a quietly successful experiment (even for one that only changed how early the show airs live and certainly not how it normally operates from week to week). Next week, Chris Pine makes his hosting debut. I don’t know if he’s ever done comedy but he seems like someone who would be game for whatever the show wants him to do. See you in a few weeks!

Louis C.K./The Chainsmokers (4.8.2017)

Okay, here’s my review. This felt like the strongest show since Kristen Stewart hosted in February (which is something I never thought I’d find myself typing) and in both cases, it was mostly due to the writing. This week, however, the writers were willing to take more chances with Louis around. While not everything paid off handsomely, there were no huge losses so nothing was too much of a gamble. Louis was exactly what you’d expect of him as a host. The one big change from previous weeks was how uneven the cast was. We saw a lot of Cecily, Aidy, Kyle, Pete and Vanessa in particular but we saw very little of the featured players (save for Mikey) and maybe one or two scattered appearances from everyone else. Perhaps it felt like

Louis and Baldwins’ increased presence overshadowed everyone else. Two people whose virtual absence really stood out were Kate and Bobby in a way that fuels the rumors of their departures. Anyway, let’s break it down further.

Trump Kentucky Coal Mine Visit - This cold open was all right. They obviously wrote some stronger material for Baldwin but since his Trump is kinda stagnating at this point his delivery didn't add much to it. Beck, Kyle, Aidy and Mikey made this for me much more than Alec did. C+

Monologue - This got this show off on the right foot. For the record, I liked his white motel white patron white material white better than the animal stuff (which was only sporadically funny) It did pale in comparison to his previous three SNL monologues but it reminded me of why I got into Louis' stand up in the first place. B-

Eyelash Lawyer - This sketch got off to a slow start but I liked everyones' commitment to it and how it wasted very little time in its' buildup to a decently satisfying payoff. I have a feeling Louis may have cow rote this with Julio Torres. If so, kudos to Julio on finally getting to write live sketches. C+

Thank You Scott - This was catchy and really breathed some life into a comedy trope ("slacktivism" on social media) that now feels a little too far down the beaten path. This is another thing I suspect Louis co-wrote as it almost felt lifted from his stand up around the height of his acclaim and popularity. B-

Sock Hops And Soda Shops - This sketch also had a satisfying payoff. It took a little too long to build up to where it was going but the small touches really made this. Louis had some great dark lines such as his insults to Vanessa and his imagining of his "date" with Cecily. Did anyone else get flashbacks to Chris Parnells' raps in Update there? I also liked the absurd twists with Pete and Leslie's characters and Cecilys' big reveal at the end. For better or worse, Louis’ role was perfectly suited for him and wouldn't have worked better with any other male host. The jukebox breaking/hand cutting gag felt too derivative. It was such low hanging fruit that it was a gag Family Guy did just BEFORE The Simpsons. B-

Pepsi Shoot - This was something that worked because it was a taped piece driven by Becks' acting meshing well with the writing and direction because the subject matter was almost done to death by the end of the week. Kyle and Cecily added plenty to it as well. I wonder if they actually got to use the real extras from the Pepsi ad? B+

Update was as strong as it's been all season. It's pretty obvious that Che had the Lions' share of great jokes this week but that's not to say Jost didn't get his fair share of licks in by the end. I'm not sure Cecilia Gimenez needed to be trotted out again but if it's one of only two times we get to see Kate in the entire show, I'll take it. Aside from the "stroke" line, not much stood out to me. I was a little too distracted thinking about Kates' spottier and spottier presence on the show and if she might be leaving by the end of either this season (or more likely) next. B-

The O'Reilly Factor - This was what the show needed right now but sadly it felt a little underwritten and a little underperformed. I honestly can't tell whether O'Reilly or Trump is Baldwins' stronger impression. I will say I can see what Baldwin was aiming for with his O'Reilly. He had it there at the beginning but lost it sometime when he was talking to "himself" (which felt kinda like overkill at this point and could've been shortened). Boy, Bill O’Reilly is probably going to be PISSED in the coming week and have some choice words for Baldwin if he sees this or someone passes this along to him. C+

Birthday Clown - This short was something that worked because it wasted no time establishing itself and was tailor made for the only two performers in the world (Louis and Bobby, of which I’m guessing the former also could’ve wrote) who could've made it work. Bobby also played well off of Melissa. The conclusion seemed a tiny bit rushed but other than that it worked perfectly. B+

Sectional Couches – This live fake ad felt like something that had to have been written for the previous live show with Scarlett Johansson but had to be scrapped when they found out Fred Armisen couldn't make it and had to be completely reworked into something else when Louis agreed to the pitch. Surprisingly, Louis had just the right dramatic acting chops to pull this off. Cecily and Aidy weren't too bad here either but I’m left wondering why at least Cecily’s part had to be pretaped and yeah…now I’m starting to think that maybe THIS is something Louis CK and Julio Torres worked on together. B-

Tenement Museum - This final sketch worked better than it had any right to. Louis and Kate were perfect for it. Kenan and Vanessa played off them very well. That might have been the first time I've seen someone break in an SNL sketch BEFORE the premise or main joke had been established, but knowing Louis I can completely understand and give him a pass on that one. I don't know if it was the strong choices Louis and Kate made with those accents level of ethnic humor that normally wouldn't fly on SNL (or really anywhere) today but those factors genuinely made this the funniest live sketch of the night. A-

Goodnights – I normally don’t comment on these but when Louis commented on how he missed Don Rickles, it was the best actual tribute to a recently deceased former castmember/host/friend of the show since Wiig and Hader gave a special intro to Hartman and Hooks in “Love Is A Dream” in October 2014. This is the kind of thing they should be doing more of when there is a death in the extended SNL family.

Now, for my updated rankings of this season…

1. Dave Chappelle/A Tribe Called Quest

2. Tom Hanks/Lady Gaga

3. Kristen Stewart/Alessia Cara

4. Lin Manuel Miranda/Twenty One Pilots

5. Louis C.K./The Chainsmokers

6. Aziz Ansari/Big Sean

7. Alec Baldwin/Ed Sheeran

8. John Cena/Maren Morris

9. Scarlett Johansson/Lorde

10. Felicity Jones/Sturgil Simpson

11. Casey Affleck/Chance The Rapper

12. Octavia Spencer/Father John Misty

13. Margot Robbie/The Weeknd

14. Emily Blunt/Bruno Mars

15. Emma Stone/Shawn Mendes

16. Kristen Wiig/The xx

17. Benedict Cumberbatch/Solange

…and since he’s probably as close to being a five timer as he’ll ever get I’m going to continue on a theme in my reviews as of late and rank all of Louis’ episodes from best to worst counting this one. Now, since I’ve reviewed all of his previous shows and remember them well this is going to be just as easy as the last time I did it. I won’t have a big problem going by memory but I did glance at the SNL archives first just to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Here we go…

1.     1. Louis C.K./Rhianna (5.16.2015)

2.     2. Louis C.K./The Chainsmokers (4/8/2017)

3.     3. Louis C.K./Fun (11.3.2012)

4.     4. Louis C.K./Sam Smith (3.29.2014)

Well, that was a refreshing change of pace from the last two shows. They could’ve done worse coming back from a three week break. Next week, Jimmy Fallon returns for his third hosting stint in the first of four (possible) shows* that will be broadcast live in all time zones across the country (meaning you may have to tune in earlier than usual to see the show live). Yeah, it feels like an odd time to have Fallon come back and host as I get the feeling (and I bet I’m not alone here) that most of America seems to want to see LESS of Jimmy right now if his Tonight Show ratings are any indication. Maybe their counting on people STILL being nostalgic for his time in this cast but it still feels too much like they are throwing Jimmy a bone here. I mean, think about it. The last two times he hosted he was riding a wave of success from his iteration of Late Night and his promotion from Late Night host to Tonight Show host. This year, he is losing viewers to Colbert, so I guess if anything this episode will be Fallon promoting his new Tonight Show ride at Universal Studios Orlando? Well, that will certainly be a first. Harry Styles will be his musical guest because apparently Zayn was too busy or turned them down. This feels like a strange booking as I’ve heard he was invited because he is coming out with solo material but nobody seems to have heard it yet so he may as well be debuting it on the show for the first time. It’s the least amount of buildup for a singers’ solo career before they come on SNL. Well, I’m off to go view the livestream advance screening of the MST3K season 11 premiere (for Kickstarter backers only…sorry guys, most of the rest of you will have to wait until Friday to see it on Netlfix). I’ll see you guys bright and early next week.

*WGA negotiations/looming strike pending