'Wasn't That Special' Season 44 Bonus Materials
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-Four 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!
Adam Driver/Kanye West
Christian: A bad episode rescued by one classic bit written by a freshman writer.
Scot: Driver is a fantastic host. Never would have predicted but it's twice in a row with a knockout performance.
Brett Kavanaugh (Matt Damon) confirmation hearing - cameo by Rachel Dratch as Amy Klobuchar
Christian: Some decent stuff in here, but jamming Kate McKinnon in as Lindsey Graham overstuffs it.
Scot: Damon does a good job, but way, way, way too much of this is just recreating the events/questions/phrases of the hearing. Like there's a Bingo card to see how many can be crammed in. And it's *13 freaking minutes long*
Mooney tries to be like Davidson to get more attention on the show
Christian: Maybe he should get attention by writing good sketches.
Scot: His *sixth* season?
Domenico's coffee swapped out for Burger King coffee
Christian: Third crack at the Farley Folgers bit? Someone towel off Mikey Day - he's sweating like a labrador.
Scot: Inappropriately-angry Cecily Strong is my least favorite Cecily Strong
College kids regret their actions from a party on homecoming weekend
Christian: The crowd despised this.
Scot: Man, there's not even a good idea here.
Kanye West, "I Love It"
Christian: The Kanye warning signs were there all along.
Scot: Wasn't he already persona non grata by this point?
Career day - Abraham Parnassus (Driver) gives presentation
Christian: Driver is incredible. Go straight to all-time sketch status, do not pass go. Written by Eli Coyote Mandel.
Scot: It's really good, but I'm not quite where you are.
Neo-confederate meeting - Driver convinces Bennett and Mooney they'd be comfortable in Vermont
Christian: A joke would have helped this.
West gives an incredibly awkward speech during goodnights, but it's cut off in reruns.
Christian: This is discussed at length in the Peacock documentary about SNL music.
Awkwafina/Travis Scott
Christian: A wretched stinkbomb of an episode. My grade puts it as the worst episode since Hillary Swank in S30.
Scot: Awkwafina was stiff as a board all night long.
CNN - Senate Republicans celebrate Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation - Mitch McConnell (Bennett) and Lindsey Graham (McKinnon) party, Strong as Susan Collins - Villaseñor interviews Chuck Schumer (Moffatt)
Christian: Just a struggle session.
Scot: Does McKinnon do anything here anymore besides these crappy impressions?
Monologue - Awkwafina says she is still poor, her dad talks like Donald Trump, and she loves Lucy Liu for hosting SNL
Scot: Weird to give her basically a brief stand-up act?
Dance battle - Awkwafina's crew dances to old game show themes, Travis Scott cameo
Christian: 15 minutes into the show, zero laughs.
Scot: Why is the one team constantly explaining the joke? "Is that the Price is Right?" "Is that a wrong answer buzzer?"
Trump Presidential Alerts commercial - actually for Cricket Wireless
Christian: Decent turn at the very end.
Scot: Some of the messages are not bad, actually
Pre-tape: Ted Cruz campaign rally
Christian: Nobody despises Ted Cruz more than I do, and yet there's just nothing here.
Scot: "How do we make people we hate look bad?" is a really bad comedy question to ask.
So You're Willing to Date a Magician - Awkwafina is contestant, explains dates with Kenan, Davidson, Moffatt. and Mooney
Christian: Davidson and Jones break and blow this thing up. Mooney actually looks a lot better with a mustache.
Scot: There are possibilities here. They are extinguished quickly.
Strong invites DeeDee, her dog walker (Awkwafina), to a baby shower
Christian: Totally pointless. Jones stumbles once again.
Pat's Pumpkin Patch - Day finds out his employees are having sex with the pumpkins.
Christian: This wouldn't make the cut at a college improv night.
Scot: You think you know how bad it will be. But you don't.
Seth Meyers/Paul Simon
Christian: Meyers is not a skilled sketch actor. Staring down cue cards all show.
Scot: Shows could really use more Day/Moffatt right now
Trump meets Kanye West and Jim Brown in the Oval Office
Scot: Jim Brown was an incredible lacrosse player.
Monologue: Meyers tells the story of the Kanye West sketch interrupting people which happened two years before he interrupted Taylor Swift
Christian: Dear diary...
Scot: Did Meyers go into the future, listen to our podcast, then return to the past to host this show? That's our whole bit on Kanye/awards show -
Meyers is a director who takes crazy questions from the audience
Christian: Meyers' first time back and he plays a...director. The glue from Kenan's Jim Brown beard is still on his face.
Thirsty Cops - Jones and Nwodim pull Meyers over
Christian: It's sort of the Lily Tomlin construction worker bit from S1? Nwodim's first chance to really shine.
Scot: There's much better structure here than in the first couple shows
Campfire horror stories - Meyers had to meet with a recent college graduate looking to be a filmmaker
Scot: Some of Meyers' best sketch work!
Meyers goes to jail, has a celebrity cellmate
Christian: It's all impression.
Scot: This was another swing for what they caught with the OJ sketch last year, but it's noticeably weaker with poor Meyers sketch work.
Bayou Benny's Liberal Lagniappe
Christian: Bennett ripping off Sudeikis' Bayou Justice character.
Scot: A total lift of a character.
Gardner and Meyers try to impress their friends with their trip to Cuba
Christian: It's one joke, but Gardner is really good.
Redd and Davidson perform a pro-tree rap
Scot: Jarringly out-of-place and just plain weird.
Here comes Heidi Gardner, taking on more roles and generally excelling. McKinnon is fading.
Scot: Gardner is bumping Bryant from opportunities now and closing in on Strong.
Jonah Hill/Maggie Rogers
Christian: "Weezer" and "Beavis and Butthead," two sketches that would go on to be big hits later, both cut from this episode. As were a couple of bits written by Jonah Hill himself.
Scot: Aren't there stories about Lorne helping Pete behind the scenes around this time? Because he could use it.
Laura Ingraham (McKinnon) live from the border - Judge Pirro (Strong) joins to discuss caravans, Kenan as Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke
Christian: Another crack at the sponsors joke. Baldwin had punched a guy a couple days before the show, hence the tacked-on joke.
Scot: Fourth attempt at the bad sponsor joke - David Clarke, a blast from the past.
Hill gets his five-timers jacket from Tina Fey. It's all women because of MeToo. (Bergen and Barrymore.)
Christian: Hill's glasses are fogging up.
Scot: Random: I really, really like this year's opening credits. My favorite style in a while. - At least the show is aware bathroom humor is Hill's wheelhouse - Kind of a subdued celebration all-around.
Adam Grossman meets a gay couple
Christian: You'll never guess, but Leslie Jones breaks.
Scot: Hill wills this to a good place. Jones really can't be trusted in anything.
Pre-tape: Nervous Democrats discuss the midterms
Christian: Before this episode, Lorne sat the cast and writers down and told them not to let their personal politics seep into the show.
KCR News Albany - Hill proposes to weather woman (Strong) on air
Christian: Delightfully stupid.
Scot: The swerve to Strong wanting to propose doen't quite work for me. She's just not acting like that's even a possibility.
Divided we Stand - Struggling actors put on a play about immigration and other social problems
Scot: Echo of those community theater things you hate.
Teacher Fell Down
Christian: Laughed nonstop through the whole thing. First ever sketch by writer Alison Gates. The two best sketches of the season so far are by rookie writers. There's a LOT about this sketch in the Lorne book.
Scot: I did not have the same reaction - Nice to see McKinnon contributing, though
America's Got Talent - Wait, They're Good? Performers predictably come out of their shells
Scot: Totally fine.
HuckaPM - how does she sleep at night?
Christian: Some decent physical comedy here.
Scot: Written by Aidy and Kent Sublette - still struggling with the simple premise/early reveal/no development pattern.
Pug Wigs
Scot: Will Stephen and James Anderson - Whiskers R Us but for dogs.
Liev Schreiber/Lil Wayne
Jeff Sessions Farewell - Robert Mueller (De Niro), Pence (Bennett), & others say ggodbye to Jeff Sessions (McKinnon)
Christian: This feels endless.
Scot: 7 minutes of garbage and 35 seconds of Trump Bros
Usually-unfunny Schreiber sets expectations & praises midterm voter turnout
Christian: The voting bit killed it.
Scot: Oh. Well. Thank goodness (check notes) Liev Schreiber is proud of us for voting. Now I can sleep.
Good Day Denver - Hosted by Strong and Mooney; show mislabels investors (Day) & (Moffatt) as incestuous
Christian: Part 2 of the "zoo pornographer" bit.
Unity Song - political divide is bridged by song about things everyone dislikes
Scot: Bowen Yang in the background here.
Paranormal Encounter - Ms. Rafferty’s (McKinnon) has ghostly experience
Christian: "Baby funnel and gravy tunnel."
Booty Kings - Kenan, Redd, Davdison, Lilm Wayne, Future [cameo] honor booty consent
Christian: Sort of liked the vibe of this.
Scot: Decent idea, but even the crowd is pretty much checked out on this.
The Poddys - podcast wards show
Christian: Are we angling for "Most Unnecessary Podcast?"
Scot: Writer Alan Linic is third guy on the Bros pod - Really slow-moving and nothing really sticks.
House Hunters - Schreiber & Jones evaluate homes
Scot: Surprised it took them this long to do House Hunters on the show.
Schreiber hoses down rowdy sons (Mooney & Bennett) indoors
Scot: Everybody's breaking for this loud, pointless exercise in finding something for Mooney to do.
Dave's Outside the Women's Bathroom - Schreiber hosts talk show
Scot: Kinda liked this and Gardner again elevates a nothing character.
Steve Carell / Ella Mai
The Ingraham (McKinnon) Angle - Mark Zuckerberg (Moffatt) downplays Facebook abuse; Marcia Fudge (Jones)
Christian: The Vape God thing was a funny callback. It's when old people started using words like "drip" and "swag."
Scot: Fifth swing at the sponsor joke - Leslie Jones is always Leslie Jones. Listen to her deliver these lines as if she were playing herself - At least there are no admin officials.
Carell takes questions from the audience and gets pressure to reboot The Office; Ed Helms, Jenna Fisher cameo
Scot: Allison Gates asks the first question - Nancy Walls returns!
Dumb Dad (Steve Carell) wakes his kids (Aidy Bryant, Mikey Day, Pete Davidson, Melissa Villaseñor) for a surprise trip to Disney World, but finds other facts
Scot: Good performances, but really nothing here.
A Message from Jeff Bezos - Jeff Bezos (Carrell) trolls Donald Trump via Amazon initiatives
Christian: Not particularly funny, but it would turn out to be extremely non-prescient. Bezos is taking a lot of heat these days for allegedly being pro-Trump. Especially in the Washington Post!
Friends-Giving song - Carrell & Strong sing odd & obscure Turkey Day song at Thanksgiving meal
Christian: Another crack at the "we know this traditional song nobody else knows" bit.
Scot: "There are no Thanksgiving songs." Again. - I really hate these things.
"RBG Rap" - rappers (Davidson) & (Redd) live & ride for resolute Ruth Bader Ginsburg (McKinnon)
Scot: No. No. No. No.
NASA TV - space station accident makes NASA broadcast to schoolkids traumatizing
Scot: Some early contrast that works - a lot of that Dinklage undersea hotel thing here.
Ella Mai - “Boo’d Up”
Scot: No clue.
Slumber Party - teen dropout’s (Garnder) friend’s (Bryant) dad (Carrell) is guardian angel crooner
Scot: I enjoyed this even if I can't explain why.
RV Life - Carrell’s wife (Gardner) eventually admits she hates their new RV lifestyle
Christian: A half-sketch.
Scot: This doesn't all work and kinda peters out instead of ending. That said, Gardner is now more consistently interesting than McKinnon.
Space Thanksgiving - Sentient cornel of kern (Davidson) talks with space travelers. Or something. I dunno.
Christian: I was willing to give it some credit for being so dumb, but...they just didn't write an ending?
Scot: Jones breaks. - hindenburg.jpg
Claire Foy / Anderson.Paak
Christian: The dogs are really stacking up at this point. Still missing Bayer and Moynihan.
Scot: Pretty bad show here!
Trump in Argentina - Mohammad bin Salman (Armisen) joins Donald Trump (Baldwin) in Argentina; McKinnon as Giuliani, Stiller as Cohen
Scot: Baldwin back after his parking lot fight - His impression is just awful by this point - Armisen plays Middle Eastern guy, shocking - Napalm this whole thing.
Foy talks regal roles & meeting the Queen
Scot: This will surprise you, I'm sure, but never heard of her - Oh, The Crown. Yeah, never saw it.
Netflix commercial - Netflix is determined to generate an infinite amount of content
Scot: Ehhhhhhh.
Morning Joe (Moffat)- Congress is easy for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (Villasenor)
Christian: I absolutely loathe these. I guess they can't find anything funny about AOC?
Scot: We've never had a successful one of these, have we?
Willy Wonka - Charlie Bucket’s (Foy) grandparents have rough sex in the communal bed
Christian: One joke.
Scot: Everyone breaks - one joke, established immediately, no escalation.
Home Shopping Network - Strong has lost items meant for Home Shopping Network
Christian: Didn't like it until Aidy Bryant showed up and turned it around.
Good Morning Goomah - Women (Foy & McKinnon) sugarcoat the behavior of married men
Scot: Slightly different than I expected and that was good.
All I Want for Christmas - SNL’s women wish for Robert Mueller to deliver a Trump indictment
Christian: The show can't get worse than this.
Scot: Comedy death.
Jason Momoa / Mumford And Sons
Robert Mueller (De Niro) visits Eric Trump (Moffatt) at bedtime
Scot: DeNiro is murdering this in the crib.
Kenan, Jones, Redd tell Momoa “Aqua Boogie” should be Aquaman theme song
Christian: TWO DIFFERENT songs for Jason Momoa?
Khal Drogo's Ghost Dojo - Dead Game Of Thrones characters (Davidson, Gardner, McKinnon) visit Momoa and Kenan
Christian: About as basic as this could be.
Scot: Not written for me.
A Christmas Carol- extra (gay?) spirit (Momoa) confuses Ebenezer Scrooge (Day) on Christmas Day
Christian: "He's gay!"
Scot: One joke, established immediately, no escalation.
Day of the Dorks - in a 1980s movie, (host)’s hatred of dorks is violently self-destructive
Christian: I am not immune to nostalgia.
Scot: 34 years after the film's release - Another rush job, just flying through the same joke without a payoff.
Sleigh Ride - Gemma (Strong) & her boyfriend (Momoa) on a sleigh ride w/ Kenan & Jones
Scot: A big mess from the start.
First Impression - Bennett plays hide & seek with fiancee’s (Villasenor) parents (Mamoa, Gardner)
Christian: Some of "he's gay" here, but also some inspiration.
Scot: written by Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin.
Rudolph's Big Night - Following his promotion by Santa (Mamoa), Rudolph (Davidson) bullies other reindeer
Christian: This went on not because it was ready but because it was Christmas.
Matt Damon / Mark Ronson & Miley Cyrus
Christian: Well I guess we have the Weezer sketch to debate.
Scot: Couple of potholes, but not terrible.
It's a Wonderful Trump - Trump (Baldwin)’s election loss improves everything; McKinnon, De Niro, Stiller, everyone
Christian: Rule of thumb: If you have to announce the person's name as soon as they enter the room, they shouldn't be in a political sketch.
Scot: Flushing nine minutes down the drain to do the usual cameo/walk-on/applause for nothing deal.
Damon talks about his family’s history of watching SNL, toasts moms & dads
Scot: Smart, quality way to do a non-necessarily-hilarious monologue.
Westminster Daddy Show - Damon/McKinnon host; hot middle-aged men are judged like purebred dogs
Christian: Not for me, but it seems like it could have been better.
Scot: James Anderson co-wrote with Anna Drezen.
Best Christmas Ever - Damon & Strong fondly recap a stressful family day
Christian: The Schumer childbirth bit part two.
Scot: Another quick-cut calm/chaos pre-tape - Perfectly fine.
Flawed ornaments are relegated to the back of the Christmas tree (Damon, Kenan, Bennett, McKinnon, Bryant)
Scot: Am I remembering something similar years ago?
Oscar Host Auditions - Nwodim/Haddish, McKinnon/Michelle Wolf, Damon/Hemsworth, Bryant/Gadsby, Davidson/Malek, Kenan/Strahan, Villasenor/Silverman, Gardner/Janney, Redd/Kanye
Scot: Impression workout, so many time capsule names.
Strong and Damon perform “Jingle Bells” a la Barbra Streisand and needle each other
Scot: Why? Feels like the lightly-written emergency sketch in case the show is short.
Weezer - at a holiday dinner, Damon and Jones fight over Weezer
Christian: This is treated as some sort of classic sketch, but it's...fine? Never has a sketch been written more for me, and it's just sort of okay. Also, Leslie has the right position.
Scot: co-written by Eli Coyote Mandel along with Alan Linic and Stephen Castillo - really perfect escalation, especially if you know the band’s story.
Mooney gets gifts from cop friends, and explanations
Christian: Formulaic contrast. It's sort of creepy how Baldwin is always just around the set, like a guy who hangs out near a high school after graduation.
Happy Christmas Britain - Theresa May (McKinnon) hosts, David Cameron (Damon)
Christian: It just ends - episode probably running long.
Rachel Brosnahan / Greta Van Fleet
Donald Trump (Baldwin) does Deal Or No Deal with government shutdown;McKinnon/Pelosi, Moffatt/Schumer, Bennett/McConnell
Christian: This is torture.
Brosnahan, Strong, Kenan, Bryant musically resolve to have fun
Christian: I can't remember giving a monologue a 1, but here we are. Also The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel sucks.
Action 9 News at Five - news report features name-change candidates affected by earthquake
Christian: Standard funny name sketch, but a clever way of getting into it.
Scot: Davidson breaks - This is the DeNiro terrorist name sketch.
Millennial Millions - Baby Boomers prevent contestants’ financial security
Christian: This is Twitter-level comedy.
Scot: Kenan's comments don't jibe with the show - it's like the writers wanted to have it all ways instead of picking a lane.
The Raunchiest Ms. Rita - the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (host) mentors (LEJ)
Christian: If you can believe it, this is better than Mrs. Maisel.
Greta Van Fleet - “Black Smoke Rising”
Christian: I am embarrassed for everyone involved in this band.
Tabitha (Jones) - videos show men being shamed like dogs
Christian: It's one joke, didn't need the guests, but I guess you have to have the host in it. The Bennett bit was fine.
Scot: Couple laughs.
Kool-Aid promotes social responsibility like Gillette
Scot: Che wrote. Decent, but I kinda expected something that hit harder.
James McAvoy / Meek Mill
Christian: Kenan has lost a lot of weight.
Scot: A depressing watch. I felt very disconnected from this episode. This humor and whatever is happening tonight is not for me.
Tucker Carlson Tonight (Moffat) - Wilbur Ross (McKinnon), Roger Stone (Steve Martin) is not wild & crazy
Christian: Steve Martin joins the stuntcasting parade, McKinnon plays another random Trump administration official. Prescient - Trump would pardon Roger Stone.
Scot: What benefit is there to a Wilbur Ross impression? Seriously. - And a waste of Steve Martin - Martin in 2024, passing on Walz: "‘I’m not an impressionist’.
McAvoy differentiates himself from Ewan McGregor & gives a Scotland primer
Scot: Are we going to get through this episode without a Mike Myers cameo?
Mr. H - Student (Redd) meets with teacher (McAvoy) in alley
Scot: Subverting expectations. Couple decent laughs.
Air Traffic Control - Doomed plane can’t understand Scottish air traffic controller (McAvoy); Day is pilot
Scot: Accents are funny?
The UES - Upper East Side resident Jones raps about her adopted neighborhood
Christian: Better than the typical Pete Davidson rap pieces.
Scot: Written by Leslie Jones and Bryan Tucker.
Focus group’s feedback about Charmin’s Super Bowl commercial; Bryant moderates plus Mooney, McAvoy, McKinnon
Christian: McAvoy is really good in this. Nails the Philly accent.
Scot: Couldn't get into this. It's so much talking with zero action whatsoever.
Mr. Numnus - Strong, Bryant, McKinnon fawn over girlhood crush Mr. Tumnus (McAvoy) in Narnia
Scot: Co-written by Sudi Green, Bowen Yang, and Alison Gates.
Rowdy sons (Mooney, Bennett) get hosed down by their stepdad (McAvoy) during a Super Bowl party
Christian: And now we have our first recurring character of the season. For some reason.
Scot: Replica of the first one so it gets the same grade.
I Love My Dog - Davidson, Redd, McAvoy, kenan express love for their dogs in hip-hop video
Christian: I bet these hard rappers are going to have some real person opinions!
Scot: All these hip-hop pre-tapes are just running together. How many this season? Six? Seven?
McAvoy & Deirdre (Gardner) annoy friends with talk of their trip to New Orleans
Christian: More Gardner magic. She saves this.
Halsey
Christian: A lot of middling slop. Nothing challenging or controversial.
Scot: Man, Kenan is throwing like 400 innings this season. He's never out of the game.
Meet the Press - Chuck Todd (Mooney) & panel consider Jeff Bezos’ penis; Kenan/Eugene Robinson, Strong/Peggy Noonan, Jones/Brazille - Aidy Bryant as Matt Whitaker
Christian: I'm just getting mad now. Wilbur Ross is back? Come ON.
Scot: Wilbur freaking Ross returns in consecutive episodes for what reason?
Halsey was a fan of SNL’s women while growing up
Christian: The women on SNL never cared what they looked like? Which is why Aidy Bryant was the first bigger woman on the show?
Scot: Energy but not much else.
Them Trumps - black First Family isn’t immune from law enforcement’s reach
Christian: I guess another recurring character? For some reason?
Scot: Even less effective when you know exactly how the joke will play out.
Virginia state government officials all wore blackface in the past; Kenan is PR person
Christian: Quite a takedown of Billy Crystal and Darrell Hammond.
Scot: Finally, something to chew on. Perhaps not coincidently, it's taking aim at a Dem problem at this time. Good rapid-fire dialogue.
Women of Congress - many impressions, McKinnon as Pelosi, villasenor as AOC
Scot: This is straight-up Dyke and Fats.
Sorority Karaoke - sorority pledges (Villasenor, Halsey, Strong) sing “What’s Up?” at karaoke bar
Christian: Strong/Gasteyer rule in effect.
Black History Month - Mooney interrupts SNL Black History Month tribute to do some whitesplaining
Scot: A Mooney/Bennett piece that actually works on a basic level.
Halsey - “Eastside”
Scot: Are we sure she's singing here?
Family learns that patriarch (Kenan) is an online gay porn celebrity
Scot: This was just fine. Kenan could do a role like this in his sleep.
Riverdale - actor playing corpse (Davidson) is loud & convulsive
Scot: More Kenan.
Don Cheadle / Gary Clark Jr.
Donald Trump (Baldwin) declares a national emergency to build wall
Christian: Audience is totally asleep.
Scot: "I freaking love tariffs. Not as much as I love the wall. But I love tariffs." - Flat-out recreation of actual press conference - It's at least two minutes too long.
Jones's selfie encounter with Cheadle represents a typical NYC fan experience
Christian: Cheadle is really good at this.
Scot: Little care or effort put into recent monologues.
Fresh Takes - teacher’s (Cheadle) attempts to be cool are inappropriate; Day. Mooney, Moffat host
Scot: This second edition feels more like "Wake Up, Wakefield."
Extreme Baking Championships - cartoon-inspired cakes are many types of bad
Scot: A lot of jokes thrown into this package. Liked the reveals and the slow escalation.
Weekend Update - Trump announces national emergency for wall - builder of southern border wall (Davidson) accidentally created a ladder - Chuck Schumer (Moffat) & Nancy Pelosi (McKinon) gloat - Jules (Bennett) sees things a little differently - Mort Fellner (Day ) reports on the inexorable demise of supercentenarians
Scot: Pelosi/Schumer thing is flat - Liked Che's Carson Daly joke.
Celebrity Family Feud - Spike Lee (Cheadle) & Lady Gaga (Villasenor) helm Oscar nominee teams; McKinnon/Close, Bennett/Elliott, Mooney/Cooper, Davidson/Malek
Scot: Impression workout.
“Lollipop” on jukebox makes a dance party of Cheadle vs. Bennett bar fight
Christian: Standard contrast.
In Memorium - A photo of SNL stage manager Joe Dicso marks his passing
Scot: Cheadle in a Trump Russian hockey jersey.
John Mulaney / Thomas Rhett
Christian: And this is how Mulaney became a 5-timer in the span of like seven years, An all-timer.
Scot: I'm a little lower than you are on this, but still clearly a fantastic episode. Nothing sniffs a poor grade in this one.
Michael Cohen (Ben Stiller) testimony. Hader as Jim Jordan
Christian: Again, SNL thinks the funniest thing about AOC is that she does too much homework. But Hader is good.
Scot: Hader has his head down to start so you can't place him - 9.5 minutes, still far too long.
Monologue: Doesn't do cocaine anymore, marries a Jewish woman, Petunia the bulldog, taking the subway, police sirens
Christian: Masterful. Although he's really getting a lot of the "I'm drug free" bit.
Scot: Closing with the siren bit was very good.
What's That Name - Hader hosts
Christian: The third of these, but Hader carries it. My daughter is named Mara, so I feel vindicated.
Scot: Hader is freaking masterful.
The Toilet Death Ejector
Scot: Wonderful escalation, couple of big laugh moments.
Shark Tank Legal Edition - Avenatti, Pirro, Dershowitz, Giuliani bid to represent celebrities - Bob Kraft, Jussie Smollett
Scot: Pretty much an excuse to shoehorn these impressions into something.
Chad takes a call from within the house
Christian: Mulaney elevates this.
Scot: Help me, but I sincerely liked this Chad sketch. It shouldn't be possible.
Mulaney goes to a wedding with his girlfriend (Nwodim), knows all the dances
Christian: The perfect "subverting expectations" sketch.
Scot: It's good! All-timer??? No.
Weekend Update - Cohen testimony - Trump at CPAC - McKinnon and Bryant are meat farmers, animals deserve to be killed
Christian: Short one. McKinnon and Bryant both break throughout their bit.
Scot: McKinnon/Bryant could have been incredible. Instead ... - Che with a very Norm-esque joke "What he missed most? Murdering."
Cinema Classics: To Have and Have Not Mulaney and McKinnon in an unsexy scene - she can't whistle.
Scot: McKinnon does really well in a very Wiig-type role.
Idris Elba / Khalid
Gayle King (Jones) interview with R. Kelly (Kenan)
Christian: Maybe I'm just happy it's not a political cold open? Kenan is so good at this.
Scot: Michael Che and Gary Richardson wrote - Turns out there are other things in the news, apparently.
Monologue: Elba goes through his personal history
Christian: Interesting? Yes. Funny? No.
Scot: Cool story, bro.
Can I Play That? Contestants guess whether people are the right race/gender/disability to play roles.
Christian: Another smart shot at PC culture.
Scot: Colin Jost wrote.
The Impossible Hulk - When he gets mad, Elba turns into an angry white lady
Scot: Michael Che wrote.
The Playaz - men try to land WNBA athletes
Christian: Crowd didn't love it, but I did. Funny premise that probably couldn't be done now.
Scot: This seems like the rare sketch this season that could get recurring, if they wanted. There's unmined territory. It was close to breaking through.
Weekend Update: Manafort sentenced, Hillary not running, Gardner as Baskin Johns, cameo by Gwyneth Paltrow, Pete Davidson on R. Kelly, Leslie Jones plans her funeral
Christian: Duplication theory with Gwyneth, brutal Michael Jackson joke. Nobody loves Pete Davidson's jokes more than Pete Davidson.
Scot: Second straight week (I think?) Che mentions "stealing the Presidency" - Had to look it up: Pete was dating Kate Beckinsale - good jokes, so-so-desk pieces; tough for me to love multiple "Cast members as themselves" segments in one WU.
Sky Sports Soccer coverage - Elba plays stupid former Arsenal player
Christian: Exceeded expectations.
Jones is Elba's replacement magician's assistant, she's too big for the tricks
Scot: Written by Bryan Tucker, Michael Koman, Leslie Jones.
Elba books a CSI role, Bennett is jealous
Scot: Written by Bennett - The karate stuff is non-linear to the rest of the bit, which isn't great anyway.
Sandra Oh / Tame Impala
Christian: Would have been just as good as the Elba episode without the disastrous cold open.
Scot: Somewhat surprised there wasn't a "Hallelujah"-type song to mark the end of Mueller.
Mueller issues his report, Barr comments, Trump tweets
Christian: Just a recitation of what happened. All the joy of a funeral.
Scot: Explaining the sketch before it begins never is a good sign - shoehorning Giuliani everywhere is just sad.
Monologue: Oh became an American resident, can't accept compliments because she's Canadian
Scot: Thankfully the era of the weekly monologue song appears to be over.
Discover Card - Nwodim talks to someone just like you, except scary
Christian: Nwodim's first real chance to stretch.
Jussie Smollett (Redd) fakes being attacked again before his meeting at Fox
Scot: This is literally the least they could do on Smollett. So short, nothing interesting/innovative.
Tishi - Moffatt shows 15-year old Day his girlfriend in 10 years (Oh)
Christian: "Tishi got that good goo goo" - candidate for catchphrase?
Scot: Eventually got to a good place after a shaky start - Kind of a David S. Pumpkins/wall posters combo.
Putin's cabinet disappointed in Mueller report
Christian: Bowen Yang "speaking" debut? This doesn't make sense - it seems like Russia would be happier if Americans didn't think Trump "worked" for him.
Scot: Yeah, I don't get the premise at all.
Weekend Update: Mueller lets Trump off the hook - Trump takes credit for the "record deepness" of the Great Lakes - Strong as Jeanine Pirro - Bryant as the female astronaut who couldn't go to space because they didn't have a suit that fit
Christian: Bryant was just okay, but great jokes and Pirro is Strong's best character.
Scot: Che is just throwing everything against the wall this week - Disagree: Bryant really devours that material. Liked her a lot.
85 year old Louise (McKinnon) celebrates birthday at work meeting, tries to get coworkers to kiss
Christian: It's one joke, but done well enough.
Scot: Decent enough despite a flat ending.
Cheques commercial - use them in dramatic circumstances
Christian: Loved this.
Scot: This is great. Related, I wrte so, so, so many checks these days. I'm single-handedly keeping the industry afloat.
The Roots of Rock - Jarvis Fillmore (Kenan) sings "Electric Shoes," on the BBC in 1966, won't stop singing
Christian: Been a while since they dipped into the "guy won't stop singing" well.
Students give dramatic answers to multiple choice questions
Christian: It's fine.
Scot: I mean. Is there a reason McKinnon has to play a man in this sketch?
Kit Harington / Sara Bareilles
Christian: Heading to "pretty good" territory then spit the bit at the end.
Scot: Just me or is Gardner getting a little quiet?
Joe Biden (Sudeikis) gets sensitivity training to stop hugging and kissing women
Christian: Going after Dems and at least it's not Baldwin. So good all around.
Monologue: Harington takes audience questions who want to know how GoT ends
Christian: Prescient - Harington all but disappeared after GoT ended. His wife was right!
Scot: Pretty successful Q&A.
2019 Nephew Pageant: Aunts brag about their nephews
Christian: Like the randomness, but it never really comes together.
Scot: Written by Anna Drezen and Aidy Bryant.
Frank Sinatra impersonator (Harington) performs like Michael Jackson
Christian: Nope.
Scot: Laughless.
Weekend Update: Joe Biden allegations, Moffatt as Terry Fink, film critic on LSD - Gay people in Wisconsin joke - Charles Barkley (Kenan)
Christian: Liked the Moffatt bit better than I expected. Maybe Che has never heard of Madison with the gay people joke?
Scot: Third Che "stolen presidency" reference - "News is now just a combination of unrelated words."
Bridal shower - Harington does burlesque for his bride
Christian: Jones breaks.
A Day in the Life of Theresa May - Bareilles sings song for sad prime minister
Scot: A) Why would an American audience care B) Seems like a McKinnon vanity project C) Why would anyone laugh?
Office nerds - Mooney, Bennett, and Harington do nerdy stuff in the office
Christian: This feels like it's from a high school talent show.
Scot: Pretty sure I just kinda lost consciousness for a bit during this one.
Harington gets anal exam from Leslie Jones, who has long nails
Christian: The twist at the end doesn't save it. It's just aimless.
Scot: Written by James Anderson and Michael Koman.
Emma Stone / BTS
Christian: Lowest-rated episode of the season, viewer-wise. It deserved better.
Scot: Stone solid, still a lot of shaky sketch concepts.
Lori Laughlin (McKinnon), Michael Avenatti (Davidson), Julian Assange (Michael Keaton) in prison
Scot: I have no idea why the show needed Keaton here
Stone wonders what the cast did for her fourth show
Scot: Nearly got a Kat & Garth reboot here - It's fine and Stone sells it well.
The View - Jenny McCarthy (Stone) joins
Christian: Prescient anti-vax discussion before COVID.
Scot: Jones' Goldberg is good! - Slightly generous for the reboot of this.
Villasenor and Stone rap about their hobbies
Christian: It's almost like these rappers have everyday experiences! Who knew?
Ladie's Room - 80s dancers mistake a dressing room for a bathroom
Christian: Trying to coast on nostalgia.
Scot:
Weekend Update - Wikileaks, Bryant as Carrie Krum - Day and Gardner are Instagram couple
Christian: Krum is sort of a Stefon reboot?
Scot: Un-Precscient: Turns out big cities really couldn't handles waves of illegal immingrants being dropped off - Krum literally says, "It checks every box."
Prince Harry hosts baby shower
Scot: Don't need any more of these.
Pre-tape: Stone breaks into acting by doing porn
Christian: Really well done.
Scot: Julio Torres wrote with Bowen Yang - When she puts all the pieces together, that's really strong.
Chalmers reserve event wine
Christian: Grew on me.
Scot: Feels like Stone is trying to channel Gilda a bit here.
Adam Sandler / Shawn Mendes
Christian: Yes, it feels like Gardner isn't getting reps, and I may have said it before, but I think Mikey Day is sneaky good - both writing and performing.
Scot: Sandler's arc/legacy really is fascinating. Weird/strange dude who didn't quite fit to a couple loved characters to biggest comedy star in Hollywood to older, really normal dude and keeper of the SNL emotional flame.
Family Feud: GoT vs. Avengers
Christian: I can't imagine this makes much sense if you haven't see GoT. This is basically "list things they said" just with popular culture.
Scot: Jones breaks - FF works when there's plot/drama (the Morgan/Jones divorce), not just as a framework for impression Olympics.
Sandler sings song about being fired, joined by Chris Rock and Pete Davidson
Christian: Enough time had passed that people had forgotten he fully deserved to be fired.
Scot: Gotta think Herlihy helped write this - the most fun, infectous monolouge in a while.
CNN: War correspondent (Day) uses Snapchat to report, filters are on
Christian: Sandler is doing Smigel voices?
Scot: How can Sandler see the screen but not Day?
Von Bonjour - Mooney and Bennett do an ad for clothes: Clothes are Holes
Christian: Nothing approaching entertainment here. For as great as Lonely Island was, it may have poisoned the show moving forward, making less talented people believe they could do the same thing.
Scot: Forced myself to finish this. My sacrifice for the show.
Joe Romano (Sandler), Romano Tours - if you're sad where you are, you are still going to be sad in Italy
Scot: Anna Drezen & Alison Gates wrote - really well-written (for a change); close to breaking out.
Weekend Update: KFC in Congress, more Trump, Elizabeth Warren (McKinnon) on student loan debt - Operaman
Christian: Operman pretty prescient in picking Biden to win the Dem primary - he wasn't burning up the polls at the time. Transient anus joke is good. I hammered the Warren bit as it happened.
Scot: Warren: Just too smart. AOC: Too hard-working. - Making Warren feel good appears to be more important than being funny.
Sheila Sovage - three way with Sandler and Wiig
Christian: Kenan calls the CDC to report two new viruses. A few months before COVID.
Emma Thompson / Jonas Brothers
Meet the Press Mooney as Todd - GOP senators (Bennet/McConnell, Strong/Collins, McKinnon/Graham) support Donald Trump, no matter what
Christian: Just a copy of the Obama stuff.
Scot: So ... "How He's Doing" but for Trump - Right down to the "leaving his wife" hypotheticals.
Etiquette coach (Thompson) preps Jones for royal christening
Scot: Hated it. How is this possibly in the lead-off spot?
The Perfect Mother - Thompson’s parenting of Garder had its rough edges
Christian: It's the Amy Schumer bit all over again.
Scot: Didn't we do this in the Damon episode? And last year? The Christmas morning thing? And the Schumer "Day You Were Born"?
Cinema Classics - rival actresses (host) & (KAM) want to get the last word
Scot: This recurring being this early following the last two sketches tells me the writers are EMPTY at this point of the season.
Judge Court - McKinnon, Thompson, Bryant rule on plaintiffs’ cases
Scot: Unfulfilled promise to this one. Just kinda floats by.
Weekend Update - Trump tax returns - Trade war with China - Trump rally in Florida - Red Sox to White House - Bailey Gismert (Gardner) on movies - Bezos lunar lander - Davidson describes what it’s like to still be cohabitating with his mom [cameo]
Scot: Che's Red Sox joke was good - Jost's Newark Airport joke too - Good jokes this week, OK desk pieces.
Beauty and the Beast - Belle (Strong), Beast (Bennett), talking dumbbells (Kenan), Beast had a kid with Mrs. Potts’ (Thompson)
Christian: No sir.
Scot: Eh.
You Don't Know Me - Tracy (McKinnon)- teen’s (Nwodim) “you don’t know me” claim is repeatedly refuted
Scot: I call the Catchphrase category - Did shows like this even still exist in 2019?? - One joke, established early, no escalation.
Wait a Second, That Shouldn't Be There
Scot: Cinema Classics and this is the same show? EMPTY. - Grade-school level complexity.
Paul Rudd / DJ Khaled
Christian: Julio Torres credited on this disaster.
Scot: BLUE - Marking totally recycled/old/lazy ideas and concepts.
Christian: This guy is a lefty, but even he can see how bad the political humor has gotten on the show.
Donald Trump (Baldwin) sings “Don’t Stop Me Now” - every possible admin member appears including Wilbur Ross
Christian: Among the worst things that have ever been on the show.
Scot: jerkoffmotion.gif.
Rudd gives "best man’s speech" about his time with SNL
Scot: Not much happening here at all.
Ms. Rafferty (McKinnon) traveled back in time; Strong and Rudd
Scot: Essentially Matt Foley in the gym without the near-fatal sweating. Nothing left in the tank. Carbon copy.
Christian: Agreed.
Grace and Frankie Rap - Davidson & Rudd rap about favorite TV show Grace & Frankie
Christian: Pete Davidson employment project.
Scot: Rapper has very normal and counterintuitive likes about TV shows.
What's Wrong With This Picture - Contestants (Bryant, Rudd, Davidson) make bad guesses; Kenan hosts
Scot: Elliott Pants? Must be an Anderson - Boy, these contestants are dumb! - Pretty much the Barbie/Ken Instagrams sketches in game show form.
DJ Khaled - “Jealous”
Scot: This is absolutely painful.
Weekend Update - War with Iran, China tarriffs - Alyssa Milano sex strike - Jeanine Pirro (Strong) repeatedly spittakes Jost - JOKE SWAP - Jones asserts control over her body
Christian: Could have been a 4 without Jones.
Scot: 400 million pieces of plastic/Kardashian joke is good- "He is the one who decided to keep running his mouth" is hilarious - a gift to Jones to do straight political commentary with no jokes in her last episode.
Music Box - shopkeeper (Rudd) helps (Mooney) & (Strong) recall song about a farty ballerina
Scot: No one knows the stupid song then everyone knows the stupid song.
The View - Women fawn over Pete Buttigieg (Rudd) & his husband (Bennett)
Christian: This should be in blue, too.
Scot: What the hell is the Biden stuff near the end?
Leslie & Kyle - Rudd joins Mooney & Jones after they consummate their relationship for real
Christian: Jones has recently said these pieces made her miserable. So she decides she should end her career with one?
Scot: We are supposed to laugh at something we know is fake making fun of something we know is fake.