SNL Recap October 8, 2011: Ben Stiller/Foster the People

October 11, 2011

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Cold Opening – Mitt Romney Press Conference
The last couple of seasons, SNL has insisted on almost always opening with politicial material, whether or not they writers had anything worthwhile to say.  But with this sketch, they showed that they knew exactly what was going on, and it has been a while since that has been the case.  The fact that the impressions weren’t all that great is forgivable, considering that neither Romney nor Christie have particularly distinct voices.  God help the comedy world if Romney is elected.  There will have to be a lot of sketches like this one if he is, I guess. B+

Ben Stiller’s Monologue
A few good cracks (“the Jewish Willy Wonka” “so, Gene Wilder?”) stuck within an overly broad and unsatisfyingly random premise. C+

Lincoln Financial Group I
They’re on to something.  This reminded me of a video starring my brother. B

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VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 10/8/11

October 11, 2011

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Adele is again wasting no time.

Original Version
1. The Script – “Nothing”
2. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Rain Dance Maggie”
3. Foster the People – “Pumped Up Kicks”
4. Gym Class Heroes ft. Adam Levine – “Stereo Hearts”
5. Adele – “Someone Like You”
6. Demi Lovato – “Skyscraper”
7. Hot Chelle Rae – “Tonight Tonight”
8. Colbie Caillat – “Brighter Than the Sun”
9. Jason Derülo – “It Girl”
10. Lady Antebellum – “Just a Kiss”
11. Cobra Starship ft. Sabi – “You Make Me Feel…”
12. Gavin DeGraw – “Not Over You”
13. Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera – “Moves Like Jagger”
14. Kelly Clarkson – “Mr. Know It All”
15. Nicki Minaj – “Super Bass”
16. Dawes – “Time Spent in Los Angeles”
17. Mumford & Sons – “Roll Away Your Stone”
18. Lady Gaga – “Yoü and I”
19. O.A.R. – “Heaven”
20. The Civil Wars – “Poison & Wine”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Pumped Up Kicks
2. Someone Like You
3. Super Bass
4. The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
5. Moves Like Jagger
6. You Make Me Feel…
7. Mr. Know It All
8. Roll Away Your Stone
9. Brighter Than the Sun
10. Time Spent in Los Angeles
11. Poison & Wine
12. Stereo Hearts
13. Yoü and I
14. Tonight Tonight
15. Skyscraper
16. Heaven
17. Nothing
18. Just a Kiss
19. Not Over You
20. It Girl

SNL Video Recap 10/1/11 Melissa McCarthy/Lady Antebellum

October 11, 2011

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SNL Recap October 1, 2011: Melissa McCarthy/Lady Antebellum

October 2, 2011

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Cold Opening – The Lawrence Welk Show
Lawrence Welk Show sketches have held up remarkably well considering that the only thing different about them is a new person’s reaction to Dooneese.  So the logical next idea was to have another weird sister.  Melissa’s buck teeth (and other beaver-esque qualities) were sort of amusing, but they also made it difficult to understand anything that she was saying.  The most notably unique aspect of this sketch was actually Lawrence himself, who was more animated than usual, as his comments showed a greater awareness of what was going on. B

Melissa McCarthy’s Monologue
This monologue went on forever – not in the sense of, “this is so boring, please kill me now,” but rather, in the What Up With That sense of “I can’t believe this is happening … I can’t believe this is still happening.”  Post-Bridesmaids, the Melissa McCarthy-Kristen Wiig partnership felt quite natural. B

Lil’ Poundcake
The shockingly sensible shock value of the revelation of Lil’ Poundcake as an HPV vaccine was sufficiently shocking.  But then not much else happened. B

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VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 10/1/11

October 1, 2011

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I preferred O.A.R. when I had a more nebulous recognition of them.

Original Version
1. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie”
2. Gym Class Heroes ft. Adam Levine – “Stereo Hearts”
3. The Script – “Nothing”
4. Hot Chelle Rae – “Tonight Tonight”
5. Lady Antebellum – “Just a Kiss”
6. Foster the People – “Pumped Up Kicks”
7. Demi Lovato – “Skyscraper”
8. Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera – “Moves Like Jagger”
9. Colbie Caillat – “Brighter Than the Sun”
10. Jason Derülo – “It Girl”
11. Nicki Minaj – “Super Bass”
12. Adele – “Someone Like You”
13. Gavin DeGraw – “Not Over You”
14. Lady GaGa – “Yoü and I”
15. Cobra Starship ft. Sabi – “You Make Me Feel…”
16. Dawes – “Time Spent in Los Angeles”
17. Michelle Branch – “Loud Music”
18. Mumford & Sons – “Roll Away Your Stone”
19. Coldplay – “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall”
20. O.A.R. – “Heaven”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Pumped Up Kicks
2. Someone Like You
3. The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
4. Super Bass
5. Moves Like Jagger
6. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall
7. You Make Me Feel…
8. Loud Music
9. Roll Away Your Stone
10. Time Spent in Los Angeles
11. Brighter Than the Sun
12. Stereo Hearts
13. Yoü and I
14. Tonight Tonight
15. Skyscraper
16. Heaven
17. Nothing
18. Just a Kiss
19. Not Over You
20. It Girl

SNL Video Recap 9/24/11 Alec Baldwin/Radiohead

September 30, 2011

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I have started a video review series of SNL on my YouTube channel to go along with my written word recaps.  Here’s the first one:

SNL Season Premiere Recap September 24, 2011: Alec Baldwin/Radiohead

September 26, 2011

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SNL returns for Season 37.  No cast changes, with the exception of Nasim Pedrad being promoted to repertory player.  Alec Baldwin hosts for a 16th time, breaking the record for most all-time he had shared with Steve Martin.

Cold Opening – Either the 7th or 8th GOP Debate
With the number of candidates present, this was at its core a showcase of impressions, and as that, it was hit-or-miss.  Jason’s Romney was as bland as Romney, Paul’s Paul was mostly accurate but a bit too Dennis Kucinich-esque, Andy’s Santorum was confused, Kristen’s Bachmann was at her absurd best, and Taran’s Huntsman started speaking English like a Chinese person apparently because they didn’t know what else to do with him.  I haven’t watched any of the GOP debates, but from what I’ve heard, it seemed like SNL painted an accurate picture – in fact, it may have been too accurate.  There were some gags in the sketch – Perry getting confused while tired, Paul getting pushed into a corner due to his ideological purity – that seemed to be based on very specific moments from the actual debates that most viewers probably were not familiar with. So, this sketch was clever … I think. B

Alec Baldwin’s Monologue
No surprise that Steve Martin showed up.  You had to figure he would be there at some point during the night, and the monologue would be the most likely place for that.  At first, this monologue was in danger of being one big shameless plug … for an ice cream flavor.  The steroid angle was indeed a clever way to address the record-breaking.  And Seth Rogen’s cameo was ultimately beside the point. B+

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VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 9/24/11

September 24, 2011

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Cobra Starship’s breakout hit “Good Girls Go Bad” featured Gossip Girl‘s Leighton Meester.  Their latest, “You Make Me Feel…,” features Sabi, who kind of looks like Gossip Girl‘s Jessica Szohr.

Original Version
1. The Script – “Nothing”
2. Hot Chelle Rae – “Tonight Tonight”
3. Gym Class Heroes ft. Adam Levine – “Stereo Hearts”
4. Foster the People – “Pumped Up Kicks”
5. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Rain Dance Maggie”
6. Demi Lovato – “Skyscraper”
7. Lady Antebellum – “Just a Kiss”
8. Lady GaGa – “Yoü and I”
9. Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera – “Moves Like Jagger”
10. Colbie Caillat – “Brighter Than the Sun”
11. The Band Perry – “If I Die Young”
12. Nicki Minaj – “Super Bass”
13. Jason Derülo – “It Girl”
14. Gavin DeGraw – “Not Over You”
15. Michelle Branch – “Loud Music”
16. OneRepublic – “Good Life”
17. Cobra Starship ft. Sabi – “You Make Me Feel…”
18. Britney Spears – “I Wanna Go”
19. Dawes – “Time Spent in Los Angeles”
20. Coldplay – “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Pumped Up Kicks
2. The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
3. Super Bass
4. Moves Like Jagger
5. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall
6. You Make Me Feel…
7. Loud Music
8. Good Life
9. Time Spent in Los Angeles
10. Brighter Than the Sun
11. I Wanna Go
12. Stereo Hearts
13. Yoü and I
14. Tonight Tonight
15. Skyscraper
16. If I Die Young
17. Nothing
18. Just a Kiss
19. Not Over You
20. It Girl

Fake SNL Products Worth Buying

September 21, 2011

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The folks over at bestonlinecolleges.com recently posted a list of “9 Fake SNL Products We’d Actually Buy” (apparently their blog is not exclusively related to issues of higher education – lucky us, I suppose).  Here’s the rundown on their choices:

1. Damn It, My Mom is on Facebook Filter
2. Duncan Hines Brownie Husband
3. Old Glory Insurance
4. Bug Off
5. Nelson’s Baby Toupees
6. Bathroom Monkey
7. Dissing Your Dog training videos
8. Taco Town
9. Einstein Express

I’ve got to agree wholeheartedly that I would actually like to take on the challenge of a Taco Town taco.  The Brownie Husband also sounds delicious, but I would only want it for the taste and not the campionship (E.L. Fudge is a better fit for me as a chocolate friend).  And when it comes to living household cleaning products, the legendary Closet Organizer is a much more exhilirating choice than the Bathroom Monkey.
The biggest personal favorite of mine that didn’t make it onto BestOnlineColleges.com’s list would be the Home Security Decoys: not because they would actually make me feel safe, more for the macabre kitsch factor.

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 9/17/11

September 17, 2011

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Is anyone else worried about what Adam Levine is up to?

Original Version
1. Gym Class Heroes ft. Adam Levine – “Stereo Hearts”
2. Foster the People – “Pumped Up Kicks”
3. The Script – “Nothing”
4. Demi Lovato – “Skyscraper”
5. Hot Chelle Rae – “Tonight Tonight”
6. Lady GaGa – “Yoü and I”
7. The Band Perry – “If I Die Young”
8. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie”
9. Lady Antebellum – “Just a Kiss”
10. Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera – “Moves Like Jagger”
11. Gavin DeGraw – “Not Over You”
12. Colbie Caillat – “Brighter Than the Sun”
13. Nicki Minaj – “Super Bass”
14. Michelle Branch – “Loud Music”
15. OneRepublic – “Good Life”
16. Britney Spears – “I Wanna Go”
17. Ximena Sariñana – “Different”
18. Coldplay – “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall”
19. Jason Derülo – “It Girl”
20. Katy Perry – “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Pumped Up Kicks
2. Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)
3. The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie
4. Super Bass
5. Moves Like Jagger
6. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall
7. Different
8. Loud Music
9. Good Life
10. Brighter Than the Sun
11. I Wanna Go
12. Stereo Hearts
13. Yoü and I
14. Tonight Tonight
15. Skyscraper
16. Nothing
17. If I Die Young
18. Just a Kiss
19. It Girl
20. Not Over You

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