web counter
 

Last Night on "SNL": Justin Timberlake Brings His Helicopter D*ck

By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under TV Reviews | Comments (16)

snlJustinTimberlake.jpg

Look, last night’s episode was fantastic. If you don’t have it on your DVR, I’d suggest simply heading over to Hulu for the full episode (after 1 EST), otherwise you’re going to have to endure commercials before each of these skits. And last night’s show — easily the best of the season — really was nothing but highlights (and I didn’t even include the Gaga performances, if you’re into that).

Dominique Strauss-Kahn Cold Open

The IMF head is confronted right away by some opinionated inmates upon landing in his Rikers Island cell. As cold opens go, this was one of the better this season. Not that that’s saying too much. I think it’s the first time that Jay Pharoah has been in the first half-hour of the how.

Justin Timberlake Monologue

A JT-hosted show is a a reason to rejoice, typically, as he’s been “SNL’s” most consistent host since 90’s Tom Hanks and Alec Baldwin. I thought Jon Hamm might surpass him after his first stint, but that second appearance earlier this season was a stinker (no fault of Hamm’s). Anyway, JT’s monologue killed per usual, and offered a lot of hope for the rest the the season finale.

Bring It Own Down to Liquorville

Sorry, folks. There’s no video embed for this one. They have to give you a reason to watch the full episodes on Hulu (at 1 EST, the full video goes live). It’s worth it for liquorville alone. I think Mrs. Pajiba-hyphenate melted about six times. Can we just make Timberlake a permanent cast addition? (Oh, and I’m pretty sure you can see Gaga’s nipple.)

Herb Welch

I didn’t love this skit the first time around (with Emma Stone?), but JT makes everything better. Watch Hader try to keep it together.

Digital Short: 3-Way (The Golden Rule)

Helicopter dick? Screw it. See for yourself.



Weekend Update: Really?

The topic: Schwarzenegger.

Weekend Update: Nicolas Cage and Bradley Cooper

These skits waste the real celebrity appearance almost as much “What’s Up with That.” But whatever: Look! The Emu.

Weekend Update: Headlines

What’s that Name

Fantastic! “You think his name is Charty?”


Amusement Park Rides

Christ, JT is even a spectacular animatronic character.

Secret Word

I have a suspicion that this will be Kristen Wiig’s last “SNL” skit. I can’t imagine she returns next season, after the success of Bridesmaids.

The Barry Gibb Talk Show

The first episode this season actually worth staying up to see in its entirety. Barry Effin’ Gibbs.









Each Time You Like, Share, Tweet or Stumble a Pajiba Post, An Angel Does the Paul Rudd Dance

← Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Review: Taking in $15 and Giving Away 50 Cents Worth of Crap | The Weekly Murdertank: Boring Blockbusters, Defending Tracy Flick, and The Fire Rises →









Comments

Timberlake brings the funny every time he appears on SNL and last night was no exception. Better is the fact that the writers and cast seem to up their games as well. Yes, it was worth watching from start to finish and I even enjoyed Gaga's performances.

Posted by: Spender at May 22, 2011 12:00 PM

I almost never watch SNL and when I do, I rarely laugh. But JT always brings the funny and he and GaGa together were surprisingly good. I stayed up for the whole thing--unheard of! Dude needs to be a regular.

Posted by: Cindy at May 22, 2011 12:08 PM

Good, solid episode. JT always brings it, you can tell he loves being on the show. The cold opening was fucking weak though.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at May 22, 2011 12:13 PM

I thought that Nicolas Cage bit was fantastic. Death by human bites! AND the incredibly weird stuff about his eyebrows seeking adventure abroad. So good.

Posted by: Optimus Rhyme at May 22, 2011 12:22 PM

Thank goodness you guys are here to tell me if an ep is worth watching.

So many bad ones, I just wait for the Pajiba review to go up.

"The Golden Rule" - Susan Sarandon is still the hotness.

Really?!? - Needed a woman riffing off Seth to really bring it, but was still good.

Gaga? She is the sexy 80s chick.
~~~

Posted by: Meander at May 22, 2011 12:52 PM

What?!

I hated this episode! And as a huge JT fan, that's really painful for me to say. The only sketches that I liked are the ones you seem most lukewarm about: The Cold Open, which I thought was both intelligent and silly without being fully up-its-own-ass (for once), Nic Cage (Samberg's Nic Cage is batshit hilarity, and I hope he does it every episode from now on), and two we do agree on, the Digital Short (we do agree on that one) and Barry Gibb.

Other than that, every single sketch was a recurring bit. EVERY. ONE. And not even the really good ones! The animatronic bit was amusing, but lost momentum, "What's That Name" was as clumsy and poorly timed as any episode I've ever seen, "Secret Word" was unspeakable, Herb Welch was funny but it's the same bit every time. The monologue didn't grab me; it was cute, but the joke was over in the first ten seconds, and then they just stretched it out.

After a full season of us disagreeing about almost every episode, I can only conclude that when it comes to SNL, you and I are polar opposites.

Posted by: ChristianH at May 22, 2011 1:27 PM

Way to spoil the helicopter dick joke twice before I got to the video!

Posted by: Paul Southworth at May 22, 2011 1:44 PM

The clips were solid. I watched one of Lady Gaga's performances and really thought it was rather unspectacular and difficult to even get though, but she's always been overrated to me and nothing more than a self promoting "artist."

Posted by: Matt at May 22, 2011 2:14 PM

Is every show on tv now some homage to glee?
SNL used to have some sense of controversy and/or topical humor. now, it's helicopter dicks.

suck on ladies, suck on.

Posted by: rnixon at May 22, 2011 2:35 PM

Yeah, dammit! Lord knows that SNL never had any musical elements before Glee became popular. Even Dick In a Box is a ripoff, even though they made that short 3 years before Glee aired. SNL is sucky, noncontroversial, and not topical (with helicopter dicks) - just like women are!

Posted by: Three-nineteen at May 22, 2011 4:37 PM

If I had a Tunisian slave for every "clearly the best of the season" line for every SNL review posted (I still have no idea why this is done), I would have a harem. Every weekly post of "Is SNL still shitty?" is usually resoundingly answered with a "fuck yes", but you go back to it, hat in hand, benefit of the doubt ass-fucking you to the point where even Lorne Michaels is telling you "ease up, it's just SNL".

It exposes the tide that this terrible show is working against and that this poor mule should have been shot and rolled down the mountain a long time ago. It's like coming up with lines to support reasons for staying in Vietnam even after the generals themselves are saying, "holy shit, the war is over".

You're the mommy, and SNL is 4-year-old little Joey who just finished his little line in the school play. You don't want to crush Joey's world, so you tell him it was a good line and he did well. SNL is NOT little Joey. It's the "Little Show that Couldn't After its Original Vanguard either OD'ed or Stopped Taking Drugs and Became Un-Fucking-Funny". There, I said it.

Recycling recycled ideas from the recycler does not a phoenix make.

Posted by: Recondite at May 22, 2011 5:31 PM

i dug it. jt is a great host who performs live effortlessly. it's annoying how good he is.

i laughed out loud several times during the ep.

thoughts:
- think amy poehler would have been an INCREDIBLE addition to that "REALLY?!?" sketch during update.
- gaga was fine.
- bradley cooper was underused.

Posted by: tracey at May 22, 2011 6:32 PM

Gaga seemed very comfortable. If anything she was at least much more natural than some actual recent guest hosts.

It really was a great episode from start to finish, no matter how many people will post "this show is still on?" as they've been asking every damn week for 15 years now.

Posted by: mb at May 22, 2011 7:31 PM

Needless to say, I was left alone with my coke-smeared gorilla and an arm-weary, rapture-addled savior last night.

First, Pharoah's face when they said they were going to rape him now was glorious. Seriously, go back and check it out.

I could watch Timberlake dance in a giant costume all day. The "up-down-up-down" dance was ridiculous. I didn't like "The Golden Rule" so much, though the humor is right up my alley. The way Heder smacked everyone with the mic will never get old. And the guy in the middle of the Amusement Park Ride trio was KILLING it. I've seen him a few times, but really noticed him here.

But it bears repeating . . . Barry Effin' Gibb. "We suckled at the same teat!" is my new shit. Y'all can share, but whenever you use it you have to say you're just borrowing it from your Uncle Kballs.

Posted by: Kballs at May 23, 2011 8:36 AM

"Way to spoil the helicopter dick joke twice before I got to the video!"

All he did was SAY "helicopter dick" without offering any context. If that's a spoiler, you must be prescient.

Posted by: Craig at May 23, 2011 10:25 AM

Don't care. Funneh as shet. Haters gonna hate.

I don't usually watch the show as it is often kinda 'eh', but when it's a JT ep, you just gotta. This one was definitely one of his best and the show itself had barely a miss. The Amusement Park thing kinda faded off (like most SNL skits) but other than that it was crazy.

Even Gaga's bits were great, music and all, though the egg-to-song-birth thing with the golden amniotic fluid was kinda wtf. I got the impression that she wanted to do something more with it, since there was a pull string on her uterus. Looked like she either chickened out or it didn't work right (sabotage?!) I expected a little Gaga to come out of her egg/stomach, echoing the opening of the song.

Loved the cold open, even if the ending was no surprise. "Bitch, you know I ain't got no love fo Portugal!"

I was indeed LOLing the whole night, and let me tell you, LOLing is painful right now and I still couldn't turn away.

Posted by: Protoguy at May 23, 2011 11:50 AM