Cold Opening – PBS NewsHour
- Oh, no. Not another cable news cold open.
- Another groan from me as we get the return of Kenan’s Herschel Walker impression, as well as Mikey debuting a Dr. Oz impression.
- Cecily Strong right from the cold open. Not going to bitch about her being back on the show, yet…
- My God, this is ANOTHER checklist/meme cold open from hell. I thought the show started to move away from these earlier in the season.
- Cecily is fairly solid here, reminding me of the energy & commitment she always brings, even when her pieces do not work for me. Yet, I’m still not caring for the conceit of this cold open & how we are seeing a bunch of ghouls talking about how bad they are for seven minutes.
- Some chuckles here & there from several lines scattered throughout this open, but for the most part, this open is a total snoozefest. It’s not flat-out horrible or anything, like I’m not miserable sitting through it, just very bored…
- It turns out I spoke too soon just now, as this cold open has been droning on forever with the chuckles gradually diminishing from me.
- At least this concluded already. About three minutes shorter than usual which is always a plus in my book.
Rating: **
Opening Montage
- Cecily Strong has now been added into the opening montage.
Monologue
- Love the Halloween-themed homebase stage.
- Jack is coming off likable here, even when you could tell he’s a little nervous judging by his awkward pauses & brief stumbles.
- Hot audience so far tonight.
- Some of these jokes are going over my head, especially his talk about Lil Nas X. Although, the Justin Timberlake joke was at least funny to me.
- Interesting to see Harlow leaving the homebase stage & interacting with an audience member, even though that part fell flat & ended an overall decent monologue awkwardly.
Rating: ***
Joker
- The visual of Andrew dressed as the Joker made me laugh out loud. I sure hope this is our patented oddball Andrew sketch of the night, as his voice is needed now more than ever.
- Ok, after a while this sketch is becoming fairly one-note, with a bunch of goofy accents and turns. Not even Andrew is saving this as much as I want him to.
- The part with Sarah is funny & she seems to be the go-to for playing both old ladies as well as little girls. She steals this sketch for me.
- A Jeff Probst cameo? Really SNL? Is this the year 2001 & nobody told me?
Rating: **
Skechers
- Oh, no. We are now doing the Kanye West sketch of the night? Why not ignore him, SNL?
- Is this a Che piece? It sure feels like it with the confused tone of it all. But for our obligatory Kanye mention, it’s not bad.
- Ok, this is getting a little better as it moves along, the performances are definitely elevating the material.
- Cecily’s scenes are pretty funny & are the best moments in this pretape for me.
- The ending with James as Mike Lindell is funny, even when James playing him is a no-brainer choice to many.
Rating: ***
The Post-Halloween Red Carpet Special
- This seems like it’s going to be a fairly fun sketch; the concept is relatable & harmless enough. This also seems like a variation of the fun prom red carpet sketch from the Keegan-Michael Key episode in season 46.
- I know a number of fellow fans don’t like it when the show does the rotating characters routine, as they want “scenes” to just happen. I agree on certain occasions (such as having premise-driven sketches instead of wackytown), but these ensemble sketches are always a good dose of energy & solid showcase for the cast.
- Chloe is playing the ditzy girl role which she can do practically in her sleep by this point, but I’ll admit she gave me some laughs here.
- Cecily is great straight man throughout this sketch.
- Molly is stealing yet another segment so early into their tenure, as the whole Dora the Explorer portion here is hilarious to me.
- The kid that’s dressed as the Chipotle bag is both adorable & killing me with his deadpan expression.
- Michael kills in another cutaway to him once again this season.
- Very fun ensemble piece overall, with lots of relatable humor being done well.
Rating: ****
AA Meeting
- Chloe & Cecily have been all over the episode so far. The former has been having a strong year in general with tons of airtime.
- Uh-oh, the reveal of the drawing of the suitcases with googly eyes is giving me unwanted Anderlette vibes.
- I’m enjoying this sketch, surprisingly so, especially how it’s rotating with each cast member, as well as Jack, getting a chance to shine. There’s a certain oddly charming aura surrounding it so far, even the goofy Kenan bits are working for me.
- Jack’s random non-sequitur line about drinking recently was great.
- Great character voice from Cecily, and even the lead-up to her obligatory singing feels, once again in this sketch, quite charming.
- TOM HANKS CAMEO!!!! Out of freakin’ nowhere.
- Ah, I see that Tom is still his naturally funny & lovable self yet again.
- A very sweet ending.
Rating: ****
2020 Part 2: 2024
- Oh, this is the pretape that got cut a while ago. I’ve been wanting to see this for a while now. Having it air during the Halloween episode is very fitting.
- Chloe’s big night continues.
- I loved the silly calculator scene with Punkie, complete with a great exaggerated scared jump from her.
- Chloe is FANTASTIC here, probably one of her finest showcases so far into her tenure. This pretape is reminding me why I was such a huge champion of hers since her very first episode.
- The Morning Joe line was great.
- This is going on for a little too long, but the various “scary” moments are consistently cracking me up.
- Very solid ending.
Rating: ****
Bartenders
- I see that we are getting our weekly Bowen Yang showcase once again. I’m rather lukewarm towards Bowen’s work so far this season, but I’ll give this an open mind.
- I’m starting to feel that Bowen has full-on abandoned his absurdist side & went straight into the campy side once and for all, and if so, that’s incredibly disappointing to me as a fan of his.
- This seems to be a variation of the Chuck E. Cheese sketch from last season, and the setting so far is not promising enough for me.
- This is getting a little better, even when this type of humor barely if ever works for me. Marcello, who’s been getting good airtime tonight, is fun here.
Rating: **1/2
Weekend Update
- Glazing all over the Oz/Fatterman jokes, even though some of them are kinda funny.
- That math joke was so dumb, yet it made me laugh quite a bit thanks to Colin’s delivery of it.
- BOBBY!!! It feels so, so good having him back on the show, and his bearded look as Drunk Uncle is awesome.
- I see that Bobby is as funny as ever as Drunk Uncle, as his rants here are funnier than they usually are.
- The whole “Donda” bit had me howling.
- Short but solid Update overall.
Rating: ***1/2
Cellblock 666
- As soon as I saw the set being assembled for this sketch, as well as Bobby being on Update & Tom showing up earlier in the night, I KNEW we’re getting a David S. Pumpkins sequel.
- Geez. Is this Ego’s FIRST appearance all night long? Is SNL fucking kidding me with this?!
- I loved Sarah as Annabelle.
- Ah, I see that Tom still got it as David S. Pumpkins, as he is as fun as ever in this role.
- Whomever played Pennywise (Michael?) was a little too creepy. Kudos to them.
- While this sketch is quite energetic & fun so far, it’s basically the same as the original classic, with barely any changes to the format or a major shakeup. It’s still a fine sketch; the makeup work is absolutely fantastic & far better than the original sketch, too.
Rating: ***1/2
The View
- A sketch about the View and in this late spot? Oh, don’t tell me a Squirm sketch got cut for THIS.
- Chloe’s huge night continues. She’s been in almost every single sketch. This is probably the biggest night in her tenure so far when it comes to sketch appearances in a single episode.
- Sarah is a no-brainer choice as Joy Behar, and her tradmeark loudness is perfect for this impression.
- The casting of Ego as Whoopi is interesting, as I would’ve thought Punkie would be the expected choice & with Ego playing Sunny Hostin instead.
- This sketch is washing over me in parts, not because it’s the obligatory “hot host” sketch of the night, but because it feels oddly out of place in this spot. The energy is helping here & this is better, at least to me, than the season 44 View sketches.
- Jack & Ego are at least working well together.
Rating: **1/2
Cut For Time: JINCO Longs
- It’s been quite a while since they last uploaded a cut sketch. And considering how the show is probably not going to be uploading these as frequently as usual, I’ll be editing the live reviews to fit these there.
- An interesting concept for a fake ad/short. Jack seems fitting for this premise.
- Great look on Sarah, and she’s been so seamlessly fitting more and more into SNL.
- The straight man reactions are consistently cracking me up, especially from Sarah.
- Good absurdist, disturbing buildup with the whole surgery reveal.
- Holy hell at the ending visual of Jack’s broken leg.
Rating: ***1/2
Segments Ranked From Best to Worst
AA Meeting
The Post-Halloween Red Carpet Special
2020 Part 2: 2024
Cellblock 666
CFT: JINCO Longs
Weekend Update
Monologue
Skechers
The View
Bartenders
Joker
PBS NewsHour
Final Thoughts:
- I went into this episode having virtually no expectations at all, considering the unpredictable nature of this season thus far, as I didn’t want to be disappointed or surprised after finishing it. Now, that I did indeed watch & review this episode just now, I’d say it’s much better than the previous two subpar shows this year (Miles Teller, Megan Thee Stallion), even when a few things did not work for me tonight, they were outnumbered of what worked, some of which was particularly strong in my view. Especially almost all of what came after that Joker sketch and before the first musical performance. And much like the two preceding episodes, the solid cast use was very welcomed once again. Jack Harlow wasn’t too bad as the host, even though he clearly had nerves. He still blended nicely with the cast & had his moments.
Up Next:
- Amy Schumer returns for the third time with musical guest Steve Lacy.
Blood’s SNL Reviews 
In my eyes the cold open was fine. Kenan had some funny lines but overall decent glad Heidi got to say Live from New York by herself.
Actually enjoyed him in the monologue and a lot better than our previous host’s monologue when he was getting off the stage I thought he was going to go backstage but what we got from him ended up being pretty good
Just like you I didn’t really care much for this which makes me a little disappointed since this was an Andrew Dismukes sketch and I think this was the first sketch he did that I didn’t care for which show’s you how strong of a performer he is.
I don’t even know what to say about this I kind of laughed in the beginning but then it slowly lost its mark the more it went on
A nice sketch pretty much everybody in this gave me some sort of laugh especially Devon, Molly, and Kenan as well as the kid actor.
Wasn’t on board at first but then it got a lot better especially when Mr Tom Hanks came in and a great and hilarious ending too. Oh, and Longfellow’s hair in this I weirdly laughed at.
I absolutely love this pre tape they did a great job making this look like a real horror movie (though that’s SNL for ya) though I expected it to be a leading role for Punkie as I remember hearing when this got cut she was a major part in this yet she only appeared towards the end. The ending was great with Mikey.
Pretty much on the same page as you on this not really that great but a tiny bit better towards the more it went on. What I will say is that I do love that song and I did chuckle at them not even having mustaches when they were trying to reveal themselves.
As usual for Update. great jokes and of all cast members in recent years who left to make an appearance, Bobby is one of the last people I would think who would appear but I will absolutely thrilled to see as bearded drunk uncle and his commentary was great as usual.
David as pumpkins is back and for some reason. I’m not mad they I’m just back if anything they’re doing trying to save this episode but I still enjoyed it but can’t beat the classic.
I’ll admit I did like this Sarah had me cracking up in agreed perfect casting with her as Joy Behar. I didn’t really care much for Ego’s Goldberg impression but I did like Jack I kinda wish Punkie and Chloe (who yeah had a huge night this episode) we’re giving more comedic dialogue or something funny to do but still I enjoyed this.
For CFT sketch this was hilarious the ending had me dying. Sarah was her usual hilarious self in this.
The Bartenders sketch could’ve worked if perhaps it wasn’t Bowen in that role. Nothing against him, but those two guys are supposed to be dumb and Bowen doesn’t fit the role of playing a dumb person. Overconfident? Yes. Dumb? No. Someone said it would’ve worked better if Pete was in his role and I think that would’ve made it better.
Just watched the show on Peacock (20 hours later). I’d accidentally seen a screengrab of Tom Hanks, which made me assume that David S Pumpkins was back. The When I saw a screengrab Drunk Uncle that all but confirmed it. But I wish I’d seen it live, can I imagine the excitement at the announcement of Drunk Uncle. I miss Bobby M.
Anyhow, last week felt weak because they went to a MtS character too often. This week was a thousand times better, because just about all the sketches would’ve worked with any 20-something year old male guest. The low points were the two parts where he was himself (The Monologue and The View)
I think I was higher on the episode than you. I found strong LOLs in all sketches, and even though you knew David Pumpkins was coming on the third time, I mean, hard “knew”, it just made me cheery little face beam. I gotta say that there were more than a few people I was trying to work out who they were. Including Andrew as the Joker. It took me a while, and then as they kept repeating Joker over and over, I realised that this was surely written and starring Dismukes. It seemed like a more polished version of the Steakhouse kitchen sketch from last season.
Id be lying if I didn’t find jacks ‘and I’ve been drinking’ line in the AA sketch the line of the night, but the AA sketch was probably my Sketch of the night. Was Cecily in from the beginning or did she appear toward the end? If this was a Ken Sublette inspired sketch in anyway, then he gets a pass from me, it was a great sketch.
I liked the absurdity of the two waiters, I don’t know why. This almost feels like it could be a recurring sketch. This was where Jack was at his most Timberlake (Tell me you couldn’t see Fallon and Timberlake in those roles) Just had me chuckling throughout. I’m quite the sucker for a sketch when someone just gets to pour liquid over some of the cast and they’re supposed to take it.
If the CO had to be political, I didn’t mind this. They didn’t venture into the realm of having Dismukes play Elon Musk, or Bowen playing Tua, just cause they’d been in the news this week.
I liked the Skechers SkeTch. I thought it was clever, and well acted. The Horror was good, except that because it was previously cut, we kinda knew every beat.
So, I’m kinda surprised they kept the Halloween Red Carpet in the show, given the earlier tragedy in Seoul. It had a couple of good showcases (Molly esp) but I didn’t think it was so funny it needed to stay in. It will be interesting to see which live sketches got cut…
Anyhoo, let me see what the rest of twitter thinks. I’m fairly sure this is my favorite episode of the season so far, at least on a par with Gleeson.
I think I agree with you on most fronts here, except I didnt’ like the Monologue and quite liked Joker Wedding. But yeah, despite the season going back and forth in quality, I think that leaves for the overall Season to be pretty solid considering it’s only the first four episodes and it will only go further from here.
Great to see you back as always, Mortal. I tend to give non-actors some slack in their monologues & I thought Jack, while clearly being a bit nervous, handled himself well, aside from the audience interaction portion falling flat for me (and the audience as well). I get what Joker was going for, but I felt it was too padded, especially with the “turns” it took. Yeah, this one (despite a shaky start) and Gleeson’s are overall what I hope the season would go on to be like, and let’s just pray it goes only up from here. This has been a little up-and-down season thus far, but what worked so far in it is promising to me.
Well, you and I are pretty much 99% in agreement on this episode but I personally wanted to give them credit for making a political news show cold open feel fresh and slightly different in this era. Good job!
I honestly got a great vibe from Harlow here, and I’m no fan of his blah music. A host doesn’t have to blend in like Emma Stone or Walken to be enjoyable. For some, their obvious nerves only enhance their enjoyability. See: Gosling.
Here, Harlow is pretty clearly humbled and appreciated, and he wants to make everything work. Not all of it does, but more than enough to make this the best show of the young, slow-growing season.
Pixar Pitch is outstanding. It’s been done before but so what? Super sharp writing and I can’t overstate how likeable Harlow is here.
Absolutely. He came off very likable & his low-key presence really helped with both the overall vibes of the episode & the great AA Meeting sketch. While I think Gleeson & Chappelle’s episodes are stronger, this episode is definitely fun & worth watching.