SNL Recap March 28, 2015: Dwayne Johnson/George Ezra

March 29, 2015

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SNL: George Ezra, Dwayne Johnson, Aidy Bryant (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in March 2015.

“If you don’t have a boner right now, you should just kill yourself.”

As he noted in his monologue, Dwayne Johnson is known for joining established film franchises and giving them a successful shot in the arm.  Accordingly, his fourth “SNL” hosting stint heavily favored sketches that commented on the host’s reputation and familiar pop culture entities in general.  Many of this season’s hosts, even the most capable ones, have been relegated to mostly utility roles.  But Johnson was effectively given plenty of opportunities to shine, as he was allowed to play to his strengths, and the result was an episode that overall also played to its strengths.

The Rock Obama – While Dwayne Johnson is now unequivocally credited by his birth name, he has no qualms breaking out his wrestling moniker for a particular “SNL” sketch.  He first broke out his hulked-out alter ego of the president the last time he hosted back in March 2009, only a few months into Obama’s first term.  He brought it back in a cameo appearance later that year, and that was enough for it to reach iconic status.  In its current iteration, it was formulaic, but still vibrant enough to be worthwhile.  Michelle She-Hulking out as well provided a welcome addition, so it was nice that Leslie Jones was around to play the part.  Bobby Moynihan went above the call of duty by putting together his weaselly impression of Ted Cruz. B

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SNL Recap March 7, 2015: Chris Hemsworth/Zac Brown Band

March 9, 2015

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SNL: Chris Hemsworth March 2015 Monologue (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in March 2015.

It might just be pointlessly quixotic to ascribe a thesis statement to an episode of “SNL.”  Any detectable patterns may have just been accidental.  When the host and musical guest do not bring in a whole lot of baggage, that truth becomes emphasized.  Chris Hemsworth was host two months before the release of the next “Avengers” movie.  Zac Brown Band have new music, but they are not dominating the mainstream conversation.  This was certainly an episode that happened.  There were highlights, there were lowlights, and it will lead to a multiplicity of opinions.  Here’s one: it was cray-cray.

A Message From Hillary Clinton – Kate McKinnon made it clear that should Hillary Clinton run for president, she will not back down from the challenge of taking on this legendary impression.  This sketch was essentially a character piece, when it could have focused on sharper satire about whether or not Clinton’s e-mail correspondence is a legitimate controversy.  But as a character piece, it was encouraging, managing to imbue the tired “old person e-mail gag” with specific personality. B

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SNL Recap February 28, 2015: Dakota Johnson/Alabama Shakes

March 1, 2015

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SNL: Dakota Johnson, Alabama Shakes, Kenan Thompson (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in March 2015.

“SNL” returned to its regularly scheduled time slot after its 40th anniversary and … this episode did not feel like the comedown show after a big special so much as it felt like the type of episode that follow the ones that preceded it.  Fresh off the record-breaking box-office of “Fifty Shades of Grey,” Dakota Johnson stopped by to host for the first time, on a series that is still strongly favoring original material, and at its best when that material gets weird (which usually happens with the pre-recorded shorts).  Johnson brought a surprising and surprisingly effective mellow charm that made her disappear into a lot of her roles, making an impression in how much she did not make an impression.  Meanwhile, Alabama Shakes made their case for why they should be the musical guest every week.

Giuliani, or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance – What started as a fairly standard current affairs cold opening surprised and delighted by turning into a pastiche of this year’s Best Picture Oscar winner.  Portraying Rudy Giuliani’s comments about the president as a hubristic comeback attempt a la Riggan Thomson in “Birdman” was not a comparison that a lot of people have been making.  Taran Killam really bit into the opportunity (quite literally, what with all that jowl movement) to do the double impression of Giuliani-as-Michael Keaton.  There were not really any laugh-out-loud moments, but this bit still absolutely killed, as it captured the energy and original spirit of the source material. B+

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SNL Recap January 31, 2015: J.K. Simmons/D’Angelo

February 2, 2015

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SNL: J.K. Simmons Monologue (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in December 2015.

J.K. Simmons is the presumptive Oscar favorite this year for Best Supporting Actor.  It is appropriate that he is in the Supporting field, considering that he has spent a few decades as a character actor, elevating the quality of his projects, no matter what the size of his role.  Interestingly, though, his role in “Whiplash” is prominent enough that it could be considered a Lead.   He certainly has the talent and charisma to be a star, but this episode mostly kept him confined to the supporting roles that he is used to.  He was perfectly fine in them, but he could have done more.  And in the few moments when he was given the chance to do more, he really shone.  Meanwhile, this show continued Season 40’s heavy focus on original material, with the only recurring characters appearing on Weekend Update.  That originality was a little inconsistent, but very welcome when the proceedings got weird late in the night.

Super Bowl Shutdown – “SNL” once again proved that it has been paying attention to the major stories of the week.  Richard Sherman and Marshawn Lynch have been flipping the script on Super Bowl coverage, and this cold opening … acknowledged that.  Lynch’s propensity to repeat the same stock answer is amusing, but it proved difficult to build a sketch around.  The talk show format, while a tired one, was helpful here, as it masked some of the holes in the premise. B-

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SNL Recap January 24, 2015: Blake Shelton

January 26, 2015

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SNL: Blake Shelton, Cecily Strong (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in January 2015.

The last time a male country music star hosted “SNL,” the results were a lot more interesting.  The thing is, Tim McGraw has much more acting experience than Blake Shelton, and thus he was a lot more comfortable branching out home from his country persona than Shelton was in this episode.  “The Voice” judge mostly stuck to variations of himself or generic roles.  This was fine for ensuring a show that ran smoothly, but it also prevented his appearance from being a truly memorable one.

Inside the NFL – This take on the New England Patriots deflated ball scandal made the weird decision of focusing on a whiny Tom Brady.  Brady is sometimes criticized for being an arrogant pretty boy, which is basically the antithesis of what Taran Killam was playing him as.  The idea may have been that in playing dumb, he was being someone he clearly wasn’t, but that didn’t really stick as comedy.  Luckily, Bobby Moynihan saved the day as Dougie Spoons, one of his classic hype men characters.  The “A Few Good Men”  parody was unexpected, but more or less successful. C+

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SNL Recap January 17, 2015: Kevin Hart/Sia

January 19, 2015

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SNL: Sia, Kevin Hart, Kate McKinnon (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in January 2015.

The recurring sketch-lite Season 40 had its most original episode yet for the first show of 2015, with not a single repeat bit or character, save for Kate McKinnon’s Justin Bieber impression.  The best seasons tend to have a decent mix of recurring and original material, so while it is nice to see the “SNL” team coming up with plenty of fresh ideas, they might be wearing themselves too much.  Luckily, Kevin Hart was on hand to host for the second time, and there are not too many other comedians who can keep the energy level up like he can, and he did not disappoint in that department.  Meanwhile, Sia provided the music, and as is her m.o., she brought out some guest accompaniment while she kept her face covered.

Martin Luther King – This visit from a ghostly MLK was a clever idea for running down how decades of progress or lack thereof may not have been exactly what the civil rights leader envisioned.  Unfortunately, Kenan Thompson’s portrayal was not exactly as inspirational as the person he was playing.  It is hard to say if a different actor could have pulled this off much better, as the problems lay mainly in the writing.  This Dr. King, unlike the real deal, was not very imaginative about how the future might be different from his time.  He could have been any random black guy from the 60’s.  Pointing out how times have changed is usually good for a few solid chuckles, as this was, but it could have been more specific. B-

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SNL Recap December 20, 2014: Amy Adams: One Direction

December 22, 2014

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SNL: Amy Adams, One Direction (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in December 2014.

The 2014 Christmas episode of “Saturday Night Live” took most of its inspiration from the holiday season, as “SNL” Christmas episodes are wont to do.  Sometimes that resulted in sticking too close to tradition, while other times that tradition was rebelled against, resulting in memorably experimental Christmas sketches.  It was one of those episodes where you take the good and you take the bad.  In her second outing, Amy Adams was the sort of host who slotted in naturally to whatever role she was given without overshadowing the cast.  Musical guest One Direction did what they do, surely pleasing their fans but not making any new ones.  And it would not have been a Christmas episode without cameos, some of which were surprising and welcome and others which were welcome enough but a little too predictable.

A Very Somber Christmas with Sam Smith – Bringing in Mike Myers to reprise Dr. Evil, perhaps the most intrinsically ridiculous villain of all time, allowed for “SNL” to really get at what North Korea is all about: Kim Jong-un and his cronies categorically have no idea how to take a joke.  Evil’s Lorne Michaels-inspired “Throw me a frickin’ bone here” attitude was exactly the sort of mediation that this situation needed. B+

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SNL Recap December 13, 2014: Martin Freeman/Charli XCX

December 15, 2014

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SNL: Charli XCX, Martin Freeman, Kenan Thompson (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in December 2014.

It was the British invasion on the penultimate 2014 episode of “SNL,” with first-time host Martin Freeman and first-time musical guest Charli XCX.  It is not every week that “SNL” has the perfect actor to play nebbishy scamps, so this episode took every opportunity it could to fit Freeman into his wheelhouse.  Indeed, at least regarding the host, this was one of the most well-cast episodes of “SNL” in a while.  Meanwhile, the show in general continued its Season 40 pattern of focusing on original material, with a single character on Weekend Update serving as the lone recurring bit of the night.

Charlie Rose – It is not often that “SNL” extrapolates a broader social point from its timely political skethces, which is why this examination of a couple of architects of torture felt as fresh as it did.  Bobby Moynihan and Kyle Mooney were keyed in perfectly to the roles of two men who love being great at their jobs, morals be damned.  It was not clear, though, why this was presented in a “Charlie Rose” parody, other than for the joke about how it is torture to be stuck in a dark room for years. B

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SNL Recap December 6, 2014: James Franco/Nicki Minaj

December 8, 2014

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SNL: Nicki Minaj, James Franco (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in December 2014.

With a crisis in policing in America, and a movie studio being hacked, possibly in retaliation to the upcoming film starring tonight’s host, this week’s “SNL” was not struggling for topicality.  Surprisingly enough, one of the most uncomfortable issues of the year shocked the show out of its politically tepid default, resulting in some legitimately funny material on a difficult subject.  However, what this episode was most notable for was a bizarrely naturalistic pace.  It was not slow and sleepy so much as it was that many of the sketches took their time to find a joke.  Rhythmically, this did not feel like a typical 2014 episode of “SNL,” for better, for worse, and for neutral.

Politics Nation – The Ferguson and Eric Garner decisions were impossible for “SNL” to ignore, though it was a little odd that the show chose to initially take them on with Kenan Thompson’s malapropism-prone Al Sharpton.  While this rendition of the MSNBC spoof did keep that goofy element, the reverend came off smarter than usual, with his gaffes seeming more like the result of frustration than incompetence.  The conclusion of him eagerly hugging an uncomfortable police officer firmly established this as a genuine, albeit silly, call for solidarity. B

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SNL Recap November 22, 2014: Cameron Diaz/Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars

November 24, 2014

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SNL: Mark Ronson, Cameron Diaz, Bruno Mars (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in November 2014.

When people look back through the annals of “SNL,” this episode may go down as the one when the Season 40 cast fully discovered its confidence.  But since episodes are usually cataloged by the guests, this one might be hard to identify, because the guests did not do anything spectacular.  Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars came in and performed a couple of songs, while host Cameron Diaz did not have any showcase performances.  She gamely slotted in to whatever role she was needed in, but this episode was about the likes of Leslie Jones, Kyle Mooney, Aidy Bryant, and Beck Bennett asserting themselves in an ideal mix of original and recurring material.  The energy was high, with everyone coming in hard, making their comedic point, and moving on to the next sketch before wearing out their welcome.  The show may have petered out a little bit at the end, but it was still strong enough to set a new high watermark for the season.

Schoolhouse Rock – After a seasons-long rut of unimaginative, cookie-cutter political cold opens, “SNL” went silly and retro.  The result was a “Schoolhouse Rock” parody that was the show’s most pointed take on the current state of affairs in D.C. in years.  All it took to make it happen was Bobby Moynihan’s matter-of-fact delivery of “I’m an executive order, and I pretty much just happen.”  Then it ended abruptly when it seemed like it had plenty more to say, though its point was a simple one, and no more needed to be said. B+

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