Cold Opening – ICE Meeting
Tom Homan (PED) meets with ICE agents
- I see this era continues slowly with the unnecessary, random cameos. With now Pete Davidson being given a bone to impersonate a political figure instead of a cast member. Hey, I don’t hate Pete, but come on, Lorne. I am at least glad we are getting a much-needed break from the Trump opens.
- I won’t be shocked, given how their careers been going, if Kate and others from the late ‘10s era would be cameoing half the time in the upcoming few seasons, especially during primaries before S54. Remember all those Rachel Dratch cameos, anyone?
- A very by-the-numbers open. Maybe not as “angry’ as I’ve seen some fans demanding from SNL. Not bad, not amazing.
- And now Pete cracks at himself…. sigh.
- I actually liked this portion with the back-and-forth between JAJ & Pete. Good work from the former especially.
- All-in-all, while a nice break from the Trump opens, this was just…. there. Not exactly the “angry” piece some want from SNL nor exactly sycophantic to Trump. A pretty middle-of-the-road cold open.
Rating: *** (by default)
Monologue
host celebrates 1000th episode & spotlights the Band
- As expected, Alexander is coming off solid and charismatic.
- A fun, refreshing change of pace with Alexander chatting with the SNL band. Nice to see these geniuses getting much-deserved spotlight for this 1000th episode.
- Alexander is handling this so well, even when this premise reminds me of the Vince Vaughn S38 monologue, though this is obviously not around an audience member and clearly more rehearsed.
- I was actually going to go “damn!” at Alexander playing the sax before we got the classic SNL gag with the reveal he actually isn’t. The Harry Styles monologue, IIRC, had one as well.
- A fun monologue overall. Alexander is off to a great start.
Rating: ***1/2
Mom’s Confession
mom (ASP) confesses her mind changing on Trump
- Great look and voice from Alexander as the dad. He gives me Beck Bennett vibes with how he sounds and acts in this sketch.
- Ashley is already absolutely great in this. I know there are some who glaze Ashley way too much, but…. she is a terrific actress and a great cast member with a fantastic tenure so far. She earned all the praise.
- Love the escalation with the mock-shocking “confessions” Ashley is practicing with her kids, especially love her delivery of her butt falling off.
- Great reveal with Ashley confessing about changing her mind regarding President Trump. The cast are great as her kids yelling back at her.
- It feels odd seeing a political sketch in a place outside of the cold open and the desk, but this is working so well for me, especially love Ashley’s soft-spoken delivery of her lengthy confession re: Trump.
- Alexander as the care-free dad is very funny, especially the random announcement that today’s his birthday.
- Even the cutaways to the kids are well-done and funny for the most, though the shaking Andrew one didn’t work for me. Too goofy for my tastes.
- Love Alexander’s line about still wanting Ashley to dance for him tonight.
- The ending with the family screaming at each other actually worked for this sketch’s realistic, slice-of-life style.
- An overall excellent sketch. I loved this the first watch I saw it (judging from by my review above), but it grew even more on me on a rewatch. One of my favorites this season.
Rating: *****
Winter Olympics Promo
athlete (JAW) clearly not meant for this
- Who is that doing the voiceover? A writer? I do not recognize that voice at all.
- Are these actual athletes? The cast members’ looks are too specific to be not.
- Very funny delivery from Jane, especially using her deadpan in a pretaped format. I love the cutaways to her speaking of her hatred of skiing in this environment.
- As this piece goes along, I am getting nice Patti Harrison vibes from Jane’s character, especially being reminded me of that excellent ITYSL piece Patti did (The Capital Room), and while Patti is untouchable to me in deadpan, Jane is a lot of fun here.
- The “going straight down” part is absolutely hilarious. Making it funnier is the clearly fake clip of Jane yelling as she is going down.
- This is a good way to include Alexander in this short, and the clip of him forcing Jane to ski is very funny.
- A very fun piece overall. Another strong pretape this season.
Rating: ****
Norwegian Movie 2
gloomy Scandinavian movie is fun between takes; Stellan Skarsgård cameo
- An extremely lazy choice to have a sequel to this sketch, one I found overrated and dull, especially with this host.
- Considering her terrible season, despite tons of airtime around tables, I see Chloe is attempting to finally have a recurring character of hers on. Meh. She is even recycling the same voice and ticks from her prior failed attempt at a character: Ooli.
- This is going the same exact route as the first sketch, just less funny. I am actually very familiar with these types of Ingmar Bergman-type films, but that’s surely ain’t making me laugh. Certainly not as a justification to keep Chloe Fineman in the cast.
- Stellan! So happy to see this legendary thespian on SNL, and it is a fun callback to JAJ’s role in the original by having him in this.
Rating: **
Immigrant Dad Talk Show 3
Swedish (host) is shamed by father (Stellan Skarsgård)
- Wait, fucking really SNL? TWO rehashes in a row? I never cared for this ripoff of a sketch and now we get THREE sketches with it? Jesus.
- Funny characterization from Alexander of his Swedish character. I like that he feels like he belongs in the movies spoofed by the sketch just before this.
- Man, Marcello is fucking unbearable in this. This is just plain racist and lazy to me. I WANT to see this as a slice of life piece, but the combo of the overused talkshow format, the screaming from Marcello “He Is Hispanic?!” Hernandez and the seeming lack of any resemblance to comedy, makes this comedy poison for me. Every damn time I try to be fair towards this guy, he bottoms out as he often does.
- Mikey Day “earning” his salary playing the exact same character in these sketches, without a twist or anything new. Andrew playing his usual dull, thankless role this season is equally, if not more, as sad.
- Oh, wow. Andrew (poor, poor thing) and Mikey had a “shocking” man-on-man kiss. I didn’t see THAT in the prior sketches! /s
- Also, since when do WASP(?) kiss each other on the mouth? I thought that was a Latin culture thing, with the Italians and French. Oh, whoever wrote this alongside Marcello probably never read a single long book or paragraph in their lives, so whom am I kidding?
- A very funny brief appearance from Stellan. Giving me my only laughs in this embarrassing dreck.
- Nice energy from Cardi in her obligatory sketch appearance. Not sure her part was funny to me.
Rating: *1/2 (Stellan & Alexander elevated this)
The Viking Raid
Viking (host) feels left out of victory celebration
- A bit too much Chloe Fineman for my taste tonight. Guess they need to justify her being the senior woman of the cast.
- Oh, I LOVE JAJ’s accent and look in this. He was born to play a bloodthirsty Viking.
- Funny seeing Alexander playing a Viking, not only because of The Northman (which I loved), but because his brother Gustaf memorably played Floki in Vikings.
- Alexander’s tough Viking being sensitive and going over the examples of being left out is pretty funny and has an oddly endearing tone it, in the middle of carnage. Alexander’s likability is helping sell this premise.
- Despite all the gore, I do like how nonchalantly it is in this short, without Mikey screeching about it and pointing fingers.
- Jeremy being in the background of all of this is pretty funny. A bummer this is his biggest role of the night, though. JAJ also had a surprisingly light week for his standards.
- Love Jeremy’s accent and delivery.
- JAJ rightfully being the lead and getting most of the lines besides the host is another thing I like here.
- The mock-sentimental turn is pretty cute and funny, especially when Jeremy has his hands cut for laughing at the dreadlocks.
Rating: ***1/2
Musical Performance – “Bodega Baddie”
Weekend Update
SAS shares news outside of 30 Rock
Couple Who Just Hooked Up (AND) & (ASP) on the Super Bowl
- I didn’t care for the opening joke from Colin, as it felt like his typical out-of-touch one.
- Don’t compare Bovino to Colonel Lockjaw…. even when I still laughed at the joke.
- I do like the jokes in general, but I do not that many stand out. The Jamaican one maybe the one I liked most so far.
- A good laugh from the Chris Tucker/Melania clip.
- Interesting seeing Sarah doing a remote segment. Reminds me of the one Rachel Dratch did back in season 30.
- This is actually a nice throwback to Sarah’s early desk pieces, without the mascots and mugging, where she would shine on the sheer joy she just has naturally. This is fun, even if it isn’t outstanding.
- Good ad-lib from Sarah about the audience not reacting to her wearing a dress behind the jacket.
- Always fun to see Jack McBrayer. Too bad I was spoiled this cameo just an hour before air due to a post on the subreddit that wasn’t even marked for spoilers.
- Only Michael could make me laugh with that booty joke….
- Yet another character(s) made recurring for no reason? Why? I really loved this Andrew/Ashley teamup earlier in the season, but this is plain unnecessary to me.
- I also feel sad for Andrew, who is having such a nothing season, bringing back this piece to get some much-needed airtime. After Kenan, maybe the saddest I felt for a cast member this season.
- Yeah, I am not hating this, and there is good chemistry and rapport, but…. you just cannot do this again. Guess Lorne will just put anything Ashley does on the air, good or bad. (Still cannot believe that scooter sketch got on the air…)
Rating: ***1/2
Play Date
Agnes (host) hates talking stuff she doesn’t know
- Odd seeing so little of Veronika, considering how good her airtime has been in general as a newbie.
- A worrying visual of Alexander in drag. Considering the great sport he’s been as host, I’ll try to give this an open mind.
- Alexander is actually endearing and funny as a little girl, showing how damn good he is not making this hacky. Adam Driver is another who’d crush such a role and keep it above the usual man-in-drag humor.
- A fun conceit, in what I might dare call a slice-of-life sketch (second tonight to boot), as Alexander’s Agnes is very relatable in her nerves and awkward interactions with the new girls.
- Very funny disturbed smiley look and delivery from Veronika.
- Loved Jane’s “stop asking her if she knows stuff”. Not only a very funny line, but love Jane’s delivery of it.
- Sarah is extremely adorable and believable in this role.
- Not to derail my review but fucking ugh at Chloe holding her laughter. Words cannot explain how fucking unwatchable this performer often is to me of late.
- Even the repeated throwing puppet part with Sarah, as stupid as it is, is making me laugh in the context of this sketch.
- A solid sketch, overall. One of those I dreaded would be hacky, but it turned out pretty fun. Great work from Alexander and Sarah/Jane/Veronika had good moments as well.
Rating: ***1/2
Musical Performance – “ErrTime“
Tarzan
Tarzan (host) breaks up with Jane (SAS)
- Tons of airtime for Sarah tonight. Guess this would satisfy all those ranting stans online raging about her lack of airtime lately. She’s been solid tonight, so I am not complaining.
- A nice visual with Alexander entering the sketch with the rope. His filmography is being worked up tonight, with him now reprising his Tarzan.
- I am not caring really for this sketch’s premise and execution. Sarah is good as Jane (cannot even imagine how awful Chloe would’ve been in this role), and Alexander is as great as usual tonight, but meh.
- Another “hilarious” appearance from Kenan. Blah. I feel embarrassed watching this almost middle-aged man doing these types of roles still.
- An OK fourth wall-break with the Long Island mention with Sarah. Otherwise, this was underdeveloped and flat, despite likable lead work from Sarah & Alexander.
Rating: **1/2
Funny Boyfriend
funny boyfriend (host) uses other means for joke mining
- I am liking Alexander’s American accent and delivery.
- A huge laugh from the visual of all the cards falling from Alexander’s jacket. The reveal of the cards containing the jokes Alexander was telling is a solid and funny premise.
- Feels rare seeing Andrew getting a funny line and moment, considering the endless string of dull, uninteresting roles he’s getting practically all the time this season.
- Really solid supporting work from the cast in their shock over Alexander’s fake “funny” nature. Alexander, who’s been such a great host, is perfect for this.
- JAJ killed his whole moment in this sketch.
- Considering how the season really scaled back on those weird, silly sketches of late (wish The Incident aired last week), I am glad this got the 10-to-1 spot, as it is beyond perfect for it and is killing me.
- Love how Alexander is delivering those intentionally lame lines to sound cool. It takes a certain talent to make them both funny and cringey at the same time.
- Alexander is fucking killing in this sketch. I love his escalating monologue at the end of this sketch, especially bringing up his mom to see how he is now. The mock-serious way he is taking all of this is having me on the floor.
- One of the most unique, creative pieces of the season. Add this to the ”tremendous replay value” folder for me. I’ll only enjoy this silly gem even more moving forward.
Rating: *****
Cut For Time: Epstein-Barr
doctor (COJ) is misrepresented by graphics
- Jesse Nathan: Okay, before you guys get all excited, going like, “oh my God, Jesse’s come out of retirement, oh my God”, bear in mind, this is only temporary. I’m just doing this as a favor.
- Not sure if I cared for Steve Higgins’ opening joke.
- Ugh at Kenan and Ashley’s fake names. That’s already a bad sign.
- Right off the bat, it feels like there’s a confused tone going on, as Ashley’s bit regarding her cheesily reading a serious story didn’t work for me, despite her excellent delivery.
- I admit to getting a chuckle from Andrew realizing it’s not gonna be sunny.
- What’s this? Colin in a lead role? Please, continue.
- Hmm, not too sure about the premise of the misleading graphics. It feels like a premise that was done better in other sketches, though I can’t think of any off the top of my head.
- Meh, so far, these graphics are only mildly funny at best, and the joke is getting a little too obvious.
- Okay, it was kinda funny how one graphic used an actual bar instead of “Epstein-Barr”.
- This is gonna be weird of me to say, but why couldn’t they have Alexander play Mikey’s role instead? It probably would’ve given him something to do.
- At some moments, it feels like Colin is about to break. Meh. It’s already pretty tired on joke swaps.
- Ugh at the predictable “island” joke.
- Okay, I got an actual laugh from the graphic saying “I’m hard right now”.
- This sketch is going on a little longer than it should, and the joke has stopped being funny. Like, we get it.
- Kam in a thankless role, I see.
- Kam’s part seemed to get Colin to finally break.
- Meh at the reveal of Colin having slept with the graphics guy’s wife.
- I hate that I got a chuckle from the Menendez brothers bit, but I did. Also, poor, poor Tommy and Jeremy.
Rating: **1/2
Goodnights
- Catherine O’Hara…. no words to give her justice. One of the best to ever do it, in my eyes.
Segments Ranked From Best to Worst
Mom’s Confession
Funny Boyfriend
Winter Olympics Promo
Play Date
The Viking Raid
Monologue
Weekend Update
ICE Meeting
Tarzan
CFT: Epstein-Barr
Norwegian Movie 2
Immigrant Dad Talk Show 3
Final Thoughts:
- My initial thoughts halfway through this episode is that I was not vibing with it (a Chloe & Marcello “showcase” sketches, back-to-back, would do that to one), but now that I look back on it after finishing it, some of it I felt was really strong, memorable (including some “Best Of” material), lots that was solid, some weak, and some “not horrible, but didn’t need this”-type of material. Alexander Skarsgård being game and fun, as well as sketch appearances by his legendary father (one of my all-time favorite actors) elevated the night. So, all-in-all, yet another solid episode from this season that had a wide variety of sketches ranging from solid to fantastic. Alexander Skarsgård was a fantastic host, somehow even better than I expected him to be. Did a great job in every role, got laughs, was exceedingly likable and charming, and one of the season’s absolute best hosts, in my eyes.
My Favorite Moments of the Episode, Represented with Screencaps:
My full set of screencaps from this episode is here
Great review as always Blood!
Solid episode all around and nothing here I truly hated. Alexander was a great host and even though he plays such stoic and/or intense characters, he clearly has a silly side to him that he brought to the table. Would love to see him back again someday.
I have to give it to Jane. I’m really rooting for her this season. She has clearly been putting in the work and the show is getting better at putting her dead-pan to good use. Her delivery in the Agnes sketch was excellent.
Sarah’s season has depressed me to no end. I miss silly/agent of chaos Sarah Sherman and it’s been sad to see her get nothing role after nothing role. This was the first episode all season where I saw that twinkle in her eye come back. Sadly the desk piece is something we’ve seen from her before but at least I hope this means they will let Sarah be Sarah again.
What more is there to be said about Ashley. Her acting and her timing are beyond excellent and the Mom Confession sketch was one of her and the season’s past. I also like her reprise of the couple. The writing was predictably derivative but her and Andrew still killed it performance wise.
All around a fun time!
A shockingly great episode here and Alexander gets my personal vote of being the best host of the season so far literally everything that could’ve been not great to me he elevated it amazingly and he’s another host this season I would be down to host in the future!
WERE FREE FROM TRUMP! And maybe because I was so burnt out of the Trump called opens that they have done so frequently this season but I really enjoyed this and easily, my favorite cold open of the season and this reminded me of a few other cold opens they did in the past like one in the Catherine Zeta-Jones episode and one in the Kevin Bacon episode of basically I guess soldiers asking stupid questions to the serious leader and a ton of goofy lines from a lot of the male cast members in this. And I thought Pete did pretty well with this opening even if I do agree, it’s weird to have HIM cameo in THIS.
The Mom’s confession sketch I think just like the parent teacher conference sketch Ashley did in the premier3 that could’ve been very bad, but Ashley delivery and the other bits the performers were doing made this amazing. I really enjoyed the shot of Andrew cartoonishly about to erupt and Sarah doing whatever the technical name is for when people are about to pray. I also think this is was a better use of Ashley screaming which, while I personally haven’t hated have noticed she has been leaning towards often which is a trend I don’t think any cast member should even if it works. I also thought this (as well as many things in this episode) was an excellent use of Jane.
I’m a big Chloe defender, even if I do understand the criticism she gets (even if the actual HATE she gets I think is doing too much) and I’ll continue to be with the Norwegian actor sketch as I thought this one was better than the first mainly because of I think Alexander blending in well then Glen Powell did and the very fun Stellan cameo (even if I sadly didn’t recognize him at first). Also the accents on the performers, especially Jane and Chloe are really amusing to me.
This was easily the best of the immigrant Dad talk show sketches mainly think once again to Stellan and Cardi here. I also really enjoyed Alexander’s character here in Mikey‘s ICE shirt cracked me up and all the highlights here that I just mentioned made up for the usual tire format the sketch brings to my eyes.
I don’t have anything to note of the Play date sketch as you pretty much said everything as everyone Alexander and the girls was extremely charming in this (and another strong Jane performance IN A LIVE SKETCH). I will say I feel quite the opposite with Veronika’s airtime as I feel she’s just been there for most sketches and while that’s good and understandable for someone in their rookie year I think I need to see more from her to even say she’s had a decent season so far so seeing how little she appeared is nothing new to me. And maybe it’s just a me thing but I never really hated any breaking on SNL mainly just because I am usually laughing alongside the performers who are cracking up as well and plus I feel it’s always one of the most fun things about the show being live even if yes, it is unprofessional.
And that’s all I got for this one again a very solid episode my second favorite of the season after Sabrina. Also a surprising but in a way also not surprising solid night for the female class, though I am very disappointed no Kam Patterson because I never like shutouts on the show (and I am actually enjoying him a lot on SNL tbh). See ya til the end of February with that Heated Rivalry guy!!!
I’m glad you liked the last 3 sketches but I didn’t. Also I’m tired of Squirm roasting Jost, Roast Che like Heidi/Ego did.
I did like the Olympic Promo sketch (Only sketch I liked in the episode) but I am glad to see Wickline emoting more in live sketches.
2 Sketches I wish happened:
– Maya/Cardi as Ilhan Omar referencing the attack this week
– Cardi B as Nicki Minaj on Update talking about trump
– I also would’ve had Ashley as Kristi Noem instead of Tom Homan
really liked this one Kudos to Jane in the Play Date Sketch. “Stop asking her if she knows stuff” got one of the biggest laughs of the show.
last sketch was right up my alley with absurd random lines. One of my favorites of this season honestly. Josh Gad line killed me
lots of Sarah tonight. She was actually pretty good. She was actually kind of sweet in the Tarzan sketch
Viking sketch seemed like leftover gore and blood stuff from Mikey and Streeter. Didn’t hit with me.
Stellan’s cameos were both great
opening Trump family sketch didn’t quite hit with me but performances were good
Chloe breaking for no reason multiple times again
Pete cameo was whatever
and the host had stuff to do in this episode! Show used him pretty great
This was an overall pretty solid episode despite some misses (the back to back Chloe and Marcello showcases had me really worried). I also didn’t care too much for the Play Date sketch. Despite good supporting work from Jane (this entire episode was fantastic for her. Easily her best episode yet. Watching her improve tremendously has really been a delight), I couldn’t shake how repetitive and formulaic this was, despite Alexander’s efforts. The throwing Sarah out the window gag was funny once, but they kept doing it over and over again and it stopped being funny. A thin premise that got insanely repetitive for me.
Anyways, that aside, there were some strong highlights here. The leadoff sketch with Ashley continues the phenomenal season she’s been having. I know some are starting to tire of her screaming/yelling roles, but I’ve seen a couple of comparisons to Will Ferrell, someone else who had a penchant for yelling even when, much like Ashley, he was very versatile and a terrific glue type performer as well. I can definitely see it. This particular sketch had parallels to Dysfunctional Family Dinner and it worked well. I also enjoyed how this had a very slice of life approach. You can’t tell me this conversation isn’t being had in thousands of homes right now.
The 10-to-1, likewise, was terrific. So silly and creative the way a 10-to-1 should be. Alexander’s best performance of the whole night easily and terrific supporting work from everyone, especially JAJ.
I actually disagree with you on the Couple bit on Update. While it wasn’t necessary to have it be recurring, I found this installment to be pretty strong as well. Ashley and Andrew were just as fantastic as last time and I liked the energy they brought to disagreeing over how serious their relationship was. They have such great chemistry and play off each other really well.
Viking Raid was a nice twist on the gore type pieces. I liked how they didn’t go the route of having it start off sweet and sentimental and then turn “shocking” with the gore. Instead, the casual treatment of the heinous violence while Alexander was delivering his sweet and touching monologue worked a lot better. I hope, if SNL continues with these gore pieces, they’ll do more twists like this one.
Alexander really was a fun host. While I don’t think he was utilized to his full potential outside of the 10-to-1 (a very odd recurring theme for this season), he was very fun and likable and committed.
Despite some flaws, I’m happy that, so far, this season has been avoiding the pitfalls of last year as well as the inconsistencies that plagued seasons 48 and 49. While still far from perfect with some clear flaws, there’s been a solid consistency to most of the episodes thus far. Hope it continues!
It was a surprisingly great episode. My top 3 sketches of the night were Mom’s Conression, the Olympics promo, and Agnes. I wish I had loved the Cards Against Humanity sketch more than I did, but it was still fine.
Happy 1000 episodes!
Wonderful review once again, Blood.
I thought this was a decent episode, and pretty consistent too. The only 2 pieces I didn’t care for (The cold open, and Tarzan both felt a bit “off”) were just subpar, rather than flat out bad.
Jane continues her steady rise, with her Winter Olympics pretape being my favorite piece in this episode. Her lines abt how she hates the thing she’s good at was hilarious, and Alexander’s moments as her coach were great.
The Monologue was a very fun showcase for Alexander, and showed he was down for everything.
Weekend Update was helped by Sarah’s great commentary. Dismukes and Ashley didn’t need to hook up again, but it wasn’t bad. Also the jokes were fairly forgettable, surprise surprise.
I loved the 10-to-1 with Alexander reading his jokes off Cards Against Humanity cards. All of the cards falling out of his puffer jacket was really funny, and everyone else’s intense delivery after finding out was great.
There were certain aspects I didn’t care for abt this episode though.
Immigrant Dad Talk Show would be great if they didn’t repeat the EXACT SAME bit with Mikey and his son with every installment. I feel like this could’ve been really good has it stayed on its original path of Marcello being weirded out by Alexander’s character. Cardi B, and Stellan REALLY helped this installment for me.
Why did they bring back the European Movie Shoot sketch? Why? I really enjoyed it the first time, but it just doesn’t work as a recurring sketch. Stellan saved it for me at the end, but still.
Alexander Skarsgaard was the first host in a LOOOOOONG while that was actually utilized really well for most of the episode. He was great and I would love to see him return.
I’m honestly just worried for the Connor Storrie episode, since I just KNOW the show is probably gonna pander to Heated Rivalry fans to DEATH throughout.
Let’s hope that doesn’t happen though, everyone enjoy your February.
Thank you as always for your wonderful reviews and screen captures, Blood Meridian.
Courtesy of Saturday Night Network, the cut pieces:
UPDATE: Chloe playing Melania Trump.
DIVORCE PROCEEDINGS: Andrew is reported as cheating on his wife by Alexander, who is a PI as well as a skateboarder. He has created a skateboard film style edit with a fisheye lens and such. Kenan is a judge. Ben, Sarah, Chloe, Veronika and Kam also appear.
CHANNEL 4 NEWS Sketch: Hostless. Epstein-Barr virus. A lot of jokes about Epstein. Kenan and Ashley are the anchors. Jost has a major role in this as a doctor explaining what the virus is, and there are chyrons referring to him as the new Epstein and referring to things that aren’t happening. “A Mikey Day style sketch.” Mikey plays someone with the last name Young. Inappropriate jokes about Young and Epstein. Kam, Tommy, Jeremy also appear.
I will have more to say later, but I will just say now that both Kenan and Chloe, two people I wasn’t big on heading into this season, have now crossed over into being almost intolerable.
Kenan appeared in I think two things this episode. In both instances, he was very hammy and contributed nothing that any cast member, including folks like Kam who was shut out or Jeremy/Tommy, who had nothing much to do, could have played. I agree you’re getting to the point where watching him is sort of embarrassing, like that 50 year old guy at your HS reunion still doing the same “cool guy” stuff.
Chloe was most prominently in two things. In the Agnes sketch, she corpsed like a jabroni and was outclassed by Veronika, Jane, and Sarah. I mildly gave her a pass for corpsing in the Finn episode, but she was still unprofessional and this was ridiculous here. In her other big sketch, she wasn’t *bad* but she was rehashing something that didn’t need rehashing and showed no range. If Kenan is content to lazily play the hits and the same beats, Chloe seems sort of desperate to have a success and be part of a great viral moment.
Jane killing it in the second half of the season, I was worried for her for a while thinking she might not make it another season but I think she’s found her niche on the show and the writers seem to know her voice better now and throwing her a lot of “Jane-type lines” that have been landing well, like in the sleepover sketch, where she got the audiences biggest laugh in the sketch.
Great review Blood! This is probably the most enthusiastic I’ve been about an episode this season. I think a lot of that is because of how strong the top of the show was and how that high quality gave the show the right momentum to carry through the typical waning qualities of the show’s final two-thirds.
So I’ll start with the cold open. I loved it. I’ve been generally fine with the Trump stuff, but this felt fresh and focused, even with the poison pill of a pointless Pete cameo. So often, the cold opens feel like “summary-time” where the show tries to encapsulate a million different ideas at once. This felt like a fully conceived sketch that just happened to fit into the opening slot of the show. Real early-90s shit. My favorite cold open of the year, by some margin too.
And then shock of all shocks, the monologue worked too! Talk about the impossible! Skarsgard had great, odd energy and just when you think that the show has completely tapped out of monologue concepts, they actually pull off something fresh here. Yes, it could have maybe been “more” but I’ll take what we got and celebrate what we didn’t get (award show patter). Best monologue of the season so far.
And then for that positive energy to roll right into that perfect Mom’s Confession sketch…I really felt like we were cooking. I know there is a feeling like the show’s Trump material has been iffy, but I’d point out that when the show approaches Trump from a different angle (Snack Homiez, White House Makeover, this), there is a spark that really feels more vibrant than anything else on the show. This piece, another simple but fully realized concept, absolutely hits home. After the Josh O’Connor episode, I feared the enWiigification of Ashley Padilla, but she simply continues to do her work in one-off scenes instead turning everything into a recurring character. Like, imagine if Kristen Wiig only did things like the Carpool sketch, that’s what we’re getting with Ashley right now and it deserves every bit of celebration it gets.
And then immediately after that we get a Jane Wickline feature that absolutely crushes. Nothing is more exciting than seeing a performer find their comic voice in real time. Ashley was the big development at the start of the year (and is now a pillar), and what’s now transpiring with Jane is a real thrill.
I knew the quality of the show could not sustain itself, but even the two recurring pieces kept their heads above water. The Swedish actors sketch is far from fabulous, but it is still a well-conceived and decently executed piece of sketch comedy. I have my issues with Chloe as do so many others, but these pieces are a sort of inoffensive wash that help pass the time effectively.
Marcello’s feature was one that really aggravated me before, but I found this one entirely palatable. Not great, but the Latinos vs. Nords conceit was a fun one and Marcello seemed to be a little more reined in here.
As for the back half of the show, I found both Play Date and Funny Boyfriend to be equally winning and likely my favorite use of Skarsgard all evening. Once again, shout out to Jane for having the line of the night in Play Date. These were great, silly fun.
Quick hits:
– I’m less concerned about Andrew than Blood is. I thought he had a banger episode. His season has been slightly less front and center (especially compared to a couple seasons ago), but he is still a key part of SNL’s essential triptych with Ashley and JAJ.
– The Update commentaries were familiar, but a good familiar. Sarah’s was probably the most delightful she’s been all season with her weather piece and I could watch the Ashmukes pairing all day.
– The Viking thing was super well-executed, but it washed over me a bit.
– Tarzan felt more like a missed opportunity despite some interesting ideas. It was the most I’ve ever wanted Kenan to just go away all season though.
Anyways, after a season of OK to good episodes featuring GREAT sketches, I think we finally landed our first GREAT episode.
Agree on the monologue Carson, forgot to mention that. It felt like one of the random concept monologues you’d see a lot more in the 90s, rather than the host tells personal stories “charm-a-logues” of today as they’ve been referred to here. I’ve missed those.
If I may make a request, Blood. Seeing as you just reviewed episode 1,000 of SNL, I wonder if you could review all the eps that end in double zero (100, 200, etc.)
I’d love that, Joseph, and a few years ago, I would’ve done it, but unfortunately, I simply don’t have the time nowadays to do it.
The process of doing these reviews takes A LOT of my time and energy, add to it my own personal and professional lives, it’s a miracle I’ve been posting these reviews, alongside screencap galleries, as quickly past the episodes’ airing as possible. And hope to continue doing so as far as my life could allow me, unless it affects my future and/or own ambitions.
And, outside of said reviews and my own job (and being a teacher already takes much of my time, even on some weekends), I have my own hobbies and dreams I want to make come true. This four weeks break hopefully will bring back my energy for the next run.
I hope you and others understand what I mean here. Thanks for the support.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD9knji2F0w
Cut for time sketch posted, starring Colin Jost!
Hi, as a forever SNL fan, I am happy to have found your page! Odd that it never appeared in my searches in the past. I have a couple of quick questions:
1. why don’t you comment on the musical performances too?
2. do you think that was Skarsgard Senior sitting in as one of the extras in the Pete Davidson opener?
3. Why the Chloe hating? I like her! Better than the over-rated Keenan, and even the Colin-Che bits, IMO.
If you wanna see reviews of musical performances, I’d recommend going through his reviews of S40-43.
Hey, glad to see you commenting,
1. While I enjoy some musical performances, I both don’t have much time to review them and also I just don’t think I’ll give them justice. I am not that good talking about music, which is why I’m open to commenters reviewing them under my reviews.
2. I am sure that’s not Stellan. No way they’ll have him as a random extra in the cold open.
3. I don’t hate Chloe; she’s just beyond past her prime and is practically laughing her way through every sketch by this point to the point it feels she is doing so for attention. IMHO, she has nothing to give the show now.
Finally watched the episode.
I didn’t really enjoy much of this, and I’m not sure how much is me and how much is the show itself. I’m glad we’re getting a month off.
– Alexander was fine, but lacked much of the dynamism I had expected, which hurt the few showcases he had. On paper, that monologue could have been great. I also would not have cast him in the lead for the cards sketch, although it was still the best sketch of the night.
– The Vikings pre-tape was my other “favorite” of the night. The gore theme is played out, but the concept was original by standards of recent years, and Alexander did a good job with the material.
– Jane is still finding her way, slowly winning the audience over, but Seiday did her no favors with the structure of that pre-tape. Repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat. It felt 10 minutes long.
– Similarly, writing with Sublette and Gates isn’t doing much for me in terms of Ashley. She did well in the Trump mother sketch, but I just kept thinking how much better suited the role was to Kate McKinnon 7 or 8 years earlier. Their writing feels out of date and lacks confidence even after all these years (which is why we got the “kids react” haha scenes). And Ashley has been so overexposed I struggle to react to her performances now.
– You said it all about the repeats. I was especially disappointed that Andrew’s only real roles tonight were in repeats, one of which was degrading/homophobic. Andrew’s my favorite of the cast but I think it’s his time to leave.
– Even by cold open standards I was surprised at how dead this was. A complete lack of energy, and very poor performances from Kenan, Mikey and Pete. The writing was poor and confused but they didn’t even try to lift it. I am not sure if they felt they needed to be balanced about ICE but given that their only real commentary on ICE has been mocking white people who object to ICE, they haven’t exactly been going out on a limb.
– Say what you will about Cardi B, but she did in less than a minute of screentime what Marcello has failed to do for four seasons (and completely incapable of doing at this point).
– Stellan really was the hero of this episode, and Alexander’s best sketch work was also in his presence. The only valuable moments in that immigrant sketch. Probably in any of the three tedious versions of this sketch.
– They seemed to try to make some changes to the Swedish movie sketch due to being a sequel, so why did Mikey’s character act like he’d never seen them break before?
– Any time the “stars” return, the quality dips, which may be one of the reasons I am in a malaise with the show these days. Sarah got a big airtime increase here, so I’m sure many are happy, but the best she managed here with all those showcases was…fine. And if that’s all she has left to give (which is, admittedly, still more than Chloe), then I hope she moves on.
I think it’s you, John.
Having seen this one live, the first one in a LONG time, I have to agree with Carson on this one, despite missing the “cold open”… which is probably for the best, despite Pete.
Also, 1000 shows. I thought that would NEVER happen again, especially in an age of streaming, and yet… here we are. Nothing but love to Lorne and company for surviving it all, clunkers and all.
I can see some of John’s points–I agree the cold opening was terrible, featuring an intentionally (?) bad casting of Pete as Tom Homan, and the classic SNL “can’t think of a point” when near the end of the sketch, Homan himself notes that he wouldn’t actually say the things he’s saying here.
I also agree that Stellan was one of the best parts of the episode–seems like they couldn’t decide which of his cameos would be funnier, so they let him do both, which was good. I do agree that the overuse of repeats was pretty lazy, although I get WHY they would use most of them for Skarsgard–since he did fine work in all of the sketches, they couldn’t have felt a lack of confidence.
I disagree on some things. Skarsgard to me was a great host, perhaps not the greatest in terms of range but hard working, energetic, and funny. He reminded me of Jim Carrey actually in the monologue.
I also dispute that Kate would have been the better choice for the mother sketch. She would have been fine–especially at her peak–but the deluded white lady is an Ashley specialty. That said, I completely agree that she has played this part TOO MUCH in her short tenure. This also speaks to the issue in that the rest of the female cast seems too young to play the mom type roles Ashley is cast in, so that also adds to the burnout feel. The loss of Heidi and Ego still remains a sore one, although I do like the Ashley/Jane/Veronika triad.
We had different feelings on the pretapes. The Olympics one was perfectly fine to me and featured a very funny Jane performance (and I agree she was one of the best performers in the episode). The structure is fairly standard, but there’s a reason why the standard structure can result in laughs, and I didn’t think this dragged. In contrast, the Vikings one, while well-made and performed, just rushed over me–the joke was one-note and the gore punctuation is an overdone joke at this point. The biggest laugh I got was Jeremy playing the monk.
I thought the sketches post-Update, while not fabulous, at least tried to throw in…somewhat original premises. And I appreciate a reference to the underrated Tarzan film (too bad Taran couldn’t have done his Christoph Waltz impression again). That said, I shudder if we get reworked reprisals of the kids sketch featuring another male host as one of the girls or somehow doing the Cards sketch again.
While nothing was A1 here, the episode was an enjoyable experience, especially after the muddled mess of last week in which the host and show did not seem to be on the same page.
Thanks to @Jesse Nathan for your review. I would agree with your rating – *** if I was generous. These were retired, after heavy use, for good reason, but I prefer this style of Jost Roast to what we get so often at the desk (like Sarah this week), and Mikey cracking up amused me (it was like even he couldn’t believe this old wheeze was back).
@Mike Cheyne, it’s interesting you mention Carrey, as Alexander reminded me of Vera de Milo in the drag sketch. I agree I could see it back. I didn’t love his performance (although he was fine…just more effort than anything else), so I could see a stronger male host adding a new spin, but you could tell how out of ideas they were with throwing Sarah out a window 3 different times.
The Tarzan sketch reminded me of something from a late ’60s variety show or an old Carson sketch, which isn’t a bad thing, just a bit strange for today. I wish they’d kept more of that approach and cut some of the more blatant sex jokes, which didn’t fit the format (those could be risque for the time but didn’t end in what amounts to “what that mouth do”).
On February 28th, the first episode after the Winter Olympics concludes, Connor Storrie of Heated Rivalry fame will host for his first time, with musical guest Mumford & Sons, appearing for their 4th time.
On March 7th, the first-time host streak ends with Ryan Gosling returning as host for the 4th time, with Gorillaz making their musical guest debut.
Hey, so, an SNL insider says that Harry Styles might serve double duty on March 14th, and…I’ll believe that when I see it.
Well, here it is: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1CTpuaAGYR/
An annoying recurring theme of the past decade is cast members’ continuous breaking in their later seasons (Cecily, Bowen, Heidi, Chloe, etc.). Most of these cast members rarely broke in their earlier seasons. I think with cast staying longer, they get more comfortable and less scared. This is another reason cast should not be staying 7+ seasons.