In, oh, sometime in the next couple of years, Tiffany Haddish will be a very famous person. And you will be able to recall the first time she hosted SNL as she takes another step towards world domination. Haddish was a bundle of energy as she hosted. She seemed a little nervous in the monologue, but only to the point of endearment.
Though, SNL’s political sketch comedy is still a mess. So much happened this week and basically the kitchen sink was thrown at that cold open and it came off as jumbled and odd. Hey, look, I love Kate McKinnon’s Jeff Sessions, but Sessions and Beck Bennett’s Mike Pence seem like an odd characters to lead with this week? Though, the allegations against Roy Moore are so disgusting, I’m not sure how anyone goes about trying to make that “funny.” Maybe they shouldn’t have tried. I don’t know, I don’t have all the answers. Regardless, it was a very strange cold open and I’m now legitimately worried about SNL’s political sketches this season because we are five shows in and they are not working.
Here’s your Scorecard…
Sketch of the Night
“The Dolphin Who Learned To Speak” To be honest, I’m not so sure I want to explain what happens in this sketch and what Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon do to that dolphin. This is the weirdest thing. The more I think about it, the more I can’t believe this exists. But, my gosh, every time the dolphin started squawking, “Hand! Hand!,” it’s just the funniest thing. I would watch a documentary about the creation and evolution of this sketch.
Score: 8.8
Runner Up
“Beck and Kyle (Leslie Jones and Colin Jost Love Triangle)” Who would have guessed this would have ended with Colin Jost being endlessly punched in the face. I never realized I needed a gif of Lorne Michaels punching Colin Jost in the face, but now I realize I kind of do need one and so I made one. Here it is:
Score: 7.9
The Bronze
“Whiskers R We” This was nice. You know, we all need some “nice” in our lives right now. I found this therapeutic. Hey, there was a Darth Vader cat! And watching that hairless cat decide he or she wanted no part of this sketch on live television was fun. Boy, that cat was not happy. As I’m writing this I decided I need to have a gif of that, too, So I’m going to make one.
Okay, now my favorite thing about this is Tiffany Haddish’s reaction to the angry cat.
Score: 6.7
Weirdo of the Night
Yes, “The Dolphin who Learned to Speak” might win this category for the year.
***
Average Overall Score for this Show: 6.53
· Kumail Nanjiani 6.56
· Tiffany Haddish 6.53
· Ryan Gosling 6.45
· Larry David 6.42
· Gal Gadot 5.87
If you want more SNL, check out the Not Ready for Primetime SNL Podcast, with Mike Ryan and Rolling Stone’s Ryan McGee as they break down the Tiffany Haddish hosted episode, right here:
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You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.
