Weekend Update: Summer Edition - 2017

[formerlyfreedom]

The spot to discuss the Weekend Update shows that will be airing in August 2017. Please note, this is not a catch-all topic, visit the main forum for other topics.

All the rules of the forum do apply here; discuss the shows themselves, and not  your personal politics.

Thank you and enjoy!

[Galileo908]

The president looks like a Jeff Dunham puppet. Man, I've missed these guys.

"Even FDR stood up when he was speaking tough." oof.

And of course they had to bring in Don and I'M ERIC to comment on their goings-on. I'll admit it, I just died at Eric trying to play with the fidget spinner.

And we finally have our Mooch: Bill Hader! But it won't top Mario Cantone, and at least he got to do it on the President Show.

I think I would've gotten more out of the LeVar Ball bit if I knew who he was, but it was good to see Kenan again.

All in all, it is what it is: a Weekend Update that's allowed to breathe a little. Not too bad.

Edited August 11, 2017 by Galileo908

[vb68]

Very, very happy the boys are back for a short summer run. With all the news, I have really been missing the show.

I thought Don Jr and Eric was a true highlight. Alex in particular is just masterful as Eric. (And we get confirmation that he's returning, which I never really doubted, but you never know with newbies.)

Bill Hader as da Mooch!  Very similar to other characters he's done (I know he's used that voice before), but it was still quite enjoyable.

Honestly I would have cut Kenan's bit as I don't think it added much of anything, and Leslie felt truncated at the end.

Some good jokes. I did think they could have made  a lot more of the "Fire and Fury" comments.

Really surprised Kate wasn't on.

Edited August 11, 2017 by vb68

[ebk57]

I'm out of town for a couple of days and really hope my DVR picks this up after football.  If not, at least I have you all here to keep me up to date!!

[Spartan Girl]

I screamed with joy when I saw Bill Hader playing the Mooch. Best casting since Spicey! Too bad we probably won't get more of him during SNL.

After this last week, I think we all needed this.

[wknt3]

9 hours ago, vb68 said:

Bill Hader as da Mooch!  Very similar to other characters he's done (I know he's used that voice before), but it was still quite enjoyable.

The Mooch is very similar to a lot of characters many comedians have done. He's a stereotypical New Jersey D-bag so tons of NYC based comedians have done the voice or the mannerisms or even the whole character before without specifically intending a Mooch impersonation. And yes it was fun and enjoyable. Of course the Mooch is basically the comedy equivalent of a hanging curveball in the middle of the plate...

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Really surprised Kate wasn't on.

It might be a scheduling issue. With all those movies, guest star spots, and voice roles she was probably booked before they ever thought about doing these shows.

[mtlchick]

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Honestly I would have cut Kenan's bit as I don't think it added much of anything, and Leslie felt truncated at the end.

This.   While I'm still confused as to what booty water is (and it's better than I don't) making Colin kiss her arm and telling him "that's what it will be like WHEN you get to prison" was gold.  Speaking of her arm, the girl is looking amazing!

 

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"Even FDR stood up when he was speaking tough." oof.

The line of the night.  And sadly, the complete truth.

[vb68]

I just read that Hader wasn't in the studio. He was in LA.  I guess that explains making it a facetime joke.

[cpcathy]

While I adore me some Hader, it was really Eric and Don Jr that made the show for me. Eric's confused face kills me every time.

[helenamonster]

"Well, it's been a long year these past few weeks." Yeah, that about sums it up. It's really a shame for SNL that they missed so much juicy stuff since just May, so this limited run couldn't have come at a better time.

Bill! Yeah, unfortunately The Mooch is such a walking stereotype that it's hard to make an impression of him stand out from any other Jersey douchebag character, but he did well with what he had to work with.

I also love whenever they do Don and Eric. Sometimes I feel bad for Eric that he always gets portrayed as, uh, slow, but then I remember how he used his foundation to steal money from kids with cancer so you know what fuck him!

Leslie does look amazing. I follow her on Instagram and she posts workout videos a lot. She's got way more dedication and willpower than I will ever have, and it's really paying off.

[WhineandCheez]

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Bill! Yeah, unfortunately The Mooch is such a walking stereotype that it's hard to make an impression of him stand out from any other Jersey douchebag character, but he did we

To me, it harkened back to Dan Ackroyd doing Irving Mainway, the original douchebag.  Loooved Leslie's bit about after she dies she wants the mortician should be looking around to see if anyone is watching him feel her up. Also loved Che's bit on the imigration policy being a bougie girl.  I finally think Che is ok on WU, the first 2 years I wasn't convinced, but Trump brought him out.

[Princess Sparkle]

2 hours ago, cpcathy said:

While I adore me some Hader, it was really Eric and Don Jr that made the show for me. Eric's confused face kills me every time.

I've only been able to watch part of it so far, but Eric's "And then he winked!" made me lose my shit. Alex Moffat is hilarious; and I hope over the course of these WU specials, we see him get a chance to bust out his Al Franken impression again.

[vb68]

It got pretty good summer ratings.

[mtlchick]

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I just read that Hader wasn't in the studio. He was in LA.  I guess that explains making it a facetime joke.

It would also explain why there was a lag in him responding to the cheers and applause.  Melissa McCarthy did the same when she was Spicy the Easter Bunny. 

[JZL]

Wild, whacky stuff.  The bell-ringer for me was I'mEric and the fidget spinner.  Bonus points for drawing out the tongue business.

Edited August 12, 2017 by JZL

[msrachelj]

On 8/10/2017 at 9:30 PM, Galileo908 said:

The president looks like a Jeff Dunham puppet. Man, I've missed these guys.

"Even FDR stood up when he was speaking tough." oof.

And of course they had to bring in Don and I'M ERIC to comment on their goings-on. I'll admit it, I just died at Eric trying to play with the fidget spinner.

And we finally have our Mooch: Bill Hader! But it won't top Mario Cantone, and at least he got to do it on the President Show.

I think I would've gotten more out of the LeVar Ball bit if I knew who he was, but it was good to see Kenan again.

All in all, it is what it is: a Weekend Update that's allowed to breathe a little. Not too bad.

i loved it. very very good. especially eric and donald jr.! that was perfection. 

one thing i did not like was keenan. i don't really think he is funny except for when he is playing a game show host. 

[peeayebee]

On 8/10/2017 at 7:22 PM, ebk57 said:

I'm out of town for a couple of days and really hope my DVR picks this up after football.  If not, at least I have you all here to keep me up to date!!

I recently got a new DVR, so I've had to reschedule my recordings. Unfortunately, I forgot about SNL. I'll have to watch it (hopefully) online.

[peeayebee]

On 8/10/2017 at 6:30 PM, Galileo908 said:

I think I would've gotten more out of the LeVar Ball bit if I knew who he was, but it was good to see Kenan again.

I had to google LeVar Ball. Seems like Kenan didn't exaggerate too much.

I agree with others that Eric and Don Jr's appearance was the highlight. "I'm Eric!" will never be not funny. I love how Eric was mimicking his brother's mannerisms. Early on you could see him glance at Don's hands, and I expected him to do that more, but he didn't need to. And Don's support of his "special" brother was kinda sweet. The whole bit with the fidget spinner was hilarious.

[ebk57]

My DVR recording cut out in the middle of Keenan as LeVar Ball.  I'm very familiar with the Ball family drama, so I think Keenan was spot on, as far as I saw.  We tried to find the rest on OnDemand, but it doesn't seem to be there.  I'll hopefully be able to find the rest on YouTube somewhere.

I loved what I saw and agree that Uday and Qusay were the highlight of the show.  Looking forward to next week!

[vb68]

I was thinking about what they could do tonight since this week has been so somber-- maybe Kate's Angela Merkel?

[WhineandCheez]

Hey guys tonight the show will be running on the COZI channel regular time.  Cozi is around the 20s, basic cable channel, I think it shows old re runs

[mtlchick]

Tina Fey OWNED her segment, sheet caking better trend on Twitter and I need to find out what brand her eyewear is. 

 

Seth and Jimmy? Not bad but a bit...disjointetd?

[Spartan Girl]

I think we all need some of that cake -- though dipping the grilled cheese was a little much.

The drag queen joke was a little low, but other than that I loved Tina. And Jimmy and Seth coming on as Washington and Jefferson was hilarious.

[vb68]

Yeah Tina brought that one home.  I loved that she had the UVa shirt on.  She didn't hold back either, which was so refreshing after this week.  She even bitch slapped Paul Ryan like a boss.  And the cake looked damn good.

I have to admit when Jimmy came out, I instantly thought lame but then after Seth came out, it brought it up to meh for me. Not my favorite segment for sure, but it ended ok. 

Edited August 18, 2017 by vb68

[formerlyfreedom]

I really enjoyed Kenan as Neil DeGrasse Tyson - he didn't nail him exactly, but I got the feel for it, having seen Neil on so many late night shows.

But nothing tops Tina and the cake. And when she goaded Michael into taking some - 'not police, Che. Militias. They train themselves.' I about died.

[Lantern7]

Do drag folk frequent Washington Square Park? Damn, and extremists are holding a meetup there on Saturday? The last few times I went there, it was to check out a gathering of dachshunds. Way cuter.

Kenan needs to up his NDT impression if he's going to break it out again. To me, NDT is monotone when doing his things (which is probably different from when he does the talk circuit). It's a lovely monotone, though.

I'm really hoping that wasn't a real cake, in the sense that chowing down on that much in one sitting might be hazardous to one's help. Or maybe sheetcakes are different from the regular kind. I never have company over to break one of those out.

[vb68]

"If you think white supremacists are upset this week, just wait until next week when even the sun turns black."  That was probably my favorite non-Tina line.

[Mystery]

i missed this episode because I didn't see that it was on another channel and not being picked up by my Tivo, but I found Tina online and she was great. She was really committed! Hope I can see the rest later. I was impressed with how she could get those lines out, mostly clearly, while shoveling cake into her mouth. 

[wknt3]

Loved Tina! The rest was a bit meh. The Seth and Jimmy bit had a lot of potential, but never seemed to quite gel. Keenan's bit felt like filler. There were some good lines, like Michael's about how he got addicted to selling Vicodin but it just felt strangely flat when it should have been sharp and brutal. Very disappointing after how good last week was especially given that the rest of the late night field has really risen to the occasion.

[Sandman]

"I want to encourage all good, sane Americans to treat the rallies this weekend like the opening of a thoughtful movie with two female leads: don't show up." This made me howl. Loved Tina's burns on Ann Coulter, too. Though the mouthfuls of cake made her a little harder to understand sometimes.

Edited August 18, 2017 by Sandman

[AriAu]

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But nothing tops Tina and the cake. And when she goaded Michael into taking some - 'not police, Che. Militias. They train themselves.' I about died.

I could have had about 20 more minutes of Tina......if not for the concerns about the sugar overdose she might have suffered.  It was just amazing. I had tears in my eyes-had to watch it twice to not miss anything.

Not only was it hysterically well written, but the delivery was perfect. It felt like she was doing it without a script....other than her eyes looking for the cue cards a couple of times....especially the militia line "they train themselves".

As usual, Fallon was not funny, but I was surprised that Seth couldn't find a way to bring it home, especially behind the Update desk.

[mtlchick]

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I was impressed with how she could get those lines out, mostly clearly, while shoveling cake into her mouth. 

She has admitted that she has a talent of shoving big pieces of food into her mouth and eating it within seconds (see "30 Rock" Sandwich Day episode.) I was enjoying that it was getting it into her hair and shirt but she persisted...er, committed full stop without breaking.  Or puking.

 

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"I want to encourage all good, sane Americans to treat the rallies this weekend like the opening of thoughtful movie with two female leads: don't show up."

I began to cry from laughing at that point.

[hendersonrocks]

I flove Tina and thought the bit was good, cathartic humor (I also covet that UVA sweatshirt and her glasses). That being said: just ignore the Nazis and eat cake is also not exactly what us white women need to be doing right now. 54% of us voted for that fucking clown. We're married to and daughters/sisters/mothers/cousins/aunts/yougettheidea of men who overwhelmingly voted for that fucking clown. We actually do have a responsibility here.*

Jimmy looked like he was in the middle of a three day bender. Maybe it was the costume and wig, but the sheen of sweat on his abnormally pasty face was a little unsettling - especially when Seth rolled out and looked perfectly normal. Kenyan as Neil was so delightful. All in all, definitely stronger than last week's outing - in no small part thanks to A+ material to work with from the president and his band of merry white nationalist men.

*I get it. It's comedy. It was good. I'm just worried about people turning sheetcaking into their movement and rallying cry without doing anything else about it. 

[iMonrey]

Wow Tina was really going to town on that cake. I can't believe how much of it she actually ate. I mean, I think she was mainly digging into it and tearing it up, but she was eating an awful lot of it. Maybe a quarter of the whole thing by the end of the piece. And calling out Paul Ryan for being a pussy was, for me, the icing on that cake. 

[peeayebee]

6 hours ago, mtlchick said:

I was enjoying that it was getting it into her hair and shirt but she persisted...

Good one. :)

I watched this online and loved Tina's segment just like everyone else. I need to rewatch because I missed some of her comments. What was Coulter? Yard-sale Barbie? 

I thought Jimmy & Seth as Washington & Jefferson were pretty good, esp together.

But Tina rules.

[teddysmom]

5 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

*I get it. It's comedy. It was good. I'm just worried about people turning sheetcaking into their movement and rallying cry without doing anything else about it. 

I wouldn't if I were you.

Not everyone can show up to a rally because there may not be one near them, but people are donating to SPLC, Anti Defamation League, the hospital where the injured were taken to help defray medical bills, calling Congress to get Trump censured and to start legislation to remove statues from the building, etc.  as well as if there are any in their cities and towns.  

A lot is being done. And a little laughter at Trump, Ryan, Coulter, and the chinless turds in polo shirts will do us all good.  Laughing doesn't mean we don't care or won't fight. 

[cpcathy]

Sheetcaking is comedy, not a genuine suggestion of what we should do. It's what we all feel we want to do!

I think this was another strong show, I was giddy when I saw Jimmy and Seth on Instagram ahead of the show. I adore Seth and I still find Jimmy funny and don't see the need to bash him like all other media bashes him.

But now I really want some cake.

[Mystery]

5 hours ago, hendersonrocks said:

I flove Tina and thought the bit was good, cathartic humor (I also covet that UVA sweatshirt and her glasses). That being said: just ignore the Nazis and eat cake is also not exactly what us white women need to be doing right now.

I see this point, but I agree with your other point that it's a comedy bit. I don't think she was advocating doing nothing (evidence: she showed up to do this) but I agree that it's a valid concern. I also think that she was very worried about more people being hurt or killed. It's a tough line to draw. 

[Good Queen Jane]

My favorite line was Michael Che's that his grandfather didn't fight in WW II so Nazis could spew hatred, but that his grandfather didn't fight in WWII because he was in jail for whistling at a white woman. That is clever in so many ways.

[msrachelj]

On 8/17/2017 at 11:31 PM, Lantern7 said:

Do drag folk frequent Washington Square Park? Damn, and extremists are holding a meetup there on Saturday? The last few times I went there, it was to check out a gathering of dachshunds. Way cuter.

Kenan needs to up his NDT impression if he's going to break it out again. To me, NDT is monotone when doing his things (which is probably different from when he does the talk circuit). It's a lovely monotone, though.

I'm really hoping that wasn't a real cake, in the sense that chowing down on that much in one sitting might be hazardous to one's help. Or maybe sheetcakes are different from the regular kind. I never have company over to break one of those out.

if it wasn't a real cake, what would they have been eating?! and most of it did not go in her mouth. the cake looked like it had a fruit filling? those were my favorite type cakes growing up. living in a shit hole rural place now which is lacking in just about everything. including bakeries. 

On 8/18/2017 at 9:30 AM, Sandman said:

"I want to encourage all good, sane Americans to treat the rallies this weekend like the opening of a thoughtful movie with two female leads: don't show up." This made me howl. Loved Tina's burns on Ann Coulter, too. Though the mouthfuls of cake made her a little harder to understand sometimes.

what did she say about ann coulter? i missed it. she was talking so fast and then my husband started talking and my subtitles did not work on this show. 

[wellread]

She referred to Ann Coulter as a "yard sale Barbie."  Love it!

[Phishbulb]

On 8/18/2017 at 9:30 AM, Sandman said:

"I want to encourage all good, sane Americans to treat the rallies this weekend like the opening of a thoughtful movie with two female leads: don't show up." 

Maybe some residual bitterness from "Sisters" not doing that well? (It did open up against Star Wars, so I'm not sure how they ever expected it would).

[Sandman]

She also referred to Coulter as "coming out of her Roach Motel."

Well, I guess people didn't follow Tina's "advice," since something like 20,000 people showed up (peacefully) to protest the right-wing rally in Boston.

It astounds me that Fey has been criticized because "sheetcaking" is not good advice. Good Lord, do people actually think the purpose of satire is advice?

[mtlchick]

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Maybe some residual bitterness from "Sisters" not doing that well?

It made 105M on a 30M budget.  And I'm pretty sure that Tina wouldn't classify Sisters as a "thoughtful movie" as opposed to "weird sex jokes with your BFF." 

[BoogieBurns]

1 hour ago, Sandman said:

Well, I guess people didn't follow Tina's "advice," since something like 20,000 people showed up (peacefully) to protest the right-wing rally in Boston.

Some showed up with sheet cake!

[topanga]

24 minutes ago, BoogieBurns said:

Some showed up with sheet cake!

Love that.  They saw her sketch for what it was--humorous satire. 

[vb68]

19 hours ago, Phishbulb said:

Maybe some residual bitterness from "Sisters" not doing that well?

That's certainly not how I took it.  Her point was more universal, and I thought referencing many movies.     

[peeayebee]

Hmm. I want a sheet cake.

[helenamonster]

Another great episode! Apparently there's only one left per the show's Instagram? I was hoping for more but they did come back and just the right time.

Tina is my fave forever. The fact that she got that much cake down without choking is astounding. And yeah, anyone who thinks she was serious...that reminds me of one of Cecily's Kathie Ann bits. "Liberals don't even try to have a sense of humor!"

She got a lot of good burns in but I think the best is, "Take our country back from what? This isn't ours, we stole it from the Native Americans! And when they protest peacefully at Standing Rock, they get shot with rubber bullets, but you chinless turds are allowed to push up against a police line."

For anyone looking for any other SNL/UVA alum takes, Sasheer had a really great, thoughtful post on her Instagram.

[Sandman]

On 2017-08-21 at 11:48 PM, helenamonster said:

"... And when they protest peacefully at Standing Rock, they get shot with rubber bullets, but you chinless turds are allowed to push up against a police line."

Didn't I hear "... and we let you chinless turds march with semi-automatic weapons"? Still, it's a fantastic observation.

Edited August 24, 2017 by Sandman