SNL's Continued Downward Spiral Thread

Just because the celebrity is dead doesn't mean that they can't be a recurring character on SNL...

 

For me, SNL always needs one superstar and I would argue it hasn't had one since Ferrell left.

I would argue that in the last 25 years the only "superstars" the show has had are Carvey, Hartman and Ferrell. Farley might be close. An argument could be made for Mike Myers.

It's one thing to have a great Update anchor like Fey or Miller or someone who is always reliable and funny, like Nealon or Hammond, but I'm talking about someone who you know is going to do something awesome almost every week. Carvey was that way for me.

 

Were Adam Sandler and Chris Rock official cast members?

Wasn't Fallon a superstar?

 

Adam Sandler had a few funny recurring characters, but didn't become a superstar until a few years after he left SNL. Chris Rock never got used on SNL. Name one character he ever did beside Nat X. He wasn't even a superstar when he headlined The Daily Show's Indecision '96 coverage, which was three or four years after he left SNL.

And Jimmy Fallon most assuredly was NOT a superstar on SNL. He had one memorable character: The Masshole, along side Rachel Dratch. Lorne Michaels just happened to like him, so Fallon kept getting chance after chance until he finally stuck.

 

Rock did very little at SNL. Sandler did very little other than his songs on Update. Fallon was never a superstar.

They all became much, much bigger after they left.

I'm pretty sure Rock and Sandler were actually fired from SNL.

 

Rock wasn't a superstar until Bring the Pain came out.

 

Jarret podcasting from his college dorm.

WU with Fey.

Sarcastic IT guy Nick Burns.

DJ Joey Mack.

Pat O'Brien.

And, for god's sake, Barry Gibb.

... and I'm not even a Fallon fan. But when you're wrong, you're wrong.

 

Being on Weekend Update is not a memorable character.

I'll grant you Nick Burns.

I couldn't give a fuck about the rest of them. Just because you liked them doesn't make them memorable.

 

Well, as long as you couldn't give a fuck about them.

 

For all the complaining of how the show has gone downhill, I have watched SNL since it's inception and it's always been bits of funny amid lots of unfunny.

I thought even "classic" bits such as the Killer Bees and "cheeseburger, cheeseburger" and the samurai chef weren't funny at all.

In fact, I don't think John Belushi nearly as funny as Kristen Wiig. He mostly stood around acting dumb or outrageous. He was best at doing Blues Brothers or his Joe Cocker impersonation.

 

A lot of those classic skits, you don't realize it now, but they went on like six minutes. Even on the BEST OF SNL dvds, you're usually seeing a shorter version than what actually ran.

 

Great pull. That show was freakin' fantastic.

The Samberg/Wahlberg dustup was great.