SNL Recap May 11, 2013: Kristen Wiig/Vampire Weekend

May 12, 2013

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Who the hell this Chinese dude?

Cold Opening – Benghazi Hearing
This may have been the most esoteric SNL sketch ever.  Definitely the most esoteric in a good long while. B-

Kristen Wiig’s Monologue
I got the jokes, but I didn’t get the point. B-

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SNL Recap May 4, 2013: Zach Galifianakis/Of Monster and Men

May 5, 2013

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I can barely hear you.  This is an Altoids box.

Cold Opening – Fox & Friends
Fox & Friends are reliably funny, though rarely excellent.  But, hey, that’s a winning formula when it comes to SNL cold opens these days.  The Fox crew generally needs a reliable “friend” to play the role of straight man, which Fred’s Mike Bloomberg dutifully provided.  His retort that you might as well leave your cars unlocked if you’re not going to have background checks was not too laugh-too-loud, but I did like the logic.  My favorite correction was “Croquettes are not female crocodiles.” B

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SNL Recap April 13, 2013: Vince Vaughn/Miguel

April 14, 2013

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Cold Opening – A Message From the President
Until (or, unless) Jay starts adding some personality to his Obama, these political cold opens are going to remain bland for the foreseeable future, even for sketches that actually have a few funny lines, like this one did.  This time didn’t actually focus on Obama, but it didn’t help that the focus was on a couple of senators that most people are probably unfamiliar with. B-

Vince Vaughn’s Monologue
Yeah, this is where it’s at.  “Vince Vaughn talks to the audience” doesn’t do this monologue anywhere near justice.  It lasted a while, but that was part of the fun of it.  It would have been enjoyable if it had dragged on the whole episode.  And it kind of did, when he gave Eric his phone back during the goodnights. A-

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SNL Recap April 6, 2013: Melissa McCarthy/Phoenix

April 7, 2013

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You know what I’m writing off this year? The next generation.

Cold Opening – Kim Jong-Un
I laughed the most when he said “Wichita State.”  Everything about Dennis Rodman screamed that he had just walked out of a time warp. B

Melissa McCarthy’s Monologue
This – THIS – is the sort of the offbeat, but so perfect, concept every monologue should aspire to. B+

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SNL Recap March 9, 2013: Justin Timberlake

March 10, 2013

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Now who’s the horse?

Cold Opening – Hugo Chavez Memorial
A sketch about Elton John reworking “Candle in the Wind” for Hugo Chavez?  That’s like the definition of inspired.  “If a candle could pull out 2 pistols” and “capitalism killed Mars” (with its spoken-word breakdown) were the highlights. B+

Justin Timberlake’s Monologue
The Tom Hanks’ five-timers club monologue was more thrilling than this one, seeing as it followed that original so closely.  But considering that the five-timers lounge hasn’t been fully revisited since that first appearance, this was more welcome return than diminishing return.  It was particularly nice to see five-timers who don’t stop by that often anymore, like Chevy and Candie Bergen.  I also appreciated the historical context, such as the recognition that John Goodman hosted 11 consecutive seasons.  And Steve Martin, your arrogance is so delightful. B+

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SNL Recap March 2, 2013: Kevin Hart/Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

March 3, 2013

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Cold Opening – Obama Press Conference
The Village People bit was killer.  I would have preferred it if it hadn’t been completely spelled out the gag with Obama reciting the lyrics, but it was still delightfully gonzo. B

Kevin Hart’s Monologue
Kevin Hart didn’t exactly tell any jokes during his monologue.  Nor did he say anything that could really be considered objectively funny.  But he did make me laugh. B

Steve Harvey
There we go, player, Kenan’s back with his full-on mispronunciating Steve Harvey, what with the “Pho-Bye-iss” and the “equilibrium.”  The Dogglegangers were also a delight, especially the King Charles Spaniels of Comedy. B+

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SNL Recap February 16, 2013: Christoph Waltz/Alabama Shakes

February 17, 2013

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A piano’s gonna fall on me or something?

Cold Opening – Carnival Cruise Ship
One of those throw-a-bunch-of-stuff-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks sketches.  And guess what: enough stuck!  I probably enjoyed more than most the voice of Kenan yelling out, “There is no god!”  Oscar PistROius? B

Christoph Waltz’s Monologue
I’m a sucker for a good pun, and “Who’s on wurst?” was far from the worst. B

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SNL Recap February 9, 2013: Justin Bieber

February 10, 2013

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Steely Dan has the best fans in the world.

Cold Opening – Super Bowl LXVII
The problem with making fun of an announcing crew as bland as that of CBS’s NFL crew is that the parody is probably going to be somewhat bland itself.  Which isn’t to say there were no good gags, it’s just that the whole affair was excessively dry.  Is Shannon Sharpe really that thick-headed?  J.B. admitting that he’s never seen 2 Broke Girls was clutch. B-

Justin Bieber’s Monologue
Who farts more: Whoopi Goldberg or Blake Shelton?  Or Bieber?  This was kind of funny.  Short, though. B-

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SNL Recap January 26, 2013: Adam Levine/Kendrick Lamar

January 28, 2013

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Cold Opening – Obama and MLK
Why did the crowd applaud wildly for Kenan as MLK?  This seemed like a wasted opportunity, but not completely, thanks to Kenan’s delivery of “another one of my famous DREAMS” and the unexpectedly pointed comment about the lack of black magicians. B-

Adam Levine’s Monologue
It was more fun than funny to see Andy Samberg, Cameron Diaz, and Jerry Seinfeld, though they did get in some good gags.  “I could ask myself the same question” was quite the retort, and Jerry’s description of Adam and himself as less Jewish than their names was illuminating.  The idea that Adam needed to be coached at comedy made sense. B

Rosetta Stone
I guess this was a funny premise, but, just, you know, nothing beyond the obvious happened.  Kenan is really underrated as a straight man, though. B-

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SNL Recap January 19, 2013: Jennifer Lawrence/The Lumineers

January 20, 2013

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Is this the most synergistic guest lineup ever on SNL (Jennifer Lawrence hosts six days after winning a Golden Globe, on the same weekend that the movie that she won for expands into wide release, while the musical guest is the one whose hit song plays in the commercials for that same movie)?

Cold Opening – Piers Morgan Tonight
Ah, a twofer sketch with Lance Armstrong and Manti Te’o!  Oh wait – here comes Jodie Foster – it’s a three-fer!  Bobby’s as Manti struggling to understand the non-existence of his girlfriend was fun to behold.  Jodie’s “I’m 50” declaration was a great moment of art imitating life imitating art. B+

Jennifer Lawrence’s Monologue
J-Law was confident.  Almost too confident.  She had the right attitude for zinging her fellow Best Actress nominees.  But she zoomed through the concessions of how great they really are, which didn’t allow her to fully tone down that attitude.  But, that’s a nitpick, cause you gotta love that confidence. B

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