SNL: "Elton John"

SNL episodes where the host and musical act are one in the same tend to go either one of two ways. They can either be highly entertaining (like, say, Justin Timberlake) or they can fall flat (Taylor Swift). A review of Elton John’s attempt at hosting, after the jump…

Laurence Welk Cold Open – Let’s face it: having Elton serve as the musical act within the sketch isn’t exactly stretching any acting or creative muscles. Let’s hope that the show can do better than this. I’ve never been a big fan of “Laurence Welk” sketches; I don’t find Armisen’s accent funny, and laughing at Wiig dressed up as a deformed girl is just too mean for my tastes. Let’s chalk this one up to a bust

Monologue – If making race jokes in this day and age is “post-racial,” what do we call Elton’s jokes, “post-sexual”? Either way, I didn’t find them that funny. Maybe we’re just not at that place yet in our society. Elton was charming, but he wasn’t funny.

ESPN Classic: Shotput – Interestingly enough, one form of this sketch was part of the Taylor Swift show. I didn’t really find that sketch funny then, but then one was a little better, most likely due to all of the KY Jelly jokes. Yet based on the surprise guest stars – Tom Hanks and Carmelo Anthony (thanks, Google’s Twitter feed!), plus the inclusion of Will Forte, who was fired before this season started – it just seemed liked this sketch was trying to hard. Nor did it help that the sketch didn’t really have an ending. And where was Elton in all of this? Funny, but not a good sign for what’s to come.

Knights of the Sacred Realm – Much like previous sketch, this one was stylistically messy, yet funny in a oddball sort of way. Sure, I guess one could call it lazy that the “knights” in question were played with the basest characterizations, sometime relying only on famous roles. Yet I’m guessing that was part of the point, as the fake-out faux-British-sitcom opening and surreal premise (a dragon attacking London) would seem to suggest. Personally, I just enjoyed watching these very weird personalities bouncing off of one another. (And Elton’s flub and problems turning around in the chair would seem to suggest why Tom Hanks is stealth hosting this one.)

Laser Cats: The Musical – Admittedly, I never saw the original “Laser Cats” sketch, but I kind of liked this, from the faux-amateur aesthetic, to the mish-mash of songs styles, to taking of Wilson hostage. It worked for me, though I’m sure other might feel differently. But a second cameo for Carmelo Anthony, AND a third turn from Hanks? Is they show just giving up?

Elton John/Leon Russell – Man, we even have to bring in a back-up musical act for this guy? (Or alternatively, why wasn’t Russell mentioned in the opening credit sequence? I feel like that could have been arranged.)

Weekend Update – While Meyers was about as funny as usual, I particularly enjoyed Meyer’s comparisons of Republican presidential candidates to past Celebrity Apprentice contestants….While I appreciated that the show would try to criticize Obama’s decisions to start a “war” with Libya, I’m not sure that using Gaddafi as the mouthpiece was all that wise. Plus all the other jokes he delivered fell totally flat….Once again, SNL’s time frame hurt it, as all of the jokes about the escaped snake felt tired this late in the game. Plus, you would think they could up with something better than having the snake escaping AGAIN….I liked “Enter The Cage” more than I would have expected, perhaps mostly due to the way that Jake Gyllenhaal (a surprise guest who isn’t Tom Hanks!) subtly played off of Samberg’s Cage. Really, it shouldn’t be that surprising, given Gyllenhaal’s performance in his latest Daily Show interview.

Royal Wedding Reception Song – Clearly the show was trying to recapture the thunder they brought with the “Kate Meets the Queen” sketch that was part of the Anne Hathaway show this season. Luckily, the show didn’t try to have Elton played shocked at their “real” accents, since that wouldn’t make sense given his past collaboration with the Crown. Instead, they had Elton give as good as he got, and somehow ended with a cover of some punk rock song. (It sounded like something The Clash might do, but I couldn’t be sure. Anybody know?) It was a weird progression, but I kind of liked it.

The Silver Screen – So Elton makes “post-sexual” jokes in his monologue, and then we’re supposed to laugh at a bitchy gay couple kissing? So much for not being homophobic. And that’s not even considering the fact that this was just a rip-off of the “Men on Film” sketches from In Living Color.

Gay Cowboy – Sure that’s probably not the actual name of this sketch, but it’s probably more fitting. Just as offensive as the previous sketch. Nor does the reveal at the end make things any better, nor does it make any sense. I wondered if it was just tacked on at the end in order to overrides the homophobia. However, Elton’s ad-libbed line about his hat was a nice save.

Tonight’s episode was a weird one. Elton John didn’t really host some much as sharing hosting duties with Tom Hanks And A Cavalcade of Stars. He even shared music duties with Leon Russell, a man who wasn’t mentioned in the opening credits, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS HIS BIRTHDAY. Despite the show’s seemingly forward thinking outlook, they still debased themselves with homophobic gay jokes. And the last act wasn’t a sketch, but the second musical act. While this episode wasn’t nearly as limp as the Miley Cyrus episode, it certainly was off-putting. Not the kind of effort I would have expected from a celebrity who seems so game for this kind of thing.

Best Sketch – ESPN Classic: Shotput

Worst Sketch – (tie) The Silver Screen/Gay Cowboy

What did everybody else think?

Additional Thoughts:

“I’m Nancy.” “Like me.”

“No foreplay today? Hey, that’s okay.”

“If the average man is five inches, I’d say all the way for maximum pleasure.”

“Protect her from your girth with the greatest lube on earth.”

“Speaking of comfort zones: KY Jelly. When you’re seeing sparks in you penis parts.”

“Make a little room for Paco, put some sauce on that taco.”

“Speaking of loose slots: KY Jelly.”

“…filing in for Fat Danny.”

“It’s official: A dragon is attacking London.”

“And of course, Sir Mix-A-Lot.”

“Except a Spiderman musical.”

“No. The costume lady…GAVE IT TO ME!”

“And I’m putting this as delicately as possible…jizzed all over it, until it died.”

“Just to be on the safe side, Kellog’s is introducing Beige Loops.”

“A discovery I hope they made at dinner, and not at breakfast.”

“Which is where only woman think you’re dating.”

“I won an Oscar, that’s my mystique. Am I genius or a madman?”

“Because if you penis is tiny, it’s tiny every day.”

“Gonna change the words to ‘Candle in the Wind’ again?”