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Posted in: Current News, NBC, Peacock, Review, TV | Tagged: saturday night live, snl
SNL Cast, Writers Do the Comedy Heavy Lifting in Fun, Freaky Effort
SNL host Josh O'Connor held his own, but this week showcased how the cast & writers have quickly jelled, as evident in this week's sketches.
As NBC's Saturday Night Live inches closer to its midseason finale next week (with host Ariana Grande and musical guest Cher), host Josh O'Connor was joined by musical guest Lily Allen for this weekend's fun and freaky show. It's been a recurring theme in my previous reviews, and it bears repeating following this week's show. SNL Season 51 is a season for comedic actors, not just people who can tell a joke. The writing is getting stronger with every show, continually offering an eclectic mix of filmed and live sketches that tackle a wide range of topics. There wasn't a sketch that didn't work in some way this week, with the Cold Open finding a way to twist the knife even harder than usual. "Weekend Update" is a world that Colin Jost and Michael Che own, and we just (happily) live in it.
The cast is getting that close ensemble feel; not an easy task to pull off, considering its size this season and the mix of new and returning cast members. Allen brought fire to that stage, laying down performances that grabbed your attention by its throat and didn't let go (and will get a lot of folks speculating, by the way). If there's a legit complaint (though it wasn't a factor for me), it's that O'Connor was much more of a "team player" in the sketches instead of being the focus, with the SNL cast doing much of the comedic heavy lifting. While that worked fine for me (I don't have an opinion of O'Connor one way or the other), I can imagine some folks tuning in for him could have a gripe or two.
SNL Season 51: Josh O'Connor & Lily Allen Highlights
From sensitive strippers and "Uber Eats Wrapped" to Jane Wickline exposing the truth about the biggest threat to mankind, a boy genius with mother issues, and a father and son on a mission to find the right Christmas tree (and spend some quality time together), here's a look at five sketches that hit our radars hard:
"Bachelorette Party Strippers": A great sketch that spotlighted Ben Marshall, who teamed with O'Connor to play a pair of very sensitive, very understanding strippers at a bride's (Ashley Padilla) bachelorette party, giving him a chance to show what he has to offer as a solo comedic actor. Bonus points to Jane Wickline as the progressively more annoyed member of the bridal party who just wanted to see some dong and some grinding.
"Your Year Wrapped": If it works for Spotify, then why can't it work for Uber Eats… right? Wrong, and the best sketch of the night does a great job of explaining why. I don't need to be reminded of how much I've invested in Sal's Pizzaeria over the past 12 months, or how lazy I was to walk across the street to get coffee. Bonus point to James Austin Johnson and Padilla as the couple whose husband just doesn't get it.
"Weekend Update: Jane Wickline on the Greatest Threat to Humanity": Wickline won us over with their music and locked us in as a big fan with last week's "Cousin Planet" (with Veronika Slowikowska). However, this might compete for the top honors because I didn't see it coming. Did I think it was going to be about the dangers of AI? Nope, but there was no way I could've ever called it that the cast of Stranger Things would pose a greater threat to humanity. And damn, if Wickling didn't drive it home – great stuff.
"College Class": Bowen Yang's 12-year-old college student and Padilla as his mother just introduced us to what might be the next hit recurring sketch. I'm going to lean into my past life working in higher ed on this one to say that the sketch wasn't nearly as exaggerated as you might think. Bonus points to Sarah Sherman's facial acting in this one (it's worth a rewatch), especially when Yang's student tells his Mom to leave because he has a chance of scoring with Sherman.
"Brad and His Dad: Christmas": Though it's his mother's year to have him for the holidays, Brad (Mikey Day) and his dad (Streeter Seidell) spend the day together picking out a Christmas tree. On a personal level, these shorts have been hitting me hard in some great ways, and it might just be one of the best portrayals of a father-son dynamic I've seen. Brad's dad is trying his best, and there's something to admire about that, even when he falls a little short sometimes. Brad isn't portrayed as just a kid lost in the screen in front of him; you can tell he loves his dad and enjoys his time with him. SNL benefits from having sketches that can make you laugh through the "good tears," so I hope there are more to come.
SNL Season 50: Josh O'Connor & Lily Allen
8.5/10
As NBC's Saturday Night Live inches closer to its midseason finale next week (with host Ariana Grande and musical guest Cher), host Josh O'Connor was joined by musical guest Lily Allen for this weekend's fun and freaky show. It's been a recurring theme in my previous reviews, and it bears repeating following this week's show. SNL Season 51 is a season for comedic actors, not just people who can tell a joke.
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