Jack Black/Jack White (04.04.2026)

NCAA Final Four Post Game Show

• Hey, an off the beaten path cold open choice!

• Nice to see they're using Kam in something, but that Chappel Roan...oof.

• Always nice to see Kenans' Charles Barkley. I don't know if I'm that crazy about the direction this is taking though.

• Ok, the Kalshi/Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Kristi Noem thing was funny.

• All right, Ashleys' Pam Bondi was nice to see, too.

• I did like Kenans' joke about Pam Bondi looking like "a womens' basketball coach who got fired for pulling on a girls' braid"and his LFNY segue.

• Not the best cold open of this season but far from the worst. Just...an odd mishmash of various things.. Sounded like the audience didn't know what to make of this or how to respond either. Very weird energy already. C-

Monologue 

• Well, I know Jack Black has always been a bombastic rock & roll/song and dance guy and he's always tried to bring that energy to his monologues on this show...so, seeing an actual five timers club sketch would feel quite odd. Let's see what they do here.

• Ugh, a bearded Jonah Hill in 2026 being the first cameo in this means this might automatically be the weakest monologue Jack Black has ever done on this show.

• I will admit I did like the creepy/spooky vibe of this one among other things. I appreciate the show getting Candace, Melissa and Tina to cameo. 

• I especially liked what Tina bought to this one with the meta "this is my fifth five timers club sketch" joke and the "SNL UK One Timers club jacket made from Paddington" jokes.

• I wasn't crazy about adding Domingo to this either (especially since I was half expecting him next week...yes, along with that other Domingo I already heard we were getting...you know, that Colman fella?) but bringing in Jack White just to wang Domingo over the head with a frying pan might have been my second favorite part of this.

• Hey, there IS a "musical guests only" wing of the five timers club! Jack White just confirmed it! You hear that, Jon and Bill? I am vindicated!

• I love how they actually did end this with an actual musical number as well. This was a very fun way to sneak in our musical guests' biggest hit "Seven Nation Army". That was my favorite part of this one. B-

Kathy

• I liked Jacks' "gym" adlib upon entering this sketch.

• I guess I was a fool to expect a sequel to that "One-Uppers" sketch from last year, but I automatically like this better.

• I immediately liked all the odd little details Ashley added to this character (especially her medication and the "numbers"game on her phone). This feels like a character Cheri Oteri would've played about 25-30 years ago.

• I also love the Andy Kaufman/Great Gadsby-esque "extreme testing the patience of the audience" nature of this. B-

Words To Live By

• Ok, I liked the reveal of JAJ doing a country song and the reveal of Jack White playing a half forgotten guitar solo more than I liked the reveal of what this turned out to be. 

• This also feels like one of those things that could've been done with any host because Jack Black isn't the most convincing at playing a country singer. Hell, I barely buy him hiking down a mountain let alone up one but I get the writers wanting him to play a guy who is told the meaning of life by Kenan's ancient mystic.

• This felt like a premise that I should've seen done before on SNL or elsewhere. Hell, even the twist of the guys remembering the name of the Men In Black memory erasing device seemed completely telegraphed. Jack Black didn't add much to it but I did like the ending with Dismkues just belittling his child. C-

Ultimate Dojo

• Well, I liked JAJs' anecdote at the very beginning.

• Is this going to just be a Marcello acting class sketch but with a weirder more indiscriminate eastern European accent and replacing acting with self-defense?

• It sure looks that way. Well, I'm liking this a tiny bit more than I feel I should.

• I will admit that having Jack Black play a martial arts teacher is a deceny use of his age defying physicality.

• Oh my god. Kenan is playing a character that is the exact same age as me. 

• Well, I DON'T like what Ben is adding to this sketch, but I am getting a kick out of the constant chanting of "estopit, estopit, estopit" during their silly slap fights leading up to the move they're supposed to be demonstrating. Too bad they're far funnier than the reveal of what the moves are supposed to be.

• The comedic highlight of this sketch may be the final reveal of Jane being the toughest, most badass "poo-pil" Jack and Marcello have ever taught and her back and forth with Jeremy. C+

Carry On My Wayward...Husband?

• Ok, yeah...this looked like it was going to be another tired ass "been there, done that" 30 year old premise but I ended up REALLY liking the execution and sheer pageantry of this. 

• Great way to work in Jack Blacks classic rock singing talents. I also got a kick out of JAJs explanation for why his tighty whites were suddenly visible.

• Sarah and Chloe had some good back and forths with each other and once again Jane Wickline comes in clutch. B+

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: Pam Bondi/Esptein Files, Healthcare Attacks, Canadian Pizza Hut

• Ches' Best Jokes: Trump Presidential Library, Chicago, New Jersey

• Sarah Sherman as Kristi Noems' husband. Why? Seriously, why?

• At least this feels like something Sarah came up with on her own and not something Lorne ordered her to do...but when the genuinely funniest parts of this bit are another tired "remember when Kristi Noem shot that dog?" joke and a sudden cut to Jost air-motorboating, something may be seriously wrong.

• ...and Che's back to those damn WBNA jokes again. Great.

• Hey! Kam as Black Snape! This could be good!

• Yeah, Kams' really crushing this! Decent ending to a very uneven Update. C+

The 300

• Automatically, this is much better than the other 300 parodies that SNL did when 300 actually came out...almost 20 years ago (especially the one they did in 2009 when Gerard Butler actually hosted).

• Still, it kinda dragged until we got to Jack Black being cussed out by child. I did like Dismukes taking an entire day to list off various reasons why he wasn't picked, though. C+

Spring Break AirBnB

• This seemed like another very thing premise that feels like it should've been done before but wasn't yet. Still, it's really the type of thing only a paring of Jack Black and Melissa McCarthy could make this entertaining.

• I definitely ended up enjoying the bits of physical business between Melissa, Jeremy, the Jurgens and the doorknob than I thought I would. B+

Ranking The 51st Season From Best To Worst

1. Nikki Glaser/Sombr (11.08.2025)
2. Glenn Powell/Olivia Dean (11.15.2025)
3. Alexander Skarsgard/Cardi B (01.31.2026)
4. Melissa McCarthy/Dijon (12.06.2025)
5. Ariana Grande/Cher (12.20.2025)
6. Jack Black/Jack White (04.04.2026)
7. Ryan Gosling/Gorillaz (03.07.2026)
8. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
9. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
10. Finn Wolfhard/A$AP Rocky (01.17.2026)
11. Harry Styles (03.14.2026)
12. Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons (02.28.2026)
13. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
14. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
15. Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)
16. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts

• Well, this was a fun one. I'd say it's a lot like Jack Blacks' episode from last year in that it feels like a much better episode than it really is at the time just because his manic energy helps put things over more and most of the season that just preceded this was was just dull and disappointing. This episode felt a little more sparse and empty from a writing standpoint sadly.

• At this point, I don't know if I've been more spoiled by SNL UK or have just gotten burnt out on a combination of SNL US and both my work and family lives, but all I have left to say about this episode is that I enjoyed it more than my lack of anything at all to constructively or critically say anything about it would indicate.

• Maybe I'm subconsciously holding back a bit with the critical thinking part of my brain because I know in addition to the blog you just read I also have to review the third episode of SNL UK this week along with composing a review of the Tina Fey/Carrie Underwood episode both for this blog AND the podcast (the latter of which my cohost Deej had been encouraging me to "hold back" on for production and editing reasons) but I know I gotta make a conscious effort to not spread myself too thin creatively over the next couple of months, so I'll just wrap this up here.

Closing Thoughts 

• Next week on SNL US, Colman Domingo makes his hosting debut. Seeing as he is an acclaimed, Oscar nominated actor at this point in his career, this is a big get for SNL. Plus, he has sketch experience with Kate from "The Big Gay Sketch Show", so they better not do him dirty.

• I will have a review of that episode posted here around this time next week. The very next blog post you'll see from me on this blog will be a full length review of the Riz Amed/Kasabian episode of SNL UK which as of this writing/posting I have gotten to watch in full on Peacock but haven't gotten to take any notes on whatsoever yet (but spoiler alert: I may or may not compare it favorably to this one and post it on Tuesday at the earliest).

• Also, coming this weekend will be a new episode of the We Heart Hader podcast where Deej & I continue with Documentary Now Season One and "The Eye Doesn't Lie". Two weeks after that will be our review of the SNL US Fey/Underwood episode from February 2008 which, of course, I will also review on my blog.

• Boy, the timing of this is quite fortuitous since both Deej and I will have reviewed Tina's first hosting stints on both SNL US AND SNL UK by that point! See you all again real soon!

Melissa McCarthy/Dijon (12.06.2025)

Pentagon Press Conference

• Smart of them to open with another Jost as Hegseth sketch. He pretty much owned this whole thing. Bowen, Ben, Ashley and Andrew played off him extremely well. 

• For some reason, the "Dane Cook/Super-finger" and "Anmaniacs/countries of the world references got me the most. This might be the strongest "acting" Jost has ever done on the show.

• I initially wasn't crazy about how they snuck Sarah's Matt Gaetz in there, but watching Bowen easily resist her attempts to break him was...a nice touch.

• Even though I knew EXACTLY how this was going to end, I at least appreciate how they actually transitioned to the JAJ/Trump "stream of consciousness" (although the Mamdani jokes seem a bit out of date). A-

Monologue 

• Nice to see Melissa back on this show again. I wasn't too crazy about the "mouth horn" bits and the snow thing I kinda saw coming from 50 miles away, but I got a big kick out of the physical business with the piano.

• The singing and dancing with Kenan and the others was a fine capper to this. I guess I was just expecting something a little more...sprawling around the studio from Melissa and less...a more broad version of an old Adam Driver monologue. B-

Free Samples

• Hmm, intriguing choice to pair Melissa with Jeremy right up top. I do like the idea of a woman (totally platonically...until the very end) reading WAY too much into the intentions of a simple grocery store employee offering free samples to the point of offering him her mother's ring. This is definitely the type of concept that ONLY Melissa McCarthy could make work.

• For some reason, I was expecting the return of Melissas' "Hidden Valley Ranch" character but I guess this is more one of Melissa's dimmer "not all there" Barb Kellner/"pass that mash" type characters. Looks like we're about to go on a bit of a journey, here.

• Out of the non-Melissa bits of the sketch, I liked the business with Ashley and the cart. Mikey telling Melissa to untie her racist dogs may have been my favorite part of this. B+

Helping Hand

• Hmm, a slight twist on a similar short from Billie Eilishs' 2021 episode where the elderly neighbor is still a psycho, but this time just actively torments those who lightly tease a very young child.

• I already like how there are different elements to this one that escalate the sketch to some new height of absurdity each time.

• I'm sure I'm not the only one who got a kick out of seeing Marcello tied up...or Sarah and Chloe as Anora-esque hookers. 

• I wonder how it would take Mikeys character until he fired the gun to mistake it for a "Nerf" one?

• The ending was wonderfully deranged, especially with Jeremy as the cop and Melissa as the new "snowman". It gives this a real air of "who is the real unreliable narrator here?" B-

UPS Personell Management 

• This seems like it’s going to be a cross between the Harry Styles Sara Lee sketch from 2019 and the horror flick test screening sketch from Melissas' 2016 episode (but with Ashley in the role that Cecily would've gotten).

• Maybe they sprinkled in a little bit of Barb Kellner, Hidden Valley Ranch Lady and Sheila Kelly in for good measure? I draw those specific comparisons as this character came off as "dim witted yet wildly aggressive".

• Even though this sketch kind of meandered without really escalating or going anywhere, I did get a kick out of the "peoples' elbow", the live bat, Melissas' "fainting" and the tearful "17 Days" line. This whole sketch might have been the closest I have seen Mikey come to breaking...ever.

• I didn't mind the USPS button so much as I was expecting something like this at the end. I just wish they had executed that gag completely differently. Maybe Donna could've been promoted to CEO of UPS or something more absurd and/or ridiculous than another fucking "unexpected" commercial button? B-

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: Trump/MRI, Star Wars Ponchos, Epstein Island Photos, TikTok, White House Christmas Decoration

• Che's Best Jokes: Franklin/Dora, Speaker Mike Johnston, New Train Video Game

• Hey, Ben got his first Update feature! I mean, it's pretty much a way less one joke version of Alex Moffats' "Guy Who Just Bought A Boat" but still, good on him. He performed this very well.

• I wasn't crazy about the TV dinner stuff, but I loved the added detail that his extreme sunburn came from him falling asleep with his overhead reading light on from the plane ride to Ireland. The all ginger, all sunburned children's choir was a nice touch, too.

• As for Sarah's commentary, it's a lot different than previous update commentaries of hers where she played a talking animal or some other kind of non-human creature. Thankfully, she was less focused on Jost roasts to the point where the only two she got in really landed.

• This was a great showcase for her physical comedy skills, too. Honestly, part of what kept me drawn into this bit was the anticipation of how something so elaborate might fall apart so easily. For example, I don't know if her letting the bottle of alcohol fall over the desk was intentional or not, but she handled that along with the slight night vision Ring doorbell camera miscues like a total pro. B+

Truth Or Dare

• So, was this just "Mild Southern Lesbian Experimentation: The Sketch" or just a more repressed remake of "The Hunting Wives" without the guns or Amy & Aubrey? Either way, it was cute and charming and I certainly liked it.

• For some reason, I could see this sketch being done during the Kate/Cecily/Andy era. It was the first piece of the night that felt less like it was written specifically for Melissa McCarthy and felt more like any female host who could pull off a passable southern accent. Also, this seems to be Jane's first appearance of the night. Fitting.

• A mayonnaise AND yogurt dip? Ew, what the hell?

• I got a kick out of all the dares Sarah's character was involved in. I especially liked the use of the phrases "reveal our breasts" and "choke me sexually". I especially liked the visual of Jane and Sarah coming back from their pantry wearing each other's shirts backwards.

• This might go without saying but Ashley did a great job anchoring this sketch. I liked her revealing her Spotify age to be 210 (and apparently I don't even get to HAVE one myself right now since I only use Spotify infrequently to listen to certain specific podcasts...yes, including my own). C+

Sunday Supper

• This seemed like Andrew Dismukes just punched up and old Kyle Mooney sketch that someone submitted in, like, 2018 to better match his own "pure id" comedic style. Still, it might legitimately be the funniest sketch of the night.

• I got a kick out of the visuals of of Dismukes dressed as a hobo with a stick and bindle and a small suitcase with just a hat and feather boa from a "dress up box" and then just straight up drinking gasoline.

• I liked Melissa's anecdote about him trying to hop a freight train after accidentally saying "I Love You" on the phone to the pizza guy but coming back because he got scared after bring offered some crack.

• I got a kick out of Melissa saying she hopes Dismukes doesn't return because he is a burden on her right before he comes back saying "the neighbors' dog was outside and I got scared".

• Strange that this would be Kams' first and only appearance of the night. B-

Cousin Planet

• Did anyone else think for a second from those brief three seconds of Windows 95 desktop graphics we got upfront that we were about to get another Jarretts' Room?

• The janky ass graphics, DIY homemade costumes and set design paired with the handicam shot video style do make this feel like it could've been an early Lonely Island Digital Short. It felt out of a time and place sometime between "Laser Cats" and "Virganica Horsen".

• This was a lot of fun. I especially got a kick out of Melissa as the "mayor" explaining the "flexible" no hooking up rules.

• It's good to see they're letting Jane Wickline and Veronika Slowikowska branch out with their songs and musical showcases and even with all the Obama First Term era autotune this was pretty catchy. 

• Still, I gotta ask. We've seen Jane do a song where she said she was supposed to be Sabrina Carpenter and heard of a cut for time Update feature where she said she was supposed to be Harry Styles. Was she supposed to be Charli XCX for this one? It sure sounded like it. From what I've heard of her more recent music, this sounded like it would've been right at home in her episode from last year with her in Veronikas' place in it. B+

Christopher & Guillaume 

• Does "Weird Al" Yankovic know Bowen and Melissa have been raiding his wardrobe?

• I got a kick out of the Minion Nativity Scene and the "Gingerbread Slumlords" line but beyond that, I didn't quite know what to make of this...other than that I wouldn't want Bowen or Melissa to run into Nick Kroll or John Mulaney for a while.

• My biggest problem with this sketch is that it's mostly crosstalk and high speed patter which we get a lot of right out of the gate so...that alone made it a bit harder to not tune out long enough to parse crucial elements of it.

• As for Melissa's presence, this didn't feel written specifically for her either. This feels like it could've starred any host (male or female) in another era if Bowen didn't decide to make this a vehicle for just him and either Kate, Cecily or Sarah and stick the host in Tommys' reporter role.

• Speaking of Tommys' role, him revealing his name to be "Ribbed Con-Dom"...yeah, that bummed me out a little bit. 

• Back to Melissa, again...this isn't a sketch that plays to her strengths nor did this feel like a sketch only she could enhance (maybe except for her line explaining to Tommys' character that she is, in fact, a woman) so...yeah, this was kind of a wash. C-

Ranking The 51st Season From Best To Worst

1. Nikki Glaser/Sombr (11.08.2025)
2. Glenn Powell/Olivia Dean (11.15.2025)
3. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
4. Melissa McCarthy/Dijon (12.06.2025)
5. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
6. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
7. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts

• Overall, this was a pleasant show that started off strong, but it was a rather uneven one. Still, this was strong enough to make it into my personal top five of the season so far.

• The strange thing about this episode was that it felt like a tale of two halves. The first half of the show felt like they knew how to play directly to Melissa McCarthys' strengths as a performer. The second half felt like they were trying to fit Melissa into the modern show's templates. 

• While the latter type of sketch didn't bring down the show or anything, it does show how far the show is removed from the era of "Big theater kid energy" in which Melissa has previously thrived on the show.

• Still, I guess the more subdued and less wildly sprawling nature of this episode is partly due to Melissa herself having grown and matured as an actress and wanting to move away from the type of broad, physical humor that defined her previous hosting stints.

• Melissa managed to dominate the show anyway with Sarah and Ashley tied for a close second and Chloe a distant third. Of course, Melissa got some assists from Mikey as well due to their long time Groundlings connection, no doubt. Aside from people like JAJ, Jane, Tommy and Kam who were seemingly only used once or twice, everyone else seemed to get a fair amount of airtime.

Closing Thoughts

• Next week, Josh O'Connor makes his hosting debut. Now, THIS is the true wild card of the season. Here's an actor who isn't known nearly enough for anyone to get a bead on how he might do as a host. 

• Glenn Powell was a first time host who has previously cameoed on the show but outside of that he's a popular enough actor that people would've accurately guessed he'd do well on the show. Josh O'Connor is a guy we've got nothing on, but I'm still going into this show hoping to be pleasantly surprised.

• Hell, I'll be starting a new job next week anyway so I'm sure my review of that episode will be a little...off.

• Also, please listened to the newest episode of We Heart Hader that just dropped two or three nights ago. See you next week!

Martin Short/Hozier (12.21.2024)

 Five Timers Club Cold Open

- Tom Hanks! Wow! They're getting this out of the way early, huh? Paul Rudd! I guess they're not quite done making up for his five timer episode being all but literally canceled, are they? Liked his little fourth wall break at the top and his "Martini/Ant Man powers" jokes.

- Having Marty show up in a cold open of an episode he hosts is a nice touch. That's something they've never done before. Tina's here. Liked her "loud man/sabotaged scripts" jokes.

- Baldwin and Scarjo are here. That's just great. Wiigs' here. That's much nicer. Her five timers episode was as fun as was her back-and-forth with Marty. I think I may finally be starting to come around on ol' Kristen.

- Emma Stones' here. No need for Wiig to repeat the same joke she just did with Marty a minute ago but OK. Nice to see McCarthy again. She always had a great presence on the show when she used to host. Her physical bit was fun.

- Mulaney's here. His jokes were the real high point of this. Even Fallon got in some good jabs at himself right afterwards.

- That was a little long and a little...rote for a cold open but it was fun. Even though people like to say that the five timers club means less and less as it actually gets less and less exclusive over the years, that was certainly much more preferable to anything even remotely political right now.

- That bought up so much necessary high energy at the top of the show that I didn't even mind how much it felt like they were slowly ticking off boxes on a checklist of "expected beats each modern five timers club sketch absolutely needs to hit now." Still, I liked the semi-unexpected format break of having this take up the cold open rather than the monologue.

- That's it. I don't have much else of substance to say about this one. After all, it wasn't a cold open that had much substance anyway. Seriously, its' not a great sign for this cold open when upon rewatch (yes, I did somehow find that necessary for most of this episode) I found myself distracted by trying to see how many initials I could make out and identify on each of the tiny stockings in the background. C+

Monologue 

- Marty certainly keept the energy from the cold open going. I liked the snappier pace of his opening standup here. I liked that Lorne impression and "ten sketches where I play an elf" joke. I wasn’t crazy about how he cheaply repurposed an old Will Smith joke he told on Kimmel two and a half years ago to be about Matt Gaetz.

- I figured we got the five timers thing right up top to make room for another sprawling musical number...and what do you know, I was right! I liked how they got Sarah, Heidi, Kenan, Ego and Bowen to help him tee this up. Speaking of, it's nice to see Sarah giggle a little after seeing clips on one of the writers' Instagram of her sulking and pouting during this week's "garbage party" (and while reheasring the first Domingo sketch with Ariana Grande). I might be sulking and pouting myself if I were also in the building witnessing how these past two seasons have been progressing in real time.

- I appreciated certain visuals in this (like what we saw with JAJs' Freud and Mikeys' Santa backstage) I overall preferred the 2012 version of this monologue. I'm not too crazy about the fact that this is the second time in exactly ten years that they've written a parody of that "Need A Little Christmas" song for the Christmas Show monologue either. Didn't care much for Jimmys' part or that random ice skating extra in the background but I liked his brief interaction with Lorne.

- While I liked the second chorus and the Jackie Rogers' Jr callback at the end AND while I can certainly relate to the theme of Christmas time anxiety (especially this year), the "prescription medication" theme felt a little odd and offputting to me (Marty himself seemed to stumble in that second verse) and not a great fit for a Christmas show in any era. B-

Parking Lot

- Well, it was certainly smart of them to bring this sketch back from the highly successful Quinta Brunson episode from two seasons ago. 

- At first, I thought Marty would be an odd fit for this one but then I realized that Marty does well with strong physical humor. I did like the "blind/braille/you wish" bits.

- Say what you will about Chloe, she did a fine job of keeping this from feeling so devoid of risqué innuendo that there would be no point in bringing it back (and just when I was starting to appreciate some of the subtle facial acting Mikey and Marty were bringing to this one, too! Fantastic!)

- Melissas' part really made this sketch for me. I don't know if anyone else ever made Chloe or Mikey come as close to breaking like that as she did. B-

An Act Of Kindness 

- Ok, I did like the sweet vibe that started this off. I also liked how this didn't drag itself out too much or get quite as outlandish with the big reveal as some of these types of pretapes have in the past. I guess my biggest criticism of this is (besides the build up to the Fox News button at the end) how odd it felt to have two sketches in a row with Mikey as an aggrieved husband/father type character (as genuinely funny as he was in both parts). C+

Christmas Week Airport Parade

- I was initially skeptical of them bringing this sketch back from Jason Momoas' extremely underwhelming episode from last year, but thankfully they gave Marty a character more suited to his performance style than just "drunk horny pilot".

- I liked the brief appearances by Dismukes, Walker, Padilla and Longfellow. Kenans whole character gave me pause as I came to a slightly saddening realization of how similar my actual current job is (and how quickly every, like, tenth or twelfth person who comes into my place of work is to remind me of that).

- The rest of the five timers club cameos from the cold open (well, minus Rudd) really saved this (even if Melissas' part mostly amounted to something they probably would've given to Robert Deniro 20 or 22 years ago). 

- The only part of this I didn't really like was the ending. Marcellos' part felt real cheap and the dance number from Marty, Hanks, Ego & Bowen felt too out of step and unnecessary. C+

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

- Wow, Jost handled some inappropriate applause expertly and Che came out swinging with the darkest jab at Matt Gaetz the show has done. Update is getting off to an interesting start for once. Jost even covered for Che flubbing an Eric Trump joke. The RFK/Bluey jokes were all right and that about covers the worthwhile standard joke portions of Update.

- I see the show has firmly placed Bowen back on it's bullshit once again with this "drone" commentary. Great. I see this zig zagged it's way to a "Defying Gravity" parody. At least that kept the crowd hyped again.

- I see they're bringing back the "traditional joke swap" which is something I have some mixed feelings about this one given how the last one from May went, but the crowd could help elevate this.

- Jost being forced to read all his jokes in a "black voice" is an interesting new wrinkle here (as was having to see ScarJos' reactions in real time and I understand both of these things were added at dress rehearsal) . I definitely giggled (less than he did but more than i should have, I'm sure) at him punctuating each joke with the catchphrase "Shizzzz, I ain't afraid of you mofos!"

- ...and just as Che handles that Jay-Z/Diddy joke like a total pro, Jost hits that "roast beef" joke out of the park. That might have been my biggest laugh of the night because it's genuinely something I never thought I would hear on SNL.

- The fact that this was the absolute high point of this episode and possibly Jost & Che's entire Update run at this point (well, for ME at least) is probably the most damning indictment of this episode (hell, this season, really) possible. B-

Sabado Gigante

- Well, this sketch was a hit that debuted in Nate Bargatzes' episode from two months ago so, I'd say it was a smart idea to bring this back in a big Christmas episode.

- Marcello once again scored some home runs and Paul Rudd certainly plays the "confused out of place white guy" role much better than Short would've. 

- I mean, the first sketch played a bit better because Nate Bargatze underplayed the confusion just right but at least this one made up for that shortcoming by...being not as long as the previous one? 

- I'm guessing some last minute cuts had to be made to this one for time after the Update joke swap undoubtedly made the show run long and that's why this one didn't quite take it's sweet time?

- Short would've made a decent addition as one of the wild, flashy side characters in this but I guess he couldn't be in everything since he is...getting up there in age at this point and as we saw with Smart and Keaton they are scaling back the older hosts, so he must've needed an small break. 

- Dana Carvey as Matthew Leskos' non-union Mexican equivalent made a fine replacement (even if, again, Short could've handled this just as well) and I liked the "Miami Frosty" gag. C+

Charlie Brown Christmas 

- Hmm, a new live action take on Charlie Browns' Christmas seemed intriguing enough (as much as nothing could hold a candle to the last one from a Martin Short hosted Christmas episode...and CERTAINLY not a Brendan Fraser hosted Valentines Day episode). Good way to some of the cast to get some much needed airtime (as long as you don't blink).

- I thought maybe good ol' Charlies' unexplained absence was supposed to be a cover for them just saying "nah, fuck it" to anymore nightmarish roundheaded prosthetics for any future Peanuts parodies but then I noticed Marcello had a normal looking wig on to play Linus, so...yeah, this is exactly as thrown together as I thought it was.

- Adding Short as an undeniably Jiminy Glick like modern theater director with Bowen as his assistant/lover seemingly for the purpose of bouncing explicitly gay innuendo wasn't the best twist, but I did like Kenan as Snoopy. Otherwise, this just felt too wildly unfocused for it's own good. C-

CUT FOR TIME: How The Grinch Stole Christmas 

- Ok, normally I don't go out of my way to comment on these but, what the hell? I felt I should say something here.

- I gotta say Martys' performance and Lucy Lius' guest appearance were the only things that really saved this. (Interesting timing with the That Week Twitch streams, btw. Did they purposely cut this to throw their own scent off their own trail there?) Besides that, it was just another cheap lazy gorefest in the same tired vein as "Christmas Carol", "Battle Of The Sexes" and "Scooby Doo". After about two of these, you start to get sick of even the basic idea of them as they're mostly each executed in the same way each time.

- While I'm kinda glad the decision was made to cut this (and the additional Treece Henderson sketch that they wrote which was cut), I'm actually pretty bummed to have heard that an Irving Cohen sketch was also cut from dress. Now, THERE'S something I really hope gets put up on YouTube soon! I mean, hey...they put up all the dress cuts from Charlis' episode in time for Thanksgiving, why not put up all the dress cuts from Martys' episode in time for Christmas? C-

Ranking The Season (Best To Worst)

1. Nate Bargatze/Coldplay (10.05.2024)
2. John Mulaney/Chapell Roan (11.02.2024)
3. Bill Burr/Mk.Gee (11.09.2024)
4. Martin Short/Hozier (12.21.2024)
5. Chris Rock/Gracie Abrams (12.14.2024)
6. Paul Mescal/Shaboozey (12.07.2024)
7. Charli XCX (11.16.2024)
8. Ariana Grande/Stevie Nicks (10.12.2024)
9. Michael Keaton/Billie Eilish (10.19.2024)
10. Jean Smart/Jelly Roll (09.28.2024)

Ranking Each Of Martin Shorts' Episodes From Best To Worst

1. Martin Short/Paul McCartney (12.15.2012)
2. Steve Martin & Martin Short/Brandi Carlile (12.10.2022)
3. Martin Short/No Doubt (12.07.1996)
4. Chevy Chase, Steve Martin & Martin Short/Randy Newman (12.06.1986)
5. Martin Short/Hozier (12.21.2024)

Overall Thoughts 

- Well, there's no denying this episode had the sheer audience energy to...carry this show to the top five of the season. Too bad the material and just overall writing kept if from placing higher than fourth. 

- I would put this one up there with Mulaneys' episode from this season in that they both had very hot energetic audiences (perhaps "stans" of each host and/or MG?) scheduled on the exact right week with the exact right combination of guest cameos to make it FEEL like a big "event" worthy of the shows' 50th anniversary. 

- However, when you look closer at both episodes you see that the writings' not quite up to snuff as (especially this week) a lot of recurring characters and premises were bought back to buoy the show beyond outside guests.

- Now, in Mulaney's case I didn't mind the recurring stuff because they were just staples from his previous episodes that he made work to varying degrees of success. In this episodes' case, bringing back old sketch templates from just a season or two ago is borderline inexcusable.

- Still, Short himself was far from this episodes biggest problem. He's a legendary performer who always improves whatever he's in when he hosts (as he did this week). It's not even so much the fact that they barely used him as a host (or when they did he might have gotten lost in the shuffle between cameos) but again, considering the fact that Martin Short is pushing 80 at this point, it's understandable that he might need an extended break between sketches or two.

- The biggest problem with this episode is that it just felt like a big flashy, vaguely holiday themed assortment of smoke and mirrors to cover for how tired and burnt out the show feels as it lurches towards its big 50th anniversary party in two months. 

- Cast airtime may seem like an irrelevant moot point tonight (again, cameos and all) but at least no one was visually shut out of the show entirely. It's just that the featured players along with JAJ & Longfellow took the biggest hits tonight. Mikey had what felt like his first big night in a while, so...good for him. Bowen, Ego and Kenan felt like they were being pushed heavily tonight because of course they were.

- Actually, after reading about how Blake Lively had to drop out of hosting this season's premiere, I'm starting to think three other people did that as well in the past few months. This and Mulaney's episode both feel like they were last minute replacements for someone (and they must still be looking for a last minute replacement for whoever is hosting the first episode in January). 

- I say this, of course, because both of their episodes this season really paled in comparison to some of their previous hosting episodes in other seasons which actually felt uniquely tailored to each of their comedic strengths. These episodes just felt like generic borderline hostless episodes of SNL that would be best viewed through the lens of season 50 than against previous Mulaney/Short episodes (which again, doesn't make this season look great but I don't want to sound like a broken record).

Closing Thoughts 

- Well, we may not have any fucking clue who will be hosting in the new year at this point, but at least I personally still have some fucking clue what my next blog entry is going to be! With that in mind, I'd like to give you a little update on another project I'm working on. Since it looks like this episode is being received a bit poorly, I just thought I'd distract you guys a bit and give you a little something to look forward to in the coming weeks.

Long, Extended Plug

- My next blog post will be a classic/retro review of the Steve Carell/Kanye West episode from season 31. I know, I haven't done any of these types of reviews in 11 years (well after Stooge himself started the "retro review" craze of the early 2010s on those two old defunct message boards you guys remember me from) but I recently watched this episode for my upcoming new podcast that I figured I could cobble them together into a review for this ol' blog and release it as a companion piece to the first podcast episode.

- This review of the season 31 premiere will be posted on the blog on January 2nd, 2025 (my 34th birthday, incidentally) to coincide with the release of the premiere episode of the "We Heart Hader" podcast. In the first episode, we will talk about how Bill got on SNL and just essentially review his first episode as a cast member, and then we will discuss his first appearance on Conan from around that same time.

- My cohost Deej Barens and I have already recorded the second episode earlier this week and she is in the process of editing it as of this writing. In that episode, we discuss Bills' latest public appearance (as a guest on the "Christmas With A Z!" live show at the Dynasty Typewriter theater in Los Angeles which was just livestreamed to YouTube last week) and review Bills small bit part film roles from early in his career and evaluate whether each movie is worth seeing just for Bills' role or if you should just find Bills' clip on YouTube or TikTok or some such place and call it a day. Trust us, you will be surprised by some of our answers. This episode will be released on January 16th.

- The third episode we haven't recorded yet but the plan is to do our first SNL character spotlight on Haders' Italian Talk Show host Vinny Vedecci. That episode will be released on January 30th.

- So to recap; new podcast (We Heart Hader) debuts January 2nd with new episodes every two weeks afterwards and I will publish a new blog post that ties into the first episodes subject matter. I hope you'll all at least give the first podcast episode a listen because there's nothing more I wanted for my birthday this year than to just be able to legitimately call myself a podcaster and say "oh yeah, I have a podcast now."

Till then, have a happy holiday and a joyous new year everyone!