The Top Ten SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE Sketches Of 2016

Oh, 2016… To quote Kate McKinnon’s brilliant Angela Merkel impression - which, sidebar, is my personal favorite thing she and SNL as a whole are doing right now - “2016 has been a real Volkswagen.” Saturday Night Live has regularly found itself mentioned in Trump’s tweets as “not funny” and “unwatchable,” but I’m going to go ahead and disagree with him on that (among other things). Instead, let’s celebrate the best of “live from New York” this year.

Just to clarify, this is the top ten for the whole year of 2016. That means you’ll see sketches from the second half of Season 41 and the first half of Season 42. I also maxed out the most stellar hosts on three sketch mentions, which is why you won’t see Larry David’s Kevin Roberts sketch. (It’s basically represented by its more successful younger brother, David S. Pumpkins, anyway.) These also aren’t in any particular order of awesomeness. So, that’s where my head was at when I made this list. Let’s begin!

1.  Undercover Boss: Starkiller Base

Who knew Adam Driver was funny enough to get three sketches in my top ten for the year? This one is just a homerun, and a love letter from SNL to Kylo Ren. I don’t even think you need to like Star Wars to enjoy this one. If you’ve ever seen an episode of Undercover Boss, you know what a spot-on parody this is. 

2.  Mafia Meeting

Peter Dinklage’s episode leaned really far into Peter's being super serious while everyone else around him acted crazy. “Underwater Hotel” came very close to using this concept best, but none of Dinklage’s sketches knocked it as far out of the park as this one, which we will all always refer to as “Space Pants.” It’s quite the earworm, though, so prepare yourselves.

3.  America’s Funniest Cats

I told you you’d see a lot of Adam Driver. I just had to recognize this sketch concept, which has already seen one return of the French TV show hosts played by Cecily Strong and Kate McKinnon. I am down with this becoming a recurring sketch, but you can’t quite recapture the genius of this maiden voyage. Please do more comedy, Adam Driver!  Boi-oi-oing!

4.  Bern Your Enthusiasm

Someone at Saturday Night Live is a STUDENT of Curb Your Enthusiasm. This is a bullseye parody that folds the entire ethos of Bernie Sanders into the Curb universe, and the resulting excellence makes every actor shine. This is a difficult concept to pull off, too, and no one dropped the ball. Vanessa Bayer in particular nailed both a Jane Sanders and Cheryl David impression in one. This one has taken me longest to write about because I had to watch it “just one more time.” Twice.

5.  Haunted Elevator 

Yes, you assumed correctly. David S. Pumpkins made the list. I was very close to bumping him just because of what a total viral phenomenon he became at Halloween, but I was afraid the skeletons would haunt my dreams.

6.  The Day Beyoncé Turned Black 

This sketch was amazing timing for me, as the day before it aired, I was complaining about how racist all of the press around how “black” Beyoncé’s new song was. SNL gave it the pre-taped treatment, and a round of applause to Kate McKinnon for getting me to laugh at a woman mercy-killing her child rather than live in a world where Beyoncé is black (except in the Pink Panther movie). I’ll be working that one out in therapy for a while.

7.  Black Jeopardy with Tom Hanks

This is one of those excellent exceptions to the rule that recurring sketches get weaker as they go. I almost hope that this most recent iteration of "Black Jeopardy" is the last one, because they turned the concept on its ear by drawing so many parallels with the “Make America Great Again” folks. Also, this one felt like it had a buttoned-up ending with that laugh out loud Final Jeopardy clue. It really was good while it lasted, Doug.

8.  This Is Not A Feminist Song

There were two songs up for the top ten this year: this one, and the recent holiday (soon-to-be) classic “The Christmas Candle.” Ultimately, I’m giving it to “Feminist Song,” and that's because of Ariana Grande. I never thought I’d do ANYTHING “because of Ariana Grande,” because I’m a grown-ass lady. Because of Dolly? Sure. Beyoncé? Of course. But, you guys… Ariana Grande was really funny in her episode. The slippery slope of feminism has been a running thread at SNL this year. Just look at “President Barbie” for another fun example. Indeed, the true definition of feminism is that “Women have the right to choose to bail on this whole song.” I mean, in my opinion. I respect all women and their opinions, because, well, feminism is…complicated. 

9.  Golden Globes 

I told you Adam Driver had a strong episode. This may be one of the strongest sketches of the year. (Yeah, it’s a pre-taped segment, but come on. Let’s just call them all “sketches.”) I love me a good cameo, and Liev Schreiber outdid himself with his. “Your parents are…really cool people.”

10.  Election Week Cold Open

Sometimes, the news isn’t funny. After the election, Leonard Cohen’s death and 2016 in general, SNL couldn’t say nothing, so they said something. In this cold open, Hillary wasn’t a presidential candidate. She was a human, sad and discouraged. And so Hillary sang. She sang for herself and for us and for Leonard. And Kate sang. For herself and for us and for Leonard. This cold open will end up in the pantheon of historic Saturday Night Live moments, next to the Beatles check and Andy Kaufman doing Mighty Mouse. Thanks for helping me get out one last good 2016 cry, SNL. Now, 2017…  

Show us what you got.

Honorable Mentions:

The Sound of Music

Ariana… I wanted this one in my top ten SO BAD. I just didn’t have room! Please tell me you understand. I haven’t said “Wow…” about anything the same way since this sketch. Sadly, it’s not available on YouTube, but if you want to enjoy it, check it out on Hulu.

Tidal

This Ariana Grande gem is available on YouTube, and is worth a watch for the Celine Dion chest punch alone.

Dyke and Fats Save Christmas 

I didn’t like the John Cena episode. At all. I’m almost certain they put a straight-up gem like this in it as an apology for the rest of the ep. That, and my darling of darlings, Chancellor Merkel on "Weekend Update," in the same episode more than made up for the rest. I forgive you, SNL. Let’s never fight again.

Chonk

Oh, the way their faces fall, the happy little kid ushered away, the two very different dudes, "This shirt fits me!” “Me, too!”... So many great things happening in this women’s clothing commercial. This is a spot-on zinger for every commercial that “empowers” women by telling them they need to shop at their specialized store on account of their monstrous bodies.

My final honorable mention goes to Leslie Jones. She wins for…every time she plays Leslie Jones. On "Weekend Update." In sketches. Even in pre-taped segments. I was just thinking that what I really need in my life is for Leslie Jones to have a recurring character for me to enjoy. Then, I realized…she already is one.

Okay, guys! We’ve almost made it out of 2016. Worse for wear, perhaps, but we’re all going to be okay. And, even if we’re not, Saturday Night Live will help us meet the end of days with a laugh.