Saturday Night Live
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John Mulaneys success as anSNLhost shouldnt come as a surprise.
Any of his stand-up specials testify to his ability as a joke writer.
This time, the impetus is the guys interest in buying a spicy tuna roll at LaGuardia Airport.
On top of that, theres a reprise of Talking Heads Road to Nowhere.
Once again, the musical sketch on Mulaneys night is a showstopper.
(Like Louis Farrakhan, I mean a lot to a small group of people.)
His run about constitutional amendments, in particular the details about quartering soldiers, is excellent.
His story about a disappointed young woman who selected Mulaney for her Make-A-Wish is funny and a little sad.
Much, much older.
Rolf defends himself as Leisl debates the merits of their ongoing courtship.
(Youre a geriatric telegram boy.
Im rich and good at puppets.
You do the math.)
Che then tosses his clip-on tie and starts drinking whiskey for feel free.
After Che spins out a bit more, Chris Redd comes on to talk about Black History Month.
Redd has not had this kind of time on Update, and he does not waste it.
His jokes are sharp, his delivery assured, and there are a number of carefully observed ideas.
Uncle Ron even dug up Tylers original meme, and its the meanest of all.
Tired of being the dork, Mooney hires Justin Theroux as a trainer and gets ripped.
In addition to the oddly hypnotizing visual of jacked Mooney, there are several great throwaway lines here.
While waiting for his arrival, they attempt to murder each other in hopes of securing the admirals affections.
Plus, he got promoted from Petty Officer to Pass-Around Party Bottom, and the admiral is interested.
The specifics and the scheming arent as inspired, and Mulaneys clueless sexiness doesnt read all that well.
Washington was famously the first black man to boo Robinson.
Its fitting that, with Mulaney hosting andDavid Byrne as musical guest,SNLonce again indulges its musical side.
Without those two bits, the show wouldnt have been such a success.
The cold open seems to be doing too much, and Update, too little.
Some of the other sketches feel like good ideas that just didnt find their legs.
