Saturday Night Live: Rainn Wilson/Arcade Fire - VIDEOS

(S32E14) Rainn Wilson is probably best known from NBC's The Office, in which he plays the incredibly funny Dwight Schrute. As always, just because an actor does well in a sitcom doesn't necessarily mean it all translates on Saturday Night Live. Fortunately, Wilson delivered a great performance that was on par with the show's actual cast members. This was a pleasant surprise for me, so I really wish that the weeks' writing had done better justice to Wilson's talent.

Cold Open ("The Situation Room"): This was a nice take on the news networks' ridiculous obsession with the Anna Nicole Smith case. Why did they use Rainn Wilson so early? I mean, he did a really good job, but I'm always a little disoriented when they have the host do a skit before the monologue.

Monologue: Haha, this take on The Office was hilarious. The most bizarre bit was seeing how much Kristen Wiig and Jason Sudeikis looked like Pam and Jim. Sudeikis' annoyed face was dead-on. Kenan as Oscar Stan (sorry, I was thinking "Stan" but typed "Oscar" for some reason) was also a cool addition, as was the brief cameo by Rashida Jones.



"Danny's Song": This seemed like a sketch that would normally appear at the end of an episode, so I was surprised to see it as the very first one. And what a weird choice of song (Loggins and Messina's "Danny's Song"). "I laughed so hard that the other guy's pee came out of my nose!"

"An SNL Digital Short": Again, this was a super-weird short, but it was brief enough to accept and enjoy. My favorite bit was the Gigantic Turkey Sub.



"Nuni and Nooni": The toast chair was good, but I liked Maya Rudolph's springy seat the best. Despite the fact that I've seen these characters loads of times, I'm not sure what to think of them anymore. They're terribly formulaic, but I guess their weirdness mixes it up just enough?

"Peeping Tom": This was a fun sketch. It wasn't spectacular, but fun. I really liked how Sudeikis' character was oddly specific with his fake-showering.

"Weekend Update": Save for the Aflac joke ("They rape ducks..."), I didn't think WU was anything special this week. And that Anna Nicole Smith judge is going to get so much crap for the rest of his life...



"New Guy": I'm still not totally sure how I feel about these characters but I think I like them. I think. I know I had a good chuckle at Will Forte's horrified "Jean! That's the Lord's message..."

"White Possum Scream": Good lord. As if the real Black Snake Moan didn't look creepy enough. I don't think this sketch panned out as funny as the writers had expected.



"New Age": Ever wonder what happens when New Age musicians get angry? Of course you have.

Arcade Fire: I've never really listened to Arcade Fire before, so I'm not familiar with their music. However, a lot of my friends are fans and, after the night's performances, I could kind of see why. Anyone know why Arcade Fire seemed somewhat aloof this week? Usually, the musical guests are involved with the week's commercials in some form or another (even if they're just standing behind the host), but they were nowhere to be found. I thought that they may have been busy the day of shooting the commercials, but they didn't show up at the end-of-episode group hugfest either. Hmm. I suppose their appearance in the Digital Short kind of made up for it.

Next new episode: Julia Louis-Drefyus and Snow Patrol.