Saturday Night Live

[Jenny]

Michelle Malkin? ewww

[nathansmart]

No, I wasn't being sarcastic. I was being humble you jerk!

[TacoSmith]

No, I wasn't being sarcastic. I was being humble you jerk!

My apologies...you clod!

[DonTGD]

that's why I'm wondering if glaser had a "tiny hand" in writing it - it's too close - that was the premise of the end of the sketch!

I have a relative who has this hand difference and I find these kinds of jokes absolutely, horribly offensive. It literally burns me up when people joke about that. I almost got onstage to confront a drunken comedian (who many of you know and like and has a cable sketch show) doing really bad jokes about that until, thankfully, the audience booed him off the stage because he sucked and his hand jokes were offensive, not just to me, but to humanity. So I'm not cool with the hand difference sketch, it offensively linked two kinds of unrelated birth defects.

[DonTGD]

It turned because it starts out like it's just going to be each guy goes up and tries to hit on these women, and it's all very conventional for that first beat, but then the second guy goes over and the tone of the sketch completely changes out of nowhere. I don't know, I just felt like it was kind of a send-up of that kind of SNL sketch.

I didn't "get" it until the second time I watched it. I don't think it was obvious enough what was going on there, or else we're all off on our analysis of it, but there you go. I would have liked to see one of the other guys comment that usually guy #2 strikes out and he gets a chance to go up or get some comment from the women that the Anne Hathaway character will settle for the second guy, while she will make all 4 of them come up to dance or something to close the sketch off.

[nathansmart]

I have a relative who has this hand difference and I find these kinds of jokes absolutely, horribly offensive. It literally burns me up when people joke about that. I almost got onstage to confront a drunken comedian (who many of you know and like and has a cable sketch show) doing really bad jokes about that until, thankfully, the audience booed him off the stage because he sucked and his hand jokes were offensive, not just to me, but to humanity. So I'm not cool with the hand difference sketch, it offensively linked two kinds of unrelated birth defects.

really?

[DonTGD]

Overall, this was the best SNL in a long, long time.

Let me overanalyze one part: Ann Hathaway's acting chops in the Mary Poppins sketch really made it good. Her total commitment to playing the character straight, and giving subtle reactions instead of mugging, really helped to give the piece the contrast it needed to be funny. I think a less accomplished actor would have turned the character itself into a satire, which would not have made it as good. Yes, I know not everyone liked it, and as soon as I saw set I was also prepared not to like it, because I usually hate "costume pieces". But there you go.

Yes, yes, yes!

Also I think that the material itself, like the "Of Mice and Men" sketch should hopefully signal a world where a greater breadth of material is ripe for jokes. There is plenty if not too much in the world of topical humor when classic material has just as much "market penetration" and is just as funny. I mean... here's a decent sketch idea, in the 1940s the wife of a hollywood mogul tries to get her untalented boy toy roles in what we know today are classic movies. Total recurring possibilities, costumes, and jokes for any sketch troupe- and... possibly I'm just rewriting the Ricky Gervais series "Extras" but whatever. My point is that SCTV, by focusing on all media rather than, you know, cocktail parties, did it better. Go back to old hollywood fer chrissakes.

[DonTGD]

Did anyone else get an icky feeling from the congress/financial legislation sketch? I felt like the implication was that the only people hurt by the housing bubble bursting were morons who deserved it or people who are already very rich.

Of course, it was a total right wing take on the issue that was Jim Downey or whoever spouting his personal philosophy in the face of the facts, such as AIG's $400k corporate retreat last weekend!

I could talk about this at length and have a background in econ.

My wife had a friend who was presented with a different mortgage than the one she asked for at signing and had two options, 1. sign the new mortgage or 2. Delay purchasing her dream home from angry sellers until the mortgage broker presented her with the right mortgage. She should have done option #2, but she did option #1. Someone here tell me that it's not the mortgage company's fault, really.

[DonTGD]

I agree, I think the sketch was funny cause it was short. I also thought that the line about being a producer on entourage was the funniest line of the whole episode.

I dunno, the debate sketch with "marriage is a sacred institution between two unwilling teenagers?" That blew me away.

[DonTGD]

really?

I'm not lying, but I'd rather not go into a lot of personal details if people don't mind. A NYC comedy scenester set the show up and was with me when I got really pissed, but the audience down here let the comic have it, much to his surprise. Basically the deal is a bone growth issue and some people can get surgery or transplants, but others can't or you know, it'll cost like $300k to do it.

[man124]

I dunno, the debate sketch with "marriage is a sacred institution between two unwilling teenagers?" That blew me away.

I loved that line to, but I loved the entourage line more because it is incredibly random and yet in every interview I have ever seen or heard with Mark Wahlberg he comes of like a cocky asshole, and that line just seemed like something he would say. I think that was kind of what I liked about the whole sketch, the premise was totally nonsensical, but Samberg played it very low key and normal, not over the top and goofy like he has a tendency to do.

[nathansmart]

I don't think the sketch had anything to do with that specific ailment. I think it's just an absurd thing for someone to have normal everything, including arms, except have little tiny baby hands that are even chubby and wrinkly like baby hands.

[aenemaTron]

I wasn't aware that anyone had such a problem, or if they did that it was a significant number of people.

[man124]

I don't think the sketch had anything to do with that specific ailment. I think it's just an absurd thing for someone to have normal everything, including arms, except have little tiny baby hands that are even chubby and wrinkly like baby hands.

To me the fact they are clearly hands that have been removed from a doll makes it even funnier. They weren't making fun of people with that aliment and since no one else here seems to really be aware that it is even a real thing, it is probably pretty likely that none of the writers knew that either. Plus they were just an added comedic detail, they weren't the focus of the sketch.

[Hated Milk Machine]

I'm not lying, but I'd rather not go into a lot of personal details if people don't mind. A NYC comedy scenester set the show up and was with me when I got really pissed, but the audience down here let the comic have it, much to his surprise. Basically the deal is a bone growth issue and some people can get surgery or transplants, but others can't or you know, it'll cost like $300k to do it.

$300k? Gimme a break, most insurance plans cover madeupbullshititis.

[Jouster]

$300k? Gimme a break, most insurance plans cover madeupbullshititis.

Not necessary. Keep these kinds of comments to yourself, please.

[Everest]

I don't believe Robot Chicken or Family Guy created this type of humor by any means but perhaps their popularity has brought back sketches like "Marry Poppins" and "Of Mice & Men" to the forefront of snl. Both those sketches seemed like quick jokes that would occur in either rc or family guy.

[Big Box Of Money]

Peter Gabriel held a telethon for this affliction years ago:

[DonTGD]

$300k? Gimme a break, most insurance plans cover madeupbullshititis.

Excuse me? Did you just write that?

Google "Congenital hand differences."

And write a donation check of utter shame to Shriner's Hospital.

I do not believe this. It's like people tell me that it doesn't matter that people aren't really like that and then, wow, I find out they're EXACTLY like that.

Do you know who actress Bree Walker is, for instance? She's an actress and she hasn't attempted the sindactly surgery.

[Ivan]

And write a donation check of utter shame to Shriner's Hospital.

They're just going to spend it on fezzes and go-karts.