10/12/24: Ariana Grande | Stevie Nicks

 

Family Feud

• Decent reveal that the place that Trump would be willing to talk about terrorists is Family Feud. 

• Kenan’s Steve Harvey impression is still bad, but he’s always fun in the role so I can’t complain.

• Why does Andy always get the worst writing when he’s playing Emhoff?

• I honestly groaned at Gaffigan’s Tim Walz mistaking Steve for Cedric the Entertainer.

• Dana’s Biden impression is good, but the whole “No joke, I’m being serious right now” schtick has ALREADY gotten old.

• The “neck to nuts” tie joke from Kenan’s Steve was just dumb.

• Mikey’s Donald Jr in this feels sorta unnecessary, and it only reminds me of the great Update commentaries he did with Alex as Eric Trump.

• Good laugh from Kamala’s answer to the first question being a long story about growing up in a middle class family.

• While not as bad as I remember, this was still a weak cold open. JAJ and Maya were the only people in this that were given anything noteworthy.

Rating: **

Monologue

• I remember really not liking this monologue when this episode aired, thinking that it was a waste of Ariana’s talents, and a ripoff of Justin Timberlake’s monologue from 2011. But I’ll go into this with an open mind.

• Yeah, I still think this is just an inferior version of Justin Timberlake’s 2011 monologue. Ariana’s singing is great as expected, but I just don’t really care for the conceit of this monologue. It also doesn’t help that Ariana sings in MULTIPLE segments throughout the show after this.

• The appearance with Bowen dressed as Elphaba seemed like it was supposed to be a “sketch-stealing” moment, but it really fell flat.

• Great high note from Ariana near the end of this, but like I said earlier, this conceit didn’t work for me.

Rating: **

Bridesmaid Speech

• Ok here we go. This is a VERY famous sketch from this season that blew up on the internet, and garnered Marcello more fame as a cast member. I remember not really caring for it when this episode first aired but I’ll go into this with an open mind.

• The bad singing from the Bridesmaids is okay.

• Decent reveal of the relationship between Chloe and this mysterious “Domingo”.

• Andrew is good here as the straight man.

• I feel like I would like this a lot more if it was later in the show, it feels a bit too low energy for the lead-off sketch.

• I liked Andrew’s line about how the rhyme scheme has gone “completely out the window”.

• Marcello appearing as Domingo at the end of this was a good ending to an okay sketch.

Rating: **½

My Best Friend’s House

• A debut of a new recurring segment that would appear two more times throughout this season. 

• I remember watching this when this episode first aired and being SO worried that the whole joke to this was Ariana just liking the smell of her best friend’s house. I know now though, that thankfully isn’t the case.

• The song Ariana is singing is very catchy.

• A great reveal that the smell of Ariana’s best friend's house is because Mikey is a murderer.

• A good moment with Ariana’s shaker that she used throughout was full of teeth.

• Overall, a solid pre-tape, but I’m not as high on it as others are.

Rating: ***½

Charades with Mom

• Funny moment with Bowen saying “In your face, Diane!”.

• Then that moment is immediately followed with Ariana getting visually upset, which was a GREAT moment.

• Ariana insulting Bowen’s “tiny pecker” and calling him a “poor, sick loser” is HILARIOUS. 

• Ariana’s continued insulting of Bowen is fantastic. Ariana is GREAT in this so far.

• Andrew using Bowen as a clue and Ariana spewing out quick insults is so funny.

• Ariana: I meant gay as in “stupid” and “bad”.

• I love how insane this is getting, with Bowen deciding to fight Ariana. Also them kissing each other was a CRAZY ending.

• Overall, I pretty much loved everything about this sketch. 

Rating: ****½

UFC 308

• Ariana’s Celine Dion impression is really funny here. The accent and little asides after every statement add to the comedy.

• Celine Dion endorsing UFC Fighting is a very funny concept, and Ariana is great in another segment in this episode.

• All of the details Ariana’s Celine is giving here is very funny.

• Ariana: It’s all coming back to me. But maybe not to them because of the concussions, no?

• Overall, I loved this, and it’s nice to see that the show gave Ariana a solid solo showcase.

Rating: ****

Weekend Update

• Let’s hope this Update is an improvement over the surprisingly weak installment in the Nate Bargatze episode.

• Ok, the jokes here are already better than the last episodes.

• One thing I will complain about is Che saying a borderline sexist joke, and acting fake shocked when the audience groans. That is such an obnoxious thing that Che has been doing a LOT over these past 2 seasons.

• Che did win me back, with his solid rant-style joke about Democratic support by black voters. Other than that, none of the jokes here have been anything noteworthy.

• Ego’s delivery in this commentary is good as always, but the noticeably hacky writing, and broad mugging is making this feel like a leftover Heidi commentary written by Jimmy Fowlie. 

• Great joke from Colin about the YouTuber who recorded his car crash “Tragically, he survived.”

• Interesting pairing of JAJ and Sarah as Liam and Noel Gallagher. 

• Not caring for the goofy accents so far from JAJ and Sarah.

• Yeah, this is not working for me. JAJ and Sarah arguing with each other like little kids is just stupid.

• I did get a big laugh from Colin saying he bought tickets to an Oasis concert, and that he’s gonna “mosh out so hard that he wins White Boy of the Year Award”.

• Overall, the jokes were average, but both commentaries were weak.

Rating: **½

Castrato

• Loving the fun performances from JAJ and Andrew so far.

• Nice to see that Maya and Andy stuck around after the cold open.

• The reveal of Ariana’s emotionless character is hilarious. And the soulless singing is pretty funny.

• A funny dark reveal that Antonio was castrated, and that’s why his voice is so high.

• There’s an unsettling vibe to this that is kinda taking away from the comedy for me, and there are moments where I’m more uncomfortable than I am laughing, but this is still decent.

• Andy and Maya’s explanation of Antonio’s castration is very dark, but the goofy accents are making it funny.

• A very memorable moment with Andy calling Kenan by his real name, and Kenan’s reaction to that is really funny.

• Overall, a decent sketch.

Rating: ***

Jennifer Coolidge for Maybelline

• Eh, Chloe’s Jennifer Coolidge impression is still mediocre.

• Good reveal of Ariana as Jennifer in the mirror. 

• The conversation Chloe and Ariana are having has some very fun absurd lines throughout. Ariana realizing that there’s an animal called Fish in particular is very funny.

• Chloe and Ariana spraying Windex at each other is really funny.

• OH MY GOD at DANA CARVEY appearing as Jennifer Coolidge. This moment ALONE makes up for his appearances as Joe Biden.

• Overall, a very fun sketch.

Rating: ****

The Hotel Detective

• For those who don’t know, because of the whole fiasco with Stevie Nicks’ delayed 2nd performance, the dress version of this sketch was aired right after the Jennifer Coolidge sketch aired. I’m not sure if this was meant to appear in the live show or not, but I’m glad it appeared anyway, as this is one of my favorite live sketches from this season.

• Right out of the gate, I’m loving Ariana and JAJ’s performances.

• A good reveal that JAJ is the Hotel Detective, and his voice switch was great.

• Ariana’s fast delivery throughout this is GREAT, and this is my favorite performance she’s given all episode.

• JAJ’s whole spiel at the end of this was FANTASTIC, and it’s one of my favorite moments of his tenure so far.

• Overall, I loved this sketch, and it’s one of my personal favorites.

Rating: ****½

Thoughts

An overall good episode. Despite being noticeably inconsistent, the solid highlights throughout this episode without a doubt make up for the lowlights, and Ariana Grande being a fantastic host who was utilized perfectly helped this episode’s quality quite a bit. I would love to see her host again.

Segments ranked Best to Worst

The Hotel Detective

Charades with Mom

Jennifer Coolidge for Maybelline

UFC 308

My Best Friend’s House

Castrato

Bridesmaid Speech

Weekend Update

Monologue

Family Feud

6.5/10