I’m back, everyone! Another season of SNL is upon us, and I thought that I would post my reviews of the season as it airs this year.
Cold Open: Presidential Debate
In which the first Presidential Debate is poorly re-enacted.
• Hoo, boy, this was a painful sketch to sit through. Not only was it completely unfunny, but it was also THIRTEEN MINUTES LONG.
• I was hoping they would scrap the debate sketch because of Donald Trump contracting the coronavirus only a day before this aired. But, of course, I should have known better, because they took the easy way out by making this a “flashback” to the debate.
• So, let’s talk about Jim Carrey’s Joe Biden impression. To put it simply, it fucking sucks. When I first saw the promotional video they released of him, I thought he was playing Fire Marshall Bill. He goes way overboard with the mugging and silly faces, which, don’t get me wrong, Carrey is great at doing, but it doesn’t fit who he’s playing. Why couldn’t they just get Harrelson or Sudeikis back again?
• Alec Baldwin is back as Trump, too, and his impression is just as bad as ever. Just give the role to someone else, already.
• Dear God, these jokes are awful. At one point, they literally have Trump say that his statements about the virus “won’t come back to haunt (him) later this week”. There’s nothing hackier than a “predicting the future” joke.
• Random Harry Styles cameo because WHY THE FUCK NOT?!??
• Maya is back as Kamala Harris yet again. At least they stopped doing those horrid social media jokes with her.
• Overall, a terrible start to the season.
0/5
Joining the cast this season, we have Andrew Dismukes, Lauren Holt, and Punkie Johnson. Dismukes is also a writer for the show (he wrote some of my least favorite sketches from last year), but I have no idea who these other two are. Ego Nwodim has also been promoted to a regular cast member (about damn time!)
Side note: Cecily Strong is missing from the first few episodes of this season as she is away filming a TV show.
Monologue
Chris Rock does stand-up about Trump contracting the virus, the pandemic, and the economy.
• It felt good to see Rock on SNL again at first. But then, my respect for him suddenly evaporated when he implied that he wants the virus to kill Trump. Absolutely disgusting.
• The rest of his monologue wasn’t much better, not helped by the fact that it was over eight minutes long.
0/5
Sketch: Eye on Pittsburgh
A news report about an evacuation at a “change-of-name office” due to COVID-19.
• Just when the episode couldn’t get any worse, they decided to bring back that horrid name change office routine from Season 44. When is SNL going to realize that only middle-schoolers find this shit funny?
• The names include such knee-slappers as “Edith Puthie”, “Irma Gerd”, and “Mike Rodick”. Isn’t that so hilarious???
-5/10
Music Video: Bottom Of Your Face
Some rappers sing about wanting to see their girlfriends’ faces.
• I hated all those dumb rap videos from last season, and, surprise surprise, I hated this one too.
1/5
Sketch: Future Ghost
A ghost (Rock) visits a teenager (Kyle Mooney) to warn him about his future.
• I thought this was going to be another one of those “living posters” sketches, for some reason. Instead, it randomly turned into a promotion for the latest Tony Hawk game. That’s right! For the fourth season premiere in a row, we have a sketch that only exists to promote someone else’s product. And the less said about that dumbass Cheeto sketch from last year, the better.
• It seems like the only reason they set this sketch in the 2000s was so they could do a bunch of 2000s references. Mooney has posters of AOL and blink-182 on his wall, and he mentions having a crush on the mom from “Spy Kids”. Get it? Because all those things were popular in the 2000s!!! Herp-a-derp!
1/5
Fake Commercial: The Drew Barrymore Show
In which they make fun of Drew Barrymore’s (Chloe Fineman) talk show.
• Good Lord, yet another lame impression showcase from Chloe Fineman. She has to be one of SNL’s worst impressionists ever. Even Charles Rocket would have told her to tone it down.
• Brief appearance by Alex Moffat as Tom Green. Get it? Because they used to be married!!!
1/5
Musical Performance: “Savage”
Weekend Update (featuring Chen Biao and Carrie Krum)
• The first Update joke of the new season is comparing Trump’s helicopter leaving for the hospital to the last helicopter out of Vietnam. I see that four months off the air didn’t make Che and Jost any funnier.
• Chen Biao comes back to grate on my nerves yet again. No further comment necessary.
• Then Carrie Krum shows up to make things even worse! I’ve never liked this character, time to retire her.
• This Update ends on a horrifying note: the camera cuts to Kate McKinnon in the audience dressed as Ruth Bader Ginsburg. UGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! Couldn’t they have just shown a dedication card to her instead of shoving that awful impression down our throats for the millionth time?!? The only good thing is that this is hopefully the last time we’ll ever see it!
0/5
Sketch: NBA Bubble
Women compete to get drafted into the NBA Bubble.
• When they showed the crew setting this sketch up, I hoped it was going to be another one of those Inside the NBA sketches with Kenan as Charles Barkley, because those are usually pretty funny. I was wrong. Instead, it’s just some other bullshit where they wear giant plastic bubbles. Get it?!?
• The only notable thing about this sketch was when Heidi Gardner brought out the same Pluto mask that appeared in the original Debbie Downer sketch, only because it made me wish I was watching that instead.
1/5
Sketch: Stunt Performers Association of America
Stunt performers plead with audiences to stay safe during the pandemic so they can get back to work.
• This had a good concept, but wasn’t executed very well.
• I will say that I got my only laughs of this entire episode when Kate McKinnon’s character got hit in the face, and again at the end when a stuffed animal bit her in the crotch.
• I also got some slight chuckles from the fake movie posters.
2/5
Musical Performance: “Don’t Stop” (feat. Young Thug)
Final thoughts: Man, I can’t believe how awful this episode was. All the terrible shit I suffered through last season is here to stay in this one. Why are these season premieres always so fucking bad???
Best sketches: NONE
Worst sketches: They all sucked, but the Cold Open, Eye on Pittsburgh, and Weekend Update were particularly horrid.
Next review: Bill Burr/Jack White
