The issue with betting on a certain factor time and again is that finally your luck will most likely run out.
“Saturday Night Live” has guess a number of instances on Unhealthy Bunny, an extremely charismatic performer who was all around the present’s fiftieth anniversary specials earlier this yr and who was a wonderful host and musical visitor in late 2023.
For the “SNL” 51st season premiere, Unhealthy Bunny’s streak as an ideal go-to character for the present has ended with an episode that was bafflingly weak, with dated sketches and writing that didn’t cater to the host’s energy because the present’s achieved prior to now. Even appearances from Jon Hamm, “One Battle After Another” actor Benicio del Toro and Huntr/x, the trio of singers from the wildly widespread “KPop Demon Hunters,” barely moved the needle on an episode that couldn’t discover its footing till “Weekend Update” after which shortly misplaced momentum once more afterward.
The musician is coming off a prolonged residency of live shows in Puerto Rico and was simply introduced because the 2026 Tremendous Bowl halftime performer. Internet hosting the premiere ought to have been a victory lap with a summer season’s value of sturdy sketches to kick off the season. However it comes at a time of main forged and author turnover, which couldn’t have helped. Final time he hosted, Unhealthy Bunny was served nicely by sketches that both let him play himself, or let him converse all through in Spanish (“The Age of Discovery” being an ideal instance).
This time, he needed to painting in English an obsessed “Kpop Demon Hunters” fan who occurs to be an grownup, a contestant on “Jeopardy” who merely can’t kind solutions into questions, a person who desires to donate sperm to strangers in a restaurant, and a member of a bunch of Spaniards in 900 A.D., together with del Toro, making an attempt to kind the foundations of their language (however mentioned in English, for some purpose).
The host fared a bit of higher in two late sketches, one about an amorous principal (Ashley Padilla) disciplining a pupil (Marcello Hernández), and an homage to “El Chavo del Ocho” that wasn’t very humorous, however was a minimum of a reasonably correct recreation of the Mexican sitcom.
We’ve seen Unhealthy Bunny soar on “SNL” when the fabric is constructed round his allure and talents. This time, the writers shoehorned him into a number of sloppy sketches (“Jeopardy,” particularly, felt half-baked) that might have been written for any visitor host. He deserved higher.
Musical visitor Doja Cat carried out “AAHH MEN!” and “Gorgeous.” She didn’t seem in any sketches.
Within the season’s first chilly open, “SNL” relied once more on the premise of a sketch getting going — on this case Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth (Colin Jost) berating U.S. navy generals — after which being interrupted by a President Trump (James Austin Johnson) monologue. Given all the brand new forged members, Jost was a shock to hold the primary half, through which he complained as Hegseth, “our military is gay as Hell!” Hegseth stated the navy have to be a spot the place there are “no fug-ups, no fatties, no facial hair, no body hair. Just hot shredded hairless men who are definitely not gay!” When Trump appeared, he stated, “‘SNL’ 51 — off to a rough start. Seventeen new cast members and they got the ‘Update’ guy doing the cold open.” His meta commentary included references to the controversial Riyadh Comedy Pageant (Jost claimed he wasn’t invited), and a foul joke about Saudi Arabia that drew groans: “We like the Saudis because they like to saw-deez journalists in half.” Mikey Day appeared briefly as FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr and earlier than Trump concluded, he made the “SNL” crew, whom he claimed as Trump voters, promise to “keep an eye on Marcello for me.”
Greatest sketch of the evening: ChatGPTío may take sudden photos of you 
ChatGPT may be too good and sycophantic; what if it had been extra like a Latino uncle who’s trustworthy to a fault with you? On this mock business for OpenAI hosted by Chloe Fineman, Hernández and Unhealthy Bunny play AI characters inside ChatGPT who give loud recommendation and generally name in the course of the evening to ask about Smash Mouth. How do you make vegan banana bread? “You don’t!” Was Jesus actually God? “Yes.” It doesn’t fairly work as an idea if you happen to suppose an excessive amount of about it, however Hernández makes a meal but once more out of taking part in a Latino elder with sturdy opinions.
Additionally good: Huntr/x hold it ‘Golden’ for a superfan 
Whereas it wasn’t the very best showcase for Unhealthy Bunny, who struggled with line deliveries, this sketch a couple of “Kpop Demon Hunters” fan had a shock look by the singers from the animated film’s soundtrack, who carried out a part of their hit “Golden” and had some unusually humorous dialogue, such because the reveals that one of many brunch companions is on the Epstein checklist (for flying JetBlue by his island) and one other was the author of the Sydney Sweeney American Eagle Denims business. It additionally featured Bowen Yang as “Demon Hunters” villain Jinu singing “Soda Pop,” one other enjoyable shock.
‘Weekend Update’ winner: Anticipate somebody to make They Okay. Rowling shirts after this 
New forged member Kam Patterson made his debut in a phase begging “SNL” to let him use the N-word (“I’m a stand-up comedian from Florida, saying that word is what I do!”). However it was Yang in prosthetics as Dobby the Home Elf from “Harry Potter” who gained the evening regardless of a hilarious wardrobe malfunction — his rag outfit saved coming off on the shoulder. Dobby begins by defending J.Okay. Rowling’s views on transgender individuals, however finally ends up questioning the writer’s views and releasing himself within the course of along with his possession of a They Okay. Rowling T-shirt. It’s a very good factor Yang didn’t go away “SNL” as was rumored as a result of this episode badly wanted him.
