S40.E03: Bill Hader / Hozier

[Writing Wrongs]

I've never thought that Kristen's Kathie Lee Gifford was that funny. I used to really enjoy her impersonations. I remember her in the Vincent Price sketches as Judy Garland and thought she was hilarious.

[lulee]

I totally get why folks are irritated at Wiig constantly returning and stealing the show, but I can't say it bothers me. I thought she elevated the opening monologue, along with the Hollywood Game Night sketch. I love her as Kathy Lee. But, again, I can see why it feels like she eats whatever sketches she appears in. 

The monologue was so odd to me. It shouldn't have needed Wiig - or anyone to elevate it - why have a host with such a versatile track record do an awkward singing monologue? I'd be curious to know what ideas they scrapped in favor of it. If it was meant to be a wink at the overuse of singing monologues, it didn't succeed.

[Toaster Strudel]

Wiig's singing was atrocious.  I hated the bit where she boasts that she can "do everything but play the saxophone" and then shows up playing the saxophone.  It was the perfect way to make me hate her more.

[Mumbles]

Wiig ruined it for me. If she could just dial it back to the same approximate level of every other performer on stage, her impression would have been fine. But she seems to feel the need to do everything at fifty times the volume and 100 times the exaggeration of everyone else, and it's like having someone grab the mic and beat me with it every time she appears....

Agreed. I don't have a dog in the fight and for all I know, Hader was fine with all of this, but it bugged ME for some reason when she introduced Hozier the second time, or introduced Jan's tribute (IMO a current female cast member should have represented the current cast). Gawd, it's not as if she's there every week, but she's been there quite more than other alums (or maybe it just seems that way) and when she shows up, she just hogs all the attention (like she did when she was there.) Hader is one of my all-time faves because he is the opposite of Wiig - really funny when he was the lead in a sketch, but when he was not, he made the leads funnier by stepping aside and being a great support character.)

I loved last night's ep. As soon as Herb Welch told the kid, "you don't look like a Fitzgerald," I was sold.

[futurechemist]

I'll be in the minority, but while I liked the idea of a Jan Hooks tribute sketch, I didn't like the one they chose.  It had no laughs, and didn't seem to showcase either her or Phil Hartman's talent other then them getting to sing a romantic song.  Basically, the sketch didn't really move me.

 

The rest of the episode was pretty funny with only a couple of duds.  Hollywood Game Night was a dud.  But I thought the movie preview was spot on, mocking the half-baked ideas behind some of the recent YA books/movies.  And it was good to see Stefon again.  Speaking of WU characters that break, I wonder when we'll see Taran's 19th Century critic again.

[absnow54]

I'll be in the minority, but while I liked the idea of a Jan Hooks tribute sketch, I didn't like the one they chose.  It had no laughs, and didn't seem to showcase either her or Phil Hartman's talent other then them getting to sing a romantic song.  Basically, the sketch didn't really move me.

I think in one of the retrospective specials, Jan Hooks mentioned this sketch when paying tribute to Phil, so although it didn't really showcase her comedic talents (the episode they played at 10 was a perfect episode to play for that) it was a nice way to honor her.

 

I actually liked Kristen Wiig during the monologue, but I think it's because I got warm and fuzzy feelings about her and Bill's chemistry from The Skeleton Twins and their promo interviews. The Hollywood Game Night sketch was too much though. It also made me miss Celebrity Jeopardy.

[VCRTracking]

 

Agreed. I don't have a dog in the fight and for all I know, Hader was fine with all of this, but it bugged ME for some reason when she introduced Hozier the second time,

It bugged until I realized later it was because Bill had to take time to get into the "Cat" outfit and makeup.

 

Also, the reason I find the Kathy Lee impression irritating is the same reason I hated her Elizabeth Hasselbeck impression and it's because I don't like the actual person and her impression is so spot on that I transfer that hate onto Kristen! 

[vb68]

 

I've never thought that Kristen's Kathie Lee Gifford was that funny.

 

 

Her Kathie Lee pales so much when I think back on Jan's impression, which nailed her and was a giant hoot.

 

 

 

Howard Stern told Bill Hader earlier in the week that the Puppet sketch was his favorite of all time, and begged him to bring it  back. Hader said he'll try to get it on...

 

I would have preferred Vincent Price so much.  I thought for sure with Kristin there that they would have done another one.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Is Michael Che ever going to wear a different tie on WU?

 

Speaking of WU characters that break, I wonder when we'll see Taran's 19th Century critic again.

Probably when it gets closer to Oscar season.

[VCRTracking]

Also hilarious to look up on twitter at all the young people asking who "Dan Cortez" is.  I'm in the age where I know who he is and can spell his name right "Dan Cortese". Since I don't think MTV Sports videos is not a rabbit hole people should go down he was also the "Mimbo(Male bimbo)" on Seinfeld that George had a mancrush on. "Step off George!"

Edited October 12, 2014 by VCRTracking

[SomeTameGazelle]

I'll be in the minority, but while I liked the idea of a Jan Hooks tribute sketch, I didn't like the one they chose.  It had no laughs, and didn't seem to showcase either her or Phil Hartman's talent other then them getting to sing a romantic song.  Basically, the sketch didn't really move me.

 

 

It was Bing Crosby and Joan Fontaine singing, from the movie The Emperor Waltz.

Edited October 12, 2014 by SomeTameGazelle

[vb68]

Here's a cut sketch from last night.

 

The Gossipy CoalMiner    

[peeayebee]

I thought the cold open was ok. I think it was a good choice not to try to do accents, though Taran had a bit of an accent, at least at the beginning. I liked that Bobby was so short compared to the others. I was impressed by his dance moves. Oh, and I loved that he said, "He poked me in the heart," but apparently the audience isn't aware of that toddler video.

 

I'm not bugged by Kristen like others are, but I wish Hader had done the monologue himself. He's just so enjoyable. 

 

I loved the Herb Welch sketch. His bonking people in the face with the microphone never fails to make me laugh.

 

I liked The Group Hopper trailer. All the nonsense words they used were great, and I loved the random groups, like the Foodies and the Hasidics.  Of course Hader was great as "Elizabeth Banks."

 

I watch Hollywood Game Night, so I was pleased to see a sketch of it. I also love impressions, so this was right up my alley. The weakest was probably Morgan Freeman, but the rest were great. Sofia Vergara, Christoph Waltz, and Nick Offerman were spot on. I didn't mind the games and game-play being different than on the actual show. They had to dumb things down enough for the stupidity of the celebrities to shine.

 

The HelpFund commercial was great. I can't remember the guy that Hader was portraying, but he did a perfect job. And, yes, Leslie Jones is fantastic. She has so much energy and projects a fun personality. 

 

I liked the Jan Hooks tribute, but now I can't get Love Is A Dream out of my mind.

 

I'm really enjoying Michael Che on WU. Colin Jost doesn't bug me. I agree that the guy who did the chains bit wasn't as good as the last time, plus the connection betw guns and chains was really strained. However, yay for Stefon! "If you are some dumb folks just looking to be murdered…"

 

I didn't love the Puppetry skit the first time, just finding it ok. I felt about the same this time.

 

I liked Inside So Cal, but then I like Beck's and Kyle's style. 

 

I also liked the Cat in the Hat sketch. Thing 2 going by "Johnathing" was good, and I loved The Cat's parting words, "Oh the places she let me go."

 

Hee. I liked the Gossipy Coal Miner, particularly when Hader broke.

Edited October 12, 2014 by peeayebee

[mtlchick]

Would have been easier to show a sketch that showed off Jan's talents more if they didn't air the vintage show earlier?  Probably.  But since I never saw the one they showed, it still hit me hard, so it worked.  Maybe they wanted to symbolize what the show meant to Jan: that it was a dream job for her. 

 

Pretty good show overall, but I did groan outloud when Kristin showed.  

[cpcathy]

I think the show would have felt more complete with the Coal Miner sketch. Now I wish it had been included.

Count me in as one who is irritated by Kristen Wiig. My husband loves her, and even he said she didn't need to be there. As soon she came out in the monologue I cringed. Yes, they have a movie together, but this was advertised as Bill Hader hosting--did he feel he couldn't do it alone--or was it Lorne? I was even more irritated when she kept popping up throughout the show. Now I strongly feel that she does hog the spotlight--and it's not just because Lorne likes her. I agree that Kate seemed genuinely bugged by her in the Celebrity Game Night sketch.

 

The rest of the show was okay, I still love Beck and Kyle's stuff--I laughed all the way through it. WU is just a lost cause at this point, because no one is going to give up on Jost. It used to be my favorite part of the show. Even Stefon really seemed to be missing something without Seth.

[ktwo]

I remember her in the Vincent Price sketches as Judy Garland and thought she was hilarious.

I saw one of these a couple days ago because VH1 Classic reran the Eva Longoria episode. Her Judy Garland is exactly like her Broadway star game show contestant character and strangely like the Target Lady character as well. I am not impressed by it.

[Grammaeryn]

Something that occurred to me - Phil and Jan never had a chance to grow that old. Yup, send your tissues receipt to me.

[Brattinella]

Wow, I really don't see Jost as the problem on WU.  Che is the one who, after EVERY joke, looks around like "Did'ya get it?", smirks and squints. 

[theatremouse]

Last night, a bit, but Jost's done his fair share of that in general since he got the seat. If anything, they both need to stop it.

[cpcathy]

I feel Che can grow into a good anchor, and he would have been good with Cecily. Jost is a lost cause.

[Quickbeam]

Loved Stefon. Kills every time. I was watching for the Jan Hooks tribute. I liked the piece they chose but I wish they had gone with something funny, like the Sweeney Sisters with Shatner. Jan was very funny and deserved to be remembered that way. When they did Gilda's memorial, it was a dance piece with Steve Martin that was sweet and funny. I'll never forget Martin's introduction to it: "We were so young and she was so good". 

[helenamonster]

The monologue was so odd to me. It shouldn't have needed Wiig - or anyone to elevate it - why have a host with such a versatile track record do an awkward singing monologue? I'd be curious to know what ideas they scrapped in favor of it. If it was meant to be a wink at the overuse of singing monologues, it didn't succeed.

 

Yeah, at first I thought it was making fun of the singing monologues as well, but the longer it went on the less that seemed to be the case. Plus they made fun of the "questions from the audience" monologue last week, so it would just seem weird to do something like that two weeks in a row. But yeah, Kristen did not need to be there. I was laughing and enjoying Bill just fine and then she showed up and it was like the air got sucked out of the room. Then she was in a sketch, then she was there for the Jan Hooks tribute (she really felt out of place there, imo), then she introduced Hozier's second song...she's like a whack-a-mole.

[Katmai]

I could've done without any Kristen; she is like a life-suck when she's in front of a camera. I did like Harvey Fierstein's cameo.

 

I thought Darrell Hammond's announcing was much better and easier to hear. I hope he makes it his own. I recently read his book where he said he subbed for Don Pardo once, many years ago, when he had laryngitis. I'm not sure if he used his own voice or did an impression of Pardo at that time. 

 

Che is growing on me but I think Jost should be canned. He is just so stuffy.

 

One of my major complaints over the last several years has been the audio for the musical guests. Color me stunned, but I thought Hozier sounded great last night.

 

My impression of Leslie Jones is she is good only for loud and over-the-top punch lines, so I don't know how she'd do anything else that required something more low-key.

 

I'd love to see Hader do a return without any alumni with him. He's fully capable of shining all on his own with the current cast. vb68, thanks for posting the link for The Gossipy CoalMiner...it was great!

[nicolin]

Is Michael Che ever going to wear a different tie on WU?

Probably when it gets closer to Oscar season.

It always bothered me that Seth Myers wore the same tie every week. If Che is wearing the same tie then I guess they are keeping with tradition.

Edited October 12, 2014 by nicolin

[cpcathy]

It seems all the recent anchors wore the same outfit on every show, I liked the continuity.

[ajsnaves]

Tina and Amy always wore jeans under the desk, and I always assumed the men did that too.  It looks like they just updates the wardrobes.

[TimWil]

Is it possible that on the Halloween show (October 25th) Hader can come on as Vincent Price? Maybe he and Jim Carrey could be duelling Vincents?

On Hollywood Game Night why did Hader's Al Pacino have a southern accent?

Edited October 12, 2014 by TimWil

[opus]

Re: Kristen Wiig. I don't think I can come up another "beloved SNL cast member" who seems so hated.

[VCRTracking]

 

On Hollywood Game Night why did Hader's Al Pacino have a southern accent?

 

I think Hader's Pacino is based mostly on his character from Scent of a Woman(but without the blindness).

 

 

 

Edited October 13, 2014 by VCRTracking

[lou ann b]

I am a HUGE Bill Hader girl;so seeing him is always a win.. He didn't let me down. He just seems to elevate everyone around him.

And that's the good. And I like Kristen. I do. But in order for me to keep liking her, she needs to stay away from SNL for at least 2 seasons. There was NO reason for her to be there last night. None. I know that she and Bill are friends and collaborators. But..come  ON...what, does she follow Bill and other former castmates home at night and make cameos in their bathrooms?

As for the rest of the show...39 Cents", which I LOL'd at, Herb Welch, whom I adore, and the puppet sketch, which succeeds because of BIll, were my favorites.Update: I'm really enjoying Michael Che', I think he's great, and can go to the edgy well more often, SNL has been sorely lacking edgy.

 

Gotta go:Kristen Wiig just pulled into my driveway.I think she's wanting to play the saxophone on my front porch.

[briochetwist]

Re: Kristen Wiig. I don't think I can come up another "beloved SNL cast member" who seems so hated.

Absolutely.  I don't mind her as an actress, but I've always hated her on SNL.  I cringe when I read that she's one of the best cast members ever.  Just NO.

[lou ann b]

Kristen just left, she said "Hi" to everyone. Didn't mean to post without mentioning the Jan Hooks tribute. I think the Diner sketch on the Retro show at 10 was the best tribute last night,but Love Is A Dream was her favorite of the work she did with Phil, so it was appropriate. One of the things she did during her run on SNL that I liked best was "All About Deborah Norville"-when all that mess with Jane Pauley being not so subtly forced out of the Today show went down. Jan was Jane Pauley/Bette Davis and she was AWESOME.

A great talent who never got her due,IMO. And she was 3 years older than I am

[M. Darcy]

I have a feeling that Jon Lovitz agrees with us about Kristen.  If I remember correctly after he left, they kept asking him to came back and do cameos (as a joke that he just wouldn't leave).  But then they made a joke about he was such a loser that he wouldn't leave the show and since it was SNL's idea, he didn't find it very amusing.

[Princess Sparkle]

I don't know what it was about the So-Cal news, but I was so tickled by it.  I kept laughing so hard at all of it, especially when Bill was trying to explain why he liked the abstract art.  I think it's because it absolutely NAILED that type of teenager (many of which I knew in high school).  

 

I saw on John Mulaney's instagram that the last minute changes to Stefon were the Dan Cortese bits and the "a doorman who always high fives children of divorce".  I love the Dan Cortese mention, just because it is so, so random.

 

Tina and Amy always wore jeans under the desk, and I always assumed the men did that too.  It looks like they just updates the wardrobes.

 

Yeah, the men definitely do too - you can tell if they ever stand up.  There's probably just one set jacket, shirt and tie (if necessary) they put aside for the anchors.

Edited October 13, 2014 by Princess Sparkle

[Spartan Girl]

Oh God, I KNEW they were going to play "Love Is A Dream" for the tribute.  I was crying into my blanket even more than the first time I ever saw it.  RIP Jan and Phil.

 

Bill was good.  Loved seeing Stefon again, even when he couldn't stop cracking up.

[JTMacc99]

I loved the Cat in the Hat.  I think I was hooked the second he broke out of the rhymes. Everything about Bill's voice, his face even under the makeup, it all just so jarringly moved him from Dr. Seuss character to "real person in an uncomfortable situation with an ex" that I was giggling the whole way through after that.  Cecily did a really nice job running her side of the conversation and of course Taran nailed his part.  That was just fun all the way around, and to be honest, it reminded me of the sort of things they did a lot of back during the Jan Hooks years.

[vb68]

I saw somebody say that Bill makes a better Cat in the Hat than Mike Myers, and I would definitely agree.

[Brattinella]

I think this was the BEST episode in many a moon, and yet the "critics" say it is the lowest-rated episode ever?  Huh?

[cpcathy]

I don't think it was critics, it was actual ratings.

[VCRTracking]

Yeah, the reviews I've read have mostly been positive.

 

 

I loved the Cat in the Hat.  I think I was hooked the second he broke out of the rhymes. Everything about Bill's voice, his face even under the makeup, it all just so jarringly moved him from Dr. Seuss character to "real person in an uncomfortable situation with an ex" that I was giggling the whole way through after that.  Cecily did a really nice job running her side of the conversation and of course Taran nailed his part.  That was just fun all the way around, and to be honest, it reminded me of the sort of things they did a lot of back during the Jan Hooks years.

 

That was definitely the key, Bill and Cecily played the drama of it real with Bill asking "Is she my daughter?" in a genuinely emotional way. Also Aidy and Pete Davidson playing the kids as innocent and oblivious.

Edited October 13, 2014 by VCRTracking

[Brattinella]

Ratings, as in Neilson Ratings?  Which lately have been proven wrong?

[editorgrrl]

Bill Hader’s Saturday Night Live episode hit an all-time ratings low

Despite a return from one of the show’s most valuable players and the most consistent batch of sketches seen this season, this weekend’s Bill Hader-hosted Saturday Night Live tied as the series’ lowest-rated ever. The numbers have been in decline since last season, and Hader’s episode dropped to a 1.8 average among adults 18 to 49, matching the Charlize Theron-hosted episode from May.

 

One of the likeliest explanations is that live viewing for SNL is simply dwindling, period, as more people opt to wait for sketches to turn up on the Internet the next day. (Or they’ve already caught them at a Groundlings show.)

 

Ratings are not critical opinion. Ratings are data.

[vb68]

That really surprises me as I thought Bill hosting would cause an uptick in the numbers.

 

I still think a lot of it is that the show is still in a transition phase right now.

Edited October 13, 2014 by vb68

[Brattinella]

That's pretty funny, AV Club gave this episode of SNL an A- grade.

[nowandlater]

Yeah, but the ratings were an all-time low in the 18-49 demo.

 

It's annoying that headlines don't convey that.  It's always "the lowest-rated episode ever."

 

I'm pretty sure that Nielsen hasn't been measuring the 18-49 demo for most of SNL's run.

 

Yeah, demo ratings are most important, but when people see those headlines, they think of total viewership.

[Shopgirl406]

"Love is a Dream" just keeps running through my head.  I saw it live the 1st time, for the Phil tribute and now for Jan. Just lovely for a lovely lady.  I think it might touch those of us on the older end of life a bit more; those who have been watching SNL since the beginning.  So many gone.............

[Milburn Stone]

One of the likeliest explanations is that live viewing for SNL is simply dwindling, period, as more people opt to wait for sketches to turn up on the Internet the next day. (Or they’ve already caught them at a Groundlings show.)

 

Meow.

Edited October 14, 2014 by Milburn Stone

[cpcathy]

That really surprises me as I thought Bill hosting would cause an uptick in the numbers.

 

I still think a lot of it is that the show is still in a transition phase right now.

 

Yeah--I'd been looking forward to the episode ever since I heard he was going to host, and I know a lot of people here were as well! I'm even staying up to watch at night even though I am now in the 21st century and have DVR!

[Traveller519]

Aside from Kristen chewing up the scenery in Hollywood Game Night, and another musical monologue, I overall enjoyed the episode. It was a good mix of classic characters and new material.

 

Pete's sketch work outshone his Update bit this week, which was nice to see.

[vb68]

 

One of the likeliest explanations is that live viewing for SNL is simply dwindling, period, as more people opt to wait for sketches to turn up on the Internet the next day. (Or they’ve already caught them at a Groundlings show.)

 

I think that's kind of a cheap shot , really.  But SNL always seems to get more than its share of those.