Okay, here's my review. This was definitely the strongest show of this month. Overall, it was a high point for the whole season. It was slightly inconsistent at times but what clicked really clicked and there was plenty of fun to be had. The show didn't feel to bogged down in recurring sketches but there were plenty of nice retreads to things that were enjoyable the first time we saw them. Matt Damon proved to be just as effective a host as he was sixteen years ago. Each cast member seemed to get plenty of airtime with no one really getting shut out, not even Ego for once. Normally, I'd say it was strange that Pete was barely in the show but given the circumstances it was smart of them to not let him do Update (or really be in any other non-filmed sketches for that matter) and have his only (thankfully) live appearance be introducing Miley's second performance to show his fans he's okay and not succumbing to pressure. Anyway, let's unpack this week.
It's A Wonderful Trump - I appreciate all the time and effort that obviously went into putting this on as the cold open, but it was kinda hard for me to get into. For one thing, they're pretty much subjecting us to the exact same guest cameos and political characterizations they bought out two weeks ago (give or take about three people). Still, I have to say Damon's Kavanaugh was the most welcome addition. He was the only one who actually made me laugh here and I think it's because this is only his second appearance. Seriously, since Brett Kavanaugh has only been a headline grabbing political figure for four, maybe six months tops out of the entire year and Damon hasn't been able to make it out to New York again until this week, it's the character that's been beaten into the ground the absolute least. Also, for some reason I was expecting this to take place in more than just two different settings. I was hoping to see Baldwin and Kenan travel around to more different landscapes if this sketch was going to be as long as it was. It was only after the sketch ended that I realized that I may have been confusing "It's A Wonderful Life" with "A Christmas Carol" but then I remembered that they've done "It's A Wonderful Life" parodies that have sprawled about the studio a bit. "It's A Wonderful Newt" from season 20 immediately comes to mind as (to a lesser extent) Baldwin's monologue from four years after that (which oddly makes this the second "It's A Wonderful Life" parody that Baldwin has participated on the show in 20 years). This one more closely resembled the two cold opens from season 15 ("It's A Wonderful Dice" and the one from Goodman's first episode in December '89). C-
Monologue - This had to have been the most endearing monologue the show has done in several years. I genuinely appreciate Damon admitting that bonding through SNL meant as much to him and his family life as it did mine. I also liked him flat out admitting he had no movie out and the nonsequitir of this being Becks' last show. It's nice to see two hosts in a row who both claim to be knowledgeable fans of the show (especially when at least one if them can actually translate that into their performances). B+
Westminster Daddy Show - While I immediately recognized that I am WAY not the target audience for this, I do appreciate how it played out as the sketch went into detail explaining every intricate detail of it's own premise to me. I especially liked the visual gag of graying, middle aged men being jogged and led around by professional dog handlers and the twist that Damon's character would be a last minute Triwizard Cup dark horse victor. I also liked the back and forth between Kenan and Alex although I don't know if I like seeing Alex get typecast in all the smug, self-superior, perpetually blind to their own privelege straight white guy roles. B+
Best Christmas Ever - This was obviously done in the same vein as the Girls Halloween/middle school theater Legally Blond/Amy Schumer pregnancy shorts from the past two seasons. Having one of these take place during Christmas was a nice touch. Since I've seen this format so many times already, not much stood out to me besides Mikeys' #MAGA hat cousin and Damon consoling his non-adopted daughter and cursing at a crumbling Fisher-Price play house. C+
Back Of The Tree Ornaments - This was the funniest live piece of the night. Beck, Kyle and Melissa seemed mostly resigned to thankless straight roles but everyone else turned in great performances. Damon poked fun at himself and his career in an interesting way. Mikey was committed to playing his first of two Harry Potter characters of the night as an oblivious sap. Oddly, Kate's old aftermath of 9/11 era Guliani is a much more accurate impression than her current day Trump administration era Guliani. I wouldn't mind seeing her continue to play present day Rudy if the stuck to using that exact same voice doing so. Cecily doesn't play a lot of creepily damaged roles very often but she succeeded here channeling her inner Maria Bamford. Honestly, the worst thing about this sketch was the constant camera miscues. A-
Oscar's Host Auditions - The recent Kevin Hart controversy was an odd excuse to do another impressions screen test showcase but it was clever and it's always fun to see these. Egos' Tiffany Haddish was pretty dead on but the voice she used was a little too high pitched. I'd say the same for Kate's Michelle Wolf but maybe also suggest that Cecily had played her instead so that Michelle Wolf doesn't gradually sound just like Kellyanne Conway for some reason. Speaking of Cecily, I haven't seen a single episode of "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" but I've seen thr cast and crew accept an absurd amount of Emmys inbetween each of the seemingly-endlessly-played-on-a- loop promos for the show to be able to see how accurate Cecilys' Rachel Brosnahan impression was. Damon's Hemsworth and McConaughey impressions were on the mark. Kenans' Michael Strahan and Terry Crews were very funny (although the former didn't make me forget about Jay Pharrohs' impression). Aidys' Roseanne still doesn't do much for me but her Hannah Gadsby stood out. I haven't seen Nanette but again, I did see her Emmys speech and from what I remember I can see why Aidy may have had to exaggerate this a little. Pete had the look down for Rami Malek but he may have needed a little more than just that. Of course, it's always nice to see Redds' Kanye, Melissas' Silverman, Heidi's Allison Janney and Kate's Ellen again. B-
Jingle Bells - This was obviously a Strong/Anderson/Sublette collab and I gotta say this was the most easily tolerable thing they've put together in quite some time. It's nice to see something from them that was just bland and forgettable rather than actively obnoxious and over the top. It reminded me of the lower key lounge singing duo type pieces that Anderson and Sublette would write for Maya Rudolph and Kristen Wiig. C-
Update was uneven but had some strong moments. Jost really got it going with the Cohen jokes after telling two Trump jokes that read so interchangeable they could've been cut from any Update in the past two years. I liked "Where's Wes" the first time I saw it during one of the Summer Thursday episodes last year. I don't think I needed to see it again when the only thing that's different is that a Christmas Carol is the theme song. I'm not sure why we needed to see Angel again either until I realized who tonight's host was. He was a welcome addition and I guess this gets the obligatory Boston role out of the way. I'd have to say the funniest moments of Update were Jost acknowledging the awkwardness of the Boy Scouts/Sex Island transition and he and Che reading each other's jokes written for each other. If that wasn't 100% genuine, then Jost in particular really knew how to sell it. B+
Weezer Dinner - I'd actually like to know who wrote this (I suspect it was whoever wrote that Shrek dinner sketch from Sterling K. Browns' episode in March) because casting Leslie opposite Damon as two ardent yet diametrically opposed Weezer fans was pretty inspired. I also liked how the ending was relatively grounded. B-
Christmas With The Cops - This sketch really didn't go anywhere at all and felt much too long and drawn out. The most pointless thing about it was Baldwin's presence. He barely had anything to contribute aside from a watered down version of his old DeNiro impression (and there was a distinct possibility that DeNiro had already left the building by that point). It's already uncomfortable enough just seeing him play Trump at this point. We're well beyond the point where he should also be placed in regular sketches throughout the show. The only things approaching jokes were Cecilys' walk on and Beck admitting to shooting Kyle's wife. If this was a parody of a specific scene from a specific cop drama, the reference was lost on me. I can't even tell who the intended audience was for this one. D+
Happy Christmas, Britain - Well, it's nice to see SNL comment on international politics every once in a while but a lot of this seemed destined to be lost on US audiences. Kate and Matt did turn on fine performances. I mean, I don't know a ton about former UK Prime Minister David Cameron but Matt Damon is still not the first person I would picture playing him. Aidys' Elton John is okay but still comes off rather strange and out of place. Mikey as Lord Voldemort looked like it was going to be the best part of this but too bad the bulk of his part had to get cut abruptly due to time. I guess Jost & Ches' giggling made Update run long. C-
Now, for my updated rankings of this season...
1. Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
2. Matt Damon/Mark Ronson & Miley Cyrus
3. Adam Driver/Kanye West
4. Steve Carrell/Ella Mai
5. Jason Momoa/Mumford & Sons
6. Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak
7. Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
8. Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
9. Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Well, that was a strong note to end the calendar year on. I'm shocked that there was no on air acknowledgment that this WASN'T SNLs' surprise series finale let alone any host/MG announcement for any episode that could theoretically take place next year. Maybe they actually ARE trying to get Bradley Cooper and/or Lady Gaga to do the show on January 19 and are just not having their calls returned. Maybe they already had them booked as recently as this week but they both had to drop out at the last possible second? I mean, it happened with Ariana Grande already this season. The way this season has been going, I don't see why it couldn't happen twice. I guess they'll make an announcement on social media either this next coming week or early next month after the holidays. Anyway, Happy Holidays and see you January 19th...whoever we end up getting.
Sunday, December 16, 2018
Sunday, December 9, 2018
Jason Momoa/Mumford & Sons (12.8.2018)
Okay, here's my review. While this show had considerably more energy than last week (not a lot though) something about the writing and the material they had really dragged it down. The show as a whole felt so unfocused that I'm not sure any host could have saved this week given what they wrote and ended up putting on the air. Jason Momoa seems like a good guy who gave it his all but he wasn't quite the strong host I was expecting him to be. I realized at some point that Jason is more a big popcorn blockbuster action star in the making than an actor's actor. Plus, he must not have had that much acting experience at this point in his career since he's basically only know for two distinct roles and to my knowledge, this is the first time he has acted or performed in a live setting anywhere. This occurred to me when I had noticed that Jason really excelled in the two pre taped segments he was in tonight than in any of his live sketches. As far as airtime goes, the show was pretty much dominated by Beck/Kyle, Mikey/Alex/Pete and Kenan. Kudos to Chris for making enough live appearances tonight to make up for his virtual absence from the last few shows. As far as the female presence on the show, I've noticed that newer hires like Heidi and Melissa were all over the place while the senior women on the show (Cecily, Kate, Leslie) were barely used at all (with Aidy still being visible). I really got the impression tonight that Cecily and Kate were planning on this being their final season while Heidi and Melissa had proven themselves enough to be widely visible and used as utility players by this point. It's almost as if Lorne is grooming them to take over for the women who might be leaving. However, I'm starting to get a little more worried about Ego. She seems like a strong performer who is definitely meant to be a great fit for the show and she has had one breakout sketch in the first three shows of thy he season but she hasn't had any other "breakout" roles since then where she got to be front and center. Granted, it is still her first season but it's almost like she is being unfairly punished because (through no fault of her own or the show) her breakout sketch caught some flak from the real life Baltimore police department. This is obviously not something that should keep her from being on more her first season let alone getting a chance at a second one. Anyway, we've got a lot to unpack here as I'm sure you can already tell so let's get to it.
Eric's Bedtime Story - If nothing else, a nice palette cleanser from last weeks' mess. It's nice to see the Eric & Don Jr. bits have gotten less and less formulaic to the point where they work even better away from the Update desk. Alex had some good malapropisms here. Deniros' Muller is probably the most welcome of the show's stable of recurring political impressions just by virtue of it being one of the least obnoxious characterization of anyone the show currently satirizes. Honestly, the worst thing about this one was Deniro stumbling over a few cue cards. Even though the ending came off a little awkward thanks to Deniro, I was glad to see it didn't belabor the point. C+
Monologue - This came off quite strange and given the host's stature I was a little disappointed that it ultimately failed to set the right tone for the rest of the show. I'm glad to see Jason Momoa is a self professed SNL "nerd" and even wanted to move to New York to join the cast at one point but I wish he could've made that sheer enthusiasm translate better here to more than just the P-Funk pastiche he took part in at the very end. Speaking of which, I think the bigger problem here is that this monologue seriously lacked focus. It felt like they had ideas for three different monologues and could not settle on which ONE they thought would work best to save their lives. It really felt like a cross between all the monologues Sterling K. Brown, Hugh Jackman and Chadwick Boseman did in that order. At least it ended on an up note. I do have to wonder how Jason got Lorne to let him host the show without shaving his beard. That is a rarity nowadays. C+
Elves On The Shelves - This had a pretty one note premise but the writing was the main thing that made it watchable. Thankfully, this didn't belabor the point by the time it ended either. It felt like it could've been done with literally any male host but somehow Jason playing his role in a similar way to how I imagine Liev Schreiber would've had this sketch taken place just outside a woman's restroom really added something to this. Strangely, my biggest issue with this sketch was how jarringly unnecessary the voice modulates were. C+
GE Big Boy Appliances - This was an enjoyably simple piece. I mean, this wasn't exactly the first time that anyone has taken a hard look at the different ways household products are marketed toward men and women and tried to mine it for comedy but this worked due to the sheer levels of committment to broad visual gags. Jason did well here because again, this piece was being carried on the strength of its' absurd props so he barely had to contribute anything. B-
Khal Drogos' Ghost Dojo - I expected Jason to do much better than he did in the night's requisite "Game Of Thrones" sketch. After all, he's playing what up until very recently may have been his best known role. He should have been well within his comfort zone if not for the whole "live" aspect. Still, he was HARDLY the biggest problem with this sketch. It was basically all over the place writing wise and had far too much going on. It felt like the second piece of the night that the writers couldn't decide on one theme or central premise for. Even Kenan seemed to be thrown for a loop as he's never been known to break in any sketch or even stumble over any lines as he did here. Ironically, it seemed like it was going for mass appeal but at the same time gave us a string of GoT references that were so hyper specific that they couldn't have been meant for anyone other than obsessive GoT fans who've seen and analyzed every episode multiple times over (and I point this out fully aware of any inherent irony in what I'm writing right now). This seemed like it played about 10 times better at the table read on Wednesday than it did for the live and dress audiences but they felt like they had to keep it in the show anyway due to the subject matter being so relevant to the host's career. With the addition of Beck as Hodor after seeing him as Santa, it's become pretty obvious that they're now using him for the same types of roles they would have used Bobby Moynihan for two years ago. That must be an odd feeling for him if he has ever had to think about this. Good to see Pete make attempt at playing a character that wasn't entirely "himself" even if it started to unravel. Kate as King Joffrey oddly felt like a bit of a throwback in terms of go to Got references in pop culture (based on who hadn't been killed off yer) and yet very current and prescient in how Kate is being used on the show. Staging a ridiculous slap fight between her and Aidys' character just felt like the audience was having one more thing thrown ar them unnecessarily. While I thought the gag with Kyle was funny, it is also starting to feel dated. Not just because people have made fun of the general premise of discussion shows and after shows before but it now seems like society is actively trying to make them less of a thing now either because the first shows to have them ended or because of what came out about Chris Hardwick (who was the first person to become famous by hosting those shows and is thus the person most strongly associated with the genre). D+
Them Trumps - Well, it's nice to get a different take on the goings on in the Trump white house than what the show usually gives us. Still, while the examination of racial double standards in our legal system isn't exactly fresh ground (hell, Chappelle already did "what would our current Republican president be like if he were black?" as a sketch premise nearly 15 years ago now) but this sketch just goes to show how well Kenan does serve the show as the anchor/glue of this and the last few casts. Plus, after the sketch that came just before it, I was very glad to see something that got in, got right to the point it was trying to make and got out. B+
Update was the most consistent and well written part of this episode and thus tonight's stand out segment. Che really got it going and then Jost picked up the slack and really sold all of his material. Nice to see Aidy play a well thought out character that was grounded in reality after some of the rare misses Heidi had been giving us recently. Ches' bidet commentary was funny and I do like the format/fourth wall break the show employed to deliver it. B+
The Ghost Of Xmas Extra - Okay, this HAD to have been written by the same persons who wrote the Cleopatra sketch from Awkwafinas' episode and the "GPYASS" sketch from Steve Carell's episode. It did have that exact same ultra feminized trending Twitter meme sensibility to it and seemed written solely to pander to Jason's female fans. Other than that, I liked Mikeys exaggerated exasperation. I'm glad they knew that the perfect place to end this would be right after the twerking. C-
Day Of The Dorks - Well, I was really expecting the reveal behind Jason's character to be a more substantial payoff than it ended up being. This was just full of too much useless exposition. It seemed like it was written just to harness Jason's manic bro energy from the weeks' promos. I'll bet whoever wrote this also wrote that NOT!Scooby Doo sketch from Mikey's first episode two years ago with Margot Robbie. D+
Sleigh Ride - Well, that was a great mislead with Leslie, Kenan, Kyle and Melissa (who had a great exit line, by the way) because I wasn't expecting Cecily as Gemma to show up. Frankly, it was a little strange to see her first live appearance so late in the show. What was also strange but pleasantly surprising was Jason's performance here because only by this point in the show had he gotten over his nervous habit of tripping over cue cards and gained a sense of comedic timing. I liked how different of a setting this was and how much more outlandish the dialogue was. The ending to this was satisfying as well. B-
First Impression - This was fun to watch due to the way Beck and Jason played off each other and Melissa and Heidi playing off of them. It gave me immediate flash backs to Paul Brittains' Lord Wyndemeire (sp?) from season 37. The ending could've been trimmed a bit because it killed the momentum the rest of the sketch built up. B-
Rudolph's Revenge - This got off to a bit of a slow start when they basically gave us the Cliffs Notes version of the Rudolph story. Pete really shined in this. He probably had plenty of personal life inspiration to draw from this week. The only other stand out performer was Jason mostly because he was the second actor in this show alone to play the role of Santa Claus. B+
Now, for my updated rankings of this season...
1. Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
2. Adam Driver/Kanye West
3. Steve Carrell/Ella Mai
4. Jason Momoa/Mumford & Sons
5. Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak
6. Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
7. Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
8. Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Well, that barely lived up to any expectations I may have had. Next week will be the final SNL of 2018. Matt Damon returns to host for his second time ever in sixteen years seemingly just on the strength of his surprise Brett Kavanaugh impression from the season premiere. If that was any indication, we are in for a far more competently acted show than this one. He was a strong host in 2002 and he should make for a fun show even if he has sort of shown us his ass in recent years re: #MeToo and diversity related issues (thankfully, that was more anything dumb he might have SAID than what he actually did). Still, I think now his presence will somehow feel a bit less tone deaf. See you then!
Eric's Bedtime Story - If nothing else, a nice palette cleanser from last weeks' mess. It's nice to see the Eric & Don Jr. bits have gotten less and less formulaic to the point where they work even better away from the Update desk. Alex had some good malapropisms here. Deniros' Muller is probably the most welcome of the show's stable of recurring political impressions just by virtue of it being one of the least obnoxious characterization of anyone the show currently satirizes. Honestly, the worst thing about this one was Deniro stumbling over a few cue cards. Even though the ending came off a little awkward thanks to Deniro, I was glad to see it didn't belabor the point. C+
Monologue - This came off quite strange and given the host's stature I was a little disappointed that it ultimately failed to set the right tone for the rest of the show. I'm glad to see Jason Momoa is a self professed SNL "nerd" and even wanted to move to New York to join the cast at one point but I wish he could've made that sheer enthusiasm translate better here to more than just the P-Funk pastiche he took part in at the very end. Speaking of which, I think the bigger problem here is that this monologue seriously lacked focus. It felt like they had ideas for three different monologues and could not settle on which ONE they thought would work best to save their lives. It really felt like a cross between all the monologues Sterling K. Brown, Hugh Jackman and Chadwick Boseman did in that order. At least it ended on an up note. I do have to wonder how Jason got Lorne to let him host the show without shaving his beard. That is a rarity nowadays. C+
Elves On The Shelves - This had a pretty one note premise but the writing was the main thing that made it watchable. Thankfully, this didn't belabor the point by the time it ended either. It felt like it could've been done with literally any male host but somehow Jason playing his role in a similar way to how I imagine Liev Schreiber would've had this sketch taken place just outside a woman's restroom really added something to this. Strangely, my biggest issue with this sketch was how jarringly unnecessary the voice modulates were. C+
GE Big Boy Appliances - This was an enjoyably simple piece. I mean, this wasn't exactly the first time that anyone has taken a hard look at the different ways household products are marketed toward men and women and tried to mine it for comedy but this worked due to the sheer levels of committment to broad visual gags. Jason did well here because again, this piece was being carried on the strength of its' absurd props so he barely had to contribute anything. B-
Khal Drogos' Ghost Dojo - I expected Jason to do much better than he did in the night's requisite "Game Of Thrones" sketch. After all, he's playing what up until very recently may have been his best known role. He should have been well within his comfort zone if not for the whole "live" aspect. Still, he was HARDLY the biggest problem with this sketch. It was basically all over the place writing wise and had far too much going on. It felt like the second piece of the night that the writers couldn't decide on one theme or central premise for. Even Kenan seemed to be thrown for a loop as he's never been known to break in any sketch or even stumble over any lines as he did here. Ironically, it seemed like it was going for mass appeal but at the same time gave us a string of GoT references that were so hyper specific that they couldn't have been meant for anyone other than obsessive GoT fans who've seen and analyzed every episode multiple times over (and I point this out fully aware of any inherent irony in what I'm writing right now). This seemed like it played about 10 times better at the table read on Wednesday than it did for the live and dress audiences but they felt like they had to keep it in the show anyway due to the subject matter being so relevant to the host's career. With the addition of Beck as Hodor after seeing him as Santa, it's become pretty obvious that they're now using him for the same types of roles they would have used Bobby Moynihan for two years ago. That must be an odd feeling for him if he has ever had to think about this. Good to see Pete make attempt at playing a character that wasn't entirely "himself" even if it started to unravel. Kate as King Joffrey oddly felt like a bit of a throwback in terms of go to Got references in pop culture (based on who hadn't been killed off yer) and yet very current and prescient in how Kate is being used on the show. Staging a ridiculous slap fight between her and Aidys' character just felt like the audience was having one more thing thrown ar them unnecessarily. While I thought the gag with Kyle was funny, it is also starting to feel dated. Not just because people have made fun of the general premise of discussion shows and after shows before but it now seems like society is actively trying to make them less of a thing now either because the first shows to have them ended or because of what came out about Chris Hardwick (who was the first person to become famous by hosting those shows and is thus the person most strongly associated with the genre). D+
Them Trumps - Well, it's nice to get a different take on the goings on in the Trump white house than what the show usually gives us. Still, while the examination of racial double standards in our legal system isn't exactly fresh ground (hell, Chappelle already did "what would our current Republican president be like if he were black?" as a sketch premise nearly 15 years ago now) but this sketch just goes to show how well Kenan does serve the show as the anchor/glue of this and the last few casts. Plus, after the sketch that came just before it, I was very glad to see something that got in, got right to the point it was trying to make and got out. B+
Update was the most consistent and well written part of this episode and thus tonight's stand out segment. Che really got it going and then Jost picked up the slack and really sold all of his material. Nice to see Aidy play a well thought out character that was grounded in reality after some of the rare misses Heidi had been giving us recently. Ches' bidet commentary was funny and I do like the format/fourth wall break the show employed to deliver it. B+
The Ghost Of Xmas Extra - Okay, this HAD to have been written by the same persons who wrote the Cleopatra sketch from Awkwafinas' episode and the "GPYASS" sketch from Steve Carell's episode. It did have that exact same ultra feminized trending Twitter meme sensibility to it and seemed written solely to pander to Jason's female fans. Other than that, I liked Mikeys exaggerated exasperation. I'm glad they knew that the perfect place to end this would be right after the twerking. C-
Day Of The Dorks - Well, I was really expecting the reveal behind Jason's character to be a more substantial payoff than it ended up being. This was just full of too much useless exposition. It seemed like it was written just to harness Jason's manic bro energy from the weeks' promos. I'll bet whoever wrote this also wrote that NOT!Scooby Doo sketch from Mikey's first episode two years ago with Margot Robbie. D+
Sleigh Ride - Well, that was a great mislead with Leslie, Kenan, Kyle and Melissa (who had a great exit line, by the way) because I wasn't expecting Cecily as Gemma to show up. Frankly, it was a little strange to see her first live appearance so late in the show. What was also strange but pleasantly surprising was Jason's performance here because only by this point in the show had he gotten over his nervous habit of tripping over cue cards and gained a sense of comedic timing. I liked how different of a setting this was and how much more outlandish the dialogue was. The ending to this was satisfying as well. B-
First Impression - This was fun to watch due to the way Beck and Jason played off each other and Melissa and Heidi playing off of them. It gave me immediate flash backs to Paul Brittains' Lord Wyndemeire (sp?) from season 37. The ending could've been trimmed a bit because it killed the momentum the rest of the sketch built up. B-
Rudolph's Revenge - This got off to a bit of a slow start when they basically gave us the Cliffs Notes version of the Rudolph story. Pete really shined in this. He probably had plenty of personal life inspiration to draw from this week. The only other stand out performer was Jason mostly because he was the second actor in this show alone to play the role of Santa Claus. B+
Now, for my updated rankings of this season...
1. Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
2. Adam Driver/Kanye West
3. Steve Carrell/Ella Mai
4. Jason Momoa/Mumford & Sons
5. Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak
6. Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
7. Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
8. Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Well, that barely lived up to any expectations I may have had. Next week will be the final SNL of 2018. Matt Damon returns to host for his second time ever in sixteen years seemingly just on the strength of his surprise Brett Kavanaugh impression from the season premiere. If that was any indication, we are in for a far more competently acted show than this one. He was a strong host in 2002 and he should make for a fun show even if he has sort of shown us his ass in recent years re: #MeToo and diversity related issues (thankfully, that was more anything dumb he might have SAID than what he actually did). Still, I think now his presence will somehow feel a bit less tone deaf. See you then!
Sunday, December 2, 2018
Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak (12.01.2018)
Okay, here's my review. This was a real forgettable middle of the road show for this season. It had it's fair share of recurring sketches and derivative premises but thankfully it was at least buoyed by a very charming and likable host whom I wouldn't mind seeing on the show again. Everyone in the cast seemed to get an even amount of airtime (except Chris who only seemed to appear as a utility player in one pre tape and Ego seems like she is still going virtually unused). Anyway, let's break it down.
Donnie Does Argentina - Another cameo loaded uninspired cameo stuffed political cold open with Baldwin's Trump as the centerpiece. Hey, I'm not crazy about still having to see him either (that "parking space" joke was wholly unnecessary and way to awkwardly shoehorned in) but hey...two appearances across seven shows isn't too bad. I guess since the latest developments in the Muller investigation were the biggest political headline this week they felt they had to do something on that. It may have seemed like this was done in the same vein as the cold open from Donald Glovers' episode in May but at least this felt more direct and to the point due to the comparative lack of cameos. Speaking of which, I know Armisen has been know to play various ethnic/foreign leader roles competently but seeing him portray Mohammed Bin Salman somehow felt pretty tone deaf. They may have taken a minor risk that may not have paid off there. Other than that, all that stood out was the jab at Eric and the "like a son to me" joke. D+
Monologue - This started off slightly awkward and Claire seemed visibly nervous but the way she delivered the anecdote about meeting the actual queen worked for me. It was nice to see they trusted her to deliver a straight forward true solo monologue and once again resisted the temptation to have Fred or even Kate for that matter make a cameo as present day Queen Elizabeth despite both being in the building currently. C+
Netflix...has EVERYTHING (*meant to be read in a Stefon voice*) - At this point, the idea of Netflix letting itself become this endless inane void that will one day consume us all simply by buying every show pitched within their field of vision is starting to feel like a worn out comedy premise but the gritty Family Matters reboot and Leslie's segment made this worth watching.
C+
Morning Joe IV - Well, congrats to Joe and Mika on their recent nuptials but I'm not sure that alone was enough to do another sketch where they put their relationship front and center over their actual jobs. Still, Melissa and Claire were the true highlights here. Good to see Melissa shine in a role that was pretty much designed just for her. C+
WWI Letters - This didn't really seem to be going anywhere at first but I liked Mikey's increasing exasperation at Claires' cryptic ongoing vagueness and Kenans' unexplained, unwarranted presence. It reminded me of the Jennifer Lawrence/Tim Robinson civil war letters sketch from 2013 but this thankfully went to a much stranger place. B-
Dad Christmas - While this was pretty much the exact type of pathetic middle aged divorced guy humor I was expecting once they established the basic premise, every part of this was executed very well. Mikey and Cecily really played their parts well and Aidys' song at the end really made this whole thing for me. B+
Update was kind of all over the place tonight. Jokewise, all that really stood out were Jost on the Trump balloon and Che on Manafort & Assange. As usual, Leslie's commentary was endearingly boisterous and visually entertaining but very scattershot and unfocused and probably could've benefitted from being trimmed down a bit. Che's Judge Judy name drop had to have been adlibbed based on the reaction it got. Becks' character seemed a little one note at first but his bit really picked up steam once he talked about getting hit by cars and his dad inventing Oxycontin. Colin played off of him very well. I liked how this was very possibly the very first Update commentary that ever ended with one anchor gently pushing the character off screen. Between this and Leslie's commentary, this is by far the most animated I have seem Colin on the show ever. Finally, while I thought the end of Update was initially a very strange place for a sincere, heartfelt Bush 41 tribute but I did like how they segued to a few clips of Carveys' Bush that concluded with the remote pre taped clip of the real HW from Carveys' '94 monologue. Plus, it's not every week that a former president dies while SNL is actively in production. I was just thinking about why they never did a similar tribute for Gerald Ford (who has a similar connection to the show and even made a similar pre taped cameo on the show when he sent his real life press secretary to host in season one) and it was probably because he died during the Christmas/New Years' 06/07 holiday when everybody was off and it would've been old news by the time they came back that January. Also, I'm betting this was the only reason Leslie's commentary wasn't the thing they ended Update on given that it ended with the Rocky theme. C+
Charlie And The Cialis Travesty - It felt strange watching this because they just did an extremely similar (and much better written) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory parody two seasons ago with Kristen Stewart. This was the much raunchier version of that. It was pretty much that mixed with the Game Night sketch from Haders' episode last season. I didn't much care for it but at least they knew exactly when to end it. C-
HSN - Okay, seems like there's quite a bit to unpack here. At first, it just seemed like someone started out trying to write another "Right Side Of The Bed" sketch before realizing that Taran Killam is no longer on the show but decided to keep writing anyway to see what direction this could go in. Then, it seemed like this was going to be like one of those "Hello Dolly" sketches that Ana Gasteyer did in the late '90s/early 2000s mixed with that QVC sketch Cecily did with Kristen Wiig two years ago. Thankfully, this went in a much stranger direction. Cecilys' string of very light profanity was amusing and then Aidy came in and added a whole new level of surreal strangeness to it. Also, it seems a little strange that the portion of the show where Claire Foy tries different accents that are not British would be so late in the show but it was nice to eventually see that somewhere. B-
Good Morning Goomah - As soon as I heard the words "Staten Island Cable", I knew exactly who could've written it. Still, there were a couple of reasons, I couldn't totally get into this. First, I thought Cecily should've had Kate or Aidys' role instead of just being relegated to an offscreen voice over. Secondly, this was so dialogue heavy it seemed longer than it actually was. At least we got to see Pete actually attempt to act. C-
Muller Christmas - The fact that this was a parody song rather than a straight, dramatic maudlin cover song was the only thing that kept it from being another "Hallelujah" or "To Sir With Love". That being said, it was immediately obvious where this was going and even though some of it felt rushed and awkward it was pretty solidly written and performed for what it was. It really got going once they let the women who got hired AFTER season 40 joined in. Other than that, this either should've been the cold open or saved for the cold open for whichever of the next two planned episodes Baldwin won't be able to make it to rather than buried at the end of this week's episode. C+
Now, for my update rankings of the entire season so far...
1. Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
2. Adam Driver/Kanye West
3. Steve Carrell/Ella Mai
4. Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak
5. Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
6. Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
7. Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Well, that was that. Next week, Jason Momoa makes his hosting debut. I don't know much about him besides the fact that he was on "Game Of Thrones" and is now in "Aquaman". In fact, the only thing I'm sure I've seen him in is that meme where he looks like he is going to sneak up on Henry Cavill on some red carpet. Still, he strikes me as someone who is going to be a similar type of host to The Rock or John Cena. He seems like he has a big enough personality to handle sketch comedy well. See you then!
Donnie Does Argentina - Another cameo loaded uninspired cameo stuffed political cold open with Baldwin's Trump as the centerpiece. Hey, I'm not crazy about still having to see him either (that "parking space" joke was wholly unnecessary and way to awkwardly shoehorned in) but hey...two appearances across seven shows isn't too bad. I guess since the latest developments in the Muller investigation were the biggest political headline this week they felt they had to do something on that. It may have seemed like this was done in the same vein as the cold open from Donald Glovers' episode in May but at least this felt more direct and to the point due to the comparative lack of cameos. Speaking of which, I know Armisen has been know to play various ethnic/foreign leader roles competently but seeing him portray Mohammed Bin Salman somehow felt pretty tone deaf. They may have taken a minor risk that may not have paid off there. Other than that, all that stood out was the jab at Eric and the "like a son to me" joke. D+
Monologue - This started off slightly awkward and Claire seemed visibly nervous but the way she delivered the anecdote about meeting the actual queen worked for me. It was nice to see they trusted her to deliver a straight forward true solo monologue and once again resisted the temptation to have Fred or even Kate for that matter make a cameo as present day Queen Elizabeth despite both being in the building currently. C+
Netflix...has EVERYTHING (*meant to be read in a Stefon voice*) - At this point, the idea of Netflix letting itself become this endless inane void that will one day consume us all simply by buying every show pitched within their field of vision is starting to feel like a worn out comedy premise but the gritty Family Matters reboot and Leslie's segment made this worth watching.
C+
Morning Joe IV - Well, congrats to Joe and Mika on their recent nuptials but I'm not sure that alone was enough to do another sketch where they put their relationship front and center over their actual jobs. Still, Melissa and Claire were the true highlights here. Good to see Melissa shine in a role that was pretty much designed just for her. C+
WWI Letters - This didn't really seem to be going anywhere at first but I liked Mikey's increasing exasperation at Claires' cryptic ongoing vagueness and Kenans' unexplained, unwarranted presence. It reminded me of the Jennifer Lawrence/Tim Robinson civil war letters sketch from 2013 but this thankfully went to a much stranger place. B-
Dad Christmas - While this was pretty much the exact type of pathetic middle aged divorced guy humor I was expecting once they established the basic premise, every part of this was executed very well. Mikey and Cecily really played their parts well and Aidys' song at the end really made this whole thing for me. B+
Update was kind of all over the place tonight. Jokewise, all that really stood out were Jost on the Trump balloon and Che on Manafort & Assange. As usual, Leslie's commentary was endearingly boisterous and visually entertaining but very scattershot and unfocused and probably could've benefitted from being trimmed down a bit. Che's Judge Judy name drop had to have been adlibbed based on the reaction it got. Becks' character seemed a little one note at first but his bit really picked up steam once he talked about getting hit by cars and his dad inventing Oxycontin. Colin played off of him very well. I liked how this was very possibly the very first Update commentary that ever ended with one anchor gently pushing the character off screen. Between this and Leslie's commentary, this is by far the most animated I have seem Colin on the show ever. Finally, while I thought the end of Update was initially a very strange place for a sincere, heartfelt Bush 41 tribute but I did like how they segued to a few clips of Carveys' Bush that concluded with the remote pre taped clip of the real HW from Carveys' '94 monologue. Plus, it's not every week that a former president dies while SNL is actively in production. I was just thinking about why they never did a similar tribute for Gerald Ford (who has a similar connection to the show and even made a similar pre taped cameo on the show when he sent his real life press secretary to host in season one) and it was probably because he died during the Christmas/New Years' 06/07 holiday when everybody was off and it would've been old news by the time they came back that January. Also, I'm betting this was the only reason Leslie's commentary wasn't the thing they ended Update on given that it ended with the Rocky theme. C+
Charlie And The Cialis Travesty - It felt strange watching this because they just did an extremely similar (and much better written) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory parody two seasons ago with Kristen Stewart. This was the much raunchier version of that. It was pretty much that mixed with the Game Night sketch from Haders' episode last season. I didn't much care for it but at least they knew exactly when to end it. C-
HSN - Okay, seems like there's quite a bit to unpack here. At first, it just seemed like someone started out trying to write another "Right Side Of The Bed" sketch before realizing that Taran Killam is no longer on the show but decided to keep writing anyway to see what direction this could go in. Then, it seemed like this was going to be like one of those "Hello Dolly" sketches that Ana Gasteyer did in the late '90s/early 2000s mixed with that QVC sketch Cecily did with Kristen Wiig two years ago. Thankfully, this went in a much stranger direction. Cecilys' string of very light profanity was amusing and then Aidy came in and added a whole new level of surreal strangeness to it. Also, it seems a little strange that the portion of the show where Claire Foy tries different accents that are not British would be so late in the show but it was nice to eventually see that somewhere. B-
Good Morning Goomah - As soon as I heard the words "Staten Island Cable", I knew exactly who could've written it. Still, there were a couple of reasons, I couldn't totally get into this. First, I thought Cecily should've had Kate or Aidys' role instead of just being relegated to an offscreen voice over. Secondly, this was so dialogue heavy it seemed longer than it actually was. At least we got to see Pete actually attempt to act. C-
Muller Christmas - The fact that this was a parody song rather than a straight, dramatic maudlin cover song was the only thing that kept it from being another "Hallelujah" or "To Sir With Love". That being said, it was immediately obvious where this was going and even though some of it felt rushed and awkward it was pretty solidly written and performed for what it was. It really got going once they let the women who got hired AFTER season 40 joined in. Other than that, this either should've been the cold open or saved for the cold open for whichever of the next two planned episodes Baldwin won't be able to make it to rather than buried at the end of this week's episode. C+
Now, for my update rankings of the entire season so far...
1. Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
2. Adam Driver/Kanye West
3. Steve Carrell/Ella Mai
4. Claire Foy/Anderson .Paak
5. Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
6. Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
7. Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Well, that was that. Next week, Jason Momoa makes his hosting debut. I don't know much about him besides the fact that he was on "Game Of Thrones" and is now in "Aquaman". In fact, the only thing I'm sure I've seen him in is that meme where he looks like he is going to sneak up on Henry Cavill on some red carpet. Still, he strikes me as someone who is going to be a similar type of host to The Rock or John Cena. He seems like he has a big enough personality to handle sketch comedy well. See you then!
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