SNL 2/5

Yeah, a lot of the new running sketches (anything Wiig-related) are awful, so I guess it's nice nostalgia to have a throwback night like that. And I agree on Pharoah - the Eddie Murphy killed last night.

 

When Eddie was on, the dreadful Jean Doumanian was exec producer his first season and then it was Dick Ebersol. Eddie basically took the show over at that point with his sketches, but that was about the only thing that saved a god-awful 1980-81 season.

I don't know if they're afraid to showcase Jay more for fear this might happen, but he should get more airtime than he does now. He could be their next breakout star.

 

had time to give this issue thought while watching dvr today: i get the feeling lorne likes to 'hold back' his lesser-known talents when they break into the cast, for reasons known only to him (to keep egos soothed, allow audience to get acquainted with newbie and pining for more, transition, whatever). with armisen (thankfully) leaving after this season, the door flies open for pharoah to take over his face time (and the obama impersonation they've stubbornly allowed armisen to maintain).

my theory on armisen is that his colleagues and lorne must think he's a comic genius before his time who the rest of us haven't come to appreciate yet. i mean, between his prominent role on 'snl' for all these years and his new show ifc is championing, there sure seems to be a joke in here the rest of us aren't getting.

 

Without actually having seen the show last night, I have no doubt that it was was genuinely hilarious, but it seems a little pathetic that they felt like they had to do some form of throwback show. A dimestore psychologist, or cynical, bottom-line ratings hog, could have a field day with that.

I think your theory on Armisen is valid, shockey, lacking any other possible explanation short of extortionary photos. I saw a promo for his IFC show, and it appears to be just flat-out insipid. I believe he had some false quirky "edginess" that adheres to what Lorne and minions consider a hallmark of the show.

Wiig is the opposite extreme of Pharaoh. Her initial (at the time, deserved) popularity was leaned on as a crutch so heavily that she was thrust into everything just to milk the Wiig effect. Anybody who saw that dreadful, worthless, waste-of-time-and-oxygen Spatalk skit last week would likely attest to that.

 

Way back then I was bartending or bouncing or just generally helping out at a bar and I would tape SNL every week. The gang from the bar would come back to my apartment for eggs and hashbrowns and watch SNL. When the Massive Headwound Harry skit came on, it was easily the closest I have or ever will come to dying laughing.

 

I mean no disrespect to Hartman, Belushi, Murphy, Aykroyd, Chase, Murray or any of the other greats who have been on SNL.

Carvey is the best to ever be on that show... By a mile...

 

Yeah. Carvey probably had the most versatile talent perfectly suited to the format.

 

Yeah, he is a master impressionist who could also write his own original bits. He was also so good that the best bits that some of the others wrote, they wrote for him to be in as well.

 

Yes, Carvey's turn as guest host made for a great show. But I'm just wondering. Ten years from now when our kids are watching SNL, will they enjoy seeing Seth Myers and Fred Armisen brought back as guest hosts and wax nostalgic too?

Maybe we're just getting old, remembering how things were better when we were young and kick-ass edgy.

 

Do you get warm fuzzies for the greatest hits of Chris Kattan?

 

I would hope not. I've had some huge arguments with my uncle about which cast was better, the original one of the ones that Carvey sang about in this week's monologue, but he still acknowledges that Carvey is great.

I could see people talking about Pharoah and Samberg's digital shorts a decade from now, but nothing beyond those.

20 years ago the best skits involved the cast. Today, the best skits usually involve the host or a guest star. I could see people in 20 years talking about how great Timberlake and Baldwin and to a lesser extent Affleck are as guests, the same way we did about Steve Martin and Tom Hanks.

 

I thought Kattan was awful, but he's better than at least 75 percent of the current cast.