Matt Damon/Noah Kahan (05.09.2026)

Three A-Holes Walk Into A Bar In Washington, D.C.

• OK, a random bar scene...with just Kenan and Chloe. This has some promise.

• Wait...don't fucking tell me....

• Josts' Hegseth meets Damons' Kavanaugh. Wow. Unbelievable.

• I guess absolutely no one in the casts' mom's were available? 

• I didn't think Brett Kavanaugh was a relevant or notorious enough figure in 2026 as he was in 2018 for this or that Damon's impression of him was that popular or well remembered...but supreme court judgeships are lifetime appointments unless they retire...so what the hell.

• Hey, there's Aziz' Patel again. At least that's an impression that I was expecting them to setup and reveal (although Matts' "male loneliness" line was kind of an awkward introduction)...and at least Aziz is the only one capable of putting in overtime to sell the sleazy, slimy bro-tastic frattiness of this sketch.

• At first and second glance, this is mostly just playing as lifeless word salad that just washes over me. 

• I did like Matt's line about Trump having written the word "PSYCHE!" on the original constitution and the Chumbawumba Tubthumping ending was a nice energy boost to end this on...but that's about it. Still better than another JAJ Trump sketch. C+

Monologue

• Huh, I genuinely wondered what Matt was plugging. I did like the "Odyssey opens nine weekends from now" line and the callback to it later.

• Who the hell was that random dude asking where Marcellos' mom was? Were we supposed to recognize him?

• Oh, apparently we WERE supposed to recognize him because that was rookie SNL writer Jack Bensinger...who I believe is also Sarah Shermans' boyfriend.

• Oh, well at least Marcellos' mom did show up for a callback after the most unambitious and telegraphed monologue Matt Damon has done on this show so far. C-

Godzilla: King Of The Monsters 2

• Oh, come on. I don't think "Spittakes On Mikey: The Sketch" needs this elaborate of a set up.

• Is this just a reworking of the "delights" sketch Mikey did during Finn Wolfhards' show? 

• Was this something Mikey & Streeter wrote for Jack Black last month that didn't make it knowing he was in a sketch that was pretty much exactly like this but with wine back in 2003?

• Well, I at least do like how varied, sudden and precise the spittakes were...and how quick the ending was. C+

Mom: The Movie

• Well, as much as this reminds me of the "Mommys' Little Scotty" trailer from Comedy Bang Bang...at least this is going for something.

• I liked how well this used Ashley, Veronika & Jeremy. He had what might have been my favorite line in this about liking how his mom told him the race of everyone involved in her story.

• Even as much as Matts' part felt an unnecessary extension of the last third of his monologue, it worked better here (probably because they wrote it, like, four or five days before they wrote the monologue anyway). I did like his line about noticing Ashley's giant necklace from the stage of the theater when he was giving an audience Q&A for one of his movies.

• My biggest criticism of this sketch is that it went on a little too long. Maybe at least some of the Jane/Squirm/Chloe segment could've been cut or tightened? I don't know if I buy Jane as your average middle aged mom anyway. As great as Veronika was in this maybe one of her parts could've been cut? Either the part with the puffy pink purse or the part where she tearfully tells Ashley her friend she doesn't like dies? B-

Tough Guy Barbecue

• Huh, at least Damon, Marcello and Kenan playing Goombah Jersey Italians is...something different and unexpected.

• OK, this is pretty much the same gag as the "McManus & Sons Bar" sketch from 1993 with Chris Farley & Miranda Richardson, isn't it?

• Who the hells' phone keeps vibrating offscreen?

• Yeah, this was really lumbering along and going nowhere but I like Marcellos' story about being caged like a dog and fed gummy bears and the "quarter check" boy showing up to yell at Kenan. D+

Tidy Care Kitty Litter

• OK, FINALLY something with a semi out there premise.

• This did remind me of the ketchup factory sketch with Taran Killam and Martin Freeman from December 2014, but I liked how this escalated.

• Ashley & Matt played off each other perfectly. JAJ and Dismukes jumped in at the perfect times to make this work, giving it just the right "That's Not Yogurt/Almost Pizza" vibes it needed to work.

• I ended up liking this sketch so much I didn't even mind that this was the third sketch tonight with a sudden non-ending. B+

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: Hantavirus, Bus Driver (that's gotta be the most Norm MacDonald ass joke Colin had ever landed)

• Che's Best Jokes: Gas Prices, RFK Caught Bird At Airport

• Boy, these two had a lot of rough jokes tonight. Che especially.

• I'm guessing that those Marco/Rubio callbacks weren't totally planned or scripted?

• Hell yes! Nice to see Jeremy's Tucker Carlson after it got cut from dress recently.

• This narrowly achieved the recurring SNL character/impression feat of being better than the original (in spite of its length but this may be the exception rather than the rule).

• Hmm...is this Mikey/Marcello kamikaze dolphin commentary just a reworked version of their emoji commentary from a while ago?

• Nope, it's just them screaming bad sexual puns at us and each other.

• I did get a kick out of Mikey making Marcello break and the meta ending referencing Colins' Ferry worked for me.

• Hey, a new Jane Wickline song! I'm not crazy about the "chronically late" setup but let's see where this goes.

• OK, this is just classic blunt atonal Jane absurdity. This is nice. The backup dancers were a nice touch. C+

Substitute Teacher

• So...this whole sketch was just Matt Damon playing off everyones' non- reactions to his dancing...and being willfully ignorant of no one else rightfully wanting to dance with him?

• It is rare that we see a sketch structured essentially like a one man show on SNL. It feels familiar, but other than the gay porn star sketch with Sam Rockwell, I can't quite place where I've seen the basic elements of this sketch before.

• Chloe damn near ruined this by being the only one breaking. I did like Damons' "Amber Alert" and "shake your booty with the substitutey" line.

• This really worked best when absolutely no one was reacting to Matt...so they should've just ended it when he left the room. We didn't need to hear the students hacky "well...that just happened" level lines or the reveal that Dismukes' character is Damons' son. C+

Scene From A Crumbling Marriage Of Two Auctioneers

• OK, from the title card...I'm interested in seeing how this plays out.

• I'm assuming this is loosely (and I mean VERY loosely) adapted from some if Sarah's standup? She is pulling off the Southern Dame look (and voice) quite well.

• Aside from a minor line flub from Damon, this is being executed flawlessly (even if it seems like Sarah & JAJ were picking up some slack from Damon).

• Adding Marcello, Dismukes, Tommy and Jeremy as prepubescent children and JAJ as a horny neighbor were nice touches.

• This is playing out more wholesome and sweet than I expected. Maybe Sarah's leaving next week (I mean, it us her fifth season and she seems like she's got plenty of irons in the fire) and this is something she's been wanting to get on the air? Maybe she wanted to go out on a high note by showing us the softer side of Squirm? 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. Olivia Rodrigo (05.02.2026)
6. Matt Damon/Noah Kahan (05.09.2026)
7. Ariana Grande/Cher (12.20.2025)
8. Jack Black/Jack White (04.04.2026)
9. Ryan Gosling/Gorillaz (03.07.2026)
10. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
11. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
12. Finn Wolfhard/A$AP Rocky (01.17.2026)
13. Colman Domingo/Anitta (04.11.2026)
14. Harry Styles (03.14.2026)
15. Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons (02.28.2026)
16. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
17. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
18. Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)
19. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts

• Well, like most mothers' day/second episode of a three week May run/last episode before the season finale shows, there was a sense of palpable burn out with this one. Still, the show managed to quietly redeem itself with some unique moments near the end.

• Matt Damon may not have had his most memorable or most energetic performances as host tonight, but...he is getting older and his very first outing as host was nearly 25 years ago at this point. I wouldn't go as far as saying he was the weak link of this episode, but he was almost sleepwalking through much of it.

• This was far from the weakest of the season, but may have been the weakest of Damon's three episodes so far.

• As far as cast usage goes, nobody got entirely shut out. Tommy and Kam came pretty close, but got to do some decent support work in a couple of things.

• Ashley Padilla wasn't in any live sketches but she made a strong enough impression in the pretapes she was in to have a presence in this episode. Kenan and Mikey continue to both be used in ways that suggest next week might be their last episodes. Everyone else we saw plenty of.

Closing Thoughts

• Next week is SNLs' season 51 finale with host Will Ferrell (who also would make enough sense as a host for Sarah's final show if you think about it) and musical guest Paul McCartney.

• Even after having to tell myself to tamp down any potential excitement I could have for another Ferrell hosted episode (I mean, the guy's a five timer who's hosted two standout episodes and three duds) I'm still quietly looking forward to this the most out of all three May shows (probably because it's the season finale and I get to take a break from blogging for a few months after this). Let's hope this evens out Wills' hosting record a bit and lets the season go out on at least a high, positive note if not a bittersweet blowout sendoff for whoever could be leaving soon.

• The big thing with Ferrells' episodes when he hosts is to not expect him to bring back any old characters from his era. He's pretty far removed from that time and has probably retired said characters and moved on.

• Still, I'd say in this political climate that another Dubya cold open wouldn't be too big a stretch of the imagination. Plus, Cheri Oteri is gonna be in Scary Movie 6 coming out next month, so...she could legitimately make a cameo. I don't think they could do another Spartan Cheerleaders sketch today (just for the reason that it's been 25-30 years since the last one they did together) but maaaaybee another "Morning Latte" could work?

• If Ana's available they could also do another Culps BUT they last did that a year ago at the SNL50 Homecoming Concert, so that might be considered overkill and there aren't any other recent pop songs they'd need to get caught up with in the past year.

• Oh well. Hey, while you're here, please feel free to listen to the newest episode of We Heart Hader that just came out this past Friday. Deej & I cover part one of the two part "Blue Jean Committee" episode of Documentary Now. Our review of part two of that will be coming out next month. In the meantime, we're set to record our episode covering the Elliot Page/Wilco episode of SNL from season 33. That should be out in two weeks along with my accompanying blog post about it. 

• Also, my review of the latest episode of SNL UK hosted by Hannah Waddingham is coming real soon before either of those. Now, as of this writing, I have not yet even SEEN any part of that episode let along taken any notes on it....so yeah, they won't be published simultaneously this week. Anyway, see you again real soon!

Colman Domingo/Anitta (04.11.2026)

Oval Office Calls

• Huh, this is just a regular oval office scene with Ashley as Karoline Leavitt. At least this is a little different.

• I liked how JAJ/Trump broke the fourth wall with that Ashley comment and then did a double misdirect back away from one of those tableau cold opens.

• A series of phone calls? Uh oh, this is starting to feel like the type of cold open we'd get in 2017/18 at the height of the "Baldwin as Trump" era.

• Uh oh, the last time the show did a sketch involving Kenan as Tiger Woods they got a lot of flak for it in the press...but at least this one can't possible be misconstrued as making light of domestic violence and is just a brief comment on Tigers' DUI arrest, so it's perfectly OK. 

• At least they didn't spend a whole lot of time on this part. I actually did like the "DUI/Dewey" joke from JAJ.

• Chloes' Melania cameo was OK (as much as I'm sure a large swath of the audience may not want to see or hear from her anymore at this point). I did like that Reagan joke, too.

• Ok, they're spending way too much time on Jost as Hegseth, but...y'know, it's the Iran of it all. I think they've officially run out of anything resembling a fresh angle on this character so it may be time to retire it. C+

Monologue

• I figured with Colmans' vast, VAST acting resume we'd get something poking fun at the sheer variety of things he's been in. 

• There doesn't seem to be a lot of material here for him TO carry but he is carrying this on sheer charisma alone.

• Thank God the band, the lighting/camera crews and Jeremy kicked in to add some variety to this before I started to tune out.

• I feel like I should have a lot more confidence that the show isn't going to completely do Colman dirty at this point, but...I dunno something feels a little bit off right now. C+

Bank Robbery

• Ok, this fits the vibe of Colman I was hoping they'd tap into more. I'm glad it's less "dirty names" and Matt Shatt and more like the Burger King sketch with Emily Blunt from 2016.

• Chloe, Mikey, Ashley, Marcello, Jane and JAJ were pretty good here. I'll admit the line "be on the lookout for a mess" and "mama raised a dumbass" got me. C+

Black Barbershop

• Ok, is every sketch tonight going to be built around Colman just "reading" people?

• Anyone else get the vibe from this that Tommy could pull off a decent John Mulaney impression? (yeah right, like we need more of those in comedy)

• Kudos to Kam for scoring the strongest moment in this sketch. My biggest laugh in this came from the sudden cut to him just saying "cheat" and following that up with "what you gay or something?"

• I liked Janes' cameo. Kenan and Colman were great in it, too. 

• One thing this episode (and this sketch in particular) did a fine job of is using Colman in sketches that they would need a more diverse cast to actually pull off without him as a host. Still,I think this felt a little long and could've used some cuts (if you'll pardon the expression. C+

Artemis II Video Log

• Well, at least this sketch taps into Colmans' dramatic chops in a decent way.

• When your biggest laughs in a sketch involve Marcello Hernandez either pushing Mikey away over some Pringles (don't make me say which certain animated series "did it"), saying "Canada slaps" or just getting his dick stuck in some kind of tube, something may be seriously wrong. Sadly, Sarah seemed to add nothing. C-

The Knowledge Hour

• What if I told you...this might be my favorite sketch of the night by default? What if I told you...that yes, I too know that isn't saying much?

• Yes, this was just the exact dose of whimsical absurdity the show needed at this point?

• I liked how Colman played off what seemed to be a genuine gaffe between him, Kam and Jeremy (literally) and hoe everyone suddenly exited  the scene before Dismukes entered?

• I wasn't crazy about the ending with Dismukes though. It felt a little forced. Plus, I feel like some of the stuff about Colmans' character wanting to impress some random chick he hasn't seen since college 40 years ago could've been cut. B-

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: Iranian Peace Talks, J.D. Vance, Sam Altman, New Jersey

• Che's Best Jokes: Netanyahu, RFK Podcast, King Charles, Cornhole Champ, Hemorrhoid Cure

• I liked both of the commentaries this week. Kam and Marcellos' "back of the school bus kids" might seem like something designed to enrage some, but I really needed the boost of juvenile stupidity right now.

• Still, I think Colins' "deez nuts" beat at the end could've been cut so this didn't go too long and ended on one beat that wasn't completely telegraphed.

• I'm glad Janes' commentary was packed with enough abstract absurdity to misdirect us from the most obvious punchline. B-

Grandpas' Funeral

• So, the entire premise of this sketch seems to be "what if a group of pimps showed up at your grandpas funeral and also you find out for the first time they all turned him out at one point"?

• Well, when Kenan showed up I was a little worried that this wasn't going to go anywhere. Ashley, Jeremy and Marcello were fine in this but they didn't exactly do a whole lot to assuage those worries for me.

• I will say I did like Sarah and Veronikas' walk ons. In fact, I'd say I liked their performances here more than most of what I've seen each of them in this season.

• Jane's walk on was decent and I'm glad they found a way to work Mikeys' "crazy background Waffle House guy" into a live sketch.

• I even liked the sight twist of JAJ and Jost as white pimps as tacked on as they seemed (especially the latter...did he and Che cowrite this?). The ending didn't quite work for me though. C+

Boarding School

• I'd like to think this was a very underwritten "Farewell, Mr Bunting" prequel and not just "what if numbers were random gibberish" or "synesthesia: the sketch".

• I appreciate the committed performances in this (especially Dismukes, Kam and Colman) but this felt like too long a walk with too many glaring pacing problems for me. Plus, I felt Dismukes kinda botched his window fall. C+

Beastomorphs

• I feel like this was something that got cut from dress until I saw Colman in it.

• This felt like a typical Sarah idea that somehow got away from her.

• Again, I do appreciate the committed performances from everybody but the idea alone didn't quite hit for me. It was just a little too juvenile in every way imaginable and I just couldn't get into it. 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. 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. Colman Domingo/Anitta (04.11.2026)
12. Harry Styles (03.14.2026)
13. Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons (02.28.2026)
14. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
15. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
16. Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)
17. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts

• Well, that episode was just as disappointing as I was expecting. There were enough fun moments there that I would just call it "uneven" rather than just plain "bad", though.

• Obviously, they biggest problem with this episode was that Colman as a host was much better than the material he was being given so I hope everyone was more self conscious of that than they were letting on.

• When the best parts of the show were what was cut for time and put up online later, something is seriously wrong (of course I'm referring to Bens' Jack Harlow thing and the full length goodnights where Colmam gave a lovely and heartfelt speech that most of this episode sadly didn't deserve).

• On the plus side, Jane and Kam had decent nights, so...there's that.

Closing Thoughts

• Well, SNL US makes its return in two weeks with Olivia Rodrigo making her double duty hosting debut. Given how the episodes hosted by other current pop stars like Dua Lipa, Charli XCX and, one of Olivias' contemporaries I hear, Sabrina Carpenter turned out...this is one I'm going to be a bit wary of. 

• My biggest fear is that the show will go all in on Gen Z pandering pop culture chasing that those previous episodes gave us and just try to force another viral moment but beyond that Olivia is another pop star who seems in control of her own image and isn't as blatantly risque as others of her ilk so I'll keep an open mind.

• I'll have a review of that one posted in a few weeks. The week before that is when I should have my full review of the Tina Fey/Carrie Underwood episode from season 33 published around that since Deej and I will be covering it on the We Heart Hader podcast around that time.

• The very next blog post you should see published from me is probably going to be my review if SNL UKs' newest episode featuring Jack Whitehall and Jorja Smith. Even though I am giving myself an actual deadline to write the Fey/Underwood review (this coming Wednesday when as far as I know we'll be recording that one), I'd like to get that one out as soon as possible while the most recent episodes of both SNLs are still relevant and fresh in people's minds because I was really slacking on a couple of them. See you guys again real soon!

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!

Ryan Gosling/Gorillaz (03.07.2026)

Hegseth Iran Press Conference

• Possibly the safest possible choice for a cold open, but hey...I'll take it.

• The "Hegstand/Papa Roach/Trump Resort/we can do Jamaican again/Quagmires' hilarious" lines were my favorite so far.

• I like Jost randomly calling Tommy a "Hanson brother" and his "White Hamilton" response to Sarah.

• I figured they would throw in a reference to Kristie Noems firing. I did like the "reassigned under the bus" line. Nice to see Ashley in this role before she hangs the wig and lip prosthetic in the rafters. 

• Even nicer for them to end this here and give JAJs' Trump a break. C+

Monologue

• Oh, Jesus Christ. Is this just gonna be a more insufferable version of Will Ferrells' monologue from November 2019 but with Ryan Reynolds swapped out for Harry Styles? Fuck, this show is shameless.

• Oh, I see Ryan is singing again....or about to sing...while rambling on and on about his penchant for making space movies. This MIGHT go somewhere interesting.

• Ah, fuck. We REALLY can't keep the camera off Harry, can we?

• ...and Sarah has only showed up to do her "Punchs' mom" character in Harrys' lap just as his "Sign Of The Times" song is cued up for Ryan to reluctantly talk sing to.

• Nice use of heavily prostheticized backup dancers, at least.

• Yeah, I'd take a bullet right now too, Ryan.

• Obligatory "I'm Just Ken" reference.

• ...and of course the rest of the cast (which I just now remembered Chloe Fineman is a part of is only on stage to better gawk at at Harry. Called it.

• Yeah, I don't know what else I could say about this monologue except that it didn't even manage to clear the low bar I had for this episode. Oh well. Let's see if the rest of this episode delivers anything different. D-

Wedding Tradition

• This looks like a wedding set. Oh, fuck. This better not be what I think it is.

• Oh, good. Mikey and Sarah are the bride and groom. (*phew*) We're safe for now.

• Ashley got in a good line.

• Uh oh. Dismukes and Chloe are at another table as a couple.

• Oh, good. Ryan's playing some flashy ass weirdo who's obsessed with the idea of "clinking his glass to get the bride and groom to kiss" to the point of doing this at inappropriate times during their speech.

• Well, I'm glad they didn't decide to just say "fuck it" and give us another Domingo right now...but I'm not crazy about where this is going instead. Ryans' low energy delivery isn't helping.

• Hey, I just realized how far Ryan made it through this episode without break...AH FUCK!

• Well, I at least liked Sarahs' "wouldn't kill you" line as well as what Jeremy and Jane bought to this sketch.

• Didn't Kate McKinnon play an old woman who constantly demanded random people kiss for her own amusement? This reminds me a lot of that. I'm sure this is not the exact Kate McKinnon sketch people were expecting Ryan Gosling to bring back. I'm sure a lot of people are disappointed right now, but not me.

• ...and just when you think this sketch is dragging on for far too long, it has the good sense to end.

• Eh,  I didn't hate it. C-

Otezla vs. Skyrizi

• Hmm, so..this is just "what if Otezla and Skyrizi" were just more intense versions of Happy Fun Ball?"

• While there were way too many individual lines in this to list that I liked, I did like the deranged break neck speed paced absurdity of this sketch. B+

Cyclops

• This looks like it might be unique and interesting.

• Nope, it's not. In fact, the only interesting thing about this sketch is it's the first time I've seen Ashley and Veronika break ever.

• Other than that, this feels like the type of sketch that would've been written for Fred Armisen 15-20 years ago. Hell, it feels like a modern Mikey sketch since he also seems to have an affinity for playing hopeless dumbasses.

• Now, THIS truly did go on way too long...but i got a kick out of the ending. D+

Monty McTreats and The Pastry Bakery

• Ugh, this isn't gonna be another Sarah Squirm gore fest pretape, is it? I don't see her YET.

• Nope, just a Willy Wonka knock off but focused on the post mating suicide rituals of the male dough creatures Goslings' character kidnapped to work in his factory.

• Another pretape where I liked the dark and strange detail heavy nature of it more than anything. 

• This seemed like an improvement on whatever formula Dan Bulla was going for with his pretapes. I liked how it cut straight to the point without taking a detour around the expected darkness by way of a forced, saccharine happy ending.

• It doesn't surprise me that he had nothing to do with this and that this was apparently based on an old Mikey Groundlings sketch from over a decade ago. B+

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: Kristi Noem, Womens' History Month

• Che's Best Jokes: Mind Reader, Dead Deer

• This Update has a lot of energy which is nice to see nowadays but...I feel like what the crowd who was here to see Ryan gave them is better than the jokes themselves (which Jost seemed to acknowledge)

• Hmm...a Kenan/JAJ faith themed musical combo. An interesting pairing. They should compliment each other well.

• I mean, this seems to be just playfully meandering nonsense that can't seem to pick a lane but the pomp these guys added to it made it at least entertaining.

• ...and it ends there. Not terrible. At least they knew they should end Update on a (relatively) high note this week. C+

Passing Notes

• Two high school teacher sketches in two weeks back to back? Ok, at least this one already looks like it might be better than the one we got last week.

• Oh, NOW I see why they felt the need to provide a disclaimer that these "notes" were changed at dress.

• This may be another cheap improv exercise put on air but at least this was a fun one that the cast had the time of their life with

• Glad to see Ashley get her "this is the absolute hardest I have ever broken on air" moment out of the way early in her tenure. I wonder what the discussion with standards & practices must have been like in order to get that "gynecologists' office" note cleared for air?

• It's nice to see that they decided to fully lean into the distinct possibility that there was going to be a historic amount of on air breaking this week and carve out a safe space to indulge themselves.

• I loved the idea of this sketch just being "let's have everyone pull a big Mulaney/Stefon/low stakes Che & Jost joke swap on each other" (and somehow our host kept it together the best out of anyone involved in this sketch).

• I may have liked Mikeys' reaction to his note that he pulled from Kam the best. B+

Goo Goo Man

• Huh...this could go somewhere interesting. Did Sarah cowrite this? She did well in this even if Ashley, Jeremy, Mikey and Kenan had some of the better supporting moments.

• Ryan performed this well although I would've liked to see the arrogance and self righteousness of his role played up a bit better.

• I did like that they tried a live sketch that just gave us a stream of meaningless goofy ass nonsense even if the pacing was a little languid. B-

Martin Herlihys' "Lies"

• I usually like Martins' solo short films and even though I can see how some would call this "one note" this was no exception.

• The pre-Jost stuff I liked the most were the "proud muggle tattoo" and the "stuntman" sight gags (which even livened up the semi-cliched ending confrontation between Jost and Herlihy)

• Colin Jost is a much maligned (with love) figure at SNL no doubt but the Herlihy Boy managed to put a new absurdist twist on that old trope (even if he did kind of drag it out without taking it anywhere).

• Man, who would've ever thought we'd get TWO Seth Meyers cameos on SNL in one season while he was still hosting Late Night? In this economy?

• The only thing I didn't care for in this was the repeated "lol Kevin Spacey amirite?" joke with the signed photo in Josts' dressing room. 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. Ryan Gosling/Gorillaz (03.07.2026)
7. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
8. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
9. Finn Wolfhard/A$AP Rocky (01.17.2026)
10. Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons (02.28.2026)
11. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
12. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
13. Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)
14. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Ranking Ryan Goslings' Episodes From Best To Worst

1. Ryan Gosling/Gorillaz (03/07/2026)
2. Ryan Gosling/Leon Bridges (12.05.2015)
3. Ryan Gosling/Chris Stapleton (04.13.2024)
4. Ryan Gosling/Jay-Z (09.30.2017)

Overall Thoughts

• Well, this show certainly got off to as dire of a start as I was expecting but it somehow dug itself out of that hole much more easily than I was expecting it to.

• I do like how this episode got most of its shameless pandering and "too pointlessly stupid for its own good" moments out of the way early in three concentrated, easy to swallow doses and moved on to more strange experimental stuff later on.

• Hell, Ryan kept his breaking to an absolute minimum outside of the designated spots for it and even Lorne himself showed some incredible restraint by cutting a Beavis and Butthead sequel from dress rehearsal fer chrissake!

• Yes, this show cleared the incredibly low bar I had for it by simply having more going for it than one of the two Gorillaz performances (which were both great by the way) being "Clint Eastwood"

• While this episode may not have been quite good enough to break my personal top five for season 51, it was better than last week simply by virtue of being more stable and the best of Goslings' episode by default for how starkly different it was from his others (and yes, I personally gave bonus points for Gorillaz on this one).

• Cast usage remains stable. Mikey, Veronika and Ashley had expectedly big nights. Sarah had an unexpectedly big night. Meanwhile, Dismukes, (surprisingly) JAJ, Ben, Kam, Kenan and Jeremy (surprisingly) remained scaled back. Chloe seems to be easing back into the show after remembering she still works here and Tommy (for better or for worse) continues to make inroads.

Closing Thoughts

• Well, that turned out to mostly be a pleasant surprise.

• Next week, Harry Styles pulls double duty for a second time in nearly seven years. I somehow wasn't too crazy about his first episode and while I don't quite see him pulling off the same upset and defying previously set expectations the way Gosling just did, the show is substantially different enough now from what it was back in 2019 so I will go into this with an open mind.

• After that one, I will probably write a review of Season 33s Brian Williams/Feist episode and post it here on this blog as that will be the subject of the next episode of We Heart Hader that Deej and I record as we're doing that whole season. This will be a special episode because both the Saturday Night Network and That Week In SNL were two of my inspirations to get into podcasting in general and thus part of the reason why I cohost We Heart Hader to begin with so it will be nice to have an SNL episode that Jon, Andy, Timmy, Deej and I will have all mutually covered on our respective podcasts.

• Of course, before that the next episode of We Heart Hader you will actually be able to listen to the "Kunuk Uncovered" episode of Documentary Now which will likely be out just mere hours before the Harry Styles episode of SNL even airs on NBC if all goes well (because that will certainly be an interesting one for Deej to edit!)

• See you all again very soon!

Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)

The First Annual Trumps

• Huh, OK. This is framed a bit differently. This seems like the type of thing that could've been a season 48/49 cold open in an alternate universe (and if it were, it would be the last SNL cold open everyone on Earth would live to see). Let's see where this one goes.

• JAJ had some good lines in his opening rant. I did like the one about his "dead purple hands...exploding with blood" if he claps and his "brain tumor" joke while accepting his award. At least this strayed from the typical "Trump talks directly to camera" cold opens by bringing in various others throughout.

• They're still sticking with Jeremy as Vance. It still works.

• I liked the way they framed the four way split screen of JAJs Trump waiting to win this award.

• Marcello in the role of Argentinas' President works for me.

• I liked Andrew and Sarah as Lady Gaga as Aunt Gladys from Weapons and Stephen Miller presenting the "Best Kiss (Of Trumps' Ass) award.

• Ugh, I knew JAJs' Trump was gonna drop some sort of Kanye/Taylor 2009 VMAs reference when Ashleys' Kristi Noem won an award.

• Personally, I could've done without the cutaway to Ben as Loki (which was his only appearance in the whole show which, given the fact that he apparently wrote "Heated Wizardy" last week is...understandable.

• Hey, Mike Meyers is back as Elon Musk! Legalize comedy indeed.

• Boy, Tommy Brennan really disappeared into the role of The Village People's construction worker, didn't he?

• Even though Carrie Underwood herself is now seen as kind of a joke, it's the perfect role for Veronika to show off her singing abilities.

• I had heard via The Saturday Night Network that this was originally 10 minutes long in dress rehearsal and what was cut from this was Chloe as Sydney Sweeney and Mikey as Greg Bovino.

• So, yeah...cuts had to be made and they definitely made the right choices there but that Mikey/Bovino impression sounds like something that they should only bring back if they have some really scathing, biting material about this guy, but let's face it, that's probably never going to happen.

• Some people were upset over SNL doing this comparatively evergreen cold open (or any cold open really) instead of a somber, single person direct to camera opening addressing that mornings' lethal ICE shooting. Personally, I would say I understand how difficult it would probably be to address something like this that happened the day of at the last possible minute.

• I've only seen SNL do those types of somber, serious cold opens for deadly tragedies that occurred at least the Friday before the show or earlier than that. I'm not saying whether I think SNL doing this opening was in questionable taste or not. I'm just saying I wasn't going in to this episode with any expectations on how (if at all) the show would address this at the very top because from what I've seen, they know their limitations. Hell, they didn't even directly address the previous ICE shooting in Minnesota from two and a half weeks ago, so why WOULD they address this outside of Update? C+

Monologue

• Anyone else get Keke Palmer/Megan Thee Stallion vibes here?

• I liked her comments about finding our she was nominated for an Oscar while "getting fitted for a bald cap next to Mikey Day" and getting "eight hours of sleep a week" as a mom. 

• Other than that, it was a typical modern "host gives a quick rundown of their entire career while plugging/making self effacing jokes about their latest project" SNL monologue where not a lot stood out. C+

Airport Delay

• I some how knew that this premise would involve Kenan and Teyana singing, but somehow they left a little more to be desired. 

• I will admit that they "accept deez nuts" gag got me as did Teyana ambushing Dismukes phone call.

• ...and suddenly out if nowhere JAJ comes in to save this just in time. Boy, him singing "Blame It" really continues the "2009 nostalgia" theme of the night, huh? C+

OBAA Action Figures 

• I was pleased that they'd bring back this mid-90s ass pretape template and it was executed well for sure...but at the same time I feel like the premise of "toys marketed TO kids based on a movie that is NOT made for kids" is something that feels like it's been done before.

• Maybe one of the scenes of Ashley and Mikeys parents reacting to their kids inappropriately quoting the movie to them could've been cut. Otherwise, this was just fine. B-

NFL on ESPN/Quefs

• Well, as a Coloradan, I'm pleased that tomorrow night's Broncos game was the setting for this sketch. I'm not even bothered by Teyana and Tommys' negging of the team because...c'mon. I live here. I'm well aware the Broncos have their flaws.

• The rest of this seemed to be a condensed version of a sketch JAJ did in his first episode almost five years ago...which I think they improved on a bit (namely with flashier, more professional looking graphics for "Quefs" and Dismukes sounding like he stepped up his impression game with his Troy Aikman). C+

Confidence Class

• Even though this was an Ashley led sketch, I wasn't so sure about it at first until the sketch collectively moved on from Ashley's character simply being ASKED about her disastrous interview to when we actually got to see her prepared powerpoint and her ridiculous resume/Michelle Obama speech writing sample.

• It's obvious that they uploaded the dress rehearsal take of this as it contains Ashley's character doing a purposely bad Yoda impression that wasn't in the aired live sketch to replace Ashley's line about not being able to do Dolly because she "doesn't have her boobs with her...and those are a big part of it." This seems to be a trend with the official SNL YouTube account uploading Ashleys' sketches from disappointing episodes.

• The part where Ashley was describing her boyfriend could've been cut because it didn't go anywhere and they could've just got right to the part where she races through the rest of her slides without it. Plus, it could only really save the sketch if we actually SEE her boyfriend (I'm sure they had enough prosthetics to pull off the NYC goblin look).

• The ending with the Dolly impression barely put this over but really, that just speaks to the power of Ashley Padilla. C+

Geese performs "Au Pays du Cocaine" and "Trinidad"

• OK, since I have a feeling that some of you reading this may be wondering where I stand on this band...I think they're just fine.

• I've listened to quite a few of their songs and I haven't been able to form my own opinion on whether they're "good" or "bad". I like then OK but I just can't get hugely into then right now. 

• I'm guessing "Cocaine" may be the song that JAJ was parodying with his portrayal of Cameron Winter last month? (Sorry Andy, I did see you tweet that their first song wouldn't be a great introduction to them but I really liked that Bee Gees cover they did that someone posted in your Discord server. Do they have anymore original sings like that or with that energy?)

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Che's best jokes: ICE/are we dicks? (as sad as it is that this could be the strongest anti-ICE statement we would get tonight...especially on such short urgent notice), merit badges/most molested boy (just for Colins' reaction), Dorito shaped aircraft

• Josts' best jokes: female crash test dummies, suicide pods

• I don't know what to make of Marcellos' commentary. It's fairly subdued by Marcello standards but it's just another Jost roast...but Marcellos' ONLY roasting him for being old?

• Aside from that, I'm glad he explained what "chopped" meant...and then proceeded to use a string of buzzwords to describe WWII that I weirdly didn't need explained to me somehow?

• I guess I DON’T need to go back and rewatch both "Snack Homiez" sketched in a brand new context after seeing this after all, do I? This would not have helped me "get" what little there was to "get" there.

• Colins' "clap back" at Marcello was probably his highlight of this whole Update but the excessive use of tombstones followed by a "nooo!" reaction made this feel like just a slight variation in Aidy and Bowens' "trend forecasters"

• Hey, they're finally letting Jeremy debut an Update character that turned out to be one of the funniest things of the night!

• This was the exact type of gleeful, flashy go nowhere stupidity that I could get into and it was just what this episode needed at this point. I love how Jeremy just leaned into his "Mr. On Blast" shtick giving off full Beck & Kyle vibes and even let Colin get in on it. C+

Grandpa Jackson

• Well, I guess I should've expected some kind of sketch drawing on Teyanas' background as a dancer/coreographer (hell, that's primarily what I knew her as before I found out she was in OBAA anyway) but...that's literally ALL this was.

• I mean, the way Ashley introduced Teyanas' character made me think this might be going in a more bizarre direction, but...apparently she just wanted to show off her moves in old man drag with the most hastily applied bald cap ever?

• I did get a chuckle out of Kenan telling Mikeys' DJ to "stop playing Earth, Wind and Fire, dude."

• There was no escalation or other gag or even any explanation as to what the hell was going on here (aside from JAJs line about Grandpa Jacksons' bones breaking and turning into powder all at once) but hey, this sketch served its purpose of showcasing the specific talent of the host that they told everyone they wanted to build an entire sketch around this week and I was a fool to expect anything more from it. C-

Backstab Island 

• OK, this went on WAY too long for what it was. I mean, a reality show where only one contestant IS there to make friends feels like it should've been done by any non-SNL cable sketch show about 10-15 years ago (and it barely has the potential to be stretched out into full sketch length).

• Marcello, Chloe, Mikey and Kam each had a few decent lines and I liked the gag of Jane repeatedly having guava juice thrown on her but beyond that there was absolutely nothing here. C-

Beyond The Headlines

• I went into this half expecting another "Mid Day News" but got something more akin to "Inside The Beltway" mixed with Dave Chappelles' "Election Night 2016" with little dashes of "Linderholm & Bates", "Stop That" and "The Christopher Lowell Show" thrown in for good measure (kudos to anyone out there who recognizes all of those deep SNL pulls).

• Other than that, this went on WAY too long for my liking as it pretty much belabored its main point immediately.

• I did get a kick out of the Allen Iverson joke at the end. Hey, he used to be a Denver Nugget. The Denver Sports Theme continues! D+

Blowing It

• OK, this Martin Herlihy short gave me my biggest laughs of the night.

• I laughed my ass off right from Martin brutally mocking Jeremys' southern accent.

• I loved the reveal of the central conceit of this being that he was plugging a book with a hilariously long title aimed at cowardly men who are looking to trick their girlfriends into breaking up with them (even after she does or says some very small thing that gives you "the ick" at one point).

• Each and every "highly charged moment" killed me (gifting her a box of 100 tampons, showing up to a family funeral dressed as a member of The Lumineers, another Denver based group, and ordering Doordarsh while there, responding to a tender emotional moment with an impression of Harry Potters' sorting hat, talking about how your fireskin is killing you).

• The "man who believes women" T-shirt was just OK until he turned around to reveal the back said "and Kevin Spacey" followed by an inset of a very real clip of Kevin Spacey introducing Nelly Furtado in the season 31 finale which killed me.

• I also got a kick out of Martin proposing to Sarah in front of her parents...that they open up their relationship followed by the botched Leno chin implant at the wedding.

• Anyway, it felt like such a nice breath of fresh air to end such an odd and dispiriting episode on such a fun pretape. A-

Ranking The 51st Season From Best To Worst

1. Nikki Glaser/Sombr (11.08.2025)
2. Glenn Powell/Olivia Dean (11.15.2025)
3. Melissa McCarthy/Dijon (12.06.2025)
4. Ariana Grande/Cher (12.20.2025)
5. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
6. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
7. Finn Wolfhard/A$AP Rocky (01.17.2026)
8. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
9. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
10. Teyana Taylor/Geese (01.24.2026)
11. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts 

• Well, this was a hard one to review. I initially thought of having this tie with Finn Wolfhards' episode from last week. I thought they were very similarly uneven shows except this week's brief highs were higher and lows were lower.

• Even though this week, the show has the advantage of not having to deal with a host with a weird fan base, I ranked this episode lower because more consistently bad episodes had brief moments that have grown on me by now.

• Plus, this episode had the disadvantage of having a host they seemingly didn't know how to use outside of two sketches at the end of the show.

• I didn't have much of a problem with Teyana herself but performance-wise she bought this weird, tightly wound low energy to most sketches that felt like they could've been done by almost any host. She didn't have that strong a presence and was used to the point that after Update age just disappeared from the show for a long stretch.

• Yes, I think putting aside that mornings breaking news this episode would've bombed no matter what on a fundamental level.

• Sarah and Ben were the only near shut outs tonight, but on the bright side this was another episode where Ashley and JAJ (in a variety of different roles) dominated the show. Everyone else was just...there. Kenan had such a surprisingly lightly night that I'm wondering if he is phasing himself out of the show because he knows it's his last season at this point.

Closing Thoughts

• Next week, for SNLs' 1000th episode, Alexander Skarsgard makes his hosting debut with Cardi B as musical guest. He's another wild card host I'm not terribly familiar with and barely know what to expect from. 

• Still, it looks like we got our weakest of this run of three in a row out of the way so I can't imagine how that episode would be any worse than this one.

• Before my review of that episode hits this blog, you'll probably be getting my review of the Seth Rogen/Spoon episode from season 33 dropping here as Deej and I continue reviewing that entire season for the We Heart Hader Podcast. We just recorded that episode on Saturday just before this episode I just reviewed aired and we hope to have it out this coming Friday.

• After that, we'll continue our alternating episode by episode schedule of reviewing the first two seasons of Documentary Now by reviewing the "Dronez" episode (that'll be a fun one I am looking forward to!)

• See you then!

Ariana Grande/Cher (12.20.2025)

Presidential Address

• I was a bit surprised that they would return to the standard "and now, an address from the President..." framing for a cold open centered around JAJs' Trump...until I remembered that the REAL President Trump actually did give an address like this so, again...they really had no excuse not to.

• Nothing really stood out to me here aside from the redacted Epstein files material and the random Indigo Girls reference (even if the "screen of heavily redacted files" gag is literally something I saw on Twitter earlier today) and the "second favorite r-word" joke. 

• Still, this is far from the worst cold open I could've envisioned for this episode (as part of me was envisioning a cold open similar to one we got in mid October...but our host tonight said that character was dead and buried and she stuck by her word). C-

Monologue 

• Well, I liked the "Domingo/sequel" joke even though it doesn't quite play as well after they actually made three sequels to Arianas' original Domingo sketch without her involvement.

• I liked the Mariah parody. I mean, it's FAR from the worst "All I Want For Christmas" parody I've seen this show do, but...this would've hit harder had I not come across this YouTube clip from Sabrina Carpenters' Netflix Christmas special from last year where she sings a song with the EXACT same premise with Kyle Mooney of all people as the mystery relative.

• I don't want to accuse the show of plagiarism or anything. I'll just say that I thought this monologue was the better execution of this concept simply for not being as heavily autotuned and utilizing the current SNL cast much better.

• One line I particularly liked was "I panicked and ordered a Yeti mug/the Christmas equivalent of a shrug". B+

Elf On The Shelf Support Group

• Hmm...decent premise for a sketch in a Christmas show.

• The further this goes along, the more I can deal with the high pitch voice modulator percmeating this sketch.

• I liked Jeremy, Ariana, Mikey and Kenan's performances the best along with the confetti explosions being triggered by "bad thoughts". Hell, they even found a way to work Kam into this sketch. B+

Home Alone

• Well, I was disappointed to see we were moving away from a showcase of Ashley Padillas' Catherine O'Hara impression to another anachronistic Christmas gore fest pretape. 

• Still, I was mostly OK with this since they mostly backed off if these for what felt like at least a year (probably more since the Grinch/Whoville themed one that got put up online was cut for time from Martin Shorts' episode).

• I did like the visual of Colin Jost as Buzz just getting absolutely shredded by a fan just before the reveal of this entire thing taking place in the mind palace of a sleep deprived Ashley (which, honestly, made up for this being another one of...those in my mind). B-

Coreographers

• At first it felt odd, that Marcello would be the male lead in this type of sketch in Bowens last episode until it became obvious from Bowens performance that this was very much an ensemble sketch.

• This sketch felt incredibly disjointed and unfocused (almost like it was five sketch premises jammed into one) but again, given the ensemble nature and the already odd structure to this sketch, those things actually worked in its favor.

• Everyone really got a moment to shine here (even JAJ and Chloe but especially Jeremy). Marcello and Ariana played strongly off each other and I liked his line about making diabetes "look like something you want". Plus, it was the perfect length for what it was. B-

Peacocks' Random Duet Spectacular 

• So, I guess they decided they should do an updated 2025 version of the "Christmas song" impression parades they did for each of Fallons' hosting stints from the early 2010s?

• I was a little wary of this given how modern SNL fans have pretty much conditioned themselves to be sick of impression parades and how...just, modern pop culture in general is way too soft on its celebrities (and especially pop music stars) in general (some times for perfectly valid reasons) for this to be worth anyone's time (maybe this was because I had just seen some tweets reminiscing about how In Living Color used to brutally roast their musical parody subjects 35 years ago) but there were some fun moments here.

• Ariana did a fine Katy Perry even if her inexplicable space trip seems like ancient news now (can't have her host SNL and NOT do some singing women impressions, can we?) and pairing her with JAJs' Bob Dylan was wonderfully odd enough for me.

• Not quite sure what to make of Sarahs' Kate Bush but Bowens' Yoko was funny.

• I liked how they used Dismukes' Springsteen (it seemed like they were just repurposing his and JAJs impressions from that red carpet sketch from last season at first) but Marcellos' Bad Bunny seemed too...needlessly jammed in for me.

• Kenans' Stevie Wonder was fine. I liked the visual of Benson Boone just flying into frame, crashing into things but part of me was hoping he'd just be played by a blue sequined dummy being brutally thrown around, but i guess they had to hire a professional stunt person.

• Boy oh boy, I'm sure SOMEONE I know who I hope is reading this was tickled pink that they let JAJ play Cameron Winter from Geese!

• Surprisingly, Chloe's Bjork actually worked for me and I got a kick out of seeing Veronika as Post Malone.

• I was glad to see they found an impression for Kam that works for him as well as a way for Jane to just play herself in this sketch.

• Ending this on a duet between JAJs Andrea Bocelli and Arianas' Celine was very sweet...but almost too sincere of a note to end this on. C+

Black Santas' Burglary Trial

• OK, so...this isn't so much a goofy Kenam focused "Miracle on 34th St." parody as much as it is setting the audience up for a Cher cameo, isn't it?

• Stopping the "Believe" parody for this back and forth between Kenan and Mikeys' prosecutor is...kind of killing the momentum of this sketch.

• What killed the momentum of this sketch more in my mind was the dull thud of an ending where Arianas' judge sides with Kenans' character as they all march out into the audience to Kenan's "Believe" parody...with no Cher cameo at all? 

• Was this just an intro to her first song that sounded so much like "Believe" that it just as easily could have come out in 1998/99 as it did in 2025? 

• Was this a situation like the one Maya and Fred faced when they did Prince Show sketches when Prince and Beyoncé were actually on the show between 04 and 06 and they each made damn sure they never got to ask them in person?

• Maybe she was asked about this sketch and turned down a cameo here in favor of...a different sketch we'll get to later?

• Oh, well. Some cast members have all the luck in the world, I guess.

• Anyway, this sketch may have been a little uneven, but it was just fine on rewatch...so, I'll just leave it there for now. C+

Weekend Update w/Jost & Che

• Josts' Best Jokes: RFK Jr, Trump/Santa

• Che's Best Jokes: Bill Clinton, "Zero Illegal Aliens", New Statues, MTG Engaged

• Nice to see Kam making up for lost time in this episode with a "character" piece that works for him and plays up on his supposed "bad boy" image without having to let him go full on Kill Tony.

• I'm glad that we not only got in a joke swap but that they changed the format and length of it so that only Jost tells Che written Jokes and the episode still has time for...more appropriate things.

• As much as the "trend forecasters" never quite hot for me, it was very sweet of Aidy to actually show up for Bowens' last show. Even if part of me was hoping for Cecily or Ego, it's nice to see Aidy make her first cameo since leaving outside of SNL50.

• This does make sense due the fact that they did this exact bit on Aidys last show in 2022. I am glad they decided to hold off on making any references to this being Bowens last show.

• Really, the only thing I chuckled at during this was the visual of Che in that Marge wig holding two rainbow pride flags. B-

Love Is Blind: The Reunion

• Wow, Mikey must've really liked playing the Grinch last week, hun? We know he must like playing the Grinch more than Pete did.

• Still, I got some mild season 20 vibes from this for how visually expensive and elaborate it looked in service of something that seemed so...empty.

• This felt like it was written by someone who wanted to parody specific tropes and moments from "Love Is Blind" more than anything and there wasn't much beyond this other than "what if we just drag-and-dropped Mikey as the Grinch and he just...played him like a regular douchey dating show contestant?"

• Still, I will say it was a very nice switch to have Mikey be the "weird" outlandish one with everyone else in the sketch questioning HIM in an incredulous manner! (and no, just as i don't buy the umpteenth jammed in joke about a wigged Sarah character being the ugliest or least pretty woman in the room...I WAY don't buy Dismukes & Chloe as Nick and Vanessa Lachey. What the hell was that casting?). C-

Cher Performs "Run, Run, Rudolph"

• I did get a kick out of Ariana introducing this song as her castration character "Antonio" from her previous episode. Now, THERE’S a sketch I did want her to genuinely revisit!

• Even if the sound mixing was more noticeably bad than usual and Cher was inaudible enough that one might think she was lip syncing, I also liked that they used the regular home base stage for this performance rather than the regular musical guest stage. For a second, it briefly felt like this performance came straight out of her 1987/88 episode.

Delta Sky Club

• I should've guessed that Bowen would've gotten the same type of thinly veiled low key meta workplace themed sketch that Cecily got around this time three years ago. 

• Seriously though, I was very genuinely touched by this and moved by how honestly, deftly and expertly it summed up his SNL career (from the good to the even self-admittedly bad) and how strongly he expressed his own gratitude toward the show for the opportunities it gave him and everyone he worked with (and for).

• I haven't felt this much emotion watching an SNL cast members' "farewell" sketch since Stefon and Seth got married 12.5 years ago (wow, it's really been that long, huh?)

• Say what you will about Bowen, you have to admit that on SNL, he bought his own voice and distinct semi-absurdist sensibility to everything he did. More importantly, he never once denigrated his own people and also bucked every cultural stereotype that people tried to put on him since before he even officially started in the cast.

• Yeah, he did a lot of gay themed sketches but they weren't ever "stereotypical". Coming from him they felt very genuine and from a place of Bowen being his true self.

• Boy, I've seen departing cast members get emotional during these types of sketches for them but Bowen...seemed like he was literally unable to keep from crying mid sketch. Kudos to him for keeping it together and pushing through this.

• I wonder if the bit of Bowen spraying Kenan with a bit of egg nog was planned or not?

• Ah, THERE’S the Cher cameo we were all waiting for! I gotta say, his big send off got lined up pretty perfectly because I can hardly think of two better people to bid farewell to Bowen live on air than Cher and Ariana (as much as her performance makes me think Sarah may have originally supposed to have been a part of this but backed out suddenly).

• Farewell, Bowen Yang. We hardly knew ye...but we do know you came along at a time when SNL needed you the most. You always stood out on this show and you'll always occupy a very unique space all your own in SNLs' history.

• There's no doubt you got noticed by the powers that be during your time on the show and you're already making a big splash outside of SNL...so here's to the very bright future you have ahead of you. A-

Ranking The 51st Season From Best To Worst

1. Nikki Glaser/Sombr (11.08.2025)
2. Glenn Powell/Olivia Dean (11.15.2025)
3. Melissa McCarthy/Dijon (12.06.2025)
4. Ariana Grande/Cher (12.20.2025)
5. Amy Poehler/Role Model (10.11.2025)
6. Miles Teller/Brandi Carlile (11.01.2025)
7. Josh O'Connor/Lily Allen (12.13.2025)
8. Sabrina Carpenter (10.18.2025) 
9. Bad Bunny/Doja Cat (10.04.2025)

Overall Thoughts

• Well, SNL gave me just what I wanted from them specifically for Christmas this year; a lower key episode similar to the McKinnon and Butler episodes from previous years that wasn't loaded with cameos and was more sketch and idea focused.

• I guess with Bowens' departure being confirmed the day before the show and the host and musical guest already being two of the biggest names in pop music/culture they decided they didn't want anything to steal too much focus from them, huh?

• Speaking of, I wonder why mid-season departures are ALWAYS more quiet, low key celebrations compared to the big, flashy blowouts we tend to get when established cast members are announced to be leaving the show during a proper May season finale? Is it because the holidays are already an emotional budget-stretched time that they don't want too add too much to? Is it also because they know they'll be coming back from a Christmas show in three or four weeks vs the three of four months they usually take to come back from a season finale?

• Anyway, even though this episode did actually give me what I wanted from it and had a solid host performance...I still wouldn't name ot the best of the season. It was a top five episode for this half of the season for sure, but not everything worked for me, so it was a little uneven in a way that I was totally expecting given the lineup. Still, it was another Christmas episode hosted by a big name that got by on holiday cheer and good, cozy yuletide vibes without just completely coasting on them.

• It feels a little odd to talk about cast usage for an episode where the main focus was on one single cast member but I have to point out what I did notice. Bowen felt like he was going to be used surprisingly lightly this episode until the very end but Sarah was ACTUALLY used shockingly lightly for Bowens' last episode considering how close they are. 

• Unsurprisingly, Kenan, Mikey and Chloe otherwise dominated the show. Dismukes and Ashley quietly provided support when needed. JAJ still gets chances to branch out from the White House little by little. Kam, Veronika, Jeremy and Ben really got to make up for lost time (so did Marcello to a lesser degree). Jane and Tommy seem to have taken some small hits, though.

Closing Thoughts 

• In three weeks time, the show returns in a new year with Finn Wolfhard as host, no doubt promoting the seemingly endless rollout of Stranger Things' final season which had somehow been stretched into movie theaters. 

• I was thinking about what an interesting choice this might have been seeing as...roughly 95% of the main Stranger Things cast would be the closest thing the show would be able to have to a "child actor" host these days until I read that Finn Wolfhard is 22 which must mean that none of the Stranger Things kids are really "child actors" anymore. 

• Still, I can't say I've seen enough of Finn Wolfhard in all of the things he's been in to be able to get a bead on how he would be as a host...so, in my eyes this makes him another "wild card" host (and we didn't have much luck with the last one we got a week ago...and January shows tend to be a bit of a dull wash anyway but I'll go into this episode with an open mind).

• In the meantime, I would encourage you all to listen to the newest episode of We Heart Hader that Deej & I just put out (and maybe, make sure to do so sometime before Thursday). 

• It's our first ever official Christmas episode AND our first ever movie review episode. We review the 2019 Disney+ title "Noelle" Starring Bill opposite Anna Kendrick as the children of Santa Claus who must prepare to take over their father's Christmas eve duties in the wake of his passing. It's exactly as heartwarming as it sounds.

• After that, we will finally release our long awaited review of SNLs' season 33 premiere hosted by Lebron James on January 2nd. I will post my own review of that episode right here on this blog the same date and time as the episode is released. 

• This date is important to me because it's not just my 35th birthday, but also the exact to-the-date one year anniversary of the podcasts debut. I'd like to thank Deej for allowing me a space to call my own with her in the SNL adjacent podcasting world and I'd like to thank anyone who's ever listened to We Heart Hader or read this blog. I wouldn't be doing any of this without you.

• Happy holidays and happy new year everyone!

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!