Saturday Night Live Recap: John Mulaney Helps Get Us Through The Election

As a die-hard New Yorker who’s spent countless hours marveling at the city’s quirks and the hilarious takes on them by Saturday Night Live, I can confidently say that this week’s episode was nothing short of brilliant!

Currently, the United States finds itself in a situation similar to Schrodinger’s Cat: it appears both to have definitively rejected Trumpism and to be on the verge of validating it again, but the truth remains uncertain until the votes are counted and the ballot box is opened.

Just as it’s premature to determine if Kamala Harris’s appearance on Saturday Night Live last night was “effective” before the election, I’ll offer my thoughts. Here we go.

Harris’s appearance could hardly have gone any better for her.

The initial scene features James Austin Johnson, Trump’s resident expert, dressed in a bright orange work vest that mirrors Trump’s persona – an unusual portrayal of a garbage man from earlier this week. The absurdity of the situation was as confusing as it was visually jarring. This incident serves as a snapshot of how the candidate has been spending his closing days on the campaign trail: stumbling through raucous rallies, where not only the audience but even the microphones appear to be growing weary of him.

Next, there’s a shift – a confident candidate, boosted by recent polls, takes a break from grandiose rallies to perform live comedy on stage. This strategy, if not executed well, could have backfired, but Harris managed to avoid appearing too nervous or stiff. Instead, she was seen sitting across from her SNL look-alike, Maya Rudolph, in what seemed like a pre-Election Day pep talk. (This is a common scene on the show, as we saw in the Ariana Grande episode not long ago.) Mostly, they just laughed and beamed at each other, basking in the cheers from the excited audience. However, the real Harris cleverly took a jab at Trump for his fumble during the garbage truck stunt last week when he couldn’t open a door on the first try.

Initially in her campaign, Harris and her supporters emphasized joy excessively compared to the serious, life-or-death tone that has become prevalent as Election Day approaches. Lately, the campaign has subtly minimized expressions of joy to focus on Harris’ closing arguments. However, a recent image of Harris smiling triumphantly while criticizing her opponent offers a refreshing contrast to the intense atmosphere of late, and suggests a winner’s self-assurance.

If Harris loses next week, it’s clear this sketch will take on a completely new appearance. Viewers may ask themselves why she chose to lip sync on TV instead of returning to Pennsylvania, and they might just be correct. For the moment, though, this penultimate pre-election cold open doesn’t mimic the self-assured, insincere tone from 2016 – when Kate McKinnon and Alec Baldwin broke character and danced through Times Square to Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up” – nor the somber acceptance of 2020 – where Jim Carrey as Joe Biden read a satirical take on Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven. Instead, it appears to acknowledge recent events, both within and beyond the show, and conveys an optimism that doesn’t seem overly idealistic.

After the election, we’ll see if that specific skit was a mistake, but the general consensus about the John Mulaney-hosted episode is already clear: it was fantastic!

Here are the highlights:

John Mulaney Stand-Up Monologue

https://youtube.com/watch?v=idCBER2J31w?si=Sxb3lNrXPYyBJCuZ

Here’s John Mulaney’s residence, where he’s hosting for the sixth consecutive year, and we consistently deliver seven to 10 minutes of new stand-up comedy per episode. This particular segment begins somewhat moderately, focusing on the height disparity in Olivia Munn’s family due to their varying degrees of Asian heritage. Although it’s not particularly amusing, it raises questions about the appropriateness of linking physical traits to ethnicity in the year 2024. However, Mulaney swiftly shifts gears to the topic of managing aging parents as he ages, and here he truly excels. By the conclusion, he’s chuckling at his own jokes while referencing his grandfather, who was too old to serve in World War II, making him “too old for the oldest event that ever took place.” Mulaney’s latest Netflix special captured stand-up comedy during a transitional phase; this monologue offers our clearest glimpse yet of what he’s moving towards.

What’s That Name: Election Edition

https://youtube.com/watch?v=E1atbVu662s?si=ubCflzyWbM-e3usq

In this frequent comedy sketch, the focus is often on exposing social blunders that many people might recognize The Rizzler character but not their friends’ spouses. This particular instance, though, targets a specific kind of overbearing liberal’s arrogance. Mulaney sails through initial rounds of the game, but fails to recall Tim Kaine’s name, who makes a guest appearance – despite Kaine being a candidate in an election that Mulaney claimed was “the most crucial in American history.” Later questions continue the attack, delving into the inconsistencies among white men regarding Black Lives Matter. Overall, it seems reminiscent of SNL‘s accurate portrayal of “The Bubble” sketch if it had been aired before the 2016 election instead of serving as insightful 20/20 foresight.

Port Authority Duane Reade

https://youtube.com/watch?v=cuUdi1ZdXAA?si=WGCcCFS4yWAZExc-

Part of what puts Mulaney in the running for the most consistently great SNL host of all time is the promise that he’s always going to bring one of these with him. It’s another well-observed, imaginatively staged musical tribute to New York City’s idiosyncratic quirks, the most energetic one in years. When will Mulaney and SNL run out of New York easter eggs to harvest or recognizable show tunes? This iteration, which brings back former cast member and close Mulaney friend Pete Davidson, suggests maybe never.

Little Richard

https://youtube.com/watch?v=ObppTPdR6fo?si=YEOQyf_XdjlWg6LM

It’s surprising, given his 21 years as a cast member, that Kenan Thompson might still have iconic celebrity impressions to unveil. His impression of Little Richard, for instance, wouldn’t be so impressive without a fantastic concept behind it. This portrayal, which pays homage to the awkward celebrity guest spots on old sitcoms, reaches extraordinary levels of absurdity and doesn’t need any background knowledge about Little Richard to elicit laughter from the audience.

New York City Council Campaign

https://youtube.com/watch?v=v6QF-sRdU9g?si=O6bq9456UdDPw1F5

What an unfortunate name real-life New York assemblyman Harvey Epstein bears, but at least he seems to be taking this sketch mocking it in stride.

Cut for Time

This week, Michael Longfellow assumed the position previously held by Bill Hader on “What’s That Name” show, and it seemed to be one of the finest instances yet of his sarcastic, contemptuous performance style in a sketch.

• Beppo the Chimp just might be the hero America needs at this polarized moment.

As a devoted cinema enthusiast, let me share my thrilling experience: Chappell Roan had us all belting out the chorus of “Pink Pony Club” during an electrifying performance that night. Later on, she unveiled her fresh, empowering queer cowgirl anthem, “The Giver.” In the world of entertainment, they might call that iconic!

On the Weekend Update segment, I couldn’t help but chuckle at Michael Che’s take on Donald Trump’s peculiar mic mimicry. He aptly summed up the former president as someone trying to “suck his way to liberty” with a wit only he possesses.

• Another banger of a desk piece from Heidi Gardner, this time as a politically ambiguous Reba McEntire. In most weeks, this would almost certainly rank as one of the top five bits from the show, it just happened to arrive during an unusually stacked episode.

Almost snatching the spotlight from Gardner, it’s Marcello Hernández and Jane Wickline, otherwise known as the “Unbelievable Duo”, who seem likely to make another appearance before the season ends, making a bet on their return worthwhile.

During the musical number at the Port Authority Duane Reade, there’s a clever use of words involving a jug of milk. Pete Davidson claims it’s organic, but upon closer inspection, it reads “organ” instead. If you look further down the container, there’s more wordplay—it’s not skim or 2%, but rather “hole” milk.

• Bowen Yang and Chappell Roan looked adorably chummy during the good-byes.

2024-11-03 23:54