least funny current SNL castmember

FYI: featured players not listed so abby elliott doesn't clean sweep this

fwiw abby elliott isn't worse than the dude with the curly hair who always plays a child

you've already made it clear that your opinions on SNL are dogshit stupid, step down.

you would find that guy funny

i voted for armisen

why do u guys watch this show signed curious

it's kenan thompson, and it's not even close, come on

xpost
i still think it's 75% funny. I like all these guys

occasionally i try to watch it and can never take it for like more than 10 minutes - ive seen some skits i like but as a whole it just seems so terrible and awful - anyway i voted samburg since i hate that guy

I like Kenan. I actually like all these people, but if pressed I'd go with Seth Meyers.

Voted for Hammond because it's always kind of sad to see this dude in his 50s appear in one sketch a week to show off his latest so-so impersonation (or worse, Bill Clinton for the millionth time).

darrell hammond vs. seth myers
xxp

Think about it like this.. Hammond still collects a check for doing 10 minutes of work a week, usually doing impressions he can do in his sleep.

does that make him funny?

yeah that seems really sad

I wonder if they just keep him around so they have someone to play old people?

It's stable work.

Of course, now that Armisen and Sudekis are occupying the main political characters, Hammond's days might be numbered.

sudekis' joe biden is lol imo

Hammond is on the show so infrequently that when he came out to do clinton last week I expected applause like when akroyd comes back

You know what's sadder, though, is when Dana Carvey shows up on talk shows 15 years after SNL and can't help busting out with the Church Lady and Hans and Franz.

seth meyers = big david spade douche vibe, voted for him even though the wknd update stuff is good

word...Carvey's recent HBO special was pretty depressing

http://www.zvents.com/images/internal/6/0/4/3/img_83406_primary.jpghttp://www.nationwidespeakers.com/images/biopics/DarrellHammond_868.jpghttp://1.bp.blogspot.com/_AvIB4ZqSUvg/RgXne3JOBNI/AAAAAAAAAio/wq-_79bdJOE/s200/darrell+hammond.jpg
http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/08zZa0gaGT7PZ/610x.jpg

sudekis' joe biden is lol imo

hell fucking yes

i don't really care that much if SNL has a black guy do an Obama impression and/or someone who does a funny Obama impression but i really want Armisen's run on the show to end just so I don't have to see his shitty impression anymore

will forte
bill hader
seth meyers
jason sudeikis

^ i think all these dudes are funny but they're just too similar.

forte and hader are basically interchangeable

i've always classed Armisen and Forte together, partly because they started at the same time and partly because they both have a certain kind of default 'weird guy' wheelhouse of character types. Hader is kind of in that area too but i think his impressions are way more killer than anything those guys do and even his generic weird guy characters tend to be kind of on a different vibe.

Yeah, I've developed an intense love for Bill Hader recently. He's in a zone.

Darrell Hammond, no contest.

Voted for Hammond because it's always kind of sad to see this dude in his 50s appear in one sketch a week to show off his latest so-so impersonation (or worse, Bill Clinton for the millionth time).

― Bianca Jagger (jaymc), Monday, April 13, 2009 1:12 PM (21 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^otm

i'm not going to argue with j0rdan anymore because it's become clear he's watching a bizarro world version of snl that they don't broadcast in my area

It must be depressing having to hear Hammond make his pitches at the writers meeting:

"So how about instead of an FBI agent to negotiate the captain's release from the pirates, they send in DONALD TRUMP! You know, everyone gets shot in the end and he goes 'You're fired!'"

hahahaha

WOULD WATCH THAT SKETCH

lolololololol PP

wiig is n/l compared to all others

would marry nqa

Hader's bringin it right now.

wiig is n/l compared to all others

― rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Monday, April 13, 2009 2:09 PM (34 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

would marry nqa

― rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Monday, April 13, 2009 2:09 PM (17 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

what

he'd marry luriqua

i think he already did, posting like that!!

forte and hader are basically interchangeable

Seriously dude, I'm starting to wonder if I can take you seriously on anything again.

i think hader is funnier but they've got similar styles

next level
no questions asked

xp hader is the funniest guy on the show. forte is forgettable. they do look kinda similar though...

voted kenan but to be fair armisen and hammond are not that far behind.

I don't get Wiig's characters, like I don't even get what's supposed to be theoretically funny about the Target sketch. Is there anyone in America laughing at that? Will that person explain where the humor in the situation is supposed to come from?

I voted Kenan though, because I think I remember finding Wiig funny in something or another and she's good at selling herself in a stupid character, whereas Kenan just isn't really a very funny person or serious actor. His career as a comedic actor seems sorta like a fluke. (Even Kenan and Kel was ALL about Kel imo - Kenan was the straight man.) I'm sure he's a nice dude and I don't really have anything personal against him...he's just never made me laugh.

it seems like they killed the target cashier character off

Kenan is much better in a straight man role than he is as the wildcard character.

target lady easily her worst character, i love wiig to pieces but i won't rep for that shit

i thought the skit from a few weeks back where kenan and tracy were doing the scared straight duo was pretty funny

I love Kenan when he plays detached or annoyed. When he's anchoring a sketch, though, like Deep House Dish, he's weaksauce.

I kind of love the Target Lady sketches. Maybe it's because I live in the south, but checkout ladies are always commenting on your purchases and making small talk (though they don't run off and grab sale items while you're checking out). It's just an exaggerated version of reality. Also, the voice of that character is lulz.

yeah, i have no problem w/ Target lady and I agree that firsthand experience is a factor

it's kenan thompson, and it's not even close, come on

― europeen handball (k3vin k.), Monday, April 13, 2009 6:08 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

for reals. seth meyers would be my #2 choice.

I kind of love the Target Lady sketches. Maybe it's because I live in the south, but checkout ladies are always commenting on your purchases and making small talk (though they don't run off and grab sale items while you're checking out). It's just an exaggerated version of reality. Also, the voice of that character is lulz.

haha thank you, this is exactly what I was looking for! I live in California and when I think Target worker I think Hispanic woman.

i think hader is funnier but they've got similar styles

― the sultan of ban (J0rdan S.), Monday, April 13, 2009 2:16 PM (16 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

to me hader is more about impressions and being kind of creepy/sleazy, while forte is about being a goofball - "his" sketches are more non sequiter-y, less based on real people or current events. plus he's been doing a lot of songs lately.

seth meyers would be my #2 choice.

I voted for him, he is v. undynamic + I think his role as head writer ought to count for something. Most of these people would be very funny given good material to work with.

I'm real into Bill Hader lately...he's maybe the best Funny Voice Guy they've had in 20 years.

The skit with Seth Rogan where they talk in their girlfriend voices, Bill Hader fucking slayed me. "I protect you from the DRAGON."

that was a really good skit

I usually groan over SNL's celebrity impersonation sketches, but I LOVE his Vincent Price specials.

Also, his fake celebrity Vinny Vedcci is gold. xxp

I hate hate hate Kristen Wiig. She's one of improvers who seem to equate annoying and repetitious "characters" with funny. God, she sucks.

that was a really good skit

Yes. Kudos to the writers for turning what I thought I was going to be a one-note "lol men are whipped" sketch into something a lot sillier and more rewarding than that.

I'd be happy to never see Wiig's Penelope or Gilly characters again as long as I live, but other than that she's okay in my book.

Gilly is just awful.

I should seen this new Gilly sketch because the first one seriously had me in tears.

I missed Gilly the first time...was it this season?

yeah they were in a classroom iirc and it really reminded me of all that

Hader really is the best. That bit with him as the Italian TV host impersonating/interviewing Malkovich was mind-blowing.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/53463/saturday-night-live-gilly

That one was slightly funnier, but the real thing I took away from that is how hot Rosario Dawson is with braces.

haha there is that

I recognize that the sketch is really oddly-paced and awkward, but I still crack the fuck up at it, esp. Rosario Dawson with the pencil sticking out of her head.

also Forte going "GILYYYYYYYYYY" over and over again in different registers for no reason... it's like the years when Will Ferrell and Molly Shannon spent most of their skit time trying to see how uncomfortable they could make the audience rather than making the audience laugh

I think I like the concept of Gilly more than the actual article. Like, I appreciate Kristen Wiig going for such a weirdo, minimalist character...but in the process, I get creeped out and turned off by it.

Wiig is willing to go way out on a limb, almost to an Andy Kaufman-ish extent, like, is this funny or just totally stupid? I actually enjoy Penelope's psychotic one-upping ("My six year old teaches piano... and horns... and computers...) The first Gilly sketch was okay for a couple minutes of total WTF-ness, but as a recurring sketch? "Sorry!"

yeah penelope is also hilarious - the one in AA meeting was great

Armisend leaves me blank. His Obama is the worst SNL president I've ever seen. Hammond's jumped the shark ages ago, but he's comic genius compared to most of Armisend's impressions.

I don't know guys, I was really down on Armisen's Obama at the beginning, but the more I see the more I like. He really has the speech patterns and delivery down.

he does but it's pretty easy to speak real choppily and emphasize the last word in a sentence

that said i think it's passable

I have seriously soured on Wiig, but it's not really hear fault -- every week now seems to start with like four sketches in a row that consist of her making faces and pulling her chin into her neck, which is just kinda ... impossible to save.

If Kenan wins this I will be mad at all of you for like a week.

"really not HER fault" -- like yeah, it's funny when she acts goony, but you cannot just have 30 straight minutes of television that consist of nothing but Wiig doing mild variations on the same gooniness

Armisen's Obama is really okay, but that's it. Those sketches are often unfunny, and that has as much to do with the writing as it does Armisen's flatter than flat delivery. The only one in recent days that was funny "The Hulk Obama," and that was mostly due to Samberg's take on Rahm.

well, also because The Rock was funny in that sketch

That too.

Oh, and I guess it was "The Rock Obama," wasn't it? der.

will forte is my favorite. fred armisen is good at like everything except for the one thing he's known for. voted for seth meyers b/c of the abovementioned douche vibe, might have gone with kenan in a cold unsentimental evaluation

hader is great though. that new curlyhaired fat guy won me over 90% due to the fact that i think his face looks really funny when he cries in those italian talk show host sketches

Take away the Hulk-ish "me want" syntax, and The Rock did a better Obama impression that Armisen in that sketch.

Bobby Moynihan won me over in that wedding reception sketch (in the Hugh Laurie episode) where he just said "WHAT" and dropped the microphone on the floor.

Will Forte needs to bring back "The Falconer."

^^^^ yes

Man, I can't believe I have this much to say about SNL (lol I'm old and don't go out on Saturday nights anymore).

xpost: although I love MacGruber

im 20 and watch snl basically every weekend even tho i think it's awful right now cuz sketch comedy is the greatest

Most any sketch in the history of SNL which features taxidermy/fake animals is serious LOLZ.

i would be happy if forte did a tim calhoun bit every week

^ hyperbole

I love MacGruber too, but I think we're in the minority xxxxp.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/1752/saturday-night-live-macgruber-2

haha macgruber works because it lasts 20 seconds. a lot of snl sketches would work if they were 20 seconds.

The only time in history when Jeremy Piven was ever funny? xp

Bobby Moynihan won me over in that wedding reception sketch (in the Hugh Laurie episode) where he just said "WHAT" and dropped the microphone on the floor.

Ha, me too -- this is the most OTM of various OTM Jaymcisms on this thread

I mean I actually kept rewinding and rewatching that bit and laughing over and over each time

Jason Sudekis was really funny as both Bret Michaels and the astronaut in the love triangle. The astronaut character really cracked me up.

I don't know, the sad thing is, I actually like all of these people and can't really vote on one over the others. The featured players are weak, but that's expected, they're green as hell. But I genuinely feel this current cast is one of the better ones, but the writing is just as weak and inconsistent as it usually is.

haha macgruber works because it lasts 20 seconds. a lot of snl sketches would work if they were 20 seconds.

So true!

^ you can't really vote for darrell hammond? darrell hammond's name is listed right there. he still does work on the show, although sparingly. remember darrell hammond? youtube him or check the website i'm not lying he's still on the show

Hammond's gimmick now is so old hat, it's cheap pop - he comes out, does the Bill Clinton or whatever, and disappears. It works enough for them to keep bringing him back over and over again, I can't fault him for that - gotta admit I still like him. Part of it probably is that I don't see him that much.

Plus his bizarre appearances in serious roles like in Law and Order and Damages (this) make me appreciate him a little more, I guess...

I hate hate hate Kristen Wiig. She's one of improvers who seem to equate annoying and repetitious "characters" with funny. God, she sucks.

Kristen Wiig reminds me of naturally unfunny, though mechanically sound, improv performers who have enough classes and experience under the belt to not embarrass themselves, but they're still not easily humorous.

And then there are some performers who can wring hilarity out of the dullest of moments simply because they know the right expression, rhythm, tone and delivery to bring; and they do it without much thought and hesitation. Wiig is the antithesis of that.

Best: Kristen Wiig, Kenan Thompson
Worst: Darrell Hammond

Best of newbies: Bobby Moynihan
Worst of newbies: Michaela Watkins

I don't understand how people can waste their breath complaining about "Gilly" when we have "Bitch Please" to contend with.

"Bitch please" >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Gilly any day of the week.

The problem I have with the cast now, speaking generally, is that they're all so average - they aren't would-be stars. The possible exception to this is Bill Hader but everybody else is run of the mill.

Wiig is the aforementioned Average Improv Performer, Sandberg has Jimmy Fallon's problem of laughing at your own joke cuteness; Armisen, Meyers and Forte are a log-jam of the same type of comic, Sudekis is just there.

I don't think all of them are awful, they just don't seem - and here's the cutesy irony - polished and "ready for prime time." They all seem like young, future SNL performers who have yet arrive and need more work.

ok i just checked that 'bitch please' stuff on hulu, and it's like, there was a woman, once, named gilda radner...

Exactly. Like a watered-down, one-note Lisa Loopner.

Wiig, no contest. Wow, you made a monster face. For ten minutes, or what feels like it.

Wiig is fun so long as whoever the new girl is who does HODA KOTBE is in the skit with her...kind of like she's the Jimmy Fallon to (whoever plays Hoda in the Today Show skits)'s Horatio Sanz.

PS don't read this post if u hate Horatio Sanz

it's not SNL, but Will Forte is great just for this:

If Kenan wins this I will be mad at all of you for like a week.

― nabisco, Monday, April 13, 2009 4:39 PM (Yesterday)

please name one thing he is good at, not including his work with nickelodeon

also i agree completely with dan on gilly. her dance is pretty obvious and dumb but it kills me

please name one thing he is good at, not including his work with nickelodeon

― europeen handball (k3vin k.), Tuesday, April 14, 2009 11:12 PM (28 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Kenan is like the Kevin Nealon of this cast, always there to matter-of-factly point out an incredulous situation.

Also, Jean K. Jean. zut alors!

Sudekis is like the post-Maxim magazine version of Bill Murray

Wiig, no contest. Wow, you made a monster face. For ten minutes, or what feels like it.

― Matos W.K., Tuesday, April 14, 2009 10:41 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

WTF - watching her do 17 different rapidfire faces for Kathie Lee is like a comedy force of nature.

for me this really comes down to Hammond's stiff impressions that pride accuracy over hilarity, or the fact that Seth Meyers is kind of a one trick pony with the bait-and-switch

"Or as I like to call it, the bait-and-switch."

WTF - watching her do 17 different rapidfire faces for Kathie Lee is like a comedy force of nature.

It's like a way overwrought attempt at being a comedy force of nature.

I used to loathe Samberg, but he won me over with the Digital Shorts. I also like Kenan & Kristin & I don't know the rest, so I won't vote.

2/3 of digital shorts = terrible, 1/3 of digital shorts = awesomely lolz

I'm happy to live with that ratio over 80% mildly amusing.

lmao @ lazy horse mattress

how you could vote for seth meyers, he's never in a sketch

neither is darrell hammond, grow some balls whiney

after taking hammond and meyers out of the equation, it's will forte all the way.

hader
wiig
sudekis
samberg
thompson
armison
forte
hammond/meyers who arent in sketches

love forte for tim calhoun and tim calhoun alone

It believe it is actually impossible now - for societal reasons - for a Saturday Night Live performer to be funny in the way that we want them to be funny.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

im SBing everyone itt if kenan does not win this

i will never understand ilx's kenan hate.

If Kenan Thompson doesn't have dirt on Loren Michaels I would be surprised.

Srsly, pull random person off the street and have him shout this guy's lines in the same manner, it will be funnier.

Whiney OTM, Kenan is pretty funny. Far from the best on the cast, but also far from the worst. Jean K. Jean is great, the Scared Straight skits usually make me lol, and for some reason that I still can't explain - the "FIX IT!" guy really cracked me up.

the "FIX IT!" guy really cracked me up

OTM

Thinking about those Scared Straight skits and the "FIX IT" guy, Kenan really seems to crack up the other cast members when he gets a little carried away. I remember one skit where Samberg and Hader got the uncontrollable giggles, kinda adds to Kenan's charms for me.

dude the "fix it" bit is one of the hardest things to watch about that show. absolutely nothing funny about it imo

I don't know, it just struck me as one of those skits where a totally silly idea actually worked out.

I'm trying to think of fat people on SNL who are unfunny and the only one I can think of is Jim Belushi.

guess it depends whether you consider Jeff Richards fat

I thought Horatio Sanz was pretty universally hated around here.

i will never understand ilx's kenan hate.

i thought it was the other way around, people seemed to have nothing but love for him on the other snl thread. glad to see some sense here.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

seems fair

yeah, i can't really argue w/ these results. i kinda feel bad for Hammond, though, his best kills, but there's something cruel about him just hanging around the show forever like this.

hammond is kind of a cop out pick imo, dude is obv over the hill + he's never on the show anymore

i'm considering kenan the real winner \o_O/

Hammond's still a full-fledged cast member. Tell Casey Wilson or the new fat guy that it's a cop out to pick him. Dude still takes up space, dude still infects each show with some crappy nasal impression or a bug-eyed take on a black guy, and dude still stands up there on center stage at 12:59 every Saturday night, bowing to the audience as if he did anything worth a shit that week.

Hating on Kenan Thompson is like, I don't know, hating on a loaf of bread for having too much crust or something.

Hating on Kenan Thompson is like, I don't know, hating on a loaf of bread for having too much crust or something.

what does this mean??? i calls em as i sees em, and he is not funny

Pretty on point results for the most part, though I think Kenan should've been at the top. Outside of his pretty questionable Obama impression, Armisen isn't bad. Hammond isn't exactly hilarious but the dude's pretty harmless. I don't dislike him. He seems kind of like an all-purpose prop on the show at this point. He never really stars in sketches does he? Just sort of fills in the spaces. Anyway, he's not really aggressively bad like Kenan is pretty much 100% of the time.

http://www.motionscript.com/mastering-expressions/img/cosine-wave.gif

there's a meme for that

http://www.soulstrut.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cos3ve.gif

Season 34 by the numbers

It says Seth was in 26 sketches and i can't think of one.

I bet they count Weekend Update as a sketch.

Kenan Thompson 16/Will Forte 1 is fuuuuucked up, ILX.

hey look i've got a moustache and/or i'm siiiiingiiing

hay look i play the "staight man" or i'm black

pretty sure he's black when he's the "straight man" too

The Jonas Bros T-Pain John McCain

I like Will Forte, but it's weird that he's the only cast member I can think of who doesn't ever drop character or show even a hint of self-awareness. He's sort of enigmatic.

or a robot

i think will forte's one of the better cast members for sure.

the opinion of ppl who endure this barren shit week after week is worthless.

if you don't endure it week after week, how do you know it's barren?

also, is this poll telling me that the 3 funniest cast members are jason sudekis, will forte, and bill hader?

the opinion of ppl who endure morbius' barren shit week after week is worthless.

more links to jawdroppingly bad skits plz.

the dr. morbius curmudgeon shtick is kind of endearing at this point.

if you don't endure it week after week, how do you know it's barren?

― 鬼の手 (Edward III), Friday, May 15, 2009 12:40 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

one of the constants of ilx is that dr. morbius will have strong opinions about things he hasn't actually experienced. my new theory is that he has never actually watched a movie in his 80 years on this earth.

this show has not gotten any better

No, this is the flattest premiere episode I can remember.

first kenan thompson character to please me

post-nickelodeon of course

I seem to recall him doing that one before.

yeah probs

re-reading this thread, can't believe that there were people in here repping for "gilly" - really hope they killed her off in between seasons

Also, Jean K. Jean. zut alors!

― Whiney G. Weingarten, Tuesday, April 14, 2009 10:45 PM (5 months ago) Bookmark

i guess i missed this episode

I kind of love Jean K. Jean.

me too

He's done that character at least five (and probably more) times. Sorry you've missed him.

did she just say "fuckin"????

...okay, Michaela Watkins and Casey Wilson were dumped for this shit?

Biker Chick Chat

Sept. 26 2009 - Sept. 26 2009 R.I.P.

pretty obv post-second musical performance sketch there

Megan Fox said on Fallon a couple nights ago that SNL has five new writers this season. Is it possible the bad ones were fired and replaced with even worse ones?

good digital short

i'm willing to bet that next week either lady gaga performance will bring more laffs than the funniest sketch

Yes, digital shorts obviously exempted from regular sketch bashing.

which one was the digital short? that horrible transformers thing?

Context.

If someone had said last Wednesday, "Hey, go to youtube and check out this transformers sketch with Megan Fox and a naked dude playing Optimus Prime", I probably would've groaned. But surrounded by all the horrible live sketches tonight, it seemed like genius.

Also, I think the "official" digital short tonight was Will Forte as the SWAT commander/lamb farmer.

It just happened to be the only sketch I paid attention to after switching on TV around 12:30.. If that was the episode's highlight, that's pretty fucking sad. A few minutes later the biker chick sketch came on and I had to change the channel.. It made me so upset, I couldn't even get 30 seconds into it.

But maybe that's just me.. yay internet. I have an opinion.

Didn't see the Will Forte thing but I'm willing to give it a shot.

Highlights: Keenan's sexual aid dvd ad, Forte digital short, Optimus Prime digital short, Keenan as Jean K. Jean on Update, U2 playing out the episode with "Ultraviolet."

Lowlights: Every remaining second that's not listed above. It was truly one of the worst SNL episodes in recent history.

Season premieres always suck on this show. But Jean K. Jean is ALWAYS a winner. MOAMMAR DEBARGE!

Oh, wow, is Darrell Hammond finally gone?

he was on the thursday weekend update thing a week back, so i somehow doubt they're totally done w/ him yet.

just now realizing that wiig is the only permanent female cast member on the show :/

That new girl did indeed say "fucking", will she be Normed?

Yeah, I just heard the "fucking"! Her face fell instantly. Really, though, whose idea was it to make her say "fricking" 800 times in her first sketch ever?

I can't believe anyone is rating that Grady Wilson bullshit that was unfunny as hell the first time Kenan did it. Sub-sub-sub Mad TV shit.

lol f-bomb on her first show.

somewhere, Charles Rocket is laughing hysterically

about ten years ago this show just became a blur of unfunny to me. i dont' even know who is on it anymore. I am officially too old for it.

I would maintain, based on what I know about how the show is structured, that Lorne Michaels has too much control over the content. My understanding is that he's still the last word on what sketches make it to air, often cutting or adding sketches between dress and air. So I would imagine that a lot of good, funny material is written but never seen by the public because it has to ultimately pass through the Lorne filter.

This is just my understanding, mind.

If that's indeed what happens, it explains a lot.

I think the show is better then most people give it credit for, and has always been wildly inconsistent and mostly not funny, and that even now there's still some good stuff, including this premiere which had a few moments. C'mon...Afghanafrance. Classic. But the Lorne thing must be the case, and would explain 20+ years of played out talk show and game show settings that are only funny once every decade or so.

I liked the pee-shy fake ad, both digital shorts, the russian brides..."any hobbies?" "heroin". etc. Jean K. Jean and Grady Wilson both make me laugh, even if they are one trick ponies.

I think the show is better then most people give it credit for

It just isn't daring anymore. During its Golden Age in the late 70s, SNL felt edgy and underground, even during some of the stupid bits. After that it was sometimes funny, but rarely edgy or dangerous. Now it's just lame.

I liked Kristen Wiig's mom talking to Megan Fox. Although I do like her wacky stuff for the most part, I think she can do straight work just as well, and I wish she'd have more opportunities to do so.

It's very true that SNL has always been and probably always will be pretty uneven. I just rewatched the Tom Hanks episode from '88, which is just about as classic as an episode gets. Even so, it still has a dumb Hans & Franz sketch and a game show bit that literally isn't about anything more than guessing which celebrities are Jewish.

I think it can't be all things to all people and definitely aims for a middle of the road late teen audience or whatever, but there's still plenty of weird stuff. I don't know about "edgy" necessarily but Tim Calhoun talking about having a "china-baby" is pretty good stuff.

Is it possible the bad ones were fired and replaced with even worse ones?

I can't speak to all five, but I booked Hannibal Buress once or twice for a variety show I hosted in Chicago, and he was pretty funny. People in the Chicago improv scene have lots of consistently great things to say about Pat O'Brien, too (though I've never seen him personally).

Pat O'Brien was funny onstage, but I have no idea about his writing.

I think the only wall-to-wall funny season of SNL ever was when Ebersol ran the show (with Martin Short, Billy Crystal, etc)

Ehhh, not really. What I've seen of that season was good but just as uneven as any other season. Besides, you can't expect consistent hilarity from someone as in love with himself as Billy Crystal (Or Jimmy Fallon. Or late-period Mike Myers), and he was pretty much the head of that cast.

Jimmy Fallon

His turn at the Late Night desk has gotten much more enjoyable than when it started, fwiw. He's still guilty of breaking into laughter during bits, but now he's in the right place for it.

I'm glad to hear that. Watching it a few months ago was like watching someone cut off their own hand. He's got some solid peeps on his writing staff (which has been enough to keep Kimmel on the air) so there's hope for the show, I guess.

i don't know, maybe it's what age you're exposed to it. I was about 11 or 12 when the Ebersol season was on and that is the prime age to be impacted by this stuff. most of the earlier stuff went over my head and the seasons later just seemed more and more steeped in pop cultural references that didn't mean very much to me. but the Ebersol season had great shit like that Harry Shearer / Martin Short synchronized swmming film, Crystal and Guest as the security guards....

i was the same age during the hartman lovitz hooks era and it's my favorite. by then most of the comedy was def. pretty suburban but the cast was older and very good, writing seemed slighly more polished than what came before or after fwiw. imo not being weighed down by countercultural expectations was healthy on the whole, by the time i was paying attention you kind of just knew to roll with the punches and not expect that kind of energy from 'snl'. the later cheerleader/versace lady/mongo seasons were the only unwatchable ones in my time watching it.

FYI: featured players not listed so abby elliott doesn't clean sweep this

― Whiney G. Weingarten, Monday, April 13, 2009 1:05 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark

she is a waste of a cast space, featured or not

fwiw abby elliott isn't worse than the dude with the curly hair who always plays a child

― the sultan of ban (J0rdan S.), Monday, April 13, 2009 1:06 PM (1 year ago) Bookmark

monoyhan has been great this season, i retract this statement

Yeah, he is much improved.

I still don't have much time for Abby Elliott. Or any of the new people besides Vanessa Bayer, really.

http://www.pajiba.com/think_pieces/people-that-argue-snl-is-no-longer-relevant-need-to-open-their-fking-eyes.php

And no: This past season wasn’t particularly good, but individually, the cast is talented. Cecily Strong and Kate McKinnon could very well be the next Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. Beck Bennett is going to be playing best friend roles in comedies for the rest of his life. Taran Killam is already getting decent filmwork (12 Years a Slave, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Jay Pharoah could easily develop into a solid action-comedy star, and Vanessa Bayer will probably end up in a string of sitcoms someday.
The rest of the new cast? Who knows? But that’s the thing about SNL. We don’t often really begin to notice cast members until their third or fourth season. It takes awhile to gain familiarity, but most of these guys will eventually land a break-out sketch that makes them recognizable, and we will slowly begin to remember their names.

abby elliot is chris elliot's daughter! I had no idea

"decent filmwork (12 Years a Slave, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)" is an amazing phrase, especially since i didn't know he really was in either of those movies and it just looked like a really weird joke

So who's least funny in the 39th season cast?

It might be John Milhiser, but I wouldn't know. He's the most invisible featured player in the history of the show I think. As for people who've actually gotten weekly screen time, it's absolutely Colin Jost.

I think everyone in the cast is pretty hysterical and, when things don't work, it's usually because of weak writing.

It might be John Milhiser, but I wouldn't know. He's the most invisible featured player in the history of the show I think.

I was about to say, hey, Milhiser had a few ok moments! He was good in that men's rights sketch!

Then I realized that was Mike O'Brien. No fucking clue what Milhiser did this season.

And yeah, Jost needs to go.

Beck Bennett and Kyle Mooney are hysterical IMO

I'm warming to Mooney, but I'm not all the way there yet.