This review was originally posted on News Cult in April 2017.
Love It
Turtle Shirt – Like Bad Idea Jeans, Three-Legged Jeans, and Mom Jeans before it, SNL has debuted a new piece of attire we never knew we needed. This time, it isn’t just a fashion statement, it’s also supremely functional! The Turtle Shirt is perfect for those moments when you need to warp reality.
Jimmy Fallon says “Take Me Back” to Cecily Strong, and the reason why she won’t is a perfectly timely and disturbing twist…While Michael and Colin’s political chops have matured, I think they’re at their best when they’re at their goofiest, so it’s a bonus when their focus on the government is as fierce as it is here…Bruce Chandling does not remember “what it feels like it to be kissed,” but thanks to him, now we know not to kiss the wrong type of chocolate…The Basketball Film Shoot is simply a fantastic example of background physical comedy.
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Monday – Better Call Saul
Tuesday – The Mick
Wednesday – Archer
Thursday – Riverdale
Friday – Mystery Science Theater 3000 (Yes, I contributed.)
Saturday – SNL turns down for Turtle Shirts
This review was originally posted on News Cult in April 2017.
Love It
Sectional Couches – This is what classic sketches are made of. What at first appears to be a simple infomercial parody morphs into so much more as an intricate, multilayered story emerges: elephants gathered for an important reason, Barb from Racine, the fact that the couches are all made on Earth, and then that twist – brava!
At the Soda Shoppe, Louis C.K. plays a fascinatingly creepy soda jerk, and Cecily Strong plays a satisfyingly sneaky budding dominatrix…Cecilia Giminez is back to praise the Cristiano Ronaldo bust, most notably because he looks like he has a fish in his mouth…The ending is a bit on the nose, but Ernie’s Birthday demonstrates that Louis C.K. and Bobby Moynihan are adept at making the best out of an uncomfortable situation…The moral of the Tenement Museum sketch: when in doubt, go full Borat.
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Feud: Bette and Joan
Monday – Slam dunking the NCAA Championship on home
Tuesday – New Girl (Please give them the green light for Season 7.)
Wednesday – Archer
Thursday – Riverdale
Friday – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Saturday – So long as Sectional Couches can breathe or eyes can see: Saturday Night Live
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Monday – Milo Murphy’s Law
Tuesday – The Middle teases us right at the end.
Wednesday – Legion
Thursday – Baskets
Friday – VICE
Saturday – Kyle and Beck provide SNL with a sketch for the women.
This review was originally posted on News Cult in March 2017.
Jeffrey Malone watches every new episode of Saturday Night Live and then organizes the sketches into the following categories: “Love It” (potentially Best of the Season-worthy), “Keep It” (perfectly adequate), or “Leave It” (in need of a rewrite, to say the least). Then he concludes with assessments of the host and musical guest.
Love It
Ace and Jake – The “Day Without a Woman” protest happened earlier this week, and – just as the people demanded – Kyle Mooney and Beck Bennett have written a female-centric sketch in response! The joke here is obvious – the guys fight institutional sexism by passionately listing every example of it but neglect to actually give the women a chance to speak. These two are miracle workers, somehow making thoughtlessness totally adorable.
That canine actor in the Dog Translation sketch is not having that helmet on his head; the fact that he is also a Trump supporter is also kind of funny…The Olive Garden Commercial shoot has it all: fake orgasms, casual racism, and Kenan Thompson sticking his face flat in a bowl of pasta!
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Octavia Spencer” Episode 1719 — Pictured: (l-r) Mikey Day, Aidy Bryant, Octavia Spencer, and Kenan Thompson during the “Spencer’s Gifts” sketch on March 4, 2017 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)
This review was originally posted on News Cult in March 2017.
Love It
Jeff Sessions Gump – Has Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III ever struck you as the sort of fellow you might encounter at a bus stop in the Deep South? During his confirmation hearings for attorney general, he has not really been charming any of us the same way that Forrest Gump did 20 years ago, but this is still somehow one of those connections that seems so obvious in retrospect. He’s a “sneaky little liar” who works with a woman who “ain’t got not legs” – how delightful!
Have you ever thought the names of drugs sounded like inner city children? Better get in on that class-action suit this Merck Hearing is sure to prompt! … Kate McKinnon spends most of the episode hanging around the set in Kellyanne Conway’s now infamous leg-tuck pose.
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – An unforgettable Oscars ceremony
Monday – Jane the Virgin
Tuesday – New Girl
Wednesday – Legion
Thursday – Baskets
Friday – Kurt Braunohler: Trust Me
Saturday – Octavia Spencer put poo in the SNL!
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Bob’s Burgers
Monday – The Young Pope is not so young anymore.
Tuesday – New Girl
Wednesday – Man Seeking Woman – I think he found her..
Thursday – Baskets
Friday – Jeopardy!
Saturday – SNL Vintage
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Alec Baldwin” Episode 1718 — Pictured: (l-r) Sasheer Zamata and Alex Moffat during the “Russell Stover” sketch on February 10, 2017 — (Photo by: Caroline De Quesada/NBC)
This review was originally posted on News Cult in February 2017.
Love It
Russell Stover Black History Month Heart Shaped Box – Great comedy often arises from the plans of the well-meaning going awry. Offering their black girlfriends a peanut butter-filled George Washington Carver or a Malcolm X fiery with cayenne, the white boyfriends look so eager to please, so intent on getting it right. But it is plain to see that they fail on two levels: romantically and racially. But as insensitive as this particular candy box is, wouldn’t we all want to live in a utopia in which the chocolate version of any historical figure has no unsavory implications?
The pitch meeting for a Cheeto’s ad stretches the social activism of commercials as far as it can go…Jake and Kellyanne are locked in a Fatal Attraction-style tête–à–tête, and may I say, with just a stern look, Beck Bennett is killing his impression of the CNN anchor…Trump takes his case to The People’s Court, which makes me go: hey, remember when Jon Lovitz played the Devil on a People’s Court sketch back in the day? That’s somehow both more and less believable than this…Leslie Wants to Play Trump, and I want to see as many of these dreamy, personal, behind-the-scenes short films as possible.
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