It's always a good thing when a host comes on and proves affable and good natured enough to fit easily into the cast and make fun himself as a good sport. That's what Thor hottie Chris Hemsworth proved tonight, as frankly, it doesn't even matter what the sketches were, you could just watch him on TV for an hour and half and it would hardly prove to be a painful experience (am I right, ladies?) Overall though, it was a pretty decent episode.
COLD OPEN: Well, we might look back on this moment as the beginning of the new Hillary era, as Kate takes her on in our major introduction to what could end up being a long run as the former First Lady/Senator/Secretary of State/ (President?), as she gears up to run again for the final time. Kate's Hillary has down the ambition, the sense of entitlement/frustration, and the attempt to seem "relatable" as she defends herself against the recent email "controversy" in the press. I think she does a great job, and I'm glad she's the one chosen to follow Jan Hooks, Ana Gasteyer, and Amy Poehler as at least the fourth woman to play Hillary during her long reign as a public figure in this country (I may have forgotten someone, but I think those four are the ones who've played her, right?).
MONOLOGUE: Chris Hemsworth takes the stage to mock his looks and the Thor movies, and he brings out his brothers Luke and Liam to share the stage with him, as well as Kenan, the adopted Hemsworth sibling faking the Aussie accent, and Kate as their mom (Kate loves doing her Australian accent, as you'll see later in the show too). It's short and sweet.
AMERICAN EXPRESS: Chris mocks the credit card commercials about how hard (read easy) it was for him, a tall, hot blond Australian muscle man to make it in Hollywood. See what I mean about a good sport? It's funny.
BROTHER 2 BROTHER: Taran and Chris do the Disney show spoof about the twins, and Taran tries to take Chris's place in class, only to be ridiculed by the teacher and students for not being anywhere near as hot as Chris- third sketch in a row to make fun of Chris's looks. This one's just okay.
EMPIRE: An ad for Fox's hit Empire that introduces one dorky white guy into the cast, who just doesn't fit in with the rest of the family. SNL loves skits like this, that do racial humor by forcing the one awkward white guy to fit in with the black people. It's funny, but I feel like I've seen this same sketch before.
SS ORION: A space crew reports to their captain, who happens to be an actual chicken. Um, this is weird, but seeing Chris really go for it in attempting to woo the chicken, who keeps turning her head away from him is kinda funny, in the way that unpredictable animals on talk/variety shows always are. Where did they get that chicken anyway?
IGGY AZALEA TALK SHOW: In material that's been ripe for parody for a while now, Kate takes on Iggy Azalea's posing as the new hot rapper, getting to use her Aussie accent again, while making up stupid raps and mocking Iggy's phoniness. It's not as funny as it could be, but Kate's game and Chris gets into it as her mentor, a fellow Aussie into "hip-hops."
UPDATE: Colin and Michael do some Ferguson, Hillary and Ben Carson jokes (whom they pile onto for suggesting homosexuality is a choice), and then relationship expert Leslie comes out to talk dating in New York (she's okay this time), and ugh, Cecily's Girl You Wish You Hadn't Started a Conversation With at a Party again. I really don't like that character and think it's an exact riff on Drunk Uncle, who does the same thing but funnier. By the way, this week it's Colin's turn to epic-ly flub a joke, and it's actually funny because it was SUCH a slip-up.
AVENGERS: A news report on the Avengers victory over Ultron that treats it as a sports team victory with Chris whooping it up and the cast doing some Avengers impressions. Pretty good.
ACTING TIPS: Ok- this one made me laugh out loud. Kenan is a terrible acting coach who gives awful, Jeffersons inspired acting tips to TV show actors Kate and Chris while directing a scene. Short, but Kate and Chris go for it, and their reactions are hilarious.
THE HOUSE: I dread at first another Kyle/Beck video, but this one might actually be their best one ever, if only because they're spoofing something that's actually familiar. Kyle, Beck and Chris are roommates on a reality show and parody a combination of Big Brother, Bachelor, American Idol and anything else you can think of in a quick 3 minute route. It actually works! Congrats guys, you didn't make me cringe.
PORN STARS: So, an oldie but goodie for the last one of the night, although I still think this sketch is played out by now. Vanessa and Cecily are selling Dolce & Gabbana products this time (which of course they can't pronounce), but Chris steals it as the guy who can't say the name of any product when he comes in. Good.
So, yeah I liked this episode. Not everything was laugh out loud funny, but almost everything at least made me smile, not least of which was Chris's up for it, clearly enjoying himself, laid-back attitude. Probably one of the best hosts they've had in a while, and lots of Kate always helps an episode too. I give it a B+. Happily, the second half of the season seems to be a somewhat marked improvement on the dreadful first half. Let's see if they can keep it up. No host or date yet for the next one, so come back in three or four weeks to see who's up then!
