If seeing Tracy Morgan's triumphant return to Studio 8H was the moment we all wanted to see this year, then this is the
complete opposite. This was something we all never asked for, never wanted and never wished on our worst enemy. But we all have it, and it's Lorne and the producers to blame. Thanks, guys.
But I'm in a good mood. This season has been really good, writing and performance-wise, with some minor hiccups here and there, so I'm not complaining too much. So I won't let Donald Trump ruin my vibe going on. I mean, he's funny and entertaining at times, and can be less of an annoying ignorant jackass of a politician.
So let's do this.
A wiseman once said, “
Frustration is the result of failed expectations.“.
Another wiseman once said, “
Be wise today so you don't cry tomorrow.“.
A third wiseman once said, “
You shouldn't throw stones if you live in a glass house and if you got a glass jaw, you should watch yo mouth: cause I'll break yo face.”
And a fourth Wiseman once said, “
You know Flip flops are my thang.”
But if what we're going into today is any indication, it's clear that the host of this past week's
SNL isn't much of a wiseman. At least since he ran for President.
The man we're discussing is Donald Trump, who this year has become more controversial than the last few seasons of
Family Guy, Madonna post-
Music, and any of Harmony Korine's movies combined (and it's clear that none of these are worth batting eyes for), what with his illogical policies, incorrect and racist comments towards Mexicans and immigrants in general (among other races), his childish and pathetic rants toward his fellow Republican candidates (among others), and the many other reasons why it's clear that he wouldn't (and shouldn't) be our 45th President. And yet, there are people out there who love his every word, thought and presence, and want him in the White House. And a reason why NBC has welcomed him back with open arms with this long return to Studio 8H for this quick gig of hosting Episode 4.
But it's obvious: the ratings, the revenue, and the potential popularity this show needs. I don't blame them for that. But I do have a problem in that they're stooping this low for potential eyes toward this episode. That they’d go this far for headlines on TV, social media and in print. It's baffling and even sickening.
Lemme get you in on a little secret: I used to like Donald Trump. He was a cool, upstanding, witty, smart and sometimes endearing man (at least when I didn't know of the reprehensible crap he did years ago).
And then he announced that he was running for president, and all of that went down the drain. And now, he hosting Episode 4, something not many people asked for and will only begrudgingly enjoy when it's over.
The opening is on a Forum televised on MSNBC. Host Rachel Maddow talks with the three Candidates we still know about including the two we still care about.
After a couple questions with Martin O’Malley, the sketch changes immediately to Hillary Clinton (I thought she was making more of a small Ellen impression) and Bernie Sanders.
This was boring as all hell. The pacing was slow. The jokes were not very funny or strong. I nearly fell asleep before the end. I mean, what is there more to say?
It’s clear that Wheeler/TKill weren’t going to be there that long, so let’s skip him. Cecily did fine as Rachel Maddow, but let’s skip her too.
Kate McK/Hillary was not on her/her A-Game since the last time. You can feel it in her voice as the jokes were a little limp like her trying to sit in, but she still did good in performance.
Lastly, thank the Gods Larry David returned to save this sketch. It wasn’t his fault I didn’t laugh as much this time because of the boredom and weakness going on throughout, but fortunately, he was good in keeping our spirits up. Also, I got a good kick out of his rendition of the show’s catchphrase “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night!” by just giving up and stopping halfway with “
Eh, you get it”, driving home his “I don’t give a damn, I’m old” parody of Sanders’ behavior.
Overall, if David wasn’t there as Sanders (which wouldn’t have been a possibility anyway), this CO would’ve been horrible.
Donald did his Monologue, and...while it’s what you expect (him talking about himself, his running for President, his business, yadda yadda yadda), it wasn’t all the way bad.
I surely got great kick out of him mistaking Aidy Bryant for his long-suffering nemesis Rosie O’Donnell (I couldn’t ), TKill reprising his role impersonating him (still good) and announcer Darrell Hammond also reprising his role as Trump, which I really enjoyed. But I truly enjoyed David’s appearance during it, poking fun at this: a Latino advocacy group protesting Trump’s hosting gig will pay $5,000 to anyone attending the Live taping in the gist that they will heckle or blast Trump during the show (obviously, that didn’t happen outside the Mono, but I’d really love it if it did). David did that, and the group’s leader said in a statement “Joke or not, ”
Anyway, this wasn’t a terrible Mono. Boring, but was nice to see.
The Sketch After wasn’t so kind.
It takes place in the White House in 2018, at a time where Trump actually won the Presidency.
It was boring, the writing was weak at points, and the performances had not much brevity going around. Things got better as it progressed, with some pretty funny lines and performances. The reveal that his worker is Omarosa (a woman notorious for kissing up to Trump, and no one else, and someone we despise) is one of them.
Plus, it didn’t end on the joke where there were flying pigs or someone asking if others feel a chill in the air. I did hope for that. Oh well, Other than that this skit was pretty meh. And it was clear that the producers were willing to pander to Trump, and the writers really gave their part too.
For Christ’s sake,
he(actually, Lorne) vetoed some sketches and they relented. That says so much.
In this Pre-Taped Sketch, the girls rule! And will do whatever they want, no problems, no repercussions. So what if they...fill up a free cup of water with lemonade, leave a pint of ice cream at the bread aisle or stomp the trash can to not take it out?
They’re grown-ass women, and they take no crap from anyone!
Okay, that was hilarious! Even if the song they used as inspiration for it is more than three years old, it made great effect at making a hilarious subversion of the women we see here. Nothing like what was implied. What all the women did was hilarious, thanks to the song playing in contrast, proving that not all women on Earth stick to restrictions and play by the rules. They live on their own creed. So leave it to them to pay a tip at 20% for shitty service, or get off a busy elevator at the second floor or…
...that.
--
In this next one, Trump decided to take a load off from this one and decides to watch it (a little ditty about a couple celebrating their honeymoon in Italy) like we did from behind the scenes, Live-Tweeting the skit in the process. This little development was interesting, but the result wasn’t as much.
I did enjoy the reactions from the cast, as they wonder what Trump has said about them on Twitter, while soldiering on with the sketch. Also, while the tweets are childish and sophomoric, I can say that the humor from it was the tweets. It’s all based on Trump’s twitter life, which may or may not be more nuanced than what you see here, along with the fact that The Donald is revealing his true colors about the cast (which may or may not be true).
This sketch is the better of the sketches. After a rewatch, I admit I found it more funnier than the last time, and the tweets aren’t as repugnant or repetitive. Whatever.
--
You remember “
Hotline Bling”, right?
That song by Drake with the video that went viral thanks to his corny dance moves, spawning memes, gifs and parodies? Well, it got the SNL treatment, where Drizzy (Jay Pharoah) defends his moves and is quite proud of them, with help from some old guys who do the same thing (but are labelled as bad at it).
Okay, I truly enjoyed this more now than I did the first time. It was funny when Drake defended his moves by doing some even cornier moves, and the old guys did the moves similarly based on them.
I admit, I enjoyed Trump appearing in the sketch, where he even said the famous part of the chorus. And the biggest surprise was seeing Martin Short appear in it, reprising one of his famous characters, Ed Grimley! I don’t know a lot about him (besides being a very weird man), but it surprised me very much, and I damn well enjoyed that too.
This was a really good (and very funny) spoof that’s well-deserved.
--
Rock Band
Ugh.
This was boring, not funny and really stupid. I don’t know why this got cleared after Dress, but apparently this was a hit with the producers. Or maybe it was the better of other sketches that were even more horrible. I don’t know.
--
I don’t know why this happened.
Before Sia's second performance, Trump talked a bit with a crew member about his last hosting gig, where he introduced Toots and the Maytals, with a screen showing the band's performance. Then Toots himself appeared.
Who thought this was perfect to air? Why? I don’t even know. Seriously, watching this frustrated me and left me puzzled. Why this aired makes no sense.
Also...does anyone remember Toots and the Maytals? Are they still relevant?
--
The Former Porn Stars return once again in the final sketch of the episode. And I'll start my thoughts by saying this is one of the better sketches.
They are endorsing Donald Tramp--I mean Trump--I mean Tramp. And of course, malapropisms and hilarity ensue.
Even if it was the same concept you see over and over, it's still hilarious to watch. So, I won't get into specifics.
I had a big kick from Moyni as Ronald McDonald McTrump, especially with his vocal impression of Tramp. Taran does a great job himself as him, but this was just as impressive.
Overall, this wasn't as great as previous installments, but it I can enjoy this better than...the last ones.
--
Sia has also returned to 8H for her repeat performance on the stage. She’s not joined by Maddie Ziegler this time--but I’m sure she’s a star in her own right thanks to her (and Shia LaBeouf, but enough of that), so great for her. Instead, in her stead is an older woman doing the same interpretive dancing as before (except no one is laughing at it) and is probably on her way to success herself.
After her mini-freak show, this would’ve been a downgrade, but I’m not judging the performance on just that.
She performed two songs from newest album--her seventh,
This is Acting.
And like the last time, she knocked it out of the park.
She has a wonderful raw and real voice (which I first mistook for Rihanna during her beginnings), and she sounds much better performing live. Which is why .
Here's "
Alive".
I just love the way she sang the "I'm still breathing" line. The crack in her voice sounds so nice during that. Also, I enjoyed the vocals of the background choir singers behind her. I know her voice is brilliant on its own, but their inclusion was a lovely touch, too. What wasn't lovely, though, was the incessant cuts of the camera back to Sia, when the point of the performance is to show the dancer. Since Sia doesn't show her face (which is covered by anything she'll throw over her head), we must look only listen to her singing and at other things in her performances. Sure, she wasn't that great, but that's the point
Also the eyes on her cheeks and the big-ass blue bow were really distracting.
And finally, "
Bird Set Free".
This song is about one's insecurity and weakness, failing to speak its mind in a world of cruel people and disappointment, until the time comes for one to have the strength to speak and feel content with its now-open voice. I enjoyed this a lot. Sia's vocals had that emotion and intensity busting out, and you can feel them seeping in inside. The lyrics well represent people with problems of self-esteem and self-worth, and tells them "You can say whatever you feel, and be content with yourself. You just need the strength, and you have it."
Plus, the dancer does a much better job here than during "Alive", perfectly encapsulating these personal problems of human life in art form. I felt like tearing from watching it.
This was the better performance of the two, and I say well done to Ms. Furler for another brilliant
SNL set.
Time for an Update:
You know, usually when a episode aired last season, it's usually said most of the time that Update is among the worst offerings,. Not anymore, as it has gotten better. And since this episode has been crap, it has to be better, and it was.
Part 1:
Part 2:
Wraparound:
Last time he hosted, he was funny, and took every sling at him in stride and jest. And watching it back then, I really, really enjoyed
