When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one Decider contributor who recaps Saturday Night Live to realize that the 90-minute sketch comedy show is too long and no longer needs to be, he’ll argue his case to make SNL an hourlong showcase instead. But it’s still 90 minutes for now, so let’s get to the recap.
What’s The Deal With The SNL Cold Open for 2/27/21?
Please no CPAC sketch, please no CPAC sketch, no whammies, big bucks…thank god, no CPAC cold open. I did not press our luck.
Instead…we open with a premise that’s topical and starts with a lot of promise, as Dr. Anthony Fauci (Kate McKinnon) reveals he’s now hosting a new game show, “So You Think You Can Get The Vaccine,” with three of the nation’s 50 governors serving as judges: Alex Moffat as California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Pete Davidson as New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and Cecily Strong as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Their services, however, appear to be moot, as each contestant turns out to be trying to game the system. None of them are any good at it though, and unfortunately, the execution of these conceits also is somewhat lacking. Good? Heidi Gardner as Michigan woman claiming her job as IT for OnlyFans.com counts as essential work. Bad? Her character telling Whitmer: “I voted for you…to get kidnapped.” Ugly? Aidy Bryant’s back as U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz to do “stand-up comedy.” The ugly truth? Mikey Day as an 85-year-old who can get the vaccine, but cannot figure out how to get an appointment online. We also saw Bowen Yang and Melissa Villaseñor as contestants, too, but more noticeable were all of the product placements. CVS received multiple shout-outs, with dishonorable mentions to Hallmark Cards’ “Maxine” line, Costco’s Kirkland Signature line, and a “lovely Pfizer visor” as a consolation prize.
How Did The SNL Guest Host Nick Jonas Do?
This marked Nick Jonas’s fourth time performing as a musical guest on SNL, twice with his fellow Jonas Brothers, and second time solo. But it’s the first time he got to stretch his comedy legs as the host!
Eldest brother Kevin Jonas appeared in the audience to show his support, and also ask Nick: “Are we good?” All this solo stuff has him worried about the future for the brothers. No need to worry.
Also no need to worry about Nick’s ability to act in all sorts of sketches, although it sure seemed as though Nick sang a lot, and it seemed that way because he sang in the monologue, and also in two other short videos before his first official musical performance. Lots and lots of breaking into song tonight. Some of it was quite fun, including an ode to Netflix (which you’ll like see shared a bit), while Jonas also appeared in two other quite crude premises. The first parodied the classic “Cinderella” fairy tale, only this time, Prince Charming (Jonas) had sex with a mouse (Aidy Bryant). Not even Drizella’s farts can make us forget this. In the other sketch, a short film about a “Bachelor Party” gets sidetracked because all the fellas just want to sing about bonding over boners. I wish I were making that up.
Nick also appeared as himself in the return of The Dionne Warwick Talk Show.
The best sketch didn’t need any music or lyrics, however. It featured Mikey Day and Chris Redd as two guys trying out one of those workout mirrors for the first time. They’re excited by the first trainer, Nathan (Jones), and even the second (Heidi Gardner), but the third? Well, that’s just poor Shannon Delgado (McKinnon), who got trapped in the mirror somehow. “Please, help me undo the curse,” she pleads with them. “I was rude to a fortune teller, and now I am here.” Pete Davidson camps it up as a demon controlling everything behind the scenes, and there’s a fun button on the sketch to even give it a proper ending.
How Relevant Was The Musical Guest Nick Jonas?
Nick Jonas is returning to the new season of The Voice, which starts Monday, as a judge, so….yay, NBCUniversal convergence! Jonas also just announced a new forthcoming album, and he debuted two of his brand-new songs on the show. The first begs the question, does a “Starboy” grow up to be a “Spaceman,” or what’s the deal there?
His second song, “This Is Heaven,” feels like a love letter to his wife, Priyanka Chopra, right? I don’t know, I wasn’t paying too close attention to the lyrics. It all felt mushy.
Which Sketch Will We Be Sharing: “Murder Show”
Unless something crazy happens during a live sketch, or unless it’s an election and people are getting worked up about political points, then it’s really the short films that earn the most traction. They simply have better production values and reward repeat viewing. This week, we’re treated to the idea of women enjoying some alone time to Netflix and chill with their favorite “Murder Show.” Featuring Chloe Fineman, Villaseñor, Nwodim and McKinnon, plus Jonas to sing a counterpoint about Cult Shows.
Who Stopped By Weekend Update?
Stopping by the Update desk for the sixth time, it’s basketball father LaVar Ball (Kenan Thompson), back to brag about his boy LaMelo’s rookie season with the Charlotte Hornets. Nice shout-out to the Mecklenburg County Fair. Nicer debut of the latest Big Baller shoe, the CaraMelo? Nicest touch: Making Michael Che break into laughs with his gibberish. Burning question, tho: Did SNL actually broker a deal with Amazon to get the voice of Alexa for this???
Is it a good thing that new Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is getting so much screen time on SNL, even if she is mocked by Cecily Strong in a “trust the sience?” T-shirt, and teaching us not only the lyrics to “milk milk lemonade” but also the version for the boys, too?
What Sketch Filled The “10-to-1” Slot?
At 12:54 a.m. Eastern, we find ourselves at a piano bar with McKinnon, and for a second, I thought this is a weird way to bring back her recurring “last call” bit, but this is not that. At all. Rather, it’s a delightfully corny old-time classic comedy writing piece involving McKinnon and Jonas as two singles clumsily shaking off the rust of a year in quarantine, desperately wanting to flirt and dance and sing again, even if their misremembered lyrics of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” might make more sense than you think.
How old-timey corny are we talking? Here’s a sampling of the repartee:
“Hey, piano guy!” “My name is Guy Piano.”
Who Was The Episode’s MVP?
When you’re running on fumes after writing, producing and performing five straight weeks of shows, you turn to the show’s most dependably valuable player to come through for you in the clutch. That’s Kate McKinnon for you. She shouldered the load of both the cold open and the final sketch, and had starring roles in both the live sketch and short film that’ll get talked about the most this week.
Now SNL gets a full month off.
The next new episode? March 27, with SNL alum Maya Rudolph hosting and Jack Harlow as the musical guest. See you then!
Sean L. McCarthy works the comedy beat for his own digital newspaper, The Comic’s Comic; before that, for actual newspapers. Based in NYC but will travel anywhere for the scoop: Ice cream or news. He also tweets @thecomicscomic and podcasts half-hour episodes with comedians revealing origin stories: The Comic’s Comic Presents Last Things First.
