It’s the Thanksgiving episode of SNL, and they actually did more holiday-related bits than they managed to do for Halloween! Jason Segel hosted, and the hot topic was whether the Muppets would make an appearance … and we didn’t have long to wait to find out that answer. The didn’t disappoint (I’m looking at you, Eddie Murphy). Overall, a fair-to-good episode, much (much) better than last week but still nothing on par with the Melissa McCarthy episode (which is running again next week). Enjoy the recap of this week’s sketches, and be sure to come back Sunday for the embedded videos.
Cold Open — Mitt Romney: Raw & Unleashed — Jason Sudeikis puts on his Romney gear again for a pretty humorous swipe at the man a lot of people regard as stiff. To gain momentum with his campaign, Romney will become 15 to 17% more edgy. Unbuttoned jacket, saying a woman is a sharp dresser, yelled at an aide for bringing him lukewarm tea, staged mistakes, leather jacket, fan mail (from family member) all go a long way to proving how square Romney really is.
Monologue: Jason Segel — Jason doesn’t know what to say when he comes out, so he sings instead. Yes, the Muppets did show up! And then they take over the song, and almost the hosting duties, and turn on Jason when he brings up that only he is hosting. But all is well by the end of the song. Very cute.
Red Flag — Funny perfume commercial, but we’ve seen it before.
Auditions for Regis’ Replacement — Pretty much everyone in the cast gets to do an impression: Sudeikis does Ricky Gervais, Keenan does Charles Barkley, Armisen does a very twitchy George Lopez, Hader does Garrison Keillor, Moynihan does Rosie O’Donnell, Abby Elliott does Zooey Deschanel, Taran Killam is Ashton Kutcher, Jay Pharao is Denzel, Segel is Antonio Banderas (doing a great vocal impression), and Kristin Wiig drives by as the only logical choice to replace Regis … Kathie Lee.
Kemper-pedic Mattress — Very funny spoof of a commercial for a motion-free mattress with all kinds of allusions to masturbation (kneading pizza dough, rolling dice) to prove that nothing will wake up the other person in bed like the old mattress (what was that weird squeaking?). They really hit all the right notes, down to the wine glass demonstration.
The Vogelchecks — You either love them or hate them, but it’s always funny to see how far they’ll go with this one. In this outing, Segel is the son who brings his girlfriend home for Thanksgiving weekend. The fun also includes having a meal with a guy from the shelter (watching Kristin Wiig trying to shoot a brussel sprout into Andy Samberg’s mouth was hysterical). Surprise appearance by Paul Rudd as the other brother he’d played in the past. He and Segel redefine “brotherly love.” Horrifying and hilarious at the same time.
Musical Guest: Florence + the Machine — I don’t get all the adoration. She seems to be all over the place, not really trying to hit the right notes. And too much quivering wailing for my tastes. I did like the second song better. Her music has a real late ’80s / early ’90s feel that reminds me of the music my dearly departed best friend used to listen to. Very Siouxsie & the Banshees, especially with that harp.
Weekend Update — This week’s top stories: Gingrich gaining, Gingrich and Freddie Mac, Cain’s Secret Service protection, Cain’s Libya gaffe. The real Jon Huntsman makes an appearance, poking fun at his standing with the GOP, and his hopes in New Hampshire. A pimp spider, and pizza as a vegetable which leads to Really with Seth and Kermit.
Retirement Party — A party becomes awkward when a secretary really has nothing to say, and another guy has something really bad to say. It was funny the first time Wiig got up on stage and screamed at everyone that she had nothing to say, but then she did it four more times. Segel’s part as the overly dramatic employee was okay, but I did like the soap-style camera zooms to emphasize the drama. It kind of fell apart at the end.
Time Life CD Collection: New Jack Thanksgiving — If you stay up late and see these infomercials, you’ll get a kick out of this one. Songs include: “Tryptophan Man” by B.L.T., “Drippin’ Gravy” by Sweaty Keith, “Upside-Down Thanksgiving” by Cross Chris, “All Filled Up” by John Juan Twan, “The Adult Table” by Flow Doubt (yes, Florence got in on the act), “Supper’s Ready” by Triangle Sally (probably the funniest bit), “Nothin’ But a Vest” by Men in Vests. Here’s the snippet of “Upside-Down Thanksgiving”:
It’s an upside-down Thanksgiving
It’ll never, ever be the same
Turkeys are eatin’ people
And people are eatin’ grain, ha ha
My teenage boy’s making brownies
My aunt’s goin’ to a rave
Grandma’s sittin’ up in a high chair
And the baby’s lyin’ in a grave (he’s fine, though)
SNL Digital Short: Seducing Women Through Chess — A cheesy 80s instructional video on how to seduce women with chess … checkers … Jenga … glass eating … oh, never mind. Complete with old videotape look. Actually pretty funny and the 80s clothing and hair styles were perfection.
André the Giant Chooses an Ice Cream Flavor — Segal as André choosing an ice cream flavor. Yeah, that’s pretty much all there was to it, but Segel got to show off another of his great impersonation skills. Short, bizarre, and the tiny ice cream cone was a nice punchline.
The Empty Glass — The Blue Jean Committee (the band wears all denim) performs “Massachusetts Afternoon” at The Empty Glass bar, Paul Rudd shows up again, and Rowlf and Gonzo are behind the bar. Had the feel of an end of night sketch, neither good nor bad.
Most interesting part of the night was when we got to see the folks behind the Muppets at the closing. Enjoy the next two weeks, and joins us again in December when Steve Buscemi hosts. Happy Thanksgiving!
Clacked by Chuck Duncan 
on Nov 20, 2011 @ 02:43 EST5EDT
I love those freaking muppets!
Gotta love the Muppets.