Posted in: NBC, Peacock, Review, TV | Tagged: Dua Lipa, saturday night live, season 49, snl

Saturday Night Live, Dua Lipa Bring More Smiles Than Laughs: Review

NBC's Saturday Night Live and host/musical guest Dua Lipa offered viewers a fun & welcome return that brought more smiles than laughs.

NBC's Saturday Night Live returned this weekend for the first of the three final episodes for the season – and it wasn't exactly a stress-free position for Dua Lipa to find herself in. First up, she was the host and the musical guest – and she slayed both of those with the ease and confidence of a professional who we can see picking up her "Five-Timers Club" jacket before too long. When you give yourself over to what the Saturday Night Live writers & cast members have planned and show a willingness to commit to a sketch no matter what, the results are usually pretty damn good. On top of that, Dua Lipa was commanding the first episode after the one that everyone was talking about, even two weeks after it aired – you know, the Ryan Gosling/"Beavis and Butt-Head" sketch. Add in the fact that this weekend's episode also sets the tone for what's to come as the season gets ready to wrap, and you can easily see the "perfect storm" of pressures at play.

Guess what? Dua Lipa and the SNL fam did just fine, thank you very much. While maybe not in contention for best episode of Season 49, this weekend's effort was a fine return to form after a long break (and a whole lot of extra media attention). Here's a look at what worked (and one thing that definitely didn't), what our highlights were, how "Weekend Update" turned out, and Dua Lipa's live performances from the night.

What Worked? There was a lot to enjoy about this weekend's return episode – even if it brought more smiles than laughs. The "Community Affairs" cold open was an interesting take on Israel/Palestine and the nationwide college campus protests. As someone who worked nearly two decades in higher ed, Kenan Thompson's parent was spot-on when it came to how they approached these situations. Dua Lipa's monologue was a lot of fun – including an audience "Q&A" – with Dua Lipa's references to her parents a sweet highlight.

Though a little long, "Good Morning Greenville" was the perfect snapshot of how every local news show is handling the Kendrick Lamar/Drake diss battle – with Dua Lipa, Heidi Gardner & Mikey Day spot-on as the clueless white anchors trying to be in the know – but Devon Walker made the sketch with each cut to his growing-increasingly-more-uncomfortable weatherman. For me, "Sonny Angel" was a beautiful disaster in that I know there were viewers who were loving this nine different ways – but this one was lost on me. It was like a "Challengers" sketch that felt it needed an "M. Night Shyamalan twist" to work – though Dua Lipa, Marcello Hernàndez & Bowen Yang were definitely committed to the cause.

While I respect what went into the production behind "The Anomalous Man" (and it definitely showed on camera), it felt like a whole lot for a payoff that you could kinda see coming. That said, serious props to Sarah Sherman because I had to go online to confirm that was her – seriously impressive work. "Teeny Tiny Statement Pin" was a nice piece of filmed satire that was a devilish knife twist on red carpets, social messaging as a fashion statement, and famous folks who try to avoid taking too strong of a position on anything. Soulbooth (Andrew Dismukes & James Austin Johnson) returned in "Jingle Pitch 2," a sketch that offered a barebones premise that Dismukes & Johnson were able to make their own.

What Were The Highlights? Dua Lipa & Ego Nwodim had me rolling when it came to how they chose to "help" Walker's rapper "Young Spicy" with his new producer tag. "Penne Alla Vodka" was one of those filmed sketches that could truly unite us not just as a nation but as a people – with bonus points for including that damn slippery spoon. "OBGYN" might be our personal highlight because it featured another rare occurrence – Nwodim breaking. With Thompson's BBQ expert & OB/GYN Dr. Fat Daddy treating Nwodim like a rack of ribs, how could she not? Thompson was "The Breaking Ringmaster," keeping himself in check while making it tough for Nwodim & Day to do the same. Bonus points to Punkie Johnson, who entered the sketch already laughing.

How Was "Weekend Update"? Colin Jost and Michael Che were strong this weekend – even if the audience was a bit too sensitive to some of the humor. Instead of giving in to the audience, Jost and Che fed off of its discomfort and kept it moving along – its a level of well-earned comedic cockiness that's nice to see from the duo from time to time.

Hernàndez had another great "WU" turn as self-proclaimed dog-killer Kristi Noem's other dog – the way he was trying to message Jost throughout walked the line between disturbing and hysterical perfectly. But if you're looking for the "WU" rockstar, that title goes to Chloe Fineman, who went all-in on her impression of now-"edgy" JoJo Siwa's new look & attitude. Fineman gives her all and it shows – and based on the social media reactions shortly after it aired, she nailed it on a number of levels. I think it's time we start talking about Fineman more in terms of SNL's greats because her body of work, impression-wise, is amazing.

What Didn't Work? I had to blow the dust off of this topic – haven't had to use it in a while. At the end of "Weekend Update," Jerry Seinfeld appeared under the guise of being "so exhausted" from having to do so much press for his Netflix film, Unfrosted. Look, I don't know if this was NBC's call because the network still feels like it owes him, or maybe this was EP Lorne Michaels doing an old friend a solid, but it all felt forced and painfully unnecessary. Jost looked like he was taking one for the team, the audience got awkwardly quiet at certain points, and even Jerry looked like he had exhausted his attempts at anything even remotely resembling improv. On the bright side (kinda?), Jerry currently holds the title for this season's "Most Gratuitous SNL Guest Appearance."

How Was Dua Lipa? On the musical side, Dua Lipa proved once again why she's a musical powerhouse who knows how to command a stage – even one as small as the ones in Studio 8H. Here's a look at Dua Lipa performing "Illusion" and "Happy For You":

Saturday Night Live Season 49: Dua Lipa

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Review by Ray Flook

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7.5/10

NBC's Saturday Night Live returned this weekend for the first of the three final episodes for the season - and it wasn't exactly a stress-free position for Dua Lipa to find herself in. First up, she was the host and the musical guest - and she slayed both of those with the ease and confidence of a professional who we can see picking up her "Five-Timers Club" jacket before too long. When you give yourself over to what the SNL writers & cast members have planned and show a willingness to commit to a sketch no matter what, the results are usually pretty damn good. On top of that, Dua Lipa was commanding the first episode after the one that everyone was talking about, even two weeks after it aired - you know, the Ryan Gosling/"Beavis and Butt-Head" sketch. Add in the fact that this weekend's episode also sets the tone for what's to come as the season gets ready to wrap, and you can easily see the "perfect storm" of pressures at play. Guess what? Dua Lipa and the SNL fam did just fine, thank you very much. While maybe not in contention for best episode of Season 49, this weekend's effort was a fine return to form after a long break (and a whole lot of extra media attention). Here's a look at what worked (and one thing that definitely didn't), what our highlights were, how "Weekend Update" turned out, and Dua Lipa's live performances from the night.

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