SNL Scorecard: Other Than Helen Mirren's Breasts, A Very Flat Night
There's really no way to soften the blow here: Helen Mirren's turn as Saturday Night Live host was a massive disappointment. Flat, flat, flat... everything the whole night -- well, except her breasts in one sketch -- was flat. Resorting to the tired and meta "SNL isn't funny anymore" jokes as early as the cold open reveals a staff that appears to be looking ahead to its three-week break (SNL, thankfully at this point, doesn't return until May 7). So, yeah, enjoy your break, guys. Please think of something funny while you're gone. Meanwhile, on to a very depressing scorecard...
Sketch of the Night
"Mary Shelly" (Armisen, Mirren, Wiig, Hader, Sudeikis, Moynihan, Brittain) I guess this is the sketch of the night? At least I chuckled a couple of times. Armisen plays Frank Stein, Mary Shelly's landlord who appears to have been the inspiration for Shelly's book Frankenstein. Good concept, decent execution but felt more like the weird last sketch of the show as opposed to a headliner.
Score: 7.5
The Good
"Best of Both Worlds with Hugh Jackman" (Samberg, Killam, Thompson, Mirran): This would have been the best sketch of the show if it wouldn't have come to a screeching halt once Mirren showed up as Julie Andrews. Samberg was perfect as the aggressive Wolverine-ish Hugh Jackman, who also has his Tony Awards-hosting sensitive side. After, it really made no sense. Gerard Butler was an odd choice since he's firmly a rom-com kinda guy these days (plus it's obvious Killam doesn't really do a Gerard Butler impression). And my only guess is that Mirren just really wanted to play Julie Andrews at some point during the show, because it made very little sense next to Jackman, Butler and Ice Cube.
Score: 7.0
"Helen Mirren's Magical Bosom" (Pedrad, Mirren, Wiig, Samberg, Grohl): This was fun, if nothing else than to see Brendan Fraser laugh clap from last year's Golden Globes again. If you touch Helen Mirren's breasts, you're transported into a magical world -- which I can only assume is true.
Score: 7.0
"Perspectives Photo Studio" (Sudeikis, Killam, Moynihan, Hader): This may have been a little timelier had it aired near the beginning of the season. Regardless, this went from "OK" to "good" with one Bobby Moynihan "Boom!" as he subbed in for a less-endowed customer. How does that conversation go during the week? "Hey, Bobby, do you want to do a walk-on in the commercial parody as the guy with the big penis?" "Yes. Yes I do."
Score: 6.5
"Helen Mirren Monologue" (Mirren, Ensemble): This was Mirren's highlight of the show. She was spunky and even made a Caligula orgy reference. Strange, though, that another meta SNL joke was used -- this one at the expense of last week's "Hey, did you know that I'm gay?" Elton John-hosted installment.
Score: 6.5
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Comments
Wow, bad mood last night? With the exception of the first and last sketches, I was laughing more than usual the whole show. To each their own, I guess...
Well, I would encourage people reading this to read also the review on TVLine where assessments of last night's sketches are mostly reversed. For a fair view of the show I would take whatever positive things were said in either of these reviews and discount the negative unless there is consensus--yes, Armisen's Obama is sucking the life out of the show. I with seemingly everyone else would love to see Pharaoh have a shot, but the fault may very well lie with Obama himself. He is just not being cooperative with our nation's comics the way we are used to with, for 20 years going, the Bushes and Clinton. That said I am continually surprised by the lack of consensus when it comes to evaluating SNL. If I were one of the creators of the show I would be constantly driven crazy with all the contradictory feedback.
I agree completely, this week. I too defend SNL against people who insists that the show has been bad since their favourite performer left, but it is not always easy. With this and last weeks bland Elton John episode, I might stay away from forums until the Fey episode in May.
Incidentally, Wikipedia tells me that the Fey episode will be episode 700.
I hope Dame Helen had a good time this week, as it would be the only positive note. What a waste of a masterful, award-winning actor. I was embarrassed for her. Sixty more minutes of my life that Lorne Michaels owes me.
Ha, no. Perhaps just overly disappointed. Though, high hopes for Fey, of course.
Hey, I just remembered, didn't Funny or Die have a short about a professional penis-photographer, a while back?
Any episode that features Killam dressed as a sailor AND a gladiator can't be all bad.
Does anyone other than myself remember when SNL was funny rather than dirty? And that sarcasm is just meanness disguised as humour? Unfortunately, the first of SNL was the best---has grown cruder and more mean-spirited ever since---
I know what you mean. I almost never get excited about a future SNL, but Helen Mirren was a big deal for me. So when it became apparent early on that they had sold her out, even though she was game to try anything they threw at her, it was twice as disappointing. They just didn't do the homework on her enough to help her shine.
Saturday Night Live hasn't been funny since the early 1980's. Isn't saying they had an off night kind of redundant?
SNL hasn't been funny since [time when you actually watched SNL because you couldn't go out on Saturday nights]. No cast will ever match [cast from aforementioned period of time].
Today's show is all about [general gripes that makes us all contemplate our mortality by realizing how old we are in comparison to the length of time the show has been on the air].
This.
Mary Shelley as the sketch of the night? Really? I thought it was bad! Its the only sketch (along with cold open & strip club sketch) that didn't made me laugh. I honestly thought "Best of Both Worlds" will be the sketch of the night and Helen Mirren has a spot-on Juli Andrews impression.
SNL hasn't been funny since the Will Ferrel days. No cast will ever match Dana Carvey, Nora Dunn, Phil Hartman, Jan Hooks, Victoria Jackson, Jon Lovitz, and Dennis Miller.
Today's show is all about Ass Dan and Dicks in a Box.
And yes, that is Will Ferrel with one L. He was my favorite best boy/grip during the aforementioned 80s shows...
Victoria Jackson was never funny and Nora Dunn always came off as a raging bitch. Jan Hooks, however, makes my top five cast members of all time list.
IDK about that at all. Why would they sell her out? To make their own show worse? No way. And what homework should they have done? They knew what they were getting into when they hired her and obviously everyone involved tried to make it the best show they could. As much as I love her as an actress, I think most of the blame falls on The Dame, unfortunately. I believe "flat" is the perfect word for last nights episode, as Mike said.
Did you see Mirren on Late Night w/ Jimmy Fallon Thursday night? Jimmy asked her how she thought SNL was going and she just kinda cringed. Then she proceeded to talk about how she didn't 'get' any of the cast's sketch pitches and how she was having trouble with all the different accents. It's hard to believe, but she seemed really nervous, almost dreading and regretting committing to the whole experience. Im sure the video is on Hulu or somewhere.
I think it's smart of NBC (or Lorne or whomever) to have each SNL host go on Jimmy Fallon on Thursday night. It is always cool to see how prepared/nervous/excited/etc each host is about 48 hrs before the show airs. Although, in some cases, the hosts are funnier in 10-15 mins on Fallon than in their entire episode SNL. Im looking at you, Jim Carrey.
I'm starting to wonder if you're expecting too much out of each episode. I really didn't think this episode was that bad. All the great sketches from yesteryear that we remember line for line all came from episodes where quite likely those were the sketches of the night and the rest of the show was pretty bland. This is how the show has always been, at least to me. And I thought Sudekis made a fantastic Kansas City strip club DJ.
"Update" had me rolling. Carville was awesome, & I really like Jean K Jean.
I really feel like you tanked "Celebrity Taxes" just because the Kardashians were in it, Mike. The only thing that hurt it for me was the annoying jingle cutting in & out the whole time.
Sure, there's a more modern presidential family they could've done (TWO, in fact), but considering that the actual "Kennedys" miniseries completely disavowed itself of anything modern (Ted Kennedy wasn't even IN it), the choice of the Roosevelts makes sense. Besides, undead TR was awesome!
On the other hand, I did not care for "Perspectives," except for 2 jokes: the one about their clients all being creepy, & the one where Seth played himself.
Also: The Winchester wins.