This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Kenyon chapter.
If you haven’t been watching Saturday Night Live this season, you’ve been missing out. The hosts have been game and energetic, the writing has struck a wonderful range from inventive and smart to straight up silly, and the new cast members are absolutely killing it. In short, this season has been right on point.
This weekend’s episode, hosted by the surprisingly versatile Kerry Washington—who knew she was funny?!—had an abundance of great sketches, including a parody of the viral video “What The Fox Say,” a Miss Universe pageant with some absurd contestants, and a stellar “Weekend Update, but here are my three favorites of the night:
SNL and its longtime producer Lorne Michaels have recently incurred a wave of criticism because the show has featured less than a handful of black women in its cast over its almost 40 year run. Washington is a black woman, which comes into play in this sketch as it makes light of the issue lack of diversity issue on the show. She plays notable African-American women such as Michelle Obama, Oprah, and Beyonce.
Nasim Pedrad plays a motivational speaker who has a lot of pride in her very average successes (she’s been approved for an Ok Cupid account!), a lot of energy, and a very thick accent. Washington plays her sassy, underwhelmed assistant.
A digital short about two ice cream workers who really, really don’t get the joke. This sketch is funny in concept, but also great because it highlights the weird hilarity of Kyle Mooney, one of my favorite new featured players. By the way, if you don’t already, you should know him from this video!