or...

A Possible New Leaf Turned For The Hot Host Episode?

Just a heads up, I’m coming to this viewing with very low energy and though I really hope to get stricken with a case of slap-happiness in order to avoid a negative review. I thought I would jot down this intro before I hit play because I’m very interested in seeing which way I will be swayed. At the time, I would put my money on me being grumpy because I like Jennifer Garner but don’t really see her as a comedic actress, between that, the fact that last night’s show with Matthew McConaughey was a bit of a bomb. Then again, it’s often the case where low expectation shows turn out to be one of my favorites.

With that, here we go…

Alright I’m back and I have to say, there may have been many hot host elements to the night but it still turned out to be a pretty good episode. Right out the gate the opening sketch kind of lost me, because it was another case of a funny concept that just when on too long. The monolog didn’t help because it started with all of the male cast members hitting on our host which is almost always a sign of the start of a hot host episode where ever sketch is based on looks and the hot host in question is treated more like a prop to be hit on and not trusted with any of the jokes.

The fake commercial that followed was fine, as most fake commercials are, and the sketch that followed got me to lighten up toward this episode because even though it was looks based, the joke was actually funny and didn’t induce a cringe. The next few sketches didn’t have anything to do with looks at all, and when we did go back to the looks based comedy, our host was either the star or co-star and never treated like a prop to be fawned over or groped by the cast.

I also really liked how when Jennifer Garner and Rachel Dratch played conjoined twins how they actually made Rachel Dratch extra ugly by adding bad teeth and a baby arm growing out of her head as opposed to the joke being that she was the ugly one without the added make-up. That broke the hot host mold as well because normally the theme of the hot host show is not just that all the men want her but how they make the “average looking women” of the cast out to look like hideous beasts.

Sorry for being so caught up on the hot host angle but as I was writing up the pre-viewing sketch list, I saw a lot of hints that added to the concerns that I was having, as mentioned in my opening paragraph and since I’m exhausted, that was all that I could seem to focus on, impress that this might be the start of a brand new era where I no longer have to fear being bored by a good looking host.

Alright, that’s all that I’ve got for today, it’s now time to wrap this thing up so that I can hit the hay. With that, I’ll now shift gears and share what I saw, as I give you...

The Wicker Breakdown:

This week's show started with A Message From The President Of The United States where Chris Parnell as George W. Bush checked in with America to share that we were giving up on disarming Iraq because he and his administration simply lost interest. Of course, with this being the opening sketch, it eventually led to the announcement of, “Live from New York…”
Jennifer Garner then officially opened the show with a monolog about the difference between working on SNL vs working on Alias only to be interrupted by every male member of the cast who all offered our host a Valentine’s Day gift in their effort to hit on our host, leading her to sing My Funny Valentine before throwing to the first non-opening sketch of the night.
Clappin' was a bit of a parody of Stomp and River Dance only this new dance trend was made up of nothing but clapping which seemed to blow the audience away.
When The Lights Come Up had Jimmy Fallon and Jennifer Garner on a date, with the joke being that our Jennifer Garner looked like her beautiful-self until last call came and they turn on the light and Garner’s character looked like Fred Armisen in the light. The sketch ended with Jimmy Fallon pounding enough booze until he saw Garner as Garner whether the light was bright or dim.
Maya Rudolph and Rachel Dratch then gave us another installment of their high school produced morning talk show called Wake Up Wakefield where this time Rachel Dratch’s Sheldon character got a surprise at the after school Valentine’s dance when a brace-faced Jennifer Garner admitted to being his secret admirer.
Saddam calls Osama had Horatio Sanz as Saddam and Jimmy Fallon as Osama who well for Saddam prank phone call that led to friendly bickering between the two about comparing about who has it worse after being targeted by America. Mainly Saddam just wanted Osama to stop talking about him on his tape. It was also pretty fun because it didn’t feel scripted at all and instead felt like it was just Jimmy and Horatio having fun with the characters.
Invitation To Love had Jennifer Gardner as the female lead in a movie where she struggled to get through a romantic scene because her fictional love-interest, Chris Kattan was too obviously gay.
Siamese Twins had Jimmy Fallon and Chris Kattan as two roommates out on a date with Jennifer Garner and Rachel Dratch as conjoined twins and the two fought over who got to talk to the Garner half of the singular duo, especially since Rachel Dratch had a baby’s arm growing out of her head.
Once again, Jimmy Fallon and Tina Fey gave us the news. This week, Jeff Richards dropped by as Burt Bacharach in order to comment on Iraq through Bacharach-style rhymes. Tracy Morgan also stopped by to share his gripe about Black History Month, mainly how it was not enough which led him to start demanding an all-out race war, only to be cut off due to a technical difficulty. Chris Parnell then wrapped thing up with a secret agent rap in his effort to impress Jennifer Garner, which I forgot was a reoccurring joke with Parnell.
Beck then took to the stage to perform Lost Cause.
Michael Jackson In A Tree had Rachel Dratch as Liz Taylor try to talk Amy Poehler as Michael Jackson out of his special tree by telling him that people were starting to think he was strange. This led to a bizarre conversation between the two wackos until eventually, Jennifer Garner as Lisa Marie Presley join in on the weird conversation. Soon after Lisa Marie left, a UFO landed that was filled with Michael Jackson looking aliens who offered to take him home.
Beck then returned to the stage to perform Guess I'm Doin' Fine.
Wal-Mart Greeters had Jennifer Garner and Amy Poehler as two Wal-Mart greeters who scared the customers away with their description of the store's size, while they offered double-sided maps to help these customers find even the most common of products. The biggest contributing factor to the fear was how scared the greeters were themselves.
Jack Handey then shared another chapter of My Big Thick Novel where this time our hero explained his research and how when he looked through his microscope all that he found was a bunch of dead cells.
Finally, Jennifer Garner closed the show by thanking the audience and saying her goodnights.

So, this may not have been my favorite of shows whether or not I was tired but it still turned out to be pretty fun thanks to sketches like these that contained my three favorite moments of the night. First, I loved When The Lights Come Up because whenever they swapped out Fred Armisen for Jennifer Garner it got me to laugh out loud. Next, I really like Saddam and Osama because any sketch with Jimmy Fallon and Horatio Sanz just goofing off will always crack me up. Finally, I was a fan of the Siamese Twins sketch because I love Rachel Dratch’s character with the baby arm sticking out of her head.