April 3, 2021 – Daniel Kaluuya / St. Vincent (S46 E16)

Cold Opening – Oops, You Did It Again

• Great to see this back.
• Like last time, Chloe is coming very loose and charming as Britney, impressively taking charge and coming of like a seasoned veteran instead of her being a featured player during this season. A testament, once again, to her great talents.
• Chris looks hilarious as Lil Nas X.
• A hilarious visual of Mikey dressed as God, and Mikey’s displaying some Will Ferrell-esuqe fearlessness in his role here. It makes me wish we saw Mikey in some over-the-top roles, like his memorable and hilarious Pitbull impression in his earlier seasons.
• A hilarious visual of Kate as Pepé Le Pew.
• Kate’s absolutely slaying me by just speaking in this open.
• Big laughs from Kate’s Pepé describing his deleted scene in the new Space Jam movie.
• Kate’s French accent is killing me each time she uses it, similar to her great America’s Funniest Pets sketches, and her Update commentary as Brigitte Bardot.
• As always, Kate’s delivery is killing both with the audience and me as she continues to apologize for her actions as Pepé. Kate’s delivery has the ability of making the dialogue somehow even funnier than it is.
• A huge laugh from Kate’s Pepé as he admits going for sex rehab.
• Interesting casting of Pete as Matt Gaetz.
• The huge laughs continue as Kate’s Pepé sprays Pete’s Gaetz.
• My goodness, this open is a riot. I’m practically on the floor from laughter.
• Shockingly, this cold open is Chloe’s first & ONLY appearance all night. Considering the solid airtime she’s been getting this season (IIRC, Chloe doubled her airtime from her 1st season by this season’s end), at least this had her in the lead role.
• A fantastic cold open overall, with hilarious moments, great performances, strong Chloe Fineman showcase, and sharp satire.

Rating: ****1/2

Monologue

• ALREADY, Daniel is coming off fantastic with likable & charming presence and command of the stage.
• Big laugh from Daniel’s line about being black AND British, and his comment about his accent is simply great.
• Daniel: “I’m black and I’m British. Basically, I’m what the royal family was worried the baby would look like.”
• I love when Daniel asks which racism is worse, American or British? You can hear an audience member say “American”
• Hilarious & charming moment when Daniel asks if anyone here is from Uganda, the he realizes that it’s his aunt that raised her hand, his reaction and subsequent ad-lib are fantastic.
• A huge guilty laugh from Daniel’s Golden Globes winning speech being muted.
• Daniel’s line about telling the greatest joke he’s heard while being muted is a riot.
• An excellent monologue overall, elevated even further by how charming, game, charismatic, and loose Daniel came. This happens my favorite solo monologue (non stand-up) since the fantastic Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Adam Driver monologues from season 45.

Rating: *****

Will You Take It?

• A favorite of mine.
• A hilarious reveal of what the game show is all about.
• Daniel is a great straight man in here.
• I love the various ways that Daniel is attempting in order to convince his relatives to take the vaccine.
• Forgot to mention this, but a solid and convincing American accent from Daniel.
• Very funny back-and-forth between Chris & Daniel.
• I’m LOVING the escalation in this with the many offers that Daniel’s character is making for his relatives to take the vaccine.
• Big laughs with the some many complaints and reasons that Daniel’s relatives are making to not take the vaccine. The solid racial commentary & the strong satire on anti-vaxx in this are both written-well and flawlessly executed. Where in the world was this writing in the first ten episodes??!! This feels like a sketch from past glory seasons. The fun, creative, concept and solid escalation feels alien in this shaky season.
• A great ending & bonafide classic, simply flawless.

Rating: *****

Viral Apology Video

• It’s been a while since we’ve seen a Kyle pretape; this happens to be amongst my favorite things Kyle’s ever done on SNL. I’m very happy that I get to review it just now.
• Great & interesting direction to this piece.
• The slo-mo effects are a great touch & they add perfectly to the humor and general style of this short.
• Daniel is fantastic in this & his chemistry with Kyle is very convincing, I could believe that both are best friends for years.
• I know that this short is parodying a certain YouTuber, who’s name escapes my mind, but it doesn’t matter as I’ve always loved this short without even knowing what the inspiration is.
• Kyle’s very solid in his imitation of the typical fake apology by YouTubers.
• The kissing penis prank is freaking hilarious, just the name gave me a cheap big laugh.
• A great ending.

Rating: ****1/2

Scattergories

• Interesting to see a slice-of-life piece in this era.
• Kate continues her great night with her very believable & strong performance here.
• Kate’s delivery & ranting are both fantastic and realistic. It reminds of how damn strong she was in Bertucci’s Commercial, one of my absolute favorite Kate sketches ever.
• Very funny part with Kate putting the pictures into the sink drain.
• Overall, a good, low-key, realistic sketch & a solid Kate McKinnon showcase. I’m surprised I do not recall this sketch much, I guess the highs in this episode made me forget the ok sketches. The two other things I recall loving from Kate later this season are her very sharp Liz Cheney commentary & her role in Lesbian Period Drama. She’s such a fascinating cast member to analyze, so much talent, perhaps too talented, and in the same time is frustrating with some of the sketches she decides to star in. An all-timer no doubt, even when she was never my personal favorite on the show, she most certainly deserved to be the cast’s leader by the end of season 40 and onward.

Rating: ***1/2

Proud Parents

• This looks like it’s going to be the usual solid Ego Nwodim sketch.
• Strong & convincing Ugandan accents from Daniel & Ego, although in the case of the former, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
• Andrew’s reaction & subsequent eye roll as Beck’s talking gave me a good laugh. Much like Chris, Andrew kills me with the simplest of actions.
• Chris’ physical reactions in here a riot.
• Great turn with the reveal that Chris changed his major.
• Great reaction and impressive in unison delivery from Daniel & Ego “Hell no!”.
• I’m enjoying how much this sketch is escalating as Daniel & Ego are beginning to chew out the other couples.
• A big laugh from Chris’ supposed poem being only one line.
• Strong ending.

Rating: ****

Weekend Update

• Man, SNL is mopping the floor with Matt Gaetz in tonight’s episode, first with the cold open, and now Colin’s joke about him.
• Ooops, spoke too soon, as here comes Colin ranting about Matt Gaetz.
• Not going to comment on Kaidy suckfest #6262 and waste my time and yours, so moving on past that…
• Hilarious callback to Matt Gaetz again with ANOTHER joke about him.
• Ah, great to see Alex back on Update.
• I remember loving this commentary of GWJBAB, and I hope it will leave to my recollection of it.
• Big laughs from Alex’s usual reliable delivery and I’m loving how brutal his commentary is.
• The groans are beautiful to listen to throughout this commentary, probing that Alex’s doing his job in coming of as a total sleaze as this character.
• A great line about foreplay & COVID tests.
• The usual strong Alex Moffat commentary.
• I recall also enjoying this Mikey & Heidi commentary.
• Solid characterization & great makeup on Heidi.
• Seeing Heidi mentioning custard is reminding me of the payoff at the end.
• Holy hell at the custard callback at the end of the commentary! I remember being taken aback by it when it first aired.
• The usual solid Heidi showcase & a further proof of her incredible versatility as a performer, and Mikey continues to be a solid Update fixture, particularly when paired with Heidi.
• Pretty good Update overall, I do recall three of the upcoming Updates being even stronger.

Rating: ***1/2

Frat Trip

• Yet another convincing & solid characterization from Daniel.
• Andrew’s character is hilarious to me.
• Daniel’s delivery and various plans for the trip are giving me some solid laughs.
• An overall decent sketch that flowed nicely & contained nothing that was awful.

Rating: ***

Dog Park

• I’m loving how this episode is filled with low-key, original, premise-driven sketches.
• Ego & Daniel are coming off great here & their back-and-forth is very realistic and well-delivered.
• Andrew’s reactions to Daniel are making me laugh more than they should.
• Quite the number of Ego showcases tonight, great to see that.
• Ego’s great straight man here.
• A great ending with Ego.

Rating: ***1/2

Half Brother

• NO NO NO!!! What are you doing SNL?! Why have this already D.O.A dogshit sketch by a past-her-prime and creatively bankrupt performer to ruin this otherwise perfect episode??!!
• At least Beck looks hot here, so that may help me get through this tripe.
• As expected, Daniel is solid here & is making me very slightly tolerate the insufferable material.
• Some brutal direction in this copy of the live show, with the reveal of the supposed “joke” of the sketch too early.
• Not caring for ANY of the lines coming out of Cecily in this, so surreal to witness how creatively bankrupt and so past-her-prime of a performer she is.
• Got some mild chuckles from Daniel’s expressions and face while playing the instrument.
• Apparently, this sketch, much like the typical Cecily Strong inside references tripe, is parodying an obscure Kim Cattrall video, this video, and much like her Broadway Benefit tripe was parodying a Bea Arthur performance (that’s why I wondered in my review why she’s looking like her), showing us how much self-amused she generally is as a performer. I’m not sensing any passion in her work, nothing of merit, nothing worthwhile, when she was the show’s designated star back in seasons 39 & 40, she had some of the worst sketches in SNL history. Dino Bones (widely regarded as an SNL all-time worst btw), Magic Bridge (LOL men kissing & Cecily doing “funny” voices), Engagement Party (uncomfortably homophobic & despicable, season 20 vibes) , Oliver Twist (Cecily doing goofy voice), tripe after tripe & I’m still floored by those who compare her to Phil Hartman or Will Ferrell, are you fucking kidding me??!! HOW is she compared to them?! Again solid supporting roles & a solid impressionist and THAT’S IT! The majority of her solo sketches are PURE POISON. And do me a favor and just watch the sketches I mentioned. Kate deservedly took the spotlight & she’s MILES stronger than her, even when she annoys me sometimes. She still delivers strong material from time to time. A hit-or-miss cast member is FAR better for me than a painfully terrible performer who’s wasting his or her talents on dogshit inside joke & self-amused vanity pieces.
• If you’re reading this Cecily: just fucking LEAVE already! Thanks and close the door of 8H with you on the way.

Rating: * (if I could give negative stars I would)

Cut For Time: The Hero

• Ah, a Chris Redd showcase, it feels so rare in this season. Come to think of it, this has been a weird season for many in the cast, while Beck, Bowen, Chloe, Heidi, Ego are having a pretty strong season, Melissa, Chris, Alex, Mikey are invisible or either cast in minor roles. I recall Melissa’s decent amount of showcases and airtime in seasons 44 & 45 fooling me and others that she’ll be having her huge breakout season, it turns out that I & others were DEAD WRONG.
• This feels and looks like a real movie, the cinematography in this is impeccable.
• Surprisingly strong dramatic acting from Chris.
• Good laugh from Daniel stopping Chris in the middle of his speech to tell him that he needs only one more solider.
• Huge laughs from the dark reveals from Daniel (did I say he’s fantastic tonight?), to Chris about what happened to the soldiers that were under his command, and Chris’ reactions are slaying me as always.
• Chris’ delivery of “Up it?!” gave me a big laugh, he’s so good in delivering the simplest of lines & that’s why he’s my current favorite male SNL cast member.
• Solid laugh from the reveal that Chris’ supposed girl back home the sister of Kenan.
• Great ending.
• The typical great Chris Redd written-and-starring piece. I’m still waiting for another five-star piece from him aside from the fantastic Urkel and Eric Adams Press Conference pieces in season 47, I did find his recent CFT short to be particularly very strong, but not quite five-stars. Knowing Chris, I’m betting that he’s writing the next brilliant piece as I’m writing this review.

Rating: ****

Cut For Time: Salt Bae

• Already, I’m getting huge laughs from just Beck’s entrance into the sketch.
• Call me a dinosaur, but I have ZERO knowledge of the Turkish guy they’re parodying here, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying this parody of him.
• Daniel’s coming very solid as the straight man once again with his reactions toward Beck’s Salt Bae actions.
• Beck’s slapping of the meat and his various silent actions are a riot.
• Cheap big laughs from the visual of Mikey nearly choking from the meat.
• Alex & Chloe are hilarious as David & Victoria Beckham.
• A very memorable part were Beck sprays salt at Cecily as she spreads her legs over the table.
• Funny ending with Daniel accidentally cutting off his own finger.
• Yup, add this as YET ANOTHER “Standout Beck Bennett showcase from his final season”.

Rating: ****

Cut For Time: Beanie Babies

• A variation of the classic Sara Lee sketch in Harry Styles’ episode from season 45.
• A huge laugh already from the first caption.
• Bowen’s reactions are solid & he’s always been a great straight man in sketches.
• I’m loving the sense of melancholy & pathos in these captions, and in Julio’s general work as a writer & performer.
• Daniel’s killing it here & his revelation of why he’s writing these is great.
• Wow at the fourth caption, that’s some really deep stuff.
• Fantastic ending & closing lines from Aidy about not looking into the Beanie Babies’ eyes as they’re being destroyed, and I LOVE the visual of the camera doing a close-up on the last Beanie Baby still present on the desk.
• A fantastic sketch overall, and this would’ve been a phenomenal way to end the episode, instead of that unbelievably terrible Cecily Strong sketch.

Rating: *****

Segments Ranked From Best to Worst

Will You Take it?

CFT: Beanie Babies

Monologue

Oops, You Did It Again

Viral Apology Video

CFT: The Hero

CFT: Salt Bae

Proud Parents

Scattergories

Dog Park

Weekend Update

Frat Trip

Half Brother

Final Thoughts:-

• A fantastic episode & near-flawless in quality. What made this episode so good is that it consisted almost entirely of one-off, premise-driven, creative, fun, silly, solid, and unique sketch concepts throughout the night. 9-out-10 actual sketches were original pieces that represent the template of a perfect SNL show (the recent Rami Malek, Ariana DeBose, and John Mulaney episodes were consisting of almost entirely of fun & creative sketch concepts).
• Daniel Kaluuya was a phenomenal, standout host tonight, which shouldn’t come as surprise to anyone familiar with his work. I remember being immediately onboard when he was announced, and boy, he did not disappoint at all, my personal pick of the season’s best host, right with Regé-Jean Page and Anya Taylor-Joy.

Up Next:-

• Carey Mulligan hosts with musical guest Kid Cudi.