'Wasn't That Special' Season 38 Clips Package

NOTE: Thanks to everyone for your patience in waiting for these posts. A combination of travel and illness has knocked us off track a bit, but you will be getting both the Season 39 posts before the Season 40 podcast goes live on Monday.

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.

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Here are some of the materials we discuss throughout the Season Thirty-Eight episode:

History of Punk

Ian Rubbish was one of punk music’s founding fathers. There’s just that one thing that made him different…

Puppet Class

Bill Hader saved some of his best work for his last season on the show.

Stefon’s Farewell

Try keeping a dry eye. Stefon’s wedding has everything.

Outside the Lines: Melissa McCarthy

Dylan McDermott or Dermot Mulroney?

Bill Hader makes a meal of this and really elevates it.

Maine Justice

Absolute insanity, but one of Sudeikis’ best performances. Jamie Foxx can’t even hold it together.

It’s a Date

Sure, it’s mostly nostalgia, but the jokes are strong, too.

Roundball Rock

The world would one day come to realize what a talent Tim Robinson is, but in his only season as a cast member, this was one of his few highlights.

McDonald’s Firing

They’d go back to this well a few times more with diminishing returns, but the first time it ran it was a strong effort.

The Ex-Porn Stars

Bayer and Strong kill in these bits that always run just before the end of the show. Every one is original.

The Walking Dead: Black or Zombie?

She’s Got a Dick

We not only show you the great sketches, we also ply you with some of the ones that would never, ever run today. (This one isn’t particularly clever.)

Girlfriends Talk Show

Another recurring bit that eventually gets a little formulaic, but Aidy Bryant and Cecily Strong always give special performances.

Construction Workers Catcalling

There were accusations that this bit was plagiarized, but it’s the best part of the Daniel Craig episode.

Olya Povlatsky

In Kate McKinnon’s first full season, she unveils one of the best characters of her career.

Entertainment news sites noticed McKinnon’s talents early on:

McKinnon wasn’t the only female cast member getting attention, though. In 2013, Glamour Magazine ran a “Ladies of SNL” feature:

In 2013, University of Pennsylvania alumna Vanessa Bayer returned to her school to perform for students:

The show wasn’t universally praised, though. After one sketch making fun of the conditions of workers at an iPhone plant, The Atlantic’s Megan Garber took exception to some of the racial stereotypes used in the bit:

And in that, it is both funny and intensely cringe-inducing. There are the workers' terrible, stereotypical "Chinese" accents, for one thing. And the agonizing employment of an ehru to poke fun at the idea of a small violin. And, above all, the uncomfortable collision of two groups -- producers, consumers -- whose interaction is normally mediated only by an iPhone's silent screen.

Cecily Strong sat down for an interview with the New York Times’ Dave Itzkoff:

In the interview, she explained the genesis of her best character, The Girl You Wish You Hadn’t Started a Conversation With at a Party:

We were brainstorming characters, and I made fun of one of my ideas. I was like, “That’s a really important one — for society.” Then Colin was like, “Hey, maybe there’s something to this.” People have seen bimbos before, but it was so specific to right now — Internet culture and everyone having a platform and feeling that they’re right. People have confused playing devil’s advocate with being intelligent.

Before the end of the season, Bill Hader announced he was leaving the show. He was later followed out the door by Fred Armisen and Jason Sudeikis:

With news of the departing cast members, Variety provided a rundown of where that left the cast and what the show needed to do to regenerate itself. Among its observations:

Two bright spots in the “SNL” men’s room: Taran Killam and Bobby Moynihan. Both of these guys grew tremendously in 2012-13. Moynihan’s rise was actually something of a surprise given his first four seasons seemed to indicate he was headed for second-class status in the cast. His Drunk Uncle character may be the biggest draw on “Update” now that Hader’s beloved Stefon is gone.

As for Killam, he’s as close as “SNL” is going to get in terms of replacing Samberg’s singular weirdness, and he may have even more range than Samberg. In time, clearing the decks of all these male vets may actually give Killam room to shine.

But perhaps most interesting is Variety’s take on who would be next to take over the Weekend Update desk once Seth Meyers departed. You might recognize a familiar name in here:

With the “Update” anchor chair emptying next year, it’s tempting to hope Michaels will turn to one of his up-and-comers for what would be an instant status booster. That said, the good money is that chair will go to John Mulaney, an “SNL” writer who had a pilot in contention at NBC this year. He didn’t get a series order, which could be the best thing to happen to “SNL.”