A Message from the President of the United States
And is this what the world (or just the country) has come to? B

Paul Rudd’s Monologue
Good-natured, but too short. Jeez, let a premise develop, why don’t ya? B

Feline Culinary Creations
I’ll allow it, since it didn’t last very long, but it didn’t do very much. C+

Vogelchecks
The Vogelchecks may have run their course, unless something surprising happens on their next visit. The visit from Santa was strange. B-

What’s That Name?
Bill was quite the smarmy host, and Kenan was quite the doorman. The game show format supplies an endless supply of at least decent sketches. B

Digital Short: Stumblin’
A silly song to the tune of “9 to 5” that wasn’t even that well-arranged, eh? Are the Lonely Island boys running out of ideas? Or are they just overworked? Maybe I’m being a bit harsh. There was that harmonica solo, to the tune of “Take My Breath Away” (a-wha?!). B-

Julian Assange Interrupts a Mastercard Message from Prison
He’s got my attention. Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper? You got it. B+

Sexually Speaking
This may have been the best Roger Brush appearance yet. He didn’t even have to ask everyone to speak up. B+

Paul McCartney performs “Jet”
When it started, I called it. This was a good choice, what with how guitar-heavy it is, as Paul’s strumming skills have not faded with age, though his voice has a bit. B+

Weekend Update
-The Jokes: Mmm, whatever.  Save for that white person snowman joke. B-
-The Segments: -Weekend Update Audio Caption of Prince Charles and Camilla: That is just plain silly. B-
-Stefon on New York’s Christmas Hotspots: Stefon is currently the best recurring character on Saturday Night Live. Instead of again ending it with Seth describing Stefon’s suggestions with some variation on the phrase “gay fantasy,” they brought in some new material, with the “glimpse into Seth Meyers” and the “nobody ever invites Stefon to normal Christmas.” Yet one thing remains the same: Bill cracks up, seemingly more and more each time, and he not only gets away with it, it is a major reason why Stefon is now a classic character. A

Holiday Jam
Does this mean anything to anybody? I imagine that a lot of people who work in schools ask themselves that question when shenanigans like these go down. Jay and Kenan were so into character that I imagine it may have been dangerous to be around them while this sketch was happening. B

Meryl Streep on Ice
This was basically Abby’s appearance as Meryl on Update last season transplanted to the ice. A little less timely, and a lot more nonsensical. B

Paul McCartney performs “Band on the Run”
More vocal-heavy than “Jet” and thus not quite on a sterling level. But who’s complaining? B

Broadway Cares
Was this Paul’s idea? Or was he just supremely willing to go along with it? Too bad for him (and Bill, and Jason even) that the material was lacking. C+

Paul McCartney performs “A Day in the Life”/”Give Peace a Chance”
It is great to have such a big ouevre that you can surprise people even when you play one of your classics. B+

Paul McCartney performs “Get Back”
It got cut off. I imagine the audience in the studio enjoyed the full performance. B

Overall
Allowing a musical guest on the level of McCartney four performances can be a good idea, but not as much when it’s done at the expense of a host on the level of Rudd. Not a classic episode, but there was a lot of good will. And a little Stefon can go a long way.