The 32nd season of Saturday Night Live begins tonight with stand-up comedian/Myspace darling Dane Cook (meh) returning to host, and The Killers (yay!) returning as tonight's musical guest.
Isn't it a bit sad that in all these years, SNL still hasn't elevated its status enough to be BIGGER than stand-up comedians? Stand-ups should be begging to be CAST MEMBERS of this show, not showcased as hosts. I understand in the classic days it was necessary to have stand-ups like Richard Pryor, George Carlin and Billy Crystal on as hosts... but it's been 31 years now. It says a lot that SNL is still not the most elite place for comedy.
The show is five cast members short this year, as budget cuts and sitcom deals have seen Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch, Horatio Sanz, Finesse Mitchell and Chris Parnell exit the building. Hopefully a smaller cast can produce bigger laughs.
Anyway, let's get to the recappin'...
Cold Open: Aww hell, I was hoping they'd be smarter than to open with Will Forte's weak President Bush impression. The writing for these skits is lazy and unmemorable. However, I will give them credit for the line "The Saints are 3-0. So it's official, New Orleans has recovered."
Credits: Wow Tiny E, those credits are huge. Seriously, I wonder if there was a production meeting where someone said "Hell, if we can't make the show funnier I want those credits to be freakin' gigantic!"
Monologue: LDC asks "What's he famous for?" I let her know that he's a stand up and he's in that Jessica Simpson movie. LDC says "Oh that's right, he boinked her."
I like when stand-ups just go right into their comedy routines in the monologue and won't play the writers' little reindeer games. LDC: "I'm sorry, is he funny?" Not so far.
Okay, the YouTube bit is both funny and timely. LDC agrees. However, in five years when this repeats on E!, it'll be so dated.
Commerical Parody: There isn't one. The hell? Commerical parody after the monologue. Now I'm all discombobulated. I don't know if I can go on.
Stupid Airport Security: I laughed a bit during this one. But I've also been drinking. So I'm not sure if it was really funny or not. I'm glad Kenan got to stay on the show though. I love Kenan. I also seem to love booze.
Next Week: Jaime Pressly and Corinne Bailey Rae. I don't know who the hell the latter is, and I hope the former is in as many skimpy outfits as possible.
Hugo Chavez Political Roundup: Chavez talks with his hands a lot. That seems to be the jist of this one. LDC: "Timely, yes. Funny, no."
Digital Short "Cubicle Fight": The premise doesn't even make sense.
Al Pacino Checks His Bank Balance: So they let Bill Hader do his Pacino impression once a year and it KILLS. Perhaps they should let him do it a couple more times. LDC: "That's the best damn skit they've done all night."
The Killers "When We Were Young": Now I love The Killers and I'm really looking forward to their new album. But this song just never seems to take off. It mulls around in this middle area and just never builds or rocks. Add to it that their performance of it here was not done very well at all, and, well... I just miss those well dressed lads from a few seasons back. I don't dig this new look.
Weekend Update: Brian Williams makes a cameo and the crowd goes APESHIT. It's Brian Williams people. Wait, what the hell? That was a teaser skit for Weekend Update?
The Real Weekend Update: Seth Meyers replaces Tina Fey. I'm sad that this essentially means we'll never see the skit Spyglass again. LDC: "I love, love, love Hammond's Bill Clinton, but that felt forced." The whole WU felt forced.
Boning the Lady: Someone was high when this was written...
The Killers "Some Other Song From Their New Album": I'm very disappointed in these fellows. Why has the lead singer added a Tiny Tim voice inflection to his singing?
Farrah Fawcett: That had potential, but then there was a weird link into...
Closing Time: In this sketch, people are told to leave a bar because it is closing. Amy Poehler continues her Farrah Fawcett character in the sketch's only brief moment of humor.
Geico Commercial Parody: That would have been better on tape.
The end. No closing credits? No taped commercial parody? Wow, how daring! You just can't predict that Saturday Night Live... they may or may not air the one consistantly entertaining portion of the entire show! It's crazy and unpredictable!
I asked for LDC's opinion on tonight's show. LDC: "I'm going to bed."
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