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Posted in: NBC, Peacock, TV | Tagged: saturday night live, snl
SNL Cast, Strong Writing, Cue Cards Boost Chris Rock-Hosted Effort
Host Chris Rock's monologue brought fire, while the cast and writers did the heavy lifting regarding sketches during this weekend's SNL.
Okay, we'll just put it out there so we all know where everyone stands. It goes without saying that he is an iconic stand-up comedian who has proven that he can more than hold his own on the big screen. But after two seasons as a cast member, three previous hosting gigs, and several guest appearances, we've got a feeling that Saturday Night Live host/alum Chris Rock will never be known for his sketch comedy work in front of the camera – and that was on display more than a few times during this weekend's show. At times, it appeared that Rock was so reliant on the cue cards that we were afraid that someone was going to "Ron Burgundy" him out of spite. Thankfully, much of that was counterbalanced by an SNL cast that stepped up in some very big ways, a writing team's lineup of filmed and live sketches that offered something for every comedic taste, and an opening monologue from Rock that was part comedy, part reality check, part wake-up call. With that in mind, here's a rundown of some random thoughts we had about that night – what worked, what didn't, and what got our brain cells firing in different directions.
"Crime Stories with Nancy Grace" Cold Open: As much as we're always there for her "body horror comedy," we're all about seeing more Sarah Sherman in a wide variety of sketches – so seeing her nail that Nancy Grace impression with just enough of the absurd thrown in was a great start.
"Monologue": From Jake Paul/Mike Tyson and Donald Trump to President Joseph Biden, Elon Musk, and Luigi Mangione, Rock didn't hold back – putting their feet to the fire while offering a hysterical yet sobering reminder of what's to come.
"Mall Santas": Chloe Fineman gets serious bonus points for the mom who's not nearly as liberal and open-minded as she thinks she is when Rock's Santa's Helper calls her out.
"Simpsons Christmas Gift": The creative team behind The Simpsons should feel some serious pride over what might just be the most unique and personal "love letter" to the long-running animated series.
"Grandpa's Magic Car" worked because the ending was satisfying on two levels. First, we were expecting them to get in and for the car to kill them all, so this was a nice surprise. But from a horror fan's perspective, we appreciated seeing a group of friends make the right call when confronted with the obvious.
Between "That's So True" and "I Love You, I'm Sorry," musical guest Gracie Abrams kept the season's musical winning streak alive while offering us a pair of performances that hit our hearts by the first note and never stopped hammering away.
"Sexual Harassment Charlie": We will never get tired of the comedic greatness that is Kenan Thompson.
"Gallbladder Surgery": Feel free to call me a "grinch," but we weren't big fans of Adam Sandler breaking character and the fourth wall, joking about how they're in a sketch and things like that. SNL folks returning for the 50th season should take a page from Dana Carvey, who's been running strong since the start of the season.
"Office Christmas Party Extravaganza": If you question or scoff at anything in this filmed sketch, then you've never really had to endure an office holiday party/debacle.
"Blind Date": Rock and Ego Nwodim have fun chemistry together – more of those two working together in the future, please?
"Weekend Update": It's nice to know that as society continues its downward spiral, Colin Jost and Michael Che are hitting back at it as hard as ever – with no signs of letting up. Andrew Dismukes playing a bald man responding to UK judges ruling that calling a man bald is a form of harassment was okay, but nothing that we would be screaming about seeing more of in the future. Speaking of "Weekend Update"…
Jane Wickline: SNL's three featured players (also including Ashley Padilla and Emil Wakim) have been impressive and improving all season, with Jane Wickline doing some brave and interesting stuff on "Weekend Update." Were we a big fan of the song? No – it felt like it went a bit too long for the point it was making about singing powerhouse Sabrina Carpenter. But the effort was bold, brave, and different; Wickline admitted right up front that they were playing the role of Carpenter but had no intentions of looking or sounding like her – and there was something peculiarly endearing about that approach. Also, Wickline's sketch work continues getting stronger – for example, Wickline left a fun comedic impression during the brief time they were in the "Mall Santas" sketch.
Saturday Night Live Season 50: Chris Rock & Gracie Abrams
8/10
Okay, we'll just put it out there so we all know where everyone stands. It goes without saying that he is an iconic stand-up comedian who has proven that he can more than hold his own on the big screen. But after two seasons as a cast member, three previous hosting gigs, and several guest appearances, we've got a feeling that Saturday Night Live host/alum Chris Rock will never be known for his sketch comedy work in front of the camera - and that was on display more than a few times during this weekend's show. At times, it appeared that Rock was so reliant on the cue cards that we were afraid that someone was going to "Ron Burgundy" him out of spite. Thankfully, much of that was counterbalanced by an SNL cast that stepped up in some very big ways, a writing team's lineup of filmed and live sketches that offered something for every comedic taste, and an opening monologue from Rock that was part comedy, part reality check, part wake-up call.
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