I didn’t have high hopes for this episode when it was announced. Katy Perry isn’t known for much around Fish and Spaghetti, but certainly not for her acting or comedic talents.
More often when not when a musician hosts they play straight man to recurring, which makes for a dismal episode of Saturday Night Life. Will that hold true this week?
(As usual, here’s our rating system)
Phil Hartman – Comedic gold
Chris Farley – Definitely funny, but kinda messy
Norm MacDonald – Funny, but not for everyone
Tim Meadows – Solid Bit
Andy Samberg – Funny, but overstayed it’s welcome
Jim Breuer- Crowd pleaser, but a bit obvious
David Spade – Trying too hard
Chris Elliot – Didn’t click at all, how did it get on
On The Record – Initially I was happy to see Darrell Hammond back and doing his Donald Trump impression. But it’s sort of wack and a flaw of the show that they have to bring back Hammond to pull this off. He’s the star of the sketch and the brought him in for it. It’s moderately funny, but not the strongest start ever.
Rating: Jim Breuer
Monologue: First off, I didn’t appreciate Katy Perry signaling to the band when to cut. You’re a pop star, they’re tenured musicians. Then you’ve got Kristen Wiig and Andy Samberg, who were in the cold open, returning for the monologue. Are they short staffed? And to top it off, the monologue isn’t even funny. It’s perhaps the weakest of the season. Wackness.
Rating: Chris Elliot
J-Pop America Funtime Now – According to Jay1 this is the most original use of a clichéd format in quite sometime. The “ridiculousness on camera offset by a sensible producer” format is well worn, but the setting made this feel more unique. Also Jason Sudekis and Fred Armisen were excellent characters to cut away to.
Rating: Norm MacDonald, Andy Samberg
The Apocalypse – This ad was topical, funny and well put together. The Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Penny Marshall impressions slayed me. Also, props to Jay Pharoah on his Cuba Gooding Jr, he looked nothing like the dude, but he sounded like him.
Rating: Tim Meadows
Kalle – This skit was awesome! Jay1 and I were talking about how this ep felt very Wiig heavy, but she killed this sketch. Her accent was dope and the concept was just weird enough. Katy Perry was the worst part of this skit, because her readings were so off. But, yeah, this one got a resounding cheer from Fish & Spaghetti.
Rating: Tim Meadows, Norm MacDonald
Digital Short: Best Friends – This was awesome. Like the best Digital Shorts is was weird, out of left field and snowballed into absurdity. Matt Damon and Val Kilmer cameos were awesome as was the acting by Samberg and Perry. Their reluctance was priceless.
Rating: Phil Hartman
Doggie Duty – I never get tired of Fred Armisen’s Randy Newman. Sudekis’ Meatloaf was equally funny. “They don’t like cats.” Points off for basically being the second collection of impressions this episode. Why was Clint Eastwood there?
Rating: Tim Meadows
Robyn Performance #1 – Honestly, the backing vocals were distracting. And Robyn didn’t look as lively as she does in person. Not my favorite song and not a good representation of how powerful a live performer Robyn actually is. Sort of disappointing.
Weekend Update – I dig Rebecca Larue. She was a funny character and a new character, though it felt like the writers being lazy. Again they throw up a loose idea and rely on Wiig to bring it to life. Also, how did I not know that Alec Baldwin had an awesome Southern accent in his back pocket? Jay1 didn’t like that they copped to him being Alec, I thought it was funny and worked. You can’t go wrong with Stefon. A Fish Called Kwanzaa? Doctors Without Boners. C’mon, that’s comedy.
Pippa Visits The Queen – I dig the surly Royals and I’m glad they returned. I love that the writers appreciate and can differentiate the classes in British culture. I really dig when Bill Hader and Armisen get gully. And, as reluctant as I am to say it, Perry held her own in this sketch.
Rating: Tim Meadows, Norm MacDonald
Politics Nation with Al Sharpton – This felt weird. To anyone who hasn’t seen the viral clip of Sharpton being horrible, this could just come off as a Black guy being a buffoon. But the clip is viral. Keenan Thompson does a pretty solid Al Sharpton.
Rating: Tim Meadows
Robyn Performance #2 – No joke, this is one of my favorite Robyn songs, so to have her perform it was cool. Everything was much better this time around. Also, I love the suits that her band wears.
One Magical Night – First off; Paul Brittan sighting! Secondly, the band really made this bit work. Backyard full of Kangaroos? Hilarious. But Moynihan and Perry also made the bit work. And that absurd ending was awesome. But quietly, Sudekis' song was the funniest bit in this sketch.
Rating: Norm MacDonald, Chris Farley
Final Thoughts: This episode started poorly but got much better really quickly. Strong filmed bit and strong performances by Wiig and Armisen really saved the day. The ep was Wiig heavy, but not to a detriment. Did Nasim Pedrad have the night off? And why’d Brittan only get a cameo in the final sketch? Considering the host was a musician with negligible talent, this was surprisingly strong.
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