March 2, 2024 – Sydney Sweeney / Kacey Musgraves (S49 E13)

Cold Opening – Inside Politics

dems try to hype up President Biden (MID)

• Dana Bash is one of those anchors that really doesn’t need a specific impression, and Heidi is doing a good job playing her. Once again, being utilized as that reliable vet/glue cast member these last two seasons of her tenure.
• As usual with Michael, he isn’t even attempting an impression, here playing Gavin Newsom, but his reliable deadpan delivery is good, especially as he tries to downplay Biden’s age as we inch closer to the election.
• An alright cold open making fun of how the President’s closest associates tried to downplay his age and issues with his stamina and health throughout the cable news circuit, though not too many lines are standing out, besides Michael and Ego’s delivery.
• I didn’t care for the appearance of Mikey’s Biden and the tepid FaceTime bit, which is the usual “lame old people” humor that I dislike, but I guess it was harmless enough.
• Pretty good cold opening that was short-and-sweet, for the second week in a row.

Rating: ***

Monologue

host talks career plans; Glen Powell cameo

• Sydney’s delivery is good, and it is always nice to see actual monologues that are structured well and to-the-point. Sydney is also coming off likable as expected and handling the material with ease.
• The Madame Web joke was fine, even when it was a tad predictable.
• Speaking of predictable, Glen Powell’s cameo was handled quite well and he came off as charismatic as usual.

Rating: ***

Detective Interns

interns (CHF) & (host) swiftly solve crimes

• While the premise seems a bit hacky, with Chloe and Sydney playing the usual vocal fry college girls, the juxtaposition of them in a serious police department is an amusing choice and makes me onboard with this premise.
• James is absolutely perfect as a usual no-nonsense detective, as well is Ego.
• I admit getting a solid laugh from Chloe immediately figuring out a 40-year old is using Facebook.
• Ah, James is absolutely fantastic imitating how Chloe & Sydney are speaking; it blows my mind how immensely talented and versatile a performer he is.
• Chloe & Sydney are OK here, but the supporting cast are great and stealing this sketch, especially JAJ and Mikey.
• An OK laugh from the OnlyFans ending with Kenan (who gave a solid “glue” performance here).

Rating: ***

Please Don’t Destroy – Gone Too Soon

Ben Marshall, Martin Herlihy, John Higgins [real] mourn friend’s passing

• This is probably the earliest a PDD short aired in an episode, but I might be forgetting another instance.
• While it happened a few times before, it feels lazy having Sydney Sweeney play herself instead of attempting a character or something.
• The increasingly silly nature of how the guys’ friend died at the Grand Canyon is an OK escalation, though some of these lines aren’t as funny as some in prior PDD shorts.
• Alright, the Malala tweet gave me a big laugh, and is easily my biggest in this still-good short.

Rating: ***1/2

Air Bud

(host) falls in love with sports jock dog

• I like Ego Nwodim as much as the next SNL fan, but I’ll never buy her as a high school teen, no matter how many times she’s cast in such roles.
• A funny cutaway to Air Bud being the new guy in the school – Michael being tossed away and leaving the sketch by Sydney sadly feels to represent how he’s treated this season in general, even when I got a laugh from it.
• This is probably the only time I’d enjoy a dog-centric sketch in modern SNL, as the absurd-natured premise is good and Sydney’s very solid playing her character, particularly how she interacts with the dog. It is also fascinating seeing a mostly host-centric sketch in modern day SNL.
• The cutaway to Air Bud’s “girlfriend” outside the window gave me a big laugh, despite how dumb it is.
• Solid ending with Ego; she’s just so naturally effortless and charismatic with her line deliveries.

Rating: ***1/2

Big Bench

judge (EGN) & sixteen others derail courtroom show

• Oh, I love the sketch concept of a typical judge show consisting of seventeen judges instead of one; this concept feels straight out of the late ‘80s era.
• Fitting how Ego is playing the main judge here, given how solid she is playing authority figures on the show.
• The cutaways to the various judges are funny, especially Michael as the cute one and Andrew as the gay judge.
• So great seeing JAJ playing a major role in a live sketch for a change and his accent, delivery and characterization are so, so damn good. His voice here also feels absolutely like a voice Dan Aykroyd used back in the original era when playing Southern characters – maybe I’m thinking of that great club performers sketch in season 2 (Beatniks).
• I’m glad Andrew is playing the gay judge with a fun, self-aware characterization, instead of the predictable, lazy route complete with lisping. Then again, considering that Andrew is not only one of my top 3 current favorites, but one of the best current cast members in general, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
• Good quick bit with Chloe Fineman, and she came off, once again, a decent duo with Sydney.
• Yet another dog being used in an actual funny, creative way instead of relying on its cuteness a la season 45.
• Great, absurd sketch as a whole with an excellent anchoring performance by Ego.

Rating: ****

Side Note:

• During the opening and closing sequences of the prior sketch, Bowen Yang is shown amongst the judges, yet he doesn’t show up in both the initial shot of the judges, nor during any part of the sketch. I guess he got cut due to dress reaction or to trim the sketch for air.

Bowen’s Straight

(BOY)’s on-air gayness is a front for a heterosexual hunk backstage

• A Bowen-centric backstage short? These are usually great, besides the boring-and-unfunny elevator short he did two episodes ago.
• Yet another piece using Heidi and Ego as reliable vets in the cast. I get the feeling, a few seasons from now, Sarah and James will routinely be playing such roles.
• Not only is this a solid premise for a backstage short, but having Bowen being gay be just an act to get laughs on the air is excellent and clever, solid satire on those queer-baiting celebrities we see nowadays. Bowen manages in general to cover topics with a solid, sharp angle, much like he did with the brilliant Simu Vs. Bowen short he did three seasons ago.
• Bowen’s “straight as they come” acts are hilarious, especially that he is doing them while he’s playing himself – this is a great way for Bowen to be himself and still come off fresh.
• A Gina Gershon cameo? And Sydney mentioning who she is makes me feel old knowing her, despite that I am just 26 years-old. At least her cameo back in the season 25 finale was pretty fun.
• A great joke with Bowen gaming as a thing straights routinely do. I also really like Sydney’s faux-dramatic romcom acting throughout this short. She’s very naturally fitting as well in such a piece.
• An overall perfect short. Not only one of my favorites of this whole season, but Bowen’s best piece since way back to early season 47’s aforementioned Simu Vs. Bowen.

Rating: *****

Makeup Artists

makeup artists (host) & (SAS) are oblivious to bride’s (HEG) situation

• I am pretty positive the wig Sarah’s wearing is a one Cecily Strong wore several times during her tenure. Man, I must be thinking of those God-awful Gemma sketches, which is not a good sign if a sketch reminds me of them not even twenty seconds into it.
• I hate to say this, as it will only make me come off mean, but I’ve been rapidly forgetting that Molly Kearney is a cast member on the show, which is the same feeling I’ve been getting with Michael. These two’s airtime has been brutal for so much of this season.
• Uhh…. where is this sketch going so far? Sarah, like usual, is solid and Sydney is once again forming a good duo with a female cast member, but this feels aimless so far, and the “shooot!” catchphrase is slowly getting on my nerves.
• I will say, the performances are fairly solid here, especially Troast and Heidi’s. This makes this sketch a little better than it is, though still pretty weak.
• The cake falling from Sarah, intentionally or not, gave me a solid laugh, which is the biggest from this whole sketch.
• (*Blood sighs deeply as he looks at the dark abyss of his bedroom*) yet another miss from Sarah this back half, which is churning out far more misses for her than hits. This is probably worse than that Waiters sketch she did, which is saying something. I have a lot of respect for and still love Sarah Sherman as a cast member, but what is happening with these aimless, weak sketches that are poor attempts at absurd humor? This is a genre that Sarah has nailed countless times again and again in the past and just did so the prior episode (in a sketch I admit I underrated a bit). I sincerely hope these are the results of working with weaker co-writers, as so far Sarah has churned out more hits than misses and I hope she bounces back, even as I unfortunately, back in the early weeks of the season, foresaw such a route for her this season.

Rating: **

Musical Performance – “Deeper Well”

Weekend Update

Woman Who Is Aging Gracefully (HEG) is confident

Charlotte the Stingray (EGN) on being pregnant

• Christ at that clip of Trump waving at the immigrants from across the border wall; Colin’s joke about how good Trump looks behind bars is funny, and in a way that doesn’t feel too on-the-nose.
• The “seen here” Mitch McConnell string of jokes are a lot of fun and will strangely make me almost miss Moscow Mitch being the GOP leader so we can see Colin making fun of him.
• (*Blood sees Heidi entering in a clearly Fowlie-penned vamp showpiece and enters a coma for the duration of said showpiece’s length*)
• The Flaco joke from Colin is pretty funny and easily better than the entirety of the mess I just sat through.
• I know that Ego dressed up as Ariel in the past (in a great desk piece), but I’m getting so tired seeing cast members dress up in goofy outfits behind the desk, especially ones such as Ego that are better doing more grounded work.
• I’m a few minutes into this one, and Ego is very charismatic and likable (of course), but this is going nowhere for me. I’ll say, however, the ending with Ego playing with Che as we go to commercial gave me a warm smile.

Rating: ***

Hooters Waitress

new Hooters waitress (host) overshadows others

• A Hooters-based sketch? Considering who’s hosting tonight, I guess the “creative” premise behind this sketch makes sense.
• Sydney’s such a good sport to perform such a sketch, but this is falling flat with me. I can tell Bowen is here to give it a boost and I got a laugh from his entrance, but nothing else so far is clicking with me.
• Hate to be that guy, but am I supposed to believe that the guys aren’t into not only Sarah, but freakin’ Chloe Fineman wearing that Hooters getup? I guess it’s a sketch after it all.
• God bless Andrew Dismukes, as the whole beer chugging moment with him genuinely gave me my biggest laugh from this sketch so far. See SNL, this is your secret weapon right there.
• The ending with James entering as the Hooters mascot is genuinely funny and it is great seeing James loose and fun in tonight’s sketches in general. Much like how James reminded me of Dan in the court sketch earlier tonight, James’ part here also feels like another GOAT could’ve played in the past: Will Ferrell back around his tenure’s peak from S25-27, especially to save some sketches and boost them by their end.

Rating: **

Musical Performance – “Too Good to be True”

Chanel & Chanel

(host) & (CHT) promote their interior design company

• Troast! Great seeing Chloe getting a showcase once again, after her fantastic showing in Little Orphan Cassidy. Chloe’s had a strong first half, so I’m glad that this short will hopefully be the first of a number of strong showcases of her talents through the rest of the season.
• As usual, fantastic characterization from Chloe playing this unsettling character. I notice with Troast, much like JAJ, her great attention to detail and addition of all those little subtleties in even the most minor of roles she plays – that’s a great “glue” quality right there. In an ideal world, Chloe and James will hopefully be taking over as the primary utility players/MVP’s of the show as soon as the current vets are out.
• Solid absurd humor, especially the visuals and lines by Chloe and Sydney. I also love the detail with Sydney speaking in a vocal fry, monotone voice (which is making me laugh a lot) and Chloe speaking in a deep voice, as it makes this piece come off more layered, performance-wise.
• The Lives Matter visual complete with Chloe doing a proud fist had me in stitches. Much like her great Maggie Smith moment earlier in the year, Chloe manages to give me big laughs at times just doing a single expression.
• The obligatory Willy Wonka Experience joke is fantastic and the absolute best way to bring up that hilariously dark viral story.
• I love the increasingly creepy atmosphere with this short, especially the turn with the toilet and ending with Chloe and Sydney waving goodbye to us.
• Very solid, short-and-sweet piece with enough funny moments and strong lead work by Sydney & (especially) Chloe. Maybe one of the best shorts of the season so far.

Rating: ****

Loud Table

(AND) & (host) use their melancholy to quiet down bar patrons

• Andrew taking that 10-to-1 spot! And it feels also not only great seeing back-to-back sketches with some of this cast’s best performers, but to see absurd-humored premises get on the air with performers that know how to nail them.
• I don’t know why, but the deadpan look on Andrew’s face as James was laughing with his friends slayed me – I’m basically laughing to death with how hilariously deadpan Andrew’s look was. He is so, so good milking such laughs from me effortlessly.
• Like Andrew’s other patented oddball sketches, I absolutely LOVE the sudden tone shift, complete now with sad piano music as Andrew’s supposedly stern message to the loud men is to tell them how much he misses never having friends of his own.
• I love the turn with Sydney now talking to the other group of loud patrons, especially as now each of them are now sharing regrets about how they disappointed their moms – Heidi’s especially excellent in her little moment.
• The obligatory Glen Powell sketch walk-on fits this sketch’s tone perfectly and him turning out to be the boss she cheated on Andrew with fits his depressed character effortlessly. Ending yet another fantastic, melancholic, creative piece from Andrew Dismukes, once again this season.
• Man, I don’t know if it was meant to be taken that, but the final shot of Andrew all alone is incredibly powerful to me and truly sum up why his patented work is so fantastic in general. There’s a certain rawness, certain truth to all that he does and works on in the show – sincerity and commitment, no “look at me!” vibes like some in the current cast, as well as managing to captivate you from beginning to end. Andrew Dismukes has always been near the very top of my favorites in each of his so-far four seasons on the show, but he is rapidly turning to be amongst my personal favorite cast members of all time. I feel something within me as I type such words and it makes me so thrilled where his trajectory will eventually lead him to.

Rating: *****

Goodnights

Segments Ranked From Best to Worst

Loud Table

Bowen’s Straight

Chanel & Chanel

Big Bench

Air Bud

PDD – Gone Too Soon

Monologue

Detective Interns

Inside Politics

Weekend Update

Hooters Waitress

Makeup Artists

Final Thoughts:

• A surprisingly very fun, solid episode. This one had its share of strong highlights, including two five stars sketches, which are some of the season’s best to me, as well as a few good-to-great segments making up the rest of the night; all of them make the low amount of lowlights entirely forgiven in my view. Sydney Sweeney was a fun host that blended effortlessly with the cast and thankfully was well-utilized throughout the night, without sticking out in a bad way like other hosts would in the past. Also, the musical performances by Kacey Musgraves, as always, were a delight and added to the quality of the night; acting also as a great palate cleanser from the lousy, lethargic performances from not only the previous episode’s MG, but as well as the episode prior to that one (JLo).

My Favorite Moments of the Episode, Represented with Screencaps:

Up Next:

• Josh Brolin hosts for the third time, with the return of Ariana Grande as the musical guest.

My full set of screencaps from this episode is here