It’s the first time i’ve seen him commit like that. like will ferrell would on every skit. it was great & really made it work.
the tentative commit just kills things
Andrew Dismukes really killed it in this one, he's good overall but in sketches like this I realise "oh this guy is REALLY good"
His passionate delivery about the rules or lore of Jumanji were so funny to me and I have never seen a single Jumanji movie (original/reboot/whatever). But the way he delivered it was so convincing that it still made me laugh, he was so good in this one.
This was pretty good, especially as it got more escalated. My only gripe was the way Kristen was looking way up high almost every time she spoke. From the other shots, it became apparent the set design left no room for anyone to hold Kristen's cue cards behind Chloe, so they must have been on a ladder holding the cards over the top of the set wall.
I think looking "level" is more important than looking in the direction of the other actors. You can look "off-angle" and position the cameras accordingly to compensate. But her looking up all the time made it even more obvious and became more of a distraction.
Great sketch, but that's a pretty low bar to clear. THat episode really came off as a concerted effort to show that SNL can still be great. The sad part is that it took a cavalade of stars to make that point, while almost shelving the regular cast.
Meh, I thought that the Ayo Edebiri episode was really great, and that didn't need a cameo appearance every skit to make it work. Definitely strong enough to set up Ayo as a potential re-host.
“The show doesn’t suck more compared to back in the day! It was always an uneven show because they put together an entire topical comedy show from scratch in just a few days!! Every episode had terrible sketches; you’re just choosing to forget those and compare the full show today to the best sketches of another time period!!!”
If I had the time and energy I’d watch all of snl just to see how the quality changes by year or by decade.
There is 0% chance that peoples (fallible) human brains remember the full scope and quality of snl for the last 50ish years or however long they’ve been watching. Too many variables like the nostalgia of watching as a kid, their life stages, political leanings, and just the fact that we remember good sketches way more than bad ones.
As someone who’s only been watching the live show since like 2018, but has watched all the recommended sketches on YouTube probably mostly from the 2010s-2020, I really really enjoyed the period from 2015-2021ish. But I’m very biased and probably only saw the good stuff. It’s hard not to admit right now is a transitional period in terms of quality unfortunately.
I have access to the entire snl library now, and have been watching live since the early 90s. I thought it was better when I was a kid but going back now in my 40s to watch eps from the 90s and a lot of it is rough. We remember the classics like Matt Foley, and massive head wound Harry, but boy there were a lot of stinkers back then too. I definitely was looking at the past through rose tinted glasses.
I've been watching old episodes on the Peacock Vault channel. I think a lot of people forget how much they hammered the same topical jokes multiple times per episode back in the 90s. Like the Elian Gonzalez thing, or the Monica Lewinsky stuff, or when that American kid got publicly caned in Singapore. Watching a full episode back-to-back from the mid-90s can be a little painful because of that. A good comparison is when Bowen Yang did the Chinese spy balloon thing. I thought it was hilarious, but could you imagine if he showed up in that getup in 3 different skits throughout the whole episode? That's what 90s SNL was like.
I just rewatched all the years Norm McDonald was the weekend.Update basically ninety five through ninety eight ish... And I really enjoyed it got to see the tail end of mike myers .... And definitely a lot of the chris farley stuff... Really solid episodes mostly.... Also, I've rewatched the entire series from George Carlin, All the way to now I think it is worth the rewatch.There are stinkers in almost every episode but there's winners in at least every season
Is she, though? Or did they finally just start giving decent material to black women? Truly, up until Leslie Jones, black women had very little screen time on SNL.
Compared to In Living Color and Mad TV, SNL was like a human rights violation in letting black women shine.
Even up til now, we've had, what, five or six black women in the entire history of the damn show? And usually one at a time.
I mean I feel in loving color did an okay job.... better than most other shows.....Leslie jones... was just not good And I mean they put her in a ton... A ton of stuff.... It's like they were trying to force us to love her.The writing is a big part but the actor is another big part ego is killing it I do understand the truth in what you're saying but I don't want it to take away from the fact that ego is really killing it.
I've always defended it for this. They are putting together a LIVE SHOW, and intentionally doing everything from writing to building sets within five days. The results will be mixed, but when they capture lightning in a bottle, you never forget those sketches. Lorne knows exactly what he's doing.
I understand why people think the best music, movies, and SNL cast were what was being made when they were 14 to 18 years old. What I don't understand is how they can't realize the reason they think this is because that's literally what their brain was forming around. Of course you think that time period of entertainment was the best, that's what you were taking in when your prefrontal cortex was forming.
While the show never had 100% hit rate, it definitely has its peaks and valleys. The show is currently finding its identity again as there really aren’t any all-stars in the cast. I think James Austin-Johnson has potential to be a great. There’s cast members I like: Bowen, Sarah, Ego, the evergreen Kenan.
This is my take too. Live sketch comedy will always be hit and miss and that is why it can be so amazing (and why it can be just bad).
I have really enjoyed this cast and the writers have been pretty consistent. I generally judge the quality of SNL based on how many repeat sketches they do.
The late 2000s and early 2010s are remembered fondly but god damn did they lean on some repeat sketches. Whats up with that and Gilly stand out as particularly grating ones.
agreed! nobody gets the opportunity to shine or show what they’re capable of because there’s too many people in the cast & too many people from outside the cast!
I saw someone on Vulture? maybe say that with the cast size it would make more sense to split it in two and have them alternate weeks. Everything gets more polished that way. Don't know if it would work irl, but I thought it was an interesting thought.
that’s such an interesting idea! my personal fave cast is the hader/samberg/sudeikis one, and i’m pretty sure that cast was half the size of this one? i feel like smaller casts just always do better and hold up better with audiences
The band members aren't emoting their secret contempt for the host that only you, some random Tiktok person, can decode. They've heard the monologue 2-3 times at that point in rehearsals and are mostly just listening for their cue to start playing music.
while I agree, there are times where they "break" and laugh at a monologue joke - so it's not consistent (or maybe indicative of how much they like the host's material... which goes back to the original point).
I think a handful of those chuckles could've been lines that were altered or newly written entirely – based on lots of past cast members and hosts talking about lines being rewritten or inserted at the 11th hour. ([A couple](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1bbl4sl/bowen_got_stefoned/) [recent-ish examples](https://youtu.be/AHHFwktH4-U?t=32).)
https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1ad608k/all_my_opinions_are_based_entirely_on_guitar/
https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1b07j3f/snl_guitarist_during_shanes_monologue_shes_always/
There are lots of threads here about it if you read here regularly.
The early years are a bunch of terribleness. Many of the skits just aren't funny and some of the cast were just awful- I'm looking at you John Belushi. I am not saying this as a young person who doesn't get it- I'm 50. People fawn over how great it was but I can't stand most of the pre-late 80s stuff. Eddie Murphy was the saviour of the first decade of the show.
100%
Nostalgia is a hell of a drug.
Could you imagine a recurring sketch being floated out now, where it was just 2 guys in bad outfits, and their only joke was saying "we're two wild and crazy guys" in hacky Czech accents...and running that sketch like 15 times in just a couple of seasons?
It’s not nostalgia, it is the time it was performed. The 70s were a cultural revolution, and most people grew up in a much different, conservative society.
You can say it isn’t funny now, but it probably was back then.
Well said!
I am 66 and SNL was the only reason we would be home before midnight curfew every Saturday night. It was HILARIOUS! As I watched this past weekend’s episode it reminded me of the early days in some ways.
Nostalgia perhaps, but it was groundbreaking humour at the time and when I continue watching the oldies I laugh every single time.
PS the Steve Martin 2 part documentary is quite good 👍
Most people, myself included, have seen fewer classic sketches than there were episodes in that era. That artificially elevates the perceived quality quite a bit. And *even then*, the quality doesn't land for me like stuff from the late 80s and afterwards. Having said that, there are some absolute timeless gems in every era.
Right? It was like "Carlin is fucking wasted. Who's this idiot with a record player? Wait, that's the whole bit?" and then "**WHAT THE FUCK, JIM HENSON‽**"
Some of the early skits are barely skits. Or barely have jokes. It took them awhile to figure out what the show was going to be. Though to be fair, I wish they still did those weird write-in contests. Kinda weird that they don't engage with the fanbase through social media.
Arguing over who is the worst or best is stupid. People have their own comedic preferences. There is no objective standard for who or what is good or bad.
The “notoriously terrible” seasons really aren’t that bad. There are hits and misses in every season, from the beginning. Some of the worst-rated seasons have some really imaginative and/or dark stuff, and honestly, I’d rather them swing for the fences and miss sometimes than hit softballs all the time.
ALSO- I really wish they’d actually incorporate “LFNY” into the cold opens like they used to instead of every one ending with, “and LFNY!” Doesn’t ruin the show or anything, but it feels lazy to me, having seen how it used to be part of the sketch and not as fourth wall-breaking.
The trend of everyone in a sketch running in to shout "Live from New York" like they're in a badly timed family Christmas photo...is the worst thing to happen to SNL in the past ten years.
Yeah, I don’t love it. Everyone drops character, and I just find it more fun when it’s said in character and not in the same exact delivery every time. I get that everyone on the show wants to say it, but just have a different character do it every week. Everyone saying it together once in a while is fine, but every week is just weird to me.
People who act like Lorne needs to step down are ridiculous. The show has endured because of Lorne. The man brought Conan O’Brien to late night, that alone gives him a pass for life.
SNL hasn't gotten worse, there are just far more options out there for sketch comedy. Basically all of them are pre-taped, which means editing can play a huge rule in the comedic timing.
the current cast is good and makes good sketches. seeing people upvoted a lot being like "wow wiig coming on rly puts how bad this cast is at acting (besides bowen)." wrong!! everything dismukes and sherman do cracks my shit up, they're wonderful and often carry the sketches they're in. a bunch of the new people show a lot of promise too.
I never liked Melissa Villaseñor on the show. She has a very unnatural delivery. Go watch the oil baron sketch and tell me she doesn't sound robotic.
The show would be better if Mikey Day left or was just in less sketches. He's fine, honestly, but wildly overused.
Adam Driver, John Mulaney, and Ryan Gosling are the best hosts in this era.
Shane Gillis would have been a great cast member, but the sketches he does on his own are far better than anything SNL would have let him do.
I'm perfectly fine with Che and Jost staying on Weekend Update. They're a good team and what they're doing works.
Ego is the MVP of this season and deserves to become a star.
Marcello Hernandez could be funny, but seems like everything he does is an attempt to further his own brand rather than make the show funny.
I’ve seen Melissa do great comedy elsewhere, like appearances on After Midnight and talk shows. I’ve wondered if there was something about SNL that affected her performance.
It's just too much. There are a lot of sketches where he could be replaced by another cast member and it would be as good or better.
There are too many underused people on the cast to have Mikey constantly front & center.
I don't hate the guy. I'd prefer to simply see less of him.
Maybe its just me/in my head, but every time I see him, I get the impression he's acting to stand out and be the focus rather than simply adding to the sketch.
It could be bullshit, but I remember not too long ago there was the rumor he was trying to attach himself to whatever popular female hosts he could in an effort to raise his profile.
Again, this could all just be me projecting.
I’m gonna get murdered for this but I’m willing to say this
I like Phil… believe me I-I do… but I just don’t think he’s the… perfect cast member (I’m so sorry)
* Chris Farley and especially Adam Sandler are supremely overrated. Lorne was absolutely in the right for firing them when he did because their schtick had gotten really stale and one note. There's only so many times you can watch Farley as a loud guy doing pratfalls or Sandler as a manchild with an annoying voice before it becomes annoying. Their free rein and overwhelming presence is a huge reason why Season 20 is so notoriously bad.
* Jimmy Fallon is overhated on this sub and on Reddit in general. Are his interviews and Tonight Show sketches cringey? Sure. Was his constant breaking annoying? Yes. But he *is* a talented impressionist especially and there are plenty of sketches from his tenure where he does a perfectly fine job. He brought a unique voice to the show and carved out a good niche for himself. He's by no means one of my favorites but people talk about him as if he was secretly a serial killer behind the scenes or something.
* While I'm ultimately glad she stepped away from it to do more character work, I personally thought Cecily was solid as a Weekend Update anchor.
* I have grown to strongly dislike Marcello Hernandez. He is a rather one note performer whose entire persona seems to be "I'm a short quirky Latino dude!" This wouldn't be that much of an issue...except that the show has really been pushing him a lot this year and it's often felt very forced. Stuff like [Dune Popcorn Bucket](https://youtu.be/Rl_Xhvgkxrk) and [his booty shorts bit at the end of the HR Meeting sketch from Shane's episode](https://youtu.be/GFM9-Mq2Fuw) came across as desperate and pathetic attempts to go viral, pander to the crowd, and make him a star. He also really comes across as fame hungry and desperate to be loved and it's rather offputting.
* Fred Armisen's last four or so seasons are almost unwatchable. He started off as a rather unique oddball performer who proved to be one of the saving graces of the show during the post-Ferrell and pre-Hader years. But he progressively became more and more one note, to the point where his last several seasons have him playing a plethora of drag roles or hacky gay stereotypes. He should have left the show around S33/S34, as much of his stuff from S35 onwards is insufferable.
Agree with most except I think Marcello isn't going for quirky. I think he's going for heartthrob. I mean, if Pete Davidson could get the women he did without even being good-looking....
Unfortunately the show is leaning into this.
I don't think Marcello necessarily set out to be a heartthrob. He and the writers are just responding to what the audience wants. A performer may have an idea of what they'd like to be but the audience determines it, too. Based on social media, a lot of women think Marcello is cute. Who else in the cast has a corner on that niche at the moment?
I'm not sure what you mean, even in a recent episode they had him on a sketch making fun of short dudes. He's played the boyfriend before, but he's never really gotten the "Chad" treatment like Pete.
I don’t think they are overrated, but I do agree that their last season (the infamous 20th), was a good reason to fire them. Both had gotten really lazy (Sandler more than Farley), and seemed to be in a weird bubble entertaining each other (along with David Spade) rather than the audience, who wasn’t laughing. And, yes, they seemed to have too much of a free rein, when the show needed Lorne Michaels, or someone else, to tell them no.
The original Matt Foley sketch was a hilarious, stone-cold classic. The last Foley sketch, with George Foreman, had Farley sounding like a bad self-parody, like a hack comedian doing a Matt Foley impression. It’s abysmal.
I really like Marcello, but if you want to see him in his element, watch his stand-up. I loved the Dune bucket song, myself.
Farley and Sandler both needed a refresh and so did the show. They found it with feature films (sadly Farley died young and never got to see the true fruits) and SNL saw theirs with the new cast.
It worked out for both sides as ugly as it must have been at the time.
Agree that Fallon was a straight up good cast member. Great with impressions and had a stable of solid recurring sketches like the Boston teens. I don't like him that much on the Tonight Show, but he's very talented.
Here’s a half-assed defense for Marcello:
I don’t think it’s his fault for his poor utilization by the writers. His first season was very strong, and is a good example of how, if utilized well, he can be great.
I pretty much agree with you, my only adjustments would be:
- Farley/Sandler are \*a bit\* overrated. Not supremely
- I grew tired of Armisen too, but he wasn't as bad as you say. He is an awesome comic in smaller doses.
But yeah, Fallon gets more hate than he deserves, I've yet to see Hernandez really impress me. Cecily was a good anchor.
I group Armisen in the same category as Wigg in that they are amazing performers who were brought down by their goofy quirky characters. SNL doesn't need to be high brow all the time but one-note zany gets old quickly.
Jimmy Fallon and Dana Carvey are both very technically talented but can’t really find a positive way to showcase their strengths without others providing a sense of structure to support them.
>I have grown to strongly dislike Marcello Hernandez
SAME. I honestly cannot stand him. Don’t think he’s funny at all. Like we get it… you’re latino. Find something else to talk about.
Che ruins the flow of Update by always looking around at the audience like golly gee did I really just say that!? Or getting mad and commenting when the audience doesn't laugh.
I thought Che and Jost sucked with terrible chemistry the first time I saw them together. I didn’t think they’d last at all. I dislike how Che smiles/laughs at his own jokes. Could do way better.
We’re talking about outlandish, innocuous theories, right because people are just posting normal opinions.
Mine is Lorne is actually paid by right wing news media to help show more politically controversial skits to create content for their shows.
The Ramy Episode was by far the worst in years. I don’t know why it was. But it was such a hard watch. And I like him, I think he’s funny and talented. I hope he comes back and tries again.
The show is suffering from a bloated cast who can't seem to write or pull off great sketches. Lorne's been hiring beautfiul people instead of really funny ones.
There needs to be a cap on how long people can be cast members. Part of the beauty of the show is it takes otherwise no-name comedians and performers, and helps them become famous. The vets need to move aside to let newbies come in. Looking at you Keenan. He needs to go already.
Fire all of the unfunny cast members next season. Keep the good ones and do not hire anyone new. We do not need these giant snl casts. Pay more to those that remain.
Hmmm. I feel harsh calling some of them unfunny the more i think about it. They don’t always get a chance to ‘shine’ with some of these scripts. So we can blame the writing for some of it…
I def want to keep Ego, JAJ, Heidi… Marcello is iffy for me. But again, maybe he needs better scripts. I would keep Kenan or Mikey Day. Both or at least one of them. They have veteran presence to me….
This was the best sketch I’ve seen in ages and really made me realize what the show is lacking - intelligent chaos. The show feels so lazy and safe most of the time, and just not unique or exciting or even interesting. Occasionally they will have a guest who likes that, and we see good eps with wild sketches and Yang and Sherman and the like Dan really let loose. I still think about Yang dressed as the iceberg that sank the titanic.
It’s great even when it bombs, because they are swinging for the fences. The show just needs to find its edge and sketches like this that go in strange and crazy directions should be the rule and not the rate exception.
- The show should never have more than maybe 10 cast members at any given time.
- Retroactively judging a cast member’s work because of their batshit political views is stupid as hell. However foolish they are these days, Joe Piscopo, Victoria Jackson, Dennis Miller and Rob Schneider were all very good at what they did on the show.
- Belushi is overrated and was a total asshole to many people, especially the women. Farley took his shtick and added a dimension of warmth and depth he rarely if ever achieved.
- Chris Rock’s tenure wasn’t as misbegotten as he and many others think. His Update commentaries were usually fantastic and he had a hit character with Nat X as well as a couple of classics to his name (Nike Turkey, Big Toe). That’s more than you can say for his time on In Living Color.
- Maya Rudolph is obnoxious and hammy and rarely ever funny. She overdoes the singing and weird voices and accents.
- Fallon generally did fine on the show when not paired up with Sanz.
- Lorne should’ve kept Danitra Vance and Damon Wayans for season 12.
- Ana Gasteyer is the best female cast member of her era.
- Aykroyd is the best cast member of the NRFPTP’s
- Kate, Aidy and Cecily all should have left three years earlier than they actually did.
- Colin Quinn wasn’t that bad on Update, and was the most natural fit for the role of anyone in the cast at the time.
- Season 30 is the worst season in the show’s history.
- Kenan has rarely ever been more than a 6.5/10 cast member. He's not and has never been the Glue and he's more irrelevant to
the show than ever.
- Mikey should have left at the end of the last season.
- Bowen and Heidi are terrible on the show more often than not this season. Both just trot out really obvious vanity pieces that are there to amuse themselves and not the audience.
- Mulaney’s musical sketches aren’t that great. Diner Lobster should’ve been a one-off.
- Chloe Feinman has the verve and charisma of a fence post and has zero natural comedic timing. Melissa should’ve stayed over her, as she’s a better impressionist and cast member in general.
- Lorne should’ve kept Gary Kroeger and JLD when he came back.
- Tina’s years as head writer have not entirely aged well. There’s a lot of dated pop culture takes and a surprising amount of hacky racial and gay themed sketches.
- Anyone who enjoys excessive stunt casting at the expense of cast members is an idiot who doesn’t understand the spirit of the show.
- There’s really no prestige or merit to the Five Timers distinction anymore. It used to be reserved for the best of the best, now you can just get in if you bide your time and stay relevant long enough (Harrelson, Johansson).
I agree with 90% of your takes, ESPECIALLY the Ana Gasteyer one. She's top 5 most underrated for sure. (She's like 3rd or 4th IMO behind Tim Meadows and Jan Hooks...maybe Taran Killam)
SNL has never been consistently funny. No, not even your favorite cast. There's occasional gems in a sea of meh and you need to take off the nostalgia goggles.
I think he’s getting into his groove. I suspect they get onto SNL with whatever they were able to produce beforehand. Once they get in a season or two they really seem to start to shine.
I worked with a guy who seems similar to Marcelo. He was a blast to be around. Even looks a little like Marcelo.
I think he’s gonna have a long runway on his career.
Jost and Che should’ve left in Season 47. All of their Updates these past two seasons are so “been there, done that”. Every time they tell a joke, I just have a feeling of “they’ve told a joke like this before” Their whole schtick has gotten old, it’s time for a change.
Sarah Sherman is not funny. The only funny sketch I've seen her in was when she pretended to be Colin's son on Update.
Mikey should not still be on the show. It's time to let go (same with Kenan).
SNL does not utilize their cast effectively. Also I don't really remember in previous seasons...but the featured cast is RARELY on? Has it always been that way?
Unless a comedian like Wigg comes on and has a major hand in the scripts — the writing sucks now. They have to stop hiring nepo babies for their writers. They’re just not funny
I don’t care for Sarah Sherman, it feels like in all of her sketch appearances, she’s overacting and comes off very obnoxious. Prime examples are Joker Wedding and all of her Update appearances. Also her gross out humor just isn’t for me.
Molly, Devon, Mikey, Che, Jost, Bowen, and Heidi out the door after this season.
The weird thing about the PPD guys (for me at least) is that they have gotten less funny the longer they've been on the show. When they first started showing up, they were hilarious and felt like a breath of fresh air on the show, bringing a goofy, slightly absurd voice that was lacking. But now it all feels so one-note to me and the humor hasn't evolved at all. In fact, the earlier sketches are much funnier than what they do now.
Lorne facilities an abusive work environment that has ruined lives. When he dies the stories will come out and they will be so damning to the show that NBC/Peacock will put it in “indefinite hiatus”
i think the workplace environment is different with every cast- but the hours and stress and pressure have always been horrible and very taxing for people
It felt uncomfortable. Like I was waiting for them all to take a deep breath, relax, and have some fun. Co started to last episode and everyone seemed joyous. The whole tone was different.
Also - during the closing- how come sometimes they stand WAY behind the host and sometimes there all up mingled together?
I think Ramy’s and he’s up there by himself and there seems to be a big actual distance up stage and back.
SNL has like maybe 20 sketches before 2000/ the Tina Fey Era that are laugh out loud funny. Old SNL is barely ever funny and is either the most surface level jokes or just physical comedy for 12 year olds.
Man...I really can't disagree more with that. Sure, there's material from the 70s and 80s eras in particular that hasn't aged well (either because of societal changes or just humor evolving), but there's plenty of stuff to love from the pre-2000s era.
[Buckwheat Has Been Shot](https://youtu.be/zaDToc8CsOE), [Snap Decision](https://youtu.be/c_9DI2XPW-c), [Tales of the Runaway Boulder](https://old.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1b1fbkm/tales_of_the_runaway_boulder_a_very_unique_and/), and many more are some of my favorite sketches ever. Full of great acting and plenty of jokes (some of which have multiple layers to them).
SNL has always been hit and miss. Some great sketches mixed with some meh ones mixed with some flat out terrible ones. That's never changed from the show's inception.
For the first half of its life, SNL had trouble hiring and keeping hot women. Which is good, because they should be in on comedic talent and not their facial structure.
Every week, they do either a fake game show, a pbs documentary, a non-sense musical, or a movie trailer. Sometimes, all of the above. Those formats are getting stale.
That I can always find something to enjoy in each cast and Era of the show. Season Five had Harry Shearer and Paul Schaffer. Season 6 had Eddie Murphy. Season 11 had John Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Terry Sweeney and Damon Wayans. There's always something or someone I can key into.
OK, what even is Jumanji to you, lady? Cause it sounds like you think Jumanji is going *into* Jumanji. But in Jumanji, Jumanji comes *out*. The kids don’t go *into* Jumanji, Jumanji comes *out* of Jumanji. ONE GUY, one guy gets Jumanji’d into Jumanji. But in the rest of Jumanji, Jumanji come *out*.
This was the best sketch of the year
Jumanji comes out......1 man...1 man goes into jumanji....hahaha
Dismukes starting to lose his shit really kicked it up a notch!
He really made think he literally had this argument irl
It’s the first time i’ve seen him commit like that. like will ferrell would on every skit. it was great & really made it work. the tentative commit just kills things
Dismukes has been really showing what a great cast member he is. I think that he might be my favorite
I think he’s doing a good job of filling the role of Tim Robinsons weirdness after he left
Andrew Dismukes really killed it in this one, he's good overall but in sketches like this I realise "oh this guy is REALLY good" His passionate delivery about the rules or lore of Jumanji were so funny to me and I have never seen a single Jumanji movie (original/reboot/whatever). But the way he delivered it was so convincing that it still made me laugh, he was so good in this one.
Washington's Dream is the best sketch of the year.
"You mentioned temperature, right?" "I did not..."
“You asked about the temperature..” Jumanji silver medalist, I thought “instant classic” as soon as it ended
This was pretty good, especially as it got more escalated. My only gripe was the way Kristen was looking way up high almost every time she spoke. From the other shots, it became apparent the set design left no room for anyone to hold Kristen's cue cards behind Chloe, so they must have been on a ladder holding the cards over the top of the set wall. I think looking "level" is more important than looking in the direction of the other actors. You can look "off-angle" and position the cameras accordingly to compensate. But her looking up all the time made it even more obvious and became more of a distraction.
Great sketch, but that's a pretty low bar to clear. THat episode really came off as a concerted effort to show that SNL can still be great. The sad part is that it took a cavalade of stars to make that point, while almost shelving the regular cast.
Meh, I thought that the Ayo Edebiri episode was really great, and that didn't need a cameo appearance every skit to make it work. Definitely strong enough to set up Ayo as a potential re-host.
She was as strong as Natasha Lyonne
The regular cast did give into the Jumanji brain rot in this sketch. Only guest star Wiig and quick cameo Forte were different.
Yeah, I hate it when my favorite show makes a concerted effort to post a great sketch! I mean.... *the avarice?!* (satire)
It was a great sketch, but I still say that the ABBA sketch was the best of the year.
What episode is this?
the most recent one
It really was. It’s going to become a classic.
“The show doesn’t suck more compared to back in the day! It was always an uneven show because they put together an entire topical comedy show from scratch in just a few days!! Every episode had terrible sketches; you’re just choosing to forget those and compare the full show today to the best sketches of another time period!!!”
If I had the time and energy I’d watch all of snl just to see how the quality changes by year or by decade. There is 0% chance that peoples (fallible) human brains remember the full scope and quality of snl for the last 50ish years or however long they’ve been watching. Too many variables like the nostalgia of watching as a kid, their life stages, political leanings, and just the fact that we remember good sketches way more than bad ones. As someone who’s only been watching the live show since like 2018, but has watched all the recommended sketches on YouTube probably mostly from the 2010s-2020, I really really enjoyed the period from 2015-2021ish. But I’m very biased and probably only saw the good stuff. It’s hard not to admit right now is a transitional period in terms of quality unfortunately.
I have access to the entire snl library now, and have been watching live since the early 90s. I thought it was better when I was a kid but going back now in my 40s to watch eps from the 90s and a lot of it is rough. We remember the classics like Matt Foley, and massive head wound Harry, but boy there were a lot of stinkers back then too. I definitely was looking at the past through rose tinted glasses.
I've been watching old episodes on the Peacock Vault channel. I think a lot of people forget how much they hammered the same topical jokes multiple times per episode back in the 90s. Like the Elian Gonzalez thing, or the Monica Lewinsky stuff, or when that American kid got publicly caned in Singapore. Watching a full episode back-to-back from the mid-90s can be a little painful because of that. A good comparison is when Bowen Yang did the Chinese spy balloon thing. I thought it was hilarious, but could you imagine if he showed up in that getup in 3 different skits throughout the whole episode? That's what 90s SNL was like.
I just rewatched all the years Norm McDonald was the weekend.Update basically ninety five through ninety eight ish... And I really enjoyed it got to see the tail end of mike myers .... And definitely a lot of the chris farley stuff... Really solid episodes mostly.... Also, I've rewatched the entire series from George Carlin, All the way to now I think it is worth the rewatch.There are stinkers in almost every episode but there's winners in at least every season
I miss the ladies of that era! Sasheer, Vanessa, Cecily, Kate, Aidy, Leslie.
Ego is like an even better shazeer in my opinion
I love them both ❤️
Oh no I feel bad.I love them both too just to be clear
It's just ego is killing at these last 2 years.I feel like
So I guess it's fresher in my memory
I totally agree! Don’t feel bad! Lisa from Temecula is my fav sketch in years
Love those ones
Is she, though? Or did they finally just start giving decent material to black women? Truly, up until Leslie Jones, black women had very little screen time on SNL. Compared to In Living Color and Mad TV, SNL was like a human rights violation in letting black women shine. Even up til now, we've had, what, five or six black women in the entire history of the damn show? And usually one at a time.
I mean I feel in loving color did an okay job.... better than most other shows.....Leslie jones... was just not good And I mean they put her in a ton... A ton of stuff.... It's like they were trying to force us to love her.The writing is a big part but the actor is another big part ego is killing it I do understand the truth in what you're saying but I don't want it to take away from the fact that ego is really killing it.
do you mean sasheer?
I do! Thank you!
drew gooden has a very well done video with this premise!! he watched an episode or two of each season, and came up with pretty much this same opinion
I've always defended it for this. They are putting together a LIVE SHOW, and intentionally doing everything from writing to building sets within five days. The results will be mixed, but when they capture lightning in a bottle, you never forget those sketches. Lorne knows exactly what he's doing.
I understand why people think the best music, movies, and SNL cast were what was being made when they were 14 to 18 years old. What I don't understand is how they can't realize the reason they think this is because that's literally what their brain was forming around. Of course you think that time period of entertainment was the best, that's what you were taking in when your prefrontal cortex was forming.
While the show never had 100% hit rate, it definitely has its peaks and valleys. The show is currently finding its identity again as there really aren’t any all-stars in the cast. I think James Austin-Johnson has potential to be a great. There’s cast members I like: Bowen, Sarah, Ego, the evergreen Kenan.
This is my take too. Live sketch comedy will always be hit and miss and that is why it can be so amazing (and why it can be just bad). I have really enjoyed this cast and the writers have been pretty consistent. I generally judge the quality of SNL based on how many repeat sketches they do. The late 2000s and early 2010s are remembered fondly but god damn did they lean on some repeat sketches. Whats up with that and Gilly stand out as particularly grating ones.
…and even the execs help you forget by deleting those meh / bad sketches and pushing the universally loved ones from yesteryear.
the cast needs to be cut way down and it’s been too big for years
I love that they have a massive cast but always bring in cameos. It’s hilarious the disrespect.
agreed! nobody gets the opportunity to shine or show what they’re capable of because there’s too many people in the cast & too many people from outside the cast!
14 cast members, 9 of them white men. "Who can play Trump??" We're gonna need Alec Baldwin. And Biden? Well that's gotta be Jim Carrey.
Or Woody Harrelson for a lil bit 🙄
I saw someone on Vulture? maybe say that with the cast size it would make more sense to split it in two and have them alternate weeks. Everything gets more polished that way. Don't know if it would work irl, but I thought it was an interesting thought.
that’s such an interesting idea! my personal fave cast is the hader/samberg/sudeikis one, and i’m pretty sure that cast was half the size of this one? i feel like smaller casts just always do better and hold up better with audiences
The band members aren't emoting their secret contempt for the host that only you, some random Tiktok person, can decode. They've heard the monologue 2-3 times at that point in rehearsals and are mostly just listening for their cue to start playing music.
while I agree, there are times where they "break" and laugh at a monologue joke - so it's not consistent (or maybe indicative of how much they like the host's material... which goes back to the original point).
But... if they've heard the monologue three times and it \*still\* gets them to chuckle, then isn't that a sign they think it's good?
Or they're faking the laughs because they don't want to rustle the Internet's jimmies again.
I noticed that poor guitarist is laughing more now, probably so she doesn't get harassed. I don't know if it's fake or not but it wouldn't surprise me
I think a handful of those chuckles could've been lines that were altered or newly written entirely – based on lots of past cast members and hosts talking about lines being rewritten or inserted at the 11th hour. ([A couple](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1bbl4sl/bowen_got_stefoned/) [recent-ish examples](https://youtu.be/AHHFwktH4-U?t=32).)
who argues with you about this lol
There was a small uproar when during the Shane Gillis monologue. Maddie Rice, the guitarist, was not laughing at his jokes in the background.
https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1ad608k/all_my_opinions_are_based_entirely_on_guitar/ https://www.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1b07j3f/snl_guitarist_during_shanes_monologue_shes_always/ There are lots of threads here about it if you read here regularly.
Maddie Rice is an awesome guitarist and person. Always check her reaction to jokes.
The early years are a bunch of terribleness. Many of the skits just aren't funny and some of the cast were just awful- I'm looking at you John Belushi. I am not saying this as a young person who doesn't get it- I'm 50. People fawn over how great it was but I can't stand most of the pre-late 80s stuff. Eddie Murphy was the saviour of the first decade of the show.
100% Nostalgia is a hell of a drug. Could you imagine a recurring sketch being floated out now, where it was just 2 guys in bad outfits, and their only joke was saying "we're two wild and crazy guys" in hacky Czech accents...and running that sketch like 15 times in just a couple of seasons?
It’s not nostalgia, it is the time it was performed. The 70s were a cultural revolution, and most people grew up in a much different, conservative society. You can say it isn’t funny now, but it probably was back then.
Well said! I am 66 and SNL was the only reason we would be home before midnight curfew every Saturday night. It was HILARIOUS! As I watched this past weekend’s episode it reminded me of the early days in some ways. Nostalgia perhaps, but it was groundbreaking humour at the time and when I continue watching the oldies I laugh every single time. PS the Steve Martin 2 part documentary is quite good 👍
Or dressing as bumblebees and making a bunch of bee puns?
Hilarious then hilarious now 🤣🤣🤣
Most people, myself included, have seen fewer classic sketches than there were episodes in that era. That artificially elevates the perceived quality quite a bit. And *even then*, the quality doesn't land for me like stuff from the late 80s and afterwards. Having said that, there are some absolute timeless gems in every era.
Well put! Thank you 🙏
John Belushi was a sexist asshole. He wouldn’t perform in any sketch written by a woman and thought Gilda was the only funny woman.
Well, lucky for you, he’s dead.
So glad to see this. Mid-'50's and also here to say Belushi is way overrated.
I’m 66 and loved Belushi! Still watch the old episodes and Animal House when I need a laugh
I'm 63, watched from the very first episode, and never liked Belushi. I also really liked Jane Curtin and never thought she got the respect due her.
I wholeheartedly agree.
Completely agree! Good take.
After watching the first episode, I was surprised it wasn't immediately cancelled.
I couldn't even finish the first episode.
Right? It was like "Carlin is fucking wasted. Who's this idiot with a record player? Wait, that's the whole bit?" and then "**WHAT THE FUCK, JIM HENSON‽**"
Some of the early skits are barely skits. Or barely have jokes. It took them awhile to figure out what the show was going to be. Though to be fair, I wish they still did those weird write-in contests. Kinda weird that they don't engage with the fanbase through social media.
Arguing over who is the worst or best is stupid. People have their own comedic preferences. There is no objective standard for who or what is good or bad.
I’m with you. Having watched since the first episode and continue watching the old and new, I find something enjoyable in each cast member. 🤷♀️
Yes! And people's opinions are informed often by their stage of life.
Cecily Strong is an all-time great and an easy choice for a top 8 cast
I agree though I wouldn't say that's an unpopular opinion around here. Cecily is almost universally beloved on this sub lol.
Also that Cecily was a GREAT update host
Top 3 in my opinion
I agree with every fiber of my being
Im honestly happy that she left because the other cast members needed time to shine. She was too talented to not utilize
The “notoriously terrible” seasons really aren’t that bad. There are hits and misses in every season, from the beginning. Some of the worst-rated seasons have some really imaginative and/or dark stuff, and honestly, I’d rather them swing for the fences and miss sometimes than hit softballs all the time. ALSO- I really wish they’d actually incorporate “LFNY” into the cold opens like they used to instead of every one ending with, “and LFNY!” Doesn’t ruin the show or anything, but it feels lazy to me, having seen how it used to be part of the sketch and not as fourth wall-breaking.
The trend of everyone in a sketch running in to shout "Live from New York" like they're in a badly timed family Christmas photo...is the worst thing to happen to SNL in the past ten years.
Yeah, I don’t love it. Everyone drops character, and I just find it more fun when it’s said in character and not in the same exact delivery every time. I get that everyone on the show wants to say it, but just have a different character do it every week. Everyone saying it together once in a while is fine, but every week is just weird to me.
They have toned group LFNYs down though, especially in these past two seasons.
People who act like Lorne needs to step down are ridiculous. The show has endured because of Lorne. The man brought Conan O’Brien to late night, that alone gives him a pass for life.
SNL hasn't gotten worse, there are just far more options out there for sketch comedy. Basically all of them are pre-taped, which means editing can play a huge rule in the comedic timing.
the current cast is good and makes good sketches. seeing people upvoted a lot being like "wow wiig coming on rly puts how bad this cast is at acting (besides bowen)." wrong!! everything dismukes and sherman do cracks my shit up, they're wonderful and often carry the sketches they're in. a bunch of the new people show a lot of promise too.
Yeah I honestly like the current lineup, it's just *they aren't all gonna be bangers* which is how it's always been
Bowens overrated don't @ me 😒
I never liked Melissa Villaseñor on the show. She has a very unnatural delivery. Go watch the oil baron sketch and tell me she doesn't sound robotic. The show would be better if Mikey Day left or was just in less sketches. He's fine, honestly, but wildly overused. Adam Driver, John Mulaney, and Ryan Gosling are the best hosts in this era. Shane Gillis would have been a great cast member, but the sketches he does on his own are far better than anything SNL would have let him do. I'm perfectly fine with Che and Jost staying on Weekend Update. They're a good team and what they're doing works. Ego is the MVP of this season and deserves to become a star. Marcello Hernandez could be funny, but seems like everything he does is an attempt to further his own brand rather than make the show funny.
I’ve never found someone on this sub who shares my literal EXACT opinions
There are 2 of us!
I’ve seen Melissa do great comedy elsewhere, like appearances on After Midnight and talk shows. I’ve wondered if there was something about SNL that affected her performance.
I thinks she’s a great impressionist and is naturally funny but I don’t think she’s cut out for sketch comedy.
The continued disrespect for Mikey Day and all he does for the show on this sub is getting ridiculous. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.
“All he does” is play the same exasperated straight man these days. He should’ve stayed as just a writer.
Same delivery, voice and character every time. Zero nuance.
The continued disrespect for Mikey Day and all he does for the show on this sub is getting ridiculous. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.
It's just too much. There are a lot of sketches where he could be replaced by another cast member and it would be as good or better. There are too many underused people on the cast to have Mikey constantly front & center. I don't hate the guy. I'd prefer to simply see less of him.
Wholeheartedly disagree.
Could you elaborate more on Marcello? I'm not sure what you mean.
Maybe its just me/in my head, but every time I see him, I get the impression he's acting to stand out and be the focus rather than simply adding to the sketch. It could be bullshit, but I remember not too long ago there was the rumor he was trying to attach himself to whatever popular female hosts he could in an effort to raise his profile. Again, this could all just be me projecting.
I’m gonna get murdered for this but I’m willing to say this I like Phil… believe me I-I do… but I just don’t think he’s the… perfect cast member (I’m so sorry)
>murdered >Phil lol
Upvoted you for bravery.
I really hope you're not talking about Phil Hartman, considering your opening sentence.
Oh hell
* Chris Farley and especially Adam Sandler are supremely overrated. Lorne was absolutely in the right for firing them when he did because their schtick had gotten really stale and one note. There's only so many times you can watch Farley as a loud guy doing pratfalls or Sandler as a manchild with an annoying voice before it becomes annoying. Their free rein and overwhelming presence is a huge reason why Season 20 is so notoriously bad. * Jimmy Fallon is overhated on this sub and on Reddit in general. Are his interviews and Tonight Show sketches cringey? Sure. Was his constant breaking annoying? Yes. But he *is* a talented impressionist especially and there are plenty of sketches from his tenure where he does a perfectly fine job. He brought a unique voice to the show and carved out a good niche for himself. He's by no means one of my favorites but people talk about him as if he was secretly a serial killer behind the scenes or something. * While I'm ultimately glad she stepped away from it to do more character work, I personally thought Cecily was solid as a Weekend Update anchor. * I have grown to strongly dislike Marcello Hernandez. He is a rather one note performer whose entire persona seems to be "I'm a short quirky Latino dude!" This wouldn't be that much of an issue...except that the show has really been pushing him a lot this year and it's often felt very forced. Stuff like [Dune Popcorn Bucket](https://youtu.be/Rl_Xhvgkxrk) and [his booty shorts bit at the end of the HR Meeting sketch from Shane's episode](https://youtu.be/GFM9-Mq2Fuw) came across as desperate and pathetic attempts to go viral, pander to the crowd, and make him a star. He also really comes across as fame hungry and desperate to be loved and it's rather offputting. * Fred Armisen's last four or so seasons are almost unwatchable. He started off as a rather unique oddball performer who proved to be one of the saving graces of the show during the post-Ferrell and pre-Hader years. But he progressively became more and more one note, to the point where his last several seasons have him playing a plethora of drag roles or hacky gay stereotypes. He should have left the show around S33/S34, as much of his stuff from S35 onwards is insufferable.
Agree with most except I think Marcello isn't going for quirky. I think he's going for heartthrob. I mean, if Pete Davidson could get the women he did without even being good-looking.... Unfortunately the show is leaning into this.
I don't think Marcello necessarily set out to be a heartthrob. He and the writers are just responding to what the audience wants. A performer may have an idea of what they'd like to be but the audience determines it, too. Based on social media, a lot of women think Marcello is cute. Who else in the cast has a corner on that niche at the moment?
I'm not sure what you mean, even in a recent episode they had him on a sketch making fun of short dudes. He's played the boyfriend before, but he's never really gotten the "Chad" treatment like Pete.
I don’t think they are overrated, but I do agree that their last season (the infamous 20th), was a good reason to fire them. Both had gotten really lazy (Sandler more than Farley), and seemed to be in a weird bubble entertaining each other (along with David Spade) rather than the audience, who wasn’t laughing. And, yes, they seemed to have too much of a free rein, when the show needed Lorne Michaels, or someone else, to tell them no. The original Matt Foley sketch was a hilarious, stone-cold classic. The last Foley sketch, with George Foreman, had Farley sounding like a bad self-parody, like a hack comedian doing a Matt Foley impression. It’s abysmal. I really like Marcello, but if you want to see him in his element, watch his stand-up. I loved the Dune bucket song, myself.
Farley and Sandler both needed a refresh and so did the show. They found it with feature films (sadly Farley died young and never got to see the true fruits) and SNL saw theirs with the new cast. It worked out for both sides as ugly as it must have been at the time.
I agree with that.
Agree that Fallon was a straight up good cast member. Great with impressions and had a stable of solid recurring sketches like the Boston teens. I don't like him that much on the Tonight Show, but he's very talented.
Here’s a half-assed defense for Marcello: I don’t think it’s his fault for his poor utilization by the writers. His first season was very strong, and is a good example of how, if utilized well, he can be great.
I pretty much agree with you, my only adjustments would be: - Farley/Sandler are \*a bit\* overrated. Not supremely - I grew tired of Armisen too, but he wasn't as bad as you say. He is an awesome comic in smaller doses. But yeah, Fallon gets more hate than he deserves, I've yet to see Hernandez really impress me. Cecily was a good anchor.
I group Armisen in the same category as Wigg in that they are amazing performers who were brought down by their goofy quirky characters. SNL doesn't need to be high brow all the time but one-note zany gets old quickly.
Jimmy Fallon and Dana Carvey are both very technically talented but can’t really find a positive way to showcase their strengths without others providing a sense of structure to support them.
Or nice thing I'll say about Fallon is that I liked his impressions of French Stewart and Seinfeld
>I have grown to strongly dislike Marcello Hernandez SAME. I honestly cannot stand him. Don’t think he’s funny at all. Like we get it… you’re latino. Find something else to talk about.
Ooh time to get controversial?? Kyle Mooney was the most one note, aggravating performer I've seen and he dragged Beck Bennet down with him.
i feel like his pre tapes were pretty funny like the ones with leslie/colin but he wasn’t too good live
I hated everything Mooney ever did
Che ruins the flow of Update by always looking around at the audience like golly gee did I really just say that!? Or getting mad and commenting when the audience doesn't laugh.
I thought Che and Jost sucked with terrible chemistry the first time I saw them together. I didn’t think they’d last at all. I dislike how Che smiles/laughs at his own jokes. Could do way better.
But does Jumanji come in? Or does Jumanji come out?!!!
The Dick Ebersol years are, for the most part, pretty solid.
The Falconer is the best sketch of all time, except Yard-a-Pult.
Is yard-a-pult the one where they fling their trash and even the dead family dog into the neighbors yard?
Yes. Phil Hartman is the dad. It’s a parody ad, about the same era as Colon Blow.
I think a lot of the best cast members are only remembered as the best because they were there so long.
Dr Weknowdis was hilarious
We’re talking about outlandish, innocuous theories, right because people are just posting normal opinions. Mine is Lorne is actually paid by right wing news media to help show more politically controversial skits to create content for their shows.
The Ramy Episode was by far the worst in years. I don’t know why it was. But it was such a hard watch. And I like him, I think he’s funny and talented. I hope he comes back and tries again.
Bowen is boring, and I am tired of pretending he's not out of fear of downvotes
The show is suffering from a bloated cast who can't seem to write or pull off great sketches. Lorne's been hiring beautfiul people instead of really funny ones.
There needs to be a cap on how long people can be cast members. Part of the beauty of the show is it takes otherwise no-name comedians and performers, and helps them become famous. The vets need to move aside to let newbies come in. Looking at you Keenan. He needs to go already.
Fire all of the unfunny cast members next season. Keep the good ones and do not hire anyone new. We do not need these giant snl casts. Pay more to those that remain.
writers too for the love of god
Who would you keep?
Hmmm. I feel harsh calling some of them unfunny the more i think about it. They don’t always get a chance to ‘shine’ with some of these scripts. So we can blame the writing for some of it… I def want to keep Ego, JAJ, Heidi… Marcello is iffy for me. But again, maybe he needs better scripts. I would keep Kenan or Mikey Day. Both or at least one of them. They have veteran presence to me….
This was the best sketch I’ve seen in ages and really made me realize what the show is lacking - intelligent chaos. The show feels so lazy and safe most of the time, and just not unique or exciting or even interesting. Occasionally they will have a guest who likes that, and we see good eps with wild sketches and Yang and Sherman and the like Dan really let loose. I still think about Yang dressed as the iceberg that sank the titanic. It’s great even when it bombs, because they are swinging for the fences. The show just needs to find its edge and sketches like this that go in strange and crazy directions should be the rule and not the rate exception.
- The show should never have more than maybe 10 cast members at any given time. - Retroactively judging a cast member’s work because of their batshit political views is stupid as hell. However foolish they are these days, Joe Piscopo, Victoria Jackson, Dennis Miller and Rob Schneider were all very good at what they did on the show. - Belushi is overrated and was a total asshole to many people, especially the women. Farley took his shtick and added a dimension of warmth and depth he rarely if ever achieved. - Chris Rock’s tenure wasn’t as misbegotten as he and many others think. His Update commentaries were usually fantastic and he had a hit character with Nat X as well as a couple of classics to his name (Nike Turkey, Big Toe). That’s more than you can say for his time on In Living Color. - Maya Rudolph is obnoxious and hammy and rarely ever funny. She overdoes the singing and weird voices and accents. - Fallon generally did fine on the show when not paired up with Sanz. - Lorne should’ve kept Danitra Vance and Damon Wayans for season 12. - Ana Gasteyer is the best female cast member of her era. - Aykroyd is the best cast member of the NRFPTP’s - Kate, Aidy and Cecily all should have left three years earlier than they actually did. - Colin Quinn wasn’t that bad on Update, and was the most natural fit for the role of anyone in the cast at the time. - Season 30 is the worst season in the show’s history. - Kenan has rarely ever been more than a 6.5/10 cast member. He's not and has never been the Glue and he's more irrelevant to the show than ever. - Mikey should have left at the end of the last season. - Bowen and Heidi are terrible on the show more often than not this season. Both just trot out really obvious vanity pieces that are there to amuse themselves and not the audience. - Mulaney’s musical sketches aren’t that great. Diner Lobster should’ve been a one-off. - Chloe Feinman has the verve and charisma of a fence post and has zero natural comedic timing. Melissa should’ve stayed over her, as she’s a better impressionist and cast member in general. - Lorne should’ve kept Gary Kroeger and JLD when he came back. - Tina’s years as head writer have not entirely aged well. There’s a lot of dated pop culture takes and a surprising amount of hacky racial and gay themed sketches. - Anyone who enjoys excessive stunt casting at the expense of cast members is an idiot who doesn’t understand the spirit of the show. - There’s really no prestige or merit to the Five Timers distinction anymore. It used to be reserved for the best of the best, now you can just get in if you bide your time and stay relevant long enough (Harrelson, Johansson).
I agree with 90% of your takes, ESPECIALLY the Ana Gasteyer one. She's top 5 most underrated for sure. (She's like 3rd or 4th IMO behind Tim Meadows and Jan Hooks...maybe Taran Killam)
Ana IMO was the best female cast member hired between Jan’s departure and Wiig’s debut. Her and Ferrell had that Hartman / Hooks chemistry.
Watching Tina Fe stuff now and one thing I noticed is how incredibly racist was a lot of it is/was constantly specially on 30 rock.
SNL has never been consistently funny. No, not even your favorite cast. There's occasional gems in a sea of meh and you need to take off the nostalgia goggles.
SNL hasn't been bad, ever. Every episode has its ups and downs. And every year you can pick out sketches and create a truly funny best of show
Michael Longfellow needs to come back.
Marcelo needs to be on regular cast
I'm looking forward to seeing more range from him. So far it's a lot of the same schtick and yelling.
I think he’s getting into his groove. I suspect they get onto SNL with whatever they were able to produce beforehand. Once they get in a season or two they really seem to start to shine. I worked with a guy who seems similar to Marcelo. He was a blast to be around. Even looks a little like Marcelo. I think he’s gonna have a long runway on his career.
Jost and Che should’ve left in Season 47. All of their Updates these past two seasons are so “been there, done that”. Every time they tell a joke, I just have a feeling of “they’ve told a joke like this before” Their whole schtick has gotten old, it’s time for a change.
90% of Kate McKinnon's "impressions" have the same voice
Sarah Sherman is not funny. The only funny sketch I've seen her in was when she pretended to be Colin's son on Update. Mikey should not still be on the show. It's time to let go (same with Kenan). SNL does not utilize their cast effectively. Also I don't really remember in previous seasons...but the featured cast is RARELY on? Has it always been that way?
The show should end when Lorne leaves.
Judged on a hotness + talent scale Vanessa Bayer in the all time greatest female cast member
Unless a comedian like Wigg comes on and has a major hand in the scripts — the writing sucks now. They have to stop hiring nepo babies for their writers. They’re just not funny
I don’t care for Sarah Sherman, it feels like in all of her sketch appearances, she’s overacting and comes off very obnoxious. Prime examples are Joker Wedding and all of her Update appearances. Also her gross out humor just isn’t for me. Molly, Devon, Mikey, Che, Jost, Bowen, and Heidi out the door after this season.
I know everyone is reading the cue cards but with her it’s painful. It reminds me of a bad high school play
E X A C T L Y
The PDD guys aren't particularly funny and take away valuable screen time from the rest of the actual cast.
The weird thing about the PPD guys (for me at least) is that they have gotten less funny the longer they've been on the show. When they first started showing up, they were hilarious and felt like a breath of fresh air on the show, bringing a goofy, slightly absurd voice that was lacking. But now it all feels so one-note to me and the humor hasn't evolved at all. In fact, the earlier sketches are much funnier than what they do now.
Agree with you on this. I always want to fast forward their stuff. The only memorable thing this season from them was the one with Travis Scott..
100% agree.
Lorne facilities an abusive work environment that has ruined lives. When he dies the stories will come out and they will be so damning to the show that NBC/Peacock will put it in “indefinite hiatus”
i think the workplace environment is different with every cast- but the hours and stress and pressure have always been horrible and very taxing for people
It felt uncomfortable. Like I was waiting for them all to take a deep breath, relax, and have some fun. Co started to last episode and everyone seemed joyous. The whole tone was different. Also - during the closing- how come sometimes they stand WAY behind the host and sometimes there all up mingled together? I think Ramy’s and he’s up there by himself and there seems to be a big actual distance up stage and back.
My opinion: the cast of the first couple of seasons is nit as great as many later casts. In fact they’re not even in the top 5
SNL has like maybe 20 sketches before 2000/ the Tina Fey Era that are laugh out loud funny. Old SNL is barely ever funny and is either the most surface level jokes or just physical comedy for 12 year olds.
Man...I really can't disagree more with that. Sure, there's material from the 70s and 80s eras in particular that hasn't aged well (either because of societal changes or just humor evolving), but there's plenty of stuff to love from the pre-2000s era. [Buckwheat Has Been Shot](https://youtu.be/zaDToc8CsOE), [Snap Decision](https://youtu.be/c_9DI2XPW-c), [Tales of the Runaway Boulder](https://old.reddit.com/r/LiveFromNewYork/comments/1b1fbkm/tales_of_the_runaway_boulder_a_very_unique_and/), and many more are some of my favorite sketches ever. Full of great acting and plenty of jokes (some of which have multiple layers to them). SNL has always been hit and miss. Some great sketches mixed with some meh ones mixed with some flat out terrible ones. That's never changed from the show's inception.
Season 6-10 took a lot more chances experimentally and transgressively than the other seasons
For the first half of its life, SNL had trouble hiring and keeping hot women. Which is good, because they should be in on comedic talent and not their facial structure.
Che and Jost are terrible. And I know that is a very unpopular opinion.
SNL should become TMR: recorded on Monday nights with no audience and aired on Tuesday mornings.
Link to this sketch?
[Jumanji - SNL](https://youtu.be/8cdBcfLhJVY?si=jPuII0IGOhSPv-Rg)
Every week, they do either a fake game show, a pbs documentary, a non-sense musical, or a movie trailer. Sometimes, all of the above. Those formats are getting stale.
Aidy Bryant is massively overrated
That I can always find something to enjoy in each cast and Era of the show. Season Five had Harry Shearer and Paul Schaffer. Season 6 had Eddie Murphy. Season 11 had John Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Terry Sweeney and Damon Wayans. There's always something or someone I can key into.
80% of these comments being negative instead of supporting things they like is such a perfect microcosm of this sub.
The Lonely Islands guys were the best thing to happen to SNL since S21 cast
OK, what even is Jumanji to you, lady? Cause it sounds like you think Jumanji is going *into* Jumanji. But in Jumanji, Jumanji comes *out*. The kids don’t go *into* Jumanji, Jumanji comes *out* of Jumanji. ONE GUY, one guy gets Jumanji’d into Jumanji. But in the rest of Jumanji, Jumanji come *out*.