text: SNL: S26E18... HOST: PIERCE BROSNAN... DATE: MAY 5, 2001 — The Wicker Breaker - Long-Term Challenge Procurer, Soul Searcher, Silly, Sentimental, Blogger
  Sit-Com And Sketch Just Don't Mix
  Now when I say sit-com and sketch don't mix, I'm not talking at all about the actors, which would be weird considering Pierce Brosnan has nothing to do with the genre, along with the fact that most sit-com actors and actresses actual do make some of the best hosts. No, I'm talking about tone and style, and tonight's episode reminded me that this was another issue that I've had with this season of SNL.
  As I said in a past review, I find that a lot of the sketches from this year have the feel of a mini sit-com pilot episode. Take tonight's opening sketch for example where George W. Bush confronts his daughter after she got caught drinking while underage. Everything from the style of jokes, to their delivery, and even the way that the audience laughed seemed sit-com schmaltzy and the timing of the laughter made it seemed sit-com canned even though the audience is live.
  I could see this stemming from the fact that most of the cast members who also write have been on the show for so long that they've had sit-coms on their mind as their plan to escape the show in order to head out on their own. The sketches that didn't have this sit-com feel were either parody sketches which I like more often than not or talk show sketches that have always felt like filler me, even when they are successful at being funny.
  On top of that, Pierce Brosnan fell into the same trap that I was complaining about last night with Renee Zellweger, and throughout many other reviews from this year. Though Pierce has been in a few comedies, he's never really been the source of any laughs. Like with Zellweger and these others, my views are by no means criticizing anyone's ability to act but they may not be the best fit for the world of sketch.
  Keep in mind, that when this brand of episode airs, I always point out that they are at least entertaining to watch, they're just not all that inspiring to actually write about. So with that, I'm going to wrap this thing up and sketch gears to share what I saw, as I give you…
  Again, this wasn't the best show but it was still pretty fun thanks to sketches like these that contained my three favorite moments of the night. First, I loved Bravery And Unity because even though the jokes were totally offensive, they were classically bad and brought me back to reading Truly Tasteless Joke Books back when I was a child. Next, I really liked Five Finger Discount because it was fun to see Molly Shannon again, plus the idea of shoplifting live animals as a compulsion was a pretty interesting spin. Finally, I was a fan of The West Wing On Mushroom but mainly just because I'm a psychedelics fan.