helenamonster

A new rule has been implemented for this forum (and is now included in pinned thread on the main page): While we appreciate that Meghan McCain generates a lot of discussion, mentions of her in threads where she is not relevant--like those dedicated to other hosts--tend to derail conversations. Please keep discussion of Meghan McCain confined to the weekly episode topics (in relation to things she may have said on the show) and to her thread. Posts about Meghan McCain (and nothing else) in threads where they don't belong will be met with disciplinary measures.

A new rule has been implemented for this forum (and is now included in pinned thread on the main page): While we appreciate that Meghan McCain generates a lot of discussion, mentions of her in threads where she is not relevant--like those dedicated to other hosts--tend to derail conversations. Please keep discussion of Meghan McCain confined to the weekly episode topics (in relation to things she may have said on the show) and to her thread. Posts about Meghan McCain (and nothing else) in threads where they don't belong will be met with disciplinary measures.

The purpose of the Small Talk topic is to have a place within the forum for: Introductions Off-topic chatter Having virtual tea with forum buddies This is NOT a topic for actual show discussion; including but not limited to discussion of the show hosts. NEW RULE: While we appreciate that Meghan McCain generates a lot of discussion, mentions of her in threads where she is not relevant--like those dedicated to other hosts--tend to derail conversations. Please keep discussion of Meghan McCain confined to the weekly episode topics (in relation to things she may have said on the show) and to her thread. Posts about Meghan McCain (and nothing else) in threads where they don't belong will be met with disciplinary measures.

Love that The Dionne Warwick Show has become a recurring segment for Ego. "Your song 'What A Man's Gotta' do, what's that about? Going downtown? He's gotta do it." I howled. Also felt very endeared to both Andrew and Lauren with their animal moments this ep. Andrew was much calmer than I could be with that bird walking across his shoulders, and there was a quick moment where Lauren took the kitten from Kate and just looked so excited to get to hold it. Both pre-tapes were great. "Murder Show" is a legit bop (also Nick was lowkey pulling off the Keith Raniere fit), and I thought Bachelor Party took a different angle that I haven't seen before. I remember talking to some straight guy friends about strip clubs once, and they all said they didn't see the appeal of being visibly randy in public. I don't know anybody who's actually had a stripper at their bachelor/bachelorette party, it seems like such an outdated trope that people only do because they feel they "have" to. This episode had not just one but two of my favorite recent Cecily impressions, Whitmer and Greene. She really makes inhabiting them look so seamless, it's compelling to watch. Overall I really enjoyed this episode and felt it was pretty strong across the board (Cinderella was probably the low point), especially being the fifth in a run. I'm not sure what the schedule is, but I'm guessing Maya's episode will kick off another run of five and that'll be it for season 46.

Original airdate: 2/22/21

I think that would have been around the time she was shooting the first Scream movie, but I'm pretty sure she wears a wig in that--either way, the hairstyle she has in Scream never showed up on Friends. I actually didn't mind that weird short hair she had in the early seasons, if only because her absolute worst hairstyle was the godawful bangs she had in Scream 3. Thank God they never showed up on Friends, I can't believe a professional stylist did that to her.

And I thought Cecily was a great choice for the casting, just felt weird to bring it all up again a week later when nobody was really talking about it anymore, even if it did fit into the theme of the sketch. Also, this show has fired people for their off-color social media behavior before, though not everybody (looking at you, Michael and Melissa). It's also not lost on me that the head writer is married to somebody who has made the bulk of her net-worth through her work with Disney. So the jabs at Disney in particular and not the "woke cancel culture mob" or w/e feels very pointed and has me wondering what may have gone down there.

I don't watch Bridgerton and have no plans to, but I agree that Rege-Jean blended right in and had such an easy, effortless energy about him. To be honest, I don't think the writing was particularly strong this week, but the cast were selling everything so well that it was less noticeable. Ego's a star and it was fun to watch her carry so many sketches this week, especially the Loco pre-tape. Chloe continues to shine as well. And Andrew feels like a the third long-lost member of Good Neighbor, he fits into the Beck/Kyle bizzarro world very well. I've heard people say he reminds them a little of John Mulaney, and I definitely see it--I could definitely see John in that same role in the sea shanty sketch. I think my biggest issue with the writing is that it just seems so dated and out of touch. "Simp" is not just a hashtag, it's full-on slang, and it's not "new" --people have been using it for at least a year, which is like 10 years in internet time. And I thought Heidi did well with the Freddy Krueger bit, it felt like a very rudimentary sketch bit that you might see at Groundlings or UCB, but the most recent NOES film came out almost 11 years ago. It just felt very anachronistic--at the very least it would have made more sense to save it for an October episode when people were more likely to have Freddy on the brain. This is also the second week in a row that they've sorta kinda defended Gina Carano? Look, I'm no fan of Disney as a corporation and definitely don't think they've earned any moral highground, but the woman is trash. Was she supposed to host later this season or something? What are we doing here?

There's a great blooper of Jennifer Aniston trying to wrangle the monkey in the episode where Rachel loses Marcel. She looks positively terrified of it. I think it's one thing to ask actors to work with cats and dogs, which they'd be more familiar with as pets, but monkeys are wild animals and it's a whole different ballgame there, even if they're technically trained to work.

I've been excited for this show since it was announced, and the trailer looks fantastic. So happy for Annie Murphy that this is the kind of work she's pulling post-Schitt's Creek, really looking forward to seeing what she does with this.

Original airdate: 2/15/21

I think I feel the worst for Lauren, who was clearly brought in as an Aidy replacement while Aidy was off shooting Shrill. The thing is, out of costume I don't even think they look that much alike. But something about the way they style her and the parts they give her are just so Aidy--there are a couple times where she's shown up and I thought she was Aidy for a second. How do you break out when even regular viewers keep getting you confused with another cast member?

I love Regina King, and thought she was great--it's awesome when actors known more for their dramatic work can shine on this show. The writing however...yeesh. Unfortunately I don't think this is a problem that will be solved before the end of the season. I think it's a combination of actual writers who had hoped to be off the show and selling pilots by now and cast members who stuck around when their other projects got pushed back just being completely out of steam. Transition periods are always rough on SNL, but they're never this long, and the cracks are really starting to show. Like the green room sketch--what was the pitch for that? "Regina is a diva who doesn't get anything she wants...also it's the '70s!" All premise with no punchline. The audience also felt more sedate than normal, even compared to other audiences this season, which have all been reduced in size. I thought Weed Gummies, Gorilla Glue, and the birthday sketch were probably the strongest. I see those types of signs in Home Goods and don't understand who they're for. I wouldn't buy them for myself or as a gift, even if the person I was giving them to did like a good drink. Something about it just feels so backhanded, and I thought the sketch captured that.

I adore Dan and thought he was effortless the whole night, like he'd been there for years. Wish the writing had been able to keep up with him. Lot of outdated cultural references here. The YouTube music-reacting twins are still around but their big viral moment was awhile ago. And Psy? They really couldn't think of another way to end that sketch besides a meme that's almost a decade old? The Zillow sketch is, if they have to rely on product placement, the ideal way to do it, I think. Perhaps I'm splitting hairs, but it felt more like something that a writer would come up with on their own regardless of whether they had a sponsorship deal, as opposed to a brand requesting a sketch and the writers having to figure out a way to work around that. I definitely do my fair share of Zillow ogling, but more so on StreetEasy, which is Zillow but specifically for NYC apartments. There's also a Twitter account that I'm forgetting the name of now that curates the most bizarre Zillow listings, like houses full of taxidermy. Or there was one that had an entire town center in its basement. Love that video of Eugene watching Dan. Annie Murphy said in an interview once that she loved watching Eugene watch his kids on the monitors when they filmed their scenes for Schitt's Creek. You can tell he's so proud.

I thought the same thing when the news broke. "SNL really caped that hard for this guy?"