April 4, 2026 – Jack Black / Jack White (S51 E16)

Cold Opening – NCAA Post Game Show

Pam Bondi (ASP) crashes sports show

• Funny enough, I was complaining how the show never seems to do sports-centric cold opens like they used to. Am I being tracked? If so, can Lorne fire the people I’ve been begging to leave? Thanks in advance.
• As always, a very good Ernie Johnson voice from JAJ. I even like his impression a little more than the solid one Bill Hader used to do.
• I am not familiar with the coach Jeremy is playing, but he is great in this part.
• Kenan’s Chuck remains fun, but I am not really caring much for his lines. It doesn’t help that I am familiar with the program Barkley is a regular on and the real deal is a lot funnier.
• I do not get why this is framed as a sports cold open when Kenan’s Barkley is the focus due to his political statements. Why have such a confused tone and approach? Either do politics or sports, no need to do these checklist opens the late 10s did endlessly.
• We now get a closeup clapter speech from Kenan about AG Bondi’s firing, with of course Kenan cracking up at himself per usual. 3 mil a year salary, everyone.
• Ashley randomly showing up as Bondi makes me realize Amy is probably not doing a cameo tonight.
• Solid work by Ashley as usual, but I am not caring much for her dialogue, especially the whole “our country is dying” tone the show been using with conservatives. Not to be morbid in a sketch comedy show review, but it is just too real to laugh at.

Rating: **1/2

Monologue

host is inducted into ruined Five-Timers Club

• Oh wow, Jonah Hill just “crashed” Jack Black’s monologue. I am sure Jack did not expect this to happen…
• It feels odd seeing Jonah Hill back again in these Five-Timers sketches/monologues, as he is probably the least deserving to be a member (not that I dislike him really), and that he never was in any others besides his own induction.
• The Five-Timers room being filled with webs and having a spooky feeling is a decent concept on paper, but it makes no sense in the SNL canon as they had a cold open when Martin Short hosted last season in the same place. I understand this a setup for our obligatory musical number from Jack, but still.
• Wow, Tina Fey is also “crashing” the monologue, for what feels like the billionth time.
• A lengthy applause break for the comedic legend. Feels longer than usual.
• Despite her usual good delivery, I didn’t care for Tina’s “black host” joke.
• A good mention of SNL UK. Feels kinda sad, however, considering how much less formulaic, more original that version of the show has been so far. Not to even get into its cast compared to this one….
• Awkward timing from Jack as Candice Bergen(!) delivers her Paddington joke.
• Despite all these cameos, this monologue has a dead feeling. As much as I love Jack Black, his typical energy feels a bit much in this monologue, especially his “surprised” reactions towards the cameos.
• I liked seeing Jack White beating Domingo with the frying pan, as it was satisfying for me to watch. Nice to see him in a sketch for a change. Him being called Snape makes me think he would have been a pretty cool choice for that new Harry Potter show.
• The musical turn, complete with Jack White playing his guitar seems to try and add energy to this monologue, even when I think “Seven Nation Army”, brilliant as it is, is a bit of a predictable choice. Black’s infectious energy, complete with White’s effortless coolness, is giving this a nice boost.
• All-in-all: I am having a tough time with this monologue. Canonically, it made no sense having the room be abandoned, as it was just used last season, they reused a lot of jokes for Tina, Candice and Melissa, and the energy was just off, complete with awkward timing issues.

Rating: *** (the final number boosted this a bit for me)

Kathy

office co-worker (ASP) wants to be involved in others’ affairs

• As soon as they revealed Ashley’s “character”, I knew his sketch wasn’t going to be for me. While I generally love Ashley Padilla as a cast member and she has produced some terrific work this season (although her season is cooling off big time this back half), these types of roles seem specifically on air because they star her. Then again, seeing the “dream team” of Chloe, Jane and Sarah, I am not shocked she is this heavily used (which also, again, thankfully cooled off a bit this back half).
• This type of Groundlings piece is very hit or miss for me, as the “annoying” type of character lives or dies by the writing. I know some would say Ashley “saved” this, but with this, that awful gameshow sketch, that farting thing, how many sketches should Ashley Padilla “save” before we realize something is wrong?
• The being quiet part is actually a promising and a unique way for a sketch to escalate, but the joke is being beaten to death, especially Ashley’s delivery each time she enters the conversation and repeats herself. She isn’t as insufferable as she was in that gameshow sketch, and thankfully not screeching, but I ain’t impressed by this.
• Much like the first Update piece later on (and yes, I didn’t watch this episode live, due partly to frustrations with the show’s quality in general, and so far I’m not proven wrong), this piece feels like it will only work for you if you worship every single thing a cast member, Ashley in this case, does on the show. Even if they farted for a five minutes straight, it’ll be a “win” for (cast member’s name) Nation. I was never that type of fan, as you can guess by the reviews.
• Boy, the whole “we’re talking TV?”-s part is melting my brain. It ain’t funny if you repeat the same fucking joke over and over and over….
• Was that “punchline” even one? Someone skipped Sketch Writing 101.

Rating: **

Words to Live By

country singers (host), (JAJ), (AND) forget the words of wisdom

• God, I can never get tired of hearing JAJ’s incredible singing voice. It boggles my mind how talented this man is.
• Mikey (in his final appearance of the night, by the way) as a dying old man feels oddly meta.
• A good laugh from JAJ’s confused recollection of his old man’s life advice to him. His singing while being frustrated over forgetting it is both so catchy and fun. JAJ just has so much life and joy beaming from him. And never a moment where he degrades himself for a laugh. Unlike so many others in this cast.
• The Men in Black gag is pretty funny.
• This is a fairly fun concept with the singers forgetting what they were told by wise old men, complete with really catchy music, as per of JAJMukes-penned musical pretapes.
• I love the whole Andrew portion, and a big laugh from him telling the kid to flat-out shut up. This is the usual hilarious Andrew Dismukes moment that he always nails, which we sadly didn’t get much of this season.
• Very funny moment with Jack White. Awesome seeing him in another piece.
• I love how White messed up his epic solo, considering the legendary guitarist that he is. Solid self-deprecation there.
• Such a fun finale to this whole pretape. While I didn’t find this as great as Lake Beach, this was such fun. The first solid piece of the night.

Rating: ****

Ultimate Dojo

self-defense teachers (host) & (MAH) teach the rough way

• As soon as this sketch began, I knew the defense sensei would 100% be played by Jack, alongside a “character” role for Marcello.
• This is pretty much as annoying as I expected. Makes you feel confused if you are supposed to like these characters or feel annoyed by them. Tough choice, considering a certain screeching performer being cast next to the host.
• JAJ is very good and it feels refreshing seeing him playing this type of role more and more, as he adds life to deadness.
• Despite the “energy”, which you HAVE TO recognize with Marcello being the co-lead, this sketch is just D.O.A. Another example of how eerily dead so much of this era is when attempting “fun” sketches. The cruise sketch, which I liked fine enough last episode, had the same deadness. Just nowhere near as insufferable.
• We of course get “wacky” Kenan complete with Chloe randomly breaking. Ugh.
• A “priceless” gag with Marcello’s character having bushy chest hair. My sides. Surprised they didn’t call it out, considering the rare condition we SNL fans suffer from, with the lack of eyeballs and brain.
• At least Jeremy & Jane had another decent moment in a sketch. They seem to form an unusual pairing. Considering the almost complete lack of chemistry this cast have with each other, this surprisingly was not too bad a way to end this sketch, 37,8394 minutes into it.

Rating: *1/2

Husbands

awkward husbands get along through “Carry on Wayward Son”

• I got a huge laugh from the cutaway to all the husbands sitting awkwardly together.
• This sadly feels like the most prominent role Andrew has gotten in a live sketch in ages. The way this genius has been so severely underused of late baffles me.
• Love the turn with the guys harmonizing. This is a perfect way to have a guys’ sketch and it being fun, sincere. Nice slice of life vibes, too.
• I also love “Carry on Wayward Son” and it is nice to see it used instead of a more predictable recent song.
• Ah, another use of JAJ’s amazing singing voice tonight. Tommy has quite the singing voice, too, so it is nice to see it used again.
• I absolutely loved the harmonizing trio of Andrew/Tommy/JAJ, especially how the latter entered the frame. I cannot say enough great things about James Austin Johnson. A gift to watch this talent.
• A lot of genuine laughs from the mundane cutting back-and-forth between the wives and the husbands bonding over niche guy things. This is such a genuinely upbeat, fun, sweet sketch to watch. JAJ is especially the standout in this. One of his best performances of the season, which says something.
• I love Jack throwing the blunt from his hand, and the following Playboy magazine gag was just as funny.
• Love the audience going crazy over JAJ ripping his pants fully, instead of revealing a jumpsuit like the other guys.
• Freakin’ fantastic delivery from JAJ “I got excited and I pulled too hard”. This guy…. Just terrific in every moment he gets.
• One of the best sketches of the season. All the guys were great in this, especially JAJ.

Rating: ****1/2

Musical Performance – “Derecho Demonico”

Weekend Update

Kristi Noem’s husband (SAS) defends secret life

Black Snape (KAP) calls out Harry Potter’s racism

• I didn’t care for that Easter punchline to start off this edition of the desk.
• Ugh at that Strait of Hormuz joke. Sick of these “shocking” jokes. Often, the laughs aren’t ironic during them.
• I’ll admit, I really liked that theatre joke from Michael.
• Meh at the predictable turn with Sarah showing up as Noem’s husband. I actually have seen some fans speculating that Andrew would be given this role, but I guess not. This whole story was funny for just a day. And, surprise surprise, SNL goes right for the bottom feeders and lowest common denominators. A hallmark of this SNL era.
• I really can’t stand this whole “trying not to laugh” face Sarah Sherman puts on in these desk pieces of hers, as if I am supposed to be honored watching her ramble for four minutes straight. This is another example of an outlandish story SNL tries to “parody” but fails, due to both its lack of energy (and despite good ol’ Jack, this show has that “dead” feeling again), and mediocre writing.
• A good, quick appearance from Ashley as Kristi. Too bad it couldn’t save this.
• The rest of this is the usual rambling, annoying mess that will be forgotten in a day or two. The audience, as usual with these “star” pieces, just feels left out. Like, I am supposed to sit back and yuk this up. End this, please.
• Wait, what? Michael Che is sexist?! I did not know of THAT before….
• Lots of lame jokes in general in this portion. I especially groaned, besides the aforementioned joke, at the Pizza Hut and dog jokes.
• Kam as Black Snape is something I did not expect, but it is yet another predictable, dull way to cover the new Harry Potter show. Much like the prior Noem story, the jokes have all already been told about this.
• Kam is charismatic as usual in this, but the commentary is a big ol’ meh for me. I saw the Harry Potter movies as a kid, but this tired format of a correspondent pointing out flaws is dull and boring me out.
• I didn’t care at all for the “Dark Arts” joke. Just lame and hacky.
• One other thing I am not caring for is how overly involved Colin Jost is of late in these desk pieces. As if he isn’t already hogging enough airtime with the frat boy shtick as Hegseth.
• An overall tepid edition of the desk. Even when Kam had some actual energy in his own part.

Rating: **

The 301 Spartans

the 301st Spartan (host) is left behind

• As I always say, it is often fun seeing cast members dressed up in past historic eras’ garments, and it is fun seeing our second Classical Antiquity sketch with Jack in a row.
• This feels like the most we’ve seen Andrew in many months. He’s been so full of life and energy (not “energy”) all night.
• An OK take on the famous 300 Spartans defense against the Persians, with Jack, and his protruding belly, being left behind.
• Marcello feels oddly out of place in this sketch standing next to Ben and Tommy. Another good example of how much this cast is “cooking” together.
• I really like that voice Andrew is using. Nothing else to say about this sketch; it’s just going over my head.
• SNL has really overdone the vulgar kid gag in recent seasons. There is no “shock” aspect to it anymore.
• This sketch just came and went for me. Good work by all, but utterly forgettable.

Rating: **1/2

Musical Performance – “G.O.D. And The Broken Ribs”

Airbnb Superhost

superhost (host) & friend (Melissa McCarthy) disturb guests

• It feels like Jack weirdly locking himself in the closet was supposed to get a bigger laugh than it did.
• Jack as a weird superhost is actually a promising use of his comedic talents. Just hoping this is better structured, especially that I am trying to block out a terrible similar cut sketch with Rami Malek & Cecily Strong from season 47.
• These past two episodes, it seems that the show recognized that Tommy Brennan is indeed a cast member who gets paid.
• A dull sketch and a bit baffling to watch so far. We already got multiple wacky character sketches earlier in the night; it feels numbing by now.
• Melissa McCarthy! Cool to see her in a sketch this time around.
• I will admit, the moisturizer part cracked me up right now.
• Despite the “wild” turn right now with Melissa & Jeremy (who didn’t break for a second – showing his impressive strength), this still feels lethargic. No energy, despite the best efforts by Melissa and Jack.

Rating: **

Cut For Time: Chili’s Waitress

waitress (VES) confuses patrons

• John: This Veronika character has come full circle, originally being a cut sketch for Nikki Glazer’s episode, then a cut Update character for Glen Powell’s episode, now a sketch again.
• Veronika’s work is a mesh of a Muppet and the teenage girl she played in the Harry Styles drive-thru sketch. If she played this character over and over I’d start to find her performance tiresome, but for now it’s fine.
• I’m not sure about the choice of Mikey and Sarah as the couple waiting to make their order. Mikey just seems aged out of these roles and Sarah never rises above competent in them.
• I’m also not sure about all the time spent on how immature and weird Mikey is meant to be, which pulls focus away from the comic idea of the weird wait staff. Mikey and Sarah are also overplaying a number of beats as they go along.
• Jack and Veronika are a fun team, and of course you’d want Jack Black in your sketch if he’s hosting. I kind of wish Veronika had been on her own but he does pick up her rhythms well – more than anyone else in the sketch.
• And of course Marcello has his own appearance, stopping the rest of the sketch, because…he’s a star I guess?
• The moments of yelping from Veronika are her best here, especially the “HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LITTLE BOY!!!!” near the end of the sketch.
• I’d love to tell you this was a classic, on the level of a cut sketch from another Jack White episode (all you Luke Null fans know what I’m talking about), but it’s not. Just very convoluted. I still would have included the sketch over Marcello’s sketch as this is at the very least a showcase of Veronika’s weirdness and charisma, and doesn’t feel as dead and bloated.

Rating: **1/2 (being generous)

Cut For Time: CPAP Commercial

CPAP comes in different styles

• John: Very thrown by that Chia Pet wig on Jack.
• Chloe’s wig also looks terrible.
• My first moment of fun arrives with Andrew in the helmet, insisting he’s a pilot. Andrew playing guys who never grow up can be a lot of fun.
• Nice to hear JAJ on voiceover duty. I love his hyped readings of the different masks. He’s just perfect for this part without overshadowing the material.
• One of Ashley’s better moments for me in a while with her horrified reaction to Jeremy’s grotesque face mask. Jeremy’s repeated, “It’s just my face,” makes their segment even better.
• Sarah’s two comedic moments in this episode revolving around comedy breasts gives you an indication of how little she has left to say. Tommy’s reaction to the breasts is fun though.
• The bit with Jeremy’s sleep machine resembling a bomb isn’t anything special, but is salvaged by Jane’s squealing, “IT’S A BOMB!!!”
• Overall, there were enough scattered moments I enjoyed to make me wish this had made the episode. Sad to say none of those involved Jack, but he was likely very busy this past week with the Mario press tour, and I’m still glad he was involved as that’s probably the main reason this piece was uploaded to Youtube.

Rating: ***1/2

Cut For Time: A Guy and His Girlfriend Who’s Always Cold

girlfriend (CHF) demands more and more articles of clothing

• John: What a week for Chloe and cut for time material!
• Starting off with yet another Scarlett joke isn’t giving me a lot of faith in this segment.
• Chloe’s role is at the very least a different type for her, but she is secondary to Mikey doing a lot of yelping. Yelping seems to be the “thing” this season, but unlike Ashley or Veronika, we’ve had a decade of it with Mikey.
• The Scarlet tattoo, especially Mikey squeezing her breasts, feels even more desperate than usual. Times like this I wonder if Scarlett is ever tempted to ask them to just shut up about her already.
• There’s also something desperate in Mikey stripping down to his underwear (even if they take pains to barely show his underwear).
• Ending with Chloe commenting on his being soft (“cold”) isn’t a bad choice, but not really worth all the setup. If they were going to take this long a walk, then they may as well have ended the joke with him also removing his underwear (obviously Mikey would not actually be removing his underwear – there could be another pair under the desk he could hand her). At least that would give a bit more of a shock to viewers.
• The Kam and Sarah desk pieces were no great shakes, but they were topical, which the show has a preference for, and featured players the show has a vested interest in. Nothing about this warranted being put on the air, and only serves as a curiosity for two cast members who have nothing left to offer.

Rating: **

Cut For Time: Simon’s Life

Martin Herlihy’s brother Simon is odd

• Carson: Carson here, back in the substitute teacher role.
• Right off the bat it seems like Martin’s just like “here’s my wacky character” and that’s basically the whole thing. Usually there’s a little bit more to the framing of these Martin sketches.
• I’ll give Martin this – the dude has a face for comedy. I don’t mean that as some kind of looksist comment either. He just has great control over the funniness of his face. He’s putting it to great effect here even if I’m somewhat lost to the whole point of this sketch.
• I really don’t know what we’re going for with Martin’s character here. Like, did we really set this sketch up with a “I have a wacky cousin” conceit and then immediately throw to whatever this scene with Martin and Jane is? Make it make sense.
• As I’ve watched the show this season, I’ve tried to parse the individual comic voices of the deconstructed PDD guys. From what I can tell, Martin is the jokes-per-minute guy and Ben is the bland one. That would leave John to be, I would assume, the self-deprecating one. Does that sound about right?
• The random jokes – from the wet hand to the introduction of the polycule members – are all funny, but just seem completely disconnected from each other. The details are good, but I’m still not sure about the whole.
• The Brian’s Secret portion with Andrew is also very funny but the turns are happening so fast that I still can’t parse what any of this was supposed to be about in the first place.
• Props to Jack Black for going along with the lingerie bit in a too-quick callback. In the words of basically every AVClub SNL reviewer, he truly is a “game host.”
• Plenty of laughs to be had here, but with no real point to the piece, I can absolutely understand why this didn’t make air. It is less than the sum of its parts.

Rating: ***

Goodnights

Segments Ranked From Best to Worst

Husbands

Words to Live By

CFT: CPAP Commercial

Monologue

CFT: Simon’s Life

CFT: Chili’s Waitress

301st Spartan

NCAA Post Game Show

Weekend Update

Airbnb Superhost

Kathy

Ultimate Dojo

Final Thoughts:

• Man, I love Jack Black, but this episode was just a complete bore. There were actually a few pieces I liked quite a bit (two of which heavily featured JAJ, interestingly), but they got dragged down by what surrounded them. Most of which was just flat, dull. Not outright bad, which makes them even tougher to sit through. As I said several times throughout the review, this episode is also another with just an “off”, dull vibe to it. The sketches were even more bloated than ever and tonally confused, which was the case as well with the cold open.
• Jack Black didn’t even feel like the host tonight. Yeah, he was used, was as energetic as ever, but felt tacked-on into existing sketches, outside of his monologue (for obvious reasons) and the Spartans sketch. I am not sure if he was used more in dress or is it the Super Mario Bros Galaxy press tour to blame, but his use, and this episode in general, felt like a huge step down from his dominant work just last season.
• With all that said and done, a big positive for the night were the musical performance by the legendary Jack White, as they were outstanding as usual. It also felt genuinely fun seeing him in a few sketches and he did a good job and came off as cool as expected.

My Favorite Moments of the Episode, Represented with Screencaps:

My full set of screencaps from this episode is here