"Saturday Night Live" Bids Kristen Wiig a Sweet and Emotional Farewell in the Season Finale

By Dustin Rowles | TV | May 20, 2012 |

By Dustin Rowles | TV | May 20, 2012 |

Last night’s Mick Jagger hosted “SNL” will probably be best remembered not for the great Jon Hamm cameo in the cold open, or the fantastic “Lazy Sunday” Digital Short sequel, or even Mick Jagger’s truly dreadful attempt to write a political song, but for the very sweet skit “written” around Kristen Wiig’s departure from the show. It was basically an excuse to allow us and the cast members say goodbye after seven years on the show, and it was genuinely emotional.

The show also featured an abundance of Kristen Wiig sketches (as last week’s featured a lot of Sudeikis sketches, ahead of his rumored departure) and the “Lazy Sunday” sequel that’s probably Andy Samberg’s final work on the show, as well.

There was some solid sketches, too. For instance, I never loved the Lawrence Welk sketch, but that’s because it never featured Jon Hamm.

The weight of Wiig’s departure made last night’s Secret Password a little more poignant (and funnier) than usual (it was also Mick Jagger’s best sketch of the night).

Stefon absolutely crushed it on “Weekend Update.

And Seth Meyers had a lot of great highlights, himself.

The Californians returned with a neat cameo from Steve Martin.

The Mick Jagger/Foo Fighters Medley was probably the longest musical segment in the show’s history, and it brought the house down.

I think really the only sour note of the night came with Mick Jagger’s really lame attempt at a blues song about the presidential election.

It didn’t make the show, even though it would’ve been the funniest sketch of the night save for the Digital Short, but “Kings of Catchphrase Comedy” returned in this web-only video (which is totally worth it just for Dave Grohl’s “catchphrase”).