Tag: Saturday Night Live

A Lazy, Spoiler Free Review of ‘Saturday Night.’

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m too lazy to give you much detail about the new movie “Saturday Night,” but I can give you a general sense of my views on the movie. I thought it was really good, all things considered. The third act felt like a TV-movie in some respects, but the overall movie is definitely a “crowd pleaser.”

I really enjoyed the movie as a life-long fan of SNL. I remember watching SNL live as a little tyke. The show had such buzz that i stayed up in the late 70s, even though I was under ten at the time. So it was nice to see some of the lore of the series on the big screen.

But I do have a few quibbles. I don’t get why one actor played two different rolls. And there were elements of the third act that were rather cringe worthy. I think if the movie was a bit more droll in its delivery — or even just more consistent in tone — it would be, in general, better.

I also quibble with its portrayal of John Belushi. There was so much to work with and they went with that? I will note, in passing, that Kaia Gerber did a surprisingly good job in a small roll.

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie and recommend it — not that anyone listens to me. I will note the future of SNL is still up in the air. I wrote some about this in the past, when I was under dumb assumption that last year’s season was its 50th — it’s a testament to how much I live in oblivion that no one noticed I got the year wrong for that particular situation.

Anyway, in general, I really liked the movie.

Saturday Night Dead — Is SNL…Bad?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I know we’re in one of those periods in Saturday Night Live’s existence when it’s kind of at a low point because while I look forward to it when a new episode is scheduled, I don’t actually watch any of it. That this lull happens just as we’re all holding our breath to see if it continues past its 50th season is…not good.

Sydney Sweeney was on SNL recently.

When the buzz around the show is so potent that I actually watch it, then I will know it’s “back.” The show has been on for so long that there is a well known ebb-and-flow to its quality. Just about when everyone thinks its down for the count, some amazing new cast member swoops in and saves it from itself.

The thing about SNL is it serves a very, very important meta cultural function — it introduces young comics to older, more established entertainers for a week. That generates professional relationships that can last a lifetime.

But all good things must come to an end, the show has been on for a long time and Lorne Michaels is getting old…so lulz? It could be that SNL will end after its 50th season and that will be that. Something new will take its place and we will all move forward.

I just don’t know. Just as we find ourselves facing autocracy or civil war / revolution a political basis, and the AI transformation on the technological side, it could be that traditional entertainment is about to go through a rough patch, too. The end of SNL would be a part of that.

And all of this is happening in the context of even human being torn asunder by our partisan divide. SNL has always been the Bob Hope of comedy and I just don’t know if that play-it-down-the-middle style can survive while the country is not-so-slowly tearing itself apart.

It will be interesting to see how things work out, I will say that.

Too Many Center-Left People These Days Miss The Cultural Point Of SNL

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

In yet ANOTHER sign that the country is tearing itself apart, the fact that Saturday Night Live is trying its usual thing of trying to threat the political needle is causing people on the center-Left to pitch a fit.

The thing about SNL — which is the Bob Hope of TV entertainment shows — is while it definitely leans Left, it has a long, long history of pretty much just picking on whomever happens to be in power. It’s just that Trump stirred the pot to such an extent that the two sides have really, really hardened their views.

As such, people who are too young to remember how things used to be, think it’s the end of the world if SNL features Nikki Haley or brings back the very, very popular Right wing comic they fired even before the season began a few years ago.

It definitely seems as though all of this is yet more sign that the greatest nation in the world is tearing itself apart over “vibes.”

What The Fuck Is Going To Happen To SNL?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m no expert when it comes to SNL — I once totally screwed up when the 50th year of the show is — but I still am concerned about its fate. Saturday Night Live serves an important cultural purpose and it has so much love built in that I suspect that it will survive, even after Lorne Michaels retires.

I have heard a rumor that Netflix is interested in starting it’s own live sketch show. It could be that the stars might align in such a way that just as SNL is about to change in a big way that Netflix swoops in an buys the expensive franchise off of NBC.

Stranger things have happened.

I do think that next year is going to be very turbulent in more ways than one. It could be that we’re too busy dodging bullets to have a SNL 50th anniversary. Or maybe Tyrant Trump will arrest everyone at SNL before the 50th. Who the fuck knows.

But I do think it’s possible that there might be something of a panic in Hollywood if it seems as though when Michaels leaves that NBC will pull the plug on SNL. That could be the fixation of most of the pop entertainment news media for a few months while everything is unknown.

I honestly have no idea. I will note that maybe we’re in something of a vibe shift and, as such, it could be that the era of SNL is just about to end and Something New is about to take its place. It could be that some combination of immersive media, AI and the Apple Vision Pro will revolutionize media to the point all of this is very moot.

Of Course

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Now, let me be clear — I’m notorious for taking a little bit of information and running with it. But there is, at least, a scenario whereby Saturday Night Live uses the “hook” of how fucking cold it was in Iowa for the caucuses to have a sketch with Unfrozen Caveman Governor Ron DeSantis.

Makes sense to me, at least. I don’t quite know what I would do if something I predicted actually happened for once. I might faint from excitement and joy.

But I’m really, really grasping at straws on this one. I’m know to make shit up. I suppose only time will tell, huh.

I would get a woman cast member to play “Tiny-D” in caveman make up, given how short he is, relative to how tall he should be to run for POTUS.

My Pitch For An Unfrozen Caveman Governor Sketch

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

This is just me being silly. But, in general, I would replace the court room of the Phil Hartman Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer sketches with an Iowa / New Hampshire Town Hall.

Ron DeSantis

Then, the joke of the SNL sketch would be that Ron DeSantis’ actual policy agenda is so dumb and conservative that it’s what you might think of someone frozen during an Ice Age.

I, for one, think that’s hilarious.

Well, That’s Curious

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’m obsessed with my Webstats. And today was curious because one specific blog post on this blog about Ron DeSantis got a huge amount of hits — like 10 or so. Given that, like, this blog on any given day gets about 20 or 30 hits a day that’s a big deal.

Given the subject matter, there are a few possibilities.

SNL
It’s at least possible that my link between Ron DeSantis and SNL’s Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer and this weekend they’re going to do a sketch about him that involves Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer.
He’s About To Drop Out
This could mean that his staff knows he’s going to drop out and they read the blog post about how much he sucks. Or something.

I Wonder What Fred Armisen Would Think of ‘So Good’

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

As I understand it, SNL alum Fred Armisen is into punk bigtime — so much so that he was the drummer in a punk band for a long time — so when I heard So Good today, I instantly thought of him.

The only thing about So Good is the one song I really like “I Hate It Here” is so on-the-nose that it sounds like a song from the fictional punk rocker he created who was the only punk who liked Margaret Thatcher.

But, the I Hate It Here track has a very punk edge to it and it has a beat and you can dance to it. And, yet, it definitely seems I’m the only person in the world who loves it.

It’s a great song!

Is Tiny Fey Going To Take Over SNL After 2025?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Much to my chagrin, I realized I miscalculated when it came to when the 50th season of SNL is. It’s not THIS season, but NEXT season. Anyway, that’s not really the point of this post — the point is: who is going to replace Lorne Michaels at SNL?

Apparently, the rumor is that the job is Tina Fey’s if she wants it. She would do a great job. She is my favorite pick, at the moment. But she is a really busy person with a lot on her plate and the case could be made that her career is too well developed for her to want the job, no matter how prestigious it might be.

There are two other people I think might be dark horse candidates — Seth Meyers and John Mulaney. Both of them are a little younger than Fey and could potentially be in the job a lot longer.

I could totally see Fey being something of a transitional figure for the show, only being willing to serve a few years before handing the gig off to someone else. If Fey doesn’t get / want the job, my bet is on Mulaney because he’s 40 and could grow into the job.

There is the risk, of course, that whenever Michaels retires, that will be it for the show. I’ve heard chatter that NBC suits hate the show for being too complicated and expensive. Of course, it’s possible that if NBC pulls the plug on the show that a streamer like Netflix might pick it up without a hiccup.

Will There Even Be A 50th Season of SNL?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

First, I have no idea if there the strikes that currently are happening in Hollywood will still be going on this fall. But we have to begin to take the possibility that there won’t be a 50th season of Saturday Day Night Live seriously.

At the moment, there is a lot of chatter that the strikes will be wrapped up by around September when it really starts to hurt the industry in practical ways. And, yet, the case could also be made that lulz, because of AI, these strikes are going to linger for months and months AND MONTHS because suits are simply waiting for AI to catch up so the strikes are all moot.

I would estimate that we’re 18 months away from pretty good all-AI generated movies being practical. As such, that’s about how long I could see all these strikes taking before they’re wrapped up because there’s pretty much no human involvement in recorded entertainment at all.

But back to SNL.

I suppose SNL could get a specific exception? Maybe? Or maybe they might be able to get a specific carveout JUST for their 50th anniversary special? I suppose that’s possible. There is a darker possibility — the strikes, if they linger — might be used as an excuse to END SNL once and for all.

Lorne Michaels has suggested that he may retire after the 50th season and if there is obviously NOT GOING TO BE A 50TH SEASON then, lulz, he may just pack things in and the show goes out not with a bang, but with a whimper.