Live From New York, It's Saturday Night!

Jon Hamm to Host January 30

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:48:00 +0000

Thanks to commenter dbiloo who was able to tell me that Jon Hamm will host SNL January 30.
I was able to confirm this via an interview Jon did with Comedy Death Ray Radio.

Get ready for musical guest -

Michael Buble!

So let's recap
January 9 - Charles Barkley/Alicia Keys
January 16 - Sigourney Weaver/Ting Tings
January 30 - Jon Hamm/Michael Buble

The last episode must be a suave charmer special.

SNL Announces Hosts

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:25:00 +0000

As we all know, Charles Barkley is set to host next week with musical guest Alicia Keys.

However, SNL has just announced that Avatar star Sigourney Weaver will host January 16 with musical guest The Tings Tings.

Excited for these hosts? Disappointed by the lack of Jon Hamm who was reported to be hosting by TV Squad?

Happy Birthday Seth Meyers!

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:24:00 +0000

Belated birthday wishes to Seth Meyers who turned the grand old age of 36 yesterday!

Happy birthday, Meyers!

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 12:26:00 +0000

Just want to wish you all a very merry Christmas! Thank you to all who read & comment on the blog, and I hope to continue discussing SNL with you guys for a long time to come!

Have a good 'un everybody!

Mid-Season Evaluation

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 15:51:00 +0000

Top 3 Hosts -
1. Taylor Swift
2. Ryan Reynolds
3. Joseph Gordon-Levitt

Top 3 Shows -
1. Taylor Swift
2. James Franco/Muse
3. Ryan Reynolds/Lady GaGa

Top 3 Musical Guests
1. Lady GaGa
2. Muse
3. Regina Spektor

Top 3 Worst Shows
1. January Jones/Black Eyed Peas
2. Drew Barrymore/Regina Spektor
3. Megan Fox/U2

Top 10 Sketches

1. Kickspit Underground Rock Festival (Blake Lively/Rihanna)
2. What's Up With That? (all incarnations)
3. International Masterworks (Ryan Reynolds/Lady GaGa)
4. Firelight (Taylor Swift)
5. NASA Potato Chips (Blake Lively/Rihanna)
6. Digital Short - Tizzle Wizzle Show (James Franco/Muse)
7. Hollywood Dish (Taylor Swift)
8. SNL Digital Short (SWAT Commander) (Megan Fox/U2)
9. Drew Barrymore Monologue (Drew Barrymore/Regina Spektor)
10. Reba (Joseph Gordon-Levitt/Dave Matthews Band)

That list was a lot more difficult to compile than it should have been.
Now for your take.
Who were your -
Top 3 Hosts? Top 3 Shows? Top 3 Musical Guests? Worst shows? Top 10 sketches?

Comment, comment, comment!

James Franco/Muse

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 11:57:00 +0000

Sorry about the belated review, guys! Let's get right into it!

Cold Open - So usually I love The Lawrence Welk Show sketches, but there was something a little off with this one. Maybe it was because James Franco was pretty hoarse/couldn't sing well or maybe it was that finger joke at the beginning, but I didn't care for it as much as I ordinarily would. However, I loved Denise. From finger-massaging the snowman in the nipple area to the turkey in the toilet monologue song. "Now there's feathers in the toilet." Overall, not as good as it's two predecessors but a decent way to open the Christmas show.
7/10

Monologue - A funny monologue that didn't resort to singing and dancing? I didn't even think it was possible anymore! Few favourite lines. "I'm in a movie called Hope's Promise. Nah, just kidding!" .. "I don't have a movie to promote but then SNL doesn't have an election this year, so we're all doing with a little less." Loved the idea drum bit and also the fact that he was willing to make fun of himself with his TMZ photo was a nice bonus. Good work, Franco!
8/10

What Up With That? - Okay, so a lot of people on boards are like "What? We've seen this shiz 3 times in 2 months! What Up With That?!" So I love What Up With That anyway. I don't necessarily think it's hilarious but it brings so much joy to the show, and I actually think that this was the best executed of the three. Mike Tyson killed with his whole "You're undermining my intelligence as a black man with your singing, and that is a tragic thing my brother" and as per usual Kenan killed. Loved the mini DeAndre Cole's and Andy Samberg's appearance as a basketball player. All in all, really enjoyed it if only for Mike Tyson dancing at the end.
8/10

Kissing Family - So I thought that this was a nice improvement on the first incarnation of Kissing Family with Paul Rudd from last year. However, I wasn't totally into it. Okay strike that, I was into it until the grandparents (played by Nasim Pedrad and Will Forte) arrived, then I grew a little nauseous. The notion that the parents and the children would be that affectionate was far fetched anyway but acceptable in terms of an SNL sketch. But when Will Forte and James Franco started wagging their tongues, I just kept thinking "But that's his grandpa!" Inter-generational incest = too far. Kudos to Abby Elliott here though whose reactions I enjoyed. (Plaid shirt sighting #1 for Franco.)
6/10

Digital Short - Tizzle Wizzle Show -Loved. Favourite digital short of the season for sure. The premise was that The Tizzle Wizzle Show was a children's show and James Franco was their special guest. It featured Jenny Slate, Nasim Pedrad, Bobby Moynihan, Andy Samberg and Abby Elliott dressed in pyjamas or "Jammies." Then they did the Jammy Shuffle which I loved anyway. Then they brought in knives and pills, thereby upping the ante of hilarity. "3 more seconds to choose your knife! 3, 2, 1!" "Don't spit 'em out because we'll know!" The ending was a little off-kilter, but still far and away my fave short of the season.
8/10

Manuel Ortiz Show - Nice idea but ultimately it was one joke stretched out to fill an entire sketch. For the first minute I was laughing and then it grew a little tiresome. Favourite line, "Remember when Miguel [NB can't remember character's name] went out for arroz con pollo? Well he was con mi!" Franco's face while dancing was good for a few laughs too, though I'm not sure how intentional it was.
5.5/10

Weekend Update - So many parts I loved in this. First, the jokes were all great, one of my favourites being the bit about winding up a vibrator and then Seth ad-libbing that bit about Pop Goes The Weasel. Then there was Bobby Moynihan's impersonation of Jersey Shore's Snookie, which is one of my favourite bits of the season. Side-note, did anyone see the real Snookie on the Tonight Show where she publicly proclaimed her desire to settle down with a guy who, you know, does steroids?!? Anyhoo, Bobby was terrific here and I loved the line at the end about calling her Garfield. "'Cause I'm bright orange and I love lasagne!" Finally, Garth and Cat as played by Fred Armisen and Kristen Wiig, the carollers who weren't prepared for their appearance was hilarious and another highlight of the season for me. The songs were so ridiculous and it was so clear that Armisen and Wiig were having a great time doing it.
9/10

Stupid Frat Members - Good for a few laughs. I loved the premise and I thought Bobby, Jason & James did terrific jobs as the tough yet incredibly stupid frat members. The pledges included "Tie my shoelaces, and explain what you're doing as you're doing it!" .. "What's this?" "Diet Coke." "I thought it was Lite Beer 'cause 4 letters space and another 4 letters." I thought it ended kinda abruptly, and the big cop-out with Andy's character telling them that storks deliver babies kinda grated me, but not bad.
7/10

Vincent Price's Christmas Special -One of my favourite recurring sketches. So many parts of this that I loved! "You're watching TV Land which means you are a cat in an empty apartment." Cue Vincent Price welcoming Katherine Hepburn (a great impression by Kristen Wiig), James Dean (played by none other than James Franco) and of course Liberace (Fred Armisen). The interactions between Liberace and James Dean were high-larious.
"I'm confused!"
"Well, that's a start!"
And then the end with Vincent Price's reaction. Gold! I thoroughly enjoyed Hepburn catching rabies from the raccoon also. Nice work!
8/10

Talking To Christmas Trees - It was a little weird, but I actually kinda enjoyed it. It could have been better, but I liked the idea a lot - a Christmas tree salesman whose unusually close to his trees. "This man's gonna buy you and fall in love with you!" The reactions from the customers were great and I thought that Franco did a stellar job carrying the sketch. I loved the part at the end where we heard "Beth"s voice.
7.5/10

Fartface - Gosh, I can't even express how much I hate the Fartface sketches. This saw three guys (the Fartface guys) deciding what to buy for the office workers. If you think the word "dildo" is hilarious, then you'd love this! I'm gonna say I hated it.
3/10

Mark Wahlberg Talks To Animals - Okay, the beauty of Mark Wahlberg Talks To Animals was that it came out of nowhere and it was hilarious. You can't repeat a non-sequitur sketch like this and expect similarly hilarious results. It wasn't terrible, but it just lacked something. I did like "Hey snowman, I like your stick hands. I've got real hands but we can still hang out."
5.5/10

OVERALL -
Overall, I would say this was my favourite show of the season next to Taylor Swift's. I was pretty much constantly happy and amused, with the exception of the duration of Fartface, and I thought that the sketches were among some of the strongest of the season. It helps that James Franco is a great host, hindered somewhat by his hoarse voice this time around, but funny & game for everything nonetheless.
I loved how the show had a non-political cold open - I was expecting something healthcare-related this week - and while it wasn't great, it was a welcome respite from the politics-heavy cold opens we've had this season. The writers relied a little too much on recurring sketches for my liking, but a lot of them were executed very well, so I can't complain.
For the first time in weeks, I don't actually have a lot of criticism. The host performed well, the writing was generally good, and there was no point in the show where I thought "Maybe I'll watch the rest tomorrow" as had happened with Blake Lively & Taylor Lautner's shows. Even at parts I didn't like, I was never bored and I was always eager to see what was next.
All in all, good job everybody. Nice way to round out the decade. Still a bit to go before we reach season 34 standard, but we're on our way with this one!

8/10

January 9 - Charles Barkley/Alicia Keys
A look at Charles Barkley's credits on IMDb shows that he hosted SNL in 1993. Anyone able to provide an insight into how he'll do?

James Franco/Muse - Your Thoughts

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:07:00 +0000

I want your thoughts on tonight's episode hosted by James Franco with Muse! Did James Franco lift the season's standard up a notch? Did he wear plaid at any point during the night? Did Muse kill it or did Muse kill it? Favourite sketch/worst sketch? MVP of the show?

Comment, comment, comment!

ALSO guys, this is the last SNL of the decade! How exciting!

Also, Jenny Slate tweets -
"Holy F! James Franco week@ SNL is the best! What a gentleman!"

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Abby Elliott Interview on Late Night

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:17:00 +0000

Abby Elliott killing it with Jimmy Fallon!

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James Franco/Fred ArmisenPromo

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:51:00 +0000

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Abby Elliott on LNWJF

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:31:00 +0000

Tune into Late Night with Jimmy Fallon this Friday night where SNL star Abby Elliott will join Jimmy for a chat and hopefully some laughs! Hittin' the big time gir'!

Kenan Thompson Article

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:30:00 +0000

Check out this very cool article about Kenan Thompson's steady ascent to SNL go-to funny man this season!
http://nymag.com/arts/tv/features/62642/

James Franco Promo

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:19:00 +0000

Oh hai James Franco, you are so handsome and charming.

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A Vert Gilly Christmas Special

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:17:00 +0000

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SNL WGA Nomination

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:34:00 +0000

Congrats to SNL who picked up a Writer's Guild Award nomination for Comedy/Variety Series. They face competition from Real Time with Bill Maher, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Colbert Report and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.
I will now proceed to namecheck the nominees.

Head Writer - Seth Meyers. Writer - Doug Abeles, James Anderson, Alex Baze, Jessica Conrad, James Downey, Steve Higgins, Colin Jost, Erik Kenward, Rob Klein, John Lutz, Lorne Michaels, John Mulaney, Paula Pell, Simon Rich, Marika Sawyer, Akiva Schaffer, John Solomon, Emily Spivey, Kent Sublette, Jorma Taccone, Bryan Tucker, Additional Sketch by Adam McKay, Andrew Steele.

Congrats, y'all!

Taylor Lautner/Bon Jovi - Review

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:01:00 +0000

Cold Open - This saw three former senators/governors John Ensign, Mark Sanford & John Edwards commenting on the Tiger Woods affairs and the media's treatment of the story, in comparison to the media's treatment of politicians' affairs. So I thought that the sentiment was there - seriously media, it was a lot worse when Mark Sanford betrayed his constituents that elected him and headed off to Argentina to be with his South American lover than it was for Tiger Woods to have affairs. Beyond his family & friends, it's not really our business. However, not enough funny to sustain the sketch. Once again, the idea was there but the execution was off.

6/10

Monologue - So in Season 35's tradition of getting hosts to dance/sing/perform, Taylor Lautner performed some seriously cool karate stunts while "beating up Kanye West" for what he did to Taylor Swift. Not hilarious, but the kid works well with what he's got.

7/10

Rose Bowl Promo Shoot - Simple idea - maybe a little too simple? A quarterback who is not at all comfortable in front of a camera struggles to get his poses right. Taylor Lautner played the quarterback, and showed off some funny facial expressions and Bill was pretty good as the shoot director/photographer. Andy Samberg had a nice cameo at the end too. Funny enough, but like I said, a little too sparse of a concept.

6/10

Aunt Sue - This saw Kristen Wiig reprise her character of Sue, that lady who just loves surprises. We saw Abby Elliott & Taylor Lautner play a newly married couple who are going to tell her parents that she's expecting their first child. Of course Sue goes bananas, can't control herself etc. I really liked this character in the Christopher Walken show, but everytime it's been repeated, it's been the exact same sketch, so I can't say that I loved it. I did like where Sue literally climbed up the chimney though.

6/10

PGA Tour (1-3) - These were probably my favourite bits of the night. We saw the PGA Commissioner gradually grow more depressed at the prospect of the PGA without Tiger as the sketches went on, and Jason Sudeikis did such a terrific job. My favourite part was where they were sponsored by Major League Soccer, the letter "Q" and Old Dogs.

8/10

Middle School Jingle Jam - So with the overwhelming success of Glee, I thought that this was a nice premise, that was unfortunately ruined by a pointless appearance from Andy Samberg. We see a show choir being harassed by their classmates, jeered off the stage & such. The songs are pretty funny in how pathetic they are - "When I say Christmas, you say wrap!" And it would have been all fine & dandy had they not introduced Andy Samberg's character to the stage to taunt them up there. WHAT? Kudos to Taylor Lautner who fully committed to his foreign student character, and props to Jenny Slate & Abby Elliott who did good jobs here also.
6.5/10

Weekend Update - Was it just me or was something other than Seth's evident sore throat causing WU to be a little off? I just wasn't completely feeling it this week. The jokes were pretty good & I laughed, but more out of a recognition of something being funny than involuntary laughter. Am I making sense? I thoroughly enjoyed Fred's reprisal of Billy Smith the Native American Comedian. "Let's see, uh, what else?" That alone had me in hysterics. Nasim Pedrad's character however was kind of awful? Girl can do a Kathy Griffin impression, but anything beyond that she uses the exact same voice that is incredibly irritating. I think that she has shone in a lot of sketches, like Kickspit Underground Rock Festival, the best friends one with Taylor Swift, but keep her off Update!
7.5/10

Twilight Science Partners - This saw two girls from opposite ends of the Twilight love-spectrum, i.e one loves Jacob, the other Edward, refusing to be partnered up in science class. So I enjoyed this one, because I have borne witness to similarly nonsensical arguments about the merits of Jacob and Edward as a boyfriend. Did I think that the idea that they would be forced to fight it out in front of the whole class was totally stupid? Yes, even with the recognition that it was stupid from one of the students in the class, I still thought that it was stupid. But Jenny Slate & Taylor Lautner did terrific jobs and this sketch had one of my favourite lines of the night "Well the guy who plays Jacob should win an Oscar or something!"
7/10

Yogurt Shop - I had read good things about this one prior to watching the episode, so initially I was like "Really? People liked this?" But as it continued, I did find myself laughing at the complete weirdness of Taylor's character and the awkwardness between the pair. Kenan sliding in and out of scene was a pretty funny sight gag also, but Taylor really made it work here.
7.5/10

Doorbells & More - I can't help it, I'm very partial to some Jenny Slate. So while she seemed a little nervous here, I found the sketch and her voice hilarious. Was anyone else sort of reminded of Sofa King with this sketch?
7.5/10

OVERALL -
So, it was not great. An improvement on last week's for sure, but it still hasn't picked up majorly. They utilised Taylor Lautner far more than they used Blake Lively last week, and I think that's a testament to his comic timing and willingness to participate in a variety of sketches. Yeah, they were a little tween oriented, but what else did you expect when the ultimate teen heartthrob who's still only 17 is hosting? So I can't criticise Taylor at all - he surpassed my expectations & actually left a good impression on me. Kudos, bra!
Writing-wise, it wasn't a great deal better than last week's. While I enjoyed most of the sketches in the moment, there was none that really stood out that I would wish to view again anytime soon. However I am pleased to see that there was only one recurring sketch this week (Aunt Sue) and the rest were all original. Yay, originality!
Cast-wise, Taylor acted opposite Jenny Slate & Abby Elliott a lot, which I was glad to see, as neither lady has had the opportunity to shine this season. Both did great jobs and I hope this isn't the last we see of them for multiple episodes as usually happens with featured players.
Overall, not bad, not great. Still waiting for that one great episode this season. Perhaps James Franco will deliver it next week?

7/10
(I'm taking into consideration that I had 0 expectation for Taylor, he's 17 & I kinda guessed what the content was going to be like.)

Thoughts on Taylor Lautner/Bon Jovi

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 11:36:00 +0000

Post your thoughts here as to what you thought of last night's show. How was Taylor Lautner in comparison to fellow Taylor, Taylor Swift? Best sketch, worst sketch? An improvement on last week's?

Comment, comment, comment!

Seth Meyers on Martha Stewart

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 21:10:00 +0000

Check out these three fun segments with Seth Meyers on Martha!

Part 2 - click here
Part 3 - click here

Enjoy!

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:32:00 +0000

Jenny Slate tweets -

"I. Am. So. Excited. For. This. Week's. Show. Also, my dog was chewing on my bra and the strap is about to break. Man overboard!"

She follows that up with -

"Yes I am about to go to a dance rehearsal. Yes, I am wearing my jockstrap. Duh. "

Yay for positivity about a show I'm still not 100% confident about - and dancing!

Follow Jenny Slate on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jennyslate25

Andy Samberg & Fred Armisen End-of-Year Lists

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:01:00 +0000

Check out Fred Armisen & Andy Samberg's end-of-year lists on Videogum where they detail their favourite movies, songs & tv shows of the year!

Side note - why not leave a comment & fill out your own end-of-year list.

Favourite song -
Favourite album -
Favourite music video -
Favourite movie -
Favourite TV show -

Here's mine -

Favourite song - Empire State Of Mind -Jay Z feat. Alicia Keys/Two Weeks - Grizzly Bear/I Love College - Asher Roth
Favourite album - Davy - Coconut Records/Hair - Broadway Revival Cast/(500) Days of Summer OST
Favourite Music Video - Single Ladies - Beyonce (it's not really 2009, but I don't care)
Favourite movie - Inglourious Basterds/500 Days of Summer/The Hangover/Fantastic Mr Fox
Favourite TV Show - Glee/30 Rock/Mad Men/SNL/Modern Family/Parks and Recreation/So You Think You Can Dance/Bored To Death

FYI - I'll have an SNL end-of-year list after the James Franco show airs!

Jon Hamm To Host SNL!

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 17:54:00 +0000

Uber-handsome Mad Men star Jon Hamm will host SNL for the second time in as many seasons next January, according to his co-star Rich Sommer who let the info slip in an interview with TV Squad.
Jon Hamm did a terrific job last season, if only for his spot-on impressions of John F Kennedy & James Mason, so should be a good show!

Side note - when did Jon Hamm's John Ham become a classic sketch? Every report I've read has cited it as hilarious and I remember it being one of the lamer ones in a strong episode.

Are you excited at the prospect of Jon Hamm hosting?

Taylor Lautner Promo

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:13:00 +0000

Well, I did not know that's what his voice sounded like. Huh. Enjoy!

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Gilly to Host SNL Christmas Special

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 10:18:00 +0000

The Washington Post is reporting that Kristen Wiig's recurring character Gilly will host the SNL Christmas Special that airs December 17. Acknowledging Gilly's limited vocabulary, Wiig said "That can be a tough one to work around. There's going to be no long monologue. Maybe her five-word vocabulary will stretch to 10 or 11."
The 2010 Oscar hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin will also make appearances on the show with Baldwin introducing his holiday classic "NPR's Delicious Dish - Scweddy Balls" while Martin will introduce "A Holiday Wish".

__________________

Even though I'm not Gilly's biggest fan, an SNL Christmas special seems like it could be great. As Wiig says, SNL has been on for so long that there's a lot of great Christmas material there.

Are you excited at the prospect of a Gilly-hosted Christmas special?

Blake Lively/Rihanna - Review

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:54:00 +0000

Cold Open - This saw the Salahis (not the real Salahis) interrupt Obama's speech on the economy in Philadelphia. The entire sketch was basically Bobby & Kristen posing for pictures with the secret service, Joe Biden etc. Pretty one-note & went on a little too long for what it was. Also, Fred - have you just given up with the Obama impression?
6/10

Monologue: Out comes Blake Lively in a pretty red dress talking about how she met the Muppets - cue The Muppets. I really liked Jason's Fozzy Bear impression and Kristen's rendition of Hark, The Herald Angels Sing as Beaker. Aside from that though, it really seemed like an attempt to overshadow Blake Lively.
6/10

Swine Fever: I don't care what people say - I love Swine Fever. Not so keen on repeating commercials, but at least it wasn't Grand Hoochie Skank Rose, right?
n/a

ESPN Ladies Bowling - I wasn't too into this one the first time during Drew Barrymore's show, but at least it was new then. This time it played really lame. Maybe it's just me, but I just don't find Vagisil puns that funny. I will say that I do enjoy Jason Sudeikis and Will Forte working together. They share a really nice rapport that elevates even lame, gross-out sketches like this one. Side note - is SNL obsessed with Gene Rayburn?! You might remember in that Grease sketch from the Christopher Walken show a while back, they changed the lyric "Greased Lightning" to "Gene Rayburn". In this sketch, one of the bowlers surnames was Rayburn-Gene. What is it with Gene Rayburn?
5.5/10

The Situation Room (Tiger Woods): To be honest, it just seemed like a wasted opportunity. You have the biggest story of the week, and this is the best you can do with it? Not only was Kenan's impression terrible (sorry, Kenan) but what was Blake Lively's accent? I did enjoy Jason's impression of Wolf Blitzer complete with mumbling and Tiger's written statement that had pleas for help written on the back, but all in all it was a disappointing take on the week's big story.
6/10

Digital Short - Rihanna and Shy Ronnie: So I actually enjoyed this one. It was Rihanna singing a song with Shy Ronnie who, you guessed it, is shy & won't rap in front of her. It doesn't sound so good written down, but Andy's mannerisms and uber-quiet voice killed me, and Rihanna killed also, especially for someone who was completely silent in the promos. Does anyone else think that Andy Samberg should just bite the bullet and pursue a career in rap? It seems like it's his life goal.
7/10

Gossip Girl - Staten Island: As a concept it was funny, but it was so poorly executed, I don't think I laughed once. I smirked when I heard the Gossip Girl voiceover but aside from that, it was awful. I'll give props to Blake Lively for a convincing accent, but accents alone weren't enough to salvage this.
4/10

Underground Rock Festival: One of the highlights of the night for me, and a diamond in the rough for sure. So it was basically a commercial for a super-underground rock festival mocking this actual infomercial. It featured Jason Sudeikis & Nasim Pedrad, both of whom did terrific jobs. The band names made me laugh as did the Ass Dan memorial picture, and the super cheap-looking graphics. All in all, great work on the part of everyone involved.

"And you know that there are gonna be mimes running all around this bitch!" Quote of my life?
8/10

Weekend Update: Another definite highlight. Sharp jokes from Meyers, and great guest appearances from Abby Elliott as Brittany Murphy and Kenan Thompson as Bill Cosby. Abby's impression skills rival Bill Hader's and her Brittany Murphy was actually uncanny.
"Hi Seth, it's great to be he-uh, hosting Saturday Night Live!"
Kenan redeemed himself from his earlier Tiger Wood impersonation with a top-notch Cosby impression, where we were treated to a sampling of Bill Cosby rapping.
8/10

Virginiaca and Daughter Shopping: Oh lord, not Virginiaca! I have no words.
n/a

UPS Commercial 1: Another great commercial! This was a take-off of those UPS commercials with the guy in the "lady wig". Bill killed as per usual and it was great send-up of those ubiquitous commercials.
8/10

Late Night w/ Chris Hansen: Another one of those botched executions - see what I did there, eh? The premise was there, the impressions were there, but the writing/jokes were completely AWOL. Tip to writers - don't depend on an impression/beloved character to save a sketch. If a general idea/jokes aren't there, don't write it!
5/10

UPS Commercial 2: I think I actually liked this one better than the first one. A basic continuation in the series, and another great send-up of the UPS ads.
8/10

NASA - Potato Chips: I read a Ken Tucker review of the show in which he likened this sketch to There Will Be Blood, and I can't help but agree. The sketch was completely absurd and screamed Will Forte, with the premise being a guy being interviewed for a position as an astronaut at NASA. The interviewer urges him not to eat a potato chip while he's gone, but of course the interviewee does & all hell breaks loose as a result. Not only were Jason Sudeikis, Blake Lively & Will Forte completely committed to their parts and the bizarre premise, but it was hilarious as a result, and was by far the best live sketch of the night. It culminated in Jason Sudeikis' character regurgitating the potato chip, and normally I'm not one for gross-out humour, but it was executed and timed so well, that it was really funny.
9/10

Overall -
Overall, this was a show dominated by cast performances. Blake Lively was required to do very little but what she did, she did respectably well. She didn't seem out of her comfort zone like January Jones but nor was she completely at home like Taylor Swift or Joseph Gordon-Levitt. It's kinda telling though that the musical guest was given more to do in the digital short, and killed, while Blake Lively was given very little to do in the whole show. In general, the writing was lazy and sub-par and not much better than that of the January Jones show, redeemed only by Weekend Update, taped sketches & that final sketch. With the influx of new writers this season - Hannibal Buress, Christine Nangle, Jillian Bell, Jessi Klein, Ryan Perez, Michael Patrick O'Brien - you would think that they would depend less on old characters/premises (Virginiaca, CNN, talk shows), but it seems like these are becoming the very foundations of this season. Sketches like NASA - Potato Chips are what the writers should be aiming for and also, the cold opens do not always have to be political, particularly if it's been a relatively uneventful week. Remember when SNL would open with a Will Ferrell/Cheri Oteri cheerleaders sketch? I want to see a variety of cold opens!

MVP of the show - I have to say Jason Sudeikis. From his Fozzy Bear in the monologue to the ESPN sketch to Wolf Blitzer to Philip Seymour Hoffman to Kickspit Underground Rock Festival to that final sketch, he killed pretty much everything he was given to do. Close second - Will Forte.

Overall score - 6.5/10

Stray Observations -

No Jenny Slate?
Has anybody else noticed that Bill Hader mouths "Hi Maggie & Hannah" at the goodbyes? It is the most lovely thing ever.
Next week - Taylor Lautner. Let's hope he shares the same enthusiasm as Taylor Swift.

Thoughts on Blake Lively

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:25:00 +0000

Post your thoughts on what you thought of the show after it's aired!

Good, bad, ugly? Best sketch, worst sketch? Did Blake Lively exceed my inital expectations (i.e that she would bomb)?

Comment, comment, comment!

Maya Rudolph Welcomes Baby Girl

noreply@blogger.com (amyfairycakes) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 12:38:00 +0000

Congrats to SNL alum Maya Rudolph who gave birth to a baby girl, Lucille, on November 6! This is Maya's second daughter with director Paul Thomas Anderson.
Congrats!