SNL: S08E19... HOST: STEVIE WONDER... DATE: MAY 7, 1983

or...

What A Frustrating Fun Episode Ruined By "Advanced" Technology 

 

This is another episode that I fully remember as a child. Sure I remember a couple of the sketches from best of compilations like Stevie Wonder with the "Kannon" and also him doing a poor impersonation of himself, but there were also a couple of the more mediocre sketches that really stood out in my memory. Like the Hunchback Busboy sketch, which I might not consider mediocre, but it was far from the standout sketch that I remembered in my head, but I was also seven at the time, and the monster creeped me out, but I also remember feeling more for him as if he were more like the elephant man.

So, even though I was looking forward to this episode because Stevie is the type of legend that I could see shining on his own while boosting the energy of the rest of the cast as well. By the time it sank in that this was a standout episode I was excited to revisit my childhood in my mind, only my ISP had other plans.

Once again, shitty internet struck leading me to take over four hours to get through this episode. I don't know how a company that you pay good money to can provide such unstable service especially in the top tier package that's being paid for. Unfortunately, I'm not in charge of the bill, or I'd tell them to go fuck off and track down another service.

Even now, as I write this, I have eight more minutes left to the show and I wrote this entire intro while waiting for the internet to come back on.

Oh well, it is what it is and now it's time to move on so I'll start to wind down my day as I give you... 

The Wicker Breakdown:

  1. This week's show starts with a parody of the V miniseries called VD where I'll give you one guess who the invasion in the parody refers to.

  2. Stevie Wonder then officially opened the show by singing a playful song called Fingertips, in place of an opening monolog.

  3. This was followed by the classic fake ad for the Kannon AE-1 a camera so advanced, a Stevie Wonder could use it. In the ad, Stevie works the camera to photograph a tennis match, and we get to see the shots he managed to capture.

  4. We then go to a sketch where Eddie Murphy is trying to book a singer for The Miss Black Teen America Pageant. He’s having hard luck when Piscopo comes in with the solution which turns out to be Alan: The Stevie Wonder Experience. This leads to a routine where Stevie does a horrible impersonation of himself. Eddie Murphy then does his impersonation to show him how it's done which leads to Stevie doing a real deal performance only to still get turned down.

  5. The Hitler Diaries is a sketch where we to hear Hitler's high school girl sounding diary entries (kind of like my Daily Breaker posts) about his days leading up to the start of WWII, complete with funny flashbacks.

  6. Stevie Wonder then takes to the stage to perform Overjoyed.

  7. Right after the performance, Stevie started to talk about his life. This led to a flashback where we got to see The Story Of Stevie Wonder which is a funny telling of Stevie's life story. Only in this version, he just wanted to “pay tribute” to white music, the same way Elvis was “influenced” by black artists from his time. When we returned from the flashback Stevie singing a Spike Jones inspired version of Very Superstitious before he goes on to admit that he was actually adopted and raised to be British as he starts to sing You Are My Sunshine.

  8. We then return to the woman's hair salon to get caught up with Dion. This time he and Piscopo had the opportunity to braid Stevie's hair, but they are both too excited to be able to function well enough to pull it off. This leads Stevie to opt to wear a hat because he doesn't have enough time for these two hairdressers to chill out enough to do their work but he is happy to hear that their fans.

  9. Once again, Brad Hall gives us the news. This week, Sweetchuck drops by as his doctor character with various names for different types of impotence. Julia Louis-Dreyfus gets a segment where she makes fun of a model who was recently in the real news for posing nude with a giant boa constrictor. Stevie Wonder was another guest as a British music critic to discuss how he loves that music has grown to be more funky and fun than bogged down with deeper meaning like music of the '60s and '70s.

  10. Michael Davis then returned to the show to perform another one of his comedic/juggling acts.

  11. We then went to a theme park called Cotton Land where white people can go to work through their white guilt by living the slave life in the controlled environment of a tourist destination.

  12. We then went to a fancy restaurant where Sweetchuck and Julia Louis-Dreyfus are and a date and being helped by a Hunchback Busboy who more like Frankenstein in a China shop while just trying to do his job and this ruins the couple's night.

  13. Stevie Wonder then returned to the stage to perform Go Home.

  14. Stevie Wonder then closed the show by thanking the audience and saying his goodnights.

I think my intro might have spoiled my favorite moments, but as always here they are. First, I loved the Stevie Wonder Kannon ad because I still find it to be brilliant to this day. Next, I really liked seeing Stevie do a bad impersonation of himself because it's that sense of humor that leads me to love that man. Finally, I was a fan of the Hunchback Busboy because it was one of those weird sketches that stood out to me as a kid and looking back, I only kind of see why. 

 
 

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Hear More From Stevie Wonder: