Anna Faris hosted “Saturday Night Live” for the second time this past weekend, and you’ll be shocked to learn that the show was just as uneven as it is every week. It had all the usual hallmarks: the too-long cold open, lousy skits I instinctively fast-forwarded through (the Manuel Ortiz show and Bobby Moynihan’s Jimmy Crispino character), a too-long Republican presidential debate, and a sketch or two that you watch because you think something funny might happen, but nothing does. Also, Drake was terrible as the musical guest, but at least Nicki Minaj showed up for part of a song to demonstrate what it sounds like when a rapper has flow.
However, none of this is to say that it was all bad. There was plenty to like, and I’m not just talking about the announcement that the fantastic CHARLIE DAY will host on November 5th. I mean actual skits. I’ve got video of the worthwhile stuff on the following pages.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/1o3tDlNld2ybbEJ7WBMfRg
This is just well-written comedy smartly executed. It’s easy enough to poke fun at Lifetime’s “TV for white women” with a game show (“You win a Volvo filled with groceries!”), but layering in Bill Hader as both the show’s host and a stereotypical Lifetime villain is a nice touch and allows Hader to generate more laughs from the scene. Nicely done.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/ncSxIO9jaogQFjxXzSX-4g
These are hit-and-miss, but it’s rapid-fire so the stuff that falls flat isn’t memorable or a waste of time. I really wish “SNL” would take that lesson to heart.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/B255Mw6OXsHZm_rNGZYPTw
People are talking about this like it’s good, but Drake’s in it so I have to disagree. Drake rapping = it’s bad. The math checks out, man.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/7WLTP2aW4HaabkDTxwqmgg
I typically can’t stand the opening monologue, but this one’s relatively short, and worth it for Abby Elliott’s impersonation of Anna Faris, which I find a lot sharper now that Anna Faris has bangs that I don’t like.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/mXTzhbxzE7Q_xXEjZqS4Jw
I can’t help it: I really enjoy cheap Asian stereotypes.
https://www.hulu.com/embed/sX7Onsv9mnVgmvnev5j0pw
I didn’t laugh much at this skit, but it’s so silly and fun that I can’t help but like it. It almost has a Monty Python feel to it; I’d love it if the show did more of this and a lot less satire of American politics. GRRRRR WHY DOESN’T THIS TV INSTITUTION LISTEN TO MY IDEAS????
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