Cold Opening – Cabinet Meeting
President Trump (JAJ) presents cabinet during conference
- Yet another Trump open? Look, I love this impression and all, but they’re really overusing it of late.
- A laugh from the “Cabinet of Curiosities” line.
- Jeremy as JD Vance? He actually looks pretty uncanny to him in that wig and beard. Tommy is one I’ve seen fans mentioning as a potential performer for the VP.
- Not sure why we are having a meta comment on Vance being recast, as Bowen barely even played him after the Election sketches (shudder) anyways.
- I always enjoy Marcello’s Rubio interplay with JAJ’s Trump. He is a good straight man for him.
- Jeremy’s Vance impression is pretty funny, and, he even made the “chew ass” line come off better than it is. Trump wandering around in the background is a very funny visual and a good take on his bizarre behavior of late.
- Ashley takes over the Kristi Noem impression from Tina. Ashley is funny as expected in the role.
- This whole portion seems similar to Tina’s own ad to the camera in the Amy Poehler episode earlier in the season. It still provided laughs, nonetheless.
- This cold open is interestingly sidelining the Trump impression in favor of having a parade of his cabinet members, one after the other.
- Colin’s Hegseth is very funny here, even when part of the humor to me seems to be an inside joke about Colin’s personality.
- Love the “we kill the protestors” line from Colin’s Hegseth. Good biting line against that thug.
- I never criticize James Austin Johnson, and what I am about to say isn’t a critique of his great talents and value to the show, but can we have some other cast members saying the LFNY once in a while? Sure, Colin said it with him twice now and Ashley once, but he said the line 8 out of 10(!) episodes so far into this season. Give others a chance is all I am saying.
Rating: ***1/2
Monologue
host talks about finally being a man
- A decent laugh from the clip Finn reached puberty during the filming of Stranger Things.
- While another clip joke, I admit getting a laugh from the other Stranger Things clip with that monster as the moment Finn realized what a woman looks like down there.
- A fun premise with Finn acting finally like a man, complete with background music. He is handling this quite well and is coming off likable.
- The Stranger Things cameos are going over my head. A sweet moment nonetheless seeing three clear friends together on SNL.
Rating: ***1/2
Snack Homiez 2
teen podcasters discuss looksmaxxing
- Another Snack Homiez? I actually now feel I underrated the first sketch, thanks to Carson’s commentary on it, but really?
- I liked Sabrina as host earlier in the season, but another cameo? She is a mega pop star and she still does SNL cameos more than former cast members? I guess she is really that big a fan.
- Finn is pretty funny mocking those “chads” who break their faces to “maximize” their looks.
- Despite being 28 years-old, some of the dialogue and phrases, much like the first sketch, are going over my head. With that said, I now appreciate what these sketches are going for.
- Yet another awkward pause from Jane. Can you tell me how this girl got another season on?
- The A$AP Rocky appearance makes sense in this sketch. Kinda sad he is coming off better and far more charismatic than several cast members in this.
- This sketch is going a bit long for me, much like the first sketch, but I found this decent overall. Not as good as the first installment that I now have far more appreciation for.
Rating: ***
Heated Wizardry
homoerotic take on Harry (host) & Ron’s (BEM) relationship
- Perfect casting of Finn as Harry Potter.
- A predictable turn with the homoerotic take on Harry Potter due to that Heated Rivalry show. I actually have seen some fans pitching such a parody, which proves how terminally online the cast/writers are. Also, really? We are still doing those creatively bankrupt “[insert name/subject], but they are gay!” premises SNL ran to the ground in the mid ‘00s?
- JAJ & Ashley are funny as Snape & McGonagall.
- Meh at this short and its lame, homoerotic humor. Reminds me of that awful Fast & Furious parody done by the show. I am also sick and tired seeing Ben Marshall pandering, one episode after the other. This guy is rapidly becoming the bane of the show for me, after such a solid start. Puzzles me why such a clear, charismatic talent sells himself away like that.
- This short is a series of hacky “hot” moments and “gags” without anything to sustain such a premise (bad as it is), which just serves to pander to the fanbase of Stranger Things and those homoerotic shows. Even as a queer person myself, this is a perfect case of doing queer humor just wrong.
- Random Jason Momoa cameo. And ugh at his “You’re a homo, Harry” line. Not even he could make it funny.
- There are no laughs here or something worth praising, outside of how amusing the cast are as the Harry Potter characters. Said cheap gags were done endlessly before and weren’t even that funny then also. A lot of this feels like a high school teen’s horny fanfiction.
- Overall, nope.
Rating: *
Boy Band
boy band star (JAJ) wants indiehead son (host) to follow suit
- Nice seeing a JAJ-led piece for the second week in a row! Great and spot-on look on him as well.
- Finn is doing a really good job in this. A far better use of him than the lame-ass short before this.
- Needless to say, I LOVE that we are getting yet another JAJ/Ashley pairing. These two are the finest current cast members and need to be paired together much more.
- JAJ is doing such a great job handling such a piece, especially knowing what a big music nerd he is. He is so fun parodying boy band stars.
- Man, everything about JAJ in this sketch, from his look, to his vocalizations, to his dancing…. so goddamn good.
- Funny involvement from Andrew, Jeremy and Marcello as the former members of the boy band.
- A hilarious, oh-so-wrong 9/11 line from JAJ. Loved the audience reaction to it.
- Ashley is so good as the mom. She truly manages to make even her smallest moments fun and funny. Between the OTT gasps every few moments and the shy attitude when complimented.
- A sweet and cute turn at the end.
- Not only did I love this, and that it continued the season’s trend by deservedly giving JAJ the leading man treatment, but much like Mechanical Bull and Pilot Announcement earlier in the season, this will probably stand out as one of my favorite things James Austin Johnson would ever do on SNL.
Rating: ****1/2
Stranger Things Spinoffs
spinoffs of the Netflix blockbuster focus on trivial things
- A short similar to the Game of Thrones spinoffs one from the S44 Kit Harington episode.
- Very solid voiceover as always from JAJ.
- Very funny scene with Andrew. I know Joe Keery and he is very fun parodying him.
- A fun scene with Chloe and Kam. Great ‘90s look on her.
- Figures out Finn would be playing his character in this.
- The two Stranger Things guys are absolutely great here. Also, Sex and the City is one of my favorite shows, and this is a spot-on take on the show’s style.
- Jeremy’s parodying Noah Schnapp’s acting in the coming out scene is absolutely hilarious!
- Very funny, low-key scene with Mikey.
- Not caring for the Kenan ending as Eleven.
- I overall found this a lot of fun, despite not being familiar with the show besides the basics.
Rating: ***1/2
Musical Performance -”PUNKY ROCKY”
Weekend Update
Michael Irvin (KAP) on College Football Championships
Tamara (JAW) doesn’t want to delve deeper into her resolution
- Solid monologue on Trump’s foreign policy from Colin, especially love how he frames it as getting back with him after a breakup.
- Good ICE joke from Colin. No clue why the audience didn’t react to it better.
- The whole Nobel Prize rant from Michael is funny enough that the Diddy joke worked.
- Another Heated Rivalry mention tonight.
- Some savage jokes so far into this edition of the desk. Better than the usual tired “Colin is a sex pest” jokes.
- Kam on Update for the second episode in a row.
- Funny whispery delivery from Kam and I am enjoying his ramblings and back-and-forth with Michael.
- Not familiar with Michael Irvin, but Kam’s take and delivery is funny. See? I don’t need to be familiar with what’s referenced if the writing is there.
- The absurd visual of Kam’s Michael Irvin running all the way back to Miami is pretty funny. An overall pretty fun piece from Kam, for the second week in a row.
- Boy, the audience seems to be filled with stans, as they went wild over the mere graphic of Harry Styles.
- Lots of good jokes here and there, even when I really don’t feel the need to mention any.
- I see Jane Wickline is attempting an actual character behind the desk.
- Jane is coming off very likable as usual. This weird premise seems to be in her wheelhouse.
- While Jane isn’t exactly a dynamic performer, I’m really liking how she is handling this desk piece with her uncomfortable reactions to Michael’s questions.
- Fun outburst from Jane towards Michael. I am glad this isn’t going over-the-top. Even the constant admissions from Jane that she doesn’t know are funny.
- This has to be the first desk piece from Jane I really liked. She can actually be funny when playing into her wheelhouse.
- Great edition of the desk, overall. By far this season’s best, in my eyes.
Rating: ****
Dark Orbit
servant (MID) keeps serving master (host) delights during negotiations
- Great sets and costume design. Mikey’s look in particular is cracking me up.
- Very fun performance from Finn. Nailing exactly how these sci-fi villains act.
- Cute brief breaking from Finn which thankfully didn’t derail the sketch.
- Looking at Finn in this getup reminds me of Bill Hader. I know he played a younger version of him in It, which is why I totally could see Bill in his role in this.
- Chloe’s loud laughing is grating to me. Like if she didn’t rehearse this sketch through the week.
- This is a DUMB sketch, and I know I should hate it, but goddamn, I’m cracking up. Finn’s performance and likability, alongside Mikey’s hamminess, is making me laugh in spite of myself.
- Finn is doing a good job alternating between menacing sci-fi villain and being delighted over all the delights he is being fed by Mikey.
- Sketch is going on for too long, though I am still laughing.
- A fun ending to a piece I know will be a guilty pleasure of mine.
Rating: a very guilty ****
Guy’s Girl
girlfriend (VES) poorly tries to fit in
- Nice seeing Veronika getting another lead role. I’m liking this sketch’s realistic feeling.
- Is this a reworked take on that piece Veronika did for a few weeks? That Suel Forrester-type character? She is pretty funny so far in this sketch.
- This is the exact type of oddball role Veronika does all the time pre-SNL, and while this is a type of character that can get grating, this is making me laugh so far. With that said, this is a bit best done once, in my view.
- Love how Finn’s character is so into this, as predictable as it is. He was utilized as much as I expected tonight, but he is doing really well
- Aww at the turn with Veronika hearing Ben calling her disgusting. The audience’s collective “aww!” was cute.
- Pretty good sketch overall.
Rating: ***1/2
Musical Performance – “DON’T BE DUMB/HELICOPTER”
Skyscraper Live
Reggie (KET) is not ready for his climb
- Ugh at the random Kenan break. He’s been cracking at himself for no fucking reason all throughout this season. Insufferable.
- This sketch reminds me of the ones Kenan used to do during the late ‘10s era, such as that cult one and the royal family one. This, on the other hand, is not working for me. I don’t even recall liking that cult short, either.
- Almost no Sarah tonight. No complaints from me, considering how unwatchable she’s often been of late.
- The testimonials aren’t bad and Mikey is fine in an otherwise non-comedic role, but meh.
- Awful ending.
- A typical baffling 10-to-1 piece. A bummer way to end an overall fun show with.
Rating: **
Cut For Time: Euphoria Writer
new Euphoria writer (JAJ) pitches bizarre concepts
- Already, I’m enjoying JAJ’s characterization just from the way he embodies Chester. From his voice, to his mannerism, to that cheery demeanor. I cannot describe how damn great this brilliant performer is at embodying all his roles and giving them such life.
- I love the fact that Chester didn’t watch Euphoria and that he worked with Reba prior to his hiring. The jokes are coming by a mile so far.
- Sydney Sweeney being referred to as ”the chesty one” is very funny, and to be honest, is probably what many call her as.
- This sketch, while is getting a bit long (maybe it would’ve been trimmed in the live show), is still fun and JAJ is giving a killer performance. Between this, Boy Band, and Random Duets, it feels like he finally found his confidence to be that rightful male star of the cast (which JAJ himself spoke of in a Vulture interview the week of this episode).
- Even the catchphrase ”can we not?” is both funny and endearing. It takes a special sort of talent to sell these on multiple times a sketch. Reminds me of how Dana Carvey would make his catchphrases memorable and iconic. Fascinating how JAJ now reminds me of three SNL legends: Phil, Dan and now Dana. Hopefully, it bodes well for his trajectory on the show.
- Only thing hurting this solid sketch is Chloe, once again, loudly breaking and laughing after each spit take. She’s been driving so many of us mad online fans with her constant breaking of late. Between her and Sarah looking like she is about to bust out laughing in every sketch, no wonder Ashley is the rightful leading lady.
- A very fun piece, overall.
Rating: ****
Cut For Time: Tommy Brennan on ICE’s Presence in Minnesota
TOB talks ICE & Minnesota
- John: Thank you to Blood Meridian for letting me review a cut-for-time piece.
- Tommy’s first Update appearance since the Sabrina Carpenter episode.
- I know there was some fan expectation over whether the show would talk about what happened in Minnesota. Given how extremely cautious Update and the cold opens are, I am surprised we’re actually getting something.
- The whole preemptive apology for being the one to talk about this subject feels somewhat performative.
- Mixing in the clip of the ICE guy falling with some critical commentary is a decent concept—humiliation tends to annoy more than righteous speeches.
- Tommy actually being from Minnesota helps give his speech credibility, along with him dressing as himself, rather than The Puddle An Ice Officer Slipped On.
- I also appreciate the lack of roasting the anchor.
- Similar to Tommy’s debut at the desk, he still comes across somewhat awkwardly, not fully shaking a discount Longfellow vibe. In this case, I think it’s a plus, because being too rehearsed in this type of commentary just makes the performer seem inauthentic.
- I am not going to give SNL any praise for this commentary—cutting it in favor of yet another leaden slice of garble from a Kill Tony devotee tells you all you need to know about where the show’s heart lies.
- I will, however, give Tommy some praise, as, performative or not, he’s still in his first season, and not having a very easy time of it either. Emil, who was in the same boat last season, gave a political commentary at the desk, and was let go. There are differences between the two men, but the risks are still there.
- I’m still not sure I have a take on Tommy—I’m still not sure I even remember him being in the cast half the time—but kudos to him for sticking his neck out even just a little bit.
Rating: ***½
Goodnights
Segments Ranked From Best to Worst
Boy Band
Weekend Update
Dark Orbit
CFT: Euphoria Writer
Guy’s Girl
Monologue
Stranger Things Spinoffs
Cabinet Meeting
Snack Homiez 2
Skyscraper Live
Heated Wizardry
Final Thoughts:
- All-in-all, a pretty solid and consistent episode. In fact, one of the most consistent of this season so far. There was a good, long string after that wretched Harry Potter parody till the 10-to-1 with pieces ranging from solid-to-great that I really enjoyed. Also, the performances by A$AP Rocky were fun, especially the second one.
- Finn Wolfhard was a charming and likable presence and thankfully the episode didn’t pander as much to his fanbase as I worried. He was utilized about as much as a usual SNL host, but he did a great job in even his smallest roles and had a very fun sketch in Dark Orbit.
- Very good cast use tonight, especially spreading the wealth by giving multiple cast members starring roles, even when some were weaker than others. JAJ, Mikey, and, surprisingly, Jane probably had the biggest nights. Jeremy, Veronika and Kam had some fun roles, with Veronika finally getting another live sketch on the air. Even the Mikey sketch was very fun, as mentioned before. Kenan still needs to go, though.
My Favorite Moments of the Episode, Represented with Screencaps:
My full set of screencaps from this episode is here
The episode was a bit meh for me. Finn was a fun host, but most of the material didn’t “click” with me like usual. I think the main highlights of this thing were Dark Orbit, the Stranger Things Promo, and Guy’s Girl. JAJ’s sketch was fun, but it wasn’t a big highlight for me. And I get what you’re saying about Heated Wizardy. While I thought it was a bit fun in terms of the show it was referencing, I agree it was a bit hacky. I guess once the show’s resident gay guy leaves, so does any double checking for quality. As for Ben, I think part of the problem could also go to him being slapped with the wrong sketches. I bet if they actually try to write stuff that fits his PDD style, we can probably avoid having another Pete Davidson, but red head.
Great review Blood!
Thanks to Carson I also have a deeper appreciation for Snack Homiez! I think because I’m a teacher and I’m around pre-teens like this, I see it as very accurate and funny. I also love the performances from everyone involved and the increased dynamic of having Jane’s Unc character the slightly more mature and awkward character.
Jane in general had a great night! She isn’t a dynamic sketch performer but when she sticks to her lane and plays these awkward characters, I think she adds an extra spice to the show. She has improved a lot and I find myself rooting for her.
The boys band sketch had my favourite premise with great performances from JAJ and Ashley. The last third of it kind of petered out for me though.
Also I’m glad you called out the hackiness of the Harry Potter/Heated Rivalry parody. It’s basically just fan fiction and despite a clever crossover, it does nothing really new or noteworthy. It seems to be a lot of people’s faves but not mine.
Veronica was fantastic in her starring role. Again I didn’t like where the sketch ended up going but her commitment to such a ridiculous and cringy character is super admirable and gives me hope for her as a cast member.
Agree on your statements on Sarah and Kenan. Sarah is just not being utilized properly and it makes me sad. Kenan is a hall of famer but this is the first season where I’m pretty sick of him and feel like he’s phoning it in. Mikey might be past his prime but he stills really commits like in that pretty gross albeit fun space food sketch.
I’ll be honest: I had a pretty “meh” feeling to this overall episode. I feel like not much rose above being pretty good. There’s a lot that I wanna say regarding the review, but I feel like I shouldn’t. I will say this: I was surprised by your high rating for Dark Orbit, as I found that sketch to be dreadful.
I admittedly came into this episode in a “well, let’s get this over with” type mindset, which is never a smart thing to do. I attribute this to the promos being unfunny and messy and Finn coming off as flat and uncharismatic in them, plus the audience being clearly filled with stans along with the cameos in the first several sketches. This led to me just feeling very down on the episode when watching it live. Upon reflection and reading your review, I think it’s safe to say I underrated it.
Snack Homiez is a sketch that just plain never works for me. I appreciate what it’s trying to do and I get that the overuse of slang is part of the joke, but I just can’t get into it. It’s just something that I’m not the target audience for.
The Harry Potter sketch is the worst combination of hacky S30 type humor and the terminally online writing that affects the show these days. People are, of course, eating this shit up, but to me, this is exactly the kind of SNL I despise: wholly stan focused and hacky and wasting good performers in thankless roles.
Thankfully, things improved for the rest of the night. That Boy Band sketch is a huge new favorite of mine from JAJ. It’s truly amazing how versatile, talented, and warm this performer is. I’m so thrilled that he’s been getting more chances outside of the cold opens (which, I agree, have become too excessive with portraying Trump even though I understand why). I think it’s safe to say he’s on his best season yet, and I hope it continues!
As someone who is familiar with Michael Irvin, Kam’s impression was hilarious. He not only did a good job with the voice but also nailed his OTT personality. The discourse around Kam, much like Shane Gillis, is rather exhausting and overshadows his contributions to the show. While his tenure is nothing to write home about mostly, this was easily the best thing he’s done on the show so far.
The biggest surprise of the night for me was Jane’s commentary. When she popped up, I internally groaned and thought “we’re STILL trying to push this lifeless performer?!” But she pleasantly surprised me, for the 2nd episode in a row. Her awkward energy was a good fit for this character and, even though I haven’t seen the TikTok this is based on, I liked the odd and subtly unhinged nature of her performance. She’s showing signs of improvement, and I’m happy for it. I still don’t think she should be promoted to repertory and I recognize that praising her for finally delivering back to back good performances a season and a half in is damning with faint praise, but I’m at least happy that she/the writers seem to be figuring out her place on the show.
I can see Veronika’s piece being EXTREMELY divisive for obvious reasons, but I enjoyed it as a showcase of her comedic personality and style. I do fear that the show is gonna attempt to lean more into these “weird” character pieces of hers as a coverup for thin writing ala Wiig, but it’s still early enough that it came off fresh. With that said, I agree, keep this a one and done.
Dark Orbit didn’t do much for me, but I can appreciate and understand that it was harmless enough and the hammy performance from Mikey and Finn’s breaking were cute. With that said, holy hell is Chloe’s breaking completely OTT and unprofessional. Girl, you’ve rehearsed this shit numerous times. Stop loud guffawing off camera and taking away from the sketch. It’s sad to see someone who used to be professional in her early seasons reduced to being the new Fallon/Sanz. I really hope we’re in the home stretch of her tenure.
Finn was a pretty solid and likable host. He was nothing amazing, but he did a solid job and honestly better than I expected. I’m happy that we had a (mostly) solid episode after the holiday break and I’m hoping this momentum continues.
Great review as always, Blood.
I ran a bit colder on this episode than you did, but I still thought it was okay, and a slight improvement over the fairly weak December string of episodes.
Despite nothing standing out to me as strong, I liked almost all of the sketches here. It also helps this episode actually had energy, unlike the December episodes.
My favorite sketch was Boy Band, with everyone involved giving fun performances. I think Heated Wizardry is a new guilty pleasure sketch. I don’t know man, on paper there is NOTHING, but it had a dumb energy that I really enjoyed. I also really enjoyed the Stranger Things pre-tape, which had a nice fast-paced vibe that I really liked.
This was actually a theme throughout the entire episode. Many sketches had a loose, and dumb energy, but everyone involved in them were having fun. That gave this episode a fun vibe, and made it feel better than it actually was.
Despite some veterans weirdly getting little to nothing (Dismukes was nowhere to be found if I recall correctly, and Sarah was in newbie roles all night), all of the featured players had their moments in this episode, which was nice to see. Ashley doing her typical carrying, Veronika had a good showcase, Kam got his 3rd Update commentary, and Ben and Jeremy had their moments throughout. Tommy was a bit invisible but he was good in the little stuff he was given.
I wanna talk about Jane for a quick second. As someone who’s been defending her for basically her entire tenure so far, it feels SO nice to finally see her slowly but surely making a name for herself on the show as of late. Ever since the Melissa McCarthy episode, it feels like Jane has been improving quite a bit in her live performances, and has gotten an increase in airtime since then as well. That airtime increase thankfully continued in this episode, with Snack Homiez and her solid Update commentary. It feels like the show is finally figuring out how to make her offbeat performance style work in certain sketches, and it’s great!
Finn was an interesting host. On one hand, he didn’t carry any of the sketches (continuing this season’s issue of lack of trust in the hosts). But on the other hand, he had lots of fun moments in many of the sketches (I really enjoyed his smarmy leader in Dark Orbit, and his performance in the Veronika showcase). He also had an awkward energy in many of his performances that I weirdly really liked. Would I want him back? If his awkward energy gets utilized a bit better, sure!
Fun show. I’m really not familiar with Teyana Taylor at all, but her Golden Globe win has also gotten her lots of popularity recently. Also, from the talk show interviews I’ve seen her in, she seems fun. Hope this week’s fun show wasn’t just a fluke.
Happy belated New Year everyone.
This episode was pretty middle of the road for me. Strange how we got Jeremy as Vance and Ashley as Noem, as a way of showing they don’t need celebs, they can just use the cast, but they we get Sabrina Carpenter and Jason Momoa? Fucking SNL…
I liked Veronika’s character at first, but it became a bit much and lacked an ending.
You’re so right about Ben. He was once the rookie with the most promise, but his pandering shit and playing the bland straight guy seems to be all he’s got.
And I fucking hated that Space sketch. It sums up exactly why I want Mikey and Chloe fired immediately.
I’m a bit surprised by this episode being the way it is with Finn hosting. Based on my limited knowledge of Finn, he seems like a pretty smart, cool, nerdy, alternative guy. In his Hot Ones episode, he mentioned how he kinda cringed at having the influencer character in his film, yet he has no problem acting in Snack Homiez? I just don’t get it.
I think Ben is sort of targeting a (largely) female audience for some of his stuff. And you know what? I’m here for it. He’s hot. It’s fun. And I don’t think he’s selling himself short when he does it.
Both the strippers sketch and the HP sketch are poking fun at the whole “homoerotic soft boy” fantasy that pops up a lot in women-dominated media spaces. The HP sketch feels like bad fanfic? Well, yes. Isn’t that the point?
Maybe I’m just misunderstanding the criticisms. But it does feel like there’s some annoyance that there’s pandering to a female audience in sketches about pandering to female audiences.
I can’t speak for everyone of course, but my personal issue with it is how desperate and hollow it feels. Ben is obviously a handsome dude, but these types of sketches feel like transparent attempts to get the audience to like him via simple thirsting. It feels cold and calculated
James Austin Johnson and Ashley Padilla, by contrast, just work hard and put in good effort and the results pay off. There’s no real “look at me!” vibes or transparent attempts to mug or wink at the audience. They let the comedy serve the sketch and aren’t in it to serve themselves.
Put simply, JAJ and Ashley give off the vibe that they want to make sketches the best that they can by putting in good work. Ben (and Marcello though he’s fallen off hard) gives off the vibe that he wants to be a star and have women thirsting over him.
I guess I just find the idea that it’s all only about the popularity/ego-boost/attention overly cynical. Particularly from a guy who spent four years playing into the “sad virgin” image. And who was described as “Looking like Pennywise took an improv class” in a sketch he helped write just an episode before.
I also do just think the idea of an idealized male stripper being a fit guy with a giant Zohran tattoo over his abs is funny. So maybe it’s just a personal sense of humor thing. If people don’t vibe with it, they don’t vibe with it.
But idk. If you’ve got a great singing voice, use it. If you’ve got the look to pull-off a political impression, use it. And if you can play the sort of white boy that 2016 era Tumblr would have endlessly thirsted over, might as well use that too.
A lot of it definitely is subjective, as is everything I write in these reviews. I love it when there are spirited debates around the show between fans in the comments section and elsewhere.
I think Ben has a lot of talent and charisma, versatile, great straight man (though not so far into his tenure as a regular, unlike the PDD shorts), and has a lot of natural likability to him. I just find sketches that are specifically geared towards going viral or aiming for a niche subgroup not funny. Nothing personal against him, but pandering in general doesn’t work for me, especially if there’s no writing there for me to enjoy
I want the comedy to speak for itself, personally speaking, without a wink-wink factor. That’s why I enjoyed the pretapes he did earlier in the season (Missing Wives, I Miss My Ex’s Dad). I know he can do good work, which is why I’m reviewing him, as well as others, with clean slate each week. Hope that makes my feelings on him clear.
Oh, I actually sort of agree he (and the show in general) can lean a little broad sometimes. The Beauty and Mr. Beast sketch earlier this season, for example, felt like an attempt at going viral in a way that I personally didn’t care for.
I guess I just think that the premise of “HBO sees the success of Heated Rivalry and hastily rewrites their upcoming Harry Potter show” and the premise of the male stripper sketch are both sort of blatantly about men being marketed towards women. Or at least the fantasy or men that’s often sold to women (often by other women). So I just wanted to offer a perspective that pushes back against them both being dismissed as only cheap pandering.
Thank you for the reviews and the space for some back and forth in the comments section! I don’t always agree (obviously) but it’s always fun to see what other people are thinking about the show.
Thanks a lot. You’re welcomed to comment anytime you want.
After 9 good/great episodes (And by that I mean there was at least one sketch I liked in each episode)… This episode broke it.
I swear the Trump Cold Opens are getting lazier if that’s even possible.
Bring back Banger Boyz! Way funnier than Snack Homiez
No idea who Michael Irvin is but he sounded like an Old Kevin Hart.
Guy’s Girl seemed like Veronika doing a Maddy Smith impression
Maybe next week will be better.
Thank you as always for your review. I have not bothered to sit through most of this episode, as I don’t get the sense the show is for me these days and it’s not worth rushing to watch, but I always want to thank you for the time you take with these reviews, not just your notes, but also your high quality screencaps.
I did watch the Heated Wizardry pre-tape, as I’ve heard so many bad things about it. Even with low standards, I was thrown by just how soulless it was – one of the most soulless presentations I’ve ever seen on SNL. I would call it AI slop, but I’ve actually seen much better AI writing than what was on display here.
They had a very easy idea – “oh, Harry Potter is gay.” Then padded out what felt like an eternity with that one note. Not a laugh to be found. The only praise I can give is JAJ as Snape.
What I noticed above all else was for a piece that was meant to be all about sexual attraction, and as much as Ben seems to want us to be happy he has a gym membership, the whole thing was remarkably sexless. They went out of their way to avoid kissing or any content, which is the whole point of the show they are parodying. I have never really watched Heated Rivalry, but even from some clips, the point is sex, romance, tenderness. If you are just going to make a gay joke, make it in a 10 second card like SNL used to do, instead of repeating shots of Ben rolling on the floor and comic relief blurs.
I’ve been so disappointed by Ben’s output. I knew PDD was safe, I know SNL is a place where creativity goes to die, but I thought he would at least bring some personality and his own writing style. Instead, he is doing watered down Seiday. He makes Seiday look like Jack Handey. His product exists for fancams and little else.
There’s been such a virulent reaction to this episode from the very fans they were trying to attract. Those fans will forever hate SNL and talk it down to anyone they know. This happens again and again when SNL tries to be “today.” It is a 50 year old show run by an 80 year old man. They cannot hide from that, no matter how much they have someone in their twenties stand around awkwardly while old men hand them scripts.
SNL goes into a new year seemingly still wanting to be a show for no one, chasing tiktok hordes and Kill Tony devotees who see them as the source of all evil, while what remains of their viewer base is meant to just shrug and nod and be happy for a crumb.
Happy New Year, Lorne.
John, with all due respect, it’s comments like these that make me wonder why you still bother with this show. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting nor expecting everyone to be positive all the time. I have and will continue to critique the show whenever I feel it churns out a subpar effort.
But deliberately seeking out the worst sketch of the night, writing an extended diatribe about how much it represents the current state of the show, while ignoring or putting off the other, far better sketches of the night feels rather like wanting to be negative for the sake of being negative or confirming your own cynicism.
Yes, the HP sketch was a stinker. But we also had that wonderful Boy Band sketch which was the antithesis of all of that. JAJ and Ashley are continuing to rise and bring so much warmth and hard work to the show. That is absolutely something worth praising, especially since fans everywhere, including stans on social media, are recognizing their talent.
Matter of fact, I think there are numerous aspects of this era that are superior to previous ones, such as the disappearance of the casting hierarchy that held back the later Kate/Aidy/Cecily years or the OTT “star” mentality that dominated the latter Wiig era. Yes, it’s not the late 80s any more. That era of strong consistent intelligent writing with an all star cast is never coming back. And we can choose to either lament that and forever compare the current show to an impossibly high standard that it will never meet and wind up consistently let down. Or we can acknowledge that the past is the past and that the current iteration of the show is different.
Is this current era flawless? Of course not. There are numerous issues, many of which you outlined above. And I firmly believe that until Lorne finally retires, we will never have the show reach its current full potential. But there’s still plenty of stuff to enjoy and like. And it’s also worth keeping in mind that this is a silly sketch comedy show. A bad sketch, a bad episode, or even a bad season is not the end of the world. We’ve been through FAR worse eras than this one and the show has continued to evolve and rights itself one way or the other.
I have tremendous respect for you and I always look forward to your comments here and elsewhere as they are always thoughtful and intelligent. But continuing to approach the show with this mindset is just setting yourself up for disappointment and frustration again and again.
Here are the cut sketches from the episode (thanks to Saturday Night Network and their hot take show):
BOOK CLUB: Ashley, Sarah, Finn, Kenan, Chloe. Ashley is a new neighbor who got invited to a book club but read a different book to everyone else. Ashley-centric sketch.
AI PSA: Finn, Ashley, Mikey, Chloe, Jeremy, Sarah. Sons giving their moms tips on identifying AI videos.
RADIOACTIVE ANIMAL SUPERHEROS: Kenan, Ashley, Kam, Andrew, Finn, Mikey, Sarah, Marcello. An ambitious sketch. Kenan is robbing a bank. Tellers are there. Animal superheroes get their powers through radioactive animal bites. This sketch was cut not only from the Seth Meyers season 44 episode, but also the Taylor Lautner episode from season 35.
EUPHORIA WRITERS ROOM: Finn, JAJ, Marcello, Jane, Chloe. Finn as Sam Levinson. JAJ from Rebus writers room [ed; not sure if he meant Pluribus as my headphones aren’t great], Jane and Marcello from Sex Education writers room, Chloe from Industry writers room, as they are putting together the final season of Euphoria. A very good JAJ sketch.
Here’s Colin, from 6 years ago, talking about the animals sketch.
Aw, man! I would’ve loved to see that radioactive superhero bit! Would’ve been way better than Snack Homies
Yo, a new sketch just dropped and I was wondering if you or Jesse Nathan could review it?
https://youtu.be/QPQFfoELrdQ?si=0aj9CdRIB7TQCwDe
I’ll add the sketch’s review probably tomorrow or later today, as I’m currently busy to review and make screencaps. Probably a guest-reviewer will do it this time around. Thanks for understanding.
Wrote a big long message and then promptly deleted. Dammit!
Take 2:
Good review, Blood!
While I am one of the rare few who are still completely fine with the Trump sketches and this cold open certainly had a few satisfying zingers, I wish this one was just more centered. I thought the performances were strong to a man, but they all kind of worked in service of a sketch that did not want to be about anything. With everything that’s going on, it would have been wise to maybe break things up a bit. There’s no doubt the show could have done a sketch about ICE recruitment instead of shoe-horning it into this grab bag.
For once, I actually LIKED the monologue. The opening jokes were fine (the vagina joke got me good), but once the monologue locked into its full premise, I was really enjoying myself. And the cameos worked in service of the piece, instead of just being there to satiate an exceedingly annoying crowd (they were aggravating all night, but when they cheered the announcement of a new Harry Styles album during Update, I knew we were dealing with a special level of collective stupidity).
Snack Homiez is back! On the one hand…hooray, I was right, the first one WAS great! On the other hand…fuck, they’re going to ruin it, aren’t they? I don’t mind that I’m solely known for being the “guy who liked Snack Homiez.” I’m not against bringing them back, but I worry because I know the general feelings about modern recurring characters. I’m happy because this one doesn’t completely fumble the return. I probably miss the political element that made the first one so special, but I thought there was some decent world-building here too. Finn’s character was fine if not somehow more inscrutable, but the addition of A$AP Rocky makes sense (even if there were some directing fuck-ups that threw things into mild chaos). And I’m grateful they brought back Sabrina Carpenter. I could see them doing a host rotation thing, but she really felt like the most integral performer to the first one. Also, this is a great showcase for Veronika and Jane, who both had sterling episodes.
Even better was the Boy Band sketch. SNL casts often break into factions, but has a trio of performers (JAJ-Ashley-Andrew) every felt SO FAR ahead of the rest of the show the way that these three do? And it’s not like they’re innovators the way Forte was or Sherman was supposed to be. They just do the simple work of finding fun premises and performing the hell out of them. JAJ was a ton of fun here and Ashley was brilliant in support. This piece had a couple subtle lines that didn’t get picked up by the audience of mouth breathers, but I love when a good premise, great performances and solid jokes all come together.
I LOVE that you enjoyed Dark Orbit. I think there is something to this sketch that works, but also something that kind of screams “this is as bad as it gets.” I’m torn on where I stand. I’ll say this. Finn gives his best performance of the night here, playing his role to the full hilt. I REALLY could have done without Chloe braying off camera though. But I still don’t know if this sketch was as much silly fun for me as it was for everyone on camera. There was SOMETHING, but not sure if it was enough for me to go full-throated endorsement. BUT, I really like a good guilty pleasure and completely understand how this could be one.
Quick hits:
– I know we’d all love a change on Update, but these two have really stayed remarkably consistent over the years. Not every joke is a winner, but they still connect, no matter what the insufferable Dennis Perkins says (is he still whining about these guys or is he still whining about Shane?)
– As a fan of It Is What It Is with Cam’ron and Ma$e, I can confirm that his Michael Vick was actually bang on. Fun commentary for a performer who takes too much shit from the holier-than-thou set.
– And Jane! I think I’m just won over by the effort. She has shown us the narrowest palette for a SNL performer (maybe ever), so I celebrate every moment that she attempts to broaden that palette. Her Update commentary was a win for me, even if just so I can see her really try.
– Also Veronika! Her sketch was a wonderful showcase into her REAL comic sensibility. It should had received more laughs. It was funny stuff, even if I don’t love “hostile reactions” sketches.
– The Heated Rivalry thing I had basically no opinion of. Was it great or awful? No idea. It just literally wasn’t for me. The premise was fine on paper, I guess. I don’t really think the show has a sneering attitude toward any gay stuff in 2026, but losing Bowen (and Kate and Punkie and Molly) means you’re really losing an insider’s perspective on that world. IDK, it did feel kind of cheap and I doubt it would have felt as cheap in other hands.
– The Stranger Things was a nice way to play with the inevitable. Some of it didn’t work, but the Sex And The City parody was a hoot.
Anyway, great work as always, Blood.
ever since at least Sandler the show has tried to push a male cast member to appeal to the female demographic. Kattan, Fallon, Samberg, Pete, Marcello, etc.. The thing with Ben is they aren’t even trying to be subtle about it. Blatant pandering.
Veronika sounded like early seasons Eric Cartman in her showcase. Also reminded me of early Poehler in that sketch. Liked that one.
the cut for time with JAJ was great. At least 4 stars IMO.
and yeah lots of controversy around this episode which will surely disappear before the next week’s show
Boy band sketch premise was pretty similar to an old South Park episode where Randy reckons with his Boy Band past. Underrated line of the sketch for me was the reference to the often debated “is it Pixies or The Pixies?”, a line im sure all the indieheads enjoyed.
Wasn’t feeling the new Veronica character too much, reminded me of a female version of one of Michael McDonald’s grating “autistic guy characters” he’d often play on MAD TV. Too bad I thought the premise was good, but the character was a bit too obnoxious for me.
Jane’s improved a lot in recent shows, I was surprised to see her play a character for once at the weekend update desk. She’s the best part of the Snack Homies sketches too. Kam was good too, hes reminding me a bit of Chris Rock when he was on SNL a bit, perhaps not quite fitting in with the ensemble but funny doing his own thing on Weekend Update.
Sorry for the late comment but I found this to be a pretty good episode actually, you seem to be a tad bit higher on it than I am though but fun stuff throughout this.
I’m slowly starting to run out of things for these cold opens. I am just frankly bored and tired with them and I don’t have nothing new to add good or positive on them. They’re just frankly 5 minute (or whatever the average length to these are) fillers and it makes me legitimately miss Baldwin‘s Trump as I always personally found that to be the funniest Trump impression to show has had. This one wasn’t too awful with sprinkle bits from Ashley, Jeremy, and Colin’s bit that I sorta liked.
I preferred this Snack Homiez for the first with no reason why I guess now that I’m familiar with these characters and I get a better familiarity with them and I appreciate the surprisingly realistic way of how 8 to 12-year-old speak. I also thought Finn did his strongest material in this one as I felt he blended well with the girls and Sabrina (who I think it’s absolutely amazing that is she’s now a friend of the show that I can just be brought in because she’s friends with so many of the cast members now particularly Veronika, which that alone is also incredible).
Respectfully, not surprised at all at your one star rating for the Harry Potter pre-tape as yes it did seem to appeal towards the Ben Marshall fans who love seeing him do stuff that they will go bananas for, but that never has and I don’t think ever will personally bother me and well I definitely agree. This wasn’t the funniest premise and could’ve done something a bit better several different bits, including Finn having his pants down I got good kicks out of. The Jason Momoa cameo also was very fun.
I definitely seem to be in the minority here, but I did not care one bit for Boy Band as I kept asking myself “huh” and “what” for various aspects of it and while not necessarily bad just very confusing to me to really appreciate anything. And also watching this, I think made me realize that I just am not into James anymore unfortunately on the show and maybe that’s because his regular Donald Trump openings have bored me to death now but even stuff outside of that that he’s been doing on the show, at least in this particular season, hasn’t wowed me at all and it really seems like I’m only enjoying him and more tiny roles where he just plays a dorky character with a line or two like in the bachelor party sketch from Glen Powell episode.
Completely agree with all the points about the jokes as well as Kam and Jane’s commentaries on Update. So far for me Kam is 3-3 in terms of good Update commentaries as I found him particularly hilarious with this Michael Irvin one I also sell his delivery of lines is getting better as I know that has been a understandable issue for fans even if I never had those personal problems myself as I’ve always been able to understand him. And I thought Jane did really well here as I thought this was a really good showcase to match her usual tone with the show outside of a song. I also jokingly said maybe someone at SNL will listen to the midseason By The Numbers from the SNN as both Kam and Jane are at the bottom and yet here we have both of them on Update!
Very happy to see Veronika in another live sketch as I’ve been craving one ever since the washer and dryer one from Sabrina Carpenter‘s episode and I thought she did really well with this one too and it easily became my favorite piece of the show.
Overall, yeah, a pretty fun show and I mainly see eye to eye with you on most of this episode. Great review like usual and excited for Teyana Taylor and Geese next week!!!!!
Gay Harry Potter???? Are you fucking kidding me?!!??? I am glad I missed this episode because I definitely would have broken my TV upon seeing that.
So who benefitted most from Bowen’s absence? This was a big episode from JAJ, Veronika, Jane and Mikey, but I’m probably thinking Jeremy had the most promising long-term bump here. On top of taking over as Vance, Jeremy has now become a part of the dude ensemble (Boy Band, Guy’s Day). I think that bodes well for him.
Bryan Tucker returned to the writing staff for this episode. He had been gone the first half of the season.
doubt it but I wonder if JAJ was channeling Pat Bullard in the cut for time sketch. Bullard wrote for Reba, Roseanne and Grace Under Fire. He briefly had a syndicated talk show in the 90s. Bullard sounds nothing like JAJ in that sketch but the Reba mention had me wondering.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pat_Bullard
Thanks for the euphoria writer review. There’s one more sketch that just released. It’s a Tommy Brennan Weekend Update spot. Here’s the link: https://youtu.be/uA8Oury0a80?si=rAR1Qi_5uqq4Ckf2
Five Quick Thoughts
1. Finn was an…okay host. He didn’t show a ton of range and got cast in a lot of shoe-in, pointless roles (you could erase him from a good share of the sketches and nothing would change), but he didn’t sink any sketches and was good in the space sketch.
2. I’ve never been as hot or cold on Jane as many other SNL fans, and I was just pleasantly surprised to see her have an overall strong night and do a funny Update appearance. Veronika, whom I do like, showed a lot of energy and some humor in her role–kind of reminded me of when Bobby did his Mark Payne stuff early in his tenure–not overly good, but you have to get noticed.
3. The gay Harry Potter thing, while a hacky premise, did have some potential as a parody of Heated Rivalry, but they basically just conceived of the premise and then stopped. First, the obvious joke for a parody of the show is to do Harry/Malfoy. Secondly, there were just the stupidest tropes of every SNL fake ad, like the narrator obnoxiously explaining the premise and the stupid fake reviews/testimonials. Finally, I do think John is right that they should have gone more all out in the parody.
4. I’m interested that a lot of people found the space sketch a guilty pleasure fun. I certainly see why they would feel that, but I didn’t really enjoy this live. I do think though it’s very much the type of sketch that in an episode I liked better, I would have found a great nightcap, just goofy fun. Mikey was good in the role, as was Finn. Chloe was a just awful straight woman, and the whole thing would have been nice if things were more deadpan. But I do like the “cast member tries to get host to break” type sketch in moderation.
5. This is by far Kenan’s worst season in some time, and he is really coming off as the super senior who’s checked out and amusing himself. He was horrible in everything he did this episode, actively killed the ending to the Stranger Things thing, and turned in unbelievably lazy work in the final sketch. I’ve never been a Chloe fan, but she used to be at least a reasonable ensemble performer, a better version of Abby Elliott. The ridiculous breaking in the space sketch, which I hope was just because she didn’t see the premise at rehearsal or something, felt like a performer either being terribly unprofessional or at trying to create a viral ha ha moment. These are two cast members that need to go. I know Mikey is past his sell by date, but he at least can provide a spark in the right sketch.
Thanks, Blood Meridian, for asking me to review the cut piece.
I finally watched the whole episode yesterday.
Finn was a great example of why someone being a fan of the show doesn’t necessarily make them a good host. He wasn’t bad, but he seemed lost in the live format. He repeatedly tripped on lines, and he lacked the strength he needed in the few memorable roles he had.
Breaking down the pieces…
Good:
– JAJ in the band sketch. The sketch in of itself was fine, but undercut by a sluggish feeling, a lackluster crowd (JAJ still doesn’t really have that connection with viewers [I blame Trump] so it takes time for him to warm them up), and the underwhelming work from Finn as his son. JAJ just has so much confidence, without smugness or self-indulgence, and that goes a long way. On paper, this reminded me of a number of the father/son sketches from the Ebersol years. I liked the running joke of everyone in both bands telling Ashley how beautiful she was, and I liked that they didn’t make it TOO sexual. It was also nice of JAJ to give Andrew a role as clearly no one else was.
– Jane on Update. When I heard that Jane was on Update, I immediately thought it was going to be another tiktok song. I was relieved she went for a character piece, and while I wouldn’t want to see this over and over, I thought it worked just fine here. No Jost Roast, no gimmicks. Jane’s more low-key style, offbeat without shouting and mugging, added a new flavor to desk pieces of recent years.
– I wouldn’t claim the space sketch was great, and on other occasions I would probably have a go on a sketch which existed just for Mikey to do his Tim Conway break-instigating, but I did enjoy myself. This was the role Finn seemed to enjoy most, and Mikey working with him seemed less like a showboat veteran pushing himself on a host and more like Finn letting go. I didn’t really mind Chloe either, as this was not a sketch that cared about the cast keeping composure.
OK:
– I thought Veronika gave a very strong performance (which, as someone said above, reminded me of Mad TV – it was fearless in the way that show often was in acting), but I did not think much of the sketch itself. There wasn’t a great deal of chemistry between the performers, leading to dead spots. There was also too much reacting for little reason, just as if they thought it had to be there.
– Snackhomiez didn’t need a return. The first, when it worked, was from the contrast of Trump appearing on this gen z teen/tween podcast, and from a few of the performances, mostly Jane and Veronika, seeming fresh. This time, although Jane and Veronika were still fine, the freshness wasn’t there and neither was the contrast. This was where I first sensed Finn wasn’t going to be up to much as a host, and Chloe was just as bad as she was the last time. I also did not have any use for the gay jokes, even if I know homophobia is alive and well with that generation. A$AP Rocky was probably the best performer, but not enough to make this worth a leadoff.
– Monologue. This started out fine, a likeable introduction, but the choice to add a musical beat seemed to throw Finn’s timing off. After that it just got worse – the spit take with Marcello wasn’t needed and seemed like a way to try to work Marcello (whose timing was ALSO off) into the episode. The Demigorgon joke got an 120K viral tweet comparing Finn’s comments to sexual assault, which is insane, but is also an indication of just how much SNL did not understand the Stranger Things fandom it tried – and failed – to court.
– Kam. I assume this was Lorne’s way of supporting his prestige hire after Kam kept his cool points by going around trashing SNL for being gay and for being a show no one cared about (in so many words). If so, it mostly just showcased how little Kam has to offer beyond catnip for those Kill Tony fans who were supposed to flock to the show. Even during the periods where Kam was comprehensible, his timing was so bad he dropped several key jokes. He has some screen presence but struggles otherwise. Isn’t that what Marcello is there for?
Bad:
– Stranger Things Promo. This leaned toward OK, certainly better than the Game of Thrones promo from Kit Harington’s episode, but the end tipped it over to bad. Kenan at his worst. The Nancy reporter joke had some potential,, but Chloe was the wrong choice. Sex and the City retreads made the show seem ancient (even the ill-fated revival didn’t just retread Sex and the City). Andrew’s role was just a little sad and felt like throwing him a bone. The one part of this with some bite was the parody of Will’s coming out scene, also one of Jeremy’s better showcases, but this got such virulent backlash from fans (along with the people who people who claimed the SATC bit was encouraging rape) I have a feeling it will scare the show into having even MORE toothless parodies. You might say well SNL shouldn’t be scared, but they were desperately trying to please the Stranger Things fanbase and instead just got one of the most vehement responses I’ve seen from any fanbase toward the show. The show will learn the wrong lessons and cower.
– Cold Open. This was the worst of both worlds for modern SNL cold opens. Trump was made much too aware of himself and of culture, roast master general, and we also got the grab bag which helps the show avoid having any point of view. Ashley doing Tina Fey doing Kristi Noem just seems too inside, although her performance was fine. I’m also ready to see the back of Colin as Pete Hegseth. We’ve fully crossed over into “Colin is just having fun.” If he wants to have fun, he can write and star in some sketches instead of giving us the jolly side of a horrible man. I’m sure he’d be better than at least 3-4 people in the current cast, so just go for it.
Really bad:
– Heated Wizardry. I already said all I needed to say above.
– Skyscraper. Someone above praised this season for not having a star system. That’s interesting to me, because this sketch was the epitome of a “stars only” SNL. There’s no way it would have gotten on if not for Kenan and Mikey. I was genuinely surprised at just how lifeless this was – the sheer state of decay gave me bad flashbacks to just how gassed out this show can get. On a night with attempts at getting the audience of a young talked-about host, why would you want to take us back to seasons 5, 19 or 20? This is what happens when people, in front of and behind the camera, will not leave. Kenan in particular was awful here, but no one came out well. Sarah reminded me of how burnt out she is too, and Mikey is much too comfortable if he was able to get this on the air and no one questioned it.
This wasn’t one of the worst back-from-break episodes, but it also wasn’t good. The issues which I briefly hoped were being addressed but popped back up in December are still there and the best to hope for is they don’t get even worse. The show still doesn’t seem to know how to do much of anything beyond trundling through blocs and sometimes a few skilled performers or writings break through enough to make the trundling worth it.
We’ll see what happens this week.