Saturday Night Live
Chris Rock & Gracie Abrams
December 14, 2024
Remarkably, this is only the fourth* time Chris Rock has hosted Saturday Night Live since he was a cast member back in the early nineties. Despite (or maybe because of) being comedy royalty, Rock hasn’t really spent that much time in the 8H studio that helped make him a star. And honestly, it’s probably for the best? Rock seemed unprepared for live television, hesitant at times, and clearly dependent on the cue cards and teleprompter. It was almost like he was coasting on being Chris Rock.
As for the episode, it was … fine. It was completely fine and unmemorable. It was a mid episode of Saturday Night Live, featuring a couple of legitimately funny sketches, a bunch of middling ones, and a couple of desperately unfunny bits. But most unfortunately for Rock, the episode will probably be best remembered for an unexpected cameo from an entirely different SNL alum. (Not Dana Carvey.) (Thank goodness.)
*Fun little fact: note the Prince symbol necklace Rock is wearing in the bumper photo above? Prince was the musical guest when Rock hosted for the second time in 2014. R.I.P. Prince.
Our cold open features Sarah Sherman as Nancy Grace on her YouTube show talking about alleged United Healthcare CEO murderer, Luigi Mangione, and how hot he is.
It’s three jokes:
- Luigi is hot
- YouTube’s ads are loud, unexpected and disruptive
- Nancy Grace has a funny Southern accent
It wasn’t brilliant, but it wasn’t bad — and it was refreshing to not have Dana Carvey pop up for literally the first time this season. But that said — and I know this is a personal complaint — Sherman’s Southern accent was like listening to someone dragging their nails down a blackboard for this particular Southerner.
Grade: B+
Chris Rock does an 8-minute stand-up routine for his opening monologue, touching on a number of hot topics, including the Jake Paul/Mike Tyson fight; Elon Musk being an “African-American”; President Biden pardoning his son Hunter; Former President Adjuicated Rapist-Elect being a rapist; and, of course, Luigi. It’s certainly timely, and doesn’t feel like material he’s workshopping for a tour, but it also feels a little unrehearsed. Still, the man is a skilled comedian and there are some really good jokes in here that pack a punch.
Grade: A-
Children visiting the mall to take a picture with Santa have their choice of two Santas: a Black Santa, and a white Santa, forcing the white families to struggle with their own “wokeness” over which one they will choose. It’s a very Chris Rock-esque challenge of white liberal ideals.
Grade: A-
At a Secret Santa party, Rock’s character receives a Simpsons-fied portrait of himself, and gets way into imagining what his The Simpsons episode would be about (saving Marge from an abusive Homer). Honestly, the jokes about the other Secret Santa presents are funnier than the premise of this sketch.
Grade: B-
Cleaning out his grandfather’s garage, a man finds his grandfather’s magic car from the 1950s — think Herbie — but this car is a product of its times: super racist and sexist.
Grade: B-
Two employees — a Vice President of sales and the front desk guy, Charlie — apologize to their co-workers for sexually harassing them at the Christmas party. Everyone is furious with the VP but brush off Charlie’s much worse comments as “Charlie being Charlie.” This is the third time they’ve done this exact same sketch: most recently, in the 2019 Scarlett Johansson episode, and the first time when James Franco hosted in 2017 — so that didn’t age well. In those instances, the sketches earned a C+ and a C from me, respectively. But I don’t know, maybe I’ve become desensitized? Jaded? More cynical? Stupider? because I didn’t hate it this time?
Grade: B+
“Weekend Update” has more Luigi jokes, comes for Mitch McConnel, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Jeff Bezos, and is one of the few remaining outlets that is not pulling its punches with Former President Full Diaper-Elect. Good.
Grade: A
Apparently, a court in the United Kingdom ruled that calling a man “bald” constitutes harassment, so Andrew Dismukes comes out in a bald cap and makes a bunch of jokes about bald men.
Grade: C+
Newbie Jane Wickline is shaping up to be a love-her-or-hate-her cast member, and this song about how no one is speculating on Sabrina Carpenter’s sexuality despite all of her obvious attempts to get people to speculate about her sexuality isn’t going to do anything to make her a less controversial addition to the show.
That said, I loved it. Clever and insightful.
Grade: A+
A surgical team realizes they are performing the wrong surgery thanks to a surgical assistant’s dumb mistake, only to have the patient — an old and cranky Adam Sandler — wake up on the table and begin spraying everyone with blood. Was I initially irritated at Adam Sandler being wedged into this sketch? Yes. But then he started roasting the cast in a very meta way and I got over it pretty quickly.
Grade: B+
This pretape hypes up the office Christmas party and all its grim, depressing little rituals like a few lights turned off to create atmosphere, lukewarm beer, awkward revelations from unexpected coworkers, and soggy food. Hilarious, and distressingly accurate.
Grade: A
Finally, a woman goes on a blind date only to be approached by a weirdo who tries to lure her into his car to have sex. Obvious and weak.
Grade: C
Final Grade: A solid B+.
Saturday Night Live airs at 10:30/11:30 p.m. Saturdays on NBC and streams on Peacock.
Chris Rock’s opening monologue was great!