(Originally posted on Patreon on February 26, 2024)

Oh boy. It's been awhile since we've gone to the New Show well. And hey look! It's just as dry as it usually is! That's why we've brought in Eddie Ham and Mattalamode to help us wrangle something, anything, out of this one. And wrangle we did. Join us as we slowly get more and more unmoored from reality, defending pieces that don't deserve defending and just generally losing our minds.

(Originally published on Patreon on January 29th, 2024) Get your new mustaches on because this week we're digging into one of the most infamous outings of the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, the season three premiere! The brothers have got Cass Elliot and Harry Belafonte on board and after a full summer off, they've got a lot to say about the chaos boiling over in the US. As per usual, this led to a lot of battling with CBS, including a whole Belafonte song being left on the cutting room floor. We look at the full, un-edited (kinda) version of the episode to see just what went down.

We're wrapping up the ninth season of That Week with what is seen by some as a legendary episode: the S34 finale with Will Ferrell. Not only does this one close the curtains on one of the more popular and critically acclaimed seasons of the show but includes one of the more divisive sketches in the show's history, Goodnight Saigon. Our ol' pal Jon Schneider is back on board for this one as we hash out the many ways one can approach the show and sketch comedy and what one might demand from it.

Now here's a guy you might've heard of before. Stevie Wonder. What can you say? It's Stevie. He's a legend and now he's here doing double duty on SNL. What transpires is a charmingly loose and chaotic show as Stevie not only hits us with two yet-to-be-released tunes from 1985's In Square Circle but also reconfigures a bunch of his classics to fit into the sketches. Also, we've got a Hitler sketch and Michael Davis, back for his last guest spot on the show! Can you funk? Stevie can funk.

We return to the end of the original era for the first show hosted by a married couple! Having already crushed his first episode, Richard takes a bit of a backseat on this one to hand it over to the ladies, who respond with a number of uniquely fascinating sketches. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, though. There's still some crud to wade through and that sadly includes The Grateful Dead, who are here promoting what is, to my understanding, a little bit of a low-ebb in their discography. Also, this recording includes a Timmy who watched the episode under some amount of time restraint and duress so can Andrew convince him of the finer details of the episode or will crankiness win out? Tune in to find out!

One of the true legends of sketch comedy. Almost nearly a cast member of SNL herself. Another person from this season of the podcast hosting off the back of the immense success of Home Alone. Ladies and gentlemen, it's Catherine O'Hara, who is here alongside R.E.M, who are themselves reeling from the incredible mainstream success of their newest album. Also, Randy Quaid is here and so is Carole King? Okay. Hell yeah, let's go, brother! Anyway, we've got a pretty solid representation of the era here. A real mind-melter from Jack Handey, a tour-de-force performance from Catherine, uh, Dennis Miller. Hell, we even get some Bob Odenkirk screentime in there. What else could you ask for?

Sweet sassy molassy!

That's it. That's the post.

Nah, I guess I gotta write some more here. Well, it's the first episode of SNL hosted by Ray Romano. You might remember him. Had a pretty popular sitcom for a number of years. Got a real memorable voice too. It's time to do some fun SNL gag 'em ups with him and gag them up we do! Got a few beloved sketches in this one, a few that don't really land, Weekend Update doing it's Weekend Update thing. And, of course, we make sure to dedicate a small little chunk of the episode to discuss the movie Grandma's Boy because that's what Doris Roberts would've wanted.

It's time to Art Funk with the Garf! This week, we've got a pleasantly mellow little outing from the original cast, one with a heavier bent on music than usual. And since the music is being provided by Art Garfunkel and Stephen Bishop, it's also maybe a little sleepier than usual but that doesn't mean we don't have some bangers in here too. In fact, we have one of the most recognizable SNL sketches ever nestled in this one and, for my money, one of the best musical performances as well. There's some real bafflers and Andy Kaufman so join us as we explore this strange, John Belushi heavy episode of SNL.

Here we are at an important crossroads for the show: the final live episode for Eddie Murphy as a cast member. Yes, the show would still have two pre-taped sketches left to air in later episodes but this is basically it for Eddie. And who does the show bring into host for this momentous occasion? Recently retired NBC newsman Edwin Newman. Huh. That doesn't seem terribly exciting. I mean, yeah, Kool & The Gang are there to very literally bring the Celebration but Edwin Newman? Seems like an odd choice...or is it?

The show's first black female host. One of the coolest bands in NYC providing the tunes. Quite possibly the most amount of people watching the show in it's entire history. What could go wrong? Turns out, everything! In a move that can only be described as "yeah, that sounds like something SNL would do", the show manages to torpedo this moment in time with some of the most grim, grimy, sexist and just plain ugly sketches to ever grace your television screens. Strap in for this one, folks because it's not getting any easier.

Against the backdrop of a snowed in New York, the cast and crew of the thirtieth season of SNL huddle into 30 Rock with beloved character actor Paul Giamatti to do what is quite possibly the finest outing of a fairly infamous season. We get two decent political efforts, a rare Finesse Mitchell showcase, some quality oddities and the ridiculous, joyous nonsense that is Ludacris and Sum 41 as our musical guests. And, as an added bonus, a few commercials and weirdness from an incomplete live airing I found! OH NO!