Top Ten Best SNL Sketches (Of Last Season)

The 39th season of Saturday Night Live will premiere on September 28 with its prodigal daughter Tina Fey returning to host. But while we wait for new episodes (and in preparation for being the new CelebrityCafé.com SNL recapper), I’ve put together a list of the best and worst SNL sketches from last season. Now that we’ve got the bad ones behind us, it’s time to look at the best and funniest moments from last year’s SNL.

(Note: at the time of this writing, all clips from the 38th season were removed from Hulu, which is why they are not embedded here)

(Note, Part 2: Halfway through writing this list another CelebrityCafe.com writer compiled her own version of a “Best SNL Skits” article. Because our opinions vary widely -- we only agree on a few sketches and my number 1 worst pick landed at number 6 on her best Top Ten – I decided to go ahead and publish mine as well. Leave a comment below with your favorites!)

10. Homeland – Ep 7, Anne Hathaway & Rihanna
While SNL did a wonderful Sopranos spoof last year, my favorite TV-themed skit of the year was Homeland, purely because of how addicted I am to the Showtime drama and how wonderfully the skit parodied it. Host Anne Hathaway’s shaky chin and manic desperation captured a caricatured version of Claire Danes’ Carrie to a T, while Taran Killam’s Brody, all brooding and tight-lipped, was just about perfect. Throw in a spot-on Mandy Patinkin impression courtesy of “I-Can-Do-An-Impression-Of-Anyone-And-Make-It-Funny” Hader and a hysterical cameo by Nasim Pedran as Brody’s daughter (“Dad? Daaaad?”) and you got a hilarious take on one of TV’s best shows .

9. G.O.B. Tampons - Ep 2, Joseph Gordon Levitt & Mumford & Sons
It may be hard for you whippersnappers to believe but in its heyday SNL was the pinnacle of political satire. Nowadays, their political stuff is surprisingly safe and bland, but this faux ad from the September 22 episode was smart, short and featured a great premise. Vanessa Beyer (one of my favorite cast members of the season) stars in a commercial for the new G.O.B. tampon, “designed with all the knowledge of a woman’s anatomy that only comes from being a 60 year old conservative man.” The sketch had a point and had the good sense to not overstay it’s welcome, but was still hilarious at the same time. Hope we see more of this kind of parody in the new season.

8. DJesus Uncrossed – Ep 13, Christoph Waltz & Alabama Shakes
I sense a theme here. Both numbers this sketch, AAAA and AAAA are essentially on this list for the same reason, they push boundaries and score tons of laughs in the process. This hilariously sacrilegious fake film trailer puts a biblical spin on Oscar-winner Django Unchained. Bloody and bloody funny, the Djesus sketch sets a perfect tone, is a spot on parody and doesn’t overstay its welcome. This is one of the most controversial skits of the year – and one whose place on this list might cause some brouhaha – but I stick by it for its wit and style. As the voice-over says, ”he may be wearing sandals but he can still kick some ass.” Can anyone give me a hallelujah?

7. Darrell’s House - Ep 18, Zach Galifianakis & Of Monsters and Men
This year, SNL tried something different and produced a few sketches featuring in-episode reoccurring gags. While the Z Shirts skit may be the most famous, my favorite is Darrell’s House from the Zach Galifianakis episode. It starts a what seems like an uncomfortable, dead-end, mid-episode sketch centered around an ill-tempered, awkward man-child filming a public access show in his living room and demanding his unseen friend/editor/cameraman Marcus fix all the problems in post. And there’s a lot of cutting to be done with Darrell’s frequent outbursts and CGI-ing Jon Hamm’s body over stand-in Kenan Thompson’s. But in the 12:55 slot, SNL aired the “edited” version complete with hideous jump cuts, poorly produced inserts and, you guessed it, Jon Hamm. It’s a great piece of surrealist humor, the kind not often found on SNL, but as a fan of this kind of comedy (and as an avid video editor) this sketch cracked me up.

6. Racist Jim - Ep 18, Zach Galifinakas & Of Monsters and Men
While SNL tried a similar set-up with the Bobby-Moynihan-And-Cecily-Strong-Yell-“Bitch”-At-People-Before-They-Get-Fired sketches, those always felt a little too loud, a little too dumb and a little too toothless. But when SNL tried a similar premise with Zach Galifinakas at the helm, it turned into one of the best, and least PC, skits of the year. At the M&M store, new employee Jim, or Racist Jim as everyone calls him, is being fired for being…you guess it, racist. Before he goes, Jim tries to “apologize” to his co-workers while managing to still offend just about everyone. From his Pakistani co-worker he thinks is Native American (“How!” “What?” “I was just saying hello.”) to his back-and-forth with Black Joe, the Racist Jim sketch manages to get an equal number of laughs and cautionary “ooos” from the audience. Galifinakas is a no holds barred, character actor of a comic with a strange, uncomfortable persona, which made this sketch top notch. (Note: the Dermot Mulroney/ Dylan McDermott sketch from the Jamie Foxx episode was just about tied for this spot, with Racist Jim taking the envelope-pushing racial humor over the top).

5. Not Porn Stars Anymore – Multiple Episodes
You’d think this series of sketches would get tired – two ex-porn stars played by Cecily Strong and Vanessa Bayer pitch various “luxury” products in hopes that the company will send them free stuff – but somehow these skits not just don‘t get old, but each one is funnier than the last. Part of this comes from the kooky comedic connection between Strong and Bayer, whose blank-stared, malapropism-filled back-and-forth is filled with one ridiculous story after another.“One time I got cut in half for real at a magic show,” Brookie says in one version of the sketch, “Now some of my middle parts are plastic bags and I can’t wait to fill them with Moet & Chandon!” Add in some guest stars, like Justin Timberlake as Ricky V.I.Penis and Ben Affleck as Girth Brooks and you got a riotously funny sketch that pushes the adult envelope just enough. I have a feeling that, if they keep doing this bit, it will get stale real quickly, but the last two incarnations of the sketch – the Moet and Chandon champagne ad (called Monica and Chandler champagne by Ricky) and the Hermes Handbags ones – just killed it.

4. Pizza Taster – Ep 16, Melissa McCarthy & Phoenix
I loved Melissa McCarthy’s outing as SNL host from the hilarious physicality of her monologue to the absurdist pleasure of her Honey Baked Ham dance (It’s OK I’ve completed blocked the Million Dollar Wheel one from my memory, Eternal Sunshine-style). But my favorite sketch is the Pizza Taster one. Barb Kellner is a divine comedic invention – a wonderfully specific, fully formed character that makes talking about eating pizza a yearlong highlight. She’s a wannabe entrepreneur looking for a loan to start a business eating other people’s cold pizza. “It is legitimate,” Barb says when challenged, “I legitimately love eating pizza.” All too often SNL relies on one joke set-ups, so this sketch, which gets its laughs from the oddball characterizations rather than a formal set-up/punch line routine, is a welcome change. I seriously hope McCarthy is back in the 39th season and that Barb Kellner will find her way onto Shark Tank.

3. Sad Mouse - Ep 5, Bruno Mars
I’ve enjoyed the SNL digital shorts, but they’re mostly dumb little music videos or whimsical skits. Funny, but not terribly inventive. But then comes along Sad Mouse, the poignant short film aired during Bruno Mars’ episode. It features Mars as a sad, down-on-his-luck man who gets a job as one of those Times Square mascots. It’s a simple premise, but SNL filmed it in an unusually beautiful, artful style which gave it the gravitas to be both heartwarming and touching. As someone who recently spent a dusky hour staring and the flotsam and jetsam that parade around Times Square for tourists’ dollars, I can confirm the mix of old Broadway nostalgia with a certain dead-end, forlorn sadness. It somehow captures that perfectly while still being artistic, funny and, ultimately, uplifting. Bravo SNL.

2. Puppet Class – Ep 1, Seth McFarlane & Frank Ocean
The best stand-alone sketch of the year came in the very first episode. I remember choking with laughter the first time I saw it and, after multiple times seeing it again (including once more to prepare for this list), the Puppet Class skit still made me “LOL,” as Bonnie’s puppet Nicki likes to say. The premise is wonderfully simple and well thought out: a scarred Vietnam War vet takes an Intro to Puppetry class and scares everyone there with his puppet alter ego’s gory tales of Grenada. The jokes are funny, but what really sells the sketch is Bill Hader’s total commitment to playing Private Anthony Peter Coleman. From his gravelly, deadpan delivery to the intense interactions he has with the other puppets, everything about this character is just about perfect. By the time his puppet Tony smokes and starts making out with classmate Bonnie’s, the sketch climaxes in a hilarious, pitch perfect way.

1. Weekend Update Correspondents – Multiple Episodes
Hands down, the best characters seen on SNL this last year were Weekend Update guests rather than stars of their own sketches. I loved Jacob The Bar Mitzvah Boy (“It beats doin’ homework!”), Vanessa Bayer’s awkward, 13-year-old, Jew-fro-ed character who tries to educate Seth Meyers on various Jewish holidays. From his corny jokes, to his awkward stick-to-the-script style, it perfectly captured a certain, and very real, type of person. And yes, this is coming from someone with many years of Hebrew school and Bar Mitzvah prep behind him. A big stand-out this year was also Bobby Moynihan’s Drunk Uncle (especially the incarnation featuring Peter Drunklage!) and The Girl At The Party You Wish You Hadn’t Started A Conversation With (“Syria, Seth, you ever heard of it?”), played by future Weekend Update co-host Cecily Strong. Every WU with one of these characters was a stand-out, with almost every joke landing. But by far the biggest and best superstar to come out of the segment was Stefon, Bill Hader’s skittish, gay club kid with a penchant for the weirdest clubs to ever hit NYC. We all know and love Stefon, so no need to go on and on here, but just to say that the collected works of Stefon, culminating in an uproarious taped piece on the season finale, is perhaps my favorite moment of the 38th season.

Photo Courtesy of NBC Universal