I would have to agree with Vito, Tina Fey has not kept the show fresh. There is much less topical humor than in previous casts. Too many of the regulars are encouraged to trot out the same recurring characters week after week. In the past, recurring characters were only kept if they were funny, now it just doesn't seem to matter. Here's a good example, "Debbie Downer" was only funny the first time it aired due to Horatio not being able to keep a straight face. Because of Horatio breaking up, several other cast members also started laughing. Unfortunately, someone must have thought that meant "Debbie Downer" as a character was hilarious, and we have been subjected to her multiple time since. How many times will we be subjected to the fake "Morgan Stanley" commercial? Yes, it was very funny the first time it aired, due to the surprise element of the angry Will Forte turning out to be the investment advisor, and not Amy's father, but surprise twist humor only works once or twice, not every week. Can anyone name me a funny recurring character that either Horatio Sanz, Fred Armisen, Rachel Dratch or Kenan Thompson has ever had? They are all talented, and are great sketch players, but must they all be expected to produce staple characters? I am not sure if phenomenon this is due to the laziness of the writing staff, or the egos of the cast members, but it has to stop! It boggles the mind to think that they are paying Tina Fey a million dollars a season to churn out the same schlock week after week. I love Tina on Weekend Update, but she has not been a good head writer. Even if the new cast members are funny, it will take them many seasons to establish themselves, because the regular cast members tend to hog the skits. Bill Hader could be the next breakout cast member, but not if he has to take a back seat to Fred Armisen's Native American or Venezuelan comedian characters.

amy poehler is funny in many of the sketches, but she is BEYOND HORRIBLE on weekend update. when is someone gonna teach this girl that 90% of comedy is DEADPAN?! rasmussen was the perfect foil for tina fey. i can't BELIEVE they went with poehler instead. even forte or parnell would have been better. hell, i even think poehler is capable of it herself, but someone's got to tell her to play the role "straight". someone send her a jack benny tape, PLEEEEASE.

Why is everyone so upset about the "caulk" sketch. At least it was funnier than "The Facloner" and the five or six other craptastic sketches. "Good Morning Meth" had me laughing too. As for putting Tina Fey behind the camera, screw that, getting to see her is half the reason I watch the show. Tina and Amy Poehler are the funniest part of the show. I have to agree that it is time to get rid of Horatio, Hammond, and Parnell (at least) and bring some fresh writing talent. Anyone else missing Jimmy Fallon yet?

I dont think a total rehash is needed. The writing team is still as good as most on TV. Note- I didnt say they werre great, just on par. SNL has always had obvious jokes, recurring characters and puerile humor. You've got to remember that SNL plays all across this great country of ours- including the 30-or-so states that thoguht re-electing W. would be a peachy idea- this isn't high-prow, subtle humor. This is Television. You want complex themes and edge, go down to your local improv and buy a ticket. Dump some of the older actors- Sanz, Armisen, Forte, Hammond just aren't caring any more. Its always been 90 minutes and it will always BE 90 minutes, but maybe think of a new weekly sketch a-la Weekend update to break the show up better. The last hour has been dragging. maybe think of two- one to break up the last 60, and one to REPLACE weekend update- W.E. used to be my favorite sketch week in and week out, but with the Daily Show out there, W.E. now comes off as second rate.

Dump Fey! If she is just a "co-writer" then dump her cohort too. Dump the tired, old, long-winded garbage and get back to the JOKES that were funny. Anyone remember "The Cobra" sketch? NOT FUNNY! Just like the rest of the junk they are trying to pass off as comedy. Where are the Will Farrells? Oh yeah, his name is Darrell Hammond and is the only decent actor left on the show. MAYBE the addition of some new cast could help, if they got rid of the lack-luster performers. Adding them sure isn't helping any.

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Fred Armisen. That guy is hilarious. I remembered him from way back when he did Ferrecito on the Zach Galifinakis or however-you-spell-it show and I was glad when they added him as a cast member. And no, I'm not just keeeeeeding.

I find it not only outrageous but also criminally conspiratorial that this show is so bad. i mean, all these writers have to do is put out ONE show a week, with several weeks between seasons to accommodate even more creative braistorming. and they have pretty good actors and frequently sensational guests at their disposal. oh, if Jon Stewart and the folks at Family Guy had access to guys like Jason Lee and Matthew McConaughey! the writers at comedy central bottle lightning four times a week (Daily Show, Colbert Report), and are probably paid a paltry comparable pittance to miss fey. meanwhile, the show deserves to fail given its reluctance to torch the bush administration. for five years now, this group of politicians has proven itself to be laughably inept, at best, and wickedly corrupt, at worst. the writers should be mining this goldmine with satire-pointed shovels, instead of just occasionally mimicking bush's speech patterns (who doesn't?). this is a great comedy opportunity that has been utterly missed. i wonder, is lorne michaels a republican now? would he rather put out mediocre fare than create scathing satire that would set the nation on fire? the show is sooooo depressing; i wish we could launch a campaign to get people to watch MAD TV or something.

Amy Poehler is very talented but the news segment definitely lost something when Jimmy Fallon left. Now it seems like two sorority girls trying to be funny and end up only being cutesy. The guy that does Bush is pretty bad too, nothing like when Hammond did Clinton.

Well, that sketch sounds pretty funny to me. It's hard to be original for 90 minutes every week. Keep the show and stop complaining, ya whiners. You think it was funnier for John Belushi to scream and slice salami with a samurai sword? It wasn't.

First of all, I don't want to hear anybody say "The show sucks since Will Ferrell left." SNL shows are succesful when original sketches are shown, and memorable characters are created. I would really like to see many of the older cast members leave. Darrell Hammond is in his 11th season and counting, Horatio Sans and Chris Parnell are both in their 9th season. Now that's really excessive. Even Rachel Dratch is at her 7th season. And the cast is certainly too large. 12 repertory players and 4 featured! 16 people! I would like to see fresh faces and I think Bill HAder and Andy Samberg really have some talent, and something to offer to the show. Also, check out Andy Samberg's Awesometown on the internet, there are some really original skits on there that could do well on SNL. We need something new on SNL, no more of the Falconer (it's run it's course), no more Lundford Twins, and the cast has to be much much much smaller so that real chemistry between players can be established. Keanan Thompson, Finess Mitchell, Kritin Wiig, Jason Sudeikes, Bill Hader, Andy Samberg, Will, Fred and Amy are more than enough to keep the show funny and fresh. (i just don't think that seth myers is all that funny, maybe a little)