The promising SNL UK Season One ran just eight episodes, roughly analogous to a U.S. writers’ strike-shortened SNL season, and each episode clocked in at around 58 minutes — about one sketch shorter than its American counterpart. The format is unmistakably SNL: cold opens, a guest host, a musical act, Weekend Update, and commercial parodies. The differences, however, are notable. SNL UK allows profanity, goes to darker comedic places, and takes sharper, more direct shots at politicians — even those its cast likely votes for. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, for instance, is relentlessly skewered week after week, portrayed as an ineffectual, conflict-averse bumbler.

The cast of eleven — Hammed Animashaun, Ayoade Bamgboye, Larry Dean, Celeste Dring, George Fouracres, Ania Magliano, Annabel Marlow, Al Nash, Jack Shep, Emma Sidi, and Paddy Young — is, top to bottom, stronger than the current U.S. cast. Crucially, most members came from outside traditional sketch comedy backgrounds — serious acting, improv, and musical theater — and that hunger translated into a cast visibly scrapping for airtime and taking comedic risks.

The standout performer of the season is George Fouracres, whose portrayal of Keir Starmer became a recurring anchor of the show’s political comedy. His everyman quality and range across ensemble and impression work drew comparisons to U.S. veteran Jon Lovitz.

The best moments came early. The top three episodes — hosted by Tina Fey, Jamie Dornan, and Riz Ahmed — arrived first, and the show gradually settled into comfortable competence as the season progressed. The weakest episode was hosted by Hannah Waddingham, who was deemed a poor fit — asked to carry too much without the comedic range required.

The cast is talented and energetic, the writers are clearly crafting material to their performers’ specific strengths, and the political satire has a pointed wit that U.S. SNL has arguably lost. Some sketches rooted in British cultural nostalgia — references to shows like Noel’s House Party or Mr. Blobby — land differently for American viewers, but the broad strokes translate well.

Both hosts agree: bring back the entire cast for Season Two, which is expected to begin in September 2026. No one needs replacing. The season was not filled with wall-to-wall great sketches, but it was rarely bad — and in the long history of Saturday Night Live, avoiding terrible is a genuine achievement.

We cover all this and much more in this episode of Wasn’t That Special. Please subscribe and join us for a trip through every year of SNL, and consider joining at the Executive Producer level, where you get a whole load of extra commentary and clips that will help you become an SNL expert!

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The defining image of Saturday Night Live Season 51 is James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump, standing at yet another press conference podium. Johnson played Trump in roughly 14 of the season’s 20 episodes, almost always anchoring the cold open in the same format.

The frustration isn’t with the impression itself — Johnson’s Trump remains sharp, and the wig was even subtly updated to reflect a more current look — but with the creative laziness surrounding it. A writers’ room stocked with professional comedians ought to be able to find more imaginative entry points into the political moment than a recurring White House briefing. The cold open, which should set the tone and energy for the entire show, became instead a weekly anchor dragging things down before the first commercial break.

If the cold opens represent the season’s most glaring structural problem, Ashley Padilla represents its one unambiguous triumph. She is not just the best performer on the current cast — she’s actively transforming mediocre material into something worth watching, a feat very few cast members in the show’s history have managed so consistently. What New York Times critic Jason Zinoman called the “Padilla Pause” — that charged, unhurried beat she holds before a punchline while visibly working something through — is the mark of a performer operating at a level the rest of the cast simply isn’t matching. With a sketch comedy background rooted in actual improv and sketch training, she does what the best SNL performers have always done: she takes words off a page and turns them into gold.

The supporting cast, by contrast, offered little help. Several new cast members — Tommy Brennan in particular — were nearly invisible by season’s end, and the back half of the season somehow gave them less to do rather than more, which is the opposite of how a transitional season should work. Mikey Day’s persistent breaking became a weekly irritant, recalling the Jimmy Fallon era in the worst possible way. Marcelo Hernandez generated considerable outside buzz on the strength of a stand-up special, but a closer look at his SNL work reveals a performer who tends to play the same note repeatedly rather than demonstrating genuine range. Jeremy Culhane’s Tucker Carlson impression earned real-world acclaim, but the character seemed to be working from a circa-2014 version of Carlson rather than a genuine satirical portrait of who he is today.

One of the season’s more discussed moments was a Ryan Gosling episode built entirely around making the cast break and laugh on camera — a deliberate violation of a 50-year Lorne Michaels rule. The sketch was even announced as such with an on-screen chyron. That SNL chose to finally cross that line and still couldn’t make it into a genuinely funny sketch is, in some ways, the perfect encapsulation of the season: precedent broken, creative dividend uncollected.

The writing room more broadly showed signs of creative exhaustion. A sketch about men spontaneously singing together at a barbecue drew comparisons to a bit from Anchorman that is now more than two decades old. Recurring pieces like the Norwegian film parody and the Shop TV sketches were wheeled out again with little variation, suggesting a staff that has learned to lean on what worked once rather than push toward something new.

The numbers tell the starkest story. For the second consecutive season, not a single sketch received a 5-star grade from either grader — a trend that, notably, began after Will Ferrell’s departure in Season 27 and has been accelerating. Season 51 is a rebuilding year, but it’s not clear we know what the final structure is going to resemble.

We cover all this and much more in this episode of Wasn’t That Special. Please subscribe and join us for a trip through every year of SNL, and consider joining at the Executive Producer level, where you get a whole load of extra commentary and clips that will help you become an SNL expert!

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On this episode, Christian and Scot discuss the debut of SNL UK - how is it similar to SNL and how is it different? Who were the standout performers on the show? Is it built to last?

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We know, picking the greatest Saturday Night Live sketches of all time is generally a fool’s errand. After watching nearly 10,000 sketches over the span of 50 years, how can you narrow the list to just 20?

Well, we tried. We each picked our 20 favorite live-action sketches (pre-tapes and commercials excluded) in show history. Listen to our rationale in this week’s podcast - otherwise, our complete lists are below. Enjoy!

Christian’s Picks:

20. Clancy T. Bachleratt and Jackie Snad Sing Songs About Spaceships, Toddlers, Model T. Cars and Jars of Beer (Season 33, Episode 8)

19. Washington’s Dream (S49, E3)

18: Debbie Downer Debut (S29, E18)

17. Amazing Time Savers (S19, E20)

There is a reason this one isn’t on YouTube.

16. Puppet Class (S38, E1)

15. James Brown’s Celebrity Hot Tub Party (S9, E4)

14. Game Beaters: Mr. Short-Term Memory (S16, E8)

Watch Here

13. Ronald Reagan: Mastermind (S12, E6)

12. The Continental (Multiple Seasons)

11. Chippendales (S16, E4)

10. Potato Chip Astronaut (S35, E8)

9. Stand Up and Win (S17, E18)

8. Hot Tub Love-Ahs (S27, E3)

7. Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood (Multiple Seasons)

6. Spelling Bee (S31, E9)

5. Bill Clinton at McDonald’s (S18, E8)

4. The Festrunk Brothers (S3, E1)

(This is a later sketch, not the debut, which was picked for the podcast. The original is only available on Peacock.)

3. Word Association (S1, E7)

2. More Cowbell (S25, E16)

1. Matt Foley, Motivational Speaker (S18, E19)

Scot’s Picks:

20. Massive Headwound Harry (S17, E6)

19. Land Shark III (S1, E6)

18. Matt Foley, Motivational Speaker (S18, E19)

17. Amazing Time Savers (S19, E20)

16. Theodoric of York: Medieval Barber (S3, E18)

15. Morning Drive (Alec Baldwin and Kristen Wiig) (S32, E5)

14. Chippendale’s (S16, E4)

13. More Cowbell (S25, E16)

12. WWE Promo (S40, E16)

11. Wake Up and Smile (S21, E8)

10. Puppet Class (S38, E1)

9. Talk Back (Buck Henry) (S1, E21)

8. Robot Repair (S14, E15)

7. Delicious Dish (S24, E9)

6. Debbie Downer: Disney World (S29, E18)

5. Bill Clinton at McDonald’s (S18, E8)

4. The Sinatra Group (S16, E11)

3. Black Jeopardy! (S42, E4)

2. Fred Garvin: Male Prostitute (S4, E15)

1. Ronald Reagan: Mastermind (S12, E6)

Earlier this week, Wasn’t That Special co-host Christian Schneider joined host Larry Meiller on Wisconsin Public Radio for an hour to talk about the podcast and reminisce about the last 50 years of Saturday Night Live.

You can take a listen here:

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Season 51 of Saturday Night Live is upon us, so in this episode, Christian and Scot discuss all the cast changes made over the summer and what they thought of the season debut, hosted by Bad Bunny.

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You’ve heard us discuss the best cast members in Saturday Night Live history. You’ve read our list of the best seasons. But what are the best single episodes in show history? (And what are a few of the worst?) All will be revealed in this episode.

Presumably you have popped your champagne and donned your finest tuxedo or evening gown and you’re ready to listen to us count down the best 25 SNL cast members of all time.

(And while you’re at it, you can catch up on our rankings of the next 50 cast members here and cast members 76-128 here.)

Without any further ado, here are the best SNL cast members of all-time, ranked (With Christian’s ranking and Scot’s ranking listed.)

25. Billy Crystal (CS 40, SB 18)

24. Joe Piscopo (CS 31, SB 21)

23. Chris Farley (CS 26, SB 26)

22. Molly Shannon (CS 18, SB 31)

21. Martin Short (CS 19, SB 30)

20. Vanessa Bayer (CS 24, SB 22)

19. Jason Sudeikis (CS 33, SB 11)

18. Rachel Dratch (CS 14, SB 27)

17. Kenan Thompson (CS 21, SB 20)

16. John Belushi (CS 23, SB 13)

15. Mike Myers (CS 15, SB 19)

14. Chevy Chase (CS 12, SB 17)

13. Bill Hader (CS 16, SB 12)

12. Kate McKinnon (CS 11, SB 16)

11. Amy Poehler (CS 9, SB 15)

10. Jon Lovitz (CS 13, SB 8)

9. Will Forte (CS 10, SB 10)

8. Kristen Wiig (CS 8, SB 9)

7. Gilda Radner (CS 5, SB 7)

6. Bill Murray (CS 6, SB 5)

5. Dana Carvey (CS 4, SB 6)

4. Phil Hartman (CS 7, SB 2)

3. Dan Aykroyd (CS 3, SB 3)

2. Eddie Murphy (CS 1, SB 4)

1. Will Ferrell (CS 2, SB 1)

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Welcome to the second installment of our Saturday Night Live cast member countdown. This time, we tackle the next 50 cast members on our list, from number 75 down to 26. Not only does this one have some rankings that will shock casual SNL viewers (and Tina Fey and Adam Sandler fans especially), it also features some sharp disagreements between your hosts, with some cast members being ranked almost 50 spots apart on their ballots.

All is explained in the episode. Enjoy! (And make sure to catch our rankings of cast members 76-128 here.)

The rankings: (with Christian and Scot’s ballot position added.)

75. David Spade (CS 86, SB 64)

74. Joan Cusack (CS 73, SB 76)

73. Leslie Jones (CS 81, SB 67)

72. Garrett Morris (CS 53, SB 93)

71. Laraine Newman (CS 68, SB 72)

70. Gary Kroeger (CS 66, SB 73)

69. Andrew Dismukes (CS 93, SB 44)

68. Beck Bennett (CS 76, SB 60)

67. Christopher Guest (CS 79, SB 51)

66. Alex Moffat (CS 67, SB 63)

65. Al Franken (CS 44, SB 83)

64. Ana Gasteyer (CS 64, SB 62)

63. Bowen Yang (CS 59, SB 66)

62. Tracy Morgan (CS 52, SB 71)

61. Jim Belushi (CS 75, SB 47)

60. Robin Duke (CS 36, SB 85)

59. Nasim Pedrad (CS 56, SB 65)

58. Taran Killam (CS 65, SB 53)

57. Julia Sweeney (CS 34, SB 73)

56. Mary Gross (CS 46, SB 59)

55. Mikey Day (CS 62, SB 41)

54. Cecily Strong (CS 72, SB 29)

53. Heidi Gardner (CS 45, SB 55)

52. Tina Fey (CS 43, SB 56)

51. Sarah Sherman (CS 38, SB 61)

50. Chris Kattan (CS 49, SB 50)

49. Seth Meyers (CS 50, SB 46)

48. Jan Hooks (CS 47, SB 49)

47. James Austin Johnson (CS 48, SB 48)

46. Colin Jost (CS 57, SB 38)

45. Chris Parnell (CS 55, SB 40)

44. Kevin Nealon (CS 60, SB 34)

43. Ego Nwodim (CS 54, SB 35)

42. Cheri Oteri (CS 30, SB 57)

41. Michael Che (CS 58, SB 28)

40. Norm Macdonald (CS 61, SB 23)

39. Jimmy Fallon (CS 42, SB 42)

38. Adam Sandler (CS 41, SB 43)

37. Victoria Jackson (CS 27, SB 52)

36. Tim Meadows (CS 20, SB 59)

35. Aidy Bryant (CS 39, SB 36)

34. Andy Samberg (CS 17, SB 54)

33. Rob Schneider (CS 32, SB 37)

32. Maya Rudolph (CS 22, SB 45)

31. Dennis Miller (CS 51, SB 14)

30. Fred Armisen (CS 25, SB 39)

29. Darrell Hammond (CS 37, SB 25)

28. Tim Kazurinsky (CS 28, SB 33)

27. Bobby Moynihan (CS 29, SB 32)

26. Jane Curtin (CS 35, SB 24)

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Of all the reasons to start a podcast, spite seems to be near the top of the list. For too many years, we have seen ridiculous “best of” lists ranking Saturday Night Live cast members, seasons, and sketches that were clearly written by people who had only watched a small fraction of the show. Norm MacDonald the seventh-worst cast member of all time? Jenny Slate ahead of Bobby Moynihan? Beth Cahill above Joe Piscopo? Pamela Stephenson ahead of Will Forte?

If SNL had a justice system, these would be capital crimes.

Naturally, any good holder of grudges would spend two years watching 1,000 hours of SNL to set the record straight, and that is what we did. Based on our careful notes and observations we made our own list of best cast members, and we’re starting to count them down with this list.

Some ground rules to start: We picked out 38 cast members who only served one season or less and excluded them from our ranking. There is simply no way to rank this morass of people. Think of them all being tied for number 129.

You may note that some notable cast members only served one year - Billy Crystal, Martin Short, and the like. We left these people in because the changes to the show were structural - they were not related to the performance of the cast member.

With these loose rules in place, the excluded cast members list (alternately known as the “thank you for your service” list) includes: Aristotle Athari, Peter Aykroyd, Morwenna Banks, Paul Brittain, Beth Cahill, George Coe, Jim Downey, Christine Ebersole, Dean Edwards, Siobhan Fallon, Janeane Garofalo, Lauren Holt, Yvonne Hudson, Laura Kightlinger, Matthew Laurance, Laurie Metcalf, John Milhiser, Jerry Minor, Luke Null, Mike O'Brien, Emily Prager, Rob Riggle, Tim Robinson, Jon Rudnitsky, Tom Schiller, Sarah Silverman, Jenny Slate, Pamela Stephenson, Ben Stiller, Chloe Troast, Dan Vitale, Nancy Walls, Michaela Watkins, Patrick Weathers, Noel Wells, Brooks Wheelan, Fred Wolf, and Alan Zweibel.

From then on, we move to the list of featured players who merited ranking. Below are the rankings, along with the rank given to each cast member by Christian (CS) and Scot (SB). You will see that in some cases, the disparity is pretty large. (The final ranking is determined by averaging out each host’s score.)

So listen above to our commentary on the list - we get into why we ranked people where we did and discuss some of our biggest disagreements.

Thus, without any further ado, the final list of cast members between 76 and 128 are:

128. Charles Rocket (CS 127, SB 127)

127. Ann Risley (CS 124, SB 128)

126. Robert Downey, Jr. (CS 125, SB 125)

125. Kyle Mooney (CS 126, SB 123)

124. Paul Shaffer (CS 128, SB 118)

123. Jeff Richards (CS 123, SB 122)

122. Anthony Michael Hall (CS 118, SB 126)

121. Jay Mohr (CS 122, SB 120)

120. Molly Kearney (CS 119, SB 116)

119. Melanie Hutsell (CS 120, SB 113)

118. Jane Wickline (CS 112, SB 117)

117. Damon Wayans (CS 111, SB 115)

116. Jim Breuer (CS 114, SB 111)

115. Michael O'Donoghue (CS 105, SB 119)

114. Finesse Mitchell (CS 103, SB 121)

113. Emil Wakim (CS 109, SB 114)

112. Casey Wilson (CS 113, SB 109)

111. Brian Doyle-Murray (CS 116, SB 106)

110. Gilbert Gottfried (CS 117, SB 100)

109. Devon Walker (CS110, SB107)

108. A. Whitney Brown (CS 115, SB 99)

107. Terry Sweeney (CS 87, SB 124)

106. Don Novello (CS 104, SB 101)

105. Tom Davis (CS 91, SB 113)

104. Brad Hall (CS 95, SB 108)

103. Michael Longfellow (CS 99, SB 103)

102. Colin Quinn (CS 106, SB 94)

101. Punkie Johnson (CS 97, SB 102)

100. Abby Elliott (CS 94, SB 105)

99. Tony Rosato (CS 107, SB 91)

98. Michael McKean (CS 121, SB 77)

97. Harry Shearer (CS 108, SB 84)

96. Gail Matthius (CS 101, SB 88)

95. Danitra Vance (CS 88, SB 99)

94. Melissa Villaseñor (CS 89, SB 95)

93. Denny Dillon (CS 92, SB 90)

92. Robert Smigel (CS 71, SB 110)

91. Ellen Cleghorne (CS 77, SB 104)

90. Jay Pharoah (CS 83, SB 96)

89. Rich Hall (CS 96, SB 81)

88. David Koechner (CS 98, SB 78)

87. Sasheer Zamata (CS 74, SB 97)

86. Ashley Padilla (CS 82, SB 89)

85. Pete Davidson (CS 90, SB 80)

84. Mark McKinney (CS 102, SB 68)

83. Julia Louis-Dreyfus (CS 100, SB 70)

82. Chris Redd (CS 85, SB 82)

81. Horatio Sanz (CS 70, SB 92)

80. Marcello Hernandez (CS 80, SB 79)

79. Chris Rock (CS 69, SB 86)

78. Randy Quaid (CS 84, SB 69)

77. Chloe Fineman (CS 78, SB 75)

76. Nora Dunn (CS 63, SB 87)

Check back in next time, where we review cast members ranked 26 through 75. And thanks for listening!

As the Wasn’t That Special co-hosts watch each season of Saturday Night Live, they compare notes on each episode, chatting back and forth about popular and long-forgotten sketches. Some of the topics they discuss make it to the final podcast; others are left on the cutting room floor.

But for those of you who join at the Executive Producer level have access to Christian and Scot’s behind-the-scenes notes, as well as bonus materials the co-hosts used to prepare for the episode.

Help keep the podcast advertisement-free and upgrade to the Executive Producer level, which will keep these emails coming in the future!

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E1: Chris Rock / Megan Thee Stallion

Christian: This episode might be worse than Covid.

Scot: Liked this just as much as last season's opener

Presidential Debate - Bennett as Wallace - Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) and Joe Biden (Jim Carrey) at debate; Rudolph as Harris

Scot: Carey as Biden is such an enormous mistake - 20% SNL cast, 80% guests - 13 minutes! All of them wasted.

Rock does stand-up about the intersection of coronavirus & government

Christian: Pretty weak.

Scot: Rock loves term limits - Less a stand-up set than a pep talk.

Superspreader Event - TV reporter (Day) covers contract tracing at name-change office

Christian: Finally, a Bertram in a sketch.

Scot: No relation.

Future Ghost - Given a glimpse of 2020, Y2k teen (Mooney) focuses on video game graphics

Christian: My God.

Scot: Original concept sucks so they try to jam in a few more at the end.

Drew Barrymore Show - Drew Barrymore’s (Fineman) show is characterized by cheery fare

Christian: It's a middling Barrymore by SNL standards.

Scot: Add another name to the Barrymore list - Is it fine? It is fine.

Weekend Update - Trump gets COVID - Biden LGBTQ supporters - TikTok defender Chen Biao (Yang) - McConnell SCOTUS stuff - pogo stick joke - Carrie Krum (Bryant)

Christian: What happens when you write jokes at the last minute.

Scot: Che explaining why Trump's COVID is funny is good - Liked Jost's BET joke.

E2: Bill Burr / Jack White

VP Debate - McKinnon as Susan Page - Pence/Bennett, Harris/Rudolph - Bidenfly (Carrey) - Kenan as Herman Cain

Christian: "We have to use Carrey, he's under contract" - even if it tanks this sketch.

Scot: Rudolph explains the jokes - 12 minutes! - The writing. There's no attempt to find satire or be creative. Just the dumbest ways to include the most number of events from the week.

Burr does stand-up about coronavirus, woke white women, gay pride month

Christian: It's legit bad.

Noon Normal - Emerging from isolation, (Burr & McKinnon) are called out for malaprops

Scot: Single idea, nothing written around it.

The Blitz - Burr, Kenan, Nwodim - Shooting of black man invades sports trashtalk show

Scot: Burr is the key, of course, and straddles the line very well - especially with sending back the steak.

Enough Is Enough - Bennett's political viral video try is poorly received; Jason Momoa cameo

Christian: It's the Pepsi commercial again.

Scot: Son of “Pepsi Commercial Shoot” from S42.

Weekend Update - Trump survives COVID - Dr. Wayne Wenowdis (McKinnon) - McKinnon explains Wenowdis is a coping mechanism - potential Biden economy - sexy hand sanitizer for Halloween - Davidson unhappy with J.K. Rowling

Christian: Might be one or two worthwhile jokes in the whole bunch.

Scot: Couple of good jokes in the middle - LOL at Jost's Sizzler punchline - Also LOL at the police horse joke.

Don Pauly - Mob boss (Burr) catches up to modern language/ideas after 20 years behind bars - Johnson, Moffat, Bennett, Mooney

Scot: This works. Nice way of weaving through various land mines.

E3: Issa Rae / Justin Bieber

Christian: Cecily Strong is missing! Also, every show needs a backup Aidy Bryant, which I assume is why Lauren Holt is there.

Scot: No Strong, no Bryant, McKinnon won't play "normal" roles and Villsenor is invisible. Could be a problem.

Dueling Town Halls - Biden (Carrey) & Trump (Baldwin) & Day/George S. & McKinnon/Guthrie & Rudolph/Harris for some reason

Christian: Oh look it's Maya Rudolph for no reason. 13 minutes of terrible choices.

Scot: Stop explaining what we're about to see - So many things have no relevance even by the time this episode aired - 13 minutes! - Slapdash construction, nothing fits together.

Rae likens the four years of Insecure to being in high school

Scot: Do not know this person.

Bonjour Hi! - Montreal morning news show (Yang, McKinnon)

Christian: An accent is not a sketch.

Scot: Excuse for Yang and McKinnon to go big and over the top.

First Date Exes - Rae’s Times Square exes interrupt her date with Redd

Christian: SNL trivia: Every instance of the phrase "titty meat" took place in this one sketch.

Scot: "Titty meat" just sort of clangs off the ear - Never gets out of first gear, despite chances - Redd is .... not comfortable looking in a lot of stuff.

Justin Bieber - “Holy”

Christian: Wasn't he like 16 years old two months ago?

Weekend Update - Trump at rallies, thinking about a potential loss - NBC has a type - Trump and QAnon - Trump Bros (Day, Moffat) Tiffany (Fineman) - Top Halloween costume searches - Bryant hasn’t found undecided voters - Fisher Price online museum - ’80s cocaine wife Carla (Gardner)

Scot: The canyon/QAnon joke is good - Why does Fineman sound like Miley Cyrus + Cher? - Carla seems like a role Gardner was born to play.

Your Voice Chicago - Kenan hosts - Rae says she'll only vote for black candidates - Nwodim - Johnson and Rudolph do Diamond & Silk parody

Christian: I did laugh at Crystal and Caviar.

Scot: Crowd is verrrrrrry cool to this - Something about the timing/pacing is off and the punchlines never hit hard.

Hoping to impress musical guest, Mooney & Rae demonstrate dance moves - Chance the Rapper (cameo) - Dismukes briefly

Christian: Sadly, setting myself on fire did not solve having to watch this. I burn too slowly.

Scot: Written by Kyle Mooney and Will Stephen - Mooney definitely has a mold into which everything must be squeezed or else.

Justin Bieber - “Lonely”

Christian: I cannot imagine anything less compelling than Bieber's redemption narrative.

Jack Flatts - Restaurant fans (Bennett), (Mooney), (Dismukes), (Kenan) threaten governor kidnapping

Scot: Prescient: Gov. Whitmer kidnapping plot in Michigan - Heaven help us. - Arrests in the Whitmer case were on 10/8/20. I thought it was much later.

Ebay - Selling stuff you bought during pandemic but never used; Strong voiceover

Christian: It's just fine, but this is relatable. I started a dozen new hobbies during Covid and stuck with none of them.

E4: Adele / H.E.R.

Christian: Feels like the old days when Lorne would have a backup host in the wings in case the real host bombed.

Scot: Stay with me. This reminds me of an early Season 1 show, where we barely know the actual cast exists. It's Rudolph, Adele, music act x2, Baldwin, and three pre-tapes.

Presidential Debate - Trump (Baldwin) & Biden (Carrey) have final debate moderated by Welker (Rudolph); McKinnon as Giuliani

Christian: Just limping along lifelessly.

Scot: So Rudolph is just a cast member at this point, replacing Strong/Bryant. Weird, weird. - Biden Bingo is putting a hat on a hat -

Adele tries to avoid swearing & thanks Sarah Palin for viewership of first SNL gig

Scot: Pretty lame and crowd is barely reacting.

Fortune Teller - 2019 psychic’s (McKinnon) 2020 visions confuse (Yang, Gardner, Nwodim, Adele)

Christian: A perfect encapsulation of what everyone was thinking.

The Bachelor - Adele reacts to situations by singing her hits

Christian: Really good way to utilize Adele's talents in a fun sketch.

Scot: If you wanted to hear Adele sing her songs, here you are.

Trump Addicts of America - People wonder how they’ll spend their time if he loses

Christian: Prescient: Predicts Trump would run again in 2024.

Scot: A Villasenor sighting! - A little prescient, it is.

Weekend Update - Final POTUS Debate - Guiliani/Borat tape - Villasenor does impressions - McConnell beat up - Village People (Kenan, Bennett, Yang, Day, Redd)

Christian: The Phil Collins joke was outstanding at got nothing from the audience.

Scot: Jost feeding Biden lines is ultra-lame - Villasenor bombs - Che's Stu-stu-studio apartment joke is so bad but I laughed.

Visiting Grandma - Rudolph’s lack of comprehension cuts through her grandkids’ circumlocution

Christian: Interesting way of depicting grandparents cutting through BS.

Africa Tourism - Black men are why white divorcees (Adele, McKinnon, Gardner) tout Africa visits

Christian: I wish I enjoyed this one quarter as much as Adele did.

Scot: Absolutely meant to be a McKinnon/Bryant duo piece, but Aidy is not here - Adele breaking hard.

Ass Angel Perfume Jeans - Jeans worn by (Rudolph & Adele) are toxic and smell I guess

Scot: Waste of space.

E5: John Mulaney / The Strokes

Christian: Bryant and Strong missing weakens the female cast - McKinnon has to pull the whole wagon.

Scot: Mulaney officially losing legendary status before our eyes.

Biden Halloween - Biden (Carrey) reads The Raven; McKinnon as HRC, Day/Silver, Kenan/Ice Cube, Redd/Lil Wayne, Rudolph/Harris, Bennett/McConnell

Christian: "We need to come together like two buttcheeks to stop the crap" is an actual line in an SNL sketch. What are we even doing here. "I'm sure it will be peaceful no matter who won" is not prescient.

Scot: All soft edges, nothing cutting, biting or remotely sharp - Impression-palooza - "This Daylight Saving Time, let's gain an hour and lose a President" - Mercifully, just 7 minutes.

Mulaney does stand-up about quarantine & Andrew Cuomo’s press conferences

Christian: Little more than a month later, Mulaney would check into rehab.

Scot: I'm sure he got crap for the "elderly man contest" thing, not choosing a side - This monologue appears to have been co-written by "bag of cocaine."

Cinema Classics - Tippi Hedren (McKinnon) panics in The Birds phone booth scene

Scot: The first scene was golden, second one with turtles didn't do much for me.

Strollin' - Black voters (Kenan, Redd, Johnson, Nwodim) sing and can't find polling place

Scot: Written by Chris Redd and Bryan Tucker.

Headless Horseman - Ichabod Crane (Mulaney) asks Headless Horseman (Bennett) about self-fellation

Christian: One joke over and over. The "Lorne wrote this sketch" is an admission it's a dog.

Scot: Guessing Dismukes/Bennett wrote, but that's just a guess.

New York PSA - During pandemic, quirky woman (McKinnon) does kinda weird stuff

Scot: A great big pile of nothing.

Weekend Update - Trump says doctors are taking money - Trump rallies kill people - Che on black rapper negotiation - Baby Yoda (Mooney) - Twitter pre-bunk

Christian: Didn't need the lecture on Trump and Baby Yoda sucks.

Scot: Jost is especially angry tonight - Hey, an explicit endorsement from the WU desk - Mooney, blah - I liked the whisper Trump 2020 joke from Che.

New York Musical - NYC souvenir store underwear prompts Times Square denizens’ show tunes

Christian: First of these I didn't like. They just feel obligatory now.

Scot: How does any of this have anything to do with underwear? - Not entertained by any of it.

Another Uncle Meme - Ron expresses his displeasure at having again been memed by his nephew

Christian: This was worth bringing back?

Scot: Mulaney was the only thing working last time and he's worse, so ...

E6: Dave Chappelle/Foo Fighters

Christian: Punkie Johnson with an aggressive hug for Chappelle at goodnights - interesting given the drama at goodnights he would later have.

Scot: LOL. Alec Baldwin holding a sign that says "You're Welcome." Overinflated ego much?

Biden Beats Trump - Bennett as Blitzer; Biden (Carrey) has defeated loser Trump (Baldwin); Harris/Rudolph;

Christian: Gonna look really bad four years later.

Scot: What the heck is that picture of Biden they use?? - So many applause breaks it could be a real rally - Trump would not do a concession from the WH - An utter disaster if, you know, comedy is the goal

Chapelle does stand-up about lessons related to Covid-19, race, Donald Trump

Christian: Cold open and monologue last 26 minutes.

Scot: A 17-minute monologue - laughed at the Freddie Mercury joke - Largely OK, but nothing spectacular here

Chapelle introduces sketch about Uncle Ben (Kenan) and Aunt Jemima (Rudolph) getting fired

Christian: Chappelle kind of treating this like Don Rickles - just do whatever you want.

Scot: Baldwin/Rudolph at the center of this - 30 minutes into the show and the cast might as well not be there - “It’s not what you did, it’s how you make us feel about what we did.”

Super Mario 35th Anniversary - Commemoration lingers on Mooney’s testicle trauma

Scot: How old are they supposed to be? Not gonna lie - literally fell asleep during this.

Take Me Back - Nwodim’s ex (Bennett) reveals increasingly-disturbing traits

Christian: Really liked the simplicity of this - just two people in a scene and the escalation is great. Maybe Bennett's highlight on the show?

Scot: Bennett is now Male #1? That's a really poor fit for his skills - "It was my penis." WE KNOW. THAT'S THE JOKE.

Weekend Update - Biden wins - Trump hasn't conceded - Rudy Giuliani (McKinnon) plans to contest election results -

Christian: "We will never have to listen to Donald Trump again." That’s not prescient! I actually really enjoyed McKinnon's Giuliani this time.

Scot: Unprescient: "Pretty soon we will never have to listen to Donald Trump again." Prescient: All the election denying stuff - Not a bad Rudy, actually.

Hailstorm - news report reveals co-workers’ (Kenan) & (McKinnon) hailstorm-induced romance

Christian: "I'm done searching" bumped it for me. Good hook at the end.

Scot: Wait, who is the host and where did he go? - Really good final 60 secs or so to this, with the Moffat reveals.

DC Morning - News report shows Donald Trump leaving WH in white Bronco

Christian: Prescient: If you spook the president, he can unleash a team of Proud Boys and others.

Scot: Prescient: "This is a volatile situation. If they spook the President, he could unleash an army of Proud Boys and flag-waving trucks."

Huge night for Nwodim when the show needed a female case member to step up.

Scot: Final Baldwin/Trump and final Carrey/Biden, thank all that is holy.

E7: Jason Bateman / Morgan Wallen

Christian: An absolute flaming pile. When Giuliani farting is the funniest thing on the episode, it's time to make some changes.

Scot: Lauren Holt is nowhere to be found and now she's going to be buried by returning females.

Michigan Election Hearings - Giuliani (McKinnon) calls witnesses at election fraud hearing; Strong as Melissa Carrone - Bennett as Mike Lindell - Fineman as Nicole Kidman

Christian: Strong was just doing Girl You Wish?

Scot: Strong is just playing GYWYHSACWAAP - Guiliani farted (apparently) in real life so he farts multiple times here without actually making it into a joke.

Plainly-guilty Megan (McKinnon) won’t fess up to menstrual accident to Dad (Bateman)

Christian: Self-plagiarism is still plagiarism.

Scot: Exact same beats as the first one.

Outdoor Cabaret - cabaret singers Charlie (Yang) & Billie (Strong) seek virus-free happy days

Scot: Strong sings, of course - Why would anyone laugh at this?

“The Christmas Conversation”- mothers guilt daughters for not coming home - McKinnon, Gardner, Fineman

Scot: The upbeat twist undercuts the premise that was set up in this one.

Morgan Wallen Party - Wallen’s future selves (Bateman & Yang) warn about SNL disinvitation

Christian: After his S50 scandal, will he get a third Yankee chance?

Scot: Holy cow, this is bad.

Weekend Update - Trump sues to overturn election - COVID vaccine distribution - Guiliani farts - Davidson on how he is loved & hated - Bailey Gismert (Gardner) reviews ’90s movies

Scot: Prescient: Talk of "pre-emptive pardons" - Jost's Hamilton joke was pretty good - "Sadly, she was no match for my car" - One of the better Gismerts.

Santa's Village - Shopping mall Santa (Bateman) & Mrs. Claus (Strong) crash their plastic bubbles

Christian: Dead silence from the audience.

Scot: Here's a little physical comedy without any kind of point.

E8: Timothée Chalamet / Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band

The Situation Room (Bennett) - Anthony Fauci (McKinnon) & Deborah Birx (Gardner) detail Covid-19 vaccination plan

Christian: A solid set of jokes here for a change.

Scot: The bra-throwing lands with a thud - McKinnon doing yet another political figure.

NYC natives Chalamet & Davidson share memories of growing up in the big city

Christian: Thought this was charming.

A Rona Family Christmas - Uninfectious son (Chamalet) is the rebel in a family of coronaviruses

Christian: Some decent wordplay here. I wrote something similar to "Covid as people" the previous May.

Lexus - Jobless (Bennett) buys a Lexus for his wife (Gardner)

Christian: I feel like people had been making this joke forever, but this is good escalation.

Tiny Horse - farmboy (Chamalet) serenades & frees his tiny horse; Fallon cameo

Christian: A premise with nowhere to go.

Weekend Update - SCOTUS rules against Trump - Moderna Vaccine is Tyler Perry character - McKinnon as Dr. Wayne Wenowdis - Harrison Ford back as Indiana Jones - Villasenor does Dolly Parton impression

Christian: Are the jokes good enough to overcome how bad Wenowdis is? No.

Scot: How can you do McKinnon's doctor again when we know the twist? - Water destroys Jost's mic.

Holiday Baking Championship - Holt, Chamalet, Gardner, Mooney

Christian: Third crack at this - it's the same as the other two down to Gardner getting skipped and Mooney doing a phallic cake.

Scot: Recurring situation. Same beats. No surprises.

Rap Roundtale - Questlove [cameo] can’t abide rappers (Chamalet & Davidson)

Christian: I shouldn't like this at all, but it's sufficiently silly.

Sportsmax - Newsmax spin-off Sportsmax claims the Jets & Knicks are actually winners - Moffat, Day, Bennett

Scot: At least a semi-interesting way to backdoor some decent political satire.

E9: Kristen Wiig / Dua Lipa

Pence Takes Vaccine - Joe Biden (Moffat) and Harris (Rudolph) crash Mike Pence’s (Bennett) COVID-19 vaccination event

Christian: Moffat's Biden is technically the closest anyone has gotten?

Scot: Ben Carson (Kenan) shows up because who knows why - It's just awful. There's a seed of an idea with the vaccine but it's tossed aside for random impression drop-in hour.

Secret Word: Holiday Edition - Mindy Grayson (Wiig) & Austrian actress (McKinnon) bungle holiday clues; with Kenan, Dismukes, Holt

Christian: The Lorne biography says he is dead-set against funny character names, which contradicts "Grant Choad."

Scot: How much must Wiig love this character that it has opened her past two shows? And why is she so wrong?

Christmas Morning - Everyone gets presents but Mom (Wiig)

Scot: Sincerely enjoyed this. Just rank competence everywhere is a sight to behold at the moment. - The dog getting more presents than Mom is great.

USO Performance - Wiig, Yang, Lipa do sassy scene at a show for WWII soldiers

Scot: Just Wiig and Wang vamping, which seems like the plan for around 40 percent of sketches these days - Day explains the joke.

High schooler (Dismukes) rebuffed by teacher (Nwodim), attracts principal (Wiig)

Christian: Great bit by Nwodim.

Scot: Half-great, Nwodim is excellent. And then ... Wiig.

Weekend Update - “Closing Time” montage for Trump - Trump vaccine Powerball lottery - Smokey Robinson (Redd) - Cuomo accused of assault - Man trapped by snow plow - Willie (Kenan) merrily recollects hardships - Instagram influencer Landis Trotter (Gardner)

Christian: Yes, Joke Swap would be better if they played it straight. How many influencer characters does Gardner have?

Scot: Prescient: Jost says Jill Biden functions as a nurse (crowd hates this joke) - Why does Redd's piece exist? - Liked this Willie! - Kind of a blah joke swap, actually. First joke was the best.

The Grinch - Grinch (Davidson) had a threesome with Cindy Lou’s parents (Day & Wiig)

Christian: Predictable and gross.

Home for Christmas - Johnson and Holt! - Aunt Sue (Wiig) loves surprises

Scot: I mean. Same old, same old. Professonalism saves it from "1," I guess.

E10: John Krasinski / Machine Gun Kelly

Christian: If you're wondering what SNL writers are doing when they have a full month off, the answer is not writing.

Scot: Who's saving the day here? Who's gonna break out? Feels like ... nobody.

What Still Works? - McKinnon seeks functional institutions; Strong is MTG; Day/Dorsey, Moffat/Zuckerberg, Kenan/OJ

Christian: If you have to keep explaining sketches by saying Kate McKinnon is going crazy, it's not a good sketch.

Scot: Lots of impressions, yes, but actually has a flow and a point and works like an open should.

Binge-watching audience members want host to “do The Office” & “kiss Pam”

Christian: Disjointed, timing was off, and unoriginal.

Blue Georgia - Georgians now liberals after recent election

Christian: Great idea, poor execution.

Scot: Crowd is dead, some jokes don't land, and the ending is real bad.

The Dividend - Economist’s (Krasinski) creepy kids (Day & McKinnon) spook host Bennett

Scot: Eh. No escalation at all after setting premise.

Now That's What I Call Theme Songs Sung By the Stars - compilation CD contains TV theme songs with lyrics sung by shows’ stars

Christian: Not a strong effort.

Scot: Decent idea, but this left me TOTALLY cold.

Pandemic Game Night - Members of a suburban pandemic bubble group were Jan 6 rioters

Scot: Am I just in a bad mood? - Absolutely nothing is established so we have have a bunch of random characters getting arrested and why should we care? - For me, just brutal writing on this one

Weekend Update - Jan 6 riot and GameStop stock - Mike Lindell (Bennett) spews conspiracy theories - Biden Don't Ask Don't Tuck policy - Fran Lebowitz (Yang) cracks up Martin Scorsese (Mooney) - Cathy Anne (Strong)

Christian: Loaded with clunkers, middling desk pieces. Che no longer gets away with laughing at his own bombs.

Scot: Rand Paul punctured his lung being randomly attacked by a neighbor. Very funny stuff - Rouuuuuuuugh night at the desk.

Supermarket Sweep - lesbian couple (McKinnon & Bryant) dominates 1991 episode

Scot: THE TEAM IS BACK - Maybe they should have stayed apart - Premise set. Zero jokes.

Subway Meeting - Out-of-touch Subway ad men (Krasinski & Bennett) critique Dismukes’s protein bowl idea

Christian: Where was I supposed to laugh?

Ratatouille - Sex rat (Mooney) controls actions from atop (Krasinski)’s head

Christian: The second he takes his hat off, you know the whole sketch. There's no need to explain further - the rest is just waste.

E11: Dan Levy / Phoebe Bridgers

Super Bowl LV - NFL roundtable discuss the big game and interview dueling coaches; Bryant plays both coaches

Christian: The meta Aidy stuff was fine, but otherwise a total dog.

Scot: James "No not that one" Brown. At this point, JB had been hosting NFL stuff for almost 30 years. Clearly, everyone know he's not that James Brown. Who thinks this is a funny joke? - Ads fall flat

Levy takes a backstage tour of his COVID-era SNL production; Eugene Levy cameo

Christian: Maybe the lamest walk-and-talk I can remember?

Scot: Crowd isn't havin this AT ALL - Until Eugene pops in - This was fine, actually.

Universal Studios Tram Tour - Caffeinated (Levy) leads his inaugural Universal Studios tram tour

Scot:

Lifting Our Voices - Kenan interviews white allies who go a bit overboard

Christian: No point to this at all.

Weekend Update - Couple of MTG jokes - Fox News sued - Trump won't testify at impeachment - Day and Gardner cancel little kids - Twinsthenewtrend (Kenan & Redd)

Scot: Che's got a good Wallen/Jost joke -

Levy and Strong entertain football fans with obscure “Hot Damn”

Christian: I thought you promised me James Anderson had retired.

Scot: Strong sings. No one knows the stupid song then everyone knows the stupid song.

E12: Regina King / Nathaniel Rateliff

Tucker Carlson (Moffat) Tonight- Guests talk second impeachment - Bennett/McConnell, Graham/McKinnon, Cruz/Bryant

Scot: Written by Josh Patten, Will Stephen, Kent Sublette - Let's just say it: McKinnon's Graham is absolutely awful - Moffat explains the joke (twisted face) - And Bryant as Cruz is worse than Graham - No one remembers these lawyers

Kenan seeks proper recognition for host’s accomplishments

Scot: Written by Michael Che and Will Stephen.

What's Your Type? - Bachelorette (King) has a thing for cringey white dudes (Mooney, Moffat, Day)

Scot: Written by Streeter Seidell and Mikey Day.

Pelotaunt - fitness instructors use negative reinforcement on Pelotaunt exercisers

Scot: Pretty good! - Holt steals a mom role from Bryant.

Gorilla Glue - Kenan and King seek compensation for those who put Gorilla Glue on hair

Christian: This really happened.

Birthday Gifts - Bryant’s friends’ (Strong, Fineman, King) birthday gifts indicate they think she’s an alcoholic

Scot: Written by Anna Drezen, Kent Sublette, Celeste Yim - A nicely-paced escalation piece. Bryant nearly ruins the rhythm by breaking. Still one of the best so far.

Weekend Update - Trump acquitted by Senate - Jost on Cruz hair - witch (McKinnon) is drawn to QAnon - new Popeye's fish sandwich - Mackenzie (Holt) has Valentine’s Day advice - Aunt Jemima changes name - Drunk Tom Brady (Bennett)

Christian: Ooof, Holt's bit was rough. Bad jokes, weak desk pieces.

Scot: Again, we get angry Jost to start with no jokes - Jost as Ice T looks like Tom Green - The witch goes on forever - Ah, too bad for Holt. That was a dud. - OK, laughed at the Larry Flynt joke - One of the weaker WUs of the season.

Before a 1978 gig, disco queen’s (King) support staff (Mooney, Yang) has failed her

Christian: More Yang vamping, but I actually enjoyed this.

Scot: Written by Celeste Yim and Bowen Yang -- Nothing special, but kinda liked Bryant as a ditz and the rhythm/flow of this.

Woman's Theater - King, McKinnon. Bryant use “elbow” for “vagina” at school assembly

Scot: Written by Anna Drezen and Alison Gates.

Nathaniel Rateliff - “A Little Honey”

Scot: I like this!

E13: Regé-Jean Page/Bad Bunny

Ooops You Did It Again - Britney Spears (Fineman) offers a forum for apologies; Bryant/Cruz, Davidson/Cuomo, Strong/Gina Carano

Christian: Prescient: Fineman warns Cruz to keep his daughters out of it because it could cause them problems. And it later did.

Scot: Written by Colin Jost, Josh Patten, Kent Sublette - For what possible reason is Bryant playing Cruz? Doesn't look like him, sound like him - Why are Bryant/Strong breaking in this thing? - Davidson's Cuomo is not bad.

Actor's Spotlight - Ice Cube (Kenan) pretends to be British

Scot: Written by Jasmine Pierce and Bryan Tucker - Pretty strong concept, doesn't overstay its welcome.

Loco - Homebound by the pandemic, Nwodim & Davidson are starting to lose it

Christian: Finally I can tolerate one of these.

Scot: Written by Pete Davidson, Ego Nwodim, Gary Richardson, Will Stephen.

Driver's License - Guys playing pool have an emotional appreciation of “Drivers License”

Christian: A combination of the construction workers from a couple seasons ago and the sketch where everyone cries to the Adele song in the office.

Scot: Written by Gillespie and Green.

Mr. Chicken Legs Pageant - Day, Davidson, Dismukes

Christian: Why am I supposed to laugh at what's obviously a staff inside joke?

Scot: Written by Mikey Day, Dan Licata and Streeter Seidell - Incredibly dumb, but ... I like it? Some elements have a rare feel to them this season.

The Job Interview - Page has an absurd meeting with an ad exec (Bennett)

Christian: Sufficiently silly.

Scot: Written by Colin Jost - 80 percent of a classic but couldn't bring it home. The end kind of falls apart. Loved the look/feel of most of this, though. Very, very funny.

Weekend Update - Cruz vacation controversy - Biden immigration plan - Davidson spends Valentine's Day with Mom - Kim Kardashian divorces Kanye - Freddy Krueger aesthetic overshadows mutual aid worker’s (Gardner) message -

Scot: Most snow in Texas since Michael Irvin's Super Bowl party - Do we like the "who looks like ..." jokes? I'm not a giant fan - world's oldest DNA sequence, it's so old Andrew Cuomo is covering up its death.

Songs of the Sea - whalers’ shanties describe a miserable marine existence - all cast

Christian: What is the hit rate for sketches on the boat set?

Scot: Written by Seidell, Drezen and Alison Gates.

Let's Say Grace - inviting black neighbors to dinner leads to grace-saying one-upsmanship

Scot: Written by Nwodim, Richardson, and Tucker - You know someone checked the couch cushions to see if Rudolph were around to star in this one.

Bridgerton Intimacy Coordinator - Day & Davidson are substitute intimacy coordinators for Page & Fineman

Scot: Pretty good energy from Davidson and Day, but there's just not much to work with.

E14: Nick Jonas

So You Think You Can Get the Vaccine - Anthony Fauci (McKinnon) emcees contest to simplify Covid vaccine distribution - Moffat/Newsom, Davidson/Cuomo, Strong/Whitmer

Christian: Why was Ted Cruz there? Do the writers think this character is killing it?

Scot: Third straight Bryant/Cruz open. WHY? - The power outage thing was real, I now recall. They're going to expire! Come get them!!

Jonas, McKinnon, Kenan, Bennett sing “Drink With Me” for Broadway; Kevin Jonas cameo

Christian: Sure, it's a song, but I sort of liked the somberness of it.

Workout Mirror - a demon (Davidson) has trapped McKinnon inside of workout device; Day and Redd

Christian: David S. Pumpkins. It's a formula now.

Scot: There's no food in here? She was just carrying groceries.

Murder Show Song - Fineman, Villasenor, Nwodim relax by watching true crime; Jonas

Christian: Speaking of murders, Fineman effectively ended Villaseñor's career on SNL.

Cinderella - tiny glass slipper fits mouse (Bryant) instead of Cinderella (Fineman)

Christian: Good setup, then...what?

Scot: Written by Dan Bulla and Colin Jost.

Bachelor party attendees (Mooney, Bennett, Jonas) enjoy getting boners in each other’s presence

Scot: "Write me the worst thing you can imagine. It's not like it will ever make it to the live show!"

Weekend Update - Congress passes Stimulus bill - Trump at CPAC - LaVar Ball (Kenan) - Frasier revival - Muppet Show gets disclaimer - Marjorie Taylor Greene (Strong)

Christian: Does "Never Lost" count as a catchphrase? Coronavirus is so deadly to black people, it's being suspended with pay is a five-star joke and the audience groans.

Scot: Dems spend $2T in the middle of the night, and all the jokes are about Republicans - New Jersey's #1 syringe provider: the beach - Coronavirus is so deadly to black Americans, it's being suspended with pay - After the opening salvo, pretty good jokes!

Viking Voyager - Mooney & a large stuffed Soul protagonist are paired

Christian: I give it a little credit because I kept asking, "how did this ever become a sketch?" Which was kind of funny to me.

Scot: Something that would have been helpful for this sketch: a joke. Any joke. Less awkward dialogue.

The Dionne Warwick (Nwodim) Talk Show - Guests include Jones, Kenan/The Weeknd, & Dua Lipa (Villasenor)

Scot: It's unsteady on its feet, but there's something about the energy that carries it. Nwodim is good again.

Dating After Lockdown - Jonas and McKinnon have forgotten how to flirt

Christian: I just needed this stream of silly wordplay. It made me so happy.

Scot: This was fun and had a very ZAZ/Naked Gun type vibe to it. A success!

Nwodim has suddenly surged to Female 1. It won't last, but she's been really good.

Scot: I know we're 14 weeks in, but --- they don't wear masks all night EXCEPT everyone MUST wear masks for goodnights? What???

E15: Maya Rudolph / Jack Harlow

Christian: Melissa McCarthy had two or three really great sketches as Sean Spicer which is how we now get sketch after sketch of Aidy as Cruz, which is a total nothing.

Scot: A massive embarassment for the show that they are choosing to treat Biden the same as Obama - he doesn't exist.

Snatched, Vaxed, or Waxed - Spring Breakers assemble amidst COVID-19; Rudolph hosts.

Scot: Real bad. MTV is not even a thing in 2021, for goodness’ sake.

Hot Ones - spicy wings turn normally-cool Beyonce (Rudolph) into a wet mess

Scot: Nothing writing-wise, all performance. And it's not strong.

Boomers Got the Vax - immunized older generation flaunts its well-being

Scot: One of the more successful attempts at stuff like this. Some decent lines.

A Kamala Harris Unity Seder - Kamala Harris (Rudolph) & Doug Emhoff (Martin Short) welcome politicians - Cruz/Bryant, Moffat/Biden, Strong/MTG

Christian: Only exists for the Short cameo.

Scot: Oh, great. Four straight shows with Cruz/Bryant - Can't give a negative number, sadly.

NFTS - Davidson & Janet Yellen (McKinnon) talk cryptocurrency a la “Without Me”

Scot: Embarrassing on many levels.

Weekend Update - Jost rant on gun control - Biden cheat sheets with media - Filibuster is "Jim Crow relic" - Sidney Powell (Strong) - Sex doll with real emotions - Yang on hate crimes against Asian Americans.

Christian: What was the Yang thing, exactly? Admirable, but...awkward.

Scot: Getting awfully tired of "angry Jost" to start these - Che's getting a few great punchlines off tonight - Yang is a big bust.

Old flames (Kenan & Rudolph) are rival substitute Broadway choreographers

Christian: By cast members, for cast members.

Scot: Do you like big, broad, campy performances without any plot? I do not.

2021 Barfly Awards - Sally O’Flappy (Rudolph) is the biggest booze-soaked winner

Scot: What character is that voice Rudolph is doing? I can't think of it. Woman with a talk show.

The Maya-ing - Rudolph & ’70s SNL writer (Fey) haunt SNL; Dratch cameo

Christian: Kinda sweet, kinda haunting. Really good.

Scot: Nice work, couple good lines. More a mood piece. Reminds me of a Schiller film.

E16: Daniel Kaluuya / St Vincent

Ooops You Did It Again - Spears/Fineman - Lil Nas X (Redd), Pepé Le Pew (McKinnon) & Matt Gaetz (Davidson) are judged

Christian: We have known everything about Matt Gaetz forever, and...nobody cared?

Will You Take It - Kaluuya urges relatives’ vaccination via cash prizes

Scot: This is actually a good and funny way of getting at the issue.

Viral Apology Video - problematic YouTuber (Mooney) apologizes & harms fellow pranker (Kaluuya)

Scot: Was about to complain about Mooney just aping a trend/syle, but there's real progression here. Not bad.

Proud Parents - Redd’s parents not happy w/ his decision to drop pre-med for creative writing

Scot: Nwodim wrote with Dan Bulla - Very solid, Nwodim is excellent.

St. Vincent - “Pay Your Way In Pain”

Scot: OK, well, I know your music pick.

Weekend Update - Matt Gaetz jokes - Biden's New New Deal - Biden canceling student loan debt - Starkie sisters (Bryant, McKinnon) present Easter meats - Starbucks 50th - Guy Who Just Bought A Boat (Moffat) - Day rejects gold-digger label despite having married 106 year-old (Gardner)

Christian: Third crack at the Starkey sisters, word for word the same thing every time. Have these people never handled raw meat?

Scot: Good Che joke about Biden's stutter - I've got a soft spot for the meat sisters.

Frat Trip - fraternity brothers (all male cast) get stoked about inviting their moms to weekend bash

Scot: Written by Dan Licata and Streeter Seidell - It doesn't really lead to anything.

Kaluuya and Strong jazz up Kenan’s birthday with an upright bass & poetry

Christian: Oh look it's a dinner party where two people sing uncomfortably. Strong effect.

Scot: Strong sings - And we get a typical result.

E17: Carey Mulligan / Kid Cudi

Scot: Very well could be the best episode of the season.

Eye on Minnesota - Race of anchors (Kenan, Nwodim, McKinnon, Moffat) guides perception of Derek Chauvin trial

Scot: Written by Michael Che, Josh Patten, and Gary Richardson - The most well-rounded open in a while, even has a topper joke at the end that works.

Mulligan's husband Marcus Mumford [cameo] wants to play the guitar on SNL

Scot: Written by Anna Drezen and Kent Sublette - It's sweet, it works.

What's Wrong with this Picture - Kenan, Redd, Bryant, Mulligan

Christian: As good as all the other ones, so - not very good.

Scot: Written by Fran Gillespie, Sudi Green and Kent Sublette - A surprisingly strong edition of this, I thought, even if all the beats are similar.

Tremfalta - irritable bowel syndrome sufferer (Mulligan) ruins a toilet

Scot: I dunno. Feel like we've done this a few times before.

Study Buddy - On the phone, Jason (Bryant) guides Josh (McKinnon) on handling girl (Mulligan)

Scot: This might be better than I think. Going to come back.

Weird Little Flute - “That Weird Little Flute” in rap gets its due; Timothee Chalamet cameo

Christian: "There are flutes in a couple rap songs" is an observation, not a full sketch.

Scot: Written by Dan Bulla, Steven Castillo, Pete Davidson, and Chris Redd.

Weekend Update - Matt Gaetz jokes - Trump calls for Coke boycott - podcast of Barack Obama (Redd) & Bruce Springsteen (Bennett) is mundane - Dick's Sporting Goods new stores - Lizzie Border house sold - stripper (Johnson) from Paul Pierce video - Iceberg That Sank The Titanic (Yang)

Christian: Yang is really strong here. And Punkie Johnson finally has a moment.

Scot: "Who looks like" joke leads us off - Yeah, Biden is just like Clint Eastwood. Can't tell the difference. - Johnson is blah - Will.i.am could become Will.i.was - The Yang/iceberg thing still is pretty darn good.

Starcharter Andromeda - Spoiled Mulligan & Day flout spaceship protocol

Christian: I am inclined to agree with the theme, but it was just sort of flat.

Scot: Finally! Been thinking all show. Mulligan can look a lot like Anna Faris - Very good for what it is. A couple jokes land and gets out.

Lesbian Period Drama - prestige movie trailer has rote forbidden romance

Christian: The critic review of the naked back made me laugh out loud.

Scot: Robbie Fulks' wife, Donna, has the V/O here.

The War in Words - wife’s (Mulligan) baffling letters alarm WWII seaman (Day)

Christian: Third shot at this, pretty much the same.

Scot: Written by Mikey Day, Streeter Seidell, and Bryan Tucker - I laughed more at the throwaway "All Dogs Go to Hell" joke than I have at most full sketches this season - Nothing new, but still serviceable.

L'Eggs - Bryant & Mulligan try to sell teens (Mooney, Dismukes, Nwodim, Gardner) on the appeal of L’eggs hosiery

Scot: Written by Celeste Yim and Aidy Bryant.

E18: Elon Musk / Miley Cyrus

Scot: Terrible show. Kind of the thing that people think the Trump episode was.

Christian: This is the show where Musk made Chloe Fineman cry. Now it's just me that's crying after seeing it.

Scot: Big development season for Nwodim, who's really good in WU this episode

Christian: DogeCoin actually dropped after this episode.

Cyrus sings “Light Of A Clear Blue Morning” for castmembers’ moms

Scot: You'd have to have a heart of stone to mark this one down from average.

Musk & his mom [cameo] talk about the future & his past

Christian: This is actually not bad? I mean, it's awkward, but some of the jokes are fine.

Scot: There are a few moments that aren't terrible, but it's so awkward and stilted and lacks any sense of flow

Every Conversation With People You Haven't Seen Since the Pandemic Started

Scot: Good premise but it absolutely dies in the execution

The Oooli Show - Frances McDormand (McKinnon) visits Icelandic talk show

Christian: SNL's batting average in doing Scandinavian characters is .000.

Scot: I hate all of this.

Murder Durder - southeast Pennsylvania accents dominate crime story

Scot: The show has a real thing for Pennsylvania accents, I guess.

Weekend Update - Bezos has rocket company, Che on rich white people going to space - Trump launches blog - Broadway close to re-opening - Weary mom Pauline (Nwodim) - Snow White kissing/Cosby the RideFinancial expert (Musk) dodges the question “What is Dogecoin?” - Baby Yoda (Mooney)

Christian: Some of the jokes were fine, but having Musk on to push his crypto is just unforgivable. And Mooney still sucks.

Scot: Jost thinks GOP investing future in Trump is a terrible idea b/c he's 75 - white nationalism, Donald Trump, J6, and Ron DeSantis take shots - Also, Biden as a wax figure. Really sharp claws out for him - Baby Yoda, again. Why? - Nwodim really saves this from a worse fate.

Wario Trial - Trial reveals deeds of Wario (Musk), Luigi (Mooney), Princess Peach (Grimes) -Tagged with Anti-Italian discrimination PSA

Scot: Of course it's bad. But there was at least one "so bad it's funny" laugh here. I can't put it at the bottom of the quality list tonight.

Cowboy Standoff - In the Old West, visionary (Musk) proposes ambushing a gang via a tunnel

Scot: Yikes. Terribly unfocused. Just tried to squeeze in as many Musk-related references as possible.

E19: Keegan Michael Key / Olivia Rodrigo

Christian: (From 2021) - “Like the cicadas, every few years we get a really good SNL. And that was last night’s.”

Scot: Rough second half of the season for WU.

Signing Keegan Michael Key is excited to do all the SNL things

Scot: Melody sounds like it's borrowed fron “Not Gonna Phone It In Tonight.”

The Last Dance: Extended Scene - Michael Jordan (Key) and John Michael Wozniak (Gardner) play for keeps

Christian: A Gardner historical highlight?

Scot: It's a fun piece with a great Gardner performance. More than a year after the airing of the doc, though.

The Muppet Show - Key and Kenan rough up Statler (Bennett) & Waldorf (Day) - Villasenor as Tomlin

Scot: Real laughs all over in this one. One of the best of the season for sure.

Weekend Update - Masks not required - COVID can cause erectile dysfunction - Liz Cheney (McKinnon) struggles to list any conservative allies - Bezos building big yacht - Uncle Ben's rice changing names - Dismukes talks about great grandmother - Chicago releasing rats - Bob Baffert (Bennett) makes excuses

Christian: The only funny part of Dismukes' bit is when he makes fun of his jokes dying.

Scot: Gaetz, McConnell, and Steve Scalise take hits because reasons - McKinnon does another political impression - Dismukes tries to pull off a Davidson here and fails hard - I LOL'd at Che's "probably because their wife passed away" joke.

Commencement Celebrations - (Redd, Johnson, Kenan) shout at high school graduation ceremony

Scot: This is just an extension of the "black people at a movie theater" joke the show has used many many times

E20: Anya Taylor-Joy / Lil Nas X

What I Remember About Last Year - castmembers, Rock, Leo Yoshimura [cameo] give recollections of SNL’s season

Scot: They are begging for mercy. I will not give it to them in the Season Rankings. - It's funny in parts, but admitting the season sucked kind of balances that out.

Picture With Dad - Dismukes & Gardner as high schools, Bryant mom, Bennett dad with shotgun

Christian: Started off hating this, but it came around.

Scot: Everybody is perfect in their roles. I didn't love the we will/please don't back-and-forth at the end, but the rest worked.

Making Man - in heaven, designers of man (Kenan, Day, Redd) receive criticism from designers of woman (Bryant, T-J)

Christian: One of those ones that's so simple you can't believe they've never done it before. What the hell is Mooney doing in this?

Scot: Mooney's part is so unecessary. Feels like an early attempt at the kind of thing the Bargatze/Washington sketch would mine.

It's Pride Again - gay celebrants (Yang, McKinnon, Johnson) experience joys & frustrations

Christian: Celeste Yim (show writer) sighting.

Celtic Woman - Celtic Woman is a crowd-pleasing mostly-Irish musical extravaganza

Christian: Crowd is WILD tonight. Settle down, it's fine.

Weekend Update - Jost rants at Republicans - Gaetz joke - Dating app vaccine status - Biden test drives electric truck - Davidson addresses return-to-society fears - New supersonic airline - Joke Swap! - Jeanine Pirro (Strong) sings “My Way”

Christian: The let it go because it's the last episode of the season - WHY NOT CUT IT LOOSE LIKE THIS EVERY EPISODE?

Scot: Davidson sounds like he's leaving, but no - Black Superman's Kryptonite is an honest day's work - a great joke swap - Strong/Pirro was over-the-top, but fine, except if it's not sending Strong off the show, why does it exist? To ... pay tribute to Pirro in some way?

Enid and Astrid's Brawr Barn - Enid (Bryant) & Astrid’s (T-J) Brawr Barn supports large-breasted women

Scot: Anya T-J does a good job here.

NYU Guest Panel - coeds’ (Bryant & T-J) questions to TV cast are softball or insensitive

Scot: Johnson breaks hard just on-camera - Wasn't sure, but then it just took off - Good escalation with the questions - Another nice Bryant/T-J pairing here.

AMC Theaters - Vin Diesel (Bennett) rhapsodizes about going to the movies

Christian: Started out rough, but the relentlessness of the jokes was strong.

Scot: Bennett's goodbye - It's better than I thought it might be.

As always, for those who have signed up for the podcast at the Executive Producer level, we send out notable video and newspaper clips that aided us in preparing for the episode. Below are some of the Saturday Night Live sketches and media clips we reference throughout the episode to enhance the listening process.

Given that this is an episode that ends in a “5,” this one is for everyone. But please help keep the podcast advertisement-free and upgrade to the Executive Producer level, which will keep these emails coming in the future!

(Although if you want to support us at a lower level and want to just hear the shows, you can do that, too!)

Here are some of the materials we discuss throughout the Season Forty-Five episode:

The Sands of Modesto

As Covid closed in on the show, it had some clever - and prescient - things to say about social distancing.

Marrying Ketchups

Adam Driver is always a great host and he carries this unexpected gem.

E-Sports Reporter

Chance the Rapper brings back a bit he had previously performed as a hockey reporter. But it’s just about as good.

The War in Words

An ongoing bit, but in the mix of Mikey Day’s highlights on the show.

Mid-Day News

They would bring this back in Season 50, for good reason.

The Library

Easy to get a read on this one starring RuPaul.

Father-Son Podcasting Microphone

Prescient - podcasting still wasn’t the ubiquitous phenomenon it is now.

Duolingo for Talking to Children

One of the best commercials of the season, starring Kristen Stewart.

Children’s Clothing Ad

Office Apology

Kenan is a natural, part one million.

Mr. Robinson’s Neighborhood

Such a smart move to make this about gentrification. A big theme of the Eddie Murphy episode was updating some of his more politically incorrect characters from the 1980s.

Black Jeopardy: Velvet Jones

See: Above

Behind the Sketch: Grouch

The “gritty reboot” of children’s content would become a staple in future digital shorts.

Sport Report

When Covid hit, the cast members were forced to record bits from their own homes. Some of them were pretty rough, but there were a few creative highlights. To wit:

Melissa Seals the Deal

Aidy Bryant’s Childhood Journal

Snapchat Filter Reporter

FaceTime with Paul Rudd

There was already controversy before the season started, as comedian Shane Gillis was let go from the show for podcast remarks about Asians and gays:

Of course, Eddie Murphy’s return to the show after 35 years was a big deal:

Esquire wrote more about Murphy’s feud with SNL.

Rolling Stone reviewed the SNL At Home episodes:

Before the season, David Sims at The Atlantic complained that SNL was losing one of its most “dynamic stars.” That star was…Leslie Jones.

Rachel Chang at Forbes suggested Harry Styles might be the most loved SNL host of all time:

Buzzfeed offered up 23 SNL sketches you probably haven’t seen but are hilarious. (Spoiler: They are…fine.)

Before the season, Bowen Yang became the first “fully Asian” cast member (Rob Schneider’s mother was Filipino):

Comedian Anthony Jeselnik complained that he thought SNL helped get Donald Trump elected president in 2016:

John Mulaney discussed his writing days at SNL:

In the wake of Shane Gillis’ firing, the Boston Globe asked, “what is conservative comedy?”

Season 50 debuted with high expectations, given the historic anniversary. While some hoped for each episode to be hosted by past cast members and filled with nostalgic callbacks, the reality was more conventional. Although it featured a star-studded anniversary special and brought back several past SNL icons—including Dana Carvey, Mike Myers, Alec Baldwin, and David Spade—the season overall did not radically deviate from SNL’s recent trajectory.

Three new cast members joined—Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim, and Jane Wickline—while Punkie Johnson, Chloe Troast, and Molly Kearney departed. Ashley Padilla, in particular, was praised for her impressive rookie performance and potential to take on a larger role if veterans like Chloe Fineman or Heidi Gardner leave.

A prominent feature of the season was its reliance on recycling. Sketch concepts, characters, and even formats were reused or reinterpreted. For example, a successful sketch from Season 49 featuring Nate Bargatze as George Washington was revived, albeit with diminished surprise. Similarly, a sketch mimicking the old Chris Farley–Mike Myers Japanese game show setup reappeared in new form, highlighting the season’s tendency to “resurface” material.

Political sketches were frequent, if uninspired. Dana Carvey reprised his Biden impression, Maya Rudolph played Kamala Harris, and James Austin Johnson returned as Donald Trump. Many of these sketches were described as “political cosplay”—faithful reenactments of real events with little added satire or perspective. This dynamic was most evident in cold opens that simply replayed political moments from the week with minimal comedic insight. One notable exception was a post-election cold open that subverted expectations by mocking SNL’s own history of over-earnestness after political losses.

The overuse of celebrity cameos sometimes came at the expense of the current cast. Christian and Scot observed that cast members like Sarah Sherman and Ego Nwodim were overshadowed. Bowen Yang was heavily featured early in the season, but both hosts argued that he lacks the range to carry that much weight, often playing variations of himself. Conversely, James Austin Johnson was underused outside of his Trump impression, despite being one of the show's most versatile performers.

One of the season’s breakout sketches, “Domingo,” which revolves around a chaotic wedding reception, became a viral hit—especially among millennial women. While the hosts didn’t find the sketch particularly strong, they acknowledged it struck a nerve with a specific demographic, showing how the show’s appeal can vary widely depending on cultural context.

Ultimately, Bertram and Schneider conclude that Season 50 of SNL didn’t reinvent the wheel but encapsulated the modern SNL experience—safe, familiar, and intermittently excellent. It wasn’t a triumphant landmark season, but it did enough to suggest the show remains relevant, if uneven, as it enters its second half-century.

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As the Wasn’t That Special co-hosts watch each season of Saturday Night Live, they compare notes on each episode, chatting back and forth about popular and long-forgotten sketches. Some of the topics they discuss make it to the final podcast; others are left on the cutting room floor.

But for those of you who join at the Executive Producer level have access to Christian and Scot’s behind-the-scenes notes, as well as bonus materials the co-hosts used to prepare for the episode.

Please enjoy this edition of the Season Forty-Five bonus notes section, with the clips coming soon.

Help keep the podcast advertisement-free and upgrade to the Executive Producer level, which will keep these emails coming in the future!

E1: Woody Harrelson

Donald Trump (Alec Baldwin) phones for Ukraine help after talking with Giuliani (McKinnon); Bowen Yang as Kim Jong Un; Liev Schreiber cameo

Scot: No plot, just endless impressions.

Town Hall Debate - Strong as Erin Burnett - Harrelson/Biden, Bernie Sanders (David) & Kamala Harris (Rudolph), Moffat/O'Rourke, Yang/Yang, Redd/Booker, Jost/Buttigieg, McKinnon/Warren

Christian: Perfectly average, hits all the required notes.

Scot: All character work, no actual commentary on issues, campaign, politics.

Sun's Out Nevada - Hosted by Gardner & Mooney, Strong is reporter - Woody, Day, Bryant own World’s Biggest Cheeto attraction

Christian: Predictable, nothing close to a laugh.

Billie Eilish - “Bad Guy”

Christian: This is pretty great. I went to SXSW the previous March and she played as a virtual unknown and her career exploded.

Weekend Update - Trump impeachment talk (again) - David Ortiz (Kenan) is still doing commercials - woman trapped under camel - new white supremicist symbols - largest airport terminal

Christian: The Che John Wilkes Booth joke hits a little different now. Che: "we all know China doesn't have clean air." Would become very prescient in a couple of months.

Scot: OK, I laughed at the Flaccido Domingo joke - short and not much happening this week

High school football team learns their coach’s (Woody) thing is broken

Scot: What a mess

Inside the Beltway - Bryant, Strong, Woody push for impeachment, Kenan repeatedly says "Not gonna happen"

Christian: Trying to draft off the Chappelle election night sketch. But credit for being prescient. A rare real moment with the jacket screw-up.

Scot: Wardrobe comes out early for a switch - Bryant breaks - One joke, at least there is a point here

Billie Eilish - “I Love You”

Christian: There's a reason she's famous.

Son (Mooney) can't talk to dad (Woody) due to busy business schedule

Christian: Nothing left to say.

Chickham's Apple Farm - sisters (Bryant & McKinnon) enable unfun fruit picking

Scot: Everybody breaks because a donkey is there - Will this ever end?

All over the board, but ultimately disappointing. Made a little better by Eilish.

Scot: Welp. Here we go again.

E2: Phoebe Waller-Bridge

Pence sits with Giuliani (McKinnon) & Barr (Bryant) - Mike Pompeo (Matthew Broderick) joins - Stephen Miller represented by a snake puppet in a basket

Christian: I cannot be bought off with Ferris Bueller references.

Scot: Is Kenan wearing blackface to play Ben Carson? - This is a crime against humanity

W-B explores how Fleabag & Killing Eve reflect her personal life

Scot: Didn't find much to like here

What's Wrong With This Picture - Kenan hosts; contestants (Bryant, Mooney, W-B) make up absurd backstories to photos

Christian: Paint by numbers.

Mid-Day News - anchors (W-B, Kenan, Moffat, Nwodim) keep a racial scorecard of crimes reported during their newscast

Christian: This one's coming back.

The War In Words- Wife’s (W_B) cryptic letters concern WWII pilot (Day)

Christian: It's a formula, but I really like these.

Scot: Even better than the first one.

Weekend Update - Impeachment rising - suspicious Ukraine texts - Elizabeth Warren (McKinnon) - China government official Chen Biao (Yang) - joke about Davidson not finding his car - Mort Fellner’s (Day) stories turn out to be obituaries

Scot: Jost is aghast that Joe Biden might be corrupt - good Che rant on border moat & Trump - So much invested in making Warren a superhero - Don't *love* the character, but clearly Yang destroys with his trade official bit - Probablys shouldn't but I like Day's bit.

Royal Romance- duchess (W-B) & Thunderstick (Kenan) were a ’70s odd couple

Christian: I guess "take a look at my big black ass" is our catchphrase?

Scot: A weaker attempt at contrast.

State-Line Bar - Tough-acting barflies (McKinnon, Bryant, Strong, W-B) still pine for Bennett

Scot: Pretty much everyone lightly breaks at some point - Not much on the page, performances can't make up for it.

Aidy Bryant getting heavy use this season and breaking in virtually everything.

Scot: Odd arc. Standard recent-episode quality on both ends, strong run in middle.

E3: David Harbour

Equality Town Hall - Moffat/Anderson Cooper - Redd/Booker, Jost/Buttigieg, McKinnon/Warren, Julian Castro (Lin-Manuel Miranda), Woody/Biden, at LGBTQ town hall; Billy Porter cameo

Scot: Written by Fran Gillespie and Sudi Green - This has to stop. Not every political sketch has to include every impression possible.

Stranger Things star (Harbour) enters SNL’s Upside Down, where Kenan bosses Lorne

Scot: Perfectly fine.

Little Miss Teacher's Friend - Nwodim is teacher, Bryant is last year's winner

Christian: This feels like that Bryant favorite nephew awards thing.

Scot: Written by Aidy Bryant, Anna Drezen, and Alison Gates.

Grouch - film depicts the origin of Oscar (host), the Joker of Sesame Street

Scot: Written by Streeter Seidell and Mikey Day, based on an idea from Harbour - Effectively skewers both Sesame Street AND Joker - Harbour is really good - A well-done pre-tape.

Soulcycle - Yang, Harbour, Gardner, McKinnon audition to be SoulCycle instructors

Christian: Yang is good, but this is just the typical "person at wedding/city council meeting/funeral takes the mike" bit.

Scot: Written by Gillespie, Green, Bowen Yang.

Weekend Update - Trump impeachment stuff - Bailey Gismert (Gardner) - California NIL law - Senate sex doll ban - 3D printer meat - Davidson doesn’t think sexually-transmitted diseases are worth worrying about

Christian: Che is so fun when he thinks he's getting away with something. Davidson is hard to watch.

Scot: "It's definitely going to get worse for Trump" - Che's U.S. map is missing the U.P. of Michigan - Some of of the Trump clips Jost finds are undoubtedly hilarious - A very good Jost/Biden joke (Biden finally realized Trump was making fun of him) - Good jokes, subpar desk pieces.

Peter Paula and Murray - In 1962, trio (Harbour, McKinnon, Bryant)

Christian: Don't see at all what you see here.

Scot: Written by Bryant, Drezen, Gates, Kate McKinnon - Sweet melody, very witty lines, love the structure - Harbour is fantastic.

Father-Son podcasting microphone - the Father-Son Podcasting Microphone brings (host) & (KYM) together

Scot: I really, really, really liked the concept and the care put into it.

Grandpa (McKinnon) & Grandma (Harbour) creep out their grandkids while making pasta sauce

Christian: Fun, but no real point to this. Glad the actors enjoyed it.

Scot: Written by James Anderson and Alison Gates - The type of gender swap and silly physical comedy material I really dislike. Lots of noise, nothing funny.

Dog Court - Strong adjudicates disputes involving canines & their owners

Scot: Written by Gillespie, Green, and Kent Sublette.

I've got it slightly below average, you have it well above.

Scot: Not perfect, but the most enjoyable non-Mulaney episode in a long while.

E4: Chance the Rapper

Trump Rally - Supporters talk. McKinnon as Graham. Moffat as Zuckerberg. Bill Clinton (Hammond) speaks, Armisen as Turkey prez

Scot: PRESCIENT! Baldwin threatens to shoot someone in the face and then does exactly that! - No plot, just nonstop impressions.

Chance and Mooney rap how they like things deemed second-best

Christian: Wait, a good song?

League of Legends World Championship - Lazlo Holmes (Chance) doesn’t know what to make of an esports tournament

Christian: Same as the hockey bit, but I still thought it was pretty good.

Scot: Recurring character! - Pretty much the same beats, but Chance is pretty darn good.

First Impression Court - Chance summarily judges (Jason Momoa) & others

Christian: Is this pro-racial profiling?

Scot: Chance breaks - Good concept and just enough to sustain through the sketch

Graveyard Ghosts - Ghost (Chance) reluctantly shares the embarrassing cause of death; also Kenan, Day, Bryant

Scot: Clearly a Day/Seidell, now a Halloween tradition of sorts.

Weekend Update - Trump in trouble, impeachment - Giuliani butt-dial voicemail - Donald Jr. (Day) & Eric (Moffatt) - Kanye West new album - all-female spacewalk -

Christian: Olaf doll joke is good. Short one!

Scot: Prescient: Matt Gaetz is "live-action Quagmire."

Love-at-first-sight leads Chance & Strong to float on air

Christian: Lot of work for a so-so sketch.

Scot: Written by James Anderson and Kent Sublette along with Strong.

Space Mistakes - fatal flubs doom astronauts (Chance, Bennett, Mooney) in film

Christian: What am I missing?

Dazzle Designgs - Bryant and McKinnon attempt to sell unattractive show choir attire

Scot: McKinnon and Bryant are allowed an amazing amount of rope this season to do whatever they want.

Dance instructor (Kenan) poorly hides werewolf transformation

Christian: A weird, disjointed energy to this. A good 10-to-1.

Scot: Chance breaks.

E5: Kristen Stewart / Coldplay

Liz Warren Townhall - At an Iowa rally, Elizabeth Warren (McKinnon) gives healthcare policy details

Christian: The reason to portray politicians on SNL is to make fun of them, not serve as a campaign ad.

Scot: Written by Will Stephen and Anna Drezen - Pure Warren propaganda.

Stewart asks questions of audience members, including Davidson

Christian: Mostly just awkward?

Scot: Allison Gates & Andrew Dismukes ask questions.

Rosie the Riveter - Fineman wins poster gig over rough Bryant, McKinnon, Stewart

Christian: I guess the McKinnon/Bryant duo is preferable to Bennett/Mooney.

Duolingo for Talking to Children commercial - Stewart

Scot: Written by Anna Drezen.

Bryant’s use of expensive Farrow & Ball paint foments family rancor

Christian: Was skeptical at first, but good escalation.

Scot: Written by Kent Sublette - Seriously enjoyed this spiraling out of control. It's a good Bryant!

Hero Dog Press Conference - Kelly Anne Conway (McKinnon) intros this

Christian: A lot of Strong dog work this season.

Scot: Why is Conway here except to allow McKinnon another role? - Nothing actually works here.

Corporate Nightmare song - Young office pop-punk rebels (Mooney, Stewart, Day, Davidson) sell out

Christian: Predictable. When they start the build, you're just waiting for them to pull the rug, and it's exactly what you expect.

Scot: Written by Mikey Day and Streeter Seidell - There's more here than you might think. Nicely done.

Coldplay - “Orphans”

Christian: A full 15 years after Coldplay's last good album.

Weekend Update - Trump moving to Florida - Beto drops out - Jeffrey Epstein's death - Katie Hill throuple - Riley Jenson’s (Villaseñor) mom (Garder) berates her - 67-year-old gives birth - Starkie sisters (Bryant & McKinnon)

Christian: Jokes are groaners, two recurring desk pieces that just rip off the originals.

Scot: I don't think Riley Jenson was used correctly.

Hungry Jury - Growling stomachs of deadlocked jury (entire cast and Stewart) perform “Pony” by Ginuwine

Christian:

Pansexual (Stewart) tries for a threesome with middle-aged (Kenan and Nwodim)

Scot: Doesn't work, no jokes written, twist doesn't work. Keep it. - Written by Kenan Thompson and Bryan Tucker.

To stargazing (Bennett) & (Stewart), constellations are depictions of oral sex

Christian: It's a shitty attempt at hot tub lovers with people with far less talent.

Scot: This is a deceptively gross episode. Throwing off S20 vibes all over - Feel like an updated Love-ahs. Written by Andrew Dismukes.

E6: Harry Styles

Days of Our Impeachment - Jon Hamm cameo - Adam Schiff (Moffatt), Jim Jordan (Day), sigh, Giuliani

Scot: No plot, endless impressions. Just utterly worthless.

Joan - dog owner (Bryant) imagines chat with anthropomorphized pooch (Styles)

Christian: Sweet.

Scot: This feels like a Kids In The Hall song/sketch and I liked it a lot - It's a different, understated Bryant.

Childbirth Class - In childbirth class, Icelandic couple (Gardner and Styles) feeling great

Christian: It's Nuni and Nooni again.

JetBlue Intercom - Sloppy intercom use of pilots (Styles & Day) offends & alarms passengers

Scot: No escalation at all. Couldn't get off the ground.

That's the Game - drug empire usurper (Redd) is unprepared to manage

Scot: Fine performances but not much to work with.

Weekend Update - Impeachment hearings - Guiliani podcast - Jeff Sessions (McKinnon) grovels for Trump approval - world's largest Stabucks - cocaine bricks wash ashore - milk industry exec (Mooney) spreads fake news about non-dairy drinks

Christian: Bad jokes, bad desk pieces. Barely escapes a 1.

Scot: Roger Stone/jackpot joke works - "By a round of applause, who do you think Hitler would want to be friends with?" - Mooney was, you know, fine here.

Sara Lee Instagram - account manager (Styles) is posting about his sex life

Christian: This feels like an inside joke for Julio Torres?

Scot: Yet another "bad caption" sketch.

Baby Faye - stage act of 45 year-old former child star (Strong) & her dancers is pitiful

Christian: If not Anderson in reality, it's Anderson in spirit.

Scot: Oh, yuck.

Harry Styles - “Watermelon Sugar”

Scot: https://www.vogue.com/article/on-the-podcast-chloe-fineman-snl

E7: Will Ferrell

Impeachment Press Conference - Trump (Baldwin) talks impeachment near helicopter; Gordon Sondland (Ferrell)

Christian: What a mess. Timing is off, people talking over each other and an extra is trying to pass along a message on his notepad.

Scot: The impression the country has been clamoring for: Gordon Sondland - This has absolutely no reason to exist.

Ferrell is flattered & flustered by Ryan Reynolds’ [cameo] presence; Meadows cameo

Scot: Just an outline of an idea here, but Ferrell/Morgan/Reynolds is enough.

2020 Dem Debate - Democratic debaters include Klobuchar (Dratch) & Bloomberg (Armisen), Harris/Rudolph, McKinnon/Warren; Sanders/David, Jost/Pete, Woody/Biden, Ferrell/Steyer

Christian: Am I falling for the star power? Maybe. But the Biden bits are great.

Scot: Endless impressions, zero plot whatsoever.

On Thanksgiving, Pocahontas’ (Villaseñor) grandfather (Ferrell) is critical of new immigrants; Rudolph and Armisen

Christian: Chickened out with the coda begging people not to come after them.

Scot: OK, but ... the Native Americans would have been right to be wary of the new immigrants, right?

Party Song - Teacher’s (Ferrell) presence at their house party fazes teens (Day & Strong)

Christian: Feels too familiar.

Emotional parents (Ferrell & McKinon) derail a pizza parlor commercial shoot

Scot: Nothing terribly special, but McKinnon is good in a "normal" role and everybody works well together.

King Princess - “1950”

Christian: One of my favorite albums from 2019.

Scot: No clue who this is.

Weekend Update - Impeachment hearings end - Bloomberg apologized for 'stop & frisk' - Guy Who Just Bought A Boat (Moffatt) & frat brother (Ryan Reynolds) offer dating tips

Christian: Duplication theory with Reynolds.

Scot: "Tough to auction off Nazi memorabilia b/c everyone always looks like they're bidding" - "When I try to develop ultra-black material, I'm 'booed at the Apollo.'" -

Ventriloquist’s (Ferrell) dummy claims their relationship is nonconsensual

Christian: Gave me the ick.

Scot: I liked this more than I should.

E8: Jennifer Lopez

NATO Cafeteria - Rudd & Fallon cameo in the first 30 seconds - And here comes James Cordon - Everyone bullies Donald Trump (Baldwin) at NATO

Christian: It's bad, but there is a glimpse of something a little different here.

Scot: Turns out to be an anti-bullying PSA. Whatever. Question: Is Baldwin crushing his reputation on the show with these?

50 year-old JLo kicks with The Rockettes & wears her green Versace dress

Scot: Who counted out J-Lo?

Surprise Home Makeover - home makeover program visits Matt Schatt (Day) & out-of-his-league wife (J-Lo)

Christian: The downside of these is that Day is actually a pretty attractive guy. Would play a little better with one of the show's big boys playing the role.

Scot: It's fine, but you know all the beats this time around.

Chad & JLo - J-Lo is drawn toward roadie Chad (Davidson); Alex Rodriguez cameo

Scot: Pretty weak effort.

Them Trumps: Rally - at a rally, white audience turns on black First Family

Christian: Weak.

Weekend Update - Impeachment vote before Xmas - French wine tarriff - new food stamps regs - Nancy Pelosi (McKinnon) offers prayers for Donald Trump - Jules (Bennett) sees holidays a little differently

Christian: Jules is a step up from previous ones.

Scot: Post Malone/Pre malone joke feels like Norm's Better Than Ezra - laughed at the XFL uniform joke - McKinnon was weak with another impression, but good jokes here.

J-Lo & other hip-hop carolers distract while DaBaby robs family

Christian: The show has an abysmal record of making fun of hip hop.

Scot: I don't even know where you are supposed to laugh.

Hoops - J-Lo and Villaseñor sell hoop earrings

Christian: Perfectly average. They had to let Villaseñor do something with J Lo, right?

Potty PM commercial - Device lets Mooney pee from bed, can't figure out how women might use it

Christian: Mooney's awkwardness finally pays off.

Wisconsin Women - J-Lo, McKinnon, Strong run Wisconsin store - Fineman battles a bear

Christian: Absolutely pointless with terrible accents.

Scot: Could've been midwest slice-of-life, could've been fish-out-of-water. Instead we get this.

Barry's Bootcamp - Yang, J-Lo, Strong, Bennett, Gardner try out to be boot camp trainers

Scot: Just did this in the Harbour episode and it's as bad as that one.

E9: Scarlett Johansson

American Households - Trump dominates family dinner talk in San Francisco, Charleston, Atlanta - Bryant as Snowman, McKinnon as Greta Thunberg

Christian: See, maybe more of this? But again - they can't find anything funny about Greta Thunberg?

Scot: Something about the flow is off, but at least it's different.

Singing Elves - Dance music done by (Kenan & ScoJo) has naughty holiday lyrics

Christian: On one hand, it's admirable that ScarJo is game for anything. But the downside is that she ends up in a lot of junk like this.

Scot: Awfully close to the hip-hop carolers sketch from last episode.

Macy's commercial - Macy’s has uncomfortable holiday clothes your kids will hate

Christian: An all-timer? You sure?

Scot: OK, second review. Knocked it down. Still love it. look, great feel. Strong with an outstanding voiceover. And very very funny. The Day/Gardner exchange is great. Clearly one of the best commercials in a while.

Office Apology - Co-worker reaction differs to inappropriate ScoJo & ribald Charlie (Kenan)

Christian: Just Xeroxed from the first, but Kenan is so good.

A Conway Marriage Story - George (Bennett) & Kellyanne (McKinnon) are at odds

Christian: They didn't last long after this.

Weekend Update - House Impeachment, Seante to vote - Che asks if Jost is better than Cosby - Thunberg Time cover - Chen Biao (Yang) - streetwise Baby Yoda (Mooney)

Scot: Yang's reaction is notably muted from last time - good string of jokes between desk pieces - hated Mooney.

Hot Tub Christmas - Strip club ghosts (ScoJo, Strong, Horan) sing

Christian: Cecily Strong rule in effect.

A Winter Boyfriend for Holiday Christmas - Single (ScoJo) on Hallmark Channel game show

Scot: Couple nice moments in here.

I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus - Strong sings, expanding into a cuckold fantasy scenario (Bennett, Day, ScoJo)

Christian: Creepy ≠ funny.

Kitchen workers are big fans of models (Yang & ScoJo) from choking poster

Christian: Guess this is a New York thing?

Pet Translator - Trump impeachment hasn’t changed thoughts of dog (Bennett) - ScoJo, Mooney, Day

Christian: Prescient: The dog predicts Trump is going to try to steal the 2020 election.

Scot: First one was so good, should have left it at that.

E10: Eddie Murphy

Dem Debate - Joe Biden (Sudeikis) challenges debate-crasher Donald Trump (Baldwin)

Christian: Apparently McKinnon's impressions are so vital she has to do two per political sketch now? This had potential (again, the Biden stuff is solid) but Baldwin comes in and suffocates it.

Scot: Harris/Rudolph is there even though she DROPPED OUT - And Trump shows up for reasons - Excruciating.

Murphy declines to use sketch ideas of Morgan, Rock, Dave Chappelle [cameo]

Scot: Morgan's "I made my money on the road" joke is a pile-driver. So good.

Mister Robinson's (Murphy) Neighborhood - The neighborhood has gentrified

Scot: Murphy just slips right back into place. Didn't let this go too long. A nice job updating for 2019.

Holiday Baking Championships - Ugly cakes are based on Christmas memories (everyone in this)

Christian: Just because Eddie Murphy's in it doesn't trump the fact that it's an almost word-for-word remake.

Scot: I at least admire the creativity in both of these so far.

Home for the Holidays - Murphy gives a dinner toast; Rudolph, Redd, Day, Nwodim, Kenan

Christian: Cut and paste.

Scot: Another series of Calm/Chaos cuts.

Masked Singer - Nick Cannon (Redd) hosts - After his identity is revealed, Buckwheat sings

Scot: Honestly underwhelming. But Murphy is having fun.

Weekend Update - Trump impeached, no Senate vote yet - Che on Trump complaining - Gumby (Murphy) is upset that he hasn’t been given proper credit for saving SNL - Davidson compares the public’s perception of his life with how Jost is viewed - Jeanine Pirro (Strong) spews wine on Jost

Christian: Gumby, Joke Swap and Pirro?

Scot: Murphy is still flying at 100mph - Davidson at least self-aware in this - He's not the youngest, AMH is - Not the best Joke Swap ever, but very solid front-to-back.

Black Jeopardy - Kenan + Redd, Nwodim, and Velvet Jones (Murphy)

Scot: Might not have been the best character/sketch combo - Just OK.

North Pole News Report - Manic elf witness (Murphy) describes polar bear attack on Santa’s workshop

Scot: 100% on Murphy's performance. Not much on the page.

There's a cap on this episode's potential given how much of it was just character fan service and reheated sketches. But it really felt like an event.

Scot: Where was McKinnon? You don't want your star on screen with Murphy?

E11: Adam Driver

Dershowitz in Hell - In hell, Satan (McKinnon) stans for Alan Dershowitz (Lovitz); Driver as Jeffrey Epstein

Christian: Choosing to overlook the lame McConnell/Collins stuff.

Scot: Hard to believe, but this also is all impressions, zero plot/development. And how do you bring Lovitz back and NOT let him play the Devil?

Driver shares personal tidbits & unconvincingly demonstrates his chillness

Scot: This is ... really well-written and performed and has a very throwback vibe to it.

At a sleepover, clearly-guilty toilet destroyer Megan (McKinnon) won’t fess up

Scot: McKinnon kinda sounds like her Jodie Foster impression.

In a Del Taco commercial shoot, (Mooney) redoes “aw man, I’m all outta cash”

Scot: Written by Bennett, Mooney, Dismukes - Just a bunch of stupid noise.

The Science Room - dumb kids (Strong, Day) sidetrack professor’s (Driver) lesson about air

Christian: Rockwell situation avoided.

Scot: It's pretty fun.

Slow song - romantic pace of (Redd) frustrates (Halsey) in music video

Christian: OK, finally - a good rug pull.

Weekend Update - Impeachment trial begins - Rudy Giuliani podcast - Carrie Krum (Bryant) - Jeter to HOF - Mr. Peanut dies, is cremated - Villaseñor sings Oscar-inspired songs

Christian: Everything hits.

Medieval Times - aspiring actor (Driver) injects dark storyline into Medieval Times show

Scot: All about Driver's performance here

Cheer - coaches (Gardner & Driver) overlook squad members’ severe injuries

Christian: I think you have to have seen this show, and I have not.

Marrying Ketchups - waitress (Gardner) imagines condiment romance (Driver/Strong) while marrying ketchup bottles

Christian: Inspired 10-to-1.

Scot: Wonderfully silly and absurd. I bought into it.

Halsey - “Finally // Beautiful Stranger”

Christian: I cannot stand the baby voice singing style.

E12: J. J. Watt

Christian: Standard issue athlete fare.

Scot: Watt was game and not too terribly stiff. Nothing really stands out, though.

The Trial You Wish Had Happened - Judge Mathis (Kenan), Donald Trump (Baldwin) trial, Strong/Bolton, McConnell/Bennett, Davidson/Hunter Biden, McKinnon/Graham, Schiff/Moffatt, Mooney/My Cousin Vinny (don't ask). And they sing. And it's 9 minutes.

Christian: First mention of the "Wang Chung" virus.

Scot: Should be "The Trial WE Wish Had Happened" - Once again, doing this for themselves, working out their own issues, no regard for the audience - Among the very worst of these.

Watt talks about growing up in a football family

Christian: Exceeded expectations.

Scot: Totally decent and Watt seems semi-comfortable.

Frozen II - Elsa (McKinnon) is gay, Anna (Strong), & Kristoff (Watt) is woke in Frozen II deleted scenes

Christian: Dumb and obvious.

Robbie (Redd) pre-tape - Bennett coaches - Watt doesn’t want untalented underdog on team

Scot: Really predictable.

Teen (Mooney) cringes when parents (Watt & bryant) overshare sex life

Scot: Awkwardness is not necessarily humor.

Olay Eye Black - Oil Of BrOlay eye black is face care for tough guys

Christian: I think I've seen ads for something like this on TikTok.

Luke Combs - “Lovin’ On You”

Scot: This is not a bad song at all.

Weekend Update - Lots of impeachment stuff and Bolton jokes - Pompeo yells at reporter - Chen Biao (Yang) on coronavirus - Super Bowl preview - Krispy Kreme in Times Square - Dr. Angie Hynes (Nwodim) on Black History Month -

Scot: How many times is Jost going to make a joke about the appearance of that Ukranian guy? This is like six. - The whole start is off the rails. - China lockdowns are underway - Decent Che hotel jokes - Overall pretty weak.

Madden 21 - Watt has to read odd lines for Madden 21 recording session

Christian: Feels like filler.

Scot: I did laugh at the wheelchair jokes.

My Fair Bigfoot - otherwise-civilized Sasquatch (Watt) has bathroom mishap

Christian: The famous Bigfoot photo with the pose wasn't taken until 1967.

Big Willie's Pizza - Delivery guy’s (Watt) porno plot (Gardner, Strong) ruins pizza shop owner (Kenan)

Christian: Enjoyed it - pretty clever.

E13: RuPaul

New Hampshire Dem Debate - Bernie Sanders (David), Biden/Sudeikis, McKinnon/Warren, Jost/Buttigieg, Dratch/Klobuchar, Davidson/Steyer,

Christian: Nothing offensively bad, pretty much treading water. Biden line about having 6-8 months was good.

Scot: Again, I don't get the love for Sudeikis' Biden. It's not very good! - Nine minutes. The last joke (Mr. Biden, you have 60 seconds) is the best one here.

RuPaul alludes to wild experiences in ’80s NYC & describes his philosophy

Christian: Audience loved this. I did not.

The Queen - RuPaul tries making pool boy Chad into the next drag superstar

Christian: I actually liked this, but it just sort of went on with no hook.

Strong and RuPaul debate check-splitting proposal with Bryant, Gardner

Scot: This is not put together very well.

Boop-It - Divorced dad (Bennett) becomes obsessed with mastering Boop-It game

Scot: Show me one funny thing in this. You can't.

At the library, RuPaul “reads” books by insulting kid-lit book covers

Scot: Lots of energy from RuPaul, but I just didn't like it.

Justin Bieber - “Yummy”

Christian: I can't imagine anything worse than this.

Weekend Update - Trump aquitted by Senate - Fineman celebrates Oscars - Cathy Anne (Strong) on Trump trial

Christian: Che with a strong 3/5ths joke. I beat Weekend Update to the "stanktuary state" joke by four days.

The Old New York Show - eccentric shut-ins (Bryant & McKinnon) pine for ’90s NYC; RuPaul is ex-husband

Christian: Feels like S22, where the female cast members' go-to move was to play crazy old women. They're doing Cheri Oteri doing Martin Short.

E14: John Mulaney

White House Press Conference - Democratic candidates crash Mike Pence (Bennett) coronavirus press conference, Kenan/Carson, Mulaney as Biden

Christian: Again, sketches written based on who is under contract, not what is funny. Why is Bernie Sanders or Klobuchar or Warren there?

Scot: David keeps this off the ground floor. Still just a menagerie of people with no throughline.

Mulaney does standup about Baby Boomer dads, Bill Of Rights, Make-A-Wish

Scot: Strong opening and close to this.

Uncle Meme - Ron (Mulaney) hates being subject of nephew’s (Davidson) #WhiteCollarVirgin meme

Scot: Mulaney sells this one.

Wanting to be in strip club sketch, Monney bulks up; Justin Theroux cameo

Christian: Sketches about SNL cast members have an extremely low hit rate.

The Admiral - Knockout’s sisters (Bryant, McKinnon) and brother (Mulaney) tempt The Admiral

Christian: McKinnon/Bryant is now a comedy team.

Weekend Update - Trump talking coronavirus - Che starts drinking to cope with the onset of coronavirus spread - Biden wins SC primary - Redd is unhappy with events that occurred during Black History Month 2020 - Costco bans non-members from food court

Christian: Chris Redd's best moment on the show?

Scot: Che's runner taking COVID seriously is a nice touch.

Airport Sushi - Jake Gyllenhaal & other LaGuardia patrons sing about airport issues

Scot: This didn't hang together quite as well as the previous musicals.

E15: Daniel Craig

The Ingraham Angle (McKinnon) - Coronoavirus, Judge Pirro (Strong), Trump Bros, Chris Matthews (Hammond), and Elizabeth Warren [cameo] savors her successes

Christian: Thought it was good until the very end. Come the fuck on.

Scot: Another "bad sponsors" joke - Never-ending impressions. Pick a freaking lane - Zero focus to the writing, just bouncing all around - 9+ minutes.

Craig previews scene - James Bond (Craig) is gleeful over craps wins

Scot: Appears to be a pre-tape adapted into a monologue.

The Sands of Modesto - social distancing impacts soap opera interactions

Scot: Written by James Anderson and Bryan Tucker - McKinnon breaks - At first you're like, "Ah, pretty lame." But they realy commit to the bit and I enjoyed it along the way.

On the Couch - Kenan, Redd, Weekend in music video

Scot: This seems harsh, but there are no laughs at all. I think the whole approach is wrong. This is just accurately portraying why a man would be on the couch.

The Deirdre Show - Cookie (Nwodim) huffs during cooking segment

Scot: Virtually nothing to this.

Debbie Downer - Pandemic has Debbie Downer (Dratch) in her element

Scot: No, sorry, can't ever capture the original. Had some brief promise early; didn't last.

The Weeknd - “Blinding Lights”

Scot: Still convinced Rod Stewart deserves a writing credit for this ("Young Turks").

Weekend Update - Biden begins to emerge as nominee - Jost on future debates - Plastic expert Bottle Boi (Yang) - NASA recruiting - Woman celebrates 100th birthday - The Weeknd Update - Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started A Conversation With (Strong)

Christian: Really weird to watch these Covid jokes.

Scot: CPAC attendee positive for COVID (I was right next to him) - Thin, weak Yang character - LOL at Che's reading joke.

Accent Coach - Craig's accent coach (Bennett) wants Benoit Blanc to be cartoonishly southern

Christian: An aimless attempt to replicate Kenan's Jeffersons acting coach.

Scot: Written by Bennett with Andrew Dismukes - Maybe Ferrell could do this. Beck cannot. - The Bennett/Dismukes partnership is off to a forboding start (see E5, E11).

Deep Quote Game Night - Craig & Gradner trade impossibly-obscure movie quotes

Christian: Has Gardner taken a step back this year? Feels like in opportunities she has, at least. Just thought this was meh.

Scot: Written by Gardner with Will Stephen - Incredible performances by Gardner and Craig elevate this nicely - Actual escalation.

E16: Tom Hanks (SNL at Home)

SNL castmembers assemble via Zoom

Scot: The revamped opening credits are very endearing.

COVID-19 survivor Tom Hanks talks about his coronavirus experience

Scot: It worked. The 36/38 joke is very funny.

Drake Song - lyrics of Davidson's pastiche rap involve missing an ex

Christian: Willing to give a lot of slack given the circumstances, but what the hell is this?

Scot: Not funny, no jokes. Just a pastiche, really.

Working Out at Home with RBG - Ruth Bader Ginsburg (McKinnon) works out at home with small equipment

Scot: Uncreative, bad audio issues, just a hard pass.

Henriette and Nan (Bryant and McKinnon) - technologically illiterate Henriette & Nan flounder during office Zoom

Scot: Slightly better. I did laugh at the Good Doctor thing.

A Message from Bernie Sanders - Bernie Sanders (David) fields campaign & coronavirus questions

Scot: Ringers during an at-home show?

Weekend Update - Fauci stuff - via phone, Donald Trump (Baldwin) claims coronavirus success - mini Joke Swap

Christian: This was as good as plenty of real Weekend Updates.

Scot: Unprescient/Prescient moments apart: If either Trump or Biden win, we'll have comedy gold the next four years (Ha!). But then: Can you imagine the stuff Biden is going to be saying eight years from now? - It was as good as could be expected, but Baldwin/Trump brings it down a peg.

Bailey At the Movies - Bailey Gismert’s reviews of home-screened movies highlight awkwardness

Scot: They cover up her wrist tattoos every week on the show.

Middle-Aged Mutant Ninja Turtles - Adult concerns now on minds of turtles

Scot: This was good and, frankly, they should bring it back for more.

Cam Playz Dat - Call Of Duty Warzone deaths abound in Twitch session

Christian: Feels like a Mooney.

What You Jammin On - via FaceTime, Bennett, Mooney, Armisen turn writer’s block into a musical creation

Scot: Nope.

Visualizations with Aidy - Bryant uses stock-video to guide the viewer through tough times

Christian: Feels quintessentially Aidy.

Scot: Liked it! Good creativity and sweetness/silliness.

How Low Will You Go - game show contestants (Nwodim, Gardner, Bryant) are horny

Christian: Some really good lines in this.

Scot: Couldn't quite end it, but this is one you could see working live and in-person

Makeup Tutorial with EGo - Crayola markers are the sole product used during (EGN)’s makeup tutorial

Scot: Yeah, sorry. Not really a comedy concept here.

I Got $2000 - rapper (Davidson) prominently displays $2,000 during music video

Scot: At least the seed of a joke.

Hal Willner Tribute - castmembers mark the passing of SNL music producer Hal Willner

Scot: This is touching and full of emotion and a very good reminder that early on we really were clueless about a lot of stuff and lost a number of fine people.

E17: At Home II

A Message From Dr. Fauci - Anthony Fauci (Brad Pitt) reacts to Donald Trump’s coronavirus statements

Scot: Written by Jost -The ending tag didn't help anything, though I understand why it happened - Just took COVID and Pitt to get a passable cold open.

What Up With That: At Home - Charles Barkley & DJ Khaled [cameo] panel remotely

Scot: Written by Steve Higgins and Bryan Tucker - Worked as well as possibly could have with nobody in the same room. Infectious fun, still.

Quarantined anchor’s (Day) daughter phone-filters his report

Christian: Pretty sure everyone in every Zoom call made this joke prior to this running.

Scot: Written by Streeter Seidell and Mikey Day - Exactly what you think it is.

Stuck In the House - Davidson & Sandler sing about being quarantined with their families; Schneider cameo

Christian: The pandemic was bad enough without Pete Davidson singing.

Scot: Written by Pete and Dan Bulla - Compared to other Davidson songs, this is pretty strong.

Bartenson's Grocery Store - Bryant & McKinnon list items that Bartenson’s Grocery Store has plenty of

Scot: Written by Anna Drezen and Alison Gates It was fine. Some of the items were funny. Liked the playing with the fact they obviously are not appearing together.

Big Dominican Lunch - David Ortiz (Kenan) & Big Bunny (Bad Bunny) cook meat

Scot: Written by Jost and Kenan.

Air BNB - COVID-19 left (Fineman) stuck living with eccentric Airbnb guest Ooli (Fineman)

Scot: Written by Chloe Fineman and Jasmine Pierce.

Released Early - After his coronavirus-spurred prison release, (Redd) contacts old flames

Christian: All Bryant.

Scot: Written by Sam Jay and Gary Richardson - Bryant's role pushes this past middling.

Weekend Update - Trump/bleach stuff - Che on Red State people pushing back on lockdowns - Davidson reports from home - Banksy bathroom art - Last Dance doc - Boston pigeons yelling at blackbirds - Jost announces contest that will require Che to tell the winner’s joke

Christian: Really awkward and disjointed, especially when they are clearly reading off laptops.

Scot: Laughed at the Jonestown joke - No audience this time.

Soulcycle at Home - intense instructors conduct SoulCycle Virtual Workouts from their homes

Christian: Why keep bringing these back?

Scot: Written by Fran Gillespie and Sudi Green - Not a fan of these at all.

O.J. Simpson (Kenan) interprets responses to him through a COVID-19 lens

Scot: Written by Josh Patten and Pete Schultz.

Facetime with Rudd - Paul Rudd [cameo] & his cousin Mandy (Gardner) speak for first time since childhood

Scot: Written by Heidi Gardner. Didn't like this quite as much as the first one.

The Reveal - virtual police procedural has some singing & an anticlimactic confession

Christian: Covid couldn't kill the Strong singing rule.

Scot: Written by James Anderson and Will Stephen.

Whiskers R We At Home - Barbara shows similar-looking cats available online via Whiskers R’ We

Scot: Written by Kent Sublette.

What's My Name - at a party, Tommy (KYM) puts Rob (KYM) on the spot with “What’s my name?”

Scot: Sigh.

Melissa's Big Date - Villaseñor invites an unseen beau to spend the night

Scot: Written by Dan Bulla, Steven Castillo, Dan Licata, Melissa Villaseñor - Barely got there for me. Good performance by Villaseñor.

While these videos on SNL were temporary, these types of bits exploded on TikTok, leading to the hiring of future cast members like Chloe Troast and Jane Wickline

Scot: Instead of pruning material, they need all they possibly can come up with. And it shows.

E18: Kristen Wiig (At Home III)

Italian Vacation - Gardner & Martin Short (cameo) revel in their Italian fantasia to their disinterested pals

Christian: A significant percentage of Kenan's roles are reacting to people doing something or telling them to stop.

Scot: No laughs detected.

Let Kids Drink - SNL cast & (Josh Gad) plead for underage alcohol consumption

Scot: All of this worked really well. Fun premise, good payoff.

Masterclass Quanantine - Phoebe-Waller Bridge & Britney Spears (Fineman) join John Mulaney (Villaseñor), teach esoteric lifestyle classes

Christian: I think Villaseñor's Mulaney actually does save it.

Scot: Villaseñor's great Mulaney impression can't save this.

Danny Trejo Rap - Davidson celebrates the life and accomplishments of Danny Trejo (real)

Christian: Please, God, cut Pete Davidson's internet.

Bouncy Waves with PJ Charney - Wiig’s class on hair care is as unruly as her ‘do

Scot: Really bad for an "At Home" show or any other show.

Weekend Update - Trump valet positive for COVID - Biden assault accusations - Fey discusses motherhood under quarantine - Jeanine Pirro (Strong)

Christian: It figures that Fey would be the one to figure out how to do this correctly.

Scot: GnR tried to win the War on Drugs by doing all the cocaine themselves (probably heroin, actually) - this is really tough because you can't know the right timing without an audience. The edits are too quick.

Eleanore's House - AIB’s imaginary house party becomes host to some unfavorable guests

Scot: This went in a weird direction and I dug it. Bryant is a great central presence for it.

Dad Pranks - Brandon tortures his corny-ass bitch dad (Day)

Scot: Really enjoyed this, laughed at pretty much all the pranks.

Beer Money - Mooney x3 go on a quest to cure his broken heart and find treasure

Christian: Miskell Spillman would have been a better regular cast member.

Scot: Awful and nonsensical! - 3x the Mooney, 3x as bad?

Dreams - Strong dreams of a vibrant NYC filled with castmates

Christian: Found this really affecting. Probably the best season-ending bit they've done.

Scot: A perfect way for the season to end, I suppose.

Much of that spark came from what we half‑jokingly labeled the “return of the patriarchy.” For nearly a decade the women quite deservedly owned the spotlight, but this year the men finally pushed their way back into focus. Andrew Dismukes vaulted from dependable role‑player to genuine breakout, Marcelo Hernandez kept the featured bench lively, and James Austin Johnson proved he can do far more than a killer Donald Trump. When Kenan Thompson is still humming, JAJ is nailing every oddball character, and Bowen Yang is used surgically instead of omnipresently, the show suddenly has a sturdy spine again—something it hasn’t had since the Hader/Samberg days.

The host roster amplified that energy. Stand‑ups absolutely ruled: Pete Davidson opened capably; Shane Gillis handled controversy and sketches with equal ease; and Nate Bargatze turned Episode 3 into an instant classic. From Bargatze’s laid‑back monologue to the “George Washington Explains Weights and Measures” sketch, the episode landed in our all‑time top ten - rare air for a first‑time host.

Season discourse inevitably orbited the Gillis return. We treated it neither as the apocalypse nor as anti‑woke deliverance; it was simply a solid show with a gratifying “High‑School Reunion” centerpiece that proved why a big, bellicose utility player would have mattered back in 2019, when Gillis was hired and fired within days. The night’s real tragedy was “Limu Emu & Doug,” a wickedly dark Liberty Mutual spoof that got cut for time even though it might have been the episode’s best sketch. Still, seeing Gillis share a set with Bowen Yang—no explosions, just laughs—helped puncture the tired narrative that comedy crowds can’t handle friction.

Credit the writers: the staff stayed intact yet felt newly adventurous. They tailored showcases for returning legends without letting cameos swamp the cast. Maya Rudolph, Kristen Wiig, and Kate McKinnon all headlined sleek evenings that trusted current performers to play opposite the alumni rather than watch from the sidelines. Equally refreshing were topic choices: a CNN round‑table fretting over Biden’s age gave half the cast first‑time political impressions; a Columbia‑protest cold open centered on tuition‑paying parents instead of campus slogans; Ego Nwodim fronted a brutal teacher‑burnout PSA that finally acknowledged how COVID warped classrooms.

Politically, Johnson’s Trump remains the crown jewel—cadences so granular they’re practically phonetic archeology—but we kept wishing the show would build fuller games around him instead of defaulting to five‑minute non‑sequitur monologues. Weekend Update showed similar split personality: when Che and Jost fire joke‑missiles at each other the desk sings, yet a tossed‑off “what even is debanking?” joke reminded us the segment can still drift into Manhattan obliviousness.

Quibbles aside, the season pulsed with craft. Pre‑tapes such as “White Men Can Trump,” “Lake Beach,” and Please Don’t Destroy’s steady stream of absurdity proved the video unit is healthy. Musical bookings—Foo Fighters, Olivia Rodrigo, Kacey Musgraves—felt curated instead of algorithmic.

So, yes: Season 49 wasn’t flawless. Cold‑open lengths crept upwards, Update sometimes spun its wheels, and the final run of shows cooled after April. But the broader story is resurrection. The show experimented, rediscovered ensemble balance, and reminded us how joyful a live sketch hour can be when writing, casting, and hosting are all striving upward at once.

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We know, we know. We owe you a few Bonus Materials and Clips Packages posts, which will now be coming in rapid succession. We apologize for the delay - work travel, sickness, and actually having to watch 988 episodes of SNL (plus specials) can really eat up a lot of time.

Below are some of the Saturday Night Live sketches and media clips we reference throughout the Season 44 episode, to enhance the listening process:

Career Day

An Adam Driver command performance.

Teacher Fell Down

The recent Lorne Michaels biography goes into detail about how this sketch was conceived, edited, and ultimately performed. An odd concept that really works.

The War in Words

The first version of what would become a regular bit.

Weezer

This one was bumped from the Jonah Hill episode earlier in the season, but people consider the Matt Damon version a classic.

Toilet Death Ejector

Cha Cha Slide

It was John Mulaney’s second time hosting, but probably his best episode.

What’s That Name

Another Mulaney bit, but Bill Hader steals this one.

Can I Play That?

Another data point demonstrating the show wasn’t afraid to take on the prevailing political culture.

Future Self

Sandra Oh was an underrated host.

Cheques

Some brilliance from offbeat writer Julio Torres.

Dorm Room Posters

There’s a reason Emma Stone became a 5-Timers Club member.

The Actress

More Julio Torres.

Chris Farley Song

Adam Sandler tugged at the heartstrings during his return to the show after decades away.

Don’t Stop Me Now

Again, the season wasn’t all great, especially some of its political sketches. This was among the worst.

The big news at the beginning of Season 44 was the addition of new cast member Ego Nwodim, profiled here by the New York Times:

Nwodim’s hiring came just before former cast member Ellen Cleghorne talked to friend of the podcast Andy Hoglund about the show’s race problem.

In the Salt Lake Tribune, Scott D. Pierce argued Donald Trump’s attacks against SNL were “silly” and “un-American.”

In November, Slate writer Eric Harvey argued Pete Davidson had “taken over” SNL despite his limited talents:

'USA Today entertainment writer Kelly Lawler thought SNL had lost its “Trump Bump glory.”

A writer at Vulture argued SNL should start a half hour earlier, at 11 PM ET.

Mark Harris at Vulture didn’t like the show’s treatment of Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination hearings, but Emily St. James at Vox defended the Matt Damon-starring bit.

Catholic organizations did not care for Pete Davidson comparing Catholics to R. Kelly fans.

The Neighborhood News conducted a fun interview with former SNL writer (and Lorne Michaels wife) Rosie Shuster.

A Hollywood Reporter/Morning Consult poll found that 39 percent of Americans thought SNL was “too political,” while only 30 percent disagreed.

Former cast member Taran Killam said in an interview that the show’s energy really changed after Seth Meyers left as head writer, given he was one guy who could stand up to Lorne Michaels. After that, Killam says the show became a “competitive, exhausting environment.”

The season was divided cleanly in half, largely due to the writers’ strike that cut it down to 18 episodes. The midpoint also coincided with a major cast change: longtime cast member Cecily Strong departed after episode nine. Her exit, whether by design or coincidence, marked a turning point. The back half of the season saw a noticeable uptick in quality, with hosts delivering stronger performances and sketches showing more cohesion. Strong’s departure allowed more room for newer voices and fresher sketch formats.

The cast underwent significant changes heading into Season 48. Veterans Aidy Bryant, Kate McKinnon, Pete Davidson, Kyle Mooney, and others left at the end of Season 47. Four new featured players joined: Marcelo Hernandez, Molly Kearney (the show's first nonbinary cast member), Michael Longfellow, and Devon Walker. Of the new arrivals, Hernandez made the strongest early impression with a Weekend Update bit on baseball that drew from his stand-up act — a segment reportedly greenlit after a personal request from Lorne Michaels.

The departure of Strong helped shift focus to cast members like Sarah Sherman, Chloe Fineman, and especially James Austin Johnson, whose portrayal of Donald Trump was widely praised as one of the best political impressions in SNL history. While the material didn’t always match the brilliance of his performance, Johnson’s Trump was a highlight of the season and deserves a spot on any hypothetical Mount Rushmore of SNL presidential impressions.

One of the standout recurring segments this season was Weekend Update, which experienced a renaissance in the second half. Co-anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost appeared looser, more confident, and frequently funnier. A memorable moment came during the April Fool’s episode, when Che convinced the audience not to laugh at Jost’s jokes, leading to a baffled and humiliated Jost before the prank was revealed mid-segment. The spontaneity reminded viewers of the live unpredictability that once defined the show.

Guest hosts played an outsized role in boosting Season 48’s quality. Aubrey Plaza, Pedro Pascal, Travis Kelce, Quinta Brunson, and Ana de Armas all turned in unexpectedly strong hosting performances. The hosts’ effectiveness was especially critical given the ensemble nature of the current cast; there is no dominant comedic force like a Will Ferrell or Kristen Wiig to carry weaker sketches.

Despite improvements, the season still struggled with fundamental issues. Few sketches broke through to genuine “classic” status, and neither co-host awarded any five-star ratings. The writing continued to feel insular at times, focused more on niche online discourse than on broader national concerns. For example, despite inflation being one of the defining issues of 2022–2023, the show barely mentioned it — even in Weekend Update. Political and cultural references skewed toward a narrow, progressive slice of the audience, limiting relatability.

In sum, while Season 48 won’t be remembered as a triumph, it provided some hope that SNL may be moving back toward creative stability. With fresh cast members gaining traction, Weekend Update regaining its edge, and an ensemble learning how to gel, the back half of the season hinted at what the show could become again. Season 48 may not have soared, but at least it stopped the free fall.

This season came on the heels of a historically weak run marked by cast members overstaying their welcome. SNL fielded a record 21 cast members in Season 47 - an unmanageable size that led to entire episodes where key players were absent or underused. Trying to track screen time became pointless, as many cast members simply disappeared from week to week.

Adding to the chaos, 13 new writers were brought in during the season, alongside the existing writing team, creating a situation where quantity far outweighed quality. Despite all this creative manpower, standout sketches were rare. While a few segments earned praise, very few approached classic status.

Among the most promising new additions was James Austin Johnson, who debuted a pitch-perfect Donald Trump impression—one of the season’s highlights. Unlike Alec Baldwin’s portrayal, which often relied on direct quotes, Johnson’s Trump was dynamic, surreal, and writerly. His use of a Pardon the Interruption-style rundown in one cold open was particularly inspired, showcasing a strong comedic mind behind the impersonation.

Other newcomers included Sarah Sherman, a surreal and offbeat performer with a distinct voice, and the video trio Please Don’t Destroy, who emerged as a new Lonely Island-style presence with quirky, self-contained digital shorts. Their inclusion hinted at what a new SNL might look like if it made more room for alternative comedic voices.

Still, the season’s problems were systemic. Long-tenured cast members like Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Cecily Strong, and Kyle Mooney had all been on the show for nearly a decade, far beyond the point of diminishing returns. Their continued presence, while understandable during COVID-era production lulls, contributed to a feeling of creative stagnation. McKinnon, in particular, became the subject of debate. While celebrated as an all-time great, her final seasons were marked by uneven performances, weak political impressions, and increasingly self-indulgent sketches.

Indeed, political sketches weighed the show down. The season opened with episodes overwhelmed by hot takes, particularly in response to the leaked Roe v. Wade decision. The “Goober the Clown” Weekend Update commentary—where Cecily Strong used a clown persona to discuss her abortion—was emblematic of the show’s struggle to balance personal sincerity and comedy. Critics hailed it, but audiences received it with uncomfortable silence. The sketch reflected a broader trend: Update and cold opens were often written with the assumption that the entire audience shared the writers’ progressive politics, which alienated viewers who didn’t. The idea that conservatives live in a “bubble” became a punchline, even as the show often failed to self-examine its own ideological insularity.

Weekend Update itself remained stable but uninspired. Colin Jost and Michael Che continued their run, but neither seemed interested in pushing the format forward. Jost’s political commentary often veered into lecture territory, while Che’s jokes remained cutting but repetitive.

Monologues, meanwhile, underwent a subtle shift. Gone were the elaborate musical numbers; most hosts now delivered quiet, personal anecdotes aimed at winning audience warmth. The shift was welcome in theory but often dull in execution, with few memorable openers.

Despite these disappointments, the season was not without bright spots. Johnson’s Trump, the Please Don’t Destroy videos, and some sharper satire hinted at a better version of SNL just over the horizon. The looming departure of many long-time cast members (including McKinnon, Bryant, Mooney, and Pete Davidson) by season’s end set the stage for a long-overdue shakeup. Davidson’s tenure was particularly odd—more known for tabloid headlines than on-screen impact—but his farewell was treated as a major event.

Season 47, ultimately, was the end of one era and the faint beginning of another. A house overloaded with tenants finally began to show signs of clearing out. Whether that clearing makes room for meaningful growth in Season 48 remains the hope—“promise” is there, if only the show can make space for it.