For the fourth time as host of “Saturday Night Live” (the last time was in 2015), Michael Keaton demonstrated a fundamental presence in several sketches. That's not surprising given that he was once one of the most popular comedy film actors in the world; You could argue that he and “SNL” alum Eddie Murphy dominated the comedy films of the 1980s.
But that comedic durability (Keaton doesn't break character and still has good timing and line delivery) felt like it took a backseat in an episode that didn't seem to make the most of Keaton's talents. After a monologue in which some cast members were dressed as one of their iconic characters, Beetlejuice, Keaton played a cookie maker with a zombie-eye cookie that looks like a breast, a father. whose son recklessly performs the song “Hey, Soul Sister” about his interracial marriage proposal and a canceled Lyft driver tied to a live Uber-car game show.
Not that the sketches weren't fun. It's that most of the pieces, plus an end of the show restaurant sketch about lost loveit didn't really allow Keaton to create new memorable characters. In fact, they seemed to use their dramatic acting equipment more, like when he played a sad skydiving instructor in the first new Please Don't Destroy video sketch of the season.
The exception to the drama/sidekick problem was a sketch in which Keaton played the stunt coordinator for a “Halloween” movie in which he plays Michael Myers. move like a modern dancer instead of a serial killer. But the sketch was too long a joke, despite Keaton's performance.
Musical guest Billie Eilish performed “Birds of a feather” and “wild flower”with her band, including her also famous brother, Finneas.
For the fourth week in a row, guest stars Maya Rudolph and Dana Carvey returned to reprise their roles, multiple times, as Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden. But this time, Alec Baldwin, who used to portray former President Trump on “SNL,” was here to play Fox News’ Bret Baier in a takedown of his interview with Harris this week. Baldwin as Baier interrupted Harris frequently, suggesting that he will only let her finish when he goes to bed. Kamala took breaks in the interview to look at her phone camera and make quick announcements on TikTok (“See how I don't let men interrupt my answers? Very demure, very attentive”). Harris responded to claims that she can't handle immigration cartels by saying, “If I was on 'Breaking Bad,' I would have been done in three episodes,” and complained that clips of Trump (James Austin Johnson) and Biden were playing . context. And a lot of hay was made Trump to play music for 40 minutes at town hall — Harris notes that it seemed to be full of gay anthems like “YMCA” and “It's Raining Men.” “Don't you hear the lyrics?” she asked.
Keaton celebrated the 50th season of “SNL” by mentioning that when the show started, he was a production assistant on “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.” What did they have in common? “A lot of puppets, tons of cocaine,” he joked. When he mentioned the phenomenon of grown men wearing Beetlejuice costumes for Halloween, he was joined by Mike Day and Andy Samberg (“The writers couldn't get Doug Emhoff into the opening”), each in full 'Juice and hammering it' costumes. . with your impression. Sarah Sherman, who normally dresses in bright colors, wore a black and white striped suit for the monologue, but said it was not a costume. After much prodding, Keaton finally performed the voice of Beetlejuice, but only to say, “We have a great show!”
Best sketch of the night: this Shop TV cookie is simply the brisket
The Shop TV sketches are really funny because the premise is solid: A craftsman sells a product alongside hosts Rhett and Lindy, played by Day and Heidi Gardner, but the product is always shaped like genitals or otherwise not suitable for television. manner. . Last time, Adam Driver had a naughty chocolate from Santa Claus; this time it's Keaton as the baker who made a Halloween zombie eyeball cookie that looks exactly like a woman's breast, with a red velvet nipple center. As Day and Gardner fight to keep the show going, viewers who call in ask questions like, “Is the cookie available in different ethnicities?”
Also good: the TikTok algorithm, but like an 'SNL' sketch
“SNL” has done this before too, in 2021but it works just as well again: a random assortment of TikTok moments on someone's smartphone. There are many jokes in a short time, some of them very topical. Harris, Rudolph and Eilish appear as people subjected to the bad singing of Bowen Yang as the influencer Harry Daniels. Carvey returns as Biden on a balance board, while Ego Nwodim plays a woman with many, many complaints about her local Chili's restaurant. Bethenny Frankel, a trafficking wifea man slow dancing with her catand “Call Her Daddy” podcast host Alex Cooper appear in the mock TikTok clips. Unfortunately, the person watching the videos misses the birth of their child, as we find out via text message.
'Weekend Update' Winner: Emil Wakim Says Christian Arabs Are Practically French
Sarah Sherman spoke again about what is missing in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Showincluding navel rings and infected diapers, but Emil Wakim won the week by discussing what it's like to be Arab and Christian. Wakim, one of the season’s breakout new cast members, had the opportunity to introduce himself to the “SNL” audience by talking about how his Iranian immigrant father was so successful that he is now a Republican. Wakim scored with jokes about how he lowers the tension in any room when he tells people he's an Arab Christian (even in Studio 8H). Wakim said his father always told him that his family is more European than Middle Eastern in their beliefs, and that they are practically French. (The French, Wakim suggested, would disagree.) Wakim added that Christian Arabs are simply “hairy, sweaty, passionate guys… a Greek you're a little afraid of.”
