Posted in: Current News, Review, TV | Tagged: saturday night live, snl

SNL Hits Hard, Connor Storrie Gets Physical in Best Season 51 Show Yet

After a three-week break, Saturday Night Live returned with SNL host Connor Storrie (Heated Rivalry) and dropped Season 51's best show yet.

After taking three weeks off for 2026 Winter Olympics coverage, NBC's Saturday Night Live, host Connor Storrie (Heated Rivalry), and musical guests Mumford & Sons had the audacity to return with a show that has now set the official bar for the remainder of the season. Looking for sketches that hit hard at the headlines? Looking for sketches that were perfect amalgamations of physical comedy and the absurd? Looking for a host who showed the kind of comedic chops that not only allowed him to fit in seamlessly with the SNL cast but also got us thinking that there's a "Five Timers" jacket in his future? This weekend's show had it all, an even more impressive feat when you consider that the first show back from extended breaks can tend to show a bit of ring rust. Storrie and the SNL team put that assumption to rest in some very impressive ways (good luck, upcoming SNL hosts Ryan Gosling and Harry Styles), offering up a night of all bangers and no misses.

SNL Season 51: Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons Highlights

We won't rehash what we discussed last night about the "Trump Iran War Address Cold Open" and Storrie's monologue, other than to say we were impressed by how hard the opener (and "Weekend Update") went after Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth over the ongoing war in Iran. As for Storrie's monologue, it struck the perfect balance, giving Storrie a chance to connect with viewers on a personal level while also spotlighting his comedic skills. Whoever came up with the idea of having U.S. Olympic Hockey Team members from both the men's and women's teams join Storrie on stage as a way of squashing any beefs (and twist the knife a bit on Trump) deserves their flowers and then some.

"Ice Skating" was a fun way to bring Hudson Williams into the madness, with Williams offering more than enough to make the case that maybe a hosting gig could be in his future, too. Plus, SNL gets us every time when it comes to sketches involving bizarre shit going on in the background. Seriously. Every time. "The Gentlemen's Code" was pure silly right from the jump, but leave it to Kenan Thompson to be the perfect reality check – with Mikey Day's reaction to being hit by a fist for the first time instead of an expected slap had us rewinding.

"Weekend Update" saw Colin Jost and Michael Che bring out the right kind of moans and groans from the audience, hitting us with headlines that made it clear that they had some stuff to get off their chests. Veronika Slowikowska's Beth's Maid of Honor Katie was the perfect combination of that person we all know from every wedding reception and that friend whose empathy wiring is a bit screwed up, and needs to be a recurring WU guest. But it was Sarah Sherman's Punch the Monkey's Mom may have been the highlight of the night, an over-the-top physical performance that secured her title as top Jost roaster while setting a new high bar comedically for all future WU guests.

You knew "Mr. Fronzi" worked as a sketch the moment the audience audibly expressed how bad they felt for Marcello Hernández's teacher after being mocked by Storrie. "Leg Lengthening" was another example of how well physical comedy and the absurd worked hand in hand. "Tutoring the Cool Kid" was a fun showcase for Ben Marshall, giving us just the right amount of The CW teen drama vibes before being thrown for a curve by Marshall, James Austin Johnson, and Ashley Padilla. Also, serious props to the production team for how well the sketch keyboard playing matched up with the sound – might be a weird compliment, but it was a big reason why the sketch worked.

In hindsight, it actually made sense to have "Stripper" run near the end of the night because it served as the perfect final note on Storrie's run as host. Playing a stripper who refuses to cancel a gig, even after being hit by a car, Storrie put all of his comedic skills on display in what could be one of the most physical sketches we've seen a host perform in quite some time. For us, Storrie sealed the deal when he was attempting to use his plunger (no innuendo: he was pretending to be a plumber) to crawl over seductively to Padilla, despite the agonizing pain. Also, props to Padilla, Sherman, Slowikowska, and Jack Wickline for holding the line and staying in the moment, selling the sketch even more. Seriously, after Sherman spent that much time with her face that close to Storrie's crotch without breaking, she deserves to be in Emmy Awards consideration.

Saturday Night Live Season 51: Connor Storrie/Mumford & Sons

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Review by Ray Flook

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9.5/10

After taking three weeks off for 2026 Winter Olympics coverage, NBC's Saturday Night Live, host Connor Storrie (Heated Rivalry), and musical guests Mumford & Sons had the audacity to return with a show that has now set the official bar for the remainder of the season. Looking for sketches that hit hard at the headlines? Looking for sketches that were perfect amalgamations of physical comedy and the absurd? Looking for a host who showed the kind of comedic chops that not only allowed him to fit in seamlessly with the SNL cast but also got us thinking that there's a "Five Timers" jacket in his future? This weekend's show had it all, an even more impressive feat when you consider that the first show back from extended breaks can tend to show a bit of ring rust. Storrie and the SNL team put that assumption to rest in some very impressive ways (good luck, upcoming SNL hosts Ryan Gosling and Harry Styles), offering up a night of all bangers and no misses. 

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