You know how Saturday Night Live usually saves its odder, slightly more obscure sketches for its final half-hour? Last night, the Seth Rogen-hosted edition used those as its big guns. If you were craving a sketch about how the decline in newspaper sales is endangering the livelihoods of Dick Tracy and Garfield, this was the show for you. Well, Andy Samberg did get to do his fine, ditzy Cathy impersonation, and Fred Armisen, as the embodiment of Sudoku, was excellent, even if the punchline to the sketch — indeed, the entire sketch, was something that could have been done five years ago.
Next up? Hey, how about the return of Bill Hader’s Vinny Vedecci, the Italian Charlie Rose? He interviewed Seth Rogen. Again, fine performance by Hader, but the familiarity of the character combined with not-much-new in its execution, didn’t exactly give the show momentum.
"Weekend Update"? Seems to get longer every week, but I admit to a fondness for Kenan Thompson’s French comedian ("Zut alors!"). Did you like the Update visit from Madonna (Kristen Wiig) and Angelina Jolie (Abby Elliott)? Here’s the consistent theme of the evening: the performances were first-rate; the writing failed the performers. I kept wanting to laugh, but where were the strong punchlines? The "Digital Short" starring Samberg and Rogen with a jokey hiphop song? It would have been a lot stronger if Samberg hadn’t worked in this style repeatedly before. And, Samberg and Rogen again, spoofing the weekend’s most popular new movie, but turning it into The Fast and The Bi-Curious? Even the phrase "bi-curious" feels old and over-used.
Last night, it was a matter of choosing which of the oddball-sketches was your favorite. You might have liked the comic-strip one mentioned above; for me, two stood out. I enjoyed the Muppets-on-a-bus piece; putting Rogen and a lot of the cast in Muppet costumes and having them embark on a psychedelic, Easy Rider/Ken Kesey/’60s-style journey: strangely funny. I also though the country-music Easter album commercial-parody, starring Rogen, Wiig, and Will Forte was so crazily out-there that I just sat back in impressed amazement. I didn’t laugh, but it was a really impressive performance piece.
Finally, what was up with letting bland-o band Phoenix do a third song to close out the show? Was this some cultural exchange having to do with the Obamas’ overseas tour? Other countries get our President, we get a French rock band?
Did you watch the show? What did you think?
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Not a very good episode overall…I HATED the board room scene with the Grease song.
They have very funny players, but they can’t figure out their niches. I hope they do soon.
It’s ROGEN with an E.
ken tucker routinely misspells actors names, kind of ridiculous for a professional, especially one who theoretically saw seth rogen’s name spelled correctly last night
SNL is starting to remind me of MAD TV. Some chuckles but mostly a waste of time.
It was a good show, I enjoyed the sketch where they’re sitting in a bar answering phone calls using different voices. Bill Hader finally got to do his Gizmo impression from the movie “Gremlins,” as he mentioned in the current issue of EW he hadn’t done.
I loved ‘The Fast and the Bi-Curious’ and the Madonna/Jolie sketch. But yeah everything else was kind of bland. And that’s disappointing because I really like Seth Rogen.
WOW, YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW TO SPELL THEIR NAMES!!!!!!
it is seth rogEn, and it is fred amisEn. and you got ANDY sambergs first name completely wrong!!!! hello do you not watch that intro of the show, when they have everyones name written out? please learn to spell the peoples names before you write again!
Bill Hader’s Vinny Vedecci is Italian, not Hispanic.
hard to take this review seriously when you call him ‘adam’ samberg instead of Andy.
Thank you Melissa! How can this guy possibly miss that Vinny Vedecci is Italian? Doesn’t the spaghetti-slurping give it away?
Shame on you. Phoenix were the best thing about last night – in fact the only reason I tuned in.
I thought the skit with Seth Rogen, Andy Sanberg and Bill Hader were talking about the bachelor party and were using disguised voices for certain peoplew as funny. ALso the SNL digital short was funny.
i dont care if its been said but you’re obviously a f***ing dumba** for saying the vinny vedecci character is hispanic. maybe EW should send you to the UN headquarters so you can meet people of a darker skin tone to prove they are not all hispanic and see that they actually are different from one another. its not even the same part of the world. unbelievable. they let you comment on ‘pop-culture’ too. im completely baffled in every way. you lost credibility with me by 1000% after this.
Family Guy did the same thing with Peppermint Patty and Marcie about 3 years ago so that felt pretty old too.
I think I get it. Ken is doing spoof of Hollywood insider columns, like The Onion’s The Outside Scoop with Jackie Harvey. That, or he’s a doof. Because really, the Hispanic Charlie Rose? I liked the Save The Funnies sketch better when it was Save Broadway with Neil Patrick Harris. I always enjoy Angelina Jolie, though: “I already have a space baby.”