‘Saturday Night Live’ review: Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, Black Widow, and Scarlett Johansson (video)
It really did not take a whole lot of time at all for “Saturday Night Live” to mock what is the biggest television event of the evening. As a matter of fact, they were well aware of the fact that many viewers would probably want to be watching the Manny Pacquiao – Floyd Mayweather fight more so than their own show. This led to a cold open that was a “live feed” of what was actually happening in the match.
Ultimately, this was completely silly, but at the same time really fun, especially when it comes to the part about Kenan Thompson and Jay Pharoah “leaving” mid-sketch in order to actually go and watch the fight. The intro was also fantastic, especially when the narrator joked about this being the “whitest day” in sports on NBC in between hockey, horse racing, and “night golf.” Casting Aidy Bryant as Manny? Also hilarious.
Now, we’ll get into live-blogging the rest of the night’s sketches.
Scarlett Johansson monologue – This was mostly just a song to prove that Scarlett is always seductive, and it really does not matter at all if she is singing a lullaby or starring in a movie. It was mildly funny as an opening, but it also got old long before the “friends” showed up.
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Right Side of the Bed – You’ve been off for weeks, and this is what you come up with? We didn’t love it that much the first time, mostly because it is the same format every time: Bickering hosts and a guest who wants to feel included. It is no surprise that Cecily Strong gets prime placement, though, coming off the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
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Orioles Game – There were a few funny lines in here, but for the most part, is the Baltimore Riots really the best source of parody? We give the show credit for not steering clear of controversy, but maybe this was a tad too predictable.
Black Widow trailer – Hilarious, mostly because this is what many people have been complaining about when it comes to Marvel not making a Black Widow movie. May we say again that Marvel really needs to make a Black Widow movie? She is one of the best characters they have.
Girlfriends Talk Show – This was solid evidence that the show actually wanted everyone to tune in to the fight rather than continuing to watch. Cecile’s “my boyfriend’s crazy” rant was fun as always, and that’s about it.
Weekend Update – The highlight here was clearly Ruth Bader Ginsberg as played by Kate McKinnon. Seeing Sam and Gilly talk about being the “Hottest Couple” on “Game of Thrones” was worth a few laughs, and the less we say about Kenan’s Charles Barkley the better. Also, a very weak night for Michael Che with multiple flubs.
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Blazer – A fake-cop sketch basically mocking the media’s tendency to glamorize cops who beat up bad guys. Mildly funny thanks to the turn at the end; it may have been better than the Baltimore riot sketch earlier in the night.
Flight attendants – We don’t know if this is something that Virgin Airlines is actually doing or if this was just for the sketch, but robot flight attendants (played by Johansson and Vanessa Bayer) actually made for one of our favorite sketches of the night. Completely silly, but their performances made up for any predictability.
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Jingles – We close tonight with a moderately-funny sketch about jingle writers who were actually rather terrible at their job, despite claiming that they are actually rather good at it.
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As a whole, this was a mixed bag show if there ever was one. We didn’t really laugh hysterically at any point throughout, even if there were only a couple of major clunkers. This was average, and therefore it deserves an average grade. Grade: C+.
If you want to see the hosting lineup the rest of this season, and also a take on the music tonight after the performances, head over here! Also, sign up to get some other TV news worth performing over via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: NBC.)