Monday Morning Quarterback #4: John Mulaney/Chappell Roan
Reviewing SNL's 50th Season
John Mulaney is one of my comedy idols, so I brought my highest expectations of the season into this episode. And when JM delivered, he DELIVERED. But when he didn’t, the show was satisfactory, replacement-level SNL. Chappell Roan brought spectacle; that woman is pure show business and deserves the sole credit for elevating this show into the best to date of the season.
The Good
Port Authority Duane Reade
Mulaney has done a few of these lengthy New York-themed musical sketches. Diner Lobster is the greatest, but they’re all winners (New York Musical and Airport Sushi are the others). I love them for their madcap ambition. I can only imagine how many resources and how much rehearsal time went into pulling off each of these; there’s probably an argument that the other sketches were less remarkable because this is clearly where Mulaney’s passion is.
New York City Council Campaign
I like to imagine that some SNL writer just saw this and immediately knew the premise, and I love that they just ambushed the real Harvey Epstein, poor guy, who woke up this morning to learn that he’s now a minor celebrity.
Chappell Roan
The Bad
Heidi Gardner’s Reba McEntire on Weekend Update
I try to be open-minded when I’m writing these post-show analyses and I think generally when something is good, but just not for me, I can still spot the quality and craftsmanship. Here, I just don’t think Reba McEntire is a relevant enough person to justify an impression on SNL. I get that she’s a judge or whatever on The Voice (also an NBC show), but who cares? I think the universe of people who watch enough Reba to recognize a good impression when it’s presented to them is probably just so small that I don’t get why this made the cut.
Little Richard
Kenan just did the usual Kenan thing in this sketch, and if it works for you then maybe you think this is great, but I would prefer to see him stretch more (like he did in “Port Authority Duane Read”). Honestly, Dave Grohl’s impression of Little Richard is more interesting than Kenan’s.1 On the plus side, I’ve been listening to Little Richard live performances while I write this, and they’re awesome.
Tutti Frutti
Good Golly Miss Molly
The Ugly
Marcello Hernandez/Jane Wickline’s Couple You Can’t Believe are Together
Could have been better, but I love Hernandez’s commitment, and Wickline hit her punchline very well.
What’s That Name: Election Edition
Always nice to see an annoying character that we probably have seen somewhere in our own lives get skewered, but this one felt like low-hanging fruit. Sequel to Sitcom Reboot.
Rankings
We crown a new champion! My wife editor argued that more sketches from the Ariana Grande show made it into the “Good” category than this week, but I weight “Duane Reade” so heavily that it puts Mulaney over the top. My world, my rules.
What does the future hold - can Bill Burr/Mk.gee (?) or Charli XCX (host and musical guest) take the lead?!? Watch this space.
Episode 5 (John Mulaney/Chappell Roan)
Episode 3 (Ariana Grande/Stevie Nicks)
Episode 2 (Nate Bargatze/Coldplay)
Episode 1 (Jean Smart/Jelly Roll)
Episode 4 (Michael Keaton/Billie Eilish)
The views expressed here are mine alone (and I don’t even know that I’ll stick to them, if pressed). They should not be attributed to anybody else, including (but not limited to) my employer, employer’s clients, friends, family, or pets (current, former, or future).
The only place I could find this clip is on Instagram. It’s from a documentary (Lemmy) about Lemmy Kilmister, frontman of the heavy metal band Motörhead. The doc itself is worth a watch.