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Breaking Down Each Cast Member's Contribution to 'SNL' Season 37
Now that we’ve looked at some of the highlights from the past season of SNL, let’s talk about the cast. One thing that often fails to get mentioned is the comedic powerhouse we have in the current ensemble. Save for an occasional low-drama tweak (Paul Brittain was let go from the show in February; Kate McKinnon added in April), there has been relatively low turnover throughout the past few seasons — a sign that Lorne is pretty happy with the way things are going. As he should be! Not since Phil Hartman have we seen performers so clearly suited for sketch comedy the way Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader are. Even Bill Murray said last year that the current cast is the strongest since the show’s first few years.
Most importantly, everyone seems to genuinely like each other. I sometimes sense sideline anxiety from younger performers like Abby Elliott and Jay Pharoah, but in general, the cast seems to be having fun. This must be at least partially due to many of the actors’ and writers’ backgrounds in improv, which values the ensemble over the individual and emphasizes connecting with your scene partner as the chief priority. For evidence of this relationship-based mentality, just look at Weekend Update. In previous generations, a desk character would be given an uninterrupted three minutes for his or her bit – now, the tone is more conversational. Stefon, Drunk Uncle, and Garth and Kat need Seth Meyers – they’re all defined largely by their attitudes towards him. These on-stage moments, as well as a few candid ones, suggest a harmonious workplace at Studio 8H.
Of course, this dynamic may likely change when Kristen Wiig, Andy Samberg and Jason Sudeikis leave the cast. But while the three of them are heavyweight talents and big names to have attached to the show, they are by no means load-bearing, and the show will continue to thrive well after they leave. (All bets are off should Bill Hader follow them out, however.)
As I did last year, I’ve been keeping track of the total number of sketches each cast member appeared in throughout the 22-episode season, weighing larger roles more than simple walk-ons and one-liners. Displaying the results in a pie chart gives us a sense of each cast member’s total share of the screen time: READ MORE
The Best of 'SNL' Season 37
Now that Season 37 of Saturday Night Live has come to a close, let’s talk about some of the highlights from the past 22 episodes.
What struck me most about this season was the apparent hunger for new hit sketches. While the show’s tendency to recycle worn sketch premises lives on, Seth Meyers and his writing staff have eased back a bit from tentpoling the lineup with pieces from seasons past, occasionally striking gold with a new premise, and hustling to bring it back as soon as possible. J Pop America Fun Time Now, Drunk Uncle, Lord Wyndemere, Bein’ Quirky with Zooey Deschanel, Piers Morgan Tonight, and The Californians — children of Season 37 — were all reprised within a few episodes of their first appearances.
With the departure of Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer at the end of last season, the digital short, after enjoying five years as SNL's most popular segment, fell to a sporadic hit-or-miss status. In its ashes arose a crop of fresh live sketches, often with dark, bizarre premises, which have crept up from the final (often cut) 10-to-1 timeslot into the front half of the show. Sketches like Les Jeunes de Paris, Brutus the sexually abused monkey, and Slow Motion Hallway let their freak flags fly more than typical SNL sketches. READ MORE
'SNL' Recap: Mick Jagger and a Night of Farewells
When your show has become a cultural icon, I imagine it’s difficult to just be a “good comedy show.” SNL season finales carry a special burden — they must feature an appropriately iconic host (Steve Carell in 2008, Will Ferrell in 2009, Alec Baldwin in 2010, Justin Timberlake in 2011, and now Mick Jagger in 2012), end the season on a memorable note to keep people buzzing over the summer, and provide a proper send-off to any cast members that might be leaving the show. That’s all on top of being strong, stand-alone episode… a feat in and of itself.
This year’s finale seemed to prioritize two objectives — specifically two people — over everything else: Mick Jagger and Kristen Wiig. As early as March, we began to see Wiig cashing in some of her long-running characters (Gilly, Target Lady, Garth and Kat), and when last week’s episode gave big roles to Andy Samberg and Jason Sudeikis (also rumored to be leaving the show), I predicted that the season finale would be very Wiig-centric. Lorne and Seth didn’t disappoint, giving Wiig one last hurrah as the undercooked Dooneese Merrill and Broadway has-been Mindy Alyce Grayson, as well as a heart-wrenching farewell at the end of the night.
Although the “have a knock-out hilarious show” goal took the backseat at times, I was impressed by Mick Jagger’s comedic chops. Less the charismatic chameleon that we saw from Justin Timberlake or Alec Baldwin and more the over-confident grandpa of Christopher Walken or Steve Martin, Jagger’s natural swagger and spry giddiness made each of his lines such a treat.
With three extended musical numbers in the lineup (including an unnecessary Jagger blues number about Mitt Romney), most sketches seemed to run a beat or two shorter than usual, while others (Catchphrase Comedy Tour Vol. 3 and Jay Pharoah’s Stephen A Smith segment during Weekend Update) got cut entirely. That said, the show certainly didn’t feel “light on comedy,” and the night moved along at a rather lively pace. You’d think they had some awesome after party to get to. READ MORE
'SNL' Recap: Will Ferrell Delivers Amid High Expectations
After Jimmy Fallon and Maya Rudolph’s spectacular stints hosting SNL earlier this season, I proposed (only somewhat facetiously) that all episodes should be hosted by former castmembers. Fallon’s episode was a gleeful trip down memory lane, complete with cameos by Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, Rachel Dratch, and Horatio Sanz, and Rudolph’s might have been the highlight of the season, with the multitalented actress bringing the best out of the cast and crew to with her own masterful performance. I expected this episode would be the closing argument to my former-castmember-hosts proposition.
So was it? Sure, so long as I get another closing argument at some point.
We were given a solid, albeit predictable episode: predictably strong in the first half while weak in the second; predictably laden with cameos by other former castmembers and reprisals of characters from Ferrell’s era; predictably celebratory for remaining at the center of the pop culture universe over the years. Of course, Ferrell’s presence makes anything immediately funny (except maybe Broadway Sizzle), but for whatever reason – high expectations or simply lightning evading the bottle for the writers and actors – this episode didn’t ignite as we all hoped it would. READ MORE
'SNL' Recap: Eli Manning Plays a Boy's Game
A non-actor celebrity host on SNL can be a recipe for disaster.
On the surface, booking a popular stand-up comedian seems like an obvious choice for a late-night comedy show with notable appearances by George Carlin and Richard Pryor. However, comedians who have spent years refining a specific voice as a solo act often don’t make good team players. Andrew Dice Clay’s controversial humor caused a publicity nightmare that overshadowed the episode itself, and Jerry Seinfeld brought in his own writers, which resulted in some uncomfortable tension in the writers room.
Then there are the politicians. Though there have been a number of brief cameos over the years, only 11 politicians have actually hosted the show (12 if you consider Donald Trump a serious contender, so… 11), with the most recent being Al Sharpton in 2003. Politicians often stink with an agenda to humanize themselves, showing an unsurprising lack of a sense of humor. There have been a few bright spots in John McCain and Al Gore, who won back our hearts as the suitors America (or the Supreme Court, at least) once turned down in favor of George W. Bush.
This brings us to athletes. Many athlete hosts have proven to be quick on their feet and natural showmen — skills that benefitted Derek Jeter and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson tremendously. There have also been a few disasters: swimmer Michael Phelps seemed much more slow and clumsy on land, and there was that one awkward episode in 1978 where O.J. Simpson tried to murder Laraine Newman. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Josh Brolin and the Beginning of the End
Could we be approaching the end of an era?
After recent rumors of Kristen Wiig, Jason Sudeikis, and Andy Samberg leaving SNL at the end of this season, fans began to speculate about what the show would do without its three biggest stars, and which cast members would step up to fill their shoes. Last weekend’s episode seemed to reflect, perhaps subconsciously, this blend of nostalgia and looking forward: a musical cold open celebrating the end of a long and windy GOP primary season, the return of long-running sketches Laser Cats and Garth & Kat, and uncharacteristically frequent appearances by Taran Killam and Jay Pharoah.
With perhaps three new episodes left this season, I predict SNL will continue this trend and bring back a number of old Wiig, Sudeikis, and Samberg sketches in the coming weeks. This season has seen revivals of Wiig’s Target Lady, Sue, Mindy Alyce Grayson, Gilly, and Kat, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we also saw Penelope, Judy Grimes, Dooneese Merrill, Suze Orman, Nancy Pelosi, and Aunt Linda, not to mention Sudeikis’ Devil and Joe Biden, and Samberg’s Nicolas Cage, Mark Walberg, Lil’ Ronnie, and “Dick in a Box” duo guy, once more as well. And with any luck, maybe we’ll get to see Two A-holes and the Song Memories sketch one last time.
Then again, if you consider the number of appearances made by Jimmy Fallon, Maya Rudolph, Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, and Will Forte even after they technically “left” the show, I sincerely doubt this will be the last we see of these three, even if they don’t return as regular cast members in Season 38. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Sofia Vergara Is More Than A Loud, Pretty Face
For many TV critics, the headlines of their SNL recaps are written days before the episode airs. Of course Daniel Radcliffe would host a “magical” night, and Zooey Deschanel’s episode would have a “quirky” theme. And surely SNL would follow Modern Family's lead and exploit Sofia Vergara’s sexuality and ethnicity for cheap laughs. The moment Vergara walked out on stage for her monologue in a low-cut dress, many a Puritanical suspicion was confirmed.
I am frustrated by the obsession with Sofia Vergara’s looks and accent — traits given far too much emphasis in storylines of Modern Family — but I don’t think last weekend’s SNL episode was necessarily a textbook example of that obsession. (The various online recaps, maybe.) Sofia Vergara is a beautiful woman who occasionally struggles with the English language, and while those were recurring elements throughout the night, only rarely were they the punchline. Compare the sexual exploitation in this episode to, say, what we witnessed with Channing Tatum, who stripped off clothes, danced erotically, and delivered lines through catcalls all night. No contest, thank god.
There’s plenty to talk about, from Vergara’s performance to the Easter-worthy resurrection of Gilly, to the trial roles of new castmember Kate McKinnon. So let’s get right to it. READ MORE
What You're Missing By Watching SNL on Hulu
While recapping Saturday Night Live episodes for the past year or so, it has come to my attention that Hulu — the primary source for SNL viewers who watch episodes online (an increasing number of people under 30, it turns out) — typically leaves out a sketch or two when it uploads an episode. The reasons usually concern music licensing. NBC has to pay a large amount of money to get the rights to use a copyrighted song in a sketch, and that amount increases significantly if that sketch will be posted online (NBC’s website and sites like Hulu, which has a contract with NBC). So any part of the show that would complicate negotiations with record labels should it be posted online is removed from the version of the episode on Hulu.
Normally this isn’t too big a problem. It’s just one sketch per episode, after all — well worth getting the rest of the episode for free the day after it airs. We also try our best in our recaps to track down versions of the missing sketches on sites like YouTube before NBC forces the uploaders to take them down. And in the past, these sketches haven’t been particularly memorable.
Except very recently, that is. Over the past two seasons, frequently the best sketches of the night happen to feature a licensed song that keeps them offline. And considering a large number of Splitsider readers watch SNL on Hulu, I feel obligated to share with you some of what you’re missing out on. Hopefully that’ll encourage you to watch SNL as it’s meant to be experienced: on television, live, and at a low enough volume so your neighbors don’t wake up and catch you watching their TV. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Jonah Hill Is A Funny Man
I’ll be honest: I was never a huge fan of Jonah Hill. As the films of Judd Apatow shifted to the center of the comedy universe, the resulting fame of Jonah Hill confused me. I admired Apatow for using his success to give opportunities to talented friends — hilarious yet average-looking guys like Seth Rogen and Jason Segel — who otherwise might have struggled with finding mainstream appeal. Hill struck me as the annoying kid brother of the pack: certainly funny and charming enough to roll with the big boys, but only tolerated because he’s part of the entourage.
That’s not to say I don’t enjoy Hill’s work. His performance in Superbad and his first time hosting SNL in 2007 were great. They should have been enough to convince me of his talent, yet I wasn’t sold. As I watched him take supporting roles in Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Funny People, the cronyism of the Apatow crew started to wear on me, and I began to wonder if better actors were missing out on roles given to Hill. Seeing him dominate the summer 2010 comedies (Get Him to the Greek, Cyrus) annoyed me — it was as if Hollywood power players, desperate for “hip” comedy, decided that Americans would pay to see pretty much anyone with a speaking role in The 40-Year-Old Virgin star in a film of their own. (They were right. I did.) READ MORE
SNL Recap: Lindsay Lohan is Comedy Poison
SNL, you have some explaining to do.
After a streak of wonderful episodes hosted by talented actresses — Zooey Deschanel and Maya Rudolph — SNL hit a new low last weekend with an uncomfortable and at times baffling episode hosted by near-human-being Lindsay Lohan. Under normal circumstances, I consider it unfair to blame a host for a bad episode — usually, they have relatively little influence on the episode that ends up getting produced — but considering Lohan’s repeated begging to Lorne Michaels to host the show and her admission that she had brought her lawyer into the writers room to screen sketch ideas, I have no other choice. Lohan’s appearance on the show was nothing more than a blatant attempt to restore her image. We mustn’t let her get away with this.
The episode suffered from an odd structural problem. Jack White’s first musical number arrived one segment early, and the latter half of the show featured two previously aired commercial sketches, which leads me to believe that there was a last-minute cut from the lineup. It’s a shame we’ll never get to see that sketch in which Lohan plows through a playground full of children in her Range Rover, but it’s in a better place now, playing air hockey in heaven with “Crazy Christians.” READ MORE
SNL Recap: Maya Rudolph and the Magic of Breaking
For those who perform live comedy, there are few more dangerous games than breaking. Breaking is a term actors use to describe that moment when they laugh inappropriately while playing a scene, or “break character.” In acting classes, breaking is strictly forbidden, while in improv classes, it’s highly discouraged. One improv director made my whole team do pushups and run laps in the rain when someone broke. Our improv didn’t get any better, but we could have literally kicked your improv team’s ass.
Audiences have mixed reactions to breaking. In general, the more committed the performers are, the greater our tolerance for breaking. We enjoy Bill Hader cracking up while playing Stefon because we see his struggle to regain his composure. Also, chances are we cracked up long before Hader did. On the other hand, breaking can also be a signal to the audience that the performers are unconfident and “not worthy” of the stage. Jimmy Fallon attracted a lot of hate when he was an SNL cast member for being unable to keep a straight face, even before a sketch really got off the ground. And then there are those nauseating moments when performers break on purpose. Every production of Hairspray I’ve seen features a moment in the second act when one actor supposedly adlibs a line to another, who then “loses it.” The house always goes wild, but when you realize the moment is premeditated, it feels wrong. Almost as wrong as having seen Hairspray more than once.
Last weekend’s episode, hosted by Maya Rudolph (with plenty of cameos by Amy Poehler and Justin Timberlake), featured an unusual amount of breaking by the performers, which I attributed to Rudolph’s former cast member status. When Jimmy Fallon hosted in December, I made the case that the show should consider having only former cast members as hosts, arguing that their familiarity with the actors, writers, and the overall process would result in more consistently entertaining episodes. I forgot to mention that when one cast member returns to the show, it turns into a big “SNL family reunion.” And when a group of performers are having fun with each other, they’re inevitably going to make each other laugh. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Zooey Deschanel Gets Quirky
In the world of improv comedy, there is a popular show format in which an ensemble improvises scenes inspired by a true story told by a guest monologist. The inclination during these shows is to reenact scenes from a new comedic point of view, or to riff on a specific detail from the story, for example the monologist getting a fact wrong or mispronouncing a word. However, the show seems to be the most successful when the ensemble mines the monologist’s story for deep-rooted emotions, themes or personality traits, and then uses the scenes to collectively “respond” to the monologist. The scenes become a thematic statement about the kind of person the monologist is.
SNL, as a show with a new guest host every week, often reflects this format. We tend to see it especially when there is a host with a particularly specific persona. At times the resulting show is irritating — for example, sketch after sketch exploiting Channing Tatum’s background as an exotic dancer or Elton John’s homosexuality — while in others, we’re left with a pleasant sense of wholeness — for example, last season’s Jesse Eisenberg episode as a case study of “awkward humor,” and past episodes exploring Donald Trump’s narcissism and Al Gore’s always-a-bridesmaid curse.
Last weekend’s episode, hosted by the aquirkable Zooey Deschanel, fell in the latter category for me. Perhaps I have succumbed to Deschanel’s charms, but I sensed a through-line during the night that painted an interesting picture of the actress’s vintage style and soft-spoken nature. While her ukulele song may have surprised no one, nowadays I think it’s less important for SNL to surprise us than it is to serve as a cathartic snapshot of our cultural icons. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Channing Tatum Endures a Night of Catcalls
In live comedy, it’s a cop out to blame the audience. But sometimes, audiences just seem so damn stupid.
SNL relies on its studio audience more than any other live audience TV comedy does. Sitcoms like The Big Bang Theory or Whitney certainly require audience laughter to give their punchlines extra weight, but they can always go back in post and use only the takes that got the biggest reactions, or simply pad them with a pre-recorded laugh track. Talk shows, like Conan or The Colbert Report don’t use multiple takes or laugh tracks, but their format allows the camera to cut back to the host, who can easily riff his way out of a bombed joke.
SNL has no such luxury. As a live show, the jokes get one shot with the crowd. If they don’t hit, the show has to take it in stride and awkward move forward. Without a studio audience, most of their sketches — shot in traditional multicamera sitcom format with three-wall sets — would feel slow and lifeless. Those of us at home need it, because we are children of Seinfeld, Friends and Home Improvement, shows that conditioned us to react passively and wait for someone to tell us when to laugh. And even though we’ve evolved at deciding for ourselves what’s funny, while we watch SNL the laughter effect remains significantly Pavlovian: when the studio audience laughs, we’re more likely to laugh out loud; when the studio audience does not laugh, even if the sketch appeals to our personal tastes, we still feel uncomfortable and impatient. READ MORE
SNL Recap: Daniel Radcliffe, Timid Host on a Ballsy Night
It’s frustrating when SNL plays directly to our expectations. When a former castmember comes back to host the show, for example, it’s almost certain that there will be at least one reprisal of an old sketch (Jimmy Fallon as Boston teen Sully, Dana Carvey as the Church Lady, Will Ferrell as President Bush, etc.). Seventy-five percent of the cold opens this season have been GOP parodies, and half of the episodes have opened with Jason Sudeikis as Mitt Romney.
Of course, I love an unsurprising comeback of the Barry Gibb Talk Show as much as anybody, but while watching 90 minutes of live sketch comedy, pieced together in less than a week, I like surprises. And not “Hey, Target Lady! Haven’t seen her in a while!” surprises. I want to see Lorne, Seth, and the writers approach the entire lineup with the same reckless disregard that they do for the last few minutes of the night, where sketches are selected with the precision of Pollack.
One thing that surprised me about last episode was how bold some of the sketches were. What began as some familiar self-parody in the monologue evolved into some genuinely risky moments, some that brilliantly hit too close to home for the studio audience, others that felt mostly for the amusement of the cast… and just came across as uncomfortable for the rest of us. READ MORE
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