Saturday Night Live Season 37 Reviews - Cast Rankings

SNL Season 37

The Cast

From Best to Worst

Who would I save for next season?

MVP

Alec Baldwin, Ben Stiller, Eli Manning

Best Moment

I went back and forth between Jason and Bill for the top spot but this season Jason played both The Devil and Jesus Christ so that gave him the edge.  Then you throw in Coach Bert, Crime Scene, Text Message Evidence, and those are just the sketches he leads.  You can throw Jason in a sketch with not a funny line in sight and he'll still get all the laughs.  His delighted father-in-law to Lord Wyndemere, his disapproving teacher in J Pop America Fun Time Now!, doing the Roger Rabbit dance in What Up With That?, the cop in Scared Straight, or just coming on with a lute and a stupid grin in War Horse.

Worst Moment

Jason got a lot of bad cold opens this season but those are the breaks when the politician you're impersonating wins the primaries.  Even though the writing of the cold opens hasn't improved I always enjoyed Jason's Mitt Romney.  I'll single out Bongo's Clown Room for least favorite Jason sketch (notice I didn't use the word "worst").  It's not a terrible 10-1 sketch but these never did much for me.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

We got one more season of Jason, but outside of playing Mitt Romney and Joe Biden there's not a lot of Jason next year that I can remember (outside of Maine Justice) so stick around one more just so I can get me some Marshall T. Boudreaux but if you want to call it quits now I won't hold it against you.

MVP

Anna Faris, Charlie Day, Emma Stone, Channing Tatum

Best Moment

Who’s On Top?  What’s Wrong With Tonya?  If you got a question that needs answered in a game show format you can’t do better than Bill Hader as the host.  He’s got the impressions, Alan Alda, Shepherd Smith, James Carville, Rick Perry, Harvey Fierstein, Clint Eastwood, Dave Matthews, and more.  Plenty of Stefon, Herb Welch, and the President of NAMBLA, there’s plenty of options for best of Bill this season but I’ll single out Colonel Nasty as one of his most unique and fun creations.

Worst Moment

When you’re one of the best you have to appear in some crappy sketches like Ferrari Calendar and sometimes you have baby legs and pepperoni nipples.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

We only have one more season with Bill so go ahead and stick around for 20 more episodes but if you wanted to cut ship now I wouldn’t hold it against you, it’s been a damn good 7 years.

MVP

Katy Perry, Daniel Radcliffe, Mick Jagger

Best Moment

When Kristen is good she’s the best.  Red Flag, Shana, Kalle, Almost Pizza, Exit Poll, Glenda Okones, or my personal favorite Kristen moment when she played the wife of the chopped up dead guy on Dateline.  She can put her dong in my dump hole any time.

Worst Moment

When Kristen is bad it’s the worst and with over 120 sketch appearances this season we got out fair share of stinkers.  Remember Retirement Party, Patio Party, Nan Washington, Garth and Kat, Surprise Sue, 1920’s Holiday Party, or worst of the worst House Sitter from the Lindsay Lohan episode.

Would I Save Her From A Fire?

It would be kind of weird to come back after the show made a big deal of you leaving.  You had a solid 7 years but it’s time to move on.  Can you convince Fred to join you?

MVP

Lindsay Lohan

Best Moment

4th season for Bobby and you’ll find little complaints from me.  Chris Christie, Newt Gingrich, Guy Fieri, the debut of Drunk Uncle, Snooki, Fox and Friends.  My favorite was the 10-1 from the Katy Perry episode where he and the host shared One Magical Night filled with the poetry of Jewel and ostroconophobia.

Worst Moment

The only Bobby misfire I found this season was his character of Janet Peckinpaugh.  Guy in a dress is always funny, right?  Meh.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

Heck yeah.

MVP

Zooey Deschanel, Jonah Hill

Best Moment

In only his second season Taran is quickly climbing the ranks and becoming a guy you can build a sketch around.  Like Watch What Happens: Live where I could watch his coked up Andy Cohen impression all day.  Speaking of impressions we also got Brad Pitt, Rush Limbaugh, and Ashton Kutcher.  Then you can throw in Les Jeunes De Paris and J Pop America Fun Time Now! just for good measure.

Worst Moment

Taran dancing with a little person dressed as a Native American in Bongo's Clown Room is not something I needed to see.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

Absolutely.  He’s coming out of the gate swinging, keep him around for a while.

MVP

Jason Segel

Best Moment

I love when Vanessa plays straight women whether she’s getting mashed potatoes dumped on her head by Nasim or playing MC Jiggle Butt on B108 FM or being the only person keeping it together in Super Showcase.  She’s one of those cast members who can get a laugh without the funny lines.  Just wanted to throw that out there before giving best honors to J-Pop America Fun Time Now!.

Worst Moment

After 4 incarnations of The Miley Cyrus Show the previous season I think that well has dried up.  And the one we got this season was just more of the same.

Would I Save Her From A Fire?

No question.  Second season and she’s definitely already hit her stride.

MVP

None

Best Moment

Contrary to popular belief there were other women in the SNL cast this season other than Kristen Wiig.  One of them was the wonderful Nasim Pedrad who never let me down even if she was hard to find sometimes.  Dirty dancing with Channing Tatum at a Bat Mitzvah, Arianna Huffington on Update, Nicki Minaj, or lashing out for attention from her father the Child Psychologist.  Nasim was always solid no matter how small her role was.

Worst Moment

I couldn’t find a moment where I disliked Nasim so I’ll go with her picking up the mantle of Hoda Kotb next to Kristen’s Kathie Lee.  Luckily she didn’t suffer the same fate of former Hodas Michaela Watkins and Jenny Slate.

Would I Save Her From A Fire?

Yes.  I love me some Nasim.

MVP

Jimmy Fallon, Will Ferrell

Best Moment

Andy’s final season did give us fun send offs for Laser Cats, Lazy Sunday, and the Digital Shorts themselves with The 100th Digital Short.  There was also Nicolas Cage on Update and playing Jimmy Fallon’s mirror image.

Worst Moment

The rest of the Digital Shorts this season.  Outside of the last few of the year the Digital Shorts were lackluster or worse.  Afros, Convoluted Jerry, V-Necks, and I Wish It Would Rain which was a whole lot of nothing. There were also some live duds like Rude Buddha and his Rick Santorum cold open.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

Thank you for your service but no it’s time to move on.

MVP

None

Best Moment

It’s finally come to the time where I don’t hate Kenan on the show.  I don’t quite love him, more ambivalence.  There’s no more Virginiaca or Deep House Dish but sketches like Scared Straight and What Up With That? have already run their course so there’s not much for Kenan to do anymore other than pop up as a delighted Desmond Tutu on Watch What Happens: Live.

Worst Moment

It's Getting Freaky With Cee Lo Green was a sketch I didn’t care for the first time much less the second (with the exception of Colonel Nasty of course).  There’s also his lack of impression skills, on display in The Apocalypse with his Al Roker.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

9 seasons?  No.  We can cut ties with Kenan at this point.  He went from sucking the comedy life out of every sketch to actually hitting every now and then to fading in the background.  You can head out now or stay one more for an even 10 then sneak out with Jason, Bill and Fred.  I will never understand why SNL became Kenan’s House around this time.

MVP

Steve Buscemi, Charles Barkley

Best Moment

I wanted to rank Paul higher but with only 12 out of 22 episodes it was hard to justify putting him over The Kenan Line™ but I loved this little scamp.  Lord Wyndemere, “Sex” Ed Vincent, Frozen Mexican Dinner, why let this guy go?…

Worst Moment

Other than the fact that he’s probably miserable from not getting any airtime.  Playing a pickle in Ben Stiller’s monologue or Osama Bin Laden in The Apocalypse.  Look up in the corner, real quick, that’s Paul up there behind a beard that makes him unrecognizable.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

I mean it’s too late now.

MVP

None

Best Moment

One of the byproducts of the Wiig dominance, Abby didn’t get much to do in her last season.  A couple of impressions like Anna Faris, Zooey Deschanel, and Jewel and only one real lead role (that wasn’t an impression) in What Is This? which is also one of her only lead roles of her tenure.

Worst Moment

While I like most of her impressions, I wasn’t sure what she was drawing inspiration for her Kristen Dunst in The Apocalypse.  Maybe I just haven’t seen enough Dunst movies.

Would I Save Her From A Fire?

Sure, but we’re getting Kate, Cecily and Aidy next season so she’d just be overshadowed again.  Might as well get out now.

MVP

Maya Rudolph, Josh Brolin

Best Moment

I chose The Apocalypse as worst moment for the last three so let’s single out Jay’s dynamite Cuba Gooding Jr impression.  You can add that to the pile of Denzel Washington, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Chris Rock, and Will Smith.  This guy should have his own show…

Worst Moment

Until you get what you wish for in The Jay Pharoah Show and realize that impressions may be this guy’s only bag.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

You’re gonna get Obama next season so good luck with that but knowing what’s coming you should probably head out now.

MVP

Sofia Vergara

Best Moment

Kate started out strong in her first episode.  She played Penelope Cruz in a Pantene Commercial next to Sofia Vergara and kind of cemented her place on the show right out of the gate.  It’s one of the strongest debuts in the show’s history.

Worst Moment

With just 5 episodes this season it was hard to pick a worst moment but she did make an appearance in The Californians.  Welcome to SNL.

Would I Save Her From A Fire?

She could leave now and be just ahead of Morweena Banks in total episodes but I say give her at least one full season.

MVP

None

Best Moment

Seth actually had a few sketch appearances this season.  He played one of Mitt Romney’s sons, himself in The Apocalypse and Maya Rudolph’s monologue and reprised Boston Powers in The Original Kings Of Catchphrase Comedy Vol. 2.

Worst Moment

Per usual, I could take or leave Weekend Update and this season I spent the majority of Seth’s airtime editing screenshots for this blog.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

As always, if you need Weekend Update you can do way worse than Seth but I would argue you could cut this segment.

MVP

None

Best Moment

It’s the 10th season for Fred and there were more downs than ups.  First the positives (and there were a couple), I finally enjoyed his Barack Obama impression once it was paired with a bad Bill Cosby impression.  His one man show Half Jewish Half Italian Completely Neurotic was fun and we got The Blue Jean Committee who jammed out with cinnamon beer on a Massachusetts afternoon.

Worst Moment

Everything else.  The Manuel Ortiz Show, the terribly slow cold opens, The Vogelchecks, Nicholas Fehn, Delinquent Teen Girl Gang, Garth and Kat, News Team Promo…but let it be known that Season 37 gave birth to my least favorite recurring sketch of all time in The Californians.

Would I Save Him From A Fire?

Whaaaaat are you still doooooing herrre?