“Saturday Night Live” returned with a grade A funny show last night, a real relief after the last few weeks.
The opening sketch with Kate McKinnon as Dr. Fauci, right through the Nick Jonas monologue, even Weekend News Update was better. The best sketch was McKinnon and Jonas returning to flirting at a bar, and Ego Nwodim as Dionne Warwick was a blast. Also the return of Aidy Bryant and Cecily Strong after going AWOL last fall has brightened everything.
But the ratings are anemic. The show scored a 4.1 overall, and 1.9 of that was in the key demo. Nick Jonas should have been more of a draw. Certainly he was the liveliest host in some time, and his musical performances were top notch.
“SNL” is touting a big ratings season, but that’s all from before Christmas. Since the New Year return, the show cannot pull itself up over 4.2 million viewers. Why no Biden impersonation? Well next week the host is Maya Rudolph (no offense, but she’s been a cast player all season, now she’s hosting?) and someone named Jack Harlow.
I do think “SNL” is having trouble getting hosts and musical guests because of the pandemic. Guests don’t have much to promote and they don’t want to waste the shot. It may also be a travel issue.
Nick Jonas introduced his new song, “Spaceman,” which is so-so. But his second song, “This Is Heaven,” sounded like a real hit.
