SNL

[Claquesous]

This is a bit of a spinoff from Piraya's comments on SNL. I haven't been watching SNL all that much because I play FFXI all the time instead but my overall opinion is that it's getting better.

I personally think Weekend Update with Amy Poehler and Tina Fey is the best Weekend Update since at least the early nineties. I wasn't a big fan of Norm McDonald, really didn't like Colin Quinn, and always thought Jimmy Fallon was overrated.

As far as the current cast compares to the cast of a couple years ago, I much prefer the current cast. I never really cared for Chris Kattan or Tracy Morgan and Will Ferrell left just at the point he was starting to become old. One of the featured players this year is a very talented impressionist which means they can finally let Darrell Hammond go soon because he's getting getting extremely old. He's been there for like 12 years.

Piraya suggested they should scrap the whole cast and start over. I would ask, who are they going to get? I think the idea is that they need to keep some of the old "favourites" and rotate in some fresh blood. Scrapping everyone didn't work out for them in the 80's and probably won't now. I do think they need to scratch a few like Rachel Dratch, Darrell Hammond, Maya Rudolph, and probably Horatio Sanz. A dream cast of SNL in my mind would probably include Jon Stewart and Dave Chappelle, but that's never going to happen. Instead a new cast would consist of people of whom we've never heard.

I'm not sure what you're comparing the current standard to either. When I watch the best of episodes they rarely garner more than a chuckle.

I would say the two best skits I've ever seen that I can think of right now are:
1. A skit that pretended to be a book review, but quickly became an escuse for SNL to openly curse on the air. The actors quickly spouted out books and their authors which were things like Dick Feeler and Madr Fuqar. It was hilarious, and I'm pretty certain only aired once.
2. The first time they did Debbie Downer I was cracking up the whole time. Debbie Downer was a character that constantly brought up facts like the spread of AIDS or the odds of being in a car crash etc. during a birthday party. They tried to repeat it. The first time they repeated it, it was till quite funny. The third time it was old.

Probably not one of my favourite but a very enjoyable skit was extremely recently. The Pirate Convention was very entertaining and gets constant replay on our very own linkshell.

In summary, I think sketch comedy is inherently going to be a bit goofy or campy. It's really hard to come up with cutting edge new ideas that are going to be funny. Comedy suffers greatly from diminished returns. I would say that the current SNL is doing a better job than two years ago at keeping the comedy fresh.

Another example of why I should be fired....

[Aelfwise]

If you play FFXI as much as you say you do then how did you find time to type ALL THAT! Just kidding that was quite an extensive review of the current status of SNL. I can't comment too much since FFXI is consuming my life, nay MY SOUL! ><

[Claquesous]

I like diatribes.