S46.E07: Jason Bateman / Morgan Wallen

[formerlyfreedom]

Jason Bateman hosts with musical guest Morgan Wallen.

Airing Saturday, December 5, 2020.

[Pete Martell]

 

[vb68]

Not sure how I feel about Morgan Wallen getting another shot as musical guest since he blew his first opportunity this season.

To my knowledge, Bateman doesn't have anything to promote right now. I'm guessing he is another one who was originally scheduled to host back in the Spring like Issa Rae and Bill Burr.  Back then he had the latest season of "Ozark" plus "The Outsider" on HBO.

I'm happy this episode is going through despite the worsening conditions. I wasn't so sure it would. Hope everyone stays safe.

[vb68]

Cecily is back! Yay!

She's totally doing Girl at a Party....I'd like to think Girl at a Party is who it is suppose to be, barely disguising herself.

[formerlyfreedom]

So happy to see Cecily back live!

Also, SOOO relieved that there was no Jim Carrey or Alec Baldwin....

[Frisky Wig]

Yay, Cecily! 
 

When I heard that Morgan Wallen was performing on this episode, I thought “oooh, Morgan! Don’t screw this up again!”

[SoMuchTV]

Oh, Jason (and writers) - chimp <> monkey. 

[ebk57]

33 minutes ago, Frisky Wig said:

Yay, Cecily! 
 

When I heard that Morgan Wallen was performing on this episode, I thought “oooh, Morgan! Don’t screw this up again!”

Nice that he's able to poke fun at himself.  

[Frisky Wig]

Just now, ebk57 said:

Nice that he's able to poke fun at himself.  

I agree! I liked that skit!

[formerlyfreedom]

Morgan seems a good sport, and I don’t hate his music...but OMG. I cannot with his haircut. Yes, it’s shallow but either do the long hair or not!! 

[vb68]

Welcome to the party, Lauren Holt!

She's getting a fair amount of screen time tonight.

1 minute ago, ebk57 said:

Nice that he's able to poke fun at himself.  

I agree. I doubt most guests would agree to that.

[vb68]

I'm dying laughing at Arby's. We Eat The Horse.

Also kinda loved the busting on Che for never being in sketches.

[Galileo908]

And we're back!

Cold Open: Oh hell yes, mocking the Michigan weirdos! It was a breath of fresh air to NOT focus on Alec Baldwin or Jim Carrey. We're letting actual cast members shine! Cecily finally came back, and at the single best time! She was fantastic, as expected. Oh my god, DYING at Beck as the MyPillow guy (the fact that he's part of the political discourse AT ALL is something beyond parody at this point...) . This was crazy as hell, they even brought in the guys from that kidnapping the governor sketch from one of the earlier shows.

Monologue: I barely remember the last time Jason Bateman hosted, I didn't even remember the monkey throwing poop at celebrities sketch! Loved that we actually saw the old footage. Rachel cared, Jason. "The chimp was destroyed later that night, my choice." died at that.

Sleepover: Apparently this was exactly like the sketch from Adam Driver's episode, but with Jason Bateman. He was fun in this.

Santa: Oh my god a Stan parody?! It's middle school all over again. Was not expecting Dido, but Kate killed it. And I was wondering "where is Elton John?!" and then BOOM Bowen showed up! And holy crap, they actually got Eminem! Twenty years later, too.

Duplex: Cecily is back! And Bowen in a lead role! We missed you, Cecily. I just love goofy lounge singers and Liza Minelli impressions, and this delivered.

The Christmas Conversation: I don't even NEED Facetime to have these guilt trips with my mother. Thankfully my own parents are super cautious, and their friends are the ones getting it by being idiots about having gatherings.

Future Morgan Wallen: OH MY GOD THEY ACTUALLY WENT THERE. At least he's a good sport about it? Loved that Jason Bateman was only from ONE MONTH in the future, and Bowen Yang was current Morgan. Odd that he of all people got a redemption sketch,

As for his performance...not bad! I was expecting some kind of bro-y trainwreck. He's passable. 

WU: Gotta love Che not holding back laughter at anything Colin was saying. And wow, a Brazzers reference on SNL. And Pete Davidson vibrators. What a time to be alive. Speaking of which, Pete killed it. I was dying at Poland's deepest pool being above ground. Bailey is just straight savage tonight. Calling out Che not being in sketches? SNL not being on netflix? Only knowing Tom Hanks as David S Pumpkins? So good.

Gee, which Colin joke do you think was written by Che? Could it be the Hamilton one?

Mall Santa: Bateman as Santa again! And genius idea sticking Santa and Cecily in rubber snowglobes. I couldn't stop laughing at them tumbling around. Sucks that the crowd was not feeling it at all, I loved it. 

Kills The Bit: Some Kyle weirdness to take us home! I've been there quite a bit.

So this was...an episode. It was okay.

[crowsworks]

Eminem turning up at the Stan Parody - very funny when you caught on about crazed Santa Fan. 

I loved the snow globes too

[Lantern7]

*sigh* I don't think I can be considered a native of Staten Island, but I have lived here for a long time. Pete would need a recurring WU segment to go over everything wrong with the borough. Going over the Mack's stuff was being gentle.

Great episode. No direct election stuff. Yeah, there was the cold open, but if you have an excuse to dress Kate as Rudy? You take it.

"Stu" was a great take on "Stan." Why wouldn't someone be that obsessed with Santa?

10 minutes ago, Galileo908 said:

Kills The Bit: Some Kyle weirdness to take us home! I've been there quite a bit.

My thing is trying to jump into conversations in loud places. Still, I can relate to Kyle's character.

[SHD]

I love Jason Bateman, but this was kind of disappointing. Some good WU jokes, but that was about it for me. 

[vb68]

Yeah, if you wanted a Christmas show a couple of weeks early, this was the show for you. It was mostly pretty good, solid energy throughout, and Bateman is a game host.  It kills me that he can totally sell the Dad roles now. I remember when he was a child actor. Kinda wish he twisted the knife at Ricky Schroder just a bit this week, but I digress.

You can tell they are more than ready to move on from the election. And hey, it was indeed nice to see the regular cast get more to do, and I thought most of them stepped up.

But yeah, I was thinking we do have two more two weeks for the Christmas sketches. 

Oh, and I made sure to check, no chimp during the goodbyes this time.

Edited December 6, 2020 by vb68

[txhorns79]

Quote

I love Jason Bateman, but this was kind of disappointing. Some good WU jokes, but that was about it for me. 

I thought the Stan parody was inspired (though I did wonder if people necessarily remember that 20 year old music video).  The rest was kind of meh.

[Kimmmmmm]

So happy to see Cecily tonight...still miss Aidy, though.  Not crazy about Heidi at the best of times, but I absolutely HATE the Bailey character!

Edited December 7, 2020 by Kimmmmmm

[Ms Blue Jay]

1 hour ago, Frisky Wig said:

I agree! I liked that skit!

I hated it, it felt like he was really being rewarded for putting everyone in danger.  How often do musical guests get such special attention like that?  And he got it for something so incredibly stupid, selfish, and dangerous.

I can't even believe SNL invited him on again.

5 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

I thought the Stan parody was inspired (though I did wonder if people necessarily remember that 20 year old music video).  The rest was kind of meh.

People regularly use the term "Stan" everyday, based on that song, so yes, I do think a lot of people remember it.

[Irlandesa]

3 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

People regularly use the term "Stan" everyday, based on that song, so yes, I do think a lot of people remember it.

I think there are a lot of people who use "stan" who have no clue about the origins of the term. 

I don't care that Morgan was asked back.  I liked when Jason said "maybe you'll have a better host."  I didn't like how Jason's "Morgan" talked about how Lorne only had to cancel him because of NBC execs.  What were they trying to say with that?

It was great to have Cecily back. I couldn't imagine anyone else doing that Melissa woman.

[Jody]

12 hours ago, vb68 said:

Not sure how I feel about Morgan Wallen getting another shot as musical guest since he blew his first opportunity this season.

To my knowledge, Bateman doesn't have anything to promote right now. I'm guessing he is another one who was originally scheduled to host back in the Spring like Issa Rae and Bill Burr.  Back then he had the latest season of "Ozark" plus "The Outsider" on HBO.

I'm happy this episode is going through despite the worsening conditions. I wasn't so sure it would. Hope everyone stays safe.

 

        I Noticed That They Were Wearing Their Masks, But I Had Trouble Understanding Jason With The Good Nights ! I Presume That The Governor Or Some Body Said Every Body Has To Wear Masks ALL The Time Including Saturday Night Live So The Host Can Not Say Good Nights With Out A Mask !

[heatherchandler]

42 minutes ago, Kimmmmmm said:

So happy to see Cecily tonight...still Missy'Aidy, though.  Not crazy about Heidi at the best of times, but I absolutely HATE the Bailey character!

I love Bailey!

This episode had a few funny moments- Morgan Wallen sketch, Stan parody.  The rest was not great.  I had high hopes for Jason Bateman.  

So many really bad episodes recently.. I think it’s the writers.

[Gimmick Genius]

Dang! In the 15 year old chimp clip Rachel Dratch and Darrel Hammond looked super freaked out.

[ruby24]

How come the studio isn't decorated for Christmas yet? It usually is in December.

[Jody]

21 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

And we're back!

Cold Open: Oh hell yes, mocking the Michigan weirdos! It was a breath of fresh air to NOT focus on Alec Baldwin or Jim Carrey. We're letting actual cast members shine! Cecily finally came back, and at the single best time! She was fantastic, as expected. Oh my god, DYING at Beck as the MyPillow guy (the fact that he's part of the political discourse AT ALL is something beyond parody at this point...) . This was crazy as hell, they even brought in the guys from that kidnapping the governor sketch from one of the earlier shows.

Monologue: I barely remember the last time Jason Bateman hosted, I didn't even remember the monkey throwing poop at celebrities sketch! Loved that we actually saw the old footage. Rachel cared, Jason. "The chimp was destroyed later that night, my choice." died at that.

Sleepover: Apparently this was exactly like the sketch from Adam Driver's episode, but with Jason Bateman. He was fun in this.

Santa: Oh my god a Stan parody?! It's middle school all over again. Was not expecting Dido, but Kate killed it. And I was wondering "where is Elton John?!" and then BOOM Bowen showed up! And holy crap, they actually got Eminem! Twenty years later, too.

Duplex: Cecily is back! And Bowen in a lead role! We missed you, Cecily. I just love goofy lounge singers and Liza Minelli impressions, and this delivered.

The Christmas Conversation: I don't even NEED Facetime to have these guilt trips with my mother. Thankfully my own parents are super cautious, and their friends are the ones getting it by being idiots about having gatherings.

Future Morgan Wallen: OH MY GOD THEY ACTUALLY WENT THERE. At least he's a good sport about it? Loved that Jason Bateman was only from ONE MONTH in the future, and Bowen Yang was current Morgan. Odd that he of all people got a redemption sketch,

As for his performance...not bad! I was expecting some kind of bro-y trainwreck. He's passable. 

WU: Gotta love Che not holding back laughter at anything Colin was saying. And wow, a Brazzers reference on SNL. And Pete Davidson vibrators. What a time to be alive. Speaking of which, Pete killed it. I was dying at Poland's deepest pool being above ground. Bailey is just straight savage tonight. Calling out Che not being in sketches? SNL not being on netflix? Only knowing Tom Hanks as David S Pumpkins? So good.

Gee, which Colin joke do you think was written by Che? Could it be the Hamilton one?

Mall Santa: Bateman as Santa again! And genius idea sticking Santa and Cecily in rubber snowglobes. I couldn't stop laughing at them tumbling around. Sucks that the crowd was not feeling it at all, I loved it. 

Kills The Bit: Some Kyle weirdness to take us home! I've been there quite a bit.

So this was...an episode. It was okay.

           Galileo, Bowen Was Being Judy Garland And Cecily Was Being Barbra Streisand Because Judy Garland Had A Weekly TV show In 1963 !  Barbra Was Her Guest And They Sang Get Happy And Happy Days Are Here Again As A Due, Then, Judy Let Barbra Sing Happy Days Are Here Again By Herself And Judy Did Join In On Happy Days Are Here Again With Barbra Toward The End OF The Song ! Also, I Personally Do Not Care Really For What I Call Slap Stick So I Did Not Care About The Snow Globes That Much ! I AM Happy That Cecily Is Back And I Knew She Seemed Familiar in The Cold Opening, So I Am Glad You Told That She Was Being The Girl You Don't Want To Speak AT A Party ! I Enjoyed Morgan Being A Good Sport And Them Doing His Situation ! I Enjoyed This Episode !

21 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

*sigh* I don't think I can be considered a native of Staten Island, but I have lived here for a long time. Pete would need a recurring WU segment to go over everything wrong with the borough. Going over the Mack's stuff was being gentle.

Great episode. No direct election stuff. Yeah, there was the cold open, but if you have an excuse to dress Kate as Rudy? You take it.

"Stu" was a great take on "Stan." Why wouldn't someone be that obsessed with Santa?

My thing is trying to jump into conversations in loud places. Still, I can relate to Kyle's character.

        My Thing OR One OF My Things Is Jumping in The Middle OF Conversations And People Don't Know What I Am Talking About Like Kyle !

[Pete Martell]

2 hours ago, heatherchandler said:

I love Bailey!

This episode had a few funny moments- Morgan Wallen sketch, Stan parody.  The rest was not great.  I had high hopes for Jason Bateman.  

So many really bad episodes recently.. I think it’s the writers.

I thought it was an adequate episode (mostly due to the pre-tapes, although I also liked the monologue and the sketch with Cecily and Bowen - and although it was still too padded out, I was happy to see a full cast cold open), but I think the show is going to mostly chug along being adequate/sometimes bad/sometimes good until more of the current cast clear out, as well as Michael Che and Colin Jost. While I was watching the episode, I kept thinking that I have seen everything I will ever see of Kyle, Cecily, and Kate. It's not necessary for SNL to try something new, it's not always bad to see familiar moments, but sometimes it feels suffocating and has diminishing returns. With Kyle, for instance, I know I would have enjoyed his pre-tape, which was very well-produced and performed, more if I had not seen him do this about 15 different times since then.

Jason is one of those comics I don't think meshes with SNL's style. The last time he hosted he was stuck in some of the most horrific material, like Gays in Space (where he looked like he wanted to die) and a sketch with Horatio Sanz as a morbidly obese rapper. This time he had some of the usual straight man material, but also a few things that were probably a lot of fun for him to play, like the zorb Santa sketch, or the Morgan Wallen sketch (where he at least got to play against type). I don't know how well that translated on-camera though - it felt more like something they just had a blast thinking up and doing. 

(as it turns out that sketch was probably too dangerous to be on, as you can seemingly hear Cecily saying "oh s***" as she completely rolls over poor Mikey)

 

[Pete Martell]

3 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I hated it, it felt like he was really being rewarded for putting everyone in danger.  How often do musical guests get such special attention like that?  And he got it for something so incredibly stupid, selfish, and dangerous.

I can't even believe SNL invited him on again.

Even with SNL's longevity, they likely still have to play along with the industry to get bookings, so I wonder how much was push from Wallen's label.

The sketch could have been worse, I suppose, but it felt like the usual defensive posture Lorne and others at SNL take when criticized - it felt foolhardy to put this on the air. This type of meta piece mostly ends up feeling self-indulgent, and also felt oddly glib about just how risky and dangerous his behavior was. The best I can say is I hope he genuinely means what he says about lessons learned.

[Spartan Girl]

Cecily was spot on as that Michigan twat. They barely had to exaggerate anything, the real thing was just like a Girl You Never Should Have Talked to segment.

Edited December 6, 2020 by Spartan Girl

[peeayebee]

I'm certainly old enough to remember, but I'm also old enuf to forget stuff -- Can someone remind me about the Stan music video? Even not remembering it, I really enjoyed this Stu sketch.

I thought it was a pretty good show. Jason Bateman is a great comedic actor. Even if the material wasn't always hilarious, he was good.

I didn't care for the menstruation sketch. First off, the show did a similar one before. Second, once you see Kate come down the stairs covered in suds, obviously guilty, the writing doesn't go anywhere.

Loved seeing Cecily again. She was great in the Cold Open -- I mean, come on, that woman was made for a Cecily reenactment -- and wonderful as the Garland/Minelli singer. I enjoy when the show does sketches centered on distinctive characters.

The Christmas Conversation was perfect. Everyone was good, and it ended on a good note.

I liked the Morgan Wallen sketch. The future Morgans coming back to warn him was funny. Again, Jason was great.

WU was great. Absolutely loved Colin doing the "You is smart" speech to Trump.

I liked the mall Santa sketch more than audience did. It could have been better, but the slapstick was pretty good.

Kyle's Kill the Bit sketch was great. 

[AnimeMania]

During the closing Goodbyes, they should of had a little kid dressed in a chimpanzee suit sitting on the edge of the stage.

[wknt3]

19 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I hated it, it felt like he was really being rewarded for putting everyone in danger.  How often do musical guests get such special attention like that?  And he got it for something so incredibly stupid, selfish, and dangerous.

I can't even believe SNL invited him on again.

 

15 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

Even with SNL's longevity, they likely still have to play along with the industry to get bookings, so I wonder how much was push from Wallen's label.

I doubt industry pressure played much of a role, but the label may have already paid them money. Not sure how it works today, but I know in the past money often played a role in the bookings. Not necessarily in the payola sense, but in being willing to pay the production costs of the musical segments. Given the pandemic's impact on network television and the huge casts there is probably a lot of financial pressure on the show. And of course there are other factors involved such as -
 

Quote

The sketch could have been worse, I suppose, but it felt like the usual defensive posture Lorne and others at SNL take when criticized - it felt foolhardy to put this on the air. This type of meta piece mostly ends up feeling self-indulgent, and also felt oddly glib about just how risky and dangerous his behavior was. The best I can say is I hope he genuinely means what he says about lessons learned.

Agreed. This seems like the usual defensiveness and Lorne wanting to have it both ways. There was probably a lot of back and forth within the show itself between those who want to set an example and take this seriously and the "show must go on" types. I can just see him as trying to pitch it as both a "lessons learned" and showing he has big balls and will never become part of "cancel culture" depending on whom he is talking to at the time.

Edited December 7, 2020 by wknt3
fix typos

[nickp1991]

Beck Bennett is a perfect Mike Lindell 

[helenamonster]

Cecily's back, Cecily's back! Glad she got so much good stuff to do. She was the obvious choice for the Michigan lady, and her fearlessness for the physical stuff lent itself well to the Santa in a snowglobe sketch. I'm braced for us maybe saying goodbye to her in a couple episodes, so I'll take all I can get now.

Miss me with that Morgan Wallen sketch. They made it seem like the issue wasn't that he was swapping spit with strangers in the middle of a pandemic, but that he got caught. All this drama over another guy who sings about girls and beer and Daisy Dukes and trucks? Pass.

I couldn't stop laughing at Rachel's reaction to the chimp in the clip from 2005. She was the only person who looked genuinely concerned, it was hilarious.

Overall solid show: the pre-tapes were the highlights, and while we already saw the sleepover sketch before, I'm a sucker for Jason's deadpan dad routine. 

35 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

I'm certainly old enough to remember, but I'm also old enuf to forget stuff -- Can someone remind me about the Stan music video? Even not remembering it, I really enjoyed this Stu sketch.

Even the censored version they showed on MTV back in the day was pretty disturbing, definitely terrified me when I was a kid. But the show got a lot of it right, I'd totally forgotten about the part where he replaces his girlfriend's picture with Eminem:

Also, remember Devon Sawa???

[theredhead77]

10 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

I thought the Stan parody was inspired (though I did wonder if people necessarily remember that 20 year old music video).  The rest was kind of meh.

 

10 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

People regularly use the term "Stan" everyday, based on that song, so yes, I do think a lot of people remember it.

OMG. That's where "stan" came from?? I'm an Eminem fan from way back. How in the hell did I not put that together?

For me, Eminem appearing at the end made my week. That was just amazing.

[Ottis]

I know music is a highly personal thing, and I had never heard of that guy (or his music) before, and (full disclosure) I can't stand most popular country music (love me some Johnny Cash though), but that guy is the epitome of the worst kind of country "music" and the horror it has become. He is practically a stereotype, with his cut off sleeves and mullet, and his songs weren't fit for American Idol ("I live in a small town, and drink me some beer, and I won't be who I ain't! Closing my mind ... now!"). I usually just ignore music I don't like, but that was lowest common denominator.

Cold Open: The two guys planning the kidnapping were great. "And then what were you going to do?" "Uhhh ... yell at her!"

Sleepover skit was hilarious when Kate entered the room. I didn't really get why they either all covered for her, or all had a similar issue, and I wish they would have picked a different issue.

Santa Eminem ... funny enough, I was just reading something yesterday that asked where Dido had gone.

I don't know what the duo singing skit was, I immediately FF when anyone starts doing that "voice of actress from the 40s stuff" like Cecily did. The only lounge singer I ever liked was Bill Murray and "barrrrr warrrrrrsssss!"

The Christmas Conversation is must-see TV for all the people who insist on traveling at the holidays. Yeah, it's hard, but if we love each other, we should stay apart for just a bit longer.

WU: Loved Colin's white person joke about Hamilton, otherwise OK.

I first thought Mall Santa was going to go somewhere gross and fun with the sanitizer in the elf's tummy, but instead it became a pedestrian Gerald Ford pratfall joke.

Kills The Bit needed more set up. It was a great concept, it just was so underdone.

I love Jason Bateman and think they didn't use him very well. Bring in the Arrested Development Bateman, or the Bad Words Bateman. 

 

[saber5055]

I thought this was a pretty solid episode, and hosts are best when they aren't there to pimp themselves or sell their product. The chimp good-night clip was awesome. Agree that some little kid in a chimp suit should have been at last night's ending.

Best part for me was the Future Morgan sketch. Bateman got in some great lines, and it kept getting funnier, especially with Morgan turning into Bowen. Forget the politics of it, it was a pretty good slam on Morgan, and he played along with it nicely. I'd say most viewers didn't even know he was kicked off of that Burr episode. I'd never heard of Morgan before that, and still pretty much don't know who he is. But I loved this sketch.

WU was on fire. Pete was hilarious as he always is on WU. Then Bailey came on and it was like a bucket of ice water was poured on the show.

Mall Santa in the snow globe turned into slapstick which this show doesn't do, and that made it so funny. I was hoping no one really got hurt at the end.

[Tachi Rocinante]

Morgan Wallen's skit "acting" was better than his two songs.  That's just sad.

Kyle Mooney has turned into Fred Armisen; he's hardly ever funny.

[Ms Blue Jay]

2 hours ago, wknt3 said:

Agreed. This seems like the usual defensiveness and Lorne wanting to have it both ways. There was probably a lot of back and forth within the show itself between those who want to set an example and take this seriously and the "show must go on" types. I can just see him as trying to pitch it as both a "lessons learned" and showing he has big balls and will never become part of "cancel culture" depending on who he is talking to at the time.

Well the show fired racist comic Shane Gillis and I assume he's fired other castmates as well.  However i guess when it comes to celebrities he's mostly about kissing ass, though I assume there have been exceptions.  I don't even think of Morgan Wallen as a celebrity because I would not have known about him except for this show's insistence to book him twice. But maybe I'm just too old?  Is generation Z crazy about this guy?

2 hours ago, Gimmick Genius said:

I had expected Chloe to play the Michigan bimbo. 

I feel like Kaley Cuoco looks just like her.

Edited December 6, 2020 by Ms Blue Jay

[Irlandesa]

9 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

(as it turns out that sketch was probably too dangerous to be on, as you can seemingly hear Cecily saying "oh s***" as she completely rolls over poor Mikey)

Hmm. I watched again and I didn't hear her swear.

3 hours ago, peeayebee said:

Kyle's Kill the Bit sketch was great. 

I loved that not so much because I laughed out loud but because I felt very seen and heard by it.  Cut to me---me having awkward timing.

[vb68]

10 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

While I was watching the episode, I kept thinking that I have seen everything I will ever see of Kyle, Cecily, and Kate. It's not necessary for SNL to try something new, it's not always bad to see familiar moments, but sometimes it feels suffocating and has diminishing returns. With Kyle, for instance, I know I would have enjoyed his pre-tape, which was very well-produced and performed, more if I had not seen him do this about 15 different times since then.

This is interesting. Watching the episode, I noticed that more and more and I'm feeling that way about Mikey Day. Don't get me wrong. He's great at what he does, but he has his familiar beats he repeats all the time. I even noticed it this time in the cold open. I feel like I'm seeing the same thing  from him on repeat.

Kyle has never bothered me as much. I think because he seems like he usually gets sidelined to that 12:55am spot. For some reason I do feel like he's been sidelined and/overlooked to some degree, and any real showcase he's ever gotten, he's really had to fight to get.  

And don't get me started on poor Alex Moffat, who I still suspect might be the most talented of all those guys.

Hey Pete, I saw elsewhere where you (I think it was you) referenced the long ago Rob Morrow sketch that had the same premise as the "Kill the Bit" Kyle sketch. Brilliant recall. I had forgotten all about it. I wonder if anybody who works on the show now remembered it. I rather doubt it. 

  

Edited December 6, 2020 by vb68

[StatisticalOutlier]

2 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Pete was hilarious as he always is on WU.

He's such a treasure.  I just love it that he appears to have thrived during the pandemic.

[kib]

11 hours ago, Pete Martell said:

Even with SNL's longevity, they likely still have to play along with the industry to get bookings, so I wonder how much was push from Wallen's label.

The sketch could have been worse, I suppose, but it felt like the usual defensive posture Lorne and others at SNL take when criticized - it felt foolhardy to put this on the air. This type of meta piece mostly ends up feeling self-indulgent, and also felt oddly glib about just how risky and dangerous his behavior was. The best I can say is I hope he genuinely means what he says about lessons learned.

Yup, I was thinking the same thing.  It smacks of suits for both Wallen's representatives and the network attempting to salvage a commercially lucrative deal that had been cut earlier.  Probably one of those packages they put together for a SNL appearance, along with a shot on the Today show, Fallon's program and The Voice. A campaign to move that product, more transaction than actual entertainment.

I'll be happily corrected if I'm wrong saying Wallen's artistic output as of yet doesn't warrant the extraordinary chance at redemption he's been offered, I hadn't heard of him before this kerfuffle. The first song was pleasant enough but at the end of the day Mick Jagger fucking up an SNL appearance and making things right is one thing, this kid.... well, that quite another.  Maybe I just don't care for musical performers who play to the camera rather a live audience.  In any event, he got his reprieve, let's see if he does anything with it.

Edited December 6, 2020 by kib

[SoMuchTV]

15 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

Gee, which Colin joke do you think was written by Che? Could it be the Hamilton one?

I had the same thought.  Then a bit later, there was one that Che read, that sounded like it was written by Colin.  Now I can't remember what it was, but I was thinking they were sneaking in their traditional end-of-the-season bit.

[Galileo908]

25 minutes ago, SoMuchTV said:

I had the same thought.  Then a bit later, there was one that Che read, that sounded like it was written by Colin.  Now I can't remember what it was, but I was thinking they were sneaking in their traditional end-of-the-season bit.

A while ago, someone must have said "hey, these jokes are great, why don't we do them every week?" And then they did, and that really explains why Update has gotten better, in my view.

[Pete Martell]

1 hour ago, SoMuchTV said:

I had the same thought.  Then a bit later, there was one that Che read, that sounded like it was written by Colin.  Now I can't remember what it was, but I was thinking they were sneaking in their traditional end-of-the-season bit.

The one where Che talked about how he'd just run the 102-year old grandmother over felt that way to me.

(speaking of Update, it amuses me that Colin has gone from not wanting to discuss his relationship with Scarjo on the show to being OK with scalding trolling [of him and of the viewers who hate them] of bits like their having COVID vaccines available for their yacht party)

[Arkay]

 

Miss me with that Morgan Wallen sketch. They made it seem like the issue wasn't that he was swapping spit with strangers in the middle of a pandemic, but that he got caught. All this drama over another guy who sings about girls and beer and Daisy Dukes and trucks? Pass

 

I'm not a country music fan and have never heard of this Morgan guy. (I do like Johnny Cash and have respect for Dolly Parton). I agree with those who do not appreciate that this guy was given a second chance. We live in a dangerous time, this is not a drill, and I do not believe he should have been rewarded with a musical guest turn as well as a sketch.

I thought Cecily was doing Judy Garland, but I guess it may have been Liza. They did/do have that same vocal mannerism. 

I am SO glad to see Pete thriving. Was it last Christmas or the one before when he was threatening suicide? (Time has lost its meaning for me, I think). He was perfect in the role of Stu, he's made for something like that, and I think he was in more of the sketches this time than he's been in for awhile. Somehow I missed Eminem at the end and have already deleted it. 😡

1 minute ago, Arkay said:

 

Miss me with that Morgan Wallen sketch. They made it seem like the issue wasn't that he was swapping spit with strangers in the middle of a pandemic, but that he got caught. All this drama over another guy who sings about girls and beer and Daisy Dukes and trucks? Pass

 

I'm not a country music fan and have never heard of this Morgan guy. (I do like Johnny Cash and have respect for Dolly Parton). I agree with those who do not appreciate that this guy was given a second chance. We live in a dangerous time, this is not a drill, and I do not believe he should have been rewarded with a musical guest turn as well as a sketch.

I thought Cecily was doing Judy Garland, but I guess it may have been Liza. They did/do have that same vocal mannerism. 

I am SO glad to see Pete thriving. Was it last Christmas or the one before when he was threatening suicide? (Time has lost its meaning for me, I think). He was perfect in the role of Stu, he's made for something like that, and I think he was in more of the sketches this time than he's been in for awhile. Somehow I missed Eminem at the end and have already deleted it. 😡

ETA: not sure where I goofed up, but let me give the attribution to the quote above to @helenamonster

[saber5055]

I thought that Pete Santa video was really good, but I had no idea about the original, so thanks @helenamonster for posting that clip. Now I think the Pete Santa video is solid gold brilliance. Plus now I know why certain people are "stans." Going back to rewatch Pete's version now. Thanks!

[Jody]

35 minutes ago, Arkay said:

 

Miss me with that Morgan Wallen sketch. They made it seem like the issue wasn't that he was swapping spit with strangers in the middle of a pandemic, but that he got caught. All this drama over another guy who sings about girls and beer and Daisy Dukes and trucks? Pass

 

I'm not a country music fan and have never heard of this Morgan guy. (I do like Johnny Cash and have respect for Dolly Parton). I agree with those who do not appreciate that this guy was given a second chance. We live in a dangerous time, this is not a drill, and I do not believe he should have been rewarded with a musical guest turn as well as a sketch.

I thought Cecily was doing Judy Garland, but I guess it may have been Liza. They did/do have that same vocal mannerism. 

I am SO glad to see Pete thriving. Was it last Christmas or the one before when he was threatening suicide? (Time has lost its meaning for me, I think). He was perfect in the role of Stu, he's made for something like that, and I think he was in more of the sketches this time than he's been in for awhile. Somehow I missed Eminem at the end and have already deleted it. 😡

ETA: not sure where I goofed up, but let me give the attribution to the quote above to @helenamonster

 

        Arkay, Cecily Did NOT Sound Like Barbra Streisand, BUT, Cecily Was Singing Happy Days Are Here Again And Barbra Streisand Sings That On An Album OF Barbra Streisand AND Barbra Streisand Sang That Song WITH Judy Garland Singing Get Happy That Bowan Was Singing On Judy Garland's TV Show ! I KNOW Cecily HAS Been Liza Before On Family Feud Talking About A Peanut Farmer Where Jimmy Carter Is Much Better Than Donald Trump, But Cecily Was Singing A Barbra Streisand Song So I Think Cecily Was Being Barbra Streisand !

[ljenkins782]

6 hours ago, saber5055 said:

I thought this was a pretty solid episode, and hosts are best when they aren't there to pimp themselves or sell their product. The chimp good-night clip was awesome. Agree that some little kid in a chimp suit should have been at last night's ending.

Best part for me was the Future Morgan sketch. Bateman got in some great lines, and it kept getting funnier, especially with Morgan turning into Bowen. Forget the politics of it, it was a pretty good slam on Morgan, and he played along with it nicely. I'd say most viewers didn't even know he was kicked off of that Burr episode. I'd never heard of Morgan before that, and still pretty much don't know who he is. But I loved this sketch.

WU was on fire. Pete was hilarious as he always is on WU. Then Bailey came on and it was like a bucket of ice water was poured on the show.

Mall Santa in the snow globe turned into slapstick which this show doesn't do, and that made it so funny. I was hoping no one really got hurt at the end.

I absolutely loved this episode. The only 2 clunkers for me were the singing lounge one, which was just okay, and the Kyle kills the bit one. It didn't quite land.

The Future Morgan bit was hysterical, especially Jason Bateman's lines. "But I told her not to post it." "Well, I also thought that was an airtight approach..." LOL

I had never heard of the guy before nor had I heard the flap about him being scratched from the Bill Burr episode, but it was written well enough that I could easily piece together what must have happened. 

I guess it helps that I'm a huge Jason Bateman fan and most of the material fit so squarely in his deadpan wheelhouse that it worked for me.

Best line of the monologue was "the chimp was destroyed later that night, my choice, lessons have to be learned...." That is classic Bateman delivery.