Comedian Nate Bargatze returned and again proved himself to be a great host, while Coldplay again demonstrated why they're a tad too corny for Saturday night. Here's everything that happened on SNL this week.
The Cold Open
Maya Rudolph and Andy Samberg reprised their respective stints as presidential hopeful Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff, hanging out at home and watching the recent Vice Presidential debate, which featured Bowen Yang's JD Vance and Jim Gaffigan's Governor Tim Walz, who were silly caricatures of the real deals. Dana Carvey returned to portray his outta it President Joe Biden, which made his scene-mates laugh and contributed to a fine open.
The Monologue
Endearing comedian Nate Bargatze returned for his second hosting stint and joked about his time studying at community college. He riffed on his lack of knowledge of different oils and his lack of experience with raspberries. Bargatze had a great bit about DoorDash, DoubleDashing, and the opulence of his food ordering and the chaos it can create, all of which was very funny stand-up.
George Is Getting Optistic
Bargatze once again appeared as President George Washington, who lectured his underlings about his vision for the strange evolution of the utterly nonsensical English language. A reprise of a smash hit sketch that was staged the first time Bargatze hosted, this update was also hilarious.
The Oakmont Classic
In this remote, a golf tournament goes badly for Badgatze's Brady Knoll, whose drives and attempts kill birds, turtles and chipmunks, which was very funny.
Sabado Gigante
Marcello Hernández played the host of a loud and brash Univision gameshow taped in Miami and drew a bewildered contestant from the audience named Joshua Rogers, played by Bargatze. This was deliberately manic, and Bargatze did well as a put-upon and confused player.
Devil Dog's Drop
At a waterpark, staff and two EMTs deal with a deceased attendee at the top of a water slide. Bargatze and Michael Longfellow played the EMTs, who hint that transporting the body back down the stairs might be more difficult than simply pushing it down the slide. A very funny premise (perhaps one of the strongest in recent memory) that was well-executed.
Coldplay
With a string section, whimsical and theatrical staging, and a player piano, Coldplay played the quaint and earnest "ALL MY LOVE." Despite their schmaltz, this was okay.
In one of their hokiest Christian rock exhibitions, Coldplay, accompanied by Tini and Elyanna, performed the icky and horrible "WE PRAY," which burned the eyes and the ears as though they were engulfed in hellfire.
Weekend Update
Colin Jost got Update going by discussing Trump's rally at the site of his first assassination attempt. Michael Che made a Diddy joke about the rising employment figures in the U.S., and Che and Jost each had amusing takes on political leaders visiting hurricane-ravaged cities.
Che got an applause break for joking about Trump's dementia. Jost lamented the absence of RFK Jr. campaigning for president because he's a source of great jokes, and Che got a second applause break for mocking Marjorie Taylor Greene. Jost reported that a man on mushrooms cut off his own penis, which led to a good punchline.
New featured player Jane Wickline played us a song about all-night awkward and undesirable partying, which was cute.
The Mile-High Burger
At a restaurant, a family has a hard discussion about their patriarch's dementia, when someone new to the family (Heidi Gardner) winds up in a contest to consume a massive hamburger and milkshake within 10 minutes. Gardner, a master physical comedian, tore right into this comedic food challenge with gusto, cracking up her colleagues, which was funny.
Sushi Glory Hole
The Lonely Island made a surprising and triumphant return with a Digital Short about sushi glory holes and, hey, where you going? Hear them out.
$20
During a halftime motivational speech for a flailing football team, two coaches attempted to pep players up, though one, played by Andrew Dismukes, said typical coach things, while the other, played by Bargatze, tried to motivate the team to pay him back for the money he'd spent buying their jerseys. Good stuff.