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SNL: The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse

DVD Talk, hands down the best DVD review site and interactive community on the web today, has posted their review of Saturday Night Live: The Best of Saturday TV Funhouse, which debuts on DVD on October 24, 2006.  The disc features the telecast as shown last season, along with a healthy dose of extra features.  Check out the review here.

SNL: Jaime Pressly/Corinne Bailey Rae

LDC hasn't been feeling well this week, so I've been providing the entertainment to keep her mind off the coughing and the wheezing and the whatnot.  Now, comedies have been tough to recommend, because they lead to coughing fits.  So I suggested SNL, which should be safe from laughs.  Let's take a look.

Cold Open: Dennis Haysert thing about the Mark Foley thing.  The sad thing about this is that years ago, this sketch would have been cutting edge.  But now, there are 15 other shows on every day that have already taken their shots on this topic.  That makes this already feel dated.  What a disappointment.  As LDC said, it (the Foley scandal) was handed to them on a silver platter and they dropped it.

Monologue: Jaime is interrupted by all sorts of southern stereotypes.  Enjoyable.

Logo: It hit me that the new SNL logo isn't new at all.  It's the same one used in the lackluster early 1980s seasons.  Smart move there.  Puts me in the mind for some Gary Kroeger.

Nancy Grace: More Foley stuff and Nancy Grace is insane.  A chuckle or two, but potential was wasted.  Kenan is awesome though.

New York City Stories: Taped pieces rule.  This one had Martin Scorsese (Fred Armisen) and Rosie Perez (Amy Poehler) having recollections about a particular New York street.  The tracking shot from Goodfellas was filmed inside a pipe.  Awesome.

Jon Bovi: Too ridiculous to explain, but there was a laugh or two.  Will Forte, when not doing his weak Bush impression or The Falconer, is pretty funny.  And Jason Sudekis is growing on me.  This new reduced cast might work out after all.

Hands on a Hard Body: Female reporter thinks that Jaime (as the contest winner) is hot.  Awkwardness ensues.  Borderline creepy.  So far the host is being used as nothing more than a prop.

More New York City Stories: Music version this time.  Not as good as the first one.

Private School: Kenan rules.

Corinne Bailey Rae I: I've never, ever heard of her, but at least she can sing.  Classy, but not something that'll wind up on my iPod.  I still maintain though that SNL musical guests should rock, to keep the energy levels up.  This mellow stuff, well, mellows out the crowd.

Weekend Update: Hader's Peter O'Toole is hilarious.  A couple other good jokes here and there as well.

Nascarettes: Um, what was this?

New York City Stories: They needed to stop with the first one.

Big Wigs: The first time someone in this sketch said the word "bigwigs" I said to myself "Please don't let people come in wearing giant wigs".  Lame.  That was like a junior high school talent show sketch.

Kuato: So the material that this bit is based on is so old, they had to spent two minutes explaining it to the audience.  Timely Total Recall jokes.  Timely.

Next week: A repeat of last week's show.  Seriously.

Corinne Bailey Rae II: More of the same, I guess.

Cider: So someone had a leftover Delicious Dish script and retooled it?

Out of Breath Jogger: The hell?  They've crammed two skits into the final three minutes?  Weak.

I'm guessing that commercial parodies fell victim to the budget cuts.  Imagine that, the most consistantly entertaining and creative part of the series, gone.

Everything up through Weekend Update was a slight improvement over last week's entire show.  But after that it took a giant downward spiral.  It seemed like the energy was up a bit and the cast was clicking a little better at first, but then, like always, it all fell apart.  I can't wait for next week's rerun!

SNL Season Premiere: Dane Cook/The Killers

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."

SNL: Steve Martin

I'd bailed on SNL this year as it was wasting my time, but tuned in tonight for the triumphant return of Mr. Steve Martin (I still can't believe that *12* years went by since the last time he hosted).  Here's some random thoughts on the show:

* Looks like the writers blew a funny fuse after that great cold open.  The monologue was ok (the booby fairy was very kind to Maya Rudolph), but the commercial parody, Oprah skit and Hamas bit were brutal.  The quick zoom theater sketch picked up once Kenan arrived.

* Why isn't Fred Armisen playing Prince tonight?  Who's this guy?  Did the set just burst into flames?

* Short, unfunny Weekend Update.  I guess they needed bonus time for the not very good Super Bowl skit that followed it.

* Hey, a followup skit to the cold open.  Neat.  I like how Lorne controls everything on the show but still can't deliver a handful of lines.

* Hey, there's Fred Armisen as Prince, and good god Maya... *drool*.  The new chick's Drew Barrymore is fine, but of course we won't see her impression skills for another year.  Ok wait, what the hell.  They do the Prince Show and Prince is this week's musical guest and he's not involved with the Prince Show sketch?

* For everything after that, just picture me scratching my head and making a "huh?!" face.

* So I guess we've confirmed that both SNL and Steve Martin have lost it.  Wasn't as bad as Bringing Down the House though.  Looks like I can safely go back to ignoring this show.

SNL: Catherine Zeta-Jones

Catherine Zeta-Jones hosted this season's third episode of Saturday Night Live.

The Good: Catherine Zeta-Jones in High Definition Widescreen.

The Bad: Everything else about this episode.

I laughed exactly once, during the opening sketch, when Kenan and Finesse switched places (Darrell Hammond does a great Brit Hume though). The premise of the dancers party sketch had potential but didn't use it. Everything else I've already forgotten.

Zeta-Jones is a very good performer. She was flawless in her sketches, very comfortable in front of a live audience, and can both sing and dance. Great. BUT THIS IS A COMEDY SHOW. I'm thrilled she was in Chicago and can do Broadway and all that... but she's not FUNNY.

Since Will Ferrell departed, no one has stepped up to be that one person who commands your attention whenever they are in a sketch. What we have now is a huge mix of generic white guys. I love Fred Armisen, but he's not an attention getter. He's similar to what Jon Lovitz was... a great "quirky" character type.

And next week?  Lance freaking Armstrong?  Are you kidding me?  This stunt casting needs to stop.  Hosting Saturday Night Live should not be an audition to see if you are funny. It should be a showcase for your comedic talents in a forum other that what people are accustomed to seeing you in. A good host can easily elevate a mediocre writing staff. A bad host only shows the weaknesses.

There are proven SNL hosts who should get a slot once every year or two: Tom Hanks, Steve Martin (who hasn't hosted since 1994!), John Goodman, Alec Baldwin, and Christopher Walken. Hell, I'd even throw Ben Affleck into that rotation. Slots should also be used for some former cast members, including Dan Aykroyd, Dana Carvey and Jon Lovitz.

I'll give SNL credit for being a class act though. Usually if you're a cast member during the non-Lorne Michaels years whose name isn't Eddie Murphy, you don't exist. But at the end of this week's Weekend Update they noted the recent passing of former WU anchor Charles Rocket. Nice job.

SNL: Jon Heder / Ashlee Simpson

Tonight's Saturday Night Live featured Jon Heder (Napolean Dynamite) and the return of Ashlee Simpson.  Here are some sporatic thoughts:

* I've never seen Napolean Dynamite, as I'm still waiting for that "OMG! It's SO funny you HAVE to see it!" vibe to go away so I can take it in with a fresh perspective. My bet is this show won't help me there. And also that I won't get 97% of the jokes in the monologue.

* Why did the opening sketch look like community theater?  And also, why did it suck?

* Hey neat... in the middle of the commercial parody they cut to something else entirely. Remind me why this show HAS to be live again?

* There was no enthusiastic applause when Amy Poehler's little spastic kid sketch started. This is the sign that this recurring character has worn out its welcome. So be prepared to see it 12 more times this season.

* That werewolf sketch might have worked better on tape... everyone's timing was way off. Then again, nah, it probably sucks no matter what.

* Two live shows, time for a much needed break! Next week, The Best of David Spade. In two weeks they're back, and the host is Catherine Zeta-Jones. I don't think the show will be any better, but at least there'll be something to look at.

* 30 minutes in and I've yet to crack a smile.  Thelma & Louise references?  Christ!

* Hooray! Showbiz Grande Explosion! I know this bit just keeps recycling jokes, but it does make me laugh. It wasn't as good as the Colin Ferrell one, though I did laugh several times.

* I don't get bringing Ashlee Simpson back. There are so many bands out there who actually sing that deserve a shot on SNL. Who the hell likes Ashlee Simpson? She can't sing live and just proved it again. And was her second song about the joys of being a whore? Get off my TV.

* Dammit, they're not rotating cast members in Tina Fey's chair on Weekend Update. Will Forte's thing was amusing. Lorne's bit was good too. "They should get chemo." LOL.

* The less said about everything after WU, the better.

* The show had such a white guy overload that Seth Meyers was only in one sketch and Chris Parnell wasn't even there (a second glance revealed that he's not even in the opening credits anymore). Overall a below average effort.

SNL: Steve Carell / Kanye West

Saturday Night Live's 31st season kicked off tonight with host Steve Carell (Anchorman, "The Office").  Here are some random thoughts on tonight's show:

* SNL is now broadcast in HD.  Looks great.  Comcast continues to do their best to make it not work properly though.

* Rob Riggle's not in the cast anymore?  That's a shame.  I'll miss his "that guy" and "oh it's him" characters.

* New cast member Bill Hader instantly won me over with his killer Al Pacino impression in the "Anderson Cooper 360" sketch. It would be fine by me if he does it in every show this season, just as long as its not the only thing he can do. I'm not sure why they made him look like Quentin Tarantino when he turned into a vampire in From Dusk Till Dawn though.

* Ashlee Simpson next week? Hmmm. Pulling out the big guns so early though with Jon Heder? THE Jon Heder? Wow. By the way, who the hell is Jon Heder? (Yes, ok... I see that he was Napoleon Dynamite. Timely choice there.)

* Kudos for bringing in Mike Myers for the pre-Kanye West song bit.

* Kanye West doesn't care about people who like music.

* Horatio Sanz filled in for Tina Fey on Weekend Update. Interesting experiment, but yet not. Hopefully they'll rotate other cast members in that spot until Tina comes back.

* Amy's Paris Hilton joked slayed me.

* The other new guy... eh... get a hair cut, hippie. Then comb it. Then do something that's funny outside of your circle of friends.

* Did Kanye just say in his second song that the government invented AIDS? He can't actually believe that too. And are these seriously the two best songs on his album? Nice showcase, jackass.

* As always, the dumbasses in master control at First Coast News cannot figure out how to time their commercial breaks, so we joined the last sketch already in progress. On a positive note though, it was the hideous Debbie Downer... wisely delagated to the final slot on the show.

* Did they purposely give the host nothing really funny to do? He might as well as not have even been there. You're not going to get anyone to tune into "The Office" that way... and that show desperately needs ratings help.

SNL: Liam Neeson / Modest Mouse

Comedy superstar Liam Neeson and some band called Modest Mouse were tonight's SNL guests.  Here's my totally worthless recap:

* Kerry Calls Bush: Eh.  I'm glad the election is over.

* Monologue: Stereotypes are challenged.  Laughs are hard to come by.  I sense Liam Neeson will be in drag at some point in the show.

* Star Jones: So, Star Jones is getting married? News to me. But then again, who the hell cares about Star Jones? Is "The View" still a big deal? I didn't even know it was still on. Liam plays Sean Connery, in a slap in the face to Darrell Hammond. Kenan Thompson in drag. Liam's turn is coming.

* Real Commercial: Alec Baldwin is guesting on "Las Vegas".  How did his career come to such a crashing halt?

* Irish Home Makeover: Eh, angry Irish accents are kinda funny.  A few chuckles here.

* Bonerjuice Commercial: Hey, commercial reruns already.  Five shows in.

* Jasper the Parrot: Ah, the birth of a recurring sketch. Not bad, but it's going to be run into the ground soon. Sort of a low-key Mr. Peepers. I really admire Fred Armisen's composure though... he never breaks character. He was the only one who kept it together during last year's Debbie Downer debacle.

* Wake Up San Diego: A weak variation of Morning Latte. Talk show hosts keep dancing to music being played. Thankfully, since Neeson is one of the leads this won't be a recurring one.

* Modest Mouse performs: I don't know a damn thing about this band, but it was nice of them to let homeless people be their background singers. One guy in the band just plays maracas. I don't think I understood one word.

* Weekend Update: You can really tell that Darrell Hammond studies every nuance of the political people he impersonates. His John Ashcroft is pretty good. But on the other hand, why would anyone ever need a John Ashcroft impersonation. Good lord, they just played with Barbies for five minutes in reference to something naughty Tara Reid did recently.  Will Ferrell did the college student thing on WU much better.  I don't even get the last joke.

* Appalachian Emergency Room: "I done contaminated my tater tots."  Heh, tater tots is a great punchline for any joke.  Try it sometime.

* Real Commercial: Must buy Elf Tuesday on DVD.  I haven't even seen it and I already love it.

* Lost Weed: Bleh.  Neeson wants to borrow a drug sniffing dog to find his weed.

* Modest Mouse performs again: I can understand them better.  The homeless people don't participate.

Again, a very average show. Kenan Thompson was in a lot of sketches, so that's good. Neeson never got in drag though... must have failed at dress rehearsals.

SNL: Jude Law / Ashlee Simpson

Ok, everyone's looking for the Ashlee Simpson lipsync screwup video.  Well here's a link.  And here's another.  Now back to the regularly scheduled post...

Jude Law hosted tonight's SNL.  Let's get to the recap:

* Opening sketch: See, I like political observation more than I do direct parody of specific events. The Hardball beginning was much better than the previous two shows' debate spoofs.

* Monologue: Meh. I guess after seeing 97 episodes where the male cast drools over the female host it was time for one where the women drool over the guy. Doesn't make it any good though. "Hey Jude" always makes for a good sing-a-long though.

* Actual commercial: Seed of Chucky looks absurd.  I'm looking forward to Zygote of Chucky and Drunken Glimmer in Chucky's Eye.

* Sky Captain parody: Eh... clever idea, sorta.  Too long, bad ending.

* Vacuum commercial: Boy, the vacuum prop sure looked expensive.  Were there any jokes?

* Earlier actual commercial: A few hours ago I saw a Jeep commercial where whatever new Jeep they're advertising is shot out of a volcano's eruption. After landing safely it drives away. The disclaimer reads: DO NOT ATTEMPT. So, do I not try to drive my Jeep into a volcano to see if it'll shoot out? Or do I just not attempt to drive a Jeep so soon after erupting from a volcano? Since it's not clear, I'm going to try it out. Screw you, Jeep.

* Debate: Good lord, another debate parody? They had an extra week to write sketches and we get one joke that had already been beaten to death in the opening.

* Paris Hilton Apologizes: Wow, how long ago did the sex tape come out? Timely. Current. Unless this is referring to a new one, which um, I haven't seen yet. In which case I apologize.

* Ashlee Simpson Song #1: Sounds like every song on Top 40 radio.

* Weekend Update: Decent banana joke... flashy new swirly WU graphic on screen.

* Bush and Blair Press Conferzzzzzzzz: ...oh, sorry I fell asleep there for a few minutes.

* Trump Promo/Jane Eyre: Ok, I wish I'd stayed asleep.

* Simpson Song #2: HA! What the hell happened there? That's why you purists argue to keep the show live? So you can have 10 seconds of a song and the "talent" then walks off the stage, leaving the show hanging? Such a shame, I was enjoying the band awkwardly rocking out. *She revealed during the closing credits that her band started playing the wrong song. So she throws her stupid band under the bus and then doesn't bother to help cover for them. Class act, that one. (In case you missed it.)

* Bear City: WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?!

* Adventures of Peter O'Toole and Michael Caine thing: Well, maybe this had potential, but the impersonations were bad and they had to have been stretching for time thanks to Simpson's wonderful live TV trainwreck moments earlier.

* More Bear City: Wow, if a bear poops in the woods, and those woods are then processed into paper and used for SNL scripts, will it appear on the air? Yes! Twice!

Everyone seemed off their game tonight. Lots of line flubs and other assorted stumbling. Jude Law was underwhelming. Oh well, I'm sure next week's episode with Kate Winslet will put all my worries to bed.

SNL: The "Best" of Jimmy Fallon

This weekend's SNL was a compilation of former cast member Jimmy Fallon's "best" work. And shocker, the powers that be were unable to find 90 minutes worth of skits from his six seasons on the show that didn't have him giggling.

It's so frustrating to watch a sketch with Fallon in it. He's really talented at certain impressions (there's a montage of them in the show), but he'll just start giggling at the dumbest things and then the sketch is ruined.

Channel surfers might have thought it was the Best of Ben Affleck, as two sketches were from Affleck hosted eps. And the odd thing is, one of those sketches (the unfunny Boston teens thing) doesn't even air in reruns. So a skit that's not even worthy of being included in the syndicated reruns makes a Best Of?

The best segment was probably the montage of the best Weekend Update bits, but in a way that angered me as well. Norm MacDonald got fired from Update back in the 90s for being "unfunny" (even though he's easily the best to ever do the gig), but yet Jimmy Fallon and Tina Fey do the exact same types of jokes with nearly the same kind of delivery as Norm. A perfect example: "Researchers concluded that night is the most dangerous time for police officers. The second most dangerous time? Day." Norm does that kind of joke and gets fired. Fallon does it and gets to stay for six years.

But, all is well since The Barry Gibb Talk Show was deemed worthy enough to appear.  Oddly enough, Fallon manages to keep it together in this one.