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[FortNinety]

I guess this related to the Ashlee Simpson debacle. I actually missed it, but there was a time where nothing could make me miss SNL. I've been a diehard fan since 84 (I started watching when I was in the first grade), but for the past two years or so, the show has simply sucked, which has killed any interested in wanting to tune in. But why is this the case?

I've been trying to figure it out but don't have any solid answers. The closest is Tiny Fey. Yes, she's uber hot, but she's also the head writer, and she has to take some responsibility for the whole show being ass. Also, many of performers are simply less than funny. I used to like Horatio Sanz, but that guy just doesn't do it for me. I'm just glad Jimmy Fallon isn't on it anymore. When those two were on, and in sketches together, all they seemed to do is try to crack each other up. Maybe they felt that some people found this funny, but I guess it doesn't help that I've been to countless improv comedy shows (I live in NYC and go to the UCB theatre a lot) and have seen it done much better.

What do you guys thing?

 

[teiresias]

I thing about 7.5 inches.

 

[olimario]

It's the lack of endearing actors.
People cared about Chevy Chase and John Bellucci
People cared about Phil Hartman and Dana Carvey
No one gives a shit about Will Forte and Chris Parnell

 

[Triumph]

What Gary said, but I actually think quite a bit of it can be laid at the writer's feet. They just aren't producing good material consistently, and when you give mediocre talent mediocre writing, guess what ensues?

 

[LakeEarth]

I give a crap about Will Forte

EDIT - He was Abe and the voiceover guy for Clone High dammit

 

[shoplifter]

criminal misuse of Amy Poelher

 

[IAmtheFMan]

It's like back in '95 when they needed to totally revamp; they changed pretty much the entire cast, kept a few of the newer faces (and Tim Meadows ) and went from there.

Problem is, SNL was in desperate need of this transition about 2 years ago, and they ain't doing it this year.

 

[dskillzhtown]

I think one big issue is that SNL gets a free pass from NBC. No matter how bad the show is, no matter how few people watch, it seems to never be in danger of getting cancelled. No matter what people say, if you are in that situation, you aren't going to give it your 100%. Maybe a total revamp needs to be done. Maybe changing the format slightly will work. Fewer, but longer sketches might be the answer. I don't know. But I always thought Monty Python was funnier than SNL has ever been.

 

[GG-Duo]

they've got a talented cast - but they are not writing very well.

 

[MetatronM]

Inferior writers. For God's sake this is a show that used to have Conan O'Brien as a writer. I don't put all of the blame on Tina Fey, though. She has a whole team of writers under her, and they're obviously not helping her out any with any decent material. So crap all around.

Second and third rate performing talent. Where's the Chevy Chases? The Will Ferrells? The Eddie Murphys? The Chris Rocks? The Phil Hartmans? The Mike Myers and Dana Carveys? The Steve Martins? There once was a time where being on SNL meant you were one of the best at what you do, and you went on to be successful because you proved it there.

Maybe it's unfair because SNL has so many legendary alumni. Maybe it was pure luck that they got all that talent together in the past. I don't know.

 

[aoi tsuki]

Bad writing? Please tell me Tina Fey's no longer on the writing staff.

 

[xsarien]

SNL stopped being good when the producers lost their backbone. Old school SNL had serious balls, everything from Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood, to making fun of the deaf on Weeekend Update, to cultural stereotypes like Belushi's samurai, and the Greek diner owners.

There are very, very faint sparks of it today, but nothing like the original.

 

[shoplifter]

Second and third rate performing talent. Where's the Chevy Chases? The Will Ferrells? The Eddie Murphys? The Chris Rocks? The Phil Hartmans? The Mike Myers and Dana Carveys? The Steve Martins? There once was a time where being on SNL meant you were one of the best at what you do, and you went on to be successful because you proved it there.

This goes hand in hand with shitty writing. The sketches they were in were funny because they were written that way. Sure, they had lots of talent, but without the great writing they'd have gone nowhere too.

 

[demon]

I always figured it was just really, really shitty writers.

 

[LakeEarth]

I'm always annoyed last year. So many sketches about singing and musically famous people. I just get so sick of it, they're never funny.

EDIT - I dunno why, why do half the skits have to be celebrety-based?

 

[Ramirez]

I miss Farley

 

[talking head]

wtf was up with this week's "bear city"?

 

[talking head]

and i really, REALLY don't like, well, i don't remember his name. the fat black guy, who is going to be fat albert. how the hell did he get on that show?

 

[Dan]

It's the lack of endearing actors.
People cared about Chevy Chase and John Bellucci

And yet, you can't spell his name. "Belushi." And Chevy Chase was a miracle. He was on for one season and one season only, and people loved him because he was the only one who got to go on every Saturday night, say his name, and speak directly to the audience. And he was the first. You can't get a better setup.

The Steve Martins

He wasn't a cast member.

The Chris Rocks

Do people forget that Chris Rock barely did a damned thing on the show? Even he, while still thankful, goes around saying that he really had no place on the show and wasn't able to show his talent.

they've got a talented cast - but they are not writing very well.

I think this is it. Most of the cast can do a good job if given the material. Maybe they're not great writers themselves, and the main writers aren't so hot, but still, the acting talent is there I think. Also, the show has been increasingly netting talentless hosts, from random 'sports' figures like Jeff Gordon to flavor of the week pop stars or lame sitcomers. It's only so easy to write a full show's worth of good sketches when your host is Andy Roddick, the Olsen twins, Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey, Donald Trump, etc. You can only place so much blame on the writers and cast for that. That's Lorne's fault, and possibly network pressure. And now there's some ridiculous urge to force the musical guests into one or two sketches as well, and it just continually reduces the flexibility and creativity that can be put into the show.

 

[BigJonsson]

It's cause they lost Ferrel, Meadows, Cheri O'Teri etc...

 

[aoi tsuki]

It's cause they lost Ferrel, Meadows, Cheri O'Teri etc...

Refresh my memory, but did Tim Meadows ever do anything beyond the token black guy bit? i just remembered him doing The Ladies Man, which was really hit-or-miss with me, and that late night black tv show, which was actually funnier to me than The Ladies Man.

 

[BigJonsson]

Refresh my memory, but did Tim Meadows ever do anything beyond the token black guy bit? i just remembered him doing The Ladies Man, which was really hit-or-miss with me, and that late night black tv show, which was actually funnier to me than The Ladies Man.

Yea but anything he did I liked

 

[Ninja Scooter]

Will Ferrel left. After that the show has blown. And Tina Fey needs to go. SHe turned Weekend Update into some Fem-nazi bullshit.

 

[LakeEarth]

It's 4:20am Sunday morning, time for Perspectives... I'm your host Lionel Osborne, tonight my guest is activist John Carmella. If you're just joining us, it's 4:21am Sunday morning, and you're watching Perspectives. I'm Lionel Osborne...

and so on. I always found the Perspectives skits to be really good.

That is a problem with SNL. No Wayne, Conehead, Matt Foley, Cheerleader, etc skit characters that people love. We just get that "Versachi" skit once and a while, and the mumbling guy running for president (who is hilarious though).

 

[ManDudeChild]

Horatio Sanz is terrible. Guy can't get through ONE sketch without laughing.

 

[Tenguman]

Why is SNL so bad these days? Two words: Tina Fey

Ever since she became the head writer 2 or so years ago, the show has just become a disaster of unfunny skits and bad commentary.

 

[BigJonsson]

And no more Norm McDonald...ever since he left Weekend Update has gone down

 

[xsarien]

Ever since she became the head writer 2 or so years ago, the show has just become a disaster of unfunny skits and bad commentary.

No, that happened around '94 or '95, and the show has never, ever turned back.

 

[DrLazy]

This "SNL isn't as funny as it use to be" has been going on forever, every time a major comedian leaves the show.

It was always funnier when you were a kid. It's called nostalga

 

[BigJonsson]

If only Mike Myers was still there haha

 

[MC Safety]

Why is SNL so bad these days? Two words: Tina Fey

Ever since she became the head writer 2 or so years ago, the show has just become a disaster of unfunny skits and bad commentary.

There was a bit about a guy who'd invented a straight banana for easy packaging/handling on "Weekend Update." One woman made a dramatically unfunny attempt to fumble a normal banana to which the crowd did not react.

Fey, sitting next to her, decided it wasn't enough to let the joke fall flat. She took the banana and fumbled it too.

While I applaud the fact they didn't take the easy way out with a sexual joke or follow-up, it seems relevant that neither comedian knew when to leave well enough alone.

Bad is bad enough. Compounding bad with repetition is worse. Stretching out bad comedy is perhaps the worst sin of the craft.

 

[demon]

Why is SNL so bad these days? Two words: Tina Fey

Ever since she became the head writer 2 or so years ago, the show has just become a disaster of unfunny skits and bad commentary.

Huh?

The show has been shit for several years?

 

[Diablos]

I remember the same question being asked 5, 7 and 10 years ago

 

[demon]

I remember the same question being asked 5, 7 and 10 years ago

Who the hell was complaining about the show 10 years ago? The show 10 years ago kicks current snl's ASS.

 

[LakeEarth]

Who the hell was complaining about the show 10 years ago? The show 10 years ago kicks current snl's ASS.

Despite what you might think, SNL wasn't THAT great even when Farley, Myers, Sandler was all there. Sure when you see the "Best Of" clips, you think back and go "wow SNL was great back then". But if you actually watched back then, anything passed the news was complete garbage (just like it is now), half the skits fell flat. The only thing they had then that they don't have now is loveable recurring characters.

 

[xsarien]

Who the hell was complaining about the show 10 years ago? The show 10 years ago kicks current snl's ASS.

The problem is that SNL has just gotten progressively worse since it first aired.

 

[Dan]

Despite what you might think, SNL wasn't THAT great even when Farley, Myers, Sandler was all there. Sure when you see the "Best Of" clips, you think back and go "wow SNL was great back then". But if you actually watched back then, anything passed the news was complete garbage (just like it is now), half the skits fell flat. The only thing they had then that they don't have now is loveable recurring characters.

Yep, that's part of it. People know or remember the best stuff from those eras. And then even if they've seen the reruns when Comedy Central aired them, they've got at least 30 minutes cut out, so you're obviously still seeing the better stuff.

 

[DaCocoBrova]

Bring back Pat!!!

 

[Flynn]

This isn't meant as a dig, but I think SNL has stayed the same and we've grown up.

I was saying the same thing about SNL ten years ago.

 

[xsarien]

This isn't meant as a dig, but I think SNL has stayed the same and we've grown up.

This would make sense if older SNLs no longer made people laugh.

 

[demon]

This isn't meant as a dig, but I think SNL has stayed the same and we've grown up.

I was saying the same thing about SNL ten years ago.

I still laugh my ass off at older SNL skits. Newer SNL makes me cringe in embarrassment at how bad it is.

 

[tedtropy]

Bring back Pat!!!

Let's not.

 

[belgurdo]

It was always funnier when you were a kid. It's called nostalga

Good lord do I ever AWTP

People probably thought Belushi and Murphy were "shit cast members" back in the day too, if they had started watching SNL years prior

 

[FortNinety]

Speaking as a long time fan, I recall the show at it's highest and it lowest, so I don't think when I bitch about the show being "not as good as it used to be" I'm not forgetting the past, as well as not being blinded by nostalgia.

That being said, whereas the show used to be just "not funny", it's now a mess. Some people have touched upon some good points, such as the over reliance on song and dance numbers, which might be a move to try and shake things up, but it has not worked at all.

The quality of the performers is also a sad state of affairs. What is so funny about watching the actors laugh at themselves, and not because the material is funny but at just how inane the materail? It reeks of unprofessionalism.

I guess the biggest problem is now that it's such an institution, the show has no fear of being cancelled, hence the complacent tone of show, which might also have a hand in them going no where near the envelope.

Guess that's why some dumb tiny-bopping tramp getting exposed is the most exciting thing to happen in years.

 

[FortNinety]

Good lord do I ever AWTP

People probably thought Belushi and Murphy were "shit cast members" back in the day too, if they had started watching SNL years prior

Umm... Murphy was pretty much universally loved the minute he was on the show. Then again, in 80-81, you had people like Charles Rocket, so there you go.

 

[Pochacco]

I second the nostalgia argument, sort of.
I think the show's still funny and an episode's hilarity-factor often depends on the guest.

Still, there isn't the kind of talent that there used to be.
SNL kind of reminds me of a small-franchise sports team: things are good as long as the actors aren't too recognized, but once they reach their peak they move onto bigger and better (and much more lucrative) gigs. SNL almost has to luck out with young talent. At the present moment, I'd say that they're a bit short on it.

 

[xsarien]

Umm... Murphy was pretty much universally loved the minute he was on the show. Then again, in 80-81, you had people like Charles Rocket, so there you go.

And Belushi was on from the beginning, but there I go being a pedantic ass again...

 

[Hournda]

SNL sucks because the writing is shitty (except for weekend update, but then ify ou like weekend update you have the daily show 4 days a week) and the writers use the celebrity guests as a crutch. "Hey we have Jude Law and Ashlee Simpson coming to perform on the show. That means we can write crappy sketches and people will still watch the show. Sweet!"

 

[demon]

The nostalgia argument is bullshit. The show was simply much, much funnier back in the late(?) 80s through the Will Ferrel era. I can't imagine anyone genuinely thinking the show in its current form matches the quality of the show back in those days. That's simply insane.

 

[FortNinety]

And it must be said again that they simply do not utilize what good talent they have right now. One of the new featured cast members this year, Rob Riggle, is FUCKING HYSTERICAL (you have to see him live to really know this) but thus far he's gotten every little chance to shine. I guess there's several reason for this, but things need to change ASAP.

Also, I love Amy Poelher, but having her ramble off shitty one liners on Weekend Update is killing her career.