Tag: Alec Baldwin

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February 22, 1997 – Alec Baldwin / Tina Turner (S22 E14)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN
Robert DeNiro (host) isn’t amused

— I’m sure this won’t quite live up to the outstanding first Letterman sketch from earlier this season, but it’s still nice to see this become recurring.
— Once again, Norm’s Letterman impression is killer.
— Tonight’s new Letterman catchphrase, “Ehhhh, you enjoying your shrimp?”, doesn’t hold a candle to the previous Letterman sketch’s classic catchphrase, “Uhhhhh, y-ya got any gum?”.
— Good to see the return of Alec’s spot-on and funny Robert DeNiro impression from the last time he hosted.
— Pretty weak Top 10 list from Alec’s DeNiro so far.
— Why did the Top 10 list end at #5? Shouldn’t Alec’s DeNiro have waited until the #1 entry of the list to say “Live from New York”, instead of saying it as the fifth entry?
STARS: ****


MONOLOGUE
host goes backstage to demonstrate how SNL is a wholesome, family show

— I love the banjo music randomly playing when Alec is going on about how what makes SNL important is the people who put the show together.
— Fun monologue with Alec going all around the studio to show the crew.
— A rare Don Pardo appearance! We also get a mention that it’s Don’s birthday.
— I like Alec’s “Don is very old” aside to the camera after the only thing Don Pardo responds to Alec’s questions with is “It’s Saturday Night Live!”
— Funny scene with Molly teaching Darrell how to read. The kiddie voice that Darrell is using sounds very similar to the voice he would later use for Jerry Mathers in the Pulp Fiction Screen Tests sketch in the following season.
— Another backstage sketch with Tim hugging Lorne, a charming running gag this season.
— A good laugh from the “Irish Need Not Apply” sign.
— Interesting seeing Alec getting dressed into a wig and costume while still speaking to the camera.
— After the brief bit with Tracy randomly acting like an army general, I love Alec telling the camera in a deadpan manner “I have no idea who that man is.”
— Alec is stumbly with some of his line deliveries here (and he literally stumbled off the home base stage by accident when walking off of it), but I’ll cut him some slack, as it must not be easy to navigate through such a busy monologue where he has to go all around the studio while talking to the camera the whole time.
— The sketch that Alec was shown getting dressed for turns out to be yet another Roxbury Guys sketch, a recurring sketch that I’m afraid my fair tolerance for may have slowly begun waning in the last one with Marin Short. Though it’s at least pretty fun how this monologue transitioned into the sketch. I guess I’ll review the Roxbury Guys sketch as a separate segment below.
STARS: ****½


THE ROXBURY GUYS
(host) is more successful with women than are his fellow Roxbury Guys

— We at least get a change of pace for these Roxbury Guys sketches, with Alec’s Roxbury Guy easily getting chicks. It’s still not doing much to stop my gradual slowburn towards this recurring sketch as a whole, though.
STARS: **½


DRESSING ROOM
musical guest’s advice brings Mary Katherine Gallagher out of her shell

— Cheri is dead-on as an overemotional, hysterical, adolescent fangirl.
— A nice premise with Mary Katherine Gallagher meeting Tina Turner.
— Tina: “I want you to feel deep inside yourself.” Mary Katherine Gallagher: “My grandmother says I’m not supposed to do that.”
— I love MKG getting really into her singing of “Private Dancer”, imitating Tina’s voice.
STARS: ***½


THE QUIET STORM
while on-air, Chris Garnett has turf war with station newscaster (host)

— I love the running gag with the increasingly urban-sounding black names Tim reads off during a report (e.g. Shaquanda, Tonjaniqua, etc.).
— Some laughs from Tim constantly interrupting Alec’s report with raunchy, smooth-voiced announcements.
— I love Tim’s character telling Alec, in his typical smooth R&B radio announcer voice, “If you don’t like it, you can kiss my black ass.”
— There’s something I find humorous about the fact that SNL made a recurring role out of Tracy’s silent, minor character in these Quiet Storm sketches, who’s only shown happily slow-dancing with his woman.
STARS: ***½


TV FUNHOUSE
“Fun With Real Audio” by RBS- Tom Snyder stalks Dolly Parton

— I love how Tom Snyder and Dolly Parton’s conversation is heard casually continuing even as Snyder is shown gradually becoming a creepy stalker towards Dolly through a passage of time.
— Funny cutaway to an underwear-clad Snyder sitting in a Dolly Parton shrine. Why is his foot in what appears to be a tissue box? (as seen in the second-to-last above screencap for this cartoon) Or do I not wanna know?
— I’ve been loving these fast-moving, gag-filled Fun With Real Audio cartoons of Smigel’s.
STARS: ****


THE GOSSIP SHOW
Julie Brown (CHO) publicizes co-workers’ dirty laundry

— Not sure this will work as a recurring sketch.
— They’re even having Alec play the same columnist (Rex Reed) that Phil Hartman played in the last installment of this sketch, and Alec is being given the same type of harsh dialogue towards celebrities.
— Good gag with Cheri’s audio getting cut off while she’s detailing a particularly dirty secret about the audio guy in her crew.
— This overall sketch isn’t working quite as well as the “Julie Brown gives out secretive nuclear arms info” premise from the first installment of this sketch earlier this season (which I now feel I underrated a bit in my review).
STARS: ***


WEEKEND UPDATE
Howard Stern [real] gives his opinion of SNL & shows Private Parts clip

— Another Update where Norm’s voice sounds unusually hoarse. I’ve noticed that it seems to happen every time he has played David Letterman earlier in the night. Is doing the Letterman voice a strain on Norm’s voice or something?
— A big guest appearance from Howard Stern.
— Interesting that Stern’s allowed to bluntly criticize SNL during this commentary, and declare Norm the only good thing about the show (a comment that receives applause from the audience).
— I’m getting a big laugh from Stern detailing his dark and tasteless rejected sketch about Elizabeth Taylor’s tumor.
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “In Your Wildest Dreams”


LONG ISLAND GIRLS
Long Island phone sex operators are aroused by callers, not vice versa

— The third and final edition of this era’s series of accent-based phone sex line sketches.
— A good laugh from Cheri’s cramps bit.
— I feel the New York accents premise kinda pales in comparison to the funnier Australian and Michigan accents premises of the previous iterations of this sketch, but it’s still providing laughs.
— Ha, it figures that real-life New Yorker Colin Quinn would be cast in this particular sketch.
STARS: ***


SENTIMENTAL YARD SALE
at yard sale, couple (host) & (MOS) unloads sentimental items for pennies

— Hmm, I have no memory of this sketch from my previous viewings of this episode.
— A laugh from Alec still offering the wedding ring to Jim and Ana for a cheap price, after going on about the huge sentimental value it holds to him.
— This premise kinda feels like the reverse of the Sentimental Value Pawn Shop sketch that Phil Hartman did in the late 80s.
— Okay, this sketch is getting too repetitive and one-note, though it’s being very well-acted by Alec.
STARS: **½


WONG & OWENS, EX-PORN STARS
Don & Reggie discover that their new boss (host) was also a porn star

— Predictably, this sketch is taking the same turns that the first installment of this sketch from earlier this season did. It’s not working as well for me in a second sketch.
— We at least get a new turn with Alec also turning out be a former 1970s porn star. That’s still not making this sketch all that great, though.
STARS: **


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Proud Mary”


BILL BRASKY’S FUNERAL
the drunk businessmen eulogize Bill Brasky at his funeral

— This sketch opens on a shot of the “McKay Funeral Home”, a self-reference from a certain SNL writer who pens these Bill Brasky sketches.
— Tonight’s heavy usage of recurring sketches continues. However, this is one sketch that I am always ecstatic to see.
— Feels a bit empty seeing this sketch without David Koechner, after I’ve gotten used to seeing him in these Bill Brasky sketches when recently reviewing the previous installments.
— A funeral is a very interesting out-of-the-ordinary setting for a Bill Brasky sketch.
— One line about Brasky that I particularly like: “He had dandruff the size of mice!”
— A big laugh from Alec’s random aside “I’m a convicted sex offender!”
— Another particularly great line about Brasky, as told by all three of the guys: “He hated Mexicans…” “…and he was half-Mexican…” “…and he hated irony.”
— Great ending with Brasky’s drink-holding hand bursting through his coffin, demanding a refill of his drink.
STARS: *****


RAIN
the miniseries features an as yet undramatized natural disaster

— At first, I thought this was a real NBC commercial that was left in the copy I’m reviewing of the live version of this episode, until I recognized Will. The NBC promo logo on the corner of the screen is part of what fooled me.
— A funny rain reveal, after such an overdramatic set-up to what the panic is about.
— A well-done and very funny parody of then-contemporary disaster movies.
STARS: ****


GOODNIGHTS

— Surprisingly, these goodnights air literally right after the Rain fake ad ends, with no commercial break in between. A huge rarity for SNL to go from the final sketch to the goodnights without cutting to commercial.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— I’m not too crazy about this episode as a whole. Actually, there were some strong and solid things, but I dunno, something about the overall show had a bit of a below-par feel for an Alec Baldwin-hosted episode. It was also awfully heavy on recurring sketches (Sentimental Yard Sale was literally the ONLY non-recurring sketch all night), which itself isn’t too big of a problem with me, as I’ve gotten used to season 22’s heavy reliance on recurring sketches, but the problem I have is that a lot of tonight’s installments of said recurring sketches were a step down from preceding installments (including the Letterman cold opening, even though it still worked).


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Chevy Chase)
a slight step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Sting

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January 20, 1996 – Alec Baldwin / Tori Amos (S21 E11)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

NIGHTLINE
everyone is shocked by Michael Jackson’s (TIM) divorce

— I love the way they’re exaggerating the shock and impact of the Michael Jackson/Lisa Marie Presley breakup, complete with stock footage of girls crying and people rioting in the streets.
— Cheri still hasn’t quite found her Barbara Walters voice yet.
— Nancy’s Diane Sawyer has a lot of funny lines, especially her going on about the “raw sexuality” she witnessed from MJ when she interviewed him and Lisa Marie.
— Jim’s brief scene as Stephen Hawking slayed me.
— Tim’s MJ going on about how he loves women’s “short brown hair, 60-pound bodies, and the way they like to play with action figures” gave me a good laugh.
STARS: ****


MONOLOGUE
new father host expresses his emotions with the help of Lucien & Fagin

— After getting so used to frequently reviewing Alec Baldwin episodes from the late 80s/early 90s era, it’s going to feel a little weird seeing him host in a completely new era with a new cast. Even just seeing him standing on this season’s new home base stage feels unusual. I’m sure I’ll have all of these same feelings when reviewing the John Goodman episode from later this season.
— The Fops return once again.
— Not the greatest monologue in itself, but The Fops are as funny as always, even if this has started going really heavy on their trademark “eerrrrrrr” sounds.
STARS: ***


MARSHALL POWER TOOLS
Rerun from 10/28/95


CHESS TOURNAMENT
Glen (MAM) asks Craig & Arianna to stop pepping up a chess tournament

— The concept of the Cheerleaders cheering at a chess tournament, of all places, is pretty funny.
— This installment has been very standard so far, but I do like the “Bobby Fisher, where is he?” number right now.
— (*sigh*) The inevitable Cheerleaders fatigue is slowly starting to set in for me. I’m feeling the very beginnings of me getting sick of these sketches. After having an open mind and goodwill during the previous two installments of this sketch, my slow burn towards the Cheerleaders has officially begun tonight, folks.
— I do like Mark’s performance during his small appearance as an angrily-ranting chess nerd.
STARS: **½


THE JOE PESCI SHOW
Robert DeNiro (host) watches abuse take place

— This sketch officially becomes recurring, giving the underused Jim Breuer some much-needed job security.
— Funny passing line from Jim’s Pesci about dyeing his hair blonde for Leathal Weapon so his head doesn’t match his “grill” (*points to his crotch*).
— Alec’s Robert DeNiro impression is hilariously dead-on.
— I love when Alec’s DeNiro gives Will’s cue-card guy some money for telling off Pesci.
— Very random casting of Spade as Brad Pitt. Also, this reminds me that tonight’s episode surprisingly has no Spade In America segment, for the first time all season.
STARS: ****


LITERARY THEATRE
bubbleheaded (MOS) & (NAW) display Dense & Densibility

— The Fops AGAIN tonight? Look, I like these characters, but yeeeaaaaahhhh, you’re pushing it, SNL.
— Some pretty good laughs from Molly and Nancy’s dense actions.
— I liked Alec’s “It appears as though my John Thomas has joined the military” line when looking down at his crotch while pointing out how sexually aroused he is.
— Ehh, this sketch has kinda fizzled out after a while. It’s been almost two minutes since I’ve really laughed at anything.
— A fairly funny ending with a bare-assed naked Fops.
STARS: **


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Caught A Lite Sneeze”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Joe Blow says more about his blue-collar life & tries to connect with NOM

— Joe Blow officially becomes a recurring character. Strangely, SNL writer Colin Quinn has still yet to be credited as a featured player, despite all of this big airtime he’s consistently been getting on Update. I kinda wonder if this is the first time in SNL history where an uncredited SNL performer has had their own lead solo recurring character, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s at least one or two examples I’m forgetting.
— Like the last time Joe Blow appeared, there’s a lot of really funny ranting from him about personal news in his life.
— I like the running joke in Joe Blow’s commentaries, where he asks “When we gonna go for that beer, Norm?” This time, Norm reluctantly even sets a date for that beer (April 11th).
STARS: ****


BUCKWELL’S FOLLIES
gubernatorial candidate (host) makes devastating public relations errors

— Oh, here comes a sketch I’ve always absolutely loved. A favorite of mine.
— The Lassie-shooting reveal is hilarious.
— Priceless part with Alec unintentionally directing his angry “Kiss my ass!” outburst to a baby.
— I love all of the off-camera angry heckling while Alec’s giving his speech. Koechner’s goofy-voiced yells of “You shot Lassie!” are particularly funny.
— Note to the UFO sketch from the preceding season’s Deion Sanders episode: this is the right way to do a sketch that features frequent newspaper headlines.
— Alec’s horrible decisions are getting increasingly funnier.
— A rare example of a text crawl ending actually being really funny. A great way to end this sketch.
STARS: *****


FUZZY MEMORIES BY JACK HANDEY
mugging people by “playing pirate”


ACCIDENTALLY SHOT BY HUNTERS
guests tell about run-ins with sportsmen

— The setting of this sketch has an almost season 16 feel. Maybe because I’m being reminded of the Slapped By Beaver Tails and What Animal Were You Raised By sketches from that season.
— A nice visual of Mark’s insane deer-like hair.
— Will’s constant apologies in the audience are pretty funny.
— A short and simple sketch.
STARS: ***


BELATED SEASON’S GREETINGS
host sends belated season’s greetings with a generic video Christmas card

— A good little laugh from Alec referring to Christmas as Voodoo Day.
— I’m enjoying Alec’s generic season’s greetings, covering all the bases of the different recipients.
— Another short and simple sketch.
STARS: ***½


SHE
seamen (MAM) & (host) use feminine pronouns, except when appropriate

— A very busy night for Mark, who has appeared in a majority of tonight’s sketches. Is this SNL’s way of making up for him not appearing at all in the preceding episode?
— Mark and (especially) Alec’s delivery is selling this sketch fairly well, but there’s not much to this material, especially the “referring to a child as ‘it’” punchline at the end.
— Wow, yet ANOTHER short and simple sketch, though not as funny this time.
STARS: **½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Hey Jupiter”


AIRPORT BAR
drunk businessmen (DAK), (WIF), (host), (MAM) mythologize big Bill Brasky

— Words cannot express my excitement right now. We get the debut of Bill freakin’ Brasky, one of my all-time favorite recurring sketches.
— Wow, Mark’s busy night continues. He’s been ALL OVER tonight’s episode. I sure hope he’s enjoying all of this airtime, because this is as good as it’s going to get for him. It’s all downhill for him next season.
— So many funny little details in this sketch, especially the big overbites on all the drunk businessmen, their gruff voices, and their comically-oversized drinking glasses.
— This sketch is a prime example of how well Alec can disappear into character at times, as he sounds and acts absolutely nothing like himself during this sketch.
— Waaaay too many hilarious one-liners for me to single out in this review.
— After Koechner randomly blurts out a stream of gibberish while Will’s telling a story, Will continues speaking but you can tell he’s trying not to crack up.
— I am loving every single second of this insane, bizarre sketch. Such a beautiful piece of nonsensical absurdity.
STARS: *****


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— An okay episode, but not great, and far from one of Alec Baldwin’s best. What did hit in this episode hit really well, though, as this contained two of my favorite sketches of the entire season (Buckwell’s Follies and the Bill Brasky debut). The second half of this episode had an odd structure, with the string of unusually short sketches towards the end, though I do like how the brevity of those sketches gave me an “early season 1” vibe. And I was impressed by how immediately well Alec Baldwin worked with this new cast. He shifted from the early 90s cast to this cast without missing a beat.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Christopher Walken)
a mild step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Danny Aiello

Posted on

December 10, 1994 – Alec Baldwin / Beastie Boys (S20 E8)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

PRESS CONFERENCE
Joycelyn Elders (ELC) gets the hook after too much masturbation talk

— Nice to see Ellen’s Joycelyn Elders impression again after the funny Show & Tell sketch from the preceding season. The “masturbation in school” topic is a funny premise for this cold opening.
— Elders, on her masturbation instruction book: “It does not take long to read. Step 1, step 2, then repeat.”
— Great turn with a giant hook entering the shot and trying to decide whether to yank Elders off the stage or not.
STARS: ***½


MONOLOGUE
ADS & host relate positives caused by Canteen Boy-scoutmaster skit outcry

— Alec says that with this hosting stint, he joins the prestigious five-timers club.
— I like Alec addressing the Canteen Boy controversy from his last episode, especially how he’s exaggerating the outrage over the sketch, such as saying Sinead O’Connor ripped up a picture of Canteen Boy at a concert.
— I love how they’re now doing a “politically correct” version of the Canteen Boy sketch. This is very funny.
STARS: ****


LEXON PARADOX
Rerun from 10/1/94


PARENTS BELIEVE IN SANTA
Santa-believing parents (host) & (JAG) puzzle over their lack of presents

— A great part with Alec showing different types of milk (e.g. moose milk) that was left out for Santa, and saying “What does this fat sleigh-riding son of a bitch want from us?!?”
— I like the gradual reveal that Alec and Janeane still believe in Santa. This is a solid premise that’s being executed very well.
STARS: ****


L.A. BREAST AND PENIS
hospital’s catch-all solution is cosmetic surgery

— Alec’s usual delivery is perfect for a sketch like this.
— The opening credits sequence is a decent parody of frantic hallway scenes in medical shows like this.
— “Nurse Sheila Ten Bears”?
— This feels like typical season 20 low-brow humor, but I’m not finding it TOO bad in this sketch. There are some laughs from how the doctors’ only way of tending to train-accident victims is to give them genital enhancements.
— Funny part with Elliott handing Mike and Laura a bag with their son’s penis in it.
STARS: ***


JAPANESE GAMESHOW
American tourist (CHF) is contestant on a high-stakes Japanese game show

— A very well-remembered sketch from this season.
— (*sigh*) Mike’s streak of playing Asian stereotypes every week continues. At this point, I lost count of how many episodes the streak has been going on.
— Farley’s confusion as the only American contestant is fantastic.
— This sketch is so good, even Mike’s Asian stereotype routine is coming off tolerable to me. He’s actually really good at making all of the Japanese dialogue sound real.
— I love the disturbing turn with contestants cutting their own hand off with a knife as punishment for getting an answer wrong, much to Farley’s horror.
— Good ending bit with Farley being hooked up to a machine and then being electrocuted when getting an answer wrong.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Sure Shot”


WEEKEND UPDATE

— During the set-up to the joke about what to do with Jeffrey Dahmer’s dead body, I like one audience member being heard yelling “Burn it!” This has been a very responsive audience in general tonight.
— We get our very first Norm mention of Duh Magazine, which would go on to be one of his running jokes on Update.
— Norm: “A one-legged goose with a dart in its head. And I complain about my life.”
— No guest commentaries in tonight’s overall Update, but I certainly have no complains. Just 5 pure minutes of uninterrupted Norm telling news jokes.
STARS: ****


ROOKIE COP
barfing NYC policemen set off a vomit cascade in the city

 

— Here comes a sketch that’s always been one of my guiltiest of guilty pleasures. I’m aware that I’m probably in a very small minority in liking this, as this sketch is generally considered to be a representation of so much that’s wrong with this season. It’s hard to defend this sketch, but I think part of the appeal for me is that they take this sophomoric premise to such a ridiculous extent that it becomes funny to me.
— Some amusing malfunctions during Adam and David’s scene, with their puke initially coming out too early, then stopping too late.
— I love how they’re not even trying to hide the hose that can be seen coming out of everyone’s pant leg.
— As I said in my review of the classic Greenhilly sketch from Alec’s season 15 episode, the dog puppet vomiting in this Rookie Cop sketch has always reminded me of when Alec kisses a dog puppet in Greenhilly. And like I promised in the afore-linked Greenhilly review, here’s a side-by-side comparison between the dog puppet in both sketches, even though I’m now sure they aren’t the same puppet.

— I like how they’re using multiple sets and are involving every cast member (even Norm), giving this sketch an epic feel.
— For some reason, Elliott’s character being named Red Skeffington cracks me the hell up.
— When Kevin’s fake puke fails to come out, he ad-libs “Dry heaves”. I’m surprised to see it’s Kevin who says that line, because I swear I used to remember that line being from Elliott. I wonder if the version of this scene that would later be shown in reruns is the dress rehearsal version.
STARS: ***½


THE YOUNG AND THE YOUTHFUL
(host)’s idiot evil twin (host) replaces him

— This is the second episode in a row involving twins being played by one performer (after Elliott’s Funny Strange sketch in the last episode), pulled off with clever editing and the use of doubles.
— Alec’s performance as the mentally challenged evil twin is funny, though I feel wrong for laughing at it.
— Is showing a scantily clad Tim Meadows becoming a weekly thing now (much like Mike doing an Asian stereotype)?
— The ending could’ve been funnier.
STARS: ***


BACK SEAT
(MMK) & (JAG) issue empty threats to very unruly kids during a long drive

— I’ve always hated this sketch in past viewings. I’ll try to keep an open mind during this viewing, as I feel this probably isn’t as bad as I previously made it out to be.
— A pretty good laugh from the part with a bong, which used to be the only part I liked in past viewings.
— Going into this with an open mind definitely seems to have helped, as I’m not hating this anywhere near as much as I used to. While I still find this far from a particularly great sketch, it’s enjoyable enough.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL GUEST INTRO

— Why is Alec dressed as a cop, when he was in a sketch between Rookie Cop and this musical guest intro? And this is the live version I’m watching of this episode, so this isn’t a case of sketches being reshuffled from their original order.


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Ricky’s Theme” & “Heart Attack Man”


BAD STRIPTEASE
(JAG) is scarred for life when unsexy exotic dancer (CSE) gyrates for her

— Very funny use of Chris Elliott and his delightfully weird sense of humor. I’m loving his disgusting striptease routine.
— Good reveal of Elliott having extensive body hair.
— I like the turn towards the end with us being taken to a courtroom scene.
STARS: ****


CELEBRITY MEMORABILIA AUCTION
(host) & (CSE) auction stolen celebrity items; Christian Slater cameo

— I think Janeane has appeared in literally EVERY SINGLE sketch tonight (not counting the cold opening). I recall once reading a theory that this was SNL’s way of responding to complaints in the media about how underused and misused Janeane has been this season.
— A fairly dull sketch with not much laughs, but I’m enjoying the sleaziness that Alec and Elliott are bringing to their performances.
— When Michael says “Meryl Streep isn’t dead”, what was up with an off-camera Ellen being heard starting to say the exact same line at the same time? She read the wrong line off the cue card, I take it? Michael gives her a bit of a puzzled look.
— Christian Slater cameo. Some girls in the audience can be heard screaming like crazy.
STARS: **


DEEP THOUGHTS BY JACK HANDEY

— Surprisingly, this is the first Deep Thoughts all season. They’ve really been phasing these out since the preceding season.


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— I feel this is definitely one of the better episodes of this troubled season. The quality of this episode had a good stability that I’m not used to seeing this season. We got one classic (Japanese Gameshow), a few really solid things, a guilty pleasure sketch for me (Rookie Cop), some pretty good stuff, and absolutely nothing that I hated; even the weaker sketches had some okay qualities. Having the always-reliable-as-a-host Alec Baldwin certainly didn’t hurt, either. It also helped that this episode had a very lively studio audience.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Roseanne)
a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
George Foreman hosts the Christmas episode. Happy birthday, Jesus, hope ya like crap!

Posted on

February 12, 1994 – Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger / UB40 (S19 E13)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

GOODFELLAS
Alec remembers goofily-nicknamed goodfellas he used to hang around with

— Solid idea for a cold opening.
— This is a great and very fun way to use pretty much the entire cast and some of the writers.
— My favorite bits have been Rob as Jimmy Five-Times, Phil as Johnny Big Balls, Norm as Ricky Pause-and-Shout, writer Ian Maxtone-Graham as Pete the Pedophile (“Hey, when you gonna bring the kids over?”), and Tim as Naked Derek (“Hey, when you gonna bring the kids over?”).
STARS: ****


OPENING MONTAGE
— The theme music would later be replaced in reruns with the dress rehearsal version. Same goes for the following monologue.


MONOLOGUE
hosts’ love for each other isn’t diminished when they reveal some secrets

— In the aforementioned dress rehearsal version of this monologue shown in reruns (first screencap below), Alec is dressed completely differently than he’s dressed in this live version (second screencap below).

— A big laugh from Kim revealing to Alec “I have no respect for you as an actor”.
— Another very funny reveal, with Alec revealing he drugged Kim to make a plaster cast of her body to sell to an inflatable doll company.
— In the dress rehearsal version shown in reruns, the part with Kim clarifying how her last name is pronounced (“Bay-sing-er” and not “Bass-in-jer”) ends with a brief bit that doesn’t appear in the live version: Alec happily hugs her while saying“I love you, Kim Bass-in-jer”, which is followed by Kim correcting him on the pronunciation again.
— The funniness of Alec and Kim’s confessions has fallen off a little after a while, but it’s still decent.
STARS: ***


CANTEEN BOY GOES CAMPING
while camping, Canteen Boy fends off scoutmaster’s (Alec) advances

— Here comes the only famous Canteen Boy sketch, as well as a very infamous sketch in its own right…
— Heh, there goes the creepy, unsettling turn this sketch suddenly takes with the certain look Alec gives Canteen Boy after putting his arm around him.
— Well… needless to say, this is VERY different from Canteen Boy’s previous appearances, but to me, this sketch is damn funny, in a very wrong way. I can definitely understand why this sketch would put off a lot of people, though, plus the sketch does signify SNL’s growing reliance on shock humor and offensive content that will be part of what plagues the following season. It’s very hard to defend this sketch, but I feel it’s one of the very rare times that both this and the following season manage to pull off the shock/offensive humor well.
— Throughout this sketch, there’s so many funny one-liners from Canteen Boy in reaction to things Alec’s character does.
— I love Alec’s delivery of “Canteen Boy, you rascal!” when a whole bunch of snakes attack him.
— This sketch oddly ends with no applause from the audience at all, until after the SNL Band starts playing the show to commercial. It’s funny to imagine that the reason for the audience’s hesitant applause is because they (like many SNL viewers at the time) were offended by the sketch, but that can’t be the case, as they were heard laughing throughout it.
— Part of the controversy over the things the scoutmaster did to Canteen Boy throughout this sketch is due to some people believing Canteen Boy is supposed to be a child (it also doesn’t help that this sketch originally aired at the same time the Michael Jackson child molestation charges were all over the news). Canteen Boy is actually an adult, which reruns of this sketch explain in a disclaimer added to the beginning (screencap below).

Some people think that disclaimer was just SNL changing Canteen Boy’s age from a child to a 27-year-old as damage control, but those people are wrong. It had already been established in the very first Canteen Boy sketch that he’s an adult who’s still obsessed with the Boy Scouts. All that being said, it’s still obvious that the scoutmaster’s actions towards Canteen Boy were supposed to allude to the Boy Scouts child sex abuse cases.
STARS: a very guilty ****


PLAYGROUND
back at the jungle gym, Phillip asks Robin (Kim) to be his Valentine

— (*groan*) Here’s our latest victim of season 19’s bad habit of making recurring sketches out of stuff that have no legs as a recurring sketch and clearly should’ve remained a solid one-off.
— Kim’s character is named Robin, presumably after Mike’s real-life wife at the time.
— Kim isn’t doing anywhere NEAR as good a job at playing a kid as Nicole Kidman did in the first installment of this sketch. I’m not buying Kim as a little girl at all.
— So far, this sketch has been nothing but an inferior carbon copy of the first installment, only with a Valentine’s Day theme shoehorned in.
— The only real laugh I got so far has been the “The girls got the buns, and the boys got the hot dogs” sing-a-long, and that didn’t even come until about three minutes into the sketch.
— To complete the carbon copy feel of this sketch, they now flat-out reuse the first installment’s pre-taped ending in which Phillip unhinges the jungle gym and runs down the street with the gym still attached to him. That’s taking laziness to a new level. Absolutely ridiculous. I was going to rate this overall sketch a star-and-a-half, but screw it, the half-star is docked due to the unbelievably-lazy recycled footage ending.
STARS: *


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “C’est La Vie”


WEEKEND UPDATE
Ike Turner (TIM) & his Valentine KEN perform “Proud Mary”

— Kevin’s jokes have been really hit-and-miss so far tonight, and he’s stumbling over an awful lot of them. (*sigh*) Only 7 episodes left until Norm takes over…
— Ehh, the recurring Ike Turner/Kevin Nealon relationship thing is getting tired, and their interaction tonight is feeling too by-the-numbers.
— Ah, we suddenly get new life added to the Ike/Kevin bit, with an absolutely hilarious turn involving Kevin wildly dancing in a red Tina Turner-esque short skirt while dueting with Ike on “Proud Mary”. A very solid and memorable bit.
— I love Kevin’s addendum to the whole Ike Turner commentary, with him telling the audience “You people in the front row got a little something extra tonight”, referring to how short his skirt was.
— The whole Ike Turner commentary seems to have given a sudden quality boost to tonight’s Update in general (or maybe it just put me in a better mood), as it’s being followed by some really solid news jokes from Kevin.
— Chris Farley had a commentary as himself cut after this episode’s dress rehearsal, in which he talks about why he finds Valentine’s Day disgusting.
STARS: ***½


FAMILY FEUD
hosts, Billy & Stephen Baldwin [real] give showbiz answers

— Oh, god, here comes a sketch that I’ve always found to be a complete chore to watch in my past viewings.
— I do love the randomness of Tim playing author James Baldwin, filling in for Daniel Baldwin.
— The premise of the Baldwins always incorrectly guessing showbiz things is weak and is being repeated over and over. The fact that this sketch is so damn long only makes it worse.
— Phil’s trying his damnedest to save this, and I have gotten a chuckle or two from him. A shame, though, that this is the first really big role he’s gotten on the show in TWO MONTHS. It’s very sad witnessing his much-needed presence gradually disappear over the course of this season. And I can’t even imagine how it’s going to feel once his future replacement Michael McKean gets brought in two episodes from now.
— At the end, Don Pardo announces that this has been SNL’s 300th gameshow parody.
STARS: *½


ROMANTIC MEN
romantic men (Alec), (PHH), (MIM) impress (CHF)’s girlfriend (JUS)

— I’m liking Alec’s performance as a foreign-accented classical romantic leading man.
— Kind of a slow sketch so far, but not bad, and I can appreciate what this is going for. However, this feels like the type of soft, sentimental sketch that would’ve been pulled off better in a superior season.
— A pretty enjoyable charming song from the three romantic men, especially when Julia starts dancing around them.
— Sweet ending with Chris and Julia.
STARS: ***


MICROSCOPIC ELVIS
atom bomb test makes Tiny Elvis (ROS) microscopic

   

— And the latest victim of season 19’s habit of bringing back one-off sketches that have no business being recurring iiiiiisssssss……
— It’s especially silly that they’re making this sketch recurring, considering Nicolas Cage played Tiny Elvis the first time. Was it really worth recasting the role to bring back a sketch that was fine as just a decent, goofy one-time thing last season?
— Not caring for the random Microscopic Elvis twist.
— A weak, weak sketch overall. I got a chuckle or two at best, while spending the rest of the sketch being very bored.
STARS: *½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Can’t Help Falling In Love”


PYRAMID OF PAIN
Mickey Ross’ (Alec) threats of force induce weight loss

— Rob’s testimonial about being bitchslapped by Alec for hours and hours is cracking me up.
— I got a laugh from Alec’s (intentionally) corny response to one fat guy: “Looks like YOU’RE everywhere…. cuz you’re fat.”
— Alec’s delivery in general is giving me good amusement here, and his performance is selling this material. However, parts of this sketch still have kind of a dead feel.
— The ending felt a little abrupt. I was expecting more from this sketch.
STARS: either **½ or ***, I can’t decide yet


DRESSING ROOM
CHF brings Kim flowers & finds out she used to go out with fat guys

— I liked hearing Chris doing his old Da Bears voice when talking about the Super Fans sketches.
— This seems to be a thinly-veiled The Chris Farley Show sketch, only this is not working anywhere NEAR as well as those sketches. This is coming off as a pale imitation.
— I am liking the sweetness to this, but like a lot of sketches tonight, there’s too much of a dull, forgettable feel here. Kim’s bored straight man performance is probably partly responsible for that.
STARS: **


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— I guess it had to happen sooner or later: our first disappointing Alec Baldwin episode. I guess even his track record of strong episodes has succumbed to the mediocrity that’s been plaguing the second half of this season. Tonight’s episode had a really bland feel, especially the post-Update half, and very few things tonight stood out as solid, most of which were just in the first 15 minutes of the show. Alec still gave his usual strong, dependable performances and commitment all throughout this episode, but the same cannot be said for co-host Kim Basinger, who’s performances matched the bland feel of this episode.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Patrick Stewart)
a big step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Martin Lawrence tries his damnedest to top the Canteen Boy controversy

Posted on

February 13, 1993 – Alec Baldwin / Paul McCartney (S18 E13)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
after Dateline NBC anchors admit ethical lapses, Toonces drives them home

 

— Funny line from Julia’s Jane Pauley about Dateline being a cheap knock-off of 60 Minutes.
— I like how the NBC mishaps the anchors are apologizing for are getting more and more ridiculous.
— Reruns of this episode use the dress rehearsal version of this cold opening (you’ll see why later in my review of this opening). One big difference between the live and dress version is that the live version I’m currently watching doesn’t have the meta bit with Mike’s Stone Phillips apologizing for SNL’s crass comments about Chelsea Clinton in a recent Wayne’s World sketch (during that apology, Mike gets in a dig at himself by mentioning that the Wayne’s World sketch starred an overrated performer). SNL’s director apparently didn’t receive notes that that portion of this cold opening was removed after dress, because there’s one point where, after one of Julia-as-Jane-Pauley’s news items, the camera mistakenly cuts to a close-up of Mike’s Stone Phillips as if it’s his turn to tell the next news item, but he’s just sitting silently while an off-camera Julia is the one doing the next news item.
— Odd moment where, as the Dateline show is fading to black, Julia is heard mistakenly saying her “Well, that was pretty painless” line way too early, when she’s supposed to say it a minute later when she and Mike are shown in the car.
— Toonces! First time we’ve seen him since late last season. They’re clearly phasing him out by this point, as this is among his final stretch of appearances, each of which feature him only making a surprise appearance towards the end of an unrelated sketch.
— After the car crash, there’s a malfunction with the chroma-key screen behind the car, as it isn’t showing any scenery.
— I love the idea of Toonces meowing “Live from New York”, though even that had technical issues. The audio of Toonces meowing LFNY fails to play when the LFNY subtitle appears on the bottom of the screen, then the meowing starts playing too late right as the SNL theme music begins.
STARS: ***


MONOLOGUE
host generously tips cast & crew to get special backstage treatment

— Fun monologue with Alec going around the studio thanking and bribing various crew and cast members for their efforts. I love how Alec is smoothly navigating through this monologue with total ease, showing how extremely comfortable he had become as a regular host by this point.
— Fantastic how during Lorne and Paul McCartney’s conversation, we get a clever reference to Lorne’s famous Beatle Offer sketch from the original era. The studio audience seemed to miss the reference because they were too busy going “Woo!” at the mere sight of Paul.
— When Alec returns to the home base stage, you can see a section of a football field laid out on the floor in front of the stage (you can also see it on the floor in the second above screencap for this monologue). This is leftover from the preceding episode’s SNL Halftime Spectacular sketch.
STARS: ****


THE CLUCKIN’ CHICKEN
Rerun from 11/21/92


THE MIMIC
(JUS) hires self-proclaimed master of 1000 voices (host)

— I like the 1960s aesthetic to this.
— Paul McCartney as a butler is actually a clever reference to the preceding week’s also-legendary and also-English-accented musical guest Mick Jagger playing a butler in a Prince Charles sketch. Unfortunately, this reference is lost on a lot of viewers nowadays, as the Prince Charles sketch has kinda faded into obscurity over the years (partly because it was cut from Comedy Central’s old 60-minute version, and partly because I don’t think it’s available online) while this Mimic sketch is very well-known and fondly remembered by SNL fans.
— Great opening title sequence.
— This sketch is an excellent display of Alec’s comedic talents. His horrible, cartoonish-sounding imitations of Julia’s character and her husband are hilarious.
— I love how Alec is now doing bad imitations of miscellaneous sounds, such as bird-squawking and pier noises.
— Funny turn with Alec revealing it was him who made the phone call to Julia recommending him to her.
— Classic ending with Alec telling the butler in a McCartney-esque voice “But, Jamison, you can’t throw yourself out, I’m you!”
STARS: *****


THE CHRIS FARLEY SHOW
CHF asks musical guest some dumb questions

— Here comes a legendary Chris Farley classic that would go on to be among his most defining SNL moments.
— Farley’s usual routine of “You remembeeerrrrr when…”s, pulling his hair in anger after making a faux pas, and asking the guest off-topic questions are coming off particularly charming in this installment.
— I love Paul actually having to clarify to Farley that the “Paul is dead” thing was a hoax and that “I didn’t really die”.
— Wonderful part with an excited Farley silently mouthing what appears to be “Awesome! Fuckin’ A, man! Fuckin’ A!” to the camera, in response to Paul’s answer to the question about the “The love you take is equal to the love you make” lyric.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Get Out Of My Way”


WEEKEND UPDATE
KEN gives a subliminal editorial about early days of Bill Clinton’s term
ADS sings an ode to his “Red Hooded Sweatshirt”; Linda McCartney cameo

 

— Kevin’s subliminal editorial contains the usual good laughs, especially the subliminal lines about J. Edgar Hoover being an example of a strong woman in the White House, and Hee-Haw being the right forum for Bill Clinton.
— WTF? Why did a picture of George Burns randomly show up on the news screen briefly during Kevin’s news item about a Dallas Cowboys parade? That gaffe caused the Cowboys parade joke to completely bomb with the audience.
— Oh, NOW I see why a George Burns picture mistakenly showed up, as the aforementioned Cowboys parade joke was followed by a mention of George Burns’ birthday.
— Adam’s guitar songs officially become a recurring Update segment.
— Nice topic for Adam’s guitar song tonight. Much like his preceding Turkey Song from earlier this season, the lyrics here are very fun and charmingly goofy, though I appreciate how this one is actually telling a coherent story and isn’t just a collection of random, non-sequitur lyrics.
— The obligatory participation from Kevin during Adam’s song is particularly great here, with the intermittent close-ups of Kevin looking into the camera to say some of the brief lyrics (e.g. “dip dip dip”, “sham-a-lam-a-ding-dong”).
— And now, the “audience” participation is making this song even more fun, especially with Paul and Linda McCartney’s involvement.
— Between these guitar songs of his and his smash-hit Operaman commentaries, Adam has recently become Weekend Update gold.
— An interesting tidbit about the Red-Hooded Sweatshirt song: it was originally going to be performed in the Harvey Keitel episode from earlier this season, where instead of being a Weekend Update commentary, it was going to be a standalone sketch in which Adam performs the song on, I’m assuming, the home base stage. That version of the song also obviously didn’t feature participation from Paul and Linda McCartney. Also in that version of the song, Adam set it up by saying he feels bad that the preceding week’s episode (Danny DeVito) used the word “ass” about a dozen times, so he wants to sing about something nice: his red-hooded sweatshirt.
— I loved the audience’s “Ohh!” response to Kevin’s “And now, for the lighter side of the news” one-liner when a picture of Michael Jackson shows up on the news screen.
— Very nice touch at the end of this Update, with Kevin working “dip dip dip” into his usual “I’m Kevin Nealon, and that’s news to me” sign-off.
STARS: ****


FRANCAIS
French teacher (host) makes sure students’ inflection matches his

— A lot of laughs so far from each student eventually catching on that Alec wants them to say their French phrases in the same goofy, gleeful inflection that he’s using. Farley’s attempt at the inflection is particularly priceless.
— Adam’s very Adam Sandler-esque over-the-top gibberish when repeating Alec’s French phrase was hilarious.
— Surprisingly, this is Phil’s first appearance all night (not counting the Cluckin’ Chicken repeat), and it’s just a small role at the tail end of this sketch.
— Very funny ending with Alec getting the crap beat out of him when trying to correct real Frenchmen’s language.
STARS: ****½


SOAP OPERA DIGEST
TV doctor (host) mispronounces medical terms

 

— Funny mock-dramatic entrance from Phil, who has a great soap opera-esque look in this. I think that’s the same wig he wore in another memorable soap opera parody, All My Luggage from two seasons earlier.

— By the way, this ends up being Phil’s final appearance tonight. An episode with Phil only having two measly walk-on roles, both being in sketches buried after Weekend Update, is unheard of (at least until the upcoming season 19, where we’ll sadly see Phil often pushed to the side), especially considering how particularly heavily he dominated the preceding week’s episode, appearing in almost every single sketch in a lead role. Maybe SNL felt he needed a breather after that? He was in several cut dress rehearsal sketches from this episode, one of them having him in a lead role that will later be recast with host Bill Murray in the following week’s episode (I’ll reveal which sketch that is when I review that episode).
— Alec’s hot streak tonight continues, as we get another all-time memorable performance from him here. His various medical mispronunciations are great. I especially love the “ay-nal cay-nal” (anal canal) one. The premise itself isn’t particularly amazing, but Alec is absolutely perfect for this material and this is a quintessential example of how his dry, serious delivery can make certain dialogue hilarious.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Biker Like An Icon”


THE GAP
Gap employees Kristy & Lucy both think (host) is their guy

— This sketch officially becomes recurring.
— I like how there’s nice continuity, with Mike’s character referencing his appearance in the preceding Gap Girls sketch, as he makes a passing mention of the baggy outfit the Gap Girls convinced him to buy in that sketch.
— Adam and David’s catty comments early on in this sketch are cracking me up.
— Tim’s character makes a passing mention of Tater Junction, which is where a future Gap Girls sketch takes place in (the famous one with Farley’s “Lay off me, I’m starving!” moment).
— The fast-paced back-and-forths between Alec and Adam during their conversation are really well-delivered and entertaining.
— Farley’s Gap Girl character makes her debut here.
— Rob’s Donut Hut character is very funny, especially the bitchy looks she constantly gives the other girls.
— Overall, an improvement over the first Gap Girls installment.
STARS: ***½


NAKED WOMAN THEATRE
(host) responds to complaints the show has received

— Alec’s dignified delivery while defending the show’s random use of naked women is fairly funny, but this sketch is nothing particularly great, especially compared to most of what preceded it tonight.
— I absolutely love the way this ended, with Alec’s host character seguing into the following Daily Affirmation with Stuart Smalley sketch by saying viewers in other parts of the country will see that instead of the Naked Woman Theatre play that’s about to take place. Feels like a nice throwback to times when the original SNL era would segue from one sketch to another in this manner.
STARS: **½


DAILY AFFIRMATION WITH STUART SMALLEY
Stuart deconstructs some Valentine’s Day cards

— It’s nice to see more and more of a glimpse into Stuart’s personal life, as he now mentions recently getting out of a toxic relationship with someone named Dale.
— I’m getting some good laughs from Stuart deconstructing Valentine cards and relating them to issues like co-dependency.
— The ending was actually sweet and heartwarming, with Stuart detailing how he’s going to send himself a bouquet of roses with a sentimental note to show himself some much-needed appreciation.
STARS: ***½


THE BODYGUARD: THE SERIES
David Hasselhoff (host) & Patti LaBelle (ELC) in The Bodyguard TV series

— Funny concept of a David Hasselhoff/Patti LaBelle-starring Bodyguard TV series.
— Eh, I’m not caring too much for how the Alec/Ellen scenes are turning out.
— The testimonial quote from Jay Leno is priceless (the third above screencap for this sketch), and serves as a reminder that the infamous late night war between Leno and David Letterman was taking place around this time. Funny thing is, the Leno jokes in this sketch still remained relevant decades later during the 2010 late night war between Leno and Conan O’Brien, which is when I first saw this sketch.
— I like how the ending of this went further with the Leno bit, with Kevin popping in as him and smugly bragging “I got to stay!”
— According to GettyImages, Mike Myers had a part cut after the dress rehearsal version of this sketch where he plays an assailant shooting Alec’s Hasselfhoff (pic here).
STARS: **½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Hey Jude”

— Funny to think that while this absolutely legendary performance is going on, Al Franken is somewhere in the studio stealing jeans from the Gap Girls set, as he would later disclose in the “Live from New York” book.


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A phenomenal episode, and one of the best and most memorable of this early 90s era. So many things to rave about in tonight’s episode: there were lots of classic moments all throughout, there was a long streak of sketches receiving a four or five-star rating from me until we got towards the end of the show, and the overall episode had a very fun and charming vibe. To say nothing of what Paul McCartney’s mere presence brought to the show. While a lot of hosts would get overshadowed by such a heavy dosage of McCartney throughout an episode (Paul Rudd knows what that’s like), we thankfully had Alec Baldwin as tonight’s host. Alec, who had already proven himself twice as a fantastic host before tonight, gave what I personally feel is his strongest hosting performance of all time in this episode, enhancing every single sketch he was in with masterful performances and having some of the most memorable roles of his SNL hosting stints.


MY PERSONAL CHOICE OF “BEST OF” MOMENTS FOR THIS EPISODE, REPRESENTED WITH SCREENCAPS


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Luke Perry)
a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Bill Murray

Posted on

February 23, 1991 – Alec Baldwin / Whitney Houston (S16 E14)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
The McLaughlin (DAC) Group- panelists don’t get a chance to give answers

 

— Farley’s playing the same panelist (Jack Germond) that John Goodman played in the first installment of this sketch, yet Farley’s wearing a bald cap with gray hair on the sides while Goodman kept his normal head full of dark hair.
— Unlike the first installment, Dana’s McLaughlin is saying “Wrong!” a lot more often this time.
— I love how the correct answer to the ink blot test turned out to be “It’s my mother stealing my penis.”
— Dana’s McLaughlin singing the name Jack Germond in a “Blue Moon”-esque manner was hilarious.
— For some reason, the entire portion right now with McLaughlin asking the panelists “How large is the tumor growing in my brain?” would later be removed from all reruns. The reruns try to hide the edit by splicing in a brief random shot of Farley just sitting there, not saying or doing anything. Does anyone know why the brain tumor portion is cut from reruns? Was the real John McLaughlin diagnosed with a brain tumor shortly after this episode aired or something?
— Great variation of “Live from New York…” by having Dana’s McLaughlin say “Show show show, here we go.”
STARS: ****


MONOLOGUE
audible thoughts of host, musical guest, others reveal moments of doubt

 

— Alec mentions that his first episode was so well-received that it was nominated for an Emmy.
— Some good laughs from Alec’s inner thoughts when he’s digging himself into a deeper and deeper hole during the spoken portions of the monologue.
— I disagree about the Dennis Hopper episode being great, though I think that line was just an excuse for Alec to comically make a dig at Hopper.
— Loved Alec’s inner thought worriedly saying “This is ALREADY not as good as last year.”
— Funny line from the boom operator (played by stage manager Joe Dicso for some reason) saying the show should only hire qualified boom operators and not just relatives.
— Ha, yet ANOTHER Jon Lovitz cameo this season, and in true Lovitz fashion, he makes a self-deprecating dig at that: “Maybe it was a mistake to leave the show. Six months later, I’m still hangin’ around. I gotta get a LIFE!”
— Alec referring to his inner thoughts as a “moment of doubt” reminds me of the season 11 sketch of the same name, which makes me wonder if the writer behind that sketch also wrote this monologue.
— This monologue ends on a serious note with Alec saying all of their thoughts are with our troops in the Persian Gulf. Which reminds me, this would turn out to be the final live SNL episode before the Gulf War comes to an end.
STARS: ****


THE DANCER
home exercise unit lets you boogie; Evander Holyfield cameo

— The shot of Dana dancing wildly in a club cracked me up.
— A decent though not hilarious idea of an exercise-type dancing machine. Some good physical work from Dana here.
— This overall commercial was too average for its own good. Not even the Evander Holyfield cameo did much for this.
STARS: ***


THE HONEST PLANET
on The Honest Planet, office workers dispense with tact

— Already a big laugh from the establishing shot of the building having the name Greedy Industries.
— Phil is great at openly admitting cruel facts about himself.
— What the hell just happened? When an excited Dana enters and announces he got the promotion, the camera suddenly briefly cuts to a darkened shot where only a tiny red light is visible (screencap below).

Odd blooper there. SNL would later replace about half of this sketch with the dress rehearsal version in reruns, possibly to cover for that blooper.
STARS: ***


THE SINEAD O’CONNOR AWARDS
materialism in music industry is marked

— Good concept for an awards show sketch, as a reference to Sinead O’Connor boycotting that years Grammys (as mentioned in a then-recent Weekend Update).
— Dana’s bizarre rambling as Paul McCartney is priceless.
— Classic cutaway to Farley in the audience as a gleefully smiling Carnie Wilson.
— I loved Alec’s scene as Bono.
— Very funny twist in the Tim-as-Tracy-Chapman scene, with her somber song suddenly turning into a materialistic, upbeat “Everybody do the funky wa-wa” number, which of course upsets Sinead.
— For some reason, in my early SNL fandom days, I strangely used to think that was A. Whitney Brown playing the other Nelson brother besides Spade (third-to-last screencap above).  Turns out that’s actually Spike Feresten, who was supposedly an uncredited writer at the time. Some SNL fans probably think it’s Adam Sandler, as there is a resemblance there.
— Yikes, a big blooper just now. When Jan hands Phil the award, she does it in such a sloppy, careless manner that it causes Phil to accidentally drop the award on the floor (second-to-last screencap above), where it then falls off the stage. He has to wait for somebody offstage to pick the award up and hand it to him before he can continue with the sketch. Poor Jan embarrassedly smirks out of character, which she tries to hide with her hand. You don’t see any of this in reruns, because they replace most of the Sinatra portion of this sketch with the flub-less dress rehearsal version.
— I absolutely love Sinatra’s harsh rant to Sinead, especially him talking about the days when “you were just a gleam in some dumb mick’s bloodshot eyes!”
— SNL usually has a poor track record with long award show sketches, but this has been one of the rare times they got it right.
STARS: ****½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “I’m Your Baby Tonight”


LANK THOMPSON: I’M A HANDSOME ACTOR
host is a product of Lank Thompson’s “I’m A Handsome Actor” course

— Hmm, I see I was wrong when I said earlier this season that the John Goodman episode was the final occurrence of a sketch airing in between the first musical performance and Weekend Update.
— Alec demonstrating various dramatic acting techniques is very fun and spot-on.
— For some reason, Alec keeps loudly clearing his throat all throughout this sketch.
STARS: ****


PAN AM
Pan Am will let anyone who flies to Europe during Gulf War keep the plane

— Phil’s announcement that passengers can now keep the Pan Am plane they rode on is quite funny.
— As always, very amusing spokesman delivery from Phil.
— An overall very short and very topical piece that, while still fairly funny in its own right, doesn’t hit quite as hard in 2019, long after whatever Pan Am controversy this sketch was based on has been forgotten.
STARS: ***


WEEKEND UPDATE
DEM translates for unintelligible Bob Dylan (DAC) & Tom Petty (DAS)

 

— I didn’t get Dennis’ joke about how an Andy Warhol movie is currently doing poorly at box office “but the first 15 minutes of it were great”.
— Dana’s Bob Dylan is freakin’ hilarious! I also love how Dennis is providing translations of Dylan’s gibberish for the “Dylan impaired”.
— Now this has gotten even better with David entering as Tom Petty. Great impression from David, and a lot of laughs from him and Dana’s Dylan holding an unintelligible conversation with each other, before breaking out into an intelligible duet of “Free Fallin’”. Classic.
— When mentioning a former “Dance Fever” performer, Dennis quips “I don’t think I’ve seen choreography that stiff since the Lee Harvey Oswald prison transfer.” I’m pretty sure I remember Dennis using that EXACT same analogy before. I think it was when he was critiquing the Super Bowl Shuffle video during season 11.
STARS: ***


THE GODFATHER PART IV
Michael Corleone (host) is the don of the future

— Nice concept of a futuristic Godfather. I think this is supposed to be a mash-up of Godfather and a Star Trek movie that came out around this time.
— No idea what to say about Alec’s Pacino impression.
— For some reason, I love the very dark, bitter look on Phil’s face during the close-up of him reacting to Corleone telling him he can’t grant his favor.
— Alec’s delivery of “They keep pulling me back IN!” cracked me up.
— We get an appearance from Kevin as Spock. Yep, I guess this IS a partial Star Trek mash-up.
— Didn’t like Corleone’s flashback sequence. It went on too long and wasn’t all that funny.
— Okay, ENOUGH with Alec’s “They keep pulling me back IN!”s. It’s not funny anymore after the 30th time.
— Man, a lot of this sketch is dragging.
— Phil’s comical delivery of “50 bullets in him and they saved his BRAIIIIN!” was great.
— Ugh, they’re STILL having Alec say “They keep pulling me back IN!” over and over. STOP.
— Weak ending.
— Overall, oof. A big disappointment, considering what a promising idea this had. You can tell SNL themselves realized what a flop this sketch turned out to be, considering they would later bury this at the end of the show in reruns, as the second-to-last sketch of the night.
STARS: *½


RECONCILIATION
(JUS) is flustered by face-to-face confession to handsome priest (host)

— A strong Julia Sweeney showcase. There’s a lot of great realism and likability in how she’s acting towards Alec.
— A very funny part just now with Julia’s almost orgasmic reaction to Alec’s unintentionally suggestive description of how he prefers to eat Oreos (“I like to spread the cookie open and eat the creamy center”).
STARS: ****


CYRANO DE BERGERAC
wide-nosed Cyrano de Bergerac (TIM) helps (host) get with Roxanne (JAH)

— Hilarious visual of Tim with a ridiculously wide nose.
— I’m glad we’re seeing Tim in his very first big role. This is a good showcase for him (which is something that will unfortunately go on to be rare for him in this era).
— Great turn with Alec mouthing Tim’s smooth talk while funky music plays.
— Good ending scene in the bedroom. Speaking of which, was that scene pre-taped? The camera cuts from the main characters being outside by the balcony to them suddenly being in the bedroom.
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “All The Man I Need”


I’M CHILLIN’
Onski sends F’ed Up malt liquor to the Gulf War troops

— Standard stuff so far. I’m still chuckling throughout this, but it’s not a good sign that in its second installment, this recurring sketch is ALREADY starting to feel too routine and by-the-numbers.
— Loved the picture of Don Pardo sporting a solid gold four-finger ring. I think this episode aired on Don’s birthday, so perhaps showing a picture of him in a sketch was some kind of birthday present from SNL.
— Tim’s Flavor Flav is funny, though almost for the wrong reason. I’m laughing more at how out-of-place and stiff Tim is coming off in this performance. This is our very first glimpse of how unnatural Tim is in homeboy roles, which we’ll be seeing other occurrences of throughout his SNL tenure.
STARS: ***


GOODNIGHTS

— The SNL Band cuts Alec off before he was even finished speaking.

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— A good episode, though it doesn’t measure up to Alec’s phenomenal first episode. However, there were some really strong pieces tonight. Alec further solidified himself as a reliable host after his strong debut the previous season.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Roseanne Barr)
a mild step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Michael J. Fox

Posted on

April 21, 1990 – Alec Baldwin / The B-52’s (S15 E18)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars

COLD OPENING
George Bush (DAC) talks about the environment & licks glaucoma drops

— Wow, Dana’s Bush is coming off even funnier than usual, which is saying something. He’s more animated than EVER here.
— Classic part with him intentionally letting his marijuana-laced eyedrops drip into his mouth, causing him to become high and launch into a hilarious “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” quote.
— Overall, one of the best Bush cold openings SNL has ever done.
STARS: ****½


MONOLOGUE
host charms the audience by posing for the camera until VIJ stops him

— Despite this being his first time hosting, Alec already receives tons of huge and wild applause at the beginning of this monologue.
— Much like John Goodman and Christopher Walken’s respective debut earlier this season, it’s going to be fascinating in hindsight to watch Alec Baldwin’s first hosting stint, as it’s so hard now to imagine there was ever a time where he had no prior experience on the show.
— At times, young Alec Baldwin’s voice sounds different from what we’re now used to hearing from him.
— Alec’s various ways of charming the audience are priceless, especially when the camera does a very slow pan from his shoes to his face, and when he pops his head out from behind the drapes.
— Already, he’s coming off as the perfect host.
STARS: ****½


GREENHILLY
Mr. Cherrywood (host) kisses (JAH), (VIJ), (NOD), (PHH), dog

— I like the randomness of how Jan and Alec’s chasing a bird out of the house immediately leads to a sudden romantic pause (complete with background music) and make-out session with each other. Maybe because I know what’s coming…
— Excellent escalation to the kissing, with it eventually reaching the point where Alec’s make-out partners include Phil and a dog.
— Speaking of the part with Alec making out with a dog, that has always reminded me of something that happens in a later Alec Baldwin sketch: Rookie Cop from season 20, where a chain reaction of vomiting eventually leads to a dog vomiting as well, much like how a chain reaction of kissing in this Greenhilly sketch eventually leads to a dog being kissed. I’m not sure, but I could swear they even use the exact same dog puppet in both sketches, possibly proving that the Rookie Cop writer(s) intentionally threw in the dog part as a subtle callback to Greenhilly. Just a theory of mine; I can’t really confirm yet, but when I eventually review Alec’s season 20 episode, I’ll put up a side-by-side comparison of the Rookie Cop dog puppet and the Greenhilly dog puppet.
— This overall piece was the perfect first sketch for Alec, immediately showcasing his willingness to do anything on the show.
STARS: *****


THE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS ONE
biker (host) fights against pollution

— Hey, it’s David Spade! (first screencap above) He was a new SNL writer at this time, and his bit role here is his very first appearance on SNL.
— And hey, now Spade’s fellow new writer Rob Schneider has appeared! (left side of the second screencap above) This is the first of many uncredited bit roles we’ll be seeing Schneider and Spade appear in for the remainder of this season and early next season (Spade will even get to star as Michael J. Fox in a Weekend Update commentary in the very next episode), before both men eventually get added to the cast a few episodes into next season. I guess starting them out as just writers while letting them make plenty of uncredited on-camera appearances is Lorne’s way of trying them out to see if they have what it takes to be cast members. Lorne would soon do the same to Adam Sandler when he joins the writing staff in December of next season.
— Hilarious Marlon Brando voice from Alec.
— Funny reveal of the tough biker gang being so ecologically concerned.
— Very funny story of why Alec’s Brando talks the unique way he does.
— I liked the passing mention of Victoria’s mother having fallen into a PCB vat.
— Wow, HUGE cheering from the audience when Alec’s Brando makes a then-topical reference by saying he’s going to the Earth Day concert in New York. Ha, one particular audience member says an exuberant “Alright!” so audibly that you would think he was mic’ed. At least that’s how it is in the live version I’m reviewing of this episode. Reruns may have mixed down the audience’s reaction during this part of the sketch.
— IIRC, in the “Live From New York” book, Alec mentions how he had to fight to keep from cracking up at the end of this sketch when Phil delivers a comically dramatic “Take me with you!” to him. You can’t see any visible amusement on Alec’s face during that part, though.
STARS: ****


THE GARBO I KNEW
the Greta Garbo (JAH) James O’Brien (host) knew really wanted to be alone

 

— Some laughs from Jan-as-Garbo’s obsession with wanting everything she owns to be alone.
— A fantastic and classic sequence with Jan using charades to hint Alec on what to say over the phone.
— It’s Rob Schneider again! I remember when I first saw this episode as a teenager, in a 60-minute Comedy Central rerun in 2000, I was baffled when I saw Schneider show up in this sketch. At the time, my knowledge of SNL’s history was still in the developmental stages, but I had enough SNL history knowledge to be aware that Schneider didn’t join the cast until the following season, which is why I was so confused when I saw him in this sketch. I wasn’t aware that he was a writer this season, so I was left wondering if he was originally an extra the show hired just for this sketch and that it somehow eventually led to him being added to the cast the following season. (For anyone wondering why teenage me didn’t have this reaction to Schneider and David Spade’s appearance in the preceding Environmentally Conscious One sketch, that sketch wasn’t included in Comedy Central’s 60-minute version)
— I love the ending reveal of Jan hiding on a high chandelier. How did they get her on there so fast in a live sketch?
— Surprised they ended this sketch pretty early. Maybe it’s best they kept this short and sweet, though I personally could have watched Jan’s charades routine for an infinite amount of time.
— This is one of two sketches responsible for making teenage me fully recognize Jan Hooks’ greatness during my aforementioned first viewing of this episode on Comedy Central. The second sketch appears later in this same episode.
STARS: *****


ONLY IN NEW YORK
Joey Adams (PHH) jokes while wife Cindy (NOD) gossips

— Fairly funny opening theme song by Phil and Nora.
— Greta Garbo passed away that week? Oh, so THAT’S why they did the preceding sketch.
— Phil’s jokes throughout this are cracking me up.
— I particularly loved Phil’s delivery of “One guy says ‘Hey, Pete, how’s it going?’, Pete says ‘SHUT UP!!!‘”
STARS: ***½


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Cosmic Thing”


WEEKEND UPDATE
ten feet away from the newsdesk, KEN reports audience reaction to the bit
arrogance & ignorance are the biggest threats to the government, says AWB
DEM displays the hottest new toy- New Kids On The Chopping Block dolls

— Funny how during the audience’s VERY long, energetic applause at the beginning, Dennis has enough time to take a sip of water.
— Good to see Kevin’s “News From 10 Feet Away” segment back.
— Tonight’s very energetic crowd is particularly responsive during Kevin’s observations of the audience’s “disappointment” over his segment.
— Funny part with Kevin turning this commentary meta by making a mock-complaint about his lack of airtime.
— Dennis’ running gag where he has a disapproving reaction whenever a new “Ernest” movie comes out continues tonight, with SNL going all-out on this one by dimming the lights to a dark red tint and playing the song “This Is The End” while Dennis simply says into the camera “The horror.”
— Loved Dennis’ “Eartha Day” joke.
— A. Whitney: “Why did we go to the moon? Nobody knows. Maybe JFK wanted to impress one of his secretaries.”
— A. Whitney: “There are 25 million illiterates in this country alone. Every day, vast numbers of them give directions at service stations.”
— Good side segment with Dennis demonstrating the “New Kids On The Chopping Block” dolls.
STARS: ****


THE NUDE TALK SHOW
(JOL) follows his dream & makes The Nude Talk Show a cable access success

— Nice details with the look of Jon’s character. In fact, I’ve always found his look to be so oddly specific that I have to wonder if this sketch is a parody of something I’m not familiar with.
— I love the awkwardness of Jon pitching his idea of a nude talk show to executives.
— Alec’s stern warning to Jon, regarding doing a nude talk show: “Remember one thing: it’s gonna be your ass out there.”
— Among the TV shows listed on the ratings board is “Dukakis After Dark”, a reference to a famous one-off sketch from the previous season. There’s also a listing of a show called “The Insane Idiot”, which would later be used as part of the title to a sketch with Harvey Keitel showing off a collection of descending-size deer heads, though the title similarity there may just be a coincidence.
— The interview with Jan is really funny.
— The audience is sure loving Al Franken’s Al Goldstein impression. He’s cracking me up too, even though I have no familiarity with the real Al Goldstein.
— I love Victoria’s scene as The Brooklyn Swami.
— Very nice ending.
STARS: *****


DINER
sexual tension is thick as waitress (JAH) takes (host)’s breakfast order

— Here’s the second sketch from this episode where Jan impressed the living hell out of teenage me when I first saw this episode on Comedy Central.
— Phil and Kevin are hilarious as the dopey customers.
— Jan, regarding Alec: “Look at him, sittin’ on that stool like he’s doin’ it a favor!”
— All the back-and-forths between Jan and Alec are freakin’ terrific.
— Jan’s ability to switch moods at the drop of a hat when immediately going from speaking to Phil & Kevin to speaking to Alec is great.
— Alec’s parting words to Jan: “You shouldn’t give away your pie with breakfast. Makes you look cheap!”
— An overall absolutely fantastic sketch. After my first time seeing this overall episode on Comedy Central, I officially became a Jan Hooks fan. Whereas I had no real opinion of her before being introduced to this episode (aside from being impressed by her in the season 14 sketch with her as newly-former First Lady Nancy Reagan being dragged out of the White House), this episode led to me paying close attention to her whenever I caught an SNL rerun with her from that point on, and more often than not, I would be very awed and entertained by her talents and performances. As a result, she ended up becoming one of my all-time favorite cast members.
— Clearly SNL themselves recognize what a fantastic night Jan had in this overall episode, between The Garbo I Knew and this Diner sketch, because this is the episode that NBC would wisely choose to air on “SNL Vintage” as a tribute to her a few days after she passed in 2014.
STARS: *****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Channel Z”


MIDDLE-AGED MAN
Middle-Aged Man Ed Miles (MIM) helps out with (host)’s impotence problem

— The debut of a short-lived but memorable Mike Myers recurring character. Funny idea for a superhero character.
— I sure like that theme song.
— As usual, solid character work from Mike here.
— I like the mention of Middle-Aged Man’s father, Retired Man (who we’ll later meet in an episode hosted by George Wendt), as well as the line about how the only difference between Middle-Aged Man and his father is Middle-Aged Man knows how to hook up a VCR.
— Another good line, this time about how Middle-Aged Man’s grandfather used to be known as Retired Man but is now known as Dead Man.
— I’m enjoying Middle-Aged Man’s various “quit lookin’ at my gut” warnings.
STARS: ***½


GOODNIGHTS

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS
— Wow. Just wow. This was pretty much what a perfect SNL episode looks like. Tonight’s show was a masterpiece, and it’s very easy to see why it would end up winning an Emmy (or was it just nominated?). Not only did every single segment in this episode work, but just about every single one of them was great, and a good number of them stand out as true classics. It also doesn’t hurt that we had a very hot crowd in the audience tonight, adding a lot of energy to the atmosphere. It’s great that Alec Baldwin’s hosting debut turned out this amazing. Right out of the gate, he came off as a true pro who already knows exactly how the show works, and he got good laughs in every sketch, even ones where he played a straight man. One of the most impressive hosting debuts ever seen on SNL.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Corbin Bernsen)
a big step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW
Unfortunately, the feel-good vibes in the Baldwin episode I just reviewed do not last, because our next episode is one mired in infamy. Controversial stand-up comedian Andrew Dice Clay hosts, prompting a boycott not only from the episode’s originally-scheduled musical guest, Sinead O’Connor, but also from one of the show’s own cast members, one Miss Nora Dunn, who’s relationship with the show would not be the same as a result.