SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Kristen Wiig” Episode 1711 — Pictured: (l-r) Kate McKinnon as Napoleon, Pete Davidson, Kristen Wiig, Cecily Strong, Sasheer Zamata, and Leslie Jones during “Kristen Wiig’s Thanksgiving Monologue” on November 19, 2016 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)
This review was originally posted on News Cult in November 2016.
Love It
Kristen Wiig’s Monologue – The world is perpetually in need of good Thanksgiving songs, so “Thanksgiving freak” Kristen Wiig gives us a ditto supposedly about the origins of Turkey Day. But first, she fidgets with her instruments and the placement of props, in a deconstruction of form worthy of Will Ferrell. Dropping by are Steve Martin and Will Forte – big-name cameos that could distract, but since Santa Claus is already there, and Sacajawea is paying for dinner with her own coins, they just add to the wittily written, delightfully rhyming cacophony.
The Bubble is the deceptive utopia we’ve all been waiting for…Anderson Cooper 360° is a whole series of brick jokes mashed together, with a timely twist for the ages.
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 – People of Earth
Tuesday – Name a TV show you should be watching: Billy on the Street
Wednesday – You’re the Worst
Thursday – Jeopardy!
Friday – Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and its “feminist bikini area”
Saturday – SNL Thanksgiving by way of Westworld
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Dave Chappelle” Episode 1710 — Pictured: Host Dave Chappelle during the monologue on November 12, 2016 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)
This review was originally posted on News Cult in November 2016.
Before I get into my Love It/Keep it/Leave It picks, a word on the Hillary “Hallelujah” Cold Opening, which I have chosen not to categorize. Normally when SNL forgoes a proper sketch in favor of a song for the opening, it is in the wake of a national tragedy. So add one more way in which this election is unprecedented. The song selection memorializes the recently departed Leonard Cohen, rendering this moment less depressing and more bittersweet.
Love It
Dave Chappelle’s Monologue – I guess somebody knew that Trump was going to win. That somebody? SNL’s talent booker. How else to explain how we got Dave Chappelle on the exact week that we needed him? This is not the most laugh-out he has ever been (although Bradley Cooper being the only white person at a BET-sponsored White House party is hilarious enough for the whole set), but that is fine, because he is mainly aiming for truth and strength. A lot of disappointed citizens have been struggling to say something positive while also holding on to their legitimate disappointment. By finding hope while passionately defending enfranchisement, Dave Chappelle hits that multilayered note.
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 – Westworld
Monday – Thanks for all the empathy, People of Earth.
Tuesday – Jeopardy!
Wednesday – black-ish
Thursday – Better Things
Friday – Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Saturday – SNL, thanks to Dave Chappelle talking and Leslie and Kyle loving
This review was originally posted on News Cult in November 2016.
Love It
Over 30 years later, how can we possibly make a relevant parody of perhaps the most iconic commercial of all time? We now have an answer, and it is koohl: The Koohl Toilet. The word “sheeple” gets thrown around a lot today, and it is usually uncalled for. But there is in fact one way in which we all conform, as we are just too busy taking care of business. No more, though! There is another way, and it is not just a ridiculous idea for a comedy sketch, but a real revolution.
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 – People of Earth
Tuesday – Atlanta checked its pockets.
Wednesday – You’re the Worst
Thursday – The Good Place
Friday – Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Saturday – Benedict Cumberbatch made the toilet Koohl again.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Tom Hanks” Episode 1708 — Pictured: (l-r) Kenan Thompson, Beck Bennett, Tom Hanks as David Pumpkins, and Kate McKinnon during the “Haunted Elevator” sketch on October 22, 2016 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)
This review was originally posted on News Cult in October 2016.
Love It
Black Jeopardy – If memory serves me correctly, Tom Hanks is the first guest to appear on both Celebrity Jeopardy and Black Jeopardy. I thought this concept had been played out, as it has already explored well-meaning white people who don’t mean to be offensive, and black people who defy easy categorization. But I had not considered a possible appearance from the “Make America Great Again” crowd, which at first seems like an easy target for meanness, but instead there is a pivot towards common ground like conspiracy theories, that one guy who fixes everything, and Tyler Perry. Race and class are both big factors in this country.
100 Floors of Frights – SNL enters a late, compelling entry for the most popular Halloween costume of 2016: David S. Pumpkins. Any questions? At first, Hanks’ Mr. Pumpkins gives off a Paul and Phil vibe of “goofy ruining spooky.” He and his skeleton pals are certainly delightfully out-there, but there is a lingering sense that this sketch may have blown its load too early with a too-soon reveal of the main attraction, but then it takes it to another level by doubling (or 73-ing) down on Pumpkins and saying, “We knew just how to scare you the whole time.”
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 – Jane the Virgin
Tuesday – Jen Kirkman’s Prince dream, as recounted on The Meltdown Show with Jonah and Kumail
Wednesday – You’re the Worst
Thursday – Better Things
Friday – Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Saturday – David S. Pumpkins: Any questions?
This review was originally posted on News Cult in October 2016.
Love It
Ann Arbor Short Film Festival – This is the sort of satire that really nails a particular piece of culture. This is not the first time amateur filmmaking has been lampooned, but it feels like it is, because it is so incisive, and so cleanly produced. It effectively uses exaggeration and reversal to make its points. Dozens of people work on a one-minute film featuring only one actor, and that feels oddly plausible. And unlike many screenings, in which the wave of questioners overwhelms the panelist, everyone on stage dwarfs the lone audience member. The Holocaust/makeup/“at the end of the day, it’s also a comedy” explanation is one for the ages.
The Hummer party limo’s visit to the Burger King Drive-Thru could have been random for the sake of randomness, but instead, each outré character is sharply defined.
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 – Full Frontal with Samantha Bee
Tuesday – Most people don’t realize Atlanta‘s quality is another universe. Don’t be dumb.
Wednesday – The Goldbergs
Thursday – Better Things
Friday – Time to a deliver an Eric Andre Show finale! (Time to a deliver an Eric Andre Show finale!)
Saturday – That part in the Ann Arbor Short Film Festival (SNL) when everyone in the crowd stood up to get on the stage
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