November 2, 2024 – John Mulaney / Chappell Roan (S50 E5)

Cold Opening – 2024 Pre-Election

Kamala Harris [real] gives herself (MAR) pep talk pre-Election

• With the surprisingly good-and-funny prior cold open, with how dire the cold opens preceding it were, I am hoping this cold open keeps it up.
• I have no idea why Chloe’s “impression” of Kaitlan Collins has appeared in 3 out of 5 episodes so far this season. It sounds (like a Twitter user accurately put it) like Chloe heard about how said person sounds like and winged an impression, which sadly represents so much of these so-called “master of impressions” takes of hers with various celebs. Compare that to JAJ’s lived-in, layered vocal and personal impersonation of people he did on and outside of SNL.
• Figured the show would parody Trump’s trainwreck week, especially the whole garbage man mess. JAJ is great and committed as always. This strangely feels like a goodbye for the impression, whether He Who Should Not Be Named Again in This Review wins (shudder) or loses Election Night. As JAJ is dropping the facade playing He Who Should Not Be Named Again in This Review and giving up on the rally.
• I am assuming Bowen’s laughter off-camera is part of the cold open? As he is clearly mic-ed. Nothing really standout here, but JAJ is great as always, and I did get a good laugh from the whole Liz Cheney portion, and the parody of He Who Should Not Be Named Again in This Review’s infamous mic moment.
• Good transition with the Harris team shutting off the beginning of Bowen-as-Vance’s speech. And interesting no lengthy applause break for the cameos, but guess they now feel more like cast members, as they certainly did more than a third of this cast at least so far this season.
• Gaffigan’s Walz is genuinely terrible and knowing Gaffigan’s cowardly both sides-ism in real life, makes his already-bad take even worse.
• At least the legendary Dana Carvey got an applause break for his entrance. Not to repeat myself again, but his catchphrasing, mugging and general “LOL, so old!” take isn’t anything special to me nor makes me laugh. Dana is at least very solid like usual.
• And now we get our big political cameo of the year: VP Kamala Harris(!) showing up in the classic mirror gag. I am still kinda upset I was spoiled this cameo by press, but then again, I might’ve freaked out a bit too much had I seen it with no prior knowledge of it happening.
• Very extended applause break from the audience as the VP is finally revealed in this cold open. Easily one of the lengthiest breaks of audience applause I’ve ever seen on SNL. This is infectious to watch, and NGL, makes me kinda emotional.
• As expected, VP Harris is coming off fairly loose, likable and comfortable in front of a live audience, unlike the typical stiff politician cameos on the show.
• Typical pep talk through the mirror from SNL, but this is genuinely charming and there’s solid rapport between both Maya and VP Harris. Even the whole “la” additions to the speech between them is endearing & silly, instead of making me groan.
• Great ending with the LFNY, and the audience’s enthusiasm (which is the norm with the VP this Election season) is very infectious & special.

Rating: ***

Monologue

host does standup about short family, parents, grandfather

• Considering how I was underwhelmed by the Nate Bargatze standup set a few episodes prior, I hope this standup from John is stronger, particularly that I absolutely loved all of his prior SNL standup sets.
• Great look on John, especially the longer hair and brown suit.
• Very funny part from John about looking up and now looking down on his children, and his wife Olivia Munn – his silly talk about how extremely short his kids, wife, mother-in-law and the nanny are next to him is the typical Mulaney silliness that is both very funny and endearing.
• I love John’s whole portion about his parents, especially how not really old they look and act to his own discomfort. Him asking them nonchalantly when will they get old and sleep in beds with their in-laws pressing feet together was hilarious. The quick “Mom fell” “I fell! It hurt!” exchange following it was excellent.
• Very relatable, standout part with John speaking of being often the oldest person in a group. This really resonates with me, as I am often the oldest person amongst others (despite being only 27 years-old), if not age, maybe how I act. The whole physical therapy/crunches portion, with the bizarre muscles in our vagina line (very Stefon-y), made me burst out laughing.
• I am loving the whole grandfather/12 children portion of the set, particularly as John speaks of his dislike of modern-day Catholics’ “tradition” of having 9 children, when in the past 6 would die “from a cough” and the remaining 6 would live. The ending “we won!” with the visual of John’s dead grandfather is great.
• Very solid standup set as a whole. Tight, well-constructed and I loved how it all related to each other. Knowing who the post-Election host is, I am hoping it is as good as this or even better.

Rating: ****1/2

What’s That Name: Election Edition

Tim Kaine [real] is difficult to recognize

• Wait, a What’s That Name sketch(!) without Bill Hader as Vince Blight? And Michael in the role instead of either JAJ or Kenan? I’m pretty sure this is an inside joke reference to how Michael resembles young Hader, which I’ve never really seen to be honest.
• Considering that Michael did a great job in the gameshow sketch he hosted last season (Question Quest), I am at least glad he got another gameshow host role, especially with how brutally underused he’s often been since his great rookie year.
• The random Tim Kaine cameo at least fits the political nature of this edition, but to be honest, as likable as Senator Kaine is, I didn’t need him, nor this installment to be political, or rather be brought back randomly.
• This is so far paling really badly compared to prior installments, especially the brilliant one from S44, despite good work by Michael himself.
• The whole Margaret Atwood twist with Sarah is fine, but then again, it wasn’t warranted in this installment. Sarah at least was good.
• It says a lot about this one’s flat feeling that it feels I barely had anything to say about it. Nice to see Michael getting something, though.

Rating: **1/2

Beppo

astronaut monkey struggles during mission

• Nice to see another Midnight Matinee, considering how brilliant that debut short of theirs was.
• Great puppet work on Beppo, being both believable and cute.
• Really strong dramatic acting from both Mulaney and (especially) JAJ. Reminds me of how great the latter was last season in that subway short. Great character voice on him in this one, too.
• The escalation of John telling Beppo he is not going to be able to land safely on Earth is genuinely powerfully emotional, funny and well-done. The King Kong being chimps’ version of God line was great and very Mulaney-esque.
• The moment where Beppo is looking outside of his spaceship towards Earth was wonderful. Hell, the audience is so into this short their audible “aww!”-s can be heard throughout it.
• I’m pretty positive Ego is supposed to be one of the Hidden Figures ladies (which I know are real WOC scientists) or at least a reference to them.
• I laughed at the random Mulaney reveal of Beppo being Communist before he suddenly survived the explosion. The kiss between Beppo and Sarah, and the revelation of her being John’s wife (just not anymore) was very well-done.
• Love the detail of one of the singing furniture pieces being in the title card this time, which I imagine will be consistently updated in each passing short.
• All-in-all, our second excellent Dan Bulla short in a row. A wonderful mix of humor and melancholy. I loved every second of this piece.

Rating: *****

Duane Reade Port Authority

organic milk launches epic New York musical

• A Pete Davidson cameo…. should’ve expected one with Mulaney hosting. Considering I liked Pete the last time he showed up, I guess I shouldn’t be too upset, even as the cameos tonight are starting to get ridiculous.
• I can clearly tell this is another Mulaney Musical just from the start. I know some fans don’t care for these, especially after the first two installments, but I always liked them and found them fun, ensemble pieces for the cast. (However, I do think I overrated the last two, especially Subway Churro – the latter is surprising to me as Mulaney’s prior episode is where I feel I found my groove as a reviewer.)
• I’m not exactly sure this comedic premise around organic milk is that funny, at least not compared to the prior Mulaney musicals. Also, so far, the “energy” in this one is off and I’m not really finding any standout moments or genuine fun vibes like the prior ones.
• Pete just…. standing there looking around doing nothing. Are there SNL fans really creaming their pants wanting him back for Mulaney? I’ve seen some pushing for Bill Hader back, but not a single one asking for Pete. Nothing against the guy, but him being here for nothing is just an insult to this cast.
• No comment about that utterly bizarre Marcello number, aside that it feels straight out of a foreign-language children’s show.
• Good choreography and performances, but again, there’s no energy nor standout moments here, and I could’ve done it without Chloe’s impression of Chalamet being here for headlines, as if she wasn’t shoved down our throats enough on and outside of the show.
• Member Berries again with Andy Samberg rapping as a bear cub. I’m sure the stans are very happy about this, and I’m glad for them, truly, but these early episodes burnt me out on Samberg and his limited shtick. A cast member should’ve been instead of him here.
• WTF?! Where’s Chappell Roan? This sketch’s buildup screamed a potential “obligatory” appearance by her, and her epic vocals and presence would’ve elevated this rather tepid, sad installment.

Rating: **

Musical Performance – “Pink Pony Club”

• A great LFNY shoutout from Chappell after ending her performance.

Weekend Update

Reba McEntire (HEG) rambles about voting

The Couple You Can’t Believe are Together (MAH) & (JAW) are different

• Wow, with this desk piece, I just realized Heidi wasn’t in this episode at all. Come to think of it, so far this season, a lot of the vets seem to be phased-out, or it seems like it. In the last two seasons, you bet Heidi wouldn’t have made her first appearance of the night on freakin’ Update.
• Heidi is pretty fun as Reba, even when she was never much of an impressionist (which can be said about all the current female cast, besides very few impressions from Chloe).
• Heidi’s looseness and the piece’s general fun atmosphere is making its not-too-great writing work fine – Heidi’s physicality and her constant pointing is cracking me the hell up.
• Some amusing, absurd-humored lines from Heidi’s Reba, especially her line about her dad (Pennywise) eating kids as job and her mom having “stinky naturals” hanging low. Heidi’s nailing the rambling nature of this piece without it coming off, well, rambling.
• Jane Wickline behind the desk for the second time in just five episodes? Interesting. I sure hope she gives a better performance than her flat, lethargic work in most of her appearances so far. Marcello, already, is coming off perfectly cast in a role of a frat boy.
• Despite a rather thin premise on paper, I’m enjoying the contrast between Marcello’s high energy and Jane’s deadpan, especially her speciality being 19th century graveyards and him being as frat a guy as possible. The moments where I can tell Marcello is trying not to break are quite endearing, especially that he actually is a committed performer unlike the one he clearly was meant as a replacement for.

Rating: **1/2

Family Bonds

Little Richard (KET) was in old sitcom

• Switcheroo is one of my favorite sketches in SNL history and the idea of a variation to it doesn’t feel necessary to me. Also, having three retreads from prior Mulaney shows really tells me this was a tough week backstage.
• Is Chloe Fineman going to play every single daughter role ever? Where’s Sarah at or hey, that new cast member we have yet to see – Ashley something? Get her in this sketch instead.
• Bowen is fine in his portions, but he is no Cecily Strong when it comes to playing such a role. I feel either Heidi or JAJ would’ve done a better job than him, as both are this cast’s best performers and actors. Bowen at least is performing this adequately, not derailing the sketch or anything.
• Man, this is falling really flat with me, which is par for the course with both this episode and a lot of the material this season. When Kenan’s hamminess as Little Richard (which he did a billion times before) can’t even get me to laugh much, besides occasional chuckles, you know you got a flop with you. So much of this sketch and the lowlights from this season aren’t exactly bad, but just so suffocatingly uninspired and…. dull. And, as I said before, with dullness, you got NOTHING to say.

Rating: **

Musical Performance – “The Giver”

Harvey Epstein For City Council

Harvey Epstein (host) distances self from the other Harvey and Epstein

• Priceless premise of an ad of a candidate (whom I was told is actually real) running and having a rather unfortunate first and last names. This has a good late ‘90s SNL feel to it, which is a great thing in my opinion.
• Great back-and-forth between John’s Epstein doing a general political ad, and trying to fend off accusations of being related to both notorious figures he’s trying to distance himself from. John’s solid straight man skills (which were displayed earlier in the week in that great JAJ-as-Dylan promo) is shining here.
• When will Ashley Padilla have a chance to show us that she’s funny? I understand these early episodes are very bloated and barely any time is given to a lot of the cast, including vets, but I hope she gets a showcase soon. She at least came off her likable self in this.
• Some of my favorite parts in this are the priceless minors/miners mixup, giving a second chance and Mulaney’s Epstein supposedly killing Jeffrey, which Hillary couldn’t.
• An absolutely hilarious ending punchline of promising to make New York City Epstein’s Island.

Rating: ****

Cut For Time: Superman

Lois Lane’s roommate (CHF) interrupts meeting with Superman (host) 

• I am assuming this cut-for-time piece being brought from the mothballs months after the aired episode is due to Chloe being in John’s play (where I sincerely hope the solid Ashley Padilla would get more airtime as Chloe is knee-deep in rehearsals soon).
• The return of this “character” of Chloe’s from the Travis Kelce episode, two seasons ago, is not welcomed by me, shocking no one here. 
• I am glad, and this is a minor note, that these Superman parodies on SNL and elsewhere, still use the classic Superman suit instead of the horrible Zack Snyder version in an equally-horrible version of the character (which can be said about everything Zack Snyder directed, but I digress). I was never a comic books guy as a kid (besides just Superman, Batman and X-men), but I appreciate the faithfulness to the source material.
• I said it many times before, but I just hate this formula of SNL sketches where someone acts wacky and others are “reacting” to them. John is good here and Sarah is perfect as Lois, but this sketch is a D.O.A. mess outside of a few reliable lines from John.
• Mikey Day’s looking very good as General Zod, which is another minor positive in this. (Although it is very hard to beat Terence Stamp in that department.) 
• Like many sketches as of late, this has a really flat-feeling and a very poor structure. Chloe Fineman herself genuinely is off-putting to me when playing such characters. There’s just no sense of “fun” in her characterizations and instead of making her characters humorously raunchy, they come off well…. just raunchy. This sketch is the perfect case why she’s totally spent on the show, and this is after having, in my view, her best season yet just last year. 

Rating: *1/2

Goodnights

Segments Ranked From Best to Worst

Beppo

Monologue

Harvey Epstein For City Council

2024 Pre-Election

Weekend Update

What’s That Name: Election Edition

Family Bonds

Duane Reade Port Authority

CFT: Superman

Final Thoughts:

• A forgettable, uninspired episode, and an underwhelming one for John Mulaney standards. Outside of three pieces (two which are some of my favorites already from this season), practically everything else landed in the forgettable range. And said three pieces would give this episode a huge boost in the rating average due to the limited amount of pieces we got tonight anyways – giving the illusion that this is a better episode than it actually was. While there weren’t really any big duds tonight, I expected some actual conceptual writing instead of dullness and formulaic writing – the return of not only one, but three sketches from past Mulaney episodes in a “new” format was an overkill especially.
• With that said, the original material, like the 10-to-1 and the Dan Bulla short, were strong and memorable – wish we got more of that instead. The cast use, structure and the aggressive, suffocating averageness so far are my big issues with this season. The fact that it is not an exactly bad season so far, but just aggressively average, uninspired one in its quality probably makes it a bit tougher for me to sit through. I guess I should be happy it is leagues above the prior election season of the show.
• John Mulaney himself was a strong host, delivered great standup set, and had a few fun showcases, especially the 10-to-1. And, as expected, the musical performances by Chappell Roan were exhilarating to watch and gave the episode a nice boost.

My Favorite Moments of the Episode, Represented with Screencaps:

Up Next:

• Hosting the very first episode after the Election is none other than Bill Burr, with music from Mk.gee.

My full set of screencaps from this episode is here