Following Chance the Rapper was an incredibly tough act to follow, but Kristen Stewart did a pretty solid job in her second time hosting “Saturday Night Live.”
Although the “Charlie’s Angels” star started off a little rocky with a rather lackluster monologue — despite a funny appearance from Pete Davidson — Stewart came out swinging with some hilarious sketches that utilized the actress’ infamous awkwardness.
While the “Twilight” actress shined in most of her pieces, the night was full of uneven sketches, some even bordering on the uncomfortable. However, there were still some standout moments.
The best sketch of the night was also the most creative: a unique take on WWII’s Rosie the Riveter. The piece featured Stewart, Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant as factory workers who are willing to do whatever it takes to inspire the troops — even if that means flashing a little something.
As usual, we’re ranking all the sketches from worst to first, including the Monologue, Cold Open, “Weekend Update” and any sketches that were cut for time but made their way online. We’ll skip the musical guests, because they’re not usually funny — unless Ashlee Simpson shows up. We wrap up with a look at the cast-member who had the strongest week.
A Proposition
While the majority of the sketches successfully utilized KStew’s tendency to be awkward, “A Proposition” was just simply uncomfortable. The piece featured Stewart as a woman attempting to hit on an elderly couple played by Kenan Thompson and Ego Nwodim. Although we loved the inclusivity, it was the flop of the night.
CUT FOR TIME: Open Mic
It was unfortunate that the piece that was cut for time included Stewart, however, after watching the sketch, it made sense why it was the first chosen to go bye-bye. The clip featured young artists performing at an open mic night in Silverlake. Although Stewart and McKinnon, who starred as a rocker sister duo, had some funny moments, the rest of the jokes didn’t quite hit.
Hungry Jury
The most original sketch starred a large chunk of the cast as members of a deadlocked jury. As the jury attempted to deliberate a verdict, they encountered a very loud problem: empty stomachs. The piece, which also highlighted racial bias in the criminal justice system, featured Stewart as the foreman whose stomach kept growling. However, the joke took a wild turn when all of the white people’s stomachs began growling as well…and the noises together sounded like “Pony” by Ginuwine. Led by Chris Reed, who sang the first few lyrics (“I’m just a bachelor…”), the jury then broke into the chorus. Let’s just say the whole thing border lined on bizarre.
MONOLOGUE: Kristen Stewart
For her monologue, Stewart, who donned an open jacket and shirt showing her black, lacy bralette, poked fun at how she gets uncomfortable talking about herself. Because of this, the actress offered the audience the chance to ask her questions. The thing was, Stewart turned the tables on the audience and proceeded to ask them personal questions about themselves instead. One of the people in the crowd included Pete Davidson who joked about how he’d answer anything because he “puts it all out there.”
Corporate Nightmare Song
This digital music video starred Stewart, Davidson, Kyle Mooney, and Mikey Day as punk employees who sing about their corporate jobs. Stewart, who wore a Hayley Williams-colored wig, was hilarious as a rebellious rock singer who hated her job but also wanted to succeed. However, it was Davidson who was the real star of this sketch. Skateboarding shirtless (and showing off his body covered in tattoos), it seemed like Davidson was playing a version of himself.
Stargazing
The last piece of the night had us in stitches because of its way of throwing in vulgar jokes without actually saying them. Stewart and Beck Bennett starred as an elderly perverted couple on a stargazing hike. While the instructor pointed out constellations like “The Big Dipper,” the overtly sexual pair described the shapes of the star patterns as sex positions.
Hero Dog Press Conference
This sketch ripped from the headlines featured an adorable German Shephard as Conan, the heroic dog who was involved in the raid of the ISIS leader. Introduced by McKinnon’s spot-on impression of Kellyanne Conway, Cecily Strong starred as a military aid as a translator for the pup. Strong broke out into giggles multiple times during the piece as the dog really struggled to stay on the podium. He also barked multiple times during the sketch and the timing was on point. We have to admit we ranked this sketch a little higher than it deserved because the dog was just too darn cute.
Weekend Update
After a week of interesting headlines, “Weekend Update” had a great amount of material to work with. The mock news broadcast included some funny jokes, but it also featured a few flops. Anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che began by reporting on President Donald Trump’s latest: moving from New York to Florida and being booed at sporting events. The duo also spoke about other news stories of the week including Beto O’Rourke dropping out of the presidential and the California wildfires.
The next portion of the sketch didn’t really hit all of the notes. Melissa Villaseñor starred as a five-year-old kid genius who actually wasn’t very smart. It was nice to see Villaseñor lead a piece, but sadly it wasn’t the best.
Che and Jost then tackled New York’s foie gras ban. While it was funny, the highlight of this section was Che poking fun at the 67-year-old woman who gave birth. Che explained how NBC wouldn’t let him use some of his jokes because they were “too gross,” yet he still proceeded to say them. We won’t recite them here, as some might be offended, but they definitely were worth the risk.
The best part of “Weekend Update?” Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon’s guest appearance. The ladies starred as Wylene and Vaneta Starkie from Smokery Farms meat (and seafood) gift delivery service. The sisters stopped by to talk about the growing popularity of Impossible Burgers and spoke about why their real meat is better. It was an absolutely hilarious sketch that even had Che and Jost breaking into laughter.
New Paint
This sketch would have been a flop it wasn’t for one Aidy Bryant. This almost Tennesee Williams-like piece featured Kristen Stewart and Beck Bennett as a couple who came over to Bryant’s character’s house and asked her about her expensive Farrow and Ball wall paint. And Bryant absolutely nailed it.
Duolingo for Talking to Children
Ever feel like you can’t talk to kids? Well, it looks like you’re not alone. This fake commercial was one of the best sketches of the night. As a parody of the language app Duolingo, this short featured Stewart as a woman who has issues talking to children. Enter the app that helps childless adults with kinder conversations in “as little as six weeks.” Cool!
COLD OPEN: Elizabeth Warren Town Hall Rally
Kate McKinnon returned with her spot-on impersonation of Senator Elizabeth Warren in our second favorite piece of the night. In the sketch, Warren (McKinnon) attended a rally in an Iowa town and answered questions about her presidential run. McKinnon, as Warren, defended her Medicare for All Plan and attempted to explain the “math” behind the multi-trillion-dollar deal.
Rosie the Riveter
Drumroll, please! The best sketch (in our opinion) starred KStew, Kate McKinnon and Aidy Bryant as three women working at a factory during World War II. Competing against Rosie the Riveter (Chloe Fineman) and shell shiner named Donna (Heidi Gardner), the women pled their case as to why they should be the face of a war propaganda poster. While Rosie and Donna expressed rather traditional ideas, the factory women listed all of the vulgar (and hilarious) ways they would kill Hitler along with helping inspire the troops.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Although there were many stand-out performances, Saturday night’s player of the week was a no-brainer. Aidy Bryant was on fire. The comedian absolutely killed it in her multiple roles and particularly shined in “New Paint.” She also had us dying as a factory worker willing to flash her tatas for the troops.
“Saturday Night Live” airs Saturdays on NBC.