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Last Night on "SNL": Matt Damon Blows His Brains Out and Alec Baldwin Apologizes to Himself

By Dustin Rowles | Posted Under TV Reviews | Comments (27)

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Last night’s “SNL” had a few decent moments, but none had anything to do with host, Katy Perry, one of the worst and least talented hosts the show has had since Tom Brady. She was not only bad, the cast had no idea what to do with her, which meant another episode hogged by Kristen Wiig. I agree with the overwhelming consensus on Wiig: I like her a lot, but she’s worn out her welcome on “SNL.” That said, she had two good moments last night, the first with a Drew Barrymore impersonation in a New Year’s Eve parody commercial that had a few other notably good impressions:

It’s been a terrible season so far for Digital Shorts, but Andy Samberg delivered maybe the best one of the season so far, and I don’t feel bad about spoiling the (awesome) Matt Damon cameo in it because there’s a second cameo that’s even better.

It was bizarro world on Weekend Update. The Headlines fell flat, but the three segments all rocked, and my favorite was actually the second amusing performance from Wiig last night. Mileage may vary, but I loved this:

Alec Baldwin also showed up to address his American Airlines controversy; Seth Meyers was smart to stay out of it because it is both funny and extremely douchy, which is to say: Typical Alec Baldwin.

And, of course, Stefon showed up. Obligatory:

Bill Hader has undeniably been the star of this season of “SNL,” but what happened to Jason Sudeikis? He used to dominate the show along with Hader, but this season, he’s barely around. Is he just riding out the season before he quits? He showed up in the last skit of the night, and sang. And he can sing well, and it’s noteworthy enough to embed a skit that also featured Katy Perry (if you stick to the highlights on this page, you can otherwise avoid her).

Finally, Robyn was the musical guest. I had no idea who she was, and my wife told me she was a 90’s one-hit wonder of sorts, a Scandanavian pop star who was popular around the time Ace to Base was popular, and that she’s inexplicably had a come back thanks, in part, to unexpected critical success. I thought my wife was taking the piss. Then I watched the performance.

She was not taking the piss.









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Comments

Ace OF Base. Jeez.

Posted by: Kitty at December 11, 2011 9:15 AM

"Ace to Base"?

Granted, there are better ways to use the memory center of your brain than to memorise Scandinavian nineties pop groups, but somehow I'm not surprised you've never heard of Robyn, Dustin...

Posted by: Zirze at December 11, 2011 9:16 AM

While Hader and Wiig are still the dominating presence, the newbies are really owning everything they do, Taran Killam in particular.

Posted by: Courtney at December 11, 2011 9:37 AM

I thought the Baldwin skit was funny but I enjoyed the Kahlua commercials a lot more than the rest of the SNL videos.

Posted by: snapnhiss at December 11, 2011 10:03 AM

Robyn made three of 2010's best pop albums

Posted by: PyD at December 11, 2011 10:12 AM

Never been fond of Robyn, but she has a big time Pitchfork-indie following these days.

Also, the star of this season is probably Taran Killam. They use him in almost every sketch, and he somehow manages to do something different every time. I still think Bobby Moynihan is my favorite (followed closely by Andy Samberg, Nasim Pedrad, and Bill Hader) and he saves the most sketches (he's basically the Mariano Rivera of SNL sketches), but Killam has been a star on the rise.

Posted by: ChristianH at December 11, 2011 10:25 AM

Robyn has a nice voice, and her songwriters seem to have hit the sweet spot. But those shoes and her dancing are Ke$ha bad.

Posted by: idiosynchronic at December 11, 2011 11:00 AM

Wow, Robyn's dance moves are bad, but I join with idiosynchronic in thinking the shoes are really the true sin.

In fact, I think the shoes are doing in whatever rhythm she has.

Watching her dance is akin to seeing an inebriated carney try out the stilt-walker's props late at night in the bigtop after huffing glue and dreaming of the life he'll never have...

Posted by: Pragmatist at December 11, 2011 11:19 AM

I'm pretty sure Robyn wrote all of the songs on her album(s), or at least co-wrote them. I know she had a hand a this one, and it's without a doubt my favorite song of hers. I didn't really give her a listen when her album, titled, of course, Robyn, came out in 2008, but I decided to give her a listen last summer and she really blew me away. Her music is insanely catchy, and she is, in my opinion, the best pop star out there today. Much better than Katy Perry, who hardly did anything in the clips I watched, thank god.
I disagree, idiosynchronic, that her dancing is bad. I think it's very energetic, and she just likes to get down with her bad self while performing. It's kind of rehearsed, and you notice she uses some moves every time she performs a song, but for the most part, it's just her putting her body dancing to the music. If you still disagree, watch Katy Perry perform live, and then you'll see who is truly a terrible performer on stage.

Posted by: Kamikaze Feminist at December 11, 2011 11:38 AM

I cannot hate Alec Baldwin, not matter how much of a rageoholic he is. Dude is just funny.

Posted by: Gavin S. at December 11, 2011 11:46 AM

The Digital Short just proves my long-standing theory: Val Kilmer should be in everything. He's the best in history.

Posted by: Ty at December 11, 2011 12:23 PM

Oh those wacky Scandinavians, that's why I Love em.

Posted by: Haystacks at December 11, 2011 12:40 PM

Still better than having to listen to Perry sing.

Posted by: Salad_Is_Murder at December 11, 2011 12:51 PM

....we listened to aggressively cheerful music sung by people chosen for their ability to dance.... Rupert Giles

Posted by: Wembley at December 11, 2011 12:55 PM

Okay, I lost it at "Menorah the Explorer".
Love Bill Hader.

Posted by: Julia at December 11, 2011 2:00 PM

My opinion of the show was much the same as yours. I laughed at the digital short. And at Stefon. And at the first 15 seconds of Wiig's News thing. And thought she looked strangely hot in that wig.

Perry was awful beyond belief. So much so, that they basically ignored her. If they have to have a young female host, then it just has to be Anne Hathaway or Emma Stone. They have no idea what to do with anyone else.

And it is time for Sudekis,Wiig, and Armiesen to move on. I would assume they will after the season. Hader should stay forever. But he won't. The "featured" players are in every sketch. Time to promote them.

Posted by: Sean at December 11, 2011 4:45 PM

Robyn was the only reason I bothered even checking this episode. And I ff'd all of the skits, with the exception of Stefon.

Posted by: Pants at December 11, 2011 6:01 PM

Kristen Wiig is the only one that makes me laugh every week (and Stefon whenever he shows up) so wishing her away is so wrong.

I had high hopes for the J-Pop skit but there was nothing new on the hosts' part and it was up to the guest to save it and it was Katy Perry so...

Digital Short still blows. Don't do it until JT is the host again.

Seth Meyers need to skip the "funny" news bit and go straight to interviewing ppl coz that shit used to be funny with Fey and Fallon.

Posted by: haplo at December 11, 2011 7:09 PM

I thought the Baldwin skit was funny but I enjoyed the Kahlua commercials a lot more than the rest of the SNL videos.

Posted by: kengao46 at December 11, 2011 9:30 PM

I'm one of the people guilty of liking Stefon so much I could watch him every week. I lost my shit at Spud Webb (wtf?) and Menorah the Explorer. I too revel in Alec Baldwin's douchey-ness for all eternity. Reminds me now of my bloated alcoholic uncle. All he needs is a gold neck chain and Old Spice.

No one else mentioned it, but the J Pop sketch I thought wasn't half bad; in part because I remember all sorts of "ethnic" clubs in college that were mostly white kids latching onto a certain part of a country's culture. I loved how they tried to thank Jason Sudeikis' teacher and he shouts from offstage "I'm not going down for this!"

Posted by: scorzi at December 11, 2011 11:45 PM

This made me a Robyn fan for life:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmFu-hF6iKc

Posted by: space oddity at December 11, 2011 11:56 PM

Val Kilmer was looking surprisingly less poofy in that short.

Posted by: Protoguy at December 12, 2011 2:29 AM

Look on the bright side, now the Charlie Day ep isn't the worst of the season (so far).

Posted by: Salad_Is_Murder at December 12, 2011 3:05 AM

Katy Perry was the second best host of this season (Melissa McCarthy being the best), much better than anyone had a right to expect; the digital short was the best one yet, even though Andy should be legally prohibited from ever being allowed to do another one; Wiig was awesome in every sketch she appeared in, one of the all-time talented SNL players; Alec Baldwin was absolutely hilarious; and overall, this was the best show they've had this year, despite the awesomely unfunny Jason Sudeikis and the embarrassingly talentless Robyn.

After the supremely shitty Emma Stone, Anna Faris & Jason Segel-hosted shows, I'm amazed that Dustin was so underwhelmed.

Posted by: special snowflake at December 12, 2011 9:22 AM

Epic troll, snowflake, you have my approval.

Posted by: Salad_Is_Murder at December 12, 2011 11:44 AM

I'm an unabashed Robyn fan. Her "comeback" story is really interesting, I think. Basically she went back to Sweden because she was tired of being wrenched through the US major-label music machine as a teen poplet, and created her own independent label and started producing her own shit. Everything she's done since has been explicitly on her own terms and (unsurprisingly) has been heaps more creative than the vast majority of what is shat out of our pop factory over here.

I also love her fascination with robots.

Posted by: Amanda6 at December 12, 2011 2:19 PM

Robyn is talented as heck but dang if she isn't rocking Nick Carter's haircut circa 1997.

Posted by: vdub at December 12, 2011 3:34 PM