These recaps are the hardest to write when Saturday Night Live has a middle-of-the-road episode. If it’s a great show from start to finish, then I end up with too much to write about, and if it’s terrible then I can make wisecracks about it for an entire post. Those episodes that are uneventful, one way or the other, are tough and that’s exactly what we have with Saturday’s episode starring first-time host Taraji P. Henson.
Henson herself was not at fault for an episode that had some interesting premises, but nothing that seemed to be completely realized. Somehow, the cast and writers came up short with sketches involving Game of Thrones and Sesame Street, and in the end, they apparently decided to throw a bunch of impressions (nearly 20) at viewers Saturday night.
Cold Open: Hillary Clinton
Kate McKinnon made her second appearance as Hillary Clinton, and it’s clear she is going to play Hillary as a crazy, egotistical madwoman. Time will tell if this is the right decision, but it is a clear departure from Amy Poehler’s popular take on the former first lady.
Current SNL announcer, and former cast member, Darrell Hammond made an appearance as former President Bill Clinton. We should be seeing more of Hammond over the course of the next 18 months as we work through the marathon that is the 2016 presidential election.
Best Sketch: Teacher Trial
This is the sketch that made me laugh the most, but really only for two reasons: Kenan Thompson’s reactions as the judge and Pete Davidson listing off all of the names he has been called by his classmates.
My only issue with this sketch is that Gavin’s dad would have probably taken him to a Tampa Bay Rays game, and not a Miami Marlins game, but that’s just a critique from a baseball fan. On a sidenote, isn’t it great that baseball’s back? Go Tigers!
Second Best Sketch: John Singleton’s Game of Thrones
While I am not an avid viewer of Game of Thrones, I am a fan of Boyz n the Hood, so I appreciated this parody of both from that standpoint. Plus, Michael Che pulls off a convincing early 1990’s Laurence Fishburne.
If you need any proof that I don’t watch Game of Thrones, this is a tweet I wrote after this sketch aired:
If you were wondering if I watch Game of Thrones I recognized Nikolaj Coster-Waldau from The Other Woman. #SNL
— Jeremy Klumpp (@Klumpp13) April 12, 2015
Weekend Update Moment: Billy Crystal as Jacob the Bar Mitzvah Boy’s Dad
I’m sure I am not alone in being tired of Vanessa Bayer’s frequent “Weekend Update” guest, Jacob, but this time around, we also got to meet Jacob’s dad played by former cast member and star of the new FX series The Comedians, Billy Crystal.
Anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che continued their streak of solid “Weekend Update” segments and may have had as many laughs during their 12 minutes on-screen as the entire episode. I was pretty happy with myself when I noticed that it wasn’t Maya Angelou on the stamp, but I did not know it was actually Toni Morrison.
Standout Performers: The Cast of Sesame Street
I didn’t choose the Sesame Street cast because this sketch is particularly funny, because it’s really not, but because SNL and the Jim Henson Company have been working together for all 40 seasons of SNL.
From the “Land of the Gorch” sketches from the first season to frequent appearances by Kermit, Cookie Monster, and Big Bird throughout the other 39 seasons, this partnership has led to some memorable moments for both of these American institutions.
Other Notes:
It hasn’t been confirmed, but I’m fairly positive the grandpa from the “Depend Legends” sketch also appeared as the grandpa in the classic “Oops, I Crapped My Pants” sketch from 1998.
An account has been created for the Twitter handle that appears during the “How 2 Dance With Janelle” sketch, @JanelleDances.
A trailer for the upcoming SNL documentary, Live From New York!, was released over the weekend. The film is scheduled to premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival this week with wider distribution in June.
I would totally read What?.
Saturday Night Live returns on May 2 with host Scarlett Johansson.
