r/LiveFromNewYork • u/bjkman SNL • 16d ago
Discussion Live Discussion - September 26, 2026 (Jalen Brunson/KATSEYE) [Season 52 Premiere]
Welcome to the SNL live discussion thread for the season 52 Premiere! This week, making their hosting debut, Jalen Brunson, and making their debut as Musical Guest, Katseye. For those new to the show, tune into your local NBC affiliate or Peacock around 11:30 PM ET to follow this episode live.
And if you're here early you still have time to do your SNL predictions for this week that are due at the start of the show! While you wait for the episode, we have some college football!
Enjoy the Premiere!!
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u/zoethebitch 13d ago
Needed at least one bumper with the SNL band featuring Maddie Rice on guitar.
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u/Noteshots 14d ago
Whoever played Mamdani at the beginning looked like a woman with a paste on beard. And black beady eyes. Kinda creepy looking tbh.
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u/NoneOfThisMatters_XO 14d ago
Did they not say “live from new york its saturday night” in the opener???
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u/Moltengirl 14d ago
This first show was pure 💩
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u/pulchellusterribilis 13d ago
I feel like this was pretty good for a first episode?? I liked it a lot more than the bad bunny and Jean smart of years past
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u/Severe_Sky4929 9d ago
It felt pretty o.k. for a sports host. You usually have to build 'around them'. And they rarely hit as much(but even grwat actors can miss) Everything was basketball minus the chair one and the poly family at parent teacher. The only one I laughed at was the basketball musical one.
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u/Key-Status-7992 14d ago
I appreciate that Jalen did his very best but it was painful to watch (and I say that as an SNL fan). Also, maybe I’m old but can someone explain Katseye to me? Apart from not having the ability to sing live, it seems, their songs are not particularly catchy enough and they seem to just have variations of the dance moves from their Gap commercial. Who are actually paying money to see them on tour?
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u/Hovercraft1143 13d ago
As far as I can tell they are a glorified dance group holding a microphone - very similar to what happens in a lot of kpop performances.
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u/Key-Status-7992 13d ago
They struck gold with the Gap commercial, I’ll give them that but I don’t see them lasting long in the biz
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u/sasquatch606 14d ago
When an athlete hosts needs to play themselves in more than one sketch, that is not a good sign. It wasn't Nancy Kerrigan bad but it was forgettable.
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u/georgewalterackerman 13d ago
Did she ever just? I don’t recall. One of the all time worst athlete hosts was sure Wayne Gretzky
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u/hidesawell 14d ago
The musical act didn't even try to pretend to sing live.
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u/jbakes64 14d ago
I felt a little like the old man yelling at clouds and I know I'm not the target demographic the group is trying to reach, but yeah, that was annoying.
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u/phas3list 15d ago
I watched SNL UK and US openers back to back and the quality difference was significant. UK writers are doing so much better. Found myself audibly laughing a lot on the UK opener, and fast-forwarded through most of the US skits after the first minute or two
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u/Hovercraft1143 13d ago
I find it somewhat confusing as to why for both seasons now SNL UK has opened with an American actor (Tina Fey and now Jeff Goldblum) when there are plenty of talented and relevant UK actors that should be opening THEIR season.
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u/capitalistsanta 13d ago
I just saw the opening monologue for Tina Feys episode, and while I can't speak for why Goldblum might be on, Tina Fey in her monologue tells the cast that she'll be there if anything goes wrong. I think that's really why she was the first host, it's a production and to have the lead be an SNL vet who is close to Lorne Michaels seemed to be why she was first, and there have been rumors for years that she would take over when he's done. But year it's an insane live production, nice to have strong experience there.
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u/Hovercraft1143 12d ago
I actually kinda understand the Tina Fey one more than the Goldblum. It was a new show, they wanted a face that people recognize that isn't completely overpowering to the show (ie: if they threw someone like Will Ferrell on there to open the entire episode would have been a Will Ferrell performance).
Season 2 opener should have been a UK person now that the cast and show as a whole had a first season to find their legs.
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u/Savings-Cow322 15d ago
I had never heard of either Jalen Brunson or KATSEYE before in my entire life until this episode of the show.
Whether an episode is good or bad, at least they always inform an elderly 34 year-old man like myself of things I had no idea about outside my own little bubble.
I was disturbed to learn though that apparently famous domestic abuser Chris Brown is relevant again.
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u/hidesawell 14d ago
Yeah, idk why they needed to use Chris brown as the basis of they sketch.
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u/Savings-Cow322 14d ago
I assumed this tour of the both of them was real, but if it isn't then yeah, why not just Usher? Granted, they're basically borrowing from that 'Boondocks' episode.
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u/fedwayguy 14d ago
That sketch is about a real thing where women get pulled up on stage each night. That sketch was the comment section of those videos come to life.
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u/Silent_Arm_218 15d ago
What were the number cut offs for dress and live show? And would be curious to know original place in line
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u/Eattoomanychips 15d ago
Host needed to wake tf up
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u/LuuBrazil 14d ago
i don't think that I have ever seen a human being that was that bland and that lifeless in any TV show ever
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u/ImaginationDoctor 14d ago
He had zero charisma. Like none.
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u/Eattoomanychips 14d ago
And his tick which was the huff and cough was kinda taking me out of what he would say
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u/The_Baconbitz 15d ago
Did anyone catch what the guy yelled before the cold open started?
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u/franksammydino 15d ago
“Five seconds!” in a funny voice, which is why the audience laughed. They do it every time.
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u/kb1117 15d ago
I’m watching it now. So far, it’s ok. The noteworthy thing for me seems to be that Jane Wickline is figuring it out. It’s cool to see her growing into her role and finding her lane.
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u/WaterSings 14d ago
Jane will be a breakout star -- it's just a matter of getting more airtime 🤞🏻
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u/Dad0013 15d ago
I really want to give this show a chance, but wow, that was bad. It may be time to pull the plug. The only thing I laughed at was the musical numbers, especially that second one. Hysterically bad.
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u/IvyGold UCKF 15d ago
Over the past decade, season premieres almost always disappoint.
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u/sbtokarz 14d ago
I can’t remember the last season premiere that was worth raving about. SET THE TONE, LORNE!
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u/FolkDoom 15d ago
KAYSEYE was terrible.
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u/amazingmaximo 14d ago
I'd never heard of them but my analysis was "oh so they're like K pop but American"
I meant that disparagingly, to be clear
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u/MSoren77 15d ago
The show needs to change more than it did between seasons 50 and 51, and definitely for 52. New Weekend Update anchors would be nice, Jost and Che have been at it too long. And get rid of Mikey (just don't find him funny at all), Kenan (been there too long as well), and Ben (he keeps doing a specific voice that's already gotten old).
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u/Affectionate-Ad5661 15d ago
They need all new writers. The actors can only do so much with lackluster sketches.
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u/ranch_commercial 15d ago
So confused by everyone saying it was a solid episode… it definitely sucked and that was such a letdown after i had such a shitty day at work and was so excited to watch SNL after ✋😭
I just hate when sports people host, why in the world would they start the season off that way? The sketches are always so much worse
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u/Brocktarrr 15d ago
Solid opening episode. They probably didn’t want to have the opener be an athlete they have to work around them not being an actor but this would be the only time Jalen would be available to do it
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u/t0matit0 15d ago
Really solid episode imo. Jalen didn't do amazing but he also didn't do terrible. I found most sketches plenty funny.
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u/nousernameidea_ 15d ago
that opening sketch.. "am i bitch?"
in the Phils btw and so we just see clips on youtube
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u/TraditionAway7281 15d ago
Honestly Kam has gotten much better and I’m here for it
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u/No_Departure9173 15d ago
Yes! He was great! He also seems more sure of himself and is speaking more slowly and clearly
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u/giftopherz Totino's Sales Representative 15d ago
I think he was always this good he just wasn't as invested last season. Now he seems integrated with the rest of the cast
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u/Big-Hold-851 15d ago
this was shit from a butt. the sketches felt half thought out and flat. also I hope they never let an athlete host again. grace and jeremy were the best parts❤️
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u/LuuBrazil 14d ago
the problem is the writing
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u/spartycbus 13d ago
yes, half of the skits didn't even have an ending or real punchline. Like the Usher sketch was the same thing over and over and then, done.
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u/MiserableEnergy2282 15d ago
agree!!! it was awful! not funny at all. the show was like an elementary school production. I turned it off after thirty minutes.
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u/PrimaryListen3410 15d ago
Am I the only one who’s baffled by how Ashley Padilla is used so much? She does the same thing with every character and is constantly flubbing lines and stepping on timing. The new Wiig or McKinnon, she is not.
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u/VenusRose14 15d ago
I said this same exact thing to my boyfriend. She plays the same character over and over. She doesn’t make anything her own. No range. Cecily Strong, Kate McKinnon, Kristin Wigg, they all played characters who differed from one another in some way. I still can’t figure out why they let Chloe Troast go either.
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u/MarcusDA 15d ago
Love Kenan, but as soon as he pops up in a sketch I know exactly what his character will say and do. He’s done the same thing for seasons now.
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u/superbuenobros 15d ago
great, youtube tv's dvr missed the last bit of the show. it cut off during the commercial break after the 2nd musical performance.
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u/boonebronson 15d ago
We need gays and women in charge of the writer's room again.
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u/VoxElysia 13d ago
You just said what I didn't realize I was thinking.
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u/Original_Release_934 9d ago
Wow I had the same thought. A lot of boring icky stuff thats been done before in this ep
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u/BigRedRuby 15d ago
I feel like this episode showed the critical flaw of getting people who aren't natural comics or actors on the show. Overall it was decent, but I think it had a lot of expectations due to being the season premiere and it didn't quite live up to it.
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u/spartycbus 13d ago
it wasn't totally his fault. most of the sketches would have sucked with anyone acting in them. not funny at all.
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u/Brocktarrr 15d ago
Probably knew this would be the only time they’d be able to get Jalen with the NBA season right around the corner
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u/phas3list 15d ago
Should have just given him a miss. How many skits were basketball themed? So one dimensional, and thought he was going to legit fall asleep
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u/bumdreams 15d ago
Mostly solid episode.Jalen is naturally deadpan and I think they tried to play to that strength but it ended up affecting the timing of everyone else.
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u/SFlaGal 15d ago
Deadpan or just full with no comedic skills?
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u/bumdreams 15d ago
Probably both. But it’s his exact demeanor in most of the interviews I’ve seen him do.
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u/giftopherz Totino's Sales Representative 15d ago edited 15d ago
Episode's highlight: Weekend Update, particularly Tucker Carlson.
Jalen might be funny in his element but in front of a camera he was not. I gotta give it to them, they made a lot basketball sketches and jokes and it never got old (for me).
Katseye... I need a Millennial to explain to me slowly why the Pussycat Dolls worked but they don't for me... and now I'm hearing they lipsynced?!!!!
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u/Fearless_Frame3765 15d ago
And the sync didn't. At least Brittany used a head set so it wasn't so obvious, but these women used hand helds and usually forgot to move them up when they were supposed to be singing. It was awful. They were seriously just stripping as a group.
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u/Widening-Gyre9397 15d ago
I am going to sound old fashioned but I find it depressing that they are demeaning themselves like that. It might be better if they actually had singing/song writing talent and 100% control over what they do. But I think they are probably being used up and spit out like so many other young women before them. Hope they’ve invested their $$.
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u/justmegidle_ 13d ago
they definitely are talented in singing / songwriting, it's just that their company lets them have absolutely 0 creative control and won't give them songs that actually showcase their skills.
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u/Serious_Session7574 14d ago
It seems so old-fashioned. Early 2000s. Please don't let this be a revival of the stripper girl group aesthetic.
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u/Illustrious-Tip4613 15d ago
I wish they just called themselves a dance group, that was terrible lip syncing and low bar for snl performance.
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u/Big-Hold-851 15d ago
I love their choreo/watching them dance but I wish their music wasn’t shit :(
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u/sbtokarz 14d ago
I don’t listen to Top 40, but I remember Tate McRae had the choreo and a catchy song or two
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u/giftopherz Totino's Sales Representative 15d ago
I first saw them at last year's VMAs and I liked the song, can't remember now. And the song was okay, but the more I see the less impress I am. It's manufactured tiktok crap. Nothing else. Which is sad cuz I've been looking forward to PCDs successors for some time now.
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u/Chuk 15d ago
They barely even lip synched, half the time vocals were playing and no one's mouth was even moving.
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u/catisonmynerves5 15d ago
It seemed deliberate, like decades ago when that artist ate a banana on stage to show the audience they weren't singing live. This is the first performance on SNL where it really looked like the artists did not want to do what they were doing. The straw thing was just uncomfortable like they understood the assignment but did not want to do it.
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u/giftopherz Totino's Sales Representative 15d ago
I guess I'll watch them again on YT... Barely paid attention
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u/Pitiful_Finger1694 15d ago
One of Weekend Update segments got cut from the replay when they were talking about the UN and Netanyahu. Does anyone remember the story/joke from the live taping
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u/Disastrous_Mall4689 15d ago
https://reddit.com/link/pcdirux/video/jgae2cd0s2sh1/player
I pirate the stream so I’m assuming I have the full version, wondering if it’s this that got cut?
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u/Pitiful_Finger1694 15d ago
Ugh it was the piece before this!!!!
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u/Disastrous_Mall4689 15d ago
The piece before this was about the president of Iran is that what got cut then?
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u/WordsWithSam 15d ago
I usually like the sports hosts but Jalen was a charisma vacuum. Bad host and bad sketches all around. One of the worst episodes in recent memory.
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u/Arktokrat777 15d ago
I only laughed out loud at the T. Carlson segment & chuckled a bit at the polyamory sketch. The rest was yawn.
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u/kevsdogg97 15d ago
They were joking at Chris browns expense
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u/Savings-Cow322 15d ago
How? All they were doing was talking about how their wives thirsted over him. Usher I get, he's fairly non-controversial.
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u/Counselor4god 15d ago
Who was that playing Mandami in the Cold open?
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u/jovly-jov 15d ago
Ramy Youssef
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u/Spirited-Bear-3444 15d ago
We as a society can stop trying to make Ramy happen.
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u/sbtokarz 14d ago
I’ve never understood the appeal and I really wish I did. What’s the most hilarious thing anyone’s heard or seen from him?
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u/uniquename1992 15d ago
watching on peacock rn. Do you guys notice the cut around 39min and 15 seconds? is that censorship?
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u/NoneOfThisMatters_XO 14d ago
Was it just me or did they not say “live from ny its saturday night” in the cold open?? I’m also watching on peacock
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u/StonerProfessor 15d ago
I think it’s happened before with segments that didn’t land or were too over the top. Not super common but this wouldn’t be the first time. Kinda suspect about the topic, though.
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u/Disastrous_Mall4689 15d ago
Che makes a joke about Netanyahu’s address to a nearly empty UN chamber and says “I guess wherever Netanyahu shows up there is going to be relocating”. Not sure why they cut it, he didn’t even call it a genocide, he referred to it as “Israel’s war on Gaza”. But lorne/nbc obviously have no backbone so not surprising
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u/grimreapersdaughter 15d ago
Couldn’t make it through, turned it off after weekend update. God I hate sports hosts
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u/abcbri 15d ago edited 15d ago
Massage chair was too long and one note. Usher and Chris Brown bit was kind of gross considering CB is a domestic abuser. The whole Shark Tank joke about being a feminist was weak.
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u/mrcorndogman33 15d ago
I fast forwarded through the rest of it. One of the worst season premieres in the show's history. Fire Jane! Fire Grace!
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u/Spirited-Bear-3444 15d ago
Wickline should not have made it past her first season. Talk about suckage.
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u/the-bryman 15d ago
Trump cold open felt like they wrote it at 11:25pm
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u/PrimaryListen3410 15d ago
I’ve always felt the season premiere should be one of the strongest episodes because they have in theory all summer to noodle and write. And yet, this slop.
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u/TN_Jed13 15d ago
I think they actually take the summer off/ use it for side and solo projects, so the opener gets the same amount of prep as any other episode.
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u/lonelygagger 15d ago
Sports hosts are rarely funny. I'll just leave it at that.
I know it's infantile, but Mikey's performance in that airport massage chair sketch was my favorite of the night. Too bad Jalen wasn't taking the bait.
Can't believe Tucker Carlson is my favorite segment on Weekend Update. ("Oh yes, Obsession: the left's idea of a horror movie is that a woman is forced to love a man.") Jeremy's impression is too good. I can't get enough of that shrieking laugh.
Never heard of Katseye, but gosh, they're hot. Completely had me mesmerized. As did Sarah in that one sketch. 🧐
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u/thesmallprint29 15d ago
Mikey was going all out. He definitely deserves more credit than this sub is giving him currently. He was great!
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u/Pitiful_Finger1694 15d ago
The Tucker Carlson skit sat me down for the rest of the episode. Sooo gut
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u/BlimpIntolerant 15d ago
some of you people are ridiculous. That was a good solid episode.
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u/StopParasocializing 15d ago
I agree, but these forums are a cesspool for those who struggle to have fun and make connections in the offline world. So all the negativity never really surprises me.
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u/Serious_Session7574 14d ago
I struggled with this episode after watching it right after SNL UK, which I adored. Maybe I'm an anglophile at heart.
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u/StonerProfessor 15d ago
Don’t forget that around 2016 a lot of people started seeing SNL as a kind of cultural battleground. I get it to an extent, but I’ve seen a change in the audience and there’s a lot of people wanting to have their views affirmed first and then laugh.
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u/ucfknight92 15d ago
Jalen did well, I laughed more at his office and high school musical sketches than I did in the first two UK episodes combined.
Jeremy was fantastic and is finally getting the screentime he deserves, he might be an all-time great when all is said and done. I'd love to see more Dropout talent on SNL over the coming years, like Lisa Gilroy.
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u/tamere2k 15d ago
Just starting it now. They should had Trump dress exactly like Mamdani.
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u/tamere2k 15d ago
I was hoping we’d get a real Mamdani appearance. Also Mariska not being there for the monologue was disappointing.
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u/Specific-Yam-2166 15d ago
I’m sure he’ll be there at least once this season. The premiere was definitely the time do it though
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u/tamere2k 15d ago
I believe that people who don’t live in nyc wouldn’t care about the first skit. But I fucking loved it. Knicks in 5!
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u/CoatApprehensive3244 15d ago
Is there any remote chance that group was actually singing for real?
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u/slightlysublevel 15d ago
If you're looking at their singing, you've already missed the point.
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u/jwoo3x 15d ago
Wait...you mean....they're a parody of female musical acts and that was high concept art putting them on the show or....🤔🤔🤔
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u/SFlaGal 1d ago
Re Shane Gillis: Seems like all the hosts who are standup comics do their monologues with a hand mic. Is this some kind of security object? Do you suppose it's just a prop that does nothing real?