Tina Fey and Amy Poehler/Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band December 19, 2015

We made it to the Christmas episode and the last episode of 2015! It’s hard to believe that we’re already halfway through the season. On the last episode, Chris Hemsworth made his return to the SNL stage as host and Chance the Rapper made his debut as musical guest. Hemsworth gave a performance for his second time and Chance the Rapper made a good debut. Some highlights from the last episode include:

    -Will Ferrell reprising his George W. Bush impression during the cold open.

    -The return of “Brother 2 Brother”.

    -The return of Angela Merkel and Leslie Jones to the Update desk.

    -A sketch where Hemsworth dressed in drag.

    -A possible recurring character for Jon Rudnitsky.

    -The return of “Aron’s List” at the end of the show.

On this episode of SNL, two of the greatest female cast members of all time return to the stage. Tina Fey returns for the first time since the season 39 premiere marking her fifth time hosting and Amy Poehler returns for her second time hosting since the season 36 premiere. This also marks the first time two female cast members have hosted together and the first time there have been two hosts since the Olsen twins during the season 29 finale. Safe to say, this episode is a history maker. I have been looking forward to this episode since they made the announcement and when you put Fey and Poehler together you know it’s gonna be a good episode. Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band make their return as well to the SNL stage as the musical guest.

This had to be one of my favorite episodes of the season and it shows that Tina and Amy need to host again, whether together or apart. Here’s my take on the Christmas episode.

Sketch Rundown:

Republican Debate Cold Open:

I thought Rudnitsky had a good Wolf Blitzer impression. I also loved seeing Darrell’s Trump impression again. I loved the other candidates waving even though I wish they used Jost more. I loved the line “Wolf Blitzer looks like Papa Smurf” I thought Beck was awesome as Jeb Bush. I also loved Taran as Ted Cruz. Another line I loved was from Bobby’s Chris Christie, “Bon Jovi forever!”. I loved how Rudnitsky told Kyle’s Rand Paul “Sir, we’re not taking comments from the audience yet.” I thought Jay’s Ben Carson was awesome, as always. I also thought Cecily was great as Carly Fiorina. I loved how Darrell’s Trump called Beck’s Jeb “Jebra”. Pete was also great as Marco Rubio. I loved Jay’s glasses he was wearing showing that he was really sleeping. Overall, I thought this was a great cold open.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler Monologue:

I thought this was a hilarious monologue. I loved how the two of them would talk in unison and wore similar outfits and would finish each other’s sentences. I loved the throwback pic and the song. I thought Bobby, Taran, and Kenan were great as the backup singers aka “The SNL Gay Men’s Chorus”. I also loved the line “She’s the peanut butter in my salami!”. This was an awesome monologue and it makes me so happy that Tina and Amy are hosting together.

Clinton Christmas:

I loved the opening line “I’m dreaming of a white...house.” I loved seeing Amy’s Hillary again and I loved seeing the two Hillary impressions interact. I loved Amy’s reaction to Trump being the Republican frontrunner. I loved seeing Tina’s Sarah Palin again. I loved the phone bit at the end and the lines “But Hillary, my secrets! Trust me, you’ll thank me later.” I loved the dancing at the end. I thought this sketch was awesome and a great way to begin the show.

Meet Your Second Wife:

I thought they did a good job working through the technical issues in the beginning of the sketch. I loved how Tina and Amy introduced themselves, “I’m Helen Walsh. And I’m Tina Fey.” I thought the sketch was funny but uncomfortable at times and I understand the controversy surrounding this sketch. I thought Leslie and Aidy were great in this sketch. I loved the lines, “ I thought this was a home makeover show. In a way, it is.,” and “Sorry, Elaine. We don’t make the future, we just know it.” I thought the ending with Cecily’s character pregnant with Kenan’s character’s second wife was pretty funny. Overall, I thought this was a good sketch.

Hoverboard:

I thought this was a funny ad parody. One of my favorite parts was the grandpa riding the hoverboard and his pants catching on fire. I thought this was a very clever and very funny ad parody or hoverboards.

Movie Set:

I was really surprised they brought this sketch back, especially since I didn’t like it the first time with Chris Hemsworth last season. I thought the sketch felt redundant and used the same joke over and over. However, I did like Tina and Amy in this sketch and their reactions. Overall, I thought this sketch was just okay.

Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band “Meet Me in the City” Performance:

I like Bruce Springsteen and a lot of his songs but I had no idea what he and the E-Street Band were planning on performing. Regardless, I thought this first song was good. It was catchy and really felt like a Springsteen song.

Weekend Update:

I loved the opening joke about millennial voters. I also loved Kate’s new character of Deenie. I was surprised that the soap opera they were describing was The Young and the Restless and not Days of Our Lives. You would think they would want to stick with an NBC show (also, I’m a huge Days fan). I thought it was funny how Kate would sometimes break while she was eating. I thought the joke about Martin Skrelli was awesome and he’s a dude I really wanna punch in the face. The joke about the Star Wars church service was awesome. I loved that they brought Tina and Amy out to do the last jokes of 2015 but I wished the girls would’ve been out longer. It also would’ve been awesome if Seth and Jimmy showed up (Three-way Weekend Update Joke Off, anyone?”. Overall, I thought it was a strong Update but it felt really short.

Christmas Variety Show:

I loved how Taran and Vanessa were a couple in this sketch. I also loved how Maya Rudolph appeared in this sketch and I thought her character was awesome! I also loved how her character just threw the presents at the children. The song was also great. I also loved Amy’s song and how she crashed through the set. Tina’s song was funny but a little uncomfortable at times with Kenan’s Bill Cosby showing up. The tiny DVD was funny and how all the musical numbers were the only things on the DVD. Overall, I thought this was a great post-Update sketch.

Dope Squad:

I loved the URL Aidy’s character had in the beginning for her website. I thought this was an awesome parody of Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood” music video. However, I didn’t expect to see Gayle King, Robert Downey, Sr., and Amy Schumer in this sketch. I thought the explosion at the end was funny. This was a great sketch and one of my favorites.

Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band “The Ties That Bind” Performance:

I thought this was another good performance and another good song. Like the first song, it was catchy and also felt like a Springsteen song. I’m really happy that SNL decided to bring back Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band for this episode.

Bronx Beat:

Even though I figured they would bring this sketch back I’m so happy they did! I loved the Star Wars jokes and loved the lines “May the force give me a break already,” and “I’m throughie with Chewie.” I thought all three women were hilarious. I loved how they called Etsy “Eatsy” and Downton Abbey “Downtown Abbey”. I also loved the line “Put it back in the box, it’s offending me.” I thought this was an awesome sketch and a great way to end the show.

Overall, I thought this was an amazing episode and a great way to end 2015 and the first half of the season. I loved how Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band came out during the goodnights and performed “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” a song I’m not surprised they performed. I was also surprised that Paul McCartney joined them in the performance but then again, he’s Paul McCartney! He can show up on SNL if he wants to. I can’t wait to see what 2016 and the second half of the season brings!

This has been my take on the SNL episode hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler with musical guest Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band. I’ll be back soon with a review of SNL hosted by Adam Driver with musical guest Chris Stapleton. Please spread the word about the blog and subscribe to the blog. Also, follow the blog on Twitter @SNLblogger. I live tweet during new episodes on the blog’s Twitter so feel free to join in on the conversation. Feel free to start your own conversations about episodes in the comments section but keep them clean. Also, please feel free to give me constructive criticism about the blog so I can improve the blog in any way.

Thanks for reading!

Lauren

Chris Hemsworth/Chance the Rapper December 12, 2015

It’s the last episode before the highly anticipated Christmas episode and the second to last episode of 2015! On the last SNL, Ryan Gosling and Leon Bridges made their debuts as host and musical guest, respectively. Gosling delivered a stellar performance and Bridges delivered two soulful performances. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if both of them return to the show in the future. Some highlights from the last episode include:

    -A Christmas message from Donald and Melania.

    -An appearance from Mike Myers in the monologue talking and singing about Canadian Christmases.

    -Several sketches where Ryan Gosling broke a bunch.

    -The return of Anthony Crispino.

    -A sketch about “The Wiz! Live!”.

On this episode, Chris Hemsworth makes his return to the SNL stage with Chance the Rapper making his SNL debut. Hemsworth delivered a stellar performance on his second go-around. Chance the Rapper apparently made history tonight as the first independent artist to perform on  SNL, which means that he isn’t signed by a major record label. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if either of them return to the show. Here’s my take on the episode.

Sketch Rundown:

George W. Bush Cold Open:

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting Will Ferrell to appear but it was an awesome surprise. I loved that he reprised his George W. Bush impression. I loved how he talked about the Republican candidates. I loved how he said Rubio and Cruz sounded like a Miami law firm. I also loved how he laughed at Trump and how he talked about Jeb. Overall, I thought this was a funny cold open. This had to be one of my favorite cold opens of the season so far.

Chris Hemsworth Monologue:

Since the last time Hemsworth hosted was back in March during season 40, I had a little bit of an idea of what to expect from the monologue. I loved how he poked fun at himself from his first time hosting. I thought the monologue was interesting but it was still funny. I felt really bad for Jost during the monologue but I thought Leslie was hilarious. Overall, I thought this was a good monologue.

Star Wars Toys:

I thought this was a funny ad. I loved Taran, Kyle, and Bobby in this sketch. I loved the display case bit. I thought this was a perfect ad parody to show at the beginning of the show.

On the Record:

When seeing this sketch, I thought it was great to see another Kate impression. I loved the impressions, especially Taran as Ted Cruz and Bobby as Chris Christie. I loved seeing Jay’s Ben Carson appear again.. I also thought the bridge jokes were funny. I thought this was a funny sketch and a great way to open the show.

Time to Bleed:

I thought this was a weird sketch but it was still funny. I loved seeing Sasheer as a leading character. Although I thought this sketch was funny, I thought the sketch felt redundant with the use of the same joke over and over again.

Brother 2 Brother:

I’m so glad they brought this sketch back even though I figured that they would bring this sketch back. I love their catch phrase, “Oh brothers.” I loved how at the end the credits read “Created by: Taran Killam” and “Written by: Not Taran Killam”. I thought this sketch was good the second time around but I felt it went on a little too long.

Deborah’s Time:

Even though this sketch was funny at times, I felt that it was just okay. However, I loved Cecily’s character and felt that her dramatic actress training really kicked in with this sketch. I loved hearing Cecily sing because she’s got a great voice. I also loved how she just kept going after messing up a word in the beginning of the song. I loved Cecily’s line “Jen, go alto.” I loved how everyone joined in singing near the end of the sketch. I thought the ending where they’re going to see the musical and the car swerves a lot due to the weather. Like I said, I thought this sketch was just okay even though there were funny moments.

Chance the Rapper “Somewhere in Paradise” Performance:

I’m somewhat familiar with Chance the Rapper because my brother listens to a lot of rap. Even though I’m not a huge rap fan, I thought his performance was okay.

Weekend Update:

I loved the joke about Ben Carson and the line “Donald Trump doesn’t have a soul!”. I loved the “Rescue Jeb Today” joke. I loved seeing Kate’s Angela Merkel again. I always love the jokes and the interaction between McKinnon and Jost. I loved seeing Leslie again even though I was expecting Jebidiah because of the topic. I loved the descriptions of “Breaking Bad” and I love seeing her tweets on Twitter when she live tweets shows. Overall, I thought it was another good Weekend Update.

Brunch:

I thought it was pretty funny to see Hemsworth in a wig and a dress. I mean, he makes a pretty woman. I was a little annoyed with how he was always saying “bitches” throughout the sketch. I thought the ending was funny even though I thought it was an okay sketch.

Pirate Ship:

I thought this was a funny sketch even though it needed some work. I thought Jon was hilarious as Mark. I really hope this becomes a recurring character for him. I loved how he introduced himself, “I’m Mark and I keep things fun!”.

Chance the Rapper “Sunday Candy” Performance:

I thought this was another okay performance. I think I even liked this song better than the first one. I think Chance the Rapper is very talented, no doubt. I’m just not a big fan of rap and I don’t see myself listening to his music.

Strip Club:

I thought this sketch was just okay but it was a little weird. I thought the guys were funny. I loved how Leslie was the only one of the girls that was into it. I thought Jon was hilarious in this sketch. The Chinese bit near the end was weird. I wasn’t surprised that this sketch appeared at the end of the show.

Aron’s List:

I was surprised that they used this ad parody again. It made me think that the show ran short if they had to use this sketch again, since it appeared the first time during the Elizabeth Banks episode last month. Regardless, I still found this sketch to be funny.

Overall, I thought this was a good, solid episode. I loved Hemsworth’s performance and thought Chance the Rapper did a good job for his SNL debut. Like I said before, I wouldn’t be surprised if either of them return to the show.

This has been my take on the SNL episode hosted by Chris Hemsworth with musical guest Chance the Rapper. I’ll be back soon with a review of SNL hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler with musical guest Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band. Please spread the word about the blog and subscribe to the blog. Also, follow the blog on Twitter @SNLblogger. I live tweet during new episodes on the blog’s Twitter so feel free to join in on the conversation. Feel free to start your own conversations about episodes in the comments section but keep them clean. Also, please feel free to give me constructive criticism about the blog so I can improve the blog in any way.

Thanks for reading!

Lauren

Ryan Gosling/Leon Bridges December 5, 2015

We’re in the home stretch until the halfway point of the season. It feels like just yesterday it was the season premiere. The most recent episode was the Thanksgiving show with host Matthew McConaughey and musical guest Adele. McConaughey delivered a great performance while Adele brought down the house with two impressive performances. Some highlights from the last episode include:

    -The return of the “Fox & Friends” cold open.

    -A Thanksgiving sketch showing that Adele’s hit song “Hello” can fix any awkward Thanksgiving dinner with relatives.

    -Auditions for Star Wars.

    -The return of Laura Parsons and David Ortiz

    -The return of “Right Side of the Bed”.

This week, Ryan Gosling made his debut as host and Leon Bridges made his debut as a musical guest. I thought both did well with their debuts on the SNL stage and wouldn’t be surprised if either of them came back to the show in the future. Here’s my take on Ryan Gosling.

Sketch Rundown:

A Christmas Message from Donald and Melania Trump Cold Open:

I loved the impressions in this sketch and I think Taran and Cecily do a great job as Donald and Melania. I loved the naughty and nice list bit. I thought it was funny how Santa was on the naughty list with Trump saying that Santa was worse than Obama. Overall, I thought it was a funny cold open.

Ryan Gosling Monologue:

I really loved this monologue (as much as I love Ryan Gosling)! I thought it was funny how Cecily was fact checking him (that had to be one hell of a quick change for her). I was surprised to see Mike Myers but it was a great surprise. I also loved how Myers said that he lived backstage. I thought the snowman was funny. I thought the song was funny as well as the Canadian Christmas dance number. I also loved how the ending was messed up. Overall, I thought this was a great monologue.

Settl:

I thought this sketch was funny and this app looks like something I would want to try at least once. I also loved the tagline, “Settl. Tick tock.”

Alien Abduction:

In all honesty, I thought this was a great sketch to open the show. I loved how just about everyone, most notably Gosling, kept breaking throughout the entirety of the sketch! I was amazed how Cecily was the only person in that sketch that wasn’t breaking. Overall, this sketch was hilarious and one of my favorite sketches of the night.

Santa Baby:

I thought this sketch was a little weird although I thought the Santa bit at the end was funny. The short kinda reminded me a little bit of the movie Elf and I wouldn’t have been surprised if Buddy the Elf showed up in the sketch. To be honest, this is a sketch that probably should’ve ended up in the second half of the show.

Birthday Party:

To be honest, I wasn’t a big fan of this sketch and I’m not a big fan of Aidy’s character. I’m kinda surprised they brought back this character. However, I thought that Ryan Gosling was super cute in this sketch and I loved how he was trying to sing the Backstreet Boys. I did notice that he called Aidy’s character Morgan instead of Melanie at one point in the sketch. This made me wonder if he just got confused or if there was a new installment of “Girlfriends Talk Show” that was cut for time. I did feel bad for Aidy towards the end of the sketch because it looked like it hurt to fall on the breakaway table. Overall, this was probably one of my least favorite sketches of the night.

Leon Bridges “Smooth Sailin’” Performance:

Like many of the artists this season (and in past seasons) of SNL, I had never heard of Leon Bridges before this night’s episode. However, I did like this performance. I thought the song was very catchy, bluesy, and soulful. I was very impressed with Bridges during his performances and thought he did a great job.

Weekend Update:

I thought this week’s Update had a good start with funny jokes about Ben Carson and Jeb Bush. I also thought the joke about the Senate voting on gun control was also very funny. I did like Cecily’s Jill Davenport character and it’s possible this could become another recurring character for her. I’ve actually started to notice a trend where it seems that every Update character that Jost interacts with is trying to flirt with him. I also thought it was funny how Che was wearing headphones when they cut to him during the bit. I also thought the jar bit was funny. I loved the joke Che did about “The Wiz”. I also loved the jokes about the popular baby name and Mouse Mingle. I thought it was great to see Anthony Crispino again. I also loved how they used Ryan Gosling in the bit as Angelo, Crispino’s third-hand news guy. I also loved the smoking tea kettles at the end. Overall, I thought this was another great Update.

GQ Interview:

I thought this was a funny sketch. I found it pretty cool that Cecily was playing reporters from two different magazines in one show. I thought Kyle’s character was hilarious. I also loved how Gosling kept breaking a lot during the sketch. I thought the singing and the dance number were great. I was also one of the probably millions of girls watching that wished Gosling took his shirt off. Regardless, I thought this sketch was funny and a great post-Update sketch.

Nespresso:

I thought this was a funny ad parody and I don’t think I’ll be able to watch the original commercial the same way ever again. I thought the impressions were great and I loved Kate as the actress wearing the beaver costume. Overall, I thought this was a great ad parody.

“The Wiz” Live:

I figured they were gonna do a sketch parody of this musical, either as a sketch or as the cold open. I loved that they were able to utilize all of the black cast members. I also thought it was amazing that they used the costumes from the live production. I loved Gosling as the Scarecrow from “The Wizard of Oz” and I thought his impression was fantastic. Overall, I thought this was a great sketch and I felt that it should’ve been placed in the first half of the show.

Leon Bridges “River” Performance:

I thought this was another great performance from Bridges. I really liked the song and found the song to be very soulful. This is another case where I become of a fan of an artist I’ve never heard of and it’s all thanks to SNL.

Santa and his Magical Elves:

In all honesty, I didn’t like the elves sketch the first time but I did like that they used a Christmas setting. I’m also not surprised that this ended up being the last sketch of the night. Along with the “Birthday Party” sketch, this was another one of my least favorite sketches of the night.

Overall, I thought this was another good episode. I thought the tribute to Jenna Krempel from the SNL Wardrobe who had passed away was sweet. I also loved how Ryan mentioned his wife, Eva Mendes, and daughter, Esmeralda, during the goodnights. I thought that both Gosling and Bridges did a great job on this episode and I’m pretty sure they’ll be back to SNL some time in the future.

This has been my take on the SNL episode hosted by Ryan Gosling with musical guest Leon Bridges. I’ll be back soon with a review of SNL hosted by Chris Hemsworth with musical guest Chance the Rapper. Please spread the word about the blog and subscribe to the blog. Also, follow the blog on Twitter @SNLblogger. I live tweet during new episodes on the blog’s Twitter so feel free to join in on the conversation. Feel free to start your own conversations about episodes in the comments section but keep them clean. Also, please feel free to give me constructive criticism about the blog so I can improve the blog in any way.

Thanks for reading!

Lauren

Matthew McConaughey/Adele November 21, 2015

We made it to the Thanksgiving episode which means we’re getting closer to the end of the first half of season 41! On the last SNL, first-time host Elizabeth Banks came to the show and delivered a hilarious performance making us forget about the disaster of an episode which was hosted by a Presidential candidate. Disclosure also made their SNL debut with two featuring Lorde and Sam Smith, respectively. This had to be one of my favorite episode of the season. Some highlights from the last episode include:

-A tribute to the victims of the terror attacks in Paris in the form of a bilingual message from Cecily Strong in lieu of a traditional cold open.

-A very funny monologue from Banks.

-A new music video with Banks, Cecily, Kate, Vanessa, and Aidy as a Backstreet Boys-like girl group.

-Pete, Bruce Chandling, and Olya returning to the Update desk.

-A sketch about the adventures of a young Ben Carson.

-The return of “A Mike O’Brien Picture”.

This week, Matthew McConaughey returns to the SNL for the first time since 2003 with Dixie Chicks as the musical guest. Adele returns to the SNL stage as the musical guest for the first time since 2008 when Josh Brolin hosted and cameos were made by Tina Fey, Sarah Palin, Alec Baldwin, and Mark Wahlberg as well as Amy Poehler famously rapping the Palin Rap. This episode is kind of a full circle moment for me since the Josh Brolin/Adele episode of SNL is the first SNL episode that I watched all the way through. So seeing Adele appear on this episode is a little bit of a nostalgic moment for me since she was the musical guest for the first SNL episode I ever watched. So with that, here’s my review of the season 41 Thanksgiving episode.

Sketch Rundown:

Fox & Friends Cold Open:

I love these sketches and I got really excited when the opening came on. I thought Kate was hilarious as Debbie Wasserman Schultz and I loved seeing Jay as Ben Carson again. Some of my favorite quotes from this sketch include “All Fridays Matter,” “Syria, locate nearest bathroom,” and “19,000 Syrians and Counting.” I loved how they had Leslie as the fact checker but I do miss seeing the corrected facts being scrolled up on the screen. It’s one of the things I look forward to when this sketch is on. Other than that, I thought this was a great cold open and a great way to start the show.

Matthew McConaughey Monologue:

In my honest opinion, I thought this monologue was just alright and not “alright, alright, alright” (I’m sorry, I couldn’t avoid it.). I thought the story was interesting but it was really boring. I found myself wanting the monologue to be over after the first minute or so. I felt that the monologue kind of dragged on and I felt that McConaughey wasn’t getting to his point fast enough. Again, this monologue wasn’t one of my favorites as I thought it was just alright.

A Thanksgiving Miracle:

I absolutely loved this sketch! I thought it was hilarious and I could 100% relate to Cecily’s character since I have some family members that are like the other characters in the sketch. I had a feeling since this was the Thanksgiving show that they would do some kind of Thanksgiving sketch. I loved how everyone was lip synching “Hello” and everyone was dressed like Adele. I loved the little girl in this sketch and thought she was adorable. I also loved the outdoor scenes with the wind and the leaves. This sketch was one of the best sketches of the night and it better be on the Thanksgiving special next Thanksgiving! This sketch is proof that Adele can fix everything, even dysfunctional Thanksgiving dinners.

Charlie’s Blues Shack:

I was very surprised that this kind of a sketch would be in the beginning of the show. This kind of a sketch is usually saved for the second half of the show towards the end of the show. I guess this was one of those sketches that went over well in the dress rehearsal. Although I didn’t think the sketch was super funny, I did like the Blues music.

3D Printer:

I thought this was a funny concept for a sketch even though it seemed a bit redundant at times. I loved when Bruce would start his sentences with “Who me? As for me…” and I loved his walk and his dancing. I also thought it was funny that Bruce would self-destruct after a certain amount of time.

Star Wars Auditions:

I always love these kind of audition sketches. I loved how they had cameos from J.J. Abrams, Daisy Ridley, and John Boyega. I loved seeing Cecily’s Sofía Vergara, Aidy’s Wynonna, and Bobby’s George Lucas. I loved seeing Jay’s impression of Shaq with Shaq auditioning for Chewbacca. I also loved seeing the John Mayer and Maggie Smith impressions. I loved Taran’s David Beckham and I loved the cameo from Emma Stone and thought she was funny. I thought Bobby was hilarious as Danny Devito and I loved the cameos from Jon Hamm and Michael Bublé. I thought Leslie was hilarious dressed as a character from Star Trek while auditioning for Star Wars. Overall, I thought this was a great sketch.

Adele “Hello” Performance:

I absolutely loved this performance and I love this song! I even loved the face she made at the end of the song. I did feel that the song was a little shorter and she might have sung the radio version instead of the studio version. This could’ve been for time reasons or that she didn’t want to risk her voice cracking on the high notes which, as a singer, I completely understand that. Regardless, the song was amazing, the performance was amazing, and Adele is amazing!

Weekend Update:

I this week’s Update had a strong start on both parts. I loved the back and forth between Jost and Che about the refugees. I thought Colin’s bit about lying about being a Christian was funny and true. I loved seeing Laura Parsons outside of a sketch and thought it was a great way to utilize this character. I know I’ve said this before but Vanessa is just so adorable! I also loved the segment where the anchors read a joke that the other one wrote. I liked the David Ortiz bit but I felt it was really redundant and the same exact jokes from the last time they did this character. I did love the website for “Go Outside” and the promo code. Overall, I thought this was a great Update.

Should You Chime In On This?:

I thought this was an okay sketch and a typical one saved for after Update. I loved the name Allen DeGeneres, “I got this job by accident.” I loved how it made fun of the different types of people who don’t know what they’re talking about and know nothing about the subject and how they shouldn’t chime in on things. I loved the “All Lives Matter” siren. I also loved Kate coming out as Hillary Clinton. Overall, I thought this was a good sketch even though it wasn’t my favorite.

Right Side of the Bed:

I’m surprised they brought this sketch back but it has grown on me and now I really like it. One of the reasons I like this sketch is the chemistry between Cecily and Taran. McConaughey’s character was weird but funny. I loved how he used the turkey as a puppet. One of my favorite parts of the sketch was when McConaughey popped up from behind the couch with the turkey wearing a mustache, nose, and glasses. I loved seeing Kate appear as Ed Sheeran. Overall, I thought this was a funny sketch.  

Adele “When We Were Young” Performance:

I thought this was another great performance from Adele. I also thought the song was beautiful and I had it stuck in my head as well as “Hello.” I thought it was great to see Adele perform on the show again and it was great for me to have that full circle moment.

Amtrak:

I thought this sketch was just okay and the typical 10 to 1 sketch. However, I did like the Thomas the Tank Engine picture with the devil horns and mustache as well as the fake hand. I didn’t, however, particularly care for the “nice rack” comment. Like I said, I thought this sketch was just okay.

Overall, I thought this was a great episode. I didn’t really know what to expect from McConaughey but I was pleased with his performance. I thought Adele was amazing with her two performances. I could see both of them being on the show again in the future.

This has been my take on the SNL episode hosted by Matthew McConaughey with musical guest Adele. I’ll be back soon with a review of SNL hosted by Ryan Gosling with musical guest Leon Bridges. Please spread the word about the blog and subscribe to the blog. Also, follow the blog on Twitter @SNLblogger. I live tweet during new episodes on the blog’s Twitter so feel free to join in on the conversation. Feel free to start your own conversations about episodes in the comments section but keep them clean. Also, please feel free to give me constructive criticism about the blog so I can improve the blog in any way.

Thanks for reading!

Lauren