SNL 41.1 Review - Miley Cyrus

Original Airdate - 10/3/15

Last season, I lost track of my reviews and missed keeping everyone updated on the entire second half of the 40th season of Saturday Night Live.  This doesn't mean there wasn't any quality.  The show really started to find its new groove with the new cast as several started to emerge as potential new stars.  I am hoping to get this new 41st season off to a good start with my reviews.  This will be especially good after seeing just how good this season started.

Cold Opening

What was the biggest story of the summer?  There is only one name that comes to mind: Trump.  There was only one direction to go with the first sketch of the new season.  Taran Killam dawns the orange rug now, taking the reins from Darrell Hammond.  He may not be as good as the former castmember now announcer at SNL, but he is pretty good nonetheless.  With the show's top talent impersonating the biggest character in the upcoming presidential race, we could be in store for quite the memorable set of political sketches ahead.  This also marked the first of many times Killam and Cecily Strong were paired together this episode.  They have the potential of being SNL's new power couple a la Jimmy and Tina or Seth and Amy.

Monologue

Miley Cyrus has been quite the popular host throughout the years.  No matter how crazy she has been, she always seems to put on a good show at 30 Rock.  Her ridiculousness may have gotten a little out of hand, as Miley came out for her monologue dressed in a dress of flowers.  Once you get over the crazy get-up, you hear a song complete with a "15 minutes of fame" summer headline montage.  It actually turned out to be quite the perfect start to the show as it highlighted the host as well as everything the show wishes it could have commented on over the summer if it had been writing live shows.

Weekend Update

The Weekend Update team of Jost and Che developed into quite the formidable tandem by the end of last season.  It is now the highlight of every show as it was in the days of Fallon and Fey.  Of the three guests at the Update desk this episode, two of the worked and one didn't.  The first one was the dud, as Kyle Mooney brought the Pope to the desk to talk about his recent visit to the USA.  It was made up for with Pete Davidson and Leslie Jones stopping by to give their unique perspectives.  I could listen to them do this every week.

Best Sketch

Political figures love to make cameos on SNL during a political season push.  This sketch was much more than a cameo, as Kate McKinnon brings her Hilary Clinton to life as she drowns her sorrows at the bar and commiserates with the local barkeep played by none other than Hilary Clinton herself.  They discuss her political stances, as well as critiquing them at the same time.  It was a sketch that could go down as one of those timeless pieces of political satire that Saturday Night Live has been known for creating.

Worst Sketch

Stuff always seems to get weird after Weekend Update.  Although some of them are pretty funny, this one was just weird.  A group of girls are out to lunch, when they realize they are sitting at the diner and even the exact table that Meg Ryan filmed her famous scene from When Harry Met Sally... at.  So they take turns reenacting the scene.  Then comes Leslie Jones, who shouts to the heavens loads of gibberish that makes no sense but is supposed to be funny.  Leslie is great in her routines, but is still working on perfecting her sketches.  The one saving grace from this sketch is watching Vanessa Bayer make fun of the fact that she can't impersonate anyone as she tries (if you can call it that) to do a Billy Crystal impression.

Dark Horse Sketch

This was the first time Miley Cyrus had hosted in two seasons.  The last time she hosted was only the second episode for Kyle Mooney, Beck Bennett, and a host of others.  Kyle has become known for his quirky brand of comedy, and all that started with Miley's last hosting gig.  This episode brought back that sketch as Kyle complains to his buddies about how into him Miley Cyrus is.  They obviously don't see the problem.  The first time around, no one really knew what to do with this sketch.  Now that we know what Kyle is all about, it is always nice to see his sketches pop up at the end of episodes.  It was also good to see the return of the sketch that started it all.

Grade

No matter how crazy Miley Cyrus gets, she does know how to host the show.  Lorne Michaels always seems to be able to take these media dumpster fires and showcase their talent in a way no one saw coming.  I don't usually care for Miley Cyrus, but she could host SNL anytime.

***B+***

Watch the full episode here:

SNL Season 39.3 Review - Bruce Willis, Katy Perry

Bruce Willis was sort of an odd choice to host the third episode of SNL this season.  It's not like he's a regular host that comes back year after year.  This was only his second time hosting and the first since 1989.  He doesn't have a project to promote or have his name in the tabloids at all recently.  So why did he host?  Good question.  I really don't have an answer to it, but it was a bit of fun to watch.  Bruce Willis has such a dry, deadpan delivery, and it was obvious he was having the time of his life.  It wasn't a great episode by any means, but it did give some pretty solid laughs.

Cold Opening

It was a great idea to combine two current events like this into one sketch.  They start with a spoof of the hit movie Gravity with two astronauts getting hit by debris and finding themselves in some serious trouble.  When they call down to mission control, no one is there but the custodians due to the government shutdown.  Clever premise and decent execution.  I think Taran Killam is trying to be in every sketch this year.

Monologue

It seems that whenever they don't know what to do with a host during the monologue, they find some random talent to exploit.  This was one of those days.  After Bruce got us caught up on his personal life over the last 24 years, and Bobby Moynihan informed us that, after playing the baby in Look Who's Talking, he's been like a son to Bruce, they decide to jam a little on the harmonica.  Bruce was actually pretty good, but that could just be comparative after Bobby was as bad as he possibly could be.

Weekend Update

This is really starting to become a highlight of every show once again.  Cecily is sounding more like she's been a Weekend Update anchor for three years, not three episodes, and the chemistry between her and Seth is great.  The guest bits weren't great, however they did have some laughs.  The Congress chaplain, played by Kenan, who insults political figures in the context of his prayer, showed why his experience on the show is so necessary right now.  Also, Brooks Wheelen gets his first great time to shine as he informs the world of the dangers of impulsive tattoos.  However, like I said, the highlights were Seth and Cecily, which was capped by a back-and-forth roast of the Bruce and Kris Jenner break up.  It was like they didn't know which joke to go with so they just went with all of them.

Best Sketch

This one is easy.  The Boy Dance Party.  All the ladies go dancing and leave all the boys at home to watch the game, but instead they throw their own dance party just for the boys.  That's really all there is to say about it.  Enjoy!

Worst Sketch

This one is pretty easy too.  With a guy like Bruce Willis hosting for the first time in 24 years, there were a lot of films and moments to make fun of.  Some worked, like the military group about to attack a compound and Willis wanting the plan to be allowing him to John McClane his way in and out (and everyone else eventually agreeing).  This one did not work.  Spoofing Armageddon, the crew is about to reach the asteroid to plant a nuke.  Enter the most annoying character that has ever gotten a repeat appearance on the show, Kirby and his wittle kitty cat.  It's just stupid and not funny at all.  I was hoping the nuke actually did blow up that cat so we never have to see him and his owner again.  (I'm actually posting the good sketch I mentioned below to make up for how terrible the other one is ... and this one is actually pretty funny)

Dark Horse Sketch

It was short, but it was brilliant.  At a party for Centauri Vodka, Bruce Willis is hired to play a vodka-serving centaur, at least the front half of him.  The back half, played by John Milhiser in his first real screen time this season (if you can call it that), was having trouble breathing, and Willis seemed to be the only one that cared.  What happens next is just hilarious.

Grade

There were some definite laughs in this episode, and some definite eye rolls (Lady Gaga Talk Show).  It saw the first re-run sketch with the e-meth commercial getting a second viewing.  It also featured another appearance of a "YouTube Sketch" as rush week in a fraternity goes a little sideways (or almost sideways??? ... never get a chance to use that in an actual sentence).  Bruce Willis wasn't a great host, but I think he deserves a call more than every 24 years.

***C+***

View the full episode here: