saturday night live

[Gamblour.]

Wow, I mean I'm not a big fan of U2, they're getting old and stuff, but they fucking rocked SNL. That was an awesome ending performance.

I finally watch SNL and no one's here with an analysis already    

Let's see...

The opening sketch was ok, they spelled out the Apprentice-rip a little too much. Darrell Hammond is awesome as Rumsfeld. Luke Wilson and Sanz had a lot of potential, I think they blew a lot of the jokes. I wasn't too impressed with Wilson, I love him as an actor, but he seemed to lack the comedic timing and emphasis.

Debbie Downer was ok, kinda sloppy, the sound effects being goofy gets old pretty quick. Weekend Update was funny, I loved the janitor bit. It was so awkward and understated, great joke. The coolest teacher skit was HILARIOUS. I love Seth Meyers and Sanz throwing the desk was so stupid, awesome. I'm trying to think....there was a really stupid sketch, I think it was The Falconer I was totally unimpressed with, but I'm not sure. The Falconer was horrible, I don't dig Forte too much. American Trainwreck was by far the best, having the basketball team come out was classic.

The two guys feeding each other, again ok but kinda sloppily written, could've been really funny. The last skit was funny, good structure and a good punchline. I know I missed some skits.

[RegularKarate]

That was so hilariously wrong...

Opening skit was the worst of the entire show (Forte is a horrible Bush), but luckily, it didn't go long... monologue was boring and akward too.  After a rocky start though.. not bad...

This was definitely one of the better SNLs as of late.  I thought Wilson did a decent job and even managed to keep a pretty straight face most of the time.

Falconer was one of the better Falconers, but maybe I'm a sucker for Dogs.

U2 BLEW... they were so boring and predictable yet still attempted to be fresh and shockingly rock and roll... Lame

The drunk guys sketch at the end was really well done... really liked it.

[Gamblour.]

Falconer was one of the better Falconers, but maybe I'm a sucker for Dogs.

U2 BLEW... they were so boring and predictable yet still attempted to be fresh and shockingly rock and roll... Lame

Falconer...I dunno, I cannot see how it was funny at all. Just too dumb, animals, puppets, subtitles, not my thing. Seemed to easy. Then again, I haven't seen any Falconer skits before.

I really disagree about U2, I can't see how their attempts at being fresh can come off as boring and predictable. Sure you can call it lame, but it's not boring nor predictable to be unpredictable. I thought it was cool that they kept playing...I was weighing whether or not they were just being masturbatory about playing more, but I think they were just trying to put on a good show, which they did. There was nothing wrong with it. I'll say that their music is predictable, but it's good music, and their performance was great.

That was so hilariously wrong...

Sorry my opinion didn't meet your criteria for being correct.

[ono]

I pretty much agree with RK here.  Cold opening was weak.  Falconer was good.  U2 was bad.  Hate that song - "uno, dos, tres, catorce is horrible" -- learn to count, it's not cute.  The ending was kind of decent, though I wish they would've done another sketch.  Such a waste hearing a third (and the start of a fourth) U2 song when there were many sketches I'm sure were cut.

Gamblor, I think RK was replying to your last line re: the guys feeding each other.  He wasn't knocking you or anything.  And don't judge Falconer until you've seen more of them.  It's a recurring sketch that gets exponentially funnier the more you see of them.

More to come in my fun-sucking (or enhancing, depending on who's reading) commentary.

[Gamblour.]

Ahhhhhhhhh
damn

I knew I misread that. I just wanted someone to jab me.

RK? Confirm? Disconfirm? Know your quote function so I don't get confused next time.

I don't think it was a waste hearing a third song. It was cool to see the cast get so into it. And I will give Falconer another shot.

[ono]

Luke Wilson / U2 - here we go.  Cold opening was weak, less said the better.  Neither Forte nor Hammond can do Bush.  No one can touch Ferrell's Bush, but I'd like to see Armisen take a crack at it.  I used to like the Apprentice.  Was an interesting, informative concept, but when the parodies are weak, you can tell that there's something wrong with the show, and the people doing the parodies need to work on their writing.

The monologue was awkward.  They're not Conan; staged pictures aren't funny.  I did like how they threw in that Colin Farrell would be coming in a few weeks.

Debbie Downer was just bad, cementing my belief that had the first one not been a disaster, it wouldn't have been too funny either.  The trumpet/trombone/whatever needs to go.  It kills whatever jokes that could be funny.  The running feline AIDS joke is nice.  When I first heard it repeated, I thought the writers just goofed.  Now I know it was intentional.  There are a lot of gags that could have been better.  Thinking about it now, the sketch just suffers from poor direction, and these technical things, when ironed out, would greatly improve the sketch if they insist on keeping it.

It was about this time that I thought SNL had lost it, this was gonna be a horrible episode.  Then the American Trainwreck Awards aired.  Second best sketch of the night.  Poehler and Rudolph were just perfect as Anna Nicole and Diana Ross.  I don't feel like killing any great lines for you, just see the sketch.  Dratch and Meyers were also great as Tara Reid and Mickey Rourke.  Dratch dropping her dress was great.  And Armisen as Danza was good as well.  Riggle was great as Keith, ditto for Wilson as Grobin.  Pacers VS. Pistons was a perfect ending.  It was simple enough to throw that in at the last minute, but still impressive.

TV Funhouse - I can't remember the last one of these (besides McCain) that really killed.  Pat O'Brien might have been one, though I know a lot of people hated it.  This was just perfect, though.  Great pairings of people, and the sick comedy that Smigel can do so well.  The irony is delicious.

Feeding Frenzy - Decent enough sketch.  Thought it would be one of my faves, but there was a lot of better stuff tonight.  That's not saying this was bad or anything.  It was truly funny, and hilariously wrong, as RK said.

U2 - Vertigo - Again, learn to count, it's not cute.  I think I hate that song only because I see that commercial way too much.

Weekend Update - "Cheney is the finger" and "Once you go black..."  Hehe.  I am so sick of Schwarzenegger, though.  Every other line is "and all of these things."  Besides being a horrible choice for president anyway, I hope he doesn't get a chance to get elected so we don't have to sit through the campaign years and then another four more years of this.

"Doi-yoi-yoi-yoi-yoing!"  "And that's this week's story that won't make sense to my mom."  "And of course, I was in line behind him."  I thought I'd just go ahead and kill all the best lines of WU for a change.  Maya as the janitor was priceless.  That one I won't kill for anyone who still wants to enjoy it.  Who the fuck is Maureen Dowd?  Roth as EMT?  Okay, they're stretching it.  Amy has a good voice.  She'd be a good spokeswoman for Amtrak.  Or not.  WU was kinda weak though.  Hate to say it, but it's true.  What saved it was Armisen and Poehler with that "Bump It!" game.

The Coolest Teacher at Benton Township High School - Feh.  This sketch had potential but I didn't really dig it.  Horatio throwing the chair and going overboard with everything (this is worse than Nazi Germany!) was pretty funny.  His cracking up wasn't.  It's not right unless Fallon's there to crack up with him.  That's my double-standard and I'm sticking to it.  Loved the look on Sanz's face when he opened the beer.  "Are you still gonna take me to get my abortion?  With a smile on my face."  Overall, an okay sketch.  If it recurrs, it could be good, but this one wasn't too hot.

The Falconer - This was pretty great, even as Falconer sketches go.  "By Dire Straits I do not mean the rock band, but the band of rocks that have come to rest upon my body."  Great line, very good writing.  "Noooo!  More rocks!"  Didn't catch what Forte yelled to Donald as he flew off.  But really, how often DOES a state fair come around?  Loved the dart, the photo booth, the cotton candy, the pie, the dog eating vomit.  And the "arms" as they rode the rollercoaster as the falcon screeched in terror.

U2 - Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own - Yawn.  Sounded decent, but was also kind of dull.

Another Round of Drinks - Best sketch of the night, and again, it's stuck way back at the end of the show.  I always love when sketches are either schizophrenic or repetitive, doubling back on themselves and elaborating on previous jokes.  This is a prime example of everything coming together: directing, writing, and the intangible comedic element.  Starts off slow, but it needs that time to get going.  I was rolling by the end.  Kenan's pitch-perfect delivery always helps.  Wilson proved his worth, and Meyers was indispensible.

Sidenote, I loved that last picture of Wilson with that black eye, and the sign with the date of the show around his neck.  So random.

U2 - I Will Follow - This song was a little better, only because Bono interacted with the audience.  Like when he gave that random chick a lap dance, and when he hugged Amy.  Like Gamblor said, I did like seeing the cast get into the song.  It was cool to see U2 start a fourth song before the show ended -- U2 are real crowd pleasers.  But it's a sketch comedy show first, and I wanted another sketch.

Rob Riggle is finally making his presence known, which is great.  He shone as Toby Keith and the gay dude in the feeding sketch.  More of that, please.  Fix Debbie Downer before everyone hates it.  And Fix Bush.  Forte is great but he isn't working.  Good episode where the good outweighs the bad, but that dead weight needs to be removed.

[Gamblour.]

I'm really impressed with Kenan's transition from All That to SNL. He does have great delivery. A lot of the show's problems, oddly enough, is the directing, the talent's there, but the technical side is lacking. To add to the Trainwreck skit, there was a great subtle joke with Diana Ross (maybe it wasn't, but I felt proud catching it), when Maya jiggle Anna Nicole's breast, like Ross did to Lil Kim on MTV. That had me crack up.

[classical gas]

sorry....but topical humor blows!  especially if it's so flagrant as this show is.  same thing happened to the simpsons.  and has always hurt 'south park'.  
why can't humor stand outside of what's happening around us and analyze it in a new, creative spin?  
come on, they had the pacers and pistons fighting while anna nicole was babbling at the microphone....it was funny when it happened first and in it's original context, i don't need a complete repeat of it.  and U2 ain't so bad.

[Pubrick]

and U2 ain't so bad.

u were almost making sense there for a second..

[hedwig]

i saw that show last night and it was so bad i thought it was mad tv

[london]

I didnt see the show and now i wish i had.  Although I am not a die hard U2 fan,  I am continually impressed by their efforts.  They have been around for so long and have still maintained a sense of balance, if you know what i mean.  They may catch up to the Stones eventually.  I didnt know that this is their catorce album.  Jeez.

[edison]

Hate that song - "uno, dos, tres, catorce is horrible" -- learn to count, it's not cute.  

I read that they say 1,2,3,14 because it has something to do with Steve Lillywhite producing those specific discs of theirs, so yeah it may sound weird but they do it for a reason.

[grand theft sparrow]

U2 BLEW... they were so boring and predictable yet still attempted to be fresh and shockingly rock and roll... Lame

U2 was bad. Hate that song - "uno, dos, tres, catorce is horrible" -- learn to count, it's not cute.

U2 - Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own - Yawn. Sounded decent, but was also kind of dull.

and U2 ain't so bad.

u were almost making sense there for a second.

Ah, U2.  So big that no one likes them anymore.

[ᾦɐļᵲʊʂ]

i saw that show last night and it was so bad i thought it was mad tv

I made the same comparison watching it with some friends.

Like Debbie Downer.  Went on for way too long, just as every MADTV skit does, and a lot of the skits dry out fast.

Also, I thought that Fun With Real Audio was supposed to be... Real Audio.  I don't watch it much lately, but it was obvious that they just made it up, and then put a cartoon to it.  Which again, was way too MADTV for me.

[ono]

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler will be on Leno tonight (11/30).