Many of us are old enough to remember when “Saturday Night Live” was belly-laugh funny. Over the years, as the show drifted further to the left, and as iconic stars who could never be replaced moved on with their careers, the once-popular show was all but forgotten.
However, this past Saturday night, the show’s producers and writers finally might have realized that the Democratic Party generates copious amounts of usable comedic material.
For the first time in a long spell, “Saturday Night Live” was funny again, even if just for a few minutes, as the show decimated the relevance of the Jan. 6 House committee.
The skit took aim at all members of the committee. It also hit the most recent and final hearing that prominently featured House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York in a series of previously unreleased video clips in which the two Democratic leaders can be seen and heard speaking via telephone with then-Vice President Mike Pence.
SNL’s cold open was refreshingly funny for the most part, as the show clearly wasn’t interested in holding back as far as highlighting that the Jan. 6 committee and its numerous hearings were essentially a waste of time, accomplishing almost nothing.
Watch for yourself:
One Twitter user who posted a clip of the cold open during one of the parts in which the show hammered Illinois Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger — and also when Pelosi and Schumer were on the phone with Pence — perfectly captioned the video clip by writing, “Even SNL gets it.”
Even SNL gets it. Hilarious dragging of @AdamKinzinger, Pelosi and Schumer😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/yEwpJk8HIR — Spitfire (@DogRightGirl) October 16, 2022
One significant barometer of SNL’s success this past Saturday night was the fierce and hysterical reaction by angry Twitter liberals who were appalled that the network would have the audacity to go after the last Democrat-led anti-Trump charade.
One user was upset that the show focused on the moment Pelosi and Schumer were heard asking for assistance as Jan. 6 protesters breached the Capitol building.
you could definitely lampoon both Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, but using the recent footage of them reacting and attempting to secure assistance while people are being killed, is not one of those times#SNL https://t.co/KAFZDRDrdB — Culture of Truth (@Bobblespeak) October 16, 2022
“It’s really offensive for SNL to be doing a skit making fun of Pelosi & Schumer in the video from January 6th,” a Twitter user added.
Another user was upset that the show poked fun at high-profile Democrats instead of mocking Georgia Republican U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker over his police badge stunt Friday during his debate with Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock.
We can laugh at ourselves and be self depreciating at times, but it’s an epic failure for #SNL to make fun of J6 esp Pelosi trying to save the country from the Insurrection. A missed opportunity to not open with Herschel Walker police badge clownery. — KAMALA NATION (@KamalaNation) October 15, 2022
Finally, another enraged Twitter user wrote, “@SNL @nbcsnl Skit done in very bad taste. Our country and democracy, officers of our government died because our President committed crimes against its citizens. Thank God for 82 yr old Nancy Pelosi for taking a leadership role. Do you know McConnell sought her out to lead?”
To the casual observer, it appears as if SNL’s brutal mocking of the Jan. 6 committee was intentional in the sense that the show’s leaders might believe and be frustrated by the fact that — like many other pundits believe — the committee didn’t subpoena the former president at the outset.
Instead, the committee held what amounted to a theatrical vote at the conclusion of what likely will be the group’s final hearing.
Whatever the reason, as long as “SNL” keeps mining the other side of the aisle for bits of political comedy gold, it might eventually see the uptick in ratings that it presumably so desperately wants.
Author: Ryan Ledendecker