SNL Season Finale Video Recap May 19, 2012: Mick Jagger

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SNL Season Finale Recap May 19, 2012: Mick Jagger

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Cold Opening – The Lawrence Welk Show
I will usually make note – if not outright criticize – a recurring sketch when we know exactly where it is going, but I will often concede that there may be audience members who are seeing this sketch for the first time and will find it perfectly amusing, having no idea about the repetition. But the Lawrence Welk Show sketches are so popular by now that I think most viewers knew what was coming. Luckily, Jon Hamm was fully committed to his unusual character, and Wiig went even further than she usually does, getting a little too close for comfort with Hamm and that statue fountain. And it actually ended with Dooneese hooking up with the male singer, so that was different. B

Mick Jagger’s Monologue
It looks like Mick Jagger. Let’s not kick him to the curb. Simply put, Mick seemed to just be himself for the monologue.  His answers to those FAQ’s weren’t hilarious, but they felt like a fun conversation. It’s nice to know that Mick’s cognitive faculties are still intact, as that has not always been clear during his performances the last few years. B+

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SNL Video Recap May 12, 2012: Will Ferrell/Usher

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SNL 5/19 Guest Announcements: Reactions Revision

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5/19/12: Mick Jagger: Whaaa- ???
featuring Foo Fighters, Arcade Fire, and Jeff Beck: How many performances are there going to be and/or how many people will be onstage/performing at once?  I mean, Arcade Fire are already the size of two bands.  Also, I have been hearing over and over the rumor that Keith Richards, Charlie Watts, and Ronnie Wood are also going to appear.  Either way, there will certainly be an abundance of great musicians, so there had better be some good performances.

SNL Recap May 12, 2012: Will Ferrell/Usher

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Cold Opening – Biden’s Room
Biden’s presence in political sketches the past few seasons has generally worked in SNL‘s favor, as he brings a silly energy that tends to mix up the staid formula that has set in for most recent political sketches.  Biden’s starring role – along with Will’s goofy-at-a-Hall-of-Fame-level Dubya – set the tone for an episode that was at its best when it was seriously silly. B+

Will Ferrell’s Monologue
The cue card gag was on a par with Steve Martin saying, “Line?” at the end of the Not Gonna Phone It In Tonight cold open.  Will Ferrell and Mom = Will Ferrell and emotions, which is always a formula for at least some success. B

One-a-Day Extra Strength Nasaflu
Well, one doesn’t really need any reason to listen to Will Ferrell scream-sneeze, but it would have been nice to have more of a sketch built around it. B

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SNL Video Recap May 5, 2012: Eli Manning/Rihanna

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SNL Recap May 5, 2012: Eli Manning/Rihanna

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Cold Opening – Fox and Friends
“Baseball is a land sport” was one of the corrections – I wonder what they claimed otherwise.  As usual, the corrections were the best part, and they can only work in an age when pausing is easy.  The bits with Bobby as Brian Kilmeade were also amusing, including the lines about pandas. B

Eli Manning’s Monologue
Monologues have gone to the well of “host claims to know New York, but gets it all wrong” plenty of times before, but they usually work, so that’s fine.  I thought I fully knew where this was going at first, but there were some surprises, and Eli was sufficient. B

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SNL 5/19 Guest Announcements: Reactions

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5/19/12: Mick Jagger: Whaaa- ???

SNL 5/5 and 5/12 Guest Announcements: Reactions

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5/5/12: Eli Manning/Rihanna: Guess what?  Little Eli may just be the best quarterback in the Manning family.  Now, yes, he absolutely has a ways to go to catch up to Peyton statistically, but he does have more Super Bowl rings, and that is no fluke.  But … the topic at hand is hosting SNL.  Peyton Manning is hands down the best athlete host in SNL history, and Eli has never really indicated that he has the charisma to match his brother when it comes to endorsement deals or television appearances.  All I’m saying is, Eli may want to take some pointers from big brother.
RiRi appears for her third time, for the third season in a row.  I’m not sure what songs she’ll be peforming, though.  “We Found Love” is the only major hit from her most recent album Talk That Talk, and that has already peaked.  The best song she is a part of right now is Drake’s “Take Care,” which I would be happy to see a performance of, but that seems unlikely, as Drake was already an MG this season.  This seems like a perfect time to dip into the classics and whip out that “Umbrella.”

5/12/12: Will Ferrell/Usher: I keep thinking that Will Ferrell has only hosted season finales, but he has actually hosted one season finale and one second-to-last episode of the season.  So, with this third hosting appearance, it will still be true that he has only hosted the last or the second-to-last episode of the season.  Anyway, he is the greatest SNL cast member of all time.  ‘Nuff said.
Usher (like Will Ferrell the host) has only appeared on SNL in May.  During his two previous stints, he was reliable for fun club-bangers like “Yeah” and “Love in This Club,” but if his current single “Climax” is an indication of what he has in store for May 12, then I am not excited.

SNL Video Recap April 14, 2012: Josh Brolin/Gotye

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