Saturday Night Live Recap: Despite Delays Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks Deliver an Entertaining Episode

Saturday Night Live Recap: Despite Delays, Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks Deliver an Entertaining Episode

The Wicked star may not have pulled double duty as the musical guest, but Ariana Grande’s vocal talents were on full display throughout the night.

SNL fans, get ready! SNL In Review: The Anniversary Recap is back, and we’ve just finished the third episode of the season. Many viewers, myself included, felt that last week’s episode was a refreshing improvement after a shaky season premiere. Now, the numbers speak for themselves. Tonight’s episode was a special one, featuring Ariana Grande, fresh off her role in Wicked, paired with the legendary Stevie Nicks as the musical guest. Fun fact: Nicks first graced the SNL stage in 1983, and there’s even a classic sketch spoofing her that’s now over 25 years old. Talk about longevity!

While Grande last appeared as SNL’s musical guest only a few months ago, she returned tonight as the host. She previously hosted back in season 41, with memorable moments like the Tidal breakdown sketch. Taran Killam, who’s currently performing in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the Kennedy Center, said, “What I’m most excited for is Stevie Nicks. Pairing her with Ariana hosting is must-watch television for me.”

Stay tuned for more highlights below! Former SNL cast member Gary Kroeger also chimed in with his thoughts on this exciting night and season.

Cold Open

Thanks to an NBC football game running late, tonight’s Cold Open had a delayed start. We find Kaitlan Collins (Chloe Fineman) at CNN, reporting on Donald Trump’s supposed fear of facing off against Kamala Harris—except, of course, for Family Feud! Enter Steve Harvey, brilliantly played by Kenan Thompson. Maya Rudolph reprised her role as Kamala Harris, joined by Andy Samberg as Doug Emhoff (aka “Doug the Shrug”), Dana Carvey as Joe Biden, and Jim Gaffigan as Tim Walz.

In a classic Harvey moment, he asks Harris what she keeps in her glove compartment. After a typical political spiel, he nudges her into saying “glock.” When Doug’s turn comes up, he simply answers, “second gun,” leaving the rest of the Democratic team struggling to keep up.

Meanwhile, James Austin Johnson’s Trump was not joined by Melania, but we did see Mikey Day back as Don Jr.—though Alex Moffat’s absence as Eric was noticeable and disappointing.

Doug Emhoff and Kamala Harris have praised Samberg and Rudolph’s impressions of them. I asked Gary Kroeger if Samberg’s take was too gentle, to which he responded, “The actor’s job is to capture the essence, and the sketch is what should deliver the satire. A good impression isn’t always a perfect mimicry, but it should offer a fresh perspective. It’s nice that Emhoff liked the portrayal.”

Kroeger added that he’s not a fan of bringing in celebrities for political impressions. “While it may boost viewership, I believe the magic of SNL is having the cast do everything. They have the talent to pull it all off.”

Monologue

Grande kicked off her monologue by reflecting on what an incredible year it’s been—especially fulfilling her theater-kid dreams by starring in Wicked. She promised to keep things low-key and not sing, but of course, she immediately broke into song. During the performance, she slipped in her famous impressions of Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus, and Gwen Stefani, a callback to a sketch she did in 2016.

Grande shared a brief moment with Bowen Yang, discussing Wicked. Kroeger chimed in, remembering that his former cast member Tim Kazurinsky once performed in the show and was excellent.

The monologue wrapped up with a chorus line of dancers joining Grande for a grand finale, though she continued to claim she was keeping things “low key.”

Saturday Night Live Recap: Despite Delays Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks Deliver an Entertaining Episode

“Bridesmaid Speech” Sketch

In this sketch, James Austin Johnson’s character finishes up a standard best man speech at a wedding reception. But the bridesmaids—played by Heidi Gardner, Ego Nwodim, Sarah Sherman, and Grande—are a little more eccentric. They’ve written a special song about the bride’s wild bachelorette weekend in Charleston, which quickly turns into a parody of Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso.”

The bridesmaids sing about a mysterious man named Domingo, who shared some memorable moments with the bride on her trip. The groom, played by Andrew Dismukes, becomes increasingly concerned as the lyrics grow more scandalous and the melody drifts off-key (on purpose, of course). As the tension builds, Marcello Hernandez makes a surprise appearance as Domingo himself, adding to the hilarity.

This sketch succeeded in delivering laughs, especially with the deliberate off-key singing and the groom’s horrified reactions. It was a fun and quirky moment in an overall entertaining episode.

Latest new from Beuteeshop