Here’s the thing about this exercise: I haven’t worked out the kinks yet. This episode came in as the highest rated one of the season, despite me feeling like it was overall kind of a medium overall feeling and the host netting only the third highest score.
I attribute the result to a few things, most of which was a cumulative cast effort. We had a comedian host which translates into legit jokes in the monologue (which was 15 minutes long!), a long and solidly written Update with two decent features, a Please Don’t Destroy video and then a few sketches where one player was allowed to keep hitting triples. I double checked my work and the scores add up.
That said, I came in very cautious with Dave Chappelle. He seemed to be trying a version of what he’s always done, which is navigating some treacherous waters in an effort to find the universal truths in them. In this case he was intimating some shade on the Jews who purportedly run Hollywood and that whole segment was D.O.A. and not funny. Chappelle is truly gifted, but some of the work can be tone deaf, which may be why he’s historically been able to deconstruct complicated topics better than others. I really admire a comedian who can push the envelope, especially in this era of cancellation, but I’m not sure Chappelle was able to fully command this role considering his weird non-condemnation of Kanye and some of the unspoken agreement he seemed to have with the now-disgraced rapper. At least there was no transphobia, and you have to give the episode credit for shining a light on many glaring racial discrepancies. There was an edge and an intelligence to the sketches that isn’t usually on display, and that’s a direct credit to the host, who chooses them.
The Please Don’t Destroy guys continue to use the video medium to stack jokes, and they wisely included Molly Kearney who is the breakaway star of the new cast. Sarah Sherman took over a feature on update and I was so nervous that her schtick wouldn’t continue to play, but it mostly worked. I’ve been impressed with Andrew Dismukes playing many of the boring white guy roles, and he’s doing yeoman’s work. Mikey Day was given the easiest sketch of the season to knock out of the part, and while he wasn’t quite able to crush the payoffs, the situational comedy was great and he carried it off. Very little Bowen Yang in this episode.
Kenan continues to crush and we’re getting a sense about the new cast members. Michael Longfellow has such a bizarre, almost Norm MacDonald-like cadence, but he’s out to a strong second and has done a good job in straight man roles, despite some unshakeable creepiness. I said he had a serial killer vibe in the season premiere and I’m sticking with that, but it works for him. Marcello Hernandez has scored big on both his Update visits, but done next to nothing outside of that. Devon Walker is someone impossible not to like. I liked him the second I saw him. It’s like like at first sight. That said, he’s struggling in sketches so far and doing too much obvious cue card reading.
For more detailed analysis, you can always jump over to our friends at Pajiba.
Let’s get to the stats.
A word on Laughstatting:
Everyone has a different sense of humor, so the things that I laugh at will most likely not be the exact same things you laugh at. The goal of this exercise is not to convince anyone, but to say “here’s what worked for me” and hopefully, if our tastes are similar enough, maybe it worked for you too and the overall stats for the season will have some value. It also strangely works if you have polar opposite taste to me, because you’ll know the episodes that were a hit for me might not land with you.
I try to be very generous with my rankings in the hopes that eventually a more clear picture of the cast and season will shape itself and contribute to some additional insight. And we get charts.
Who doesn’t love a good chart?
Fox & Friends Cold Open – SNL
Concept: Obvious.
Execution: Weirdly average. Please god let this the last we see of Trump.
s – Heidi Gardner: “Wakanda Forever”
s – Bowen Yang: “It couldn’t have been us, every day.”
S – Cecily Strong: “Even though my camera filter makes it look like I’m in heaven.”
s – Cecily Strong: “Asking Black customers if they work here.”
Dave Chappelle Stand-Up Monologue
s – Dave Chappelle: “We can’t go out, it’s sha-na-na tomorrow.”
s – Dave Chappelle: “Ironically, Adidas was founded by nazis and they were offended!”
S – Dave Chappelle: “It’s a coincidence and you should never speak about it.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “Kanye got in so much trouble, Kyrie got in trouble.”
s – Dave Chappelle: “But it’s a crazy thing to say out loud at a time like this.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “He’s observably stupid.”
l – Dave Chappelle: “He’s the kind of guy that looks like he has to think before he makes a move at tic-tac-toe.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “He was probably colluding with Russia.”
L – Dave Chappelle: “She looks like the kind of chic James Bond would smash, but not trust.”
L – Dave Chappelle: “Even the Vietnamese were like god damn those are some good numbers!”
l – Dave Chappelle: “They were steppin on rakes.”
s – Dave Chappelle: “Whoever they are.”
Potato Hole
Concept: Relevant and poignant
Execution: Lot of set up for a payoff that’s more painful than funny
l – Andrew Dismukes: “Coulda told us sooner!”
House of the Dragon
Concept: A reprisal of some of Chappelle’s most beloved characters, set bizarrely in Game of Thrones
Execution: Pretty Good
S – Michael Longfellow: “Weirdly enough, it’s the same as the family tree.”
l – Kenan Thompson: “The Matrix. Just kidding.”
S – Kenan Thompson: “Or what might happen to us…on ships.”
l – Dave Chappelle: “Yuck.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “You look like E.T. when they dressed him up for Halloween.”
l – Dave Chappelle: “Might be able to get some money for that.”
s – Dave Chappelle: “I came here for some dragon rocks.”
Barber Shop Talk
Concept: Iconic barbershop setting used to highlight cultural differences
Execution: Very good
s – Michael Longfellow: “I mean, they’re only sneakers, right?”
S – Kenan Thompson: reaction to sneakers
S – Kenan Thompson: reaction to “vaccine”
S – Kenan Thompson: reaction to “if the president of the United States says it’s safe…”
s – Kenan Thompson: reaction to “god and politics.”
l – Kenan Thompson: reaction to “now who would spend that much money on a necklace?”
S – Michael Longfellow: “Or Yellowstone!”
l – Dave Chappelle: “He’s police, ain’t he?”
s – Punkie Johnson: “I was gonna say academy.”
Weekend Update
l – Colin Jost: “Tucker Carlson, seen here struggling to make it through no-nut November.”
s – Colin Jost: “You guys are all doing it too?”
s – Colin Jost: “And one that said ‘I survived the Titanic.’”
S – Michael Che: “Take care of it, baby.”
S – Colin Jost: “The greatest country in the United States.”
s – Colin Jost: “At least he has a general idea of where he is.”
S – Colin Jost: “I know I’m not always the sharpest tool in the refrigerator.”
l – Colin Jost: “I’m gonna guess…strangling hitchhikers.”
S – Michael Che: “While the other 38 states will have dinner ready on time.”
l – Michael Che: “Thank you, thank you.”
s – Colin Jost: “Younger, said Matt Gaetz.”
l – Michael Che: “Wow, so I guess the new variant does affect children.”
s – Michael Che: “I love this crowd.”
s – Colin Jost: “Okay, double or nothing.”
S – Michael Che: “I assume because she’s really funny or something?”
s – Colin Jost: “forging lottery tickets.”
s – Colin Jost: “a giant penis pointed at Russia.”
s – Colin Jost: “Even worse, they then fired missiles.”
L – Michael Che: “She has been charged with one count of impersonating a police officer.”
s – Marcello Hernandez: “I’m just happy to be here, Colin.”
S – Marcello Hernandez: “She had to pull it!”
S – Marcello Hernandez: warm glass before bed reaction
s – Marcello Hernandez: “It was only why. Why is it so hot?”
s – Marcello Hernandez: “Why did the power go out?”
S – Marcello Hernandez: “Why is the president taking all our stuff?”
s – Marcello Hernandez: “And Jeff Bezos sends it to your house.”
s – Marcello Hernandez: “you’re gonna have to wade.”
s – Marcello Hernandez: mocking Colin’s voice
S – Marcello Hernandez: “They just show it, send a message, then put it away.”
s – Sarah Sherman: “This is the Sarah news.”
S – Sarah Sherman: “Don’t let the queer haircut fool ya.”
l – Sarah Sherman: “I’m as straight as Michael Che’s update persona.”
l – Michael Che: reaction to his persona joke
S – Sarah Sherman: “Senator elect and big, gorgeous monster John Fetterman.”
s – Sarah Sherman: “Hachi machi.”
L – Colin Jost: reaction to turkey waddle joke
L – Colin Jost: “Oh my god, that is disgusting.”
Heaven Scene
Concept: Smart and instantly understandable and it probably cost three dollars
Execution: Very Good, but missed the big payoffs
S – Dave Chappelle: “Smokers are.”
l – Mikey Day: reveal that he’s playing Chappelleinstead of Devon Walker.
L – Mikey Day: “You in Black Heaven, biatch!”
S – Mikey Day: “Yeah young’un.”
s – Mikey Day: “Where you think you is?”
s – Mikey Day: “Though erry now and then.”
L – Mikey Day: “I can’t say that liiiiiine.”
S – Kenan Thompson: messing up handshake
S – Mikey Day: messing up handshake
S – Mikey Day: “Dave’s not even resting. He’s right there.”
l – Dave Chappelle: reveal watching and smoking
l – Dave Chappelle: “You’re killin’ it Mikey, keep going!”
l – Mikey Day: “Preach.”
L – Mikey Day: Covering his face after ‘TSA booties.’
s – Mikey Day: “Of course, Blood.”
s – Punkie Johnson: “I know you not talkin’ bout my mac n cheese!”
S – Mikey Day: “uh oh, worldstar.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “He said worldstar! Let’s go!”
l – Kenan Thompson: “Man, you was on Wild & Out season one! You ain’t absorbed anything?”
S – Dave Chappelle: “Keep going keep going!”
s – Ego Nwodim: “Smart.”
S – Kenan Thompson: “That’s a good call.”
S – Dave Chappelle: “The horrors and tragedies of the Underground Railroad.”
l – Mikey Day: “No! I cannot do that.”
Please Don’t Destroy – Election Night
Concept: Relevant election-adjacent video
Execution: Rock solid
l – John Higgins: “What are the midterms?”
s – Martin Herlihy: “I don’t know.”
S – Ben Marshall: “I’m not sure at all.”
S – Molly Kearney: “Something very bad has happened.”
L – Molly Kearney: “I don’t want to be eternal general.”
s – Steve Kornacki: reveal
S – Steve Kornacki: “hashtag in my feelings.”
S – Molly Kearney: “I gotta stop tweeting drunk!”
l – Molly Kearney: “30 year old background extra.”
S – Martin Herlihy: “What?”
l – Martin Herlihy: “Was that a joke?”
S – Molly Kearney: screaming fake news in her phone
s – John Higgins: new wardrobe reveal
s – Martin Herlihy: new wardrobe reveal
s – Ben Marshall: new wardrobe reveal
S – John Higgins: “Get real, you look like a little league umpire.”
S – Molly Kearney: “You’re right!”
S – Molly Kearney: “ I look like a Lego guy.”
s – John Higgins: “Exactly.”
s – Ben Marshall: “Exactly.”
s – Martin Herlihy: “Exactly.”
s – martin Herlihy: “And we got you a new camera-ready Christian family.”
s – Sarah Sherman: hot blonde reveal
l – Molly Kearney: “Well hello Mrs. Kearney!”
L – Ben Marshall: “Don’t you fuck this up for me!”
l – Molly Kearney: “Jail?”
s – Martin Herlihy: “Think.”
s – John Higgins: “Think.”
s – Ben Marshall: “Think.”
S – Ben Marshall: “Lucas, out. Now!”
S – John Higgins: “Security!”
