Tag Archives: Kenan Thompson

2010/10/25 · 3:39 pm

‘SNL’ & Emma Stone: The Next Generation

First, let’s just get it out of the way and say that Emma Stone, whether or not she had (Easy) A material, was excellent in her first, of hopefully many, SNL hosting gig.  Running the gamut from an uninterested sweepstakes winner to Lindsay Lohan to a Ke$ha-like pop-tart to a French hipster to a fixated teen to a hoochie spokesmodel, Stone was pretty flawless.  What was written for or around her wasn’t always top-notch, but she was, and we think her debut was even more impressive than that of her BFF Taylor Swift last season, even if that one might have elicited a bigger buzz.  Many have compared Stone to Lohan (as happened in the episode itself, and on this blog); let’s hope that she continues on the path of Lohan’s early career, which includes hosting this show many times, BUT then let’s pray that Stone goes left where Lohan turned right, eventually veering totally off the tracks.  However, despite her charms, it wasn’t Stone that left us with the greatest impression.

Read on: SNL the new class? Plus, what sketch did they rip off this week???

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2010/10/11 · 2:05 pm

‘SNL’: Plain Jane

Not that Jane Lynch was sub-par in her first (of hopefully many) outing as host of SNL,  quite the contrary, but it’s that, once again, the material failed to live up to the vast talents of the host.  It’s confusing, bewildering and frustrating that they keep wasting their resources.  Perhaps, as we felt with the Zach Galifianakis show last season, the writing staff is actually less motivated by a talented host; they rely on the host to elevate the material, so what they deliver is second-rate.  It’s just a theory, and probably misguided and misinformed, but you also can’t ignore the body of evidence, because, while this week’s show was better than last week, it wasn’t a great improvement.  We saw plenty of Jane Lynch (and plenty of wigs), but nothing truly memorable.

Read on: Gilly on Glee? Is that all you got? Also: who did SNL rip-off this week?

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2010/09/08 · 6:39 pm

‘SNL’ Shake-Ups & Sensationalism: Slate & Sudeikis

It’s hard to believe that a year has passed by since we waved goodbye to Michaela Watkins (we hardly knew ye) and Casey Wilson (probably for the best) and welcomed with skeptical arms the rookies Jenny Slate and Nasim Pedrad.  And it’s sad to report that a year later we’re already saying goodbye to the former of that dynamic young duo.  And once again, the changes are sure to raise eyebrows.  However, this time around, we don’t have a good theory as to what precipitated the moves.

With Will Forte’s departure two weeks ago the whispers began to circulate and the dominoes began to fall.  Except, they really didn’t fall so much as erect themselves next to already firmly planted playing pieces, with Taran Killam (best known from Scrubs), Paul Brittain and Vanessa Bayer from the iO Chicago, and Jay Pharoah, a comedian and talented impressionist, joining the cast, while veterans Andy Samberg, Jason Sudeikis, Kenan Thompson – rumored to possibly be following Forte out the door – remain (as of press time) at their posts.  So it came as a bit of a shock when word got out yesterday that the show had released a cast member, but not one of its established male veterans with s burgeoning film careers (or even Kristen Wiig, who may have already over-stayed her welcome a season or two), but, instead, Slate, who had only put in a season’s worth of work.

Now, if you recall last year’s history lesson on women & SNL, you’ll recall that going into the season with four women (Slate, Pedrad, Wiig & Abby Elliott most recently) was on the high side.  In fact, going a whole season with four veteran female cast members is just about as good as it’s ever been on the show.  So, with the addition of Bayer, it’s not surprising that SNL & head honcho Lorne Michaels decided to cut loose a lady.  It was a numbers game.  That we understand.  But then why add one in the first place?

Read on: The curious case of Jenny Slate. Also, Jason Sudeikis is the new Ben Affleck.

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2010/04/17 · 1:49 pm

‘SNL’: Say Fey Kid

(Title allusion here)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you probably know that Tina Fey has a new movie out.  Between her appearances on Oprah, Live!, and Late Night (leaving behind a wake of Jamie Foxx-Oprah rumors and charades losses), she’s been pounding the pavement drumming up excitement for Date Night.  The last stop on the promotional tour was coming home to host SNL.  However, in a way, it has  seemed like her talk show visits have also been to build enthusiasm for her return to studio 8H.  The means were also the end.  And with tween phenomenon Justin Bieber rounding out the card as musical guest, this SNL, the first in a month,  was shaping up to be a special instance of a white-hot host meets a white-hot musical act.

Did the show live up to expectations?  I’d have to say no, especially after getting off to a slow start with a census-centered cold opening that probably wouldn’t have been funny three weeks ago when it was still relevant.  And there weren’t any real knock out, “holy water cooler” sketches later in the show.  But there was a sense of excitement with Fey and Bieber in the house, and what may have lacking in humor was made up for with a bit of electricity.

More: Who’s more evil, Sarah Palin or the Devil?

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2010/01/17 · 11:23 pm

‘SNL’ & Sigourney Weaver: Old Tricks AKA The Worst ‘SNL’ of the Decade

Well, at least they’re consistent.  These days every good SNL episode (see: last week’s Charles Barkley affair) is almost always immediately followed by an underwhelming effort.  Despite the buzz they drummed up last week,  and the return of Sigourney Weaver (coming back after 23+ years, the longest such stretch between hosting gigs in SNL history), they once again did not disappoint when it comes to disappointing.

Sometimes it’s lazy writing.  Sometimes it’s bad writing.  Sometimes it’s just bad ideas.  This episode had all three.

With all the attention paid last week to the drama in late night television (including on this blog), it was only natural that they would use the fiasco as fodder.  Indeed, it was encouraging at first to see Darrell Hammond return to play Jay Leno on a Larry King Live cold open.  But where the sketch succeeded in mocking King’s senility and misappropriation of social networking tools, it kind of failed in effectively mocking the late night situation.  There was the big chinned, high voice Leno impression we’ve seen everywhere (although, big points on the denim on denim outfit), and Bill Hader turned in a weird, detached, dour Conan O’Brien.  I understood that they were showing that O’Brien is the powerless victim in this situation, but they didn’t seem to get a handle on his personality (if he wasn’t going to be the crazy Conan we know, he should have been the sharp, assertive pugilist of his mission statement).  It was especially discouraging because Conan honed his chops as a writer on SNL (see: the Lady Watchers). He’s part of the family, so you’d think they could have done him justice.  The best impression was probably Jason Sudeikis’ David Letterman, who appeared via satellite.  Except, that it was the wrong David Letterman persona for this situation.  It was basically Norm MacDonald’s beloved (by us) hyena laughed, self-indulgent, pencil throwing Letterman impression (he of “you got any gum???).  And although Sudeikis did it well, throughout the late night debacle we’ve seen the other Letterman, the outraged, seething, vitriolic Dave.  Obviously, it’s not as broad of an impression, but it could have worked if they tried.  Instead, they took the easy way out.  And, come to think of it, Fred Armisen’s Larry King also owes a lot to Norm MacDonald’s own King impression (but I guess this is perhaps a topic for another post; how, after being on the air for 35 years, it’s impossible for previous versions of celebrity impressions on SNL to not to color the imitations of the same personas by new cast members).  So, really, this sketch was just a testament to the unheralded work of Norm MacDonald.  Although, that all being said, it was definitely one of the strongest opens this season.

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Keep reading: More Jaypocalypse jokes, Alien Vs. Laser Cats, and the worst sketch of the decade!

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2010/01/11 · 2:52 am

Charles Barkley Hosts the Best ‘SNL’ of the Decade! No Foolin’!

Alright, that headline is an obvious and deliberately misleading statement, you got me.  However, even more than being technically correct, this weekend’s show actually earned the distinction.  I previously stated my disbelief over the choice of Barkley, NBA Hall of Famer, current commentator and compulsive gambler, as the first SNL host of the decade.  It not only seemed completely out of left field, but even if Barkley was relevant among SNL‘s core demographic, you’d think they would have still chosen someone hipper, funnier and actually from a performing background for the first show.  At least save Sir Charles for 2010 week 2.

But I was wrong.  What I failed to realize is that Barkley was likely to succeed precisely because of his limitations.  It’s the extreme version of Christopher Walken or John Malkvovich, where the fact that it’s the host in a specific role is more of the joke than the sketch itself.  And with Barkley being a good sport ex-athlete instead of an eccentric actor, the writing staff was able to even more successfully use Barkley’s personality and performing constraints to his advantage.  It’s like the Jets plotting a game plan whereby Mark Sanchez has to just manage the game, hand off the ball for the majority of the snaps and avoid turnovers (bet you didn’t see that sports analogy coming.  Well, some of us care about football 3 weeks out of the year.  Mostly for the nachos).  And this is different from writing for an actor who just isn’t particularly talented when it comes to comedy.  Despite her SNL showing, January Jones is still a better acting talent than Charles Barkley; it’s just that SNL could use Barkley’s weaknesses to its advantage.  With Jones they could only try to minimize the damage by having her look pretty and leave the funny to the cast.

All those platitudes aside, while it was a surprisingly good episode by SNL standards, it wasn’t wall-to-wall successful, and I’d still rather see a host earn the laughs with natural comic ability as opposed to lack of it.  However, Barkley really was impressive, and set the bar high for 2010 (tall guy joke!).

More: Highlights! Racism! Cake! Chopping Broccoli!

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2009/12/21 · 7:47 pm

Have We Entered The Age of Kenan?

We’ve talked about the groundswell of support that has erupted around Kenan Thompson for his work  on SNL this season, and that “What Up With That?” has perhaps become the premier recurring sketch of the season so far, and while we don’t quite buy into all the buzz, there’s no denying he’s having his best season yet.  With his stock at record levels, he was the subject of a profile over at NY Mag, ostensibly cementing this as his breakout season.  Apparently even Lorne Michaels agrees, remarking that “Kenan’s on fire this season.”  Makes sense that Lorne would have a spot for Thompson, because while Thompson has found his groove, there were many sketches in previous years in which Kenan seemed out-of-place, like the SNL intern, incongruous to the rest of the sketch.  Those moments usually resulted some in some of laughter too, but more because they were stilted Kenan Thompson cameos, and not organic comedy.  Now he’s truly enmeshed in the sketches and earning the laughs. Now while we  don’t necessarily agree with any Kenan Thompson “MVP” chants (our allegiance, obviously, belongs to Jason Sudeikis), we’re starting to forgive him for “Deep House Dish” (but there’s still a long way to go).

But let’s not focus on the present, or even the future.  Let’s look back at the past.

And while we’re in the wayback machine, here’s an interview with Thompson I conducted five years ago this month just prior to the release of Fat Albert, and when Thompson was just midway through his 2nd season on SNL.  Interestingly, when asked about SNL he says “Probably one of the most stressful situations I’ve ever seen in life. But it’s only going to last a couple more years and then after that you can do whatever.”  Well, he’s been on the show for six years now and as he’s just hitting his stride it’s probably going to be a few more before he can do “whatever.”  But after paying his dues all this time and likely growing a little wiser, one must wonder if he feels the same way now.  At the moment, something tells me he’s just enjoying it.  But, you know what, I’ll see if I can’t get a follow-up interview.

NY Mag: What Up With Him?

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2009/12/21 · 3:56 pm

SNL & James Franco Hit Christmas Break Early: You Can’t Squint Funny

It’s getting harder and harder to write these SNL commentaries; not because I don’t have anything to say, but because I’m afraid that I’m going to sound redundant, as it seems that I have the same reaction almost every week.  Occasionally there’s a funny, or at least a buzzworthy, sketch, or a Digital Short that goes viral, or a host that either succeeds beyond expectations or crashes spectacularly, but for the most part, week in and week out it’s becoming the same show.  Starting to feel like a broken record.

James Franco had a fairly successful debut as host last season (although I can only seem to remember the glossy Gossip Girl send-up “Murray Hill“), but in the period leading up to this weekend’s show (indeed since Franco was announced as the anchor in the Blake Lively-Taylor Lautner-James Franco hosting triumvirate) it seemed there was a feeling that Franco was going to be some sort of SNL savior, that he’s developed into a comedy wunderkind.  Now, his turn on General Hospital may be generating laughs, but it’s not necessarily comedy (in fact, if you listen to Franco, it’s “performance art“).  And the very reason he was hailed for his comedic performance in last year’s Pineapple Express and his subsequent SNL hosting gig was precisely because he was playing against type.  Before that time he was identified more with his previous characters: the quiet cool of James Dean, Freaks & Geeks sensitive bad boy Daniel Desario, and petulant, moody Spider-man friend turned enemy turn friend Harry Osborne.  Franco was so successful in Pineapple Express because it was somewhat unexpected.  However, now it seems that he’s planted himself in the comedy camp, or at least as some sort of genre chameleon or Renaissance Man, moving between comedy, serious drama (Milk), daytime soap operas and Columbia University.  And with this shift, we’re now less surprised with Franco’s comedy aptitude, and then perhaps set the bar a little too high for his second SNL go-around.

Which is not to say he was anywhere near January Jones territory, not even in the same stratosphere.  He was enthusiastic, confident and capable.  But he also spent the majority of the broadcast squinting severely which gave off the impression that either a) he was struggling to see the cue cards without the use of prescription lenses, b) his eyes are particularly sensitive to the bright studio lights, or c) he was really, really high.  His giggly demeanor and off-beat rhythms didn’t help dissuade the viability of option C.  During the monologue if felt like I was looking at French Stewart, not James Franco.  But he clearly felt very at home, and up for anything (including making out with Will Forte).

Keep reading: Greatest Hits, the return of Fart Face and belated thoughts

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2009/11/23 · 10:00 pm

‘SNL’ & JGL: Full of Sound and Fury Signifying…What, Exactly?

Well, there was no denying that the energy level was turned up to 11 on this weekend’s Saturday Night Live, with a burst of adrenaline that was no doubt due in great part to Joseph Gordon Levitt’s raucous enthusiasm, and, perhaps, with the scathing reviews after last weekend’s January Jones episode, the cast and crew felt they had something to prove.  And they came out and put on an entertaining, upbeat, cue card independent show.  But was it actually any funnier?

Well, yes, it was.  But was it the “best episode of the season,” the superlative that many blogs have given it, so soon after they did the same for the Taylor Swift outing?  That assertion, like the Taylor Swift platitudes, is debatable.  Certainly though, there was no arguing it was better, and, at the very least, not nearly as lazy.  But in this case, let’s not confuse enthusiasm for a good sense of humor, or entertainment for comedy.  They’re definitely related, but one does not necessarily equal the other.

Over on his EW blog Ken Tucker provided an excellent commentary that’s quite similar to my own take (so if you’re in a rush and can only read his review or ours, read his), noting that while Levitt’s frenetic monologue performance of “Make ‘Em Laugh” from Singing in the Rain was impressive (especially his two off-the wall backflips followed by a well-executed pratfall) and a crowd pleaser, it didn’t exactly make you laugh.  It was almost more like a successful awards show opening number than a sharp, funny SNL monologue.  That being said we’ll be lucky if all future hosts can provide as much talent and effort as “regular Joe”  (However, with that kind of energy, one has to wonder if JGL was on more than just regular joe).

Read on: What’s Up With Kenan Thompson, Family Dinners & Pierre Escargot? Plus, Jason Sudeikis makes 12:50am safe again…

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2009/11/10 · 8:56 pm

Taylor Swift on ‘SNL’: ‘Kanye West is Not Here.’ No?? Not Even Mike Myers?!

Taylor SwiftTaylor Swift returned to SNL this past weekend, this time as both host and musical guest, after appearing as just the latter on a Neil Patrick Harris hosted episode this past January (in which she also played Annie in the funny and topical Save Broadway sketch).  And, if you can possibly believe it, they only made one reference to the Kanye West incident, just a brief “Kanye West is not here,” at the end of Swift’s monologue (while we’re on the subject of Kanyegate, please, please, take this opportunity to view Justin Bieber’s defense of Swift on the VMAs.  If you’ve watched it before watch it again, and if you haven’t then you have my permission to watch it now and return here after).  To be honest, I was a little disappointed they didn’t mine the controversy.  Sure it would have been obvious, but that’s to be expected.  No Kanye cameo?  No Kanye impression (by Fred Armisen?)?  Not even Bobby Moynihan storming the stage to let Taylor Swift know that her monologue is good but Megan Fox’s was the best of all time (followed by Moynihan dropping the mic, of course)?  At the very least I expected an appearance from Mike Myers, himself the victim of a famed Kanyebomb.  Perhaps they could have all met backstage.

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But no, there were none of these things.  What we were given instead was a fairly decent episode with an average but enthusiastic host.

Jason Sudekis provides the best moment of the season thus far

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