SNL: Tina Fey's Plucky Palin, Ann Hathaway, The Bailout, And Mark Wahlberg With A Goat

Tina Fey continued her dominance as late-night's favorite character in yet another killer portrayal of Sarah Palin on this evening's "Saturday Night Live." Last night, she joined Queen Latifah as Gwen Ifill and Jason Sudeikis as Joe Biden in a great opening sketch mocking Thursday's Vice-Presidential debate. The host was Ann Hathaway, who gave a strong opening monologue about her con ex-boyfriend, playing off on how gullible she must be (about her new boyfriend, met over the internet: "I mean, how often does someone meet a Nigerian prince?").

Here are 5 videos from the show, with some observations below, including "Weekend Update" zingers that aren't online.

(1) Washington Passes The Bailout Package: Kristen Wiig as Nancy Pelosi, Jason Sudeikis as President Bush, and Fred Armisen as Barney Frank:

(2) VP Debate: Tina Fey as Sarah Palin, Jason Sudeikis as Joe Biden, Queen Latifah as Gwen Ifill:






(3) Mary Poppins Explains "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious": Ann Hathaway as Mary Poppins, Casey Wilson as Jane, Bobby Moynihan as Michael, Bill Hader as (an awesome) Bert, and Will Forte as the jolly Officer:







(4) Mark Wahlberg Talks To Animals: Andy Samberg as Wahlberg, chatting up farm animals ("Say hello to your mother for me"):







(5) The Lawrence Welk Show: Featuring a pretty sister-girl group, except for Kristen Wiig as the ugly, weirdo sister:







(6) Digital Short: Extreme Challenge:Andy Samberg and Kristen Wiig face off in a series of Extreme Challenges; Will Forte is the ref.









(7) Bonus -SNL Backstage: Bobby MoynihanArmisen and Samberg welcome their new castmate to the hallowed halls for 8H:

A few thoughts:

• Latifah's portrayal of Ifill was a touch astringent, connecting Ifill's lack of follow-up questions during the debate with the controversy around her upcoming book Breakthrough, Politics of Race in the Age of Obama." Her other big zinger: "Due to the historically low expectations for Gov. Palin, were she simply to do an adequate job tonight, at no point cry, faint, run out of the building or vomit, you should consider the debate a tie."

• It was at that point that Fey winked.

• Sudeikis' genial Biden was great ("I love John McCain. He's one of my dearest friends. But at the same time, he's also mentally unbalanced"), and he got some good lines, but it was Fey who once again stole the show. She (and the writers) pulled out every stop, including (a) gay marriage (and friends) (b) Playing the flute (c) global warming (d) shout out to third-graders (e) mavericks (f) Joe Sixpacks (g) looking adorable. That is why the sketch was a whopping 11 minutes long.

• Fey has never looked as hot as she has as Palin. Is that weird that I think that?

• Sure crowd-pleaser that is bound to be cited in future attacks on the unfair liberal media: "I believe marriage is meant to be a sacred institution between two unwilling teenagers."
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• Hathaway gamely tackles the Raffaello Follieri debacle: "I broke up with my Italian boyfriend and two weeks later he was arrested for fraud. I know! We've all been there, right ladies?"

• You just saw it in "Lawrence Welk" above, but if you didn't howl hysterically at Kristen Wiig's tiny hands, you have no soul.

• This is from "Weekend Update," not online, but: Will Forte's real name actually is Orville Willis Forte IV. I love his uptight nerdy political characters. This time he sang every congressman's name and how they voted on the bailout ("Joe Barton, Republican, 'Yea'..."). Ridiculous + repetitive = Hilarious. Song almost as good as this one (scroll down).

• The "Extreme Activities Competition" digital short is strongly reminiscent of the "Punch" short, both structurally and musically (both have a "Jump" by House of Pain vibe). Watch 'em both and see if you disagree. You won't.

• Bailout sketch: Thank God they put it online, because how the hell to explain it? Pelosi's crazy-eyes, Frank's crazy-face, Wilson's crazy-hair, and — oh yes — this country's crazy subprime mortgages (cf. Moynihan: "I don't know how this happened to me! I fit all the requirements for a subprime mortgage - no credit history, prison record..."). Also Will Forte as George Soros, and a Poheler meta-appearance as a baby mama.

• The Killers! What bird had to die for Brandon Flowers' epaulets?

• Don't know what was in the water this week, but there was an extra-dose of....let's just call it "inspiration" this week, that I think can best be summed up in this phrase: "Say hello to your mother for me."

• Showtune shout-out! Sudeikis as Hathaway's gay roommate, who reveals he's actually not gay on the day she moves out (and tries to kiss her). Bonus: Sudeikis singing "What I Did For Love" from A Chorus Line. He did what he had to do...

• Oh, a shout-out to hair on this one — he also wasn't really a hairdresser. "But I let you cut my hair!" she wails. "Yeah, I got lucky on that." At that point, you notice a random chuck on hair sticking out at the side. God is in the details.

• Also, Hader as also-fake-gay-boyfriend giving him a peck on the lips didnt' even register as odd until the crowd oohed. Come on, live studio audience, we've seen Jonah Hill making out with Jim Downey. This is nothing.

• Love for Hader: He really is a gifted impressionist, anyone who loved Marry Poppins as a kid could tell that instantly (Hathaway was no slouch, either). The Supercalifragilistic-STD was rather good too — I guess she'd been having a few too many "jolly holidays." Yes, I as a matter of fact I am proud of that.

• Did I mention that Hathaway looked stunning? In the pre-sketch photos, in the sketches, in the weird-but-saucy "Cabaret" inspired hat look before announcing the Killers second go. Princess Mia cleans up good.

• Casey Wilson gets a nice moment as Katy Perry — but Wiig steals it with a 5-second appearance as a butch lesbian golfer. Wilson gets high marks for being a strong supporting cast member, but I'm itching to see more out of her. I think it comes down to this: I have no sense of her personality or who she is — I have no sense of her comedy. It's the Rob Riggle trap — if you're always the straight man or the support then audiences can't fall in love with you. She needs another paralyzed stripper sketch. Or at the very least, some "Update" facetime.

• "Weekend Update" featured a joke-off between Amy and Seth about the various reasons a very, very fat man would get married (winner: To get cake). Also, for Howard Kurtz, an OJ mention: "OJ Simpson was found guilty Friday on charges of armed robbery, assault and kidnapping, but really murder."
  

Additionally commentary via Twitter here.

Comments

[DrDidLittle]

Hey, have you ever noticed how Sarah Palin is so much like Tina Fey?

[KristaJulieva]

Gettin' harder and harder for the haters to talk about how bad SNL is nowadays (like they've been doing since, like, 1978). I already thought the show was undergoing one of its renaissances, like it did in the late eighties/early nineties...after this episode I'm starting to seriously think that this era (2006/7 to present) is second only to the original, the first few seasons. Srsly. I'm not saying it's competing with the first few seasons, but setting those aside, this might be the current watermark to date. Some of the randomness of the humor starts to remind me of Monty Python levels of absurdity. You still got your Katy Perry sketches that are funny but relatively weak, but those are the exception.

[jdmba]

The Biden impersonation was the funniest part of the show.

Samburg as Mark Wahlberg was the funniest thing I'd seen on the show for a while... Maybe that's because I haven't really watched the show in a while (thanks Tina Fey for bringing me back!) "Say hello to ya motha for me"). It was hilarious!!


Unfortunately, SNL just isn't my type of show anymore. The humor is much too white and middle-aged. But it has it's moments.

I hope another good comedy show comes up soon. One cannot live on Colbert Report alone.

[El Quahooga]

I can't view any of the videos. All I see is blank white space, no matter what browser I use. I have the most up-to-date versions of Flash and Shockwave, and I know they're working. What's wrong?

[danielsadicario]

They are videos provided by NBC so NBC might be using a software that's specific to them. I would go to their website and find the download.

[Veammn]

That "Lawrence Welk Show" sketch was one of the funniest sketches I've seen on SNL in years. Kudos to Kirsten Wiig and the writers.

[simkmer]

Fey you are great. How about SNL doing MSNBC 'S Morning Joe. Mika should be as easy as Palin, don't forget to include Pat B. laughing at C. Mathews comment..."the bale out is like the Titanic..only enough life boats for the rich..and the common folks are held back to go down with the ship." Pat thought this was really funny. Joe is like Palin on crack and Willie is like Pinocchio report lies.

[Alberthoven]

Aww I wished they would have posted the skit on Weekend Update with Will Forte singing the bailout bill roll call.

"Joe Barton, Republican, 'Yea'"

Loved it.

[cnobody]

Forte is probably my favorite cast member. Well, maybe Wiig.

[DonDavis]

Government Rescue Plan Includes Bailout of O.J. Simpson
http://satiricalpolitical.com/?p=3735

[bisongrad2000]

I am glad they posted these sketches online. Time Warner Cable dropped NBC from our system and their hotline advises us to watch NBC online......

[sus1]

Comcast dropped MSNBC from our standard cable? No Rachel Maddow here.

[munki]

Tina Fey... thank you for the great laughter...
She can be similar to "Kagemusha" (by Akira Kurosawa) in the movie... for Palin in Alaska...

[43P04T34]

I think that Tina Fey will probably be given the keys to virtually every city & village in Alaska, along with a lifetime passes to Alaska Airlines, Princess Cruises and any hotel in Alaska with more than 2 stories so that she can be readily called upon by Alaska Democrats at any time to demonstrate just how vapid Sarah Palin really is.

[grantlingel]

the more I watch the funnier Biden gets, so I take back my first comment

[jones]

Palin has tried to come off as the crackerbarrel yankee in the tradition of Frank Capra and Jimmy Stewart...the downhome outsider who straightens out the corruption and ol boy system of Washington. But she comes off as a damned fool as the old downhome people would have said many years ago.

Palin is a fraud.

Good work Tina and SNL.

[grantlingel]

Tina Fey and Queen Latifah were great.. I don't know who played BIden but he was miserable.
http://grantlingel.blogspot.com

[tlgeiger62]

The whole thing was GREAT! Jason Sudeikis was terrific and very funny as Biden and the look on Latifa's face when they'd pan back following a Palin answer was quite hilarious too.