SNL Reviews: Emma Stone/Noah Kahan (12/2/23)

 Cold Open: The Situation Room

George Santos resigns from the Senate in grandiose fashion.

• Already a big groan from seeing Sarah in drag as Wolf Blitzer. Why can’t they let James do it?!?

• *Bowen appears as George Santos for the one millionth time as I scream towards the heavens and proceed to break everything in the house*

• I refuse to say anything more about this Godawful impression, but at least this is hopefully the last time we will ever see it!!!!

Monologue

Emma is inducted into the Five-Timers Club.

• Emma Stone is the last person I would have expected to host five times.

• I was about to wonder if she really met her husband here, but then it cut to Lorne and I immediately knew it had to be a joke.

• Yawn, a Tina Fey cameo. She appears basically once a season at this point so it’s hard to get excited.

• Candice Bergen looks like a mummified corpse. I did like her joke about Martin Short peering into the Women’s Section of the Five-Timers Club.

• Nice tribute to Candice’s father Edgar Bergen when she claims she saw a creepy ventriloquist there, even if Tina somewhat ruins the joke by claiming it was John Mulaney (speaking of which, where the hell has he been?).

• Overall, not too bad, but I wonder why they only brought out two members this time. Where the hell is Steve?

Sketch: Question Quest

A game show host tries to pawn off his pet tortoise to contestants.

• No comment on the host’s name being “Joe Vibin”. Get it? Cuz it kinda sounds like Joe Biden!!! Herp-a-derp!!!

• Thank God Michael Longfellow gets a lead role as the host. Apparently he wrote this.

• I laughed at the joke about Heidi’s character being the oldest woman in the Navy, before she corrects Longfellow and says that she works at Old Navy.

• I absolutely love all the airtime Punkie has been getting lately! She has a really big showcase coming up later in this episode…

• Not sure about this twist where the host tries to pawn off his pet tortoise.

• I liked Longfellow’s line about how people who study tortoises die before the tortoises do.

• Pointless appearance from Molly as “Silent Lettuce-Throwing Lady”. 

• Apparently the trivia question about Charles Darwin and Steve Irwin owning the same tortoise is true and not just something they came up with for this.

• Overall, I liked what this was going for, and Longfellow gave a great performance, but it dragged in places and probably should have been cut down by a couple minutes.

Film: Fully Naked in New York

A group of people shares what cheers them up during winter…getting naked!

• Didn’t we just have Bowen singing earlier? Not exactly something I want to see twice in one episode.

• Oh. My. God. Naked Bowen Yang is something that I never wanted in my life…

• I think I mentioned this last time, but the heavy use of Auto-Tune in these musical films makes everything sound so fake. It’s hard to praise the vocals when you know that they don’t really sound this good.

• Speaking of vocals, at least Chloe Troast’s voice still sounds pretty good with enhancement.

• I’m sure the writers of this thought that the visual of everybody getting naked was enough to make us laugh. Well, they’re wrong.  It gets old after about twenty seconds and then you’re just waiting for it to end.

Sketch: Tree Lighting Gig

Treece Henderson performs at a Christmas tree lighting ceremony.

• Really? This guy again? This is the first time we’ve seen him since the Season 47 finale. Unsurprisingly, this also means that James Anderson (a.k.a. “The Gay Stepin Fetchit”) came back to write this sketch.

• Kenan’s line about his “coccyx” is a typical James Anderson “joke”. As in, it wasn’t funny. 

• More Andersonisms include “funny” names, which we get here with “Charlie Darken” and “Sheila Foods”. Ugh.

• Since Kyle Mooney is gone, the character that he usually played in these is replaced with one played by Bowen. And we get yet another Anderson trait with his character’s bizarre specific hairstyle.

• Man, Bowen is mugging up a storm. Also, he’s clearly not playing his keyboard, as his hand movements don’t match the actual sounds.

• I did get a laugh at this line from Kenan: “What are you,  a human dumbass?!?”

• Overall, I don’t mind this character compared to some of Anderson and Sublette’s other characters, but I definitely didn’t need to see him again. Hope he stays retired for good this time.

Please Don’t Destroy: AI

A hard drive malfunction means that artificial intelligence has to be used to complete the latest Please Don’t Destroy film.

• Interesting idea for a short…

• Punkie’s great season continues, as we now get a hilarious visual of Emma Stone’s face poorly mapped over her own.

• The fact that she’s not even attempting to act like Emma is what makes this particularly great. 

• The only thing that hurts this sketch are the constant annoying disclaimers. We can see what’s happening on our own, thank you!

• Now the AI face is having a hard time keeping up with Punkie’s movements, even being upside down at one point. You can even hear the crew telling her to stand still!

• Another great moment where we see that Marcello had to fill in for Ben Marshall. Great night for the featured players so far!

• Not a big fan of John Higgins “yassifying” his looks, but I do like the random backstage scene of him hitting a guy with a glass bottle.

• I like how they don’t even bother to cover up Punkie’s face at the end when she and Martin kiss.

• Despite the annoying disclaimers, I thought this was the best Please Don’t Destroy film we’ve had since the one in the season premiere.

Sketch: What’s in the Kiln?

Two pottery show hosts praise misshapen items.

• “Judy Frizz”? Whatever these writers are getting paid, it’s not enough.

• Anyway, the fact that this sketch stars both Heidi and Chloe is enough to make me worry.

• Yep, so far, this sketch is a whole lotta nothing. 

• Heidi hasn’t been too annoying this season, but her performance here is straight out of Season 48.

• Emma’s character is doing nothing to save this.

• Overall, that was one of the most pointless sketches I’ve ever seen.

Musical Performance: “Dial Drunk”

Weekend Update (featuring An Old Fashioned Cigarette)

• What the fuck is “Shantay You Stay/Sashay Away” supposed to be about? 

• Horrible joke trying to compare Rosalynn Carter’s death to being Donald Trump’s husband.

• I liked the picture of Biden used for the ice rink joke.

• First commentary for Michael Longfellow all season. I’m surprised it’s taken him this long after he was on every other episode last year. He’s playing a giant living cigarette, who’s here to talk about Australia banning disposable vapes.

• Colin: “I don’t smoke.” Cigarette: “What, are your parents watching tonight?”

• I like when he tries to egg Colin into saying the British term for a cigarette…which I’m going to leave for you to search up for yourselves. Even better is his response when Colin refuses to say it: “Relax, no one’s gonna take it out of context and make it into a meme!”

• Nice photoshopped image of Hitler vaping.

• I think this is probably Longfellow’s best commentary yet! So many great lines and zingers here!

• I love Colin’s joke about tuba music playing while fat people walk.

• Even Che’s WNBA joke made me laugh.

• A surprisingly okay Update once they got all of the political jokes out of the way.

Sketch: Make Your Own Kind of Music

Mama Cass discusses the potential of her new single.

• Thank goodness they chose Chloe Troast to play Mama Cass, and not the other Chloe. Can you imagine how awful that would have been?

• Cass’s backup band consists of writers Gary Richardson, Ben Silva, and Will Stephen, as well as production assistant Megan Stollsteimer.

• I appreciate the restraint in not making any fat jokes

• Ugh, Emma just showed up in drag as Mama Cass’s manager. At least it’s not Sarah again.

• Manager: “This song’s gonna be everywhere, Mama! And then everybody’s gonna forget about it for a long, long time.”

• Mikey does a great job pretending to get “shot”.

• I like how the framerate drops during the scenes where Emma is demonstrating the potential uses of the song. Almost like you’re watching a movie. It isn’t perfect, though, and there’s a few glitches that seem to have been corrected in the online version.

• I came into this expecting to hate Emma’s scenes, but I’m actually liking them a lot more this time.

• Nice hypothetical situation where the song is used to score a trailer about Joan of Arc’s dead body rising from its grave.

• Of course, the reason this sketch works so well is Troast’s beautiful performance. I hope they keep giving her meaty roles like this!

Musical Performance: “Stick Season”

Sketch: Posters

Living posters dispense advice on physics to a kid.

• Not this shit again. Why do they always have to do this sketch when Emma hosts?

• Marcello replaces Pete Davidson as the kid. He’s a lot more believable in this role than Pete ever was.

• I actually laughed out loud at Mikey’s horrendous David Beckham impression. It’s like he finally realized how bad he is at British accents, so he decided to camp it up to a comedic degree.

• Nice name for Kenan’s character: “Troy ‘The Toothtaker’ McCoy”.

• Emma’s character is still annoying.

• We at least get a satisfying ending where Ego assaults Emma.

Film: Diet Coke by Olay

The drink that’s also a facial cleanser.

• Nice to see a commercial featuring the female cast. Almost like this is the mid-2000s again.

• Interesting concept…

• Hilarious shots of the ladies gleefully splashing Diet Coke on their faces.

• I love Sarah’s expression after accidentally shaking the jar.

• One of the best commercial parodies I’ve seen in a while, plus I got some nice eye candy.

Final thoughts: Not too bad, actually. There were some weaker sketches here and there (looking at you, Bowen!) but the highs were really high.

Best sketches: AI, Cigarette commentary, Make Your Own Kind Of Music, Diet Coke by Olay

Worst sketches: Cold Open, What’s In The Kiln, Posters

Next review: Adam Driver/Olivia Rodrigo

SNL Reviews: Jason Momoa/Tate McRae (11/18/23)

 Cold Open: Press Conference

President Biden holds a press conference after meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

• It still feels so wrong seeing Mikey as Biden.

• Hey, did you know that Joe Biden is OLD? That’s the joke!!!

• UGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!! Our latest annoying Bowen showcase! He’s been doing somewhat fine for the past couple of episodes, but now we get a reminder of how WACKY he is.

• This time he’s a panda, because that’s not stereotypical at all.

• I thought I was going to vomit when he talked about how “thicc” he is.

• I refuse to comment on that godawful Panda Express pun. 

• It especially feels wrong seeing JAJ as a reporter in this sketch, stuck as a straight man to the one who replaced him as Biden.

• Overall, this sketch encapsulates everything I hate about Bowen, and that’s not even the worst thing he does in this episode!!!

Monologue

Jason Momoa talks about living out his dream as a marine biologist.

• Jason, about his mom: “If you see her, be careful, she’s still recovering from giving birth to me!”

• Some nice stories about how he wanted to help save the ocean when he was young, and how he’s now living out that dream as Aquaman.

• To quote somebody in the comments, “You just can’t help but like Jason Momoa”. And, you know what, that person’s right!

Sketch: Masters of the Pen

Old footage of L. Frank Baum is interrupted by two wacky onlookers.

• The cringy banter between Heidi and Bowen has me worried about what awaits me.

• Michael Longfellow still exists! He actually has a big role in this sketch as L. Frank Baum.

• Just as I’m about to praise SNL for finally giving Longfellow such a meaty part, the conceit of this sketch is revealed to be these assholes getting in front of him and ruining the shot.

• Mikey is doing a great job matching the framerate of silent film footage. I’m guessing this is a sketch that he wrote, because Bowen and Heidi won’t stop explaining everything that happens.

• I got a genuine laugh at Kenan popping up to show off his hot dog.

• This was a nice and silly little sketch.

Film: Rome Song

Some guys sing a song about Rome or something.

• Good to see Troast get another singing showcase only a week after the last one. Too bad this is her only appearance in this episode.

• Something that really hate about these modern musical sketches is how heavily Auto-Tuned the vocals are. Can’t they just leave them as they are without any processing?

• I’m sure this has to be parodying something, but I’m afraid it leaves me quite cold. These hip-hop pretapes are so overdone, even without Pete Davidson being there.

Sketch: Nightclub Line

The adventures of two wacky bouncers at a Miami nightclub.

• Another lead role for Marcello! His role here kind of reminds me of that Towel Boys sketch he did with Kenan last season.

• It’s pretty funny hearing Momoa trying to speak in a Spanish accent.

• Longfellow’s back, only to be manhandled by Jason Momoa.

• I liked Marcello worrying about Longfellow’s character leaving a bad review on Yelp.

• Unfortunately, this comes to a screeching halt when Kenan arrives and starts talking in what is basically his David Ortiz voice. He’s been doing surprisingly well this season, and it’s a shame that he regressed to his unprofessional Season 48 self here.

• This was a little too long, but mostly harmless.

Sketch: Airport Parade

Two TSA agents introduce various travelers at the airport.

• A variation of the Halloween costume sketch and the Central Park cold open from last season. I don’t know why this has become a recurring theme lately.

• The opening show tune and the presence of Bowen are all I needed to know that this is a Jimmy Fowlie sketch.

• “Chartreuse Hamilton”? Who the fuck comes up with these names?

• Even in a small role, Chloe is playing her character way too big. 

• I like the voice Jason is using here.

• We get more of Kenan’s tired shouting shtick.

• HUGE applause when the little girl says “Screw you, bitch!” 

• Yet another role for Longfellow tonight in which he’s getting humiliated. Do they have it out for him or something?

• I’m guessing Sarah’s character is based on some kind of viral video. Whatever it was, it didn’t make me laugh at all.

• The gay flight attendants bit is straight out of Season 30. Yet another obvious sign that Fowlie wrote this.

• Overall, my least favorite of these parade sketches.

Please Don’t Destroy: Ramen Order

The guys attempt to order food.

• I liked Martin’s reference to the “More Cowbell” sketch.

• Didn’t they already do a film where their girlfriend breaks up with them over the phone?

• Not a big fan of this one so far.

• The mention of “baby bok choy” immediately made me think of Stefon.

• Well, that one just went by without me saying much about it. What is happening to these guys lately?

Musical Performance: “Greedy”

Weekend Update (featuring George Santos, Daymond Green, and Remember Lizards)

• I got a big laugh from the clip of Biden calling LL Cool J “LL J Cool J”.

• I’ll never get tired of seeing that photo of a smiling Colin holding his thumb up.

• NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! Not George fucking Santos!!!!!! I refuse to say anything more about this terrible “impression” and the untalented idiot behind it!!!

• Thankfully, Devon is here to save the day. I have no idea who Draymond Green is because I don’t follow basketball, but I’m sure Devon is doing a good job.

• I laughed at the line about having a “seven-foot baguette” in his face.

• Devon: “Look, I had to kick him in the groin. That’s where his nuts at!”

• Not much to say about this commentary, but Devon’s likeable performance makes it fine with me.

• Ah, now here’s what I’ve been waiting to see again! Andrew and JAJ show up as “Remember Lizards”, an Imagine Dragons parody band. I’m getting Jon Bovi vibes from this.

• The way these characters look is amazing. I like the detail of Andrew’s shirt being black on one side and white on the other. Who does he think he is? Two-Face?

• JAJ isn’t trying to hide the fact that he’s not really playing that guitar. I find that charming for some reason.

• Whoever wrote this wisely gave both James and Andrew a chance to sing. James is unsurprisingly great, and I never knew that Andrew had such a good singing voice. 

• I love how all of these songs sound exactly the same. Kinda like Imagine Dragons! *ba-dum-tssh!*

• A big laugh from the Christian song at the end.

• Overall, amazing work from JAJ and Andrew! And we end this up-and-down Update on a high note!

Sketch: Cast Away

A woman invites her ex over for dinner.

• I cringed at Andrew’s “kinda sus” line at the beginning.

• Speaking of Andrew, it’s nice to see him with another lead role here. Also, he has a mustache, which automatically makes him a winner in my book.

• When this episode first aired, I distinctly remember my cats getting spooked when the doorbell rang in this sketch.

• Chloe is surprisingly acting like a normal person in this sketch instead of an annoying alien like she usually does. 

• The ladies in the audience go wild when Momoa pours his drink on himself.

• Surprised it took this long for Momoa to take his shirt off. He got that out of the way immediately in his last episode, so I appreciate the restraint here. This is then followed by Andrew taking off his own shirt, and we get to see his disturbing chest hair.

• How in the world is Momoa moving his chest muscles like that?

• Andrew’s pathetic attempts at push-ups are hilarious.

• I enjoyed this sketch a lot more than I thought I would. Andrew and Jason make a great team!

Musical Performance: “Grave”

Film: Battle of the Sexes

The forgotten story of Charna Lee Diamond is told in this Netflix documentary.

• An initial laugh from how Momoa’s character towers over the rest of his team.

• And then, the amazing gory twist, where a tennis ball goes right through Sarah’s body, followed by another one taking her head off!!! This is the hardest I’ve laughed at SNL in quite a while! 

• Nice running gag with a random black guy (played by Devon) stealing the ball after it goes through Sarah. Then, after her head comes off, he returns and takes that as well, only to drop it once he realizes what it is.

• Amazing “In Memoriam” card with Sarah’s headless body in a triumphant pose. 

• Overall, another delightfully bizarre sketch from Sarah!

Sketch: Cab Driver

A cab driver receives medical news while driving a passenger.

• Is this the same taxi from the “Friggin’ Giuliani!” sketch?

• Apprently this was cut from Kieran Culkin’s episode a couple years ago. I assume he played Jason’s role.

• This would normally be a sketch that I should absolutely hate, given that it has both Kenan and a poopy joke in it. But Jason playing this material straight is making it better than it has any right to be.

• Kenan’s tired reacting routine is actually getting some good use here. 

• Never thought I’d see the day that modern Kenan was my favorite part of a sketch.

Final thoughts: Better than I remembered, to be honest. While I’d still give the advantage to his first episode for having one of my favorite sketches in it (The Elf on the Shelf), this one was a little more consistent. Jason Momoa was a great host yet again, and he’s more than welcome to come back a third time!

Best sketches: Master of the Pen, Remember Lizards commentary, Cast Away, Cab Driver

Worst sketches: Cold Open, George Santos commentary

Next review: Emma Stone/Noah Kahan

SNL Reviews: Timothee Chalamet/boygenius (11/11/23)

 Cold Open: Republican Debate

Donald Trump interrupts a Republican debate.

• Kenan doesn’t look or sound a thing like Lester Holt. Couldn’t they get Che to do it again like he did in 2016?

• Kenan immediately screws up a line and says “Republincan”. Can you please get off the show now?

• Yay, more typecasting! We get Molly as Chris Christie for no reason!

• Random casting of John Higgins from Please Don’t Destroy as Ron DeSantis.

• No comment on Ego in drag playing Vivek Ramaswamy. 

• The Will Smith slap reference fell completely flat, although I think this is actually a poor recreation of something in the actual debate.

• At least Devon is trying to create a persona for Tim Scott, even though I couldn’t understand any of his lines.

• UGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!! Trump is back yet again!! In fact, this is a lame rehash of that one cold open from last season where he interrupted The Last Supper.

• I don’t know why SNL keeps shoving this horrible impression down our throats. I don’t care how spot-on the voice is. The actual material NEVER. FUCKING. CHANGES. Is this what we’re going to have to deal with come election time next season? I’m getting pretty scared.

• TLDR: JAJ’s Trump impression is dead to me at this point and I wish it would stop coming back.

Monologue

Timothee raps about having a baby face with Marcello Hernandez.

• After some boring writers’ strike jokes, I got a little worried when music started up. Then it thankfully gets cut off by Timothee shamelessly self-promoting the new Wonka movie he’s in.

• Never mind, he just goes back to singing after that. But, like his last monologue, I don’t hate this. He’s got a great singing voice, which I suppose is perfect for that Wonka movie.

• Everyone’s “favorite” writer Jimmy Fowlie appears in the audience as the man who lets Timothee take his seat.

• The CGI audience members should have made me laugh, but it didn’t for some reason.

• The huge applause Marcello gets when he shows up is so great to hear. It feels like he’s finally found his place on the show!

• Sadly, this is then followed by the two of them rapping. While I didn’t completely hate this monologue, I think it could have been a lot shorter.

Sketch: 50 Years of Hip-Hop

Mary J. Blige, Rick Rubin, Cornel West, and SmokeCheddaDaAssGetta are the guests on this panel at the Hip-Hop Museum.

• Ugh, this sketch from Timothee’s last episode becomes recurring. I did not care at all for that one, but maybe this will be better because Pete isn’t there.

• I still hate that Ego’s name is “Nunya Bizness”.

• Great to see Punkie get airtime in an episode that’s not hosted by a black person. I can’t judge the accuracy of her Mary J. Blige impression because I’m not that familiar.

• JAJ looks priceless as Rick Rubin.

• Kenan looks and sounds nothing like that communist Cornel West. Apparently he’s played him before, but not since 2012.

• Timothee reprises his role from the previous installment of this sketch.

• “Mukbang” is a phrase that I never wanted to hear on this show.

• So far, I’m finding this even worse than the first one.

• JAJ’s wig is coming off.

• I kind of like the joke where Timothee is only able to recognize Cornel West because he was in The Matrix Revolutions.

• Overall, an unnecessary sequel to a sketch that I didn’t even like the first time around.

Film: The Woman In Me Auditions

Various celebrities audition to read The Woman In Me audiobook.

• Been a while since we had a good old impression showcase like this.

• I am not pleased to see Chloe as Britney again. She also brings back her baffling impression of tonight’s host.

• Mikey doesn’t really sound like Steve-O, but I still laughed at his scene.

• Ugh, Sarah in drag yet again!!! Her John Mulaney impression is way too high-pitched.

• Molly doesn’t even get any lines as Kevin James, seemingly having only been cast as him due to their size.

• Chloe’s Natasha Lyonne impression is admittedly not bad.

• It figures that Bowen would be cast as Fred Schneider. He actually does a pretty good job with the voice.

• Ego’s Jada Pinkett Smith is back, and the joke is that she’s reading from her book and not Britney’s. 

• Kenan’s awful Neil DeGrasse Tyson’s joke is that he reads the book in Ebonics. Get it?!? Because he’s black!!!

• JAJ’s Werner Herzog is unsurprisingly the standout here.

• The other Chloe gets to play Dame Maggie Smith, and her voice is spot on! Much better than any of Fineman’s.

• Michael Longfellow sadly only gets about four seconds as Bill Hader, but I liked what I heard.

• *sigh* Another disappointing audition showcase. When was the last one that was actually good? The Jurassic Park auditions from Season 43?

Sketch: Gym Call

A woman calls up the gym where she left her bags, but the employees are less than helpful.

• Heidi finally gets a character that isn’t annoying.

• A mild chuckle from the initial sight of Mikey with fake muscular arms.

• The only joke in this sketch is “haha buff guys are stupid”. Mikey and Timothee try their best, but this was a chore for me to sit through.

Film: Giant Horse

A man reconnects with his now giant pet horse.

• Amazing special effects in this sketch. I would really like to see a VFX breakdown!

• After a somewhat boring beginning, Bowen suddenly gets stepped on by a giant hoof. That’s right, this is a sequel to the Tiny Horse film from Timothee’s first episode, except now the horse is GIANT!!!

• The stop-motion on the horse is still pretty good, but…something feels kind of wrong about this sequel. None of the heart from the first one is there, and instead we get lines about the horse wanting to destroy all humans.

• It’s like they came up with an unrelated sci-fi sketch, then some idiot decided to make this a sequel to Tiny Horse. This just feels like two different sketches stitched together.

• JAJ is pretty good as the villain.

• Not even the ending where the horse turns tiny again made me happy. I just can’t believe they would ruin Tiny Horse like that. To quote my mom when this ended, “That was stupid.”

Musical Performance: “Not Strong Enough”

Weekend Update (featuring Crystal)

• Now that they’re showing a picture of Vivek Ramaswamy, I can see how little Ego resembles him, which just makes me wish that they had an actual Indian on the show.

• Lame joke about a Bible bursting into flames when Trump touched it. Get it? Because he’s the Devil…or something!

• Another lame joke about women from Che.

• Heidi returns as that busy co-worker character from last season. Unsurprisingly, this was just as unfunny as her first appearance.

• I’m surprised at how short these last few Updates have been.

Sketch: Sleep Study

A lady’s sleep paralysis demon is Troye Sivan.

• Sarah, describing what her demon looks like: “It’s just…a guy, but, like…a gay guy?”

• Who is said gay guy? Why, it’s Australian heartthrob Troye Sivan…for some reason. Does Sarah just think he’s really hot and wanted to put him in a sketch?

• I sure love how Sarah’s explaining everything that’s happening! (/sarcasm)

• What is the deal with Timothee breaking the fourth wall to admit that he can’t do an Australian accent?

• Boy, this sketch is pure comedy cancer. And it’s not Sarah’s fault this time so I can’t chalk this up to her slow decline. The real culprit is Bowen “Asian Terry Sweeney” Yang, who plays his role fine for the most part, until he starts doing a very gay dance.

• Sarah: “More gay guys???? Hubba-hubba!”

• And now there’s more Sivans?!? Please end this already!

Please Don’t Destroy: Jumper

The guys save a man from jumping to his death.

• Another one? At least this one is taking place outside for a change.

• The “music” that Timothee plays for the guys is pretty funny.

• I like how his band’s name is spelled the same as “Hamas”.

• Great how the only words in his breakup song are “I cheated!”

• Amazing ending where Timothee finally jumps to his death after realizing that the guys he’s been talking to are Please Don’t Destroy.

• Overall, this still dragged at several points, but the ending alone was way better than anything in the last PDD film.

Musical Performance: “Satanist”

Sketch: Little Orphan Cassidy

An orphan sings to the moon about not being adopted.

• “Mrs. Pippinstuffs”? Who comes up with this shit? At least Molly finally gets a role that isn’t a fat man.

• Good to see Chloe Troast get a lead role.

• I got a genuine laugh when Troast started singing in a bizarre deep voice.

• Wow, I’m impressed at how great her singing voice is. Moon-Timothee also has some great lines in response to her.

• Finally, a sketch I can say that I enjoyed.

Sketch: Calm Sleep Story

Timothee’s Calm app recording session doesn’t go as planned.

• Figures that Andrew’s first appearance in this episode is in the last sketch.

• How many times are they going to reuse this same recording studio set?

• Hmm, Timothee’s playing himself here.

• Andrew’s thumbs-up gesture is pretty funny. He’s always pretty good with small details like that.

• Not caring for the poopy jokes, but Timothee’s giving it his all.

• Aaaaaand…we end on a horrid note. Alec fucking Baldwin makes a completely pointless cameo for the first time since 2020. UGGGHHHHHH!!!!!! I thought we were safe from ever seeing him on this show again! Did they let him back on if he promised not to shoot anybody?

Final thoughts: While Timothee was pretty good as a host, this episode was way worse than his previous episode. I can’t believe people actually think this one is better! 

Best sketches: Jumper, Little Orphan Cassidy

Worst sketches: Cold Open, Gym Call, Weekend Update, Sleep Demon

Next review: Jason Momoa/Tate McRae

SNL Reviews: Nate Bargatze/Foo Fighters (10/28/23)

 Cold Open: Biden Halloween

President Biden delivers a special Halloween message, and is visited by the Spirit of Halloween.

• What the hell?!?? What’s Mikey doing as Biden?

• Yep, that’s right. Once again, we have a brand new Biden impersonator. JAJ’s wasn’t perfect, but at least it was a step up from Fire Marshal Biden and Alex Moffat. I’ve heard a theory that they recast him because they need James to play Trump in the upcoming 2024 election sketches. Hopefully Trump will be kicked out by then so that doesn’t have to happen.

• After that initial shock wears off, we get some tired jokes about how old Biden is.

• I can see what Mikey’s trying to go for with the voice, but it just sounds awkward and whispery.

• Ugh at “Boo Back Boo-er”.

• Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker are wasted with brief appearances as Mike Johnson and his black son. Don’t worry, they tell us who they are and explain all the jokes so we don’t have to do any thinking.

• Then, out of nowhere, Christopher Walken makes his triumphant return!!! Fuck yeah!!!!!

• While it’s obvious that he’s gotten up in years, he’s still extremely funny. I love his explanation that he came out of the toilet.

• It’s hard for me to choose a favorite Walken line, so I’ll just put this one here: “After all, you can’t spell Halloween without ‘hello’!”

• The first half of this where it was just Biden was horrible, but it got way better when Walken showed up.

Monologue

Nate talks about watching his dad perform at country fairs and his mom going to the wrong house to pick up his sister.

•  I still have no idea who this guy is even after seeing his episode for the first time.

• There’s some nice relatable material here about watching his magician father perform at the fair, and all of the crazy things he saw there.

• I don’t really have a lot to say here, but I like how quiet this guy is compared to other stand-ups. He’s not shouting in your face like Sam Kinison or making crass vagina jokes like Amy Schumer, he’s just normal.

Sketch: Chef Showdown

Two chefs face off to see who can cook the best soul food.

• Finally a TV show sketch where the people have normal names!

• An initial laugh from the sloppily made food on Plate 2.

• Nice twist where it turns out that the white chef (played by Nate) wasn’t the one who cooked the disgusting plate, and the judges frantically trying to figure how he did so good.

• Even Kenan is doing pretty decent here. 

• Random appearance from Padma Lakshmi, whoever that is.

• I’m surprised at how much I liked this sketch this time around. 

Film: A Stab At Love

Hallmark presents a brand new horror film.

• As I said in my review of that awful Hallmark game show sketch in Season 45, I find parodies of Hallmark movies to be kind of pointless, as they are already parodies of themselves.

• I don’t quite get the joke with the actors’ names being “almost human”, such as “Bren Cloebog”. Don’t most Hallmark movies have at least one big name in them so people will watch?

• I like how the announcer is JAJ instead of Steve Higgins as usual.

• Punkie at least has a great reaction to seeing Nate propose to Chloe with a dead person’s hand.

• Overall, I still didn’t really care for this, but I found a few positives this time around.

Sketch: Washington’s Dream

George Washington tells his troops about his dream for the country.

• Why is Bowen one of the soldiers? Pretty sure Washington didn’t have any Asians in his outfit back then. Why couldn’t this be Dismukes or Longfellow? Oh wait, that would mean giving them actual screentime.

• Nate is pretty good as George Washington.

• Despite my complaints about Bowen being in this sketch, he’s actually not doing too bad. He’s thankfully reined in his gay shtick here.

• The running bit with Kenan’s character getting ignored when he asks about slavery was a little too predictable.

• This sketch seems to be really popular for some reason, but I’m afraid I don’t quite get it. I don’t hate it or anything, it’s just not something I personally care for.

Film: Lake Beach

A country music trio sings about their favorite warm weather activity.

• Ah, now here’s a sketch that I actually do remember liking!

• This idea apparently came from James’ stand-up act.

• A spot on parody of “bro country” music. So many great details here! And that song is so damn catchy!

• Great to see Andrew get a big role here. I love the cheesy grin he gives the camera as he takes a piss in the woods.

• Dave Grohl is amazing as that dirtbag uncle nobody likes.

• Funny twist at the end where Grohl’s character turns out to be a pastor.

Sketch: Trick-Or-Treat with Fran Drescher

The star of TV’s The Nanny shows some SAG-approved Halloween costumes.

• Sarah doesn’t really sound a whole lot like Fran Drescher, or nail the laugh, but she’s not really an impressionist, so I’ll let it slide. Besides, she does capture the most important aspect of a Fran Drescher impression: the fact that she’s extremely annoying.

• A nice detail with the text that introduces Fran being the same font as The Nanny’s intro sequence.

• I like the look on the little girl’s face after Fran calls her an “adorable scab”.

• I’m not quite sure what this sketch is supposed to be making fun of. Was there really a demand from the SAG that people stop wearing copyrighted character costumes?

• I did get a laugh from the kid dressed as Hoda Kotb, complete with wine.

• Another laugh from Fran saying that Nate is dressed as a pervert from To Catch a Predator.

• That kid trying to attempt an Italian accent was pretty charming.

• The little girl dressed as The Nanny does a way better laugh than Sarah.

• Overall, this was a very confusing attempt at satire, and I don’t know what Sarah was trying to do, but I still got enough laughs.

Musical Performance: “Rescued”

• Walken introduces this one.

Weekend Update (featuring J.J. Gordon)

• They’re still making jokes about Eric Trump being a retard.

• The online version removes “Down With The Sickness” from a clip of two mice fighting.

• I noticed someone in the audience going “Whoo!” when Colin tells his joke about Mike Pence dropping out of the presidential race. 

• Sarah appears in drag yet again as Colin’s “agent” J.J. Gordon, a piece that was cut from last week’s show. I sense some more Colin roasting…

• I really hate to say it, but I think Sarah roasting Colin is finally starting to get old for me. Between the Drescher thing earlier and now this, Sarah hasn’t been doing so good lately.

• Can Michael Che go an entire Update without stumbling or laughing at his jokes?

• I laughed at the Hitler kiss-cam joke.

• Horrid “joke” about Colin running over the world’s oldest dog.

• At least we end on a great joke about New Jersey residents being filthy.

• A surprisingly short Update.

Sketch: Airplane

People on an airplane get into an argument.

• Even while she’s supposed to be going into labor, Chloe Fineman can’t stop making her annoying mugging faces.

• This is another sketch that I find pretty boring, despite a lot of other fans liking it. I do like that it features a lot of the underused cast members, though.

• I did laugh at Mikey the pilot insulting Nate for assuming that nobody’s flying the plane.

• Pretty great cameo from Grohl at the end.

Musical Performance: “The Glass”

Please Don’t Destroy: Dawg Food

The guys try a new meal prep service.

• Are these guys going to appear in every single episode now?

• The face on the bag of dog food looks pretty familiar, but I can’t place him.

• So, yeah…we get a sketch where the only joke is that they’re eating dog food. This doesn’t really feel like something Please Don’t Destroy would do. The thing that attracted me to these guys was the fact that they didn’t really do grossout humor, but look what they’re doing now! 

• I did laugh at the ending where John randomly dies.

• As much as I hate to say this, I think this is the first Please Don’t Destroy sketch that I would have to call terrible.

Note: A dedication to Matthew Perry appears before the goodnights.

Final thoughts: This was an okay episode. The pre-Update half had some great stuff in it, but I think it kind of fell off starting with that Fran Drescher routine. Nate Bargatze was a surprisingly good host for somebody that hasn’t been on before. I’d love to see him come back.

Best sketches: Christopher Walken’s cameo, Monologue, Chef Showdown, Lake Beach

Worst sketches: Sarah’s commentary, Dawg Food

Next review: Timothee Chalamet/boygenius

SNL Reviews: Bad Bunny (10/21/23)

 Cold Open

Jim Jordan loses the House Vote again and consults with his advisors.

• After the nice reprieve we got last time, we’re back to more tone-deaf political “satire”.

• I have no idea what Jim Jordan sounds like, but I’m sure Mikey isn’t even close.

• UGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!! It’s Bowen as George Santos yet again!!! And he’s carrying a baby…for some reason.

• Why does Bowen always have to talk so damn slow? Does he think that he’ll get more laughs that way? Well, guess what, it’s annoying as fuck!

• No idea what to think about Lauren Boebert almost getting groped at a movie theater. Never thought I’d have to type that sentence, but that’s life.

• *groan* Trump is back for the 2,366th time. 

• His scene is just as unfunny as every other appearance by this impression, except for the fun twist where he cuts off Mikey from saying the intro line. 

Monologue

Bad Bunny speaks in English and Spanish and gets Pedro Pascal to translate for him.

• Not a big fan of the Sabado Gigante “mixup” at the beginning.

• Why does the audience have to cheer every single time he speaks? He’s not that sexy, ladies.

• I did like the “[SPEAKS IN NON-ENGLISH]” subtitle.

• Random appearance from Pedro Pascal.

• I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about Bad Bunny here that seems kind of…phony. Like he’s trying to put on a fake “nice guy” image.

Sketch: Rap Battle

Two rappers battle at a club.

• What is with Punkie wearing her hood up all the time lately? I’m not complaining, it’s just something weird I noticed.

• I love Mikey’s rapper name: “Walter White Boy”

• So they’re not going to let Bad Bunny rap? Why does Mikey get all of it to himself?

• Ugh, these incest jokes are hideous.

• What a horrible sketch. It reminds me of that awful sketch with the rappers dancing to game show themes from the Awkwafina episode.

Film: La Era del Descrubimento (The Age of Discovery)

Explorers show the king and prince some riches from their latest voyage.

• UGGGHHHHHH!!!!!! Fred fucking Armisen is back for his 8,936, 422nd cameo.

• I like how this is entirely in Spanish.

• That turkey’s facial expression matches how I feel when I watch Weekend Update.

• We get our obligatory ball joke when the king claims that the turkey has testicles on his chin.

• Marcello as the prince says “Ay dios mio!” at one point. Couldn’t they let Fred say that for old times’ sake?

• Now we get a poop joke? Did a five-year old write this part?

• I definitely didn’t need to see him put poop in his mouth.

• This sketch is kind of hard for me to rate. On one hand, I like how ambitious it is for being entirely in Spanish. On the other hand, all of the juvenile humor brings it down a bit.

Sketch: Telenovela

An actress playing a maid keeps screwing things up.

• Uh-oh, now we have a Jimmy Fowlie sketch.

• Another sketch where most of the dialogue is in Spanish? Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but I wish this sketch and the previous one were spaced out a bit more.

• I’m glad Marcello gets to shine in this episode! He and Bad Bunny make a great duo!

• Thankfully, Punkie is here to save the day with her amusing broken Spanish.

• Despite not being the focus of this sketch, Bowen is still queering it up.

• Is it just me, or are they on the same set as The Californians? Not exactly a sketch I want to be reminded of.

• Yep, this is definitely a Jimmy Fowlie sketch. The same joke repeated over and over again! Punkie is trying her best, though.

• This is more of a nitpick, but why does a Spanish soap opera have an English speaking director?

• The twist where Punkie’s character is revealed to be named “Latina Jefferson” is genuinely amusing.

• Punkie: “Did he just call me a negro?!?” LOL!!!!

• Mick Jagger makes a random cameo. Why? I don’t know, but he’s got a fake mustache, so that makes it okay with me.

• For a Jimmy Fowlie sketch, this surprisingly wasn’t too awful. 

Please Don’t Destroy: Bad Bunny Is Shrek

The guys help Bad Bunny with his idea for a script.

• An initial laugh from Bad Bunny walking in dressed like Shrek.

• Bad Bunny: “Is Donkey coming?”

• I love the awkward silence after Ben suggests that Bad Bunny play Puss in Boots.

• John’s Michael Jackson impression is great! If only he was on the show when the trial was going on, then we wouldn’t have been stuck with Amy Poehler’s awkward attempt at playing him.

• The scene where they all read Bad Bunny’s script together is the most amazing thing I have ever seen, complete with terrible CGI animations of the characters.

• Oh, by the way, you wanna know who owns Shrek? NBCUniversal! Some good old fashioned corporate synergy!!!

Musical Performance: “Un Preview”

• Ummm, why is Lady Gaga introducing this song? She doesn’t appear anywhere else in the episode, so I have no idea what she’s doing here.

Weekend Update (featuring Jada Pinkett Smith)

• Wow, some Biden jokes that don’t revolve around his age!

• This probably goes without saying, but I am extremely sick of the “seen here” jokes.

• Ego appears as Jada Pinkett Smith, as this was right after her revelation that she and Will had been divorced for a few years all along.

• I don’t really have a lot to say about this commentary (once you’ve seen one Ego commentary, you’ve seen them all), so let me share this quote on the YouTube upload that I think sums it up: “There wasn’t a single joke this entire sketch. It was just…a sad series of facts.” And you know what? He’s right!

• I chuckled at the disgusting ice cream flavors/pregnancy joke.

• I also really liked the punchline to the story about a man’s glasses getting shot off.

• This is the second Update in a row that was surprisingly tolerable. It helps that it was extremely short.

Sketch: Protective Mom

Luís gets embarrassed by his mother again, this time with help from his aunt.

• I did not need to see Bad Bunny in drag.

• So, yeah, this is a sequel to the sketch from Pedro Pascal’s episode where he dressed like an old lady. 

• Speaking of Pedro, there he is, so now we’ve got TWO guys in drag!

• Chloe Troast replaces Chloe Fineman as Marcello’s girlfriend in this one. I guess he broke up with the girl from the previous sketch?

• Pedro randomly throwing “Trader Joe’s” into his Spanish sentence was pretty funny.

• I like how the girlfriend character has more to do in this one instead of just standing off to the side.

• Pedro, talking about a septum piercing: “I have a piercing, too, ‘cept I’m putting it in my ear where it belongs!”

• Call me crazy, but I think this was funnier than the last time they did this!

Film: The Right Track

Wacky shenanigans occur on the subway.

• JAJ has had a pretty quiet episode so far.

• Now this suddenly turns into a variation of the Waffle House routine from last season, except now it’s on a subway.

• It was cathartic seeing Kenan getting beat up for being so annoying. 

• Some amusement from everyone trying to kill a rat. 

• The very ending where Kenan creepily says hello to JAJ was a great way to wrap it up.

• This was good, but I prefer the Waffle House version. Even though I’m still not going to eat at a house made of waffles. BEEEEEEF JELLLY!!!

Musical Performance: “Monaco”

Sketch: Convent Meeting

A group of nuns gathers to discuss an infiltrator among them.

• I got an unintentional laugh from the choral music that introduces this sketch, as it is the same music that Adult Swim used to use for their “Adult Swim Is Your Friend” bumper from 2004-2010.

• Bad Bunny in drag again? Didn’t we just have that?

• Like I said last season, nun jokes kind of bum me out, especially when nuns are portrayed as sex-obsessed creeps.

• And now Jagger’s back? I knew there was going to be a twist where there was another man in drag at the convent, but it was worth it to see Jagger dressed as a nun.

• No comment on the awful ending where this turns out to be a trailer for “Sister Act 3”, or the “second coming” pun.

Sketch: Enrique’s Daughter

The CEO of Burt’s Bees tells his employees that the company has been acquired.

• Yay! More product placement!

• I kind of laughed at Mikey shutting down the discussion of him possibly getting laid off.

• This sketch is really slow, but it’s not that bad. Something about Bad Bunny’s performance is clicking with me for some reason.

• Even Kenan isn’t doing too badly in this sketch. This is one of the best nights he’s had in a while.

• One person who is annoying me here is Bowen. Even when he isn’t the focus, he still feels the need to overact and be gay.

• I like Mikey’s revelation that the company makes its chapstick by grinding up bees.

• I’m surprised at how much I liked this, especially the ending where Bad Bunny interrupts everybody else standing up for him by revealing that his son is having a baby.

Final thoughts: This was much better than the last episode. The writers seem to have gotten back into the groove after the strike. Bad Bunny kind of annoyed me at first, but he got better as we went along. Even Kenan managed not to annoy me, which is amazing at this point of his tenure.

Best sketches: The Age of Discovery, Bad Bunny Is Shrek, Protective Mom, Enrique’s Daughter

Worst sketches: Cold Open, Rap Battle, Convent Meeting

Next review: Nate Bargatze/Foo Fighters

SNL Reviews: Pete Davidson/Ice Spice (10/14/23)

 Now we come to Season 49! I can’t believe I’ve been reviewing this show for seven seasons now!

Cold Open

Pete takes a moment to talk about the tragedies going on in Israel.

• Color me surprised, this is the best cold open we’ve had since…I don’t know, the last time we did something like this. As someone who doesn’t really care for Pete Davidson, I think he actually came off pretty good here. 

• There’s really not too much I can say about this one, but I’m glad that none of my three predictions on what the cold open would be about came true. In case you’re curious, they were (1) some kind of tongue-in-cheek look at the writer’s strike, (2) Donald Trump, or (3) Donald Trump somehow being responsible for the writer’s strike.

Note: The intro is the same as last season, but we have a new cast member! Chloe Troast has joined…and I’ve never heard of her. Also, James Austin Johnson and Sarah Sherman have been promoted.

Monologue

Pete talks about Game of Thrones, Staten Island, and the first time he did stand-up.

• Pete was supposed to host last season before the strike happened. I think Jennifer Coolidge was also supposed to appear, and if that’s the case, thank goodness her episode got cancelled, because I wouldn’t have been able to take a sketch where she interacts with Chloe Fineman’s impression of her.

• I was expecting a serious monologue from Pete after what happened in the cold open, but instead I was greeted with incest jokes. Incest is soooo funny, right guys?!??

• He didn’t waste any time in getting back to his overused Staten Island jokes. Oh, and we get a pedophile priest joke too! 

Sketch: NFL on FOX

The FOX crew is distracted by news of Taylor Swift.

• Ugh, I see Kenan is still on the show. 

• Devon’s goofy smile as Michael Strahan made me chuckle.

• Molly is still being typecast as fat men, unfortunately.

• Are you kidding me? The first sketch of the season, and it’s about Taylor Swift and her stupid relationship with Travis Kelce, which is a story that we were all sick of hearing about in the week leading up to this episode.

• Adding further fuel to my hatred of this sketch is the fact that I don’t give two shits about football.

• Pete’s character added absolutely nothing to this.

• Oh, and just in case we didn’t get it, they have Kelce himself show up at the end!!!! 

Film: I’m Just Pete

Pete sings about being himself.

• Ugh, we now get the return of those awful Pete Davidson raps that I haven’t missed.

• Even worse, the aesthetic of this is designed to look like that stupid overrated Barbie movie that everyone went crazy about during the summer. SNL, behind the times yet again!!!

• The thing I hate the most about this awful song is the way it treats his mental issues as just a big ol’ goof. Haha, isn’t bipolar disorder funny? Laugh, you sheeple!!!

Sketch: Wired Autocomplete Interview

The stars of a new show answer the most popular questions about themselves.

• How many times has Ego said “bitch” at this point? Frankly, it’s getting old.

• Unfortunately, the main joke of this sketch is Pete being humiliated for pooping his pants. That’s it.

• I saw the “twist” where the other characters’ questions bring it up coming from a mile away.

• No comment on the black box recording of Pete’s accident.

Sketch: Secretary 

A lawyer takes on a new client with the help of his secretary.

• Bowen looks even gayer with a mustache on.

• Ugh, looks like we have our latest WACKY Heidi character! It should come as no surprise that Jimmy Fowlie and his new partner in crime Ceara O’Sullivan are responsible for this shit.

• JAJ is wasted with about fifteen seconds of screentime in this sketch.

• I do have to give major props to Heidi for making her pratfall through the desk look real.

Please Don’t Destroy: The Original Princes of Comedy

The guys look back on their past as child standup comedians.

• Our first Please Don’t Destroy sketch of the season. Hopefully it’s better than the disappointing one they ended Season 48 with.

• I like the footage of teenage Pete doing standup.

• We suddenly get a twist where we see what the three guys were like when they were kids.

• This setting immediately makes me think of the classic Kings of Catchphrase Comedy sketches (“BEEEEEEF JELLY!”).

• The stock footage of a rowdy black audience laughing is hilarious, as is the whole concept of young children performing Def Jam style comedy.

• All of the child actors match their grown-up counterparts to a tee, especially the one who plays Ben “Smoke Dog” Marshall.

• Random John Mulaney cameo for the first time since Season 47. I like how the black audience starts to leave as soon as he’s about to do an Ice-T impression.

Musical Performance: “In Ma Hood”

Weekend Update (featuring Christopher Columbus and Deion Sanders)

• We’re still getting a bunch of awful George Santos jokes.

• Bowen’s latest annoying commentary is as Christopher Columbus, which means we get yet another example of SNL’s recent obsession with cartoony Italian accents.

• Why isn’t Marcello playing Columbus? Oh wait, that would actually make sense, and we can’t have that, so let’s give him to the most annoying guy on the show!

• I did get a genuine laugh from the joke about Russell Brand.

• Another surprisingly good joke that Che gives Jost to read about black kids missing their fathers.

• Kenan’s playing yet another celebrity he shouldn’t be. This time it’s Deion Sanders. I did laugh at his introductory line, saying how much he liked the aforementioned black father joke.

• Most of this commentary is exactly what you’d expect from modern-day Kenan. There’s a gag that goes on for way too long where he reacts to all the college teams that are undefeated.

• A huge laugh at the clip of Sanders “rapping” from when he was a host in 1995 (one of the worst episodes ever).

• Surprisingly, this Update wasn’t as awful as I was fearing. There were barely any Trump jokes, and I laughed a worryingly high number of times.

Sketch: Spaceship

Two former co-workers reconnect while their spaceship is under attack.

• Michael Longfellow still exists!!!! And he has a pretty meaty role in this sketch as the captain!

• UGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!! Here we have yet ANOTHER campy gay stereotype character courtesy of Bowen Yang! This sketch was looking promising until he showed up. Why’d he have to ruin it?!??

• The writer’s guide on Reddit that I use doesn’t say who wrote this, but I’m fairly sure this is another Jimmy Fowlie “masterpiece”, perhaps in collaboration with Bowen.

• I think it was Stooge who pointed out that handlebar mustaches are automatically funny. Well, I’d like to point out that I think all mustaches are automatically funny, especially the type that Pete’s wearing here which makes him look like a child predator.

• Geez, this is still going on…

• At least this sketch ends with Bowen getting sucked into space.

Musical Performance: “Pretty Girl”

• UGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! Taylor Swift is there to introduce this song! “Hey guys, are we cool? We actually got Travis and Taylor to appear in our show!!!!” Gag me with a fucking spoon.

Sketch: Beach Day

A day at the beach doesn’t go as planned.

• Where the fuck has Sarah been this entire episode? This is only the first time she’s appeared.

• Pete has some very distracting tattoos on his legs.

• Holy crap, Andrew with a lead role!

• Andrew and Pete have great chemistry in this sketch. I wish we could have seen more of this while Pete was still on the show.

• The ending is extremely abrupt.

Sketch: Glamgina

A gynecologist tries a brand new product.

• Sorry, but I don’t buy Pete Davidson as a doctor.

• Suddenly, this turns into a commercial for vagina cream. Are the ESPN Classic guys ghostwriting for the show now?

• This has to be a sketch that Sarah wrote. Only she would come up with something like this.

• In a perfect summary of how SNL treats its newer cast members, Chloe Troast literally comes out of a closet in this sketch.

• As much as I like Sarah’s sketches, I think this needed a little more of a hook than just repeating the word “vagina” over and over again.

Sketch: Roadhouse Bar

Two men show off their extravagant new lifestyles at a bar.

• The lack of Kenan in this episode pleases me. We haven’t seen him since that Deion Sanders commentary on Update, and I think he was only in one other sketch before that.

• Andrew looks hilarious as a cowboy.

• Sweet, another sketch where Andrew and Pete interact with each other!

• I like the randomness of Andrew and Pete’s characters selling foot porn of themselves online.

• Funny twist where Pete reveals that the factory he used to work at is actually a Cheesecake Factory.

• This is a really, really weird sketch, but it actually turned out to be the best part of this entire episode!

Final thoughts: I honestly don’t know what to say about this episode. One part of me likes all the focus on newer cast members, but I also hate the copy-paste nature of a lot of the sketches. There was some absolutely atrocious material in here (looking at you, Bowen). As someone who doesn’t really like Pete Davidson, I don’t think he did too bad as a host. In fact, I might like him better as a host! The fact that we didn’t get a single mention of his love of weed is amazing!

Best sketches: Cold Open, The Original Princes of Comedy, Roadhouse Bar

Worst sketches: Wired Autocomplete Interview, Spaceship

Next review: Bad Bunny. Now that’ll be an interesting episode to talk about.