Live, From New York... It's A Saturday Night Thread!

[on:]

At least I got the spelling right this time. 

I'm not sure if the mods will think this is a good enough topic to deserve its own thread, but I think so.

What I'm expecting will go on in here will be a discussion the new SNL epsiodes that'll air each week. We can evaluate each individual segment, the job the host and band did, the episode as a whole, and everything like that.

I'll sprinkle memorable quotes next to the title of each segment as I list them. I'll hold off on evaluating it for now, and let you guys start.

Tonight (October 11th), the host and musical guest both was Justin Timberlake. Now normally I'd be opposed to him on principle, but I'm willing to give anyone a shot. So I watched, but with a healthy amount of skepticism. To my great surprise, he did a pretty good job.

Now, he's no Christopher Walken, John Goodman or Jack Black, but he did a damn fine job. I'm talking about the skits here, mind you. I, as usual, flipped the channel during the musical interludes.

The series of sketches tonight went like this:

Cold opening: Hardball with Chris Matthews, featuring Karl Rove, Ann Coulter and Gary Coleman ("I'd call you a media whore, but I don't want to give whores a bad name." )

Intro: Justin Timberlake singing to adult male audience member

Commercial: Punk'd special edition DVD ("I'm Ashton Kutcher! I'm so awesome! Why am I so awesome? I'm dating Demi Moore! You know it. You didn't call me Kootch!" )

Sketch: CNN Breaking News: Arnold Schwarzenegger to resign, and make Cruz Bustamonte Governor. If he refuses, Schawrzenegger will recall him.

Commercial: A Message from Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson

Sketch: Benny's Mascot vs. Omlettville's Mascot

Commercial: Gary Busey for Direct TV ("One time I woke up after a binge with a hellacious sunburn and the ability to smell colors." )

Sketch: The Boston Couple (I don't know the proper title for this sketch; it's been a longtime recurring one)

Weekend Update

Sketch: The Sharon Osbourne Show, featuring Quentin Tarantino and Michael Bolton

Sketch: Justin and Kermit the Frog sing "The Raibow Connection." Justin repeatedly steps on the puppeteer, and they come to blows, with Kermit acting as a mediator ("Someday we'll find that rainbow connection, the lovers, the douchebags, and me!" *punch*)

Commercial: A public announcement from Carl Weathers, the black guy in Predator ("Vote Carl Weathers for governor. He was the black guy in Predator." ) Note: Carl Weathers actually appeared in this bit, nobody impersonated him.

Sketch: Amy Poehler tries to put the moves on Justin while they're in his dressing room. The situation is made weirder by her strange laughter at everything that Justin saysm and because of the leprechaun costume and bright orange afro wig she is wearing for their next sketch. (*hanging off his body* "Just let me do this, Justin. Just let me do this." )

Sketch: The Barry Gibb Talk show, featuring Barry & Robin Gibb, Al Franken, Ariana Huffington, and Cruz Bustamonte (for those of you who don't know, Barry Gibb and his brother Robin were in the band The Beegees)

So... discuss, already!

[Reply #1 on:]

Surprisingly....decent. He was better than I thought he'd be. Not groin-grabbingly good, but few are. Weekend Update continues to be my favorite part of the show. I can't remember a time when Tina and Jimmy have been painfully unfunny or boring, as I've found the anchors of the past to be. *thumbs up to them* Speaking of groin-grabbing.....next week Halle and Britney. :|

Butt or scotch.   

[Reply #2 on:]

 

Originally posted by Jeremy:
Butt or scotch.   

I swear, Jeff Richards impression of Gary Busey is so close to reality it's frightening.

I hate those Direct TV commercials so much I actually booed the TV when that came on, then cheered when I noticed the NBC logo was still imprinted on the corner. It was the highlight of the show for me, behind Weekend Update. "The Black Guy From Predator" and Jessica Simpson sketches were really funny, too.

[Reply #3 on:]

I used to watch SNL back in the day, I liked when conan hosted, Since im a huge late night fan.

[Reply #4 on:]

I'd like to contribute, but all we have here is aseries of "Best of SNL" episodes.  The last one I saw starred Chevy Chase and Dan Akroyd.

[Reply #5 on:]

Never seen an episode, but I'd have to pay for it if I wanted to. 

[Reply #6 on:]

In all honesty I can't stand to watch this show anymore.  I only saw a few episodes last season because it was SO &%$#ing bad, and it actually hurt to watch it.

Of course, SNL tends to have its good and bad periods.  I'm sure it will get good again.  But I'm going to wait a while and deflate my expectations a little more before I start watching again.

[Reply #7 on:]

I really like Will Forte (who, aside from being a  SNL cast member, played Abe Lincoln on Clone High), and I'm glad that they moved him up from being a "with..." to a full-fledged cast member, but we've hardly seen him at all this season (Once in Jack Black's musical opener last week, once in the telemarketing song last week, and as Kermit the Frog's operator this week.) and I hope we see more of him in the coming episodes.  I knew Will was funny, but I didn't know he did such a great Kermit the Frog impression!

Other then that, the only sketch of the show I can really remember as being funny was the Punk'd bit.  Punk'd derserves everything it gets, the stupid Dick Clark & Ed McMahon's Practical Jokes & Bloopers rip-off. (Seriously, the only difference between the two is insted of stars from the 1970s no one recognizes anymore, it's stars from now on one will recognize in 30 years - that includes you, Ashton!.)  But there's one part in that bit where Justin (as Ashton) screams out "I love Justin Timberlake!" for no apparent reason.  Why'd he do this?  My belief - Justin forgot his line, and felt he had to say something.

And The Barry Gibb Talk Show is a return to the SNL tradition of "crappy sketches that assumes characters whose voices you can't understand due to one half-baked accent or another is funny so we don't need to have funny stuff happen, but in reality the voices are just annoying and the sketch is bad".  Adam Sandler has turned the tradition of this sketch into a whole film career, I understand.

Overall, the episode was a C+.

[Reply #8 on:]

 

Originally posted by boingo2000:
I really like Will Forte (who, aside from being a  SNL cast member, played Abe Lincoln on Clone High), and I'm glad that they moved him up from being a "with..." to a full-fledged cast member, but we've hardly seen him at all this season (Once in Jack Black's musical opener last week, once in the telemarketing song last week, and as Kermit the Frog's operator this week.) and I hope we see more of him in the coming episodes.

I agree; Will Forte started out kinda so-so (it seemed every character he played, whether it was joe shmoe or a judge, had some kind of speech impediment or an annoying voice), but he's worked out of it and become pretty good.

I especially like "The Falconer," where he play the Falconer himself; it's one of the recurring sketches. The one with Matt Damon and his beaver is the funniest I can think of offhand.

The only sketch (and it was only part of the sketch) that rubbed me the wrong way was Harball with Chris Matthews (Darrel Hammond), featurung Ann Coulter (Amy Poehler).

Granted, I'm no fan of Ann COulter or her sensationalist books, but the whole "impression" they did of her was just limiting her vocabulary the titles of her books ("Slander," "Bias," "Treason," etc.). It seems they could have come up with something else that would do a better job of mockinging her.

I'd rate this episode one level higher than boingo did; a B+.

[Reply #9 on:]

Well frankly I belive that SNL hasn't been done right since Chris Farrelly, the season premier was well done and funny but just wasn't up to snuff..... I saw The School Of Rock the same day that Jack Black was hosting the premier. Funny but has gone down-hill.

                                                           Spartans RULE!!!
                                                            TheLastGreatDon

[Reply #10 on:]

The last one I saw was when Frank Black hosted the show. I also agree that SNL has grown steadily downhill in the last couple of years. But the one with Frank Black was better than usual.

Black tends to overdo things, and I liked the way he opened the show. He was best in the wine-tasting skit, spitting the wine in Ferrell's face. The dance comptetition skit was also good. "Doing the donkey kick!!" 

[Reply #11 on:]

Jack Black, Just Chris.  Not Frank.  Geez, you confused me.  I thought, when were the Pixies on SNL?  Then I realized I was thinking of Black Francis.  So apparently, the moral of the story is when others mistake people's names, I start thinking of entirly different thrid parties that have nothing to do with anything.

[Reply #12 on:]

 

Originally posted by Boingy:
But there's one part in that bit where Justin (as Ashton) screams out "I love Justin Timberlake!" for no apparent reason. Why'd he do this? My belief - Justin forgot his line, and felt he had to say something.

I'm assuming he did that because they're friends, and Ashton has punk'd Justin before.

[Reply #13 on:]

Well, I didn't bother remembering each skit this time, cuz I'm lazy. If somebody else knows them, or where to find them, go ahead and post them.

This week's episode was pretty "meh." I don't think Halle Berry has much comedic talent, and the episode suffered for it.

The best things were the commercials, all of them were hilarious -- especially the Quick Ones commercial. "Oh, that's nice; I like it; I like more; wow; wow; weeeeee! I'm done." Also, the group of three "chickenheads" in the Benihana-style restaurant was pretty funny too. There's some groups of friends like that at my high school.

All in all, it was okay, but definately the lowpoint so far. Granted, there's only been 3 eps so far, but that doesn't change the fact that I rate this one a C.

[Reply #14 on:]

That show sucked!  Not one laugh in the whole thing, but I'll admit to smiling during the Quick Ones sketch (it needed at least one more re-write though, IMO).  I don't follow baseball, so I didn't get the Don Zimmer references.  I don't follow fashion, so I didn't get the Naomi Campbell references.  I hate Halle Berry ever since she took up a post-SARS anti-Canada stace (I'm now boycotting any of her movies that don't have "X" or "Men" in the title), and now I have one more reason: she's not funny.  Britney Spears... well, she just sucks; that should go without saying.  The Native American comedian during the update was not funny (I know that was the intention, but just because he's telling the same old unfunny jokes in a Native American voice doesn't make it funny).  I turned the show off and went to bed when I saw they had a sketch revolving around three loud women in a sushi resturant.  Right now, the show's got nowhere to go but up.

Grade: F

[Reply #15 on:]

D (even though I missed most of it)
I lost all interest in this ep when I saw the "kissing" promos. Go away, Britney!! Seriously. Ooh, you like the ladies! I'll buy your next 8 albums because of that!! Ugh.
Anyway, I only saw the Kobe sketch and the Don Zimmer one. Maya and Horatio were pretty good in those. I smell a recurring character in Horatio's Zimmer. So I'll enjoy that for a bit until they overdo it.

[Reply #16 on:]

Well, this saturday was in effect a clip show, being "the Best of Tracy Morgan."

I thought the mix was pretty good, but used too much of his recent stuff, with two epsiodes of "Brian Fellow's Safari Planet," and of those two, only one was one I would consider his best.

I was happy to see the sketch with "Bernard," played by Shaquille O'Neill, included, as it's one of my favorites. In it, Shaq is Morgan's son, and comes in past curfew, and Morgan proceeds to attempt to spank him, and then hold him in his lap and sing him to sleep. It's some of the best physical comedy I've ever seen on SNL, or any where else.

Overall, I'd give it a B.

[Reply #17 on:]

The fact that they did a clip show at all says something about their current quality I would imagine.

[Reply #18 on:]

Watched it off and on. But not really. Didn't even notice that it was the best of Tracy Morgan. I would have paid a little more attention, had I known.     
C+ ('cause I like grading stuff.)

LAN.gnome's review: A++     

Who's next week's host? (or will it be a halloween clip show?)

[Reply #19 on:]

 

Originally posted by Jeremy:
Who's next week's host? (or will it be a halloween clip show?)

Hosting will be Kelly Ripa, with musical guest Outkast. God I hope they do "Live with Regis & Kelly" in some form. I can't decide if having her play herself would be funnier, or confronting Amy Poehler would be best, but I'll be happy as long as they include it.

@Bartman: I don't think this "best of" show was an indicator of the show's decline at all. I've noticed that every year there typically is some kind of repeat or something within the first few weeks of new episodes, and this would be it. I'd rather they show something like this where they (hopefully) weed out the crap and show us a player's best, than sit through an episode I've already seen twice before.

Sidenote: I really like the new opening credit sequence, the first person perspective is a pretty cool twist. The new SNL "theme" is really good, too. Better than the one they used last year, in my opinion.

[Reply #20 on:]

I didn't even watch this episode.  I watched an old Vincent Price/Peter Lorre/Boris Karloff/Basil Rathbone film instead.  I did see one of the Brian Fellows bits (the one involving the Porcupine and the Pot-bellied pig), a Hardball bit I've seen before where Tracy does his Belafonte ("Keep this crazy train rolling!" ), and the spanking part of the above-mentioned "Bernard" bit.

Grade: x/0 (Because anything divided by 0 is undefined)

[Reply #21 on:]

Tracy Morgan is one of the better actors. His Brian Fellows skits reflect his best mood, acting like a schizo bastard.

[Reply #22 on:]

I'm pissed that they Canned Norm MacDonald for saying "What the fuck was that?"

It was just a slip of the tounge, it's not like there were kids watching or anything.  What's the big deal you NBC pussies?

[Reply #23 on:]

Tonight's ep was pretty good -- better than the Justin Timberlake ep, which I liked, but not as good as the Jack Black ep, which was awesome from beginning to end.

Kelly Ripa's monologue was funny ("I've enjoyed watching you blossom into womanhood" ), and it was good that they still did the "Live with Regis & Kelly" sketch, with Kelly doing an eerily relaistic Angelina Jolie impression. Also, Chris Kattan made a guest appearance as Gelman! That made me happy. 

The funniest parts were still, as usual, the fake commercials and Weekend Update. The Kelly Ripa hair shampoo commercial "with just a little bit of cocaine!" was hilarious. "And he said, 'honey, please come back to bed,' and he was crying just a little," and this, the most unexpected part from Kelly Ripa: "Sometimes people come up to me and I'm like 'Who the fuck are you get away from my limo!'" Awesome.

The extended Jimmy Buffet thing on Weekend Update was funny too, though not as funny as the similar Horatio Sanz mockery of Elton John's vampire opera ("So run like hell, you stupid bastards! Drac-la's gonna suck your blood!" ), and Drunk Girl was also good. The best Weekend Update joke though was Levi's "patented 'front-butt' technology" in their new 501 jeans. 

The animal shelter thing was funny, and so was the farting cows thing (on a base level). I didn't like the Spy Glass one so much, because it was basically the same thing as the "Access Hollywood: sketch but with British accents and Amy Poehler in a weird wig (it even included Pat O'Brien!).

All in all, I think it earned a B+.

[Reply #24 on:]

SNL ROCKS!! I love it specially Weekend Update

[Reply #25 on:]

I love to watch the old episodes just to watch the music acts. It makes me laugh that someone actually liked those bands enough to invite them.

[Reply #26 on:]

Another SNL episode I couldn't bother to stay awake for, but this time more because I was tired then it's not funny.  I liked the Regis and Kelly sketch (Kelly's Angelina Joile was dead-on!), and the cow-fart sketch wasn't bad in an "I drank 5 beers in a row before I started writing this sketch" way.  Jimmy Fallon's Pat O'Brien was amazing, but I came in the middle of that sketch and it took me forever to figure out Kelly was supposed to be Renee I'm-not-even-going-to-try-and-spell-it.  On the other hand, Jimmy Buffet wasn't funny (and about 5 minutes overlong), and the Rod Roddy jokes were in plain bad taste.

Of what I saw, I'll give it a C.

[Reply #27 on:]

 

Originally posted by boingo2000:
On the other hand, Jimmy Buffet wasn't funny (and about 5 minutes overlong), and the Rod Roddy jokes were in plain bad taste.

I think you have to be a fan of the duo of Horatio Sanz & Jimmy Fallon (with Sanz hlding more of the talent), which I am, to like that one. It makes a sketch even funnier to me when you can tell the castmembers are friends who don't mind having fun with a silly premise.

P.S. Kelley was good as Angelina Jolie, wasn't she? She even had that weird lip thing going on. "Ladies and gentlemen: the freakish Angelina Jolie!"

[Reply #28 on:]

LAN, if you're a Will Ferrell fan, which I think you are, then you are going to love "Elf"    He is so frickin' adorable in this movie!

 (posted here because it's not really a movie review....and because it's about Will Ferrell....and because I can!  )

[Reply #29 on:]

 

Originally posted by Jeremy:
LAN, if you're a Will Ferrell fan, which I think you are, then you are going to love "Elf"    He is so frickin' adorable in this movie!

I was already planning to see that film based on two simple facts:

1.) Will Ferrell is in it.
2.) Will Ferrell is awesome.

Also, that line from one of the commercials -- James Caan is discussing something in a hushed voice, and Will does a lean-in and says "I like whispering things too!" -- had me hooked.

[Reply #30 on:]

 

Originally posted by PCC Fred:
I'd like to contribute, but all we have here is aseries of "Best of SNL" episodes.  The last one I saw starred Chevy Chase and Dan Akroyd.

I agree.

SNL has been dying ever so slowly for sooooooooo long... 

[Reply #31 on:]

I didn't bother to watch last week's SNL because I'd never heard of the host and had just bought the Looney Tunes GOlden Colelction DVD set, so  had better things to do with my time.  However, my Global affiliate (and maybe some others) shows a classic SNL after the new one: The one that got aired on Saturday was from November 1984 and was hosted by Michael McKean.  Christopher Guest and Harry Shearer were in the cast, so I watched a bit hoping to see a Spinal Tap bit.  I got much better - the first appearence of The Folksmen!  They showed them rehearsing "Barnyard Symphony" and a song that didn't make it to A Mighty Wind called (as near as I can figure out) "Blood on the Coal" ("We should cut some verses from that song.   It'll get long."  "It was getting long just then." )  They also had them play "Old Joe's Place" on the SNL stage.

What this means, of course, is that A Mighty Wind is now the funniest move to be based on a SNL sketch.

[Reply #32 on:]

Yeah, I was at a concert and didn't get home until 12:30 AM, but when I flipped it on to catch the last bit, I was like, "Who the hell is this guy?"

Does anybody know who that host was?

[Reply #33 on:]

Andy Roddick. Tennis star/boyfriend of Mandy Moore.

[Reply #34 on:]

I'm too lazy go go through each sketch/commercial, so I'll just give some general thoughts.

I noticed during the first sketch before the cold opening, Darrell Hammond makes a crappy President Bush. The only SNL castmember after Will Ferrell who can do a decent impression is Chris Parnell.

This is probably the weakest Alec Baldwin episode I've ever seen, and I think the worst ep of SNL this seaosn. The sketch with Alec and Amy Poehler during the office presentation was great, though.

The best stuff of the night came out of Will Forte, both in his "Falconer" sketch and the funniest moment of the night: him pouring honey onto his crotch during the parody of the Paris Hilton sex tape. That was just too much.  Also "Huggies Thong." 

Overall, a C-.

[Reply #35 on:]

"I noticed during the first sketch before the cold opening, Darrell Hammond makes a crappy President Bush."

Agreed.
Why is he doing it?

[Reply #36 on:]

Well Bush is a crappy president. So what's your point?

[Reply #37 on:]

 

Originally posted by Slurm Guy:
Well Bush is a crappy president. So what's your point?

Don't mind him; he's just pissed that his Matrix thread got closed.

Basically, our point is that SNL has a featured player who isn't given a whole lot to do, and is better at Prez Bush than Hammond, who should have left SNL by now anyway. He's been on what, a decade? 15 years? More?

[Reply #38 on:]

 

Originally posted by LAN.gnome:
 Don't mind him; he's just pissed that his Matrix thread got closed.

I don't mind the Matrix thread being closed. It's the restrictions that are made against those kinds of threads that piss on my burned biscuits. So go ahead you mods. Close all of my threads that you want. But remember this "if you strike me down I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

[Reply #39 on:]

 

Originally posted by LAN.gnome:
 I think you have to be a fan of the duo of Horatio Sanz & Jimmy Fallon (with Sanz hlding more of the talent), which I am, to like that one. It makes a sketch even funnier to me when you can tell the castmembers are friends who don't mind having fun with a silly premise.!"

*****
i agree completely. sanz and fallon have a great chemistry and complement each other well. watching them try to get through a bit without laughing at each other is sometimes funnier than the bit itself.