Friday, July 27, 2007

The Worst of SNL, by popular demand

Duff’s Top 10 Worst SNL Cast Members

  1. Melanie Huttsel – my number one pick with a bullet. Sure she was fantastic as Jan Brady, and very good as Tori Spelling. However, she made that same goddamned face for every character, and that out of breath voice.. Uggg…she had ZERO range. ZERO.

  2. Robert Downey Jr – I don’t care how coked up he was, he had no reason to be on this show.

  3. Anthony Michael Hall – ditto, minus the coke.

  4. Maya Rudolph – Ok, I know this might ruffle some feathers, but she’s been on the show what, 10 years? Are her boringly repetitive impressions of Whitney Houston and Donatella Versace even funny, or relevant? The Nuni skit has been on like 5x, wtf. Sure, she can sing, I’ll give her that, but this is a comedy show. Her tired skits bring this show down.

  5. Terry Sweeney – Through no fault of his own. He was funny, but the show just didn’t know what to do with him. He was great as Nancy Reagan, however the show didn’t know what to do with an openly gay cast member. To my knowledge he’s the only openly gay cast member in history. So, he’s on my worst list not because of him, but because so called “edgy” SNL wasn’t able to write for him. While I love SNL, they would have been better to been riskier in their comedy. Past season 1 or 2, snl has never been edgy, counterculture or even the slightest bit non mainstream.

  6. Chevy Chase – Yes, he was funny, yes he was good on update and as Ford etc. However, he is known for being the biggest asshole to ever take the stage at SNL. I don’t think I’ve ever read a good word about him on the show, other than from Lorne Michaels. By all accounts he was very racist and homophobic. I believe he told Terry Sweeney to die of Aids, if memory serves. Good riddance. Why has such a terrible man, made so many things I love? FLETCH!

  7. Chris Kattan – sure, he’s kinda funny. But I can’t think of a sketch of his that didn’t make me groan. A few Mangos were funny, just a few. Gay Hitler, yeah that was good, but how old is that joke?

  8. Jay Mohr – I want to put him on this list, because I feel like he never fit in. He always felt more like an actor than a comic. However, his fantastic Googly eye-d Andrew McCarthy impression was spot on, and he was an early adopter of the now overused Walken impression. So he is spared. I’ll put Beth Cahill in this spot, because I don’t even remember her being on the show at all.

  9. Jerry Minor – Very funny guy, as shown by his Mr. Show appearances, but totally underused on SNL. I think they were shopping around for token black guys and sent him back to the bench.

  10. Jim Belushi – A man only famous because of the death of his brother. I don’t see much talent here at all, his career is suspect. He’s also the #1 target of David Cross, and that’s good enough reason for me.
Fuge's Bottom 10
I'd like to start off by saying that My bottom 10 includes the Entire cast of 1985-1986 besides John Lovitz, Dennis Miller and Nora Dunn. No business being on the show at all. So here it goes.

Countdown Style:

Number 10. Joan Cusack. I mean, she is just on the cursed 1985-86 cast...SO forgettable. I mean, I've liked her post SNL, in movies and whatnot...and find her strangely hot, but sorry, your era was so bad.

Number 9. Randy Quaid. Again, I've appreciated some of his work, especially in the National Lampoons Movies, but SNL, I'm sorry.

Number 8. Melanie Hutsell. I mean, other than the Jan Brady Character, which is almost entertaining, everything else she did was the same thing with just a dumb look on her face, no comedic value at all.

Number 7. Pamela Stephenson. I don't even remember a single character she played...but I know she sucked.

Number 6. Danitra Vance...your season was so forgettable, I don't know who you are...but you have to be on the list.

Number 5. Terry Sweeney. 85-86...Hired to act in drag, which can be funny, and he wasn't bad, but he has to be ashamed of the era.

Number 4 and 3 Anthony Michael Hall and Robert Downey Junior. I am pretty sure they just did this show so they could get high. I mean, Why?

Number 2. Chris Kattan. Fuck You Mango.

Number 1. Jim Belushi. I mean, Brian Doyle Murray is at least pretty funny. You on the other hand, are awful...and should be ashamed of yourself. The only beneficial thing you ever did for society was make the movie The Principal, because besides movies about Martial Arts Style Tournaments, the Principal coming in to clean up the evil High School is right up near the top on my movie Genre list. But awful.

7 comments:

Alex said...

I’m only doing a top 10, in no order…

Jim Breuer - idiot

Chris Kattan – annoying idiot

Cheri O’Teri – cheerleader skit = not funny, or anything else she did

Colin Quinn – the only thing worse than him on snl was him having his own show

Maya Rudolph – she was actually not awful in Idiocracy

Molly Shannon – annoying, much like Ana Gasteyer

Jim Belushi (only because I was up last night and According to Jim was on… god that’s awful)

Chevy Chase - this man is not funny, especially when he’s trying to be funny on the spot

Jimmy Fallon - yes, it’s kind of funny that he always laughs when he’s doing a skit with Horatio Sanz

Ana Gasteyer – annoying, much like Molly Shannon

Dan Nolan said...

so Chevy's just on the list because he's an asshole, right? His comedy on the show has to be regarded as top notch. I don't remember some of the people on the list in terms of their SNL work, but allow me to say without working up an official list that I loathe the following unfunny hacks: Chris Kattan, Jay Mohr, Cheri O'Teri, Horatio Sanz, Jimmy Fallon, and with the red hot heat of a thousand suns: Jim Breuer.


I was just about to throw down my ten best when I thought to myself, why hasn't this been covered. Then I checked and you have like 4 or 5 new posts!!!!!!!!!!!!! Is this a legitimate Duffless Rennaissance? What's going on? kudos. I have some reading to do.

Duffless said...

Chevy was on the show like 1.3 seasons. He mocked cast members upon his returns, tooled on the current cast, threw around so much hate that it makes me sick. Everything I've ever read about him is very negative, he's generally regarded one of the most hated people in hollywood (and not for reasons I'd love).

I'd say on snl, if you had it all up, he'd done more harm than good. Although, Land Shark and Jane You Ignorant Slut are all valid reasons to keep him off the worst list. I just have to go with my gut here, a comedy show needs a group ensemble, and he fucked with that by being a douche.

Dan Nolan said...

fair enough. I did a mega cop out vtk post and linked to your trilogy of SNL posts. good stuff.

Dan Nolan said...

also hacks: Rob Schneider and Colin Quinn.

Duffless said...

There is something I like about Rob Schieder that I just can't explain. On snl I thought he was always solid, I liked his Making Copies guy (although they did it too many times) and I loved him as the Eskimo in the Real World sketch. Sure some of his movies have been bad, but he has a really genuine and endearing quality that I enjoy. So while his comedy isn't what anyone would call highbrow, I have always enjoyed his silliness.

As for Colin Quinn, he's at best an aquired taste. I've enjoyed things he's done in his career, but he messed up more jokes than I care to remember, not sure if it was nerves or a speech problem, but he could have been funny on Update, if he could have just spit out those damn jokes.

Alex said...

I just don't think Chevy is funny, except for in certain movies, and even then I find him annoying.