SNL Scorecard: Woody Harrelson / Billie Eilish
Yes it's true; Saturday Night Live is back for a whopping 45th season! Let's first acknowledge how astounding that feat is. Regardless of how often your uncle, hipster sibling or random Facebook acquaintance bemoans that "SNL hasn't been funny in years," that the show has lasted the tenure of two Law and Order: SVUs and is still top billing among entertainment shows.
Turning our attention to the episode itself: Woody Harrelson was a bit of a strange choice for the season premiere. The actor certainly is a funny guy, capable of being a comedic actor; this was demonstrated in his 2014 hosting gig, which ended up being one of the funniest of that season. But he's not a stand-up comedian, and he's also not exactly the biggest name in Hollywood, nor is he even actively plugging anything right now (besides his rejuvenated fashion sense...more on that in a minute).
Perhaps fittingly, the premiere was every bit as scattered and eccentric as its host was. It wasn't really bad-- in fact, it was pretty good on the whole. Just bizarre. Really bizarre. Besides, I think I have a tendency to expect great things from SNL season premieres and finales, when that's not particularly fair, because most years they're really no more spectacular than everyday episodes. Case in point: last year, Adam Driver's episode had two of the best skits of the year, but otherwise was sloppy and unimpressive. So, all things considered, I'd say Woody Harrelson got season # 45 off to a good start.
Here's the sketch-by-sketch breakdown of the 1st episode of the season:
Sketch of the Night
“Apple Picking Ad”: 8/10
Epitomizing the strangeness of this episode, the first Scorecard of the year has a 10-to-1 sketch win the day! For the last sketch of the night, this had everything you could want: weird characters, hilarious one-liners, live animals, Aidy Bryant breaking for the 2nd time in the night, and Kate McKinnon breaking for seemingly the first time in her career.
The Good
“Dad": 8/10
It's been delightful watching Kyle Mooney's progression at SNL. For the first few years on the show, it seemed like his skits were always going to be on the outside looking in. Gradually (perhaps with the help of noteworthy internet support), his weird brand of humor started finding more and more inroads into live episodes, and now we're here, where a sketch that is Mooney to the core, avoids the cut and gets good air time. This was, yet again, a terrific parody of 90s teen melodrama, as well as the era in which white guys tried to get into rap. Chris Redd's inexplicably religious character made me laugh hard, too.
“DNC Town Hall": 7.5/10
The 2nd political sketch of the episode was the clear best, and it was thanks in no small part to the perfect impressions. Harrelson as Joe Biden made too much sense (although can we talk about how he looks like a cross between a Kennedy and Billy Graham?), almost as perfect a casting as Maya Rudolph, who predictably stole the show as Kamala Harris. It's been well-documented that Elizabeth Warren is my favorite of McKinnon's political impressions, and although I don't feel the same need as most do to have Larry David's Bernie back, it was fun nonetheless. But let's shout out the less-used figures: newcomers Bowen Yang and Chloe Fineman debuted perfect Andrew Yang and Marianne Williamson impressions, and Colin Jost as Pete Buttigeig was hilarious.
"Weekend Update": 7/10
I just realized that Che and Jost have entered their 6th season as the Weekend Update team. That's hard to believe, but their chemistry and familiarity is noticeable, and when their energy levels are high, it makes for a good Update. The energy was good in the premiere, and as such, it was a solid Update, though, considering there were 3 months of stories that they didn't get to discuss on the air, weirdly short. Also, I will never get tired of Kenan Thompson's David Ortiz.
“Monologue": 6.5/10
Because Harrelson doesn't really have anything to plug, he spent his monologue talking-- tongue-in-cheek --about how he's now a fashion icon, but the monologue took another turn when it began to subtly critique the "callout" PC culture prevalent in society. It was a funny monologue, and a good idea for a brief set, but it lost some of its edge due to Harrelson's rambling conversational style. I can't help but wonder if this might have been better served by a different host.
“Locker Room": 6/10
Heidi Gardner, Weird Queen, is back. Seriously, there's nobody like her on this cast; she's the closest thing the women have to a Kyle Mooney. She carried this zany sketch, and saved it from becoming forgettable.
“Downton Abbey Trailer": 6/10
A thoroughly enjoyable joke about how Brits will make a dramatic show or movie about anything. It lost steam with its weird Joker punchline, though, which felt unnecessary.
“Impeachment Cold Open”: 5.5/10
I wasn't exactly holding my breath for it, but I was hoping that this was the year we'd finally see the end of Alec Baldwin's Trump. Alas, his was the first mug we saw of the season. This appearance wasn't all too bad, though; the writing still wasn't as sharp as one would hope, but if nothing else, it was a fun way to re-introduce the cast to this year.
The...Less-Good
“Inside The Beltway”: 5/10
This is such a conundrum to rate. "Inside The Beltway" was the 3rd impeachment sketch of the night, and thus felt unnecessary, and other than Kenan's repeated joke, was pretty pedestrian. Then the wheels just completely fell off, resulting in one of the worst live flubs I've ever seen (seriously, just watch....you won't miss it), and the hardest I have ever seen Aidy Bryant break. So, it wasn't a very good skit, but it made me laugh harder than anything else all night. I'm going to give this a mediocre score since its humor didn't originate from the actual writing and acting, but who knows? Maybe this will enter the annals of SNL history like many Fallon-Sanz sketches did, which are remembered for being a glorious mess.
"Roadside Museum”: 4/10
This was not without its laughs, but it was the only sketch of the night that failed to generate any consistency. The idea was-- surprise! --delightfully weird, but the end result was more discomfort than hilarity.
Musical Performances
Billie Eilish: 7.5/10
I was several months late to the Billie Eilish sensation, but having recently listened to the 17-year old's album for the first time a few weeks ago, I was excited for this performance. I came in curious on how her unique sound would translate to the notorious SNL sound stage, and the answer is....depends on the song! Her first performance, of her smash hit "Bad Guy," was aurally a little rough, but she'd be forgiven for a. trying to sing while on two broken ankles, b. trying to sing while literally dancing on the walls and ceiling, and c. trying to sing on live television while being 17 years old. Seriously, I'm still confused by how she was dancing on every single wall; the performance was visually entertaining if nothing else. Regardless of how much or how little you enjoyed "Bad Guy," you'd surely agree that Eilish's 2nd performance, the slow, emotional "I love you," was phenomenal. Did I mention SHE'S 17?!?!
OVERALL SCORE: 6.45 (Comedy Only score: 6.35)