Welcome to another SNL40 Review, hosted this time by highly-acclaimed and awarded actor JK Simmons. Seriously, he came in just after winning a Golden Globe and SAG Award for his role in "Whiplash", a film I've actually never heard of until awards season came in. The closest thing I've known him from is the voice of this guy.
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Oh well, let's get into it.
The Cold Open takes place from KING-TV 5 in Seattle, as Seahawks quarterback richard Sherman (Pharaoh) and special guest and good friend…running back Marshawn Lynch (Kenan) host Super Bowl Shut-Down.
Some great parts include:
Sherman brutally shut down New York City idiot--I mean mayor Bill De Blasio for that “blizzard”, Marshawn Lynch refusing to talk at all, and how the white guy at the end (TKill aka Usual Guy #2) tries to act urban, but fails.
All I will say is that was kinda funny, and a pretty good start to a pretty good episode.
After the usual (speaking of which, dammit, Darrell Hammond really opened up and shined this time; he said everyone’s names with pomp, circumstance, moxie, spunk and power, and I just love that), JK (best known from the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films, The Legend of Korra, the Farmers Insurance ads and Growing Up Fisher, a show on NBC that got cancelled [screw them for that]) is on stage for for his monologue, which is pretty much a mock of his movie "Whiplash", in which he plays a character that snaps at people into playing the drums correctly. (I didn't see the film so bear with me for that)
During the week of prep, he gets close with KyMoo & Lil Aidy, and they begin making a song based on the stupid blizzard that never happened. JK then becomes a diva when Kyle does the wrong pitch.
He also does this Pete Dave and LesJones before also scaring Aidy off as well.
His tirades were really funny and his well-known technique of screaming made it priceless. And even though I've seen him play them before, Fred Armisen playing drums is magnificent.
In this Pre-Tape tied to the big game, a group of football fans (some of the male members & JKS) are ready for snacks and one of the guys’ wife (Nessa B) comes in with a fix’in: Totino’s Pizza Rolls. And when the food is given, she retreats to the kitchen...with nothing else to do...barely to return again.
Another genius pre-tape here, mocking commercials where women give the snacks to the men...and then go away. And they're treated like servants and the men their masters. Nessa B did amazing as the wife, who sounds gleefully clueless and unaware (or somewhat aware) of how her husband is terribly treating her in front of his friends, just like every other woman in those commercials. Painful, yet hilarious.
The Sketch After mocks all the major televised beauty pageants (including Miss America, Miss Universe and Miss World) with a pageant dedicated to finding the most disgusting, rancid, unacceptable excuses of human beings, and showing them off to you for your viewing enjoyment (and laughing and pointing).
The sad thing is that these women seem to be aware of the fact that they are skanky, rancid, horrible excuses of human females.
Another sad thing is that I hoped Leslie and Sasheer would be in the sketch, but then I thought it would’ve been too funny, really expected...and racist. Some people believe that Black women being portrayed as skanks on TV would be seen as racist, some said by African Americans themselves. Blacks, don’t defend your own when you know some of your own is just like then, only worse. Here's an example:
Anyway, this was very funny and, while not imaginative, it’s just a great mocking of pageants. I wish there was another sketch making fun of the sexist nature and bubble-brained contestants of pageants, just because.
Reese De’What returns, and like his last appearance, it was just as funny. This time, as host of “Cinema Classics”, he brings us a just-released alternate version of the ending of “Casablanca”.
I thought the gag with Kate Mc as Ilsa saying “No” in a whiny, thick accent was funny at first, until I kept hearing the audience laughing at it as if it was the best thing of the night, which made it get old really quickly. Needless to say, that was a really good skit. Kate was awesome as Ilsa and JK did a great job as Rick. So yeah, one of the best of the night.
After it, a pre-tape lampooning the recent blizzard storm that never was.
Teachers are celebrating when students are staying home with the handful of snow as excuse.
It was a “meh” kind. There were a few here or there, but the jokes weren’t funny enough to sustain the whole thing. Fortunately, things picked up when JK came in as the school’s principal.
“Pushie: the Big Annoying Pain with Feelings”
A man is typing a birthday card to a friend, but is stopped by Pushie (Moyni), an annoying computer animation designed to help PC users with a problem on Microsoft products.
This one was hilarious, spoofing the paper clip of the same sort that also annoyed millions with its presence.
The bouncy, happy disposition Bobby displayed was surprisingly refreshing, despite what he was meant to play. And when he was almost offed--literally, he displayed some good enough dramatic acting to make me feel sorry for him, and it was good.
The “Murder Pushie” part was dark, and did make me feel sad for a little bit (thanks to Bobby doing a great job being a sad Pushie), but also funny. And I admit, even though I thought it would happen and would’ve laughed had he actually go through with it, I was happy when the guy did not murder Pushie; he was kinda cool.
This next pre-tape is genius. Taking whitewashing in movies to a ridiculous new level, with "The Jay-Z Story". Trust me when I say...this is fucking hilarious.
Writer Mike O'Brien escaped the writers hole once again to star as Hova, with Jason Sudeikis as Kanye West and JK as Nas. This one is impossibly hilarious, with the genius element being that the white actors don't even try to be Black guys.
I loved the idea of O"Brien and his short film sketches this season. I'm still creeped out by "Grow-A-Guy", but this concept just might work wonders along with the rest of the great pre-tape boom of this season. I'd love to see another of these before the season ends, so please, Lorne and the producers, give Mike another one of these soon.
In the Five-to-One sketch, it’s Career Day and a dad (JKS) comes to his son Jake (Pete Dave)’s class talk about his career...which is a food fetish performer.
The only thing I can remember fondly about it is “American Boy who Eats in The Manner of a Pig”, and that may not be a good thing. The only laugh I gave was that little “Uh-Huh” from Jake. It was really creepy for the class, teachers and the two adults to find something comforting about this guy’s career and praise it like something deserving of an Academy Award. I found something deserving of a puke bucket.
I understamd where SNL is going with an odd concept for a sketch, but to make it work, it needs to have a certain element of humor to go along with it. This sketch does not have that element. I felt just as disgusted and embarrassed as Jake with this skit. Disgusted for obvious reasons, and disgusted for watching this more than once for this review. But to be honest, if I would do this job to get paid $45K, I'd do it. Screw my dignity...as long as it not in front of a televised audience.
This week's musical has been in music for 20+ years now, and have become a huge part of the Neo-Soul genre along with Maxwell, Lauryn Hill and Erykah Badu. But he has only two albums made, before his pesonal life spiraled out of control. Fortunately, he's done great, and has gone back into music in a big way. And has released a critally-acclaimed third album with some really wonderful music we've heard tonight.
He's D'Angelo
First up, “Really Love”.
I’ll say this about the performance and song: I can’t explain it how I feel about it. The beat is perfect, perfect for a slow dance or a nice jam at a party or at home.
The performance by his band, Black Messiah, was so damn great; the string performers did amazing, the guitar man was awesome and the drum work was perfectly smooth. And D’angelo’s vocals (along with those of the backup singer woman’s) bring it all together. And the backup singer woman at the beginning speaking low-volume Spanish? Made me hot under the collar.
And finally, The Charade.
This performance garnered a lot of interest from everyone because the stage. The members of The Vanguard wore black shirts with white-colored phrases on them that say either “Black Lives Matter” or “I Can’t Breathe”, which are based on the incidents surrounding the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner and there is a tape outline on the stage floor. This was a bold statement from the guy and his band and had us talking for the good. Oh, and the song rocked! Big time. The guitar work was awesome, the vocals were great and the message was powerful and clear.
D’Angelo’s back, he’s still got it, and he let it all on stage.
Time For an Update:
Part 1:
Part 2:
All I can say is, Jost has no reason to go to quinceneras, and should never go. I guess there’s more to that dull personality than he wants to let on?
Also, I felt a nice edge to Che during his riff on Black History Month Post Office stamps; felt like something he’d work on at The Daily Show. Really good (maybe because of the mention of the Maury Show, which suckered me in, but whatever).
Two recurring Update characters appeared again this week.
First up, One-Dimensional Female Character (played by CecStrong), who discussed her thoughts on this years’ Super Bowl. She had some good laughs, but her time here was a bit weaker than last time, which was impossible, but I thought ODFC wasn’t a very strong character (pun intended) for Strong.
Jebediah Atkinson is back! One of my favorite Update characters returned for what made him so popular: his bitingly hilarious critiques of everything TV, music and film. All while being a man from the 1800s who somehow lived long enough on hate to reach this millenium.
His opinions on the Grammy Awards nominees were painfully hysterical and deliciously heartbreaking. I’ve never enjoyed a character who can dish out brutal honestly for laughs like him.
And, Really, Audience? You know who Jebediah is, and you know what his jokes are about. So don’t so sensitive about his jokes when they are tame compared to even the least crude TV shows.
Favorite Sketches:
-Pushie
-Cinema Classics
Best Pre-Tapes:
The Jay-Z Story
Totino's Ad
Worst Sketches:
-Career Day
-Miss Trash
I loved JK’s performance as a straight man of a sort in the sketches, yet says some very absurd things while being serious. He has that energy from his other famous roles and puts them into these roles in the sketches. Most of them were good with the only truly terrible ones being Miss Trash and Career Day.
Once again Kate McKinnon shined this week, mostly from her role as Ilsa in the "Cinema Classics" skit. Seriously saying "No!" in that way and her clear aware tone was hilarious. Kate has that talent to shine above everyone else and become one of the most popular cast members of this era.
Also doing the most laughs is Bobby Moynihan, thanks to being Pushie. I know I've said a lot about him this season so far for being on overused cast member, but this time he's appeared relatively smaller this time, with the most prominence being a couple lines in a few sketches, and of course as Pushie, but it's as Pushie that made me fond of him this time. I actually enjoyed his presence and I also used that role as an metaphor meaning that I wish he'd get lesser screentime, but then he played Pushie, and I wanted him more. Thanks a lot, Moyni! You got me to want more from you down the road! I hope you're happy! Thanks.
So folks, SNL will be in a small hiatus during February. Why? Because it's got a big day ahead of it.
It's 40th Anniversary Special is coming up on the 15th! Past SNL cast members return to the studio that made them household names and famous comedic actors to reminesce on the sketches they love and moments that everyone will love to hear about. I can't wait to watch and you have to too.
See you later for another SNL40 Review.
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