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Saturday Night Live

TV1975
ShowrunnerLorne Michaels
CountryUnited States · English
ActorsJohn Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Will Ferrell
ClassicComedyNostalgicLong CommitmentAdult

The review

Saturday Night Live is one of the most consequential programs in television history: a live, weekly sketch-comedy broadcast that has run for half a century and, at its best, functioned as the nation's shared comedy stage. Critics are as close to unanimous as television criticism gets on its legacy — it redefined the shape and tone of TV comedy at its 1975 debut, an anarchic, counterculture-inflected alternative to the staid variety shows of its era, and it has since minted an extraordinary run of stars who went on to dominate film and television for generations. Its recurring characters, catchphrases, impressions, and pre-taped bits have repeatedly passed into everyday American speech, and its anniversary specials draw reunions that feel like national events.

The format carries built-in strengths and weaknesses that have been debated for every one of its fifty years. The live, anything-can-happen energy gives the show an urgency no taped comedy can match, and its pillars — the topical cold open, the host monologue, the Weekend Update news parody, recurring characters — provide a reliable weekly spine. But the same weekly pressure produces famously uneven episodes: reviews routinely describe the show as hit-or-miss within a single night, with sketches that die on arrival sitting beside all-time classics. Topical jokes age quickly, impressions live or die on execution, and entire seasons swing dramatically in quality depending on the cast and writers' room of the moment — the show's documented low points (the early-80s and mid-80s collapses) and its golden eras (the original cast, the Murphy years, the late-80s/90s ensemble, the Ferrell and Wiig/Hader eras) are among the most thoroughly chronicled quality swings in TV criticism.

Where critics genuinely split is on the present tense: whether the show is still funny, or merely an institution running on legacy. Detractors — including some beloved alumni — argue the current show has traded its edge for professional competence and one-note political caricature; defenders counter that the same complaint has been lodged in every decade, and that the show's enduring cultural relevance proves the formula still works. There is sharp disagreement about partisan skew in its political satire, and about whether the weekly format is fundamentally unsustainable at this scale. What is not disputed is the historical weight: the political impressions that have become part of election-season discourse, the viral shorts that pioneered comedy's internet age, and the star-making pipeline that has no parallel in the medium. Its place among television's most influential programs is secure.

Seasons

  • Season 1

    Season 1 (1975-76): The anarchic launch — the original Not Ready for Prime Time Players, Chevy Chase's physical-comedy stardom, and a live, counterculture sensibility that immediately redefined TV sketch comedy. The season won four Emmys and its word-association sketch with Richard Pryor is still cited among the show's greatest.

  • Season 2

    Season 2 (1976-77): Bill Murray joins just as Chevy Chase departs mid-season — the show's first test of survival after a star exit, and it held its edge.

  • Season 3

    Season 3 (1977-78): Belushi and Aykroyd's Blues Brothers become a genuine recording act, Gilda Radner's characters blossom, and the show peaks in cultural buzz.

  • Season 4

    Season 4 (1978-79): Belushi and Aykroyd announce their exits at season's end; the original-cast era begins winding down amid continued acclaim.

  • Season 5

    Season 5 (1979-80): The farewell year for the founding ensemble — Michaels and nearly the entire original cast and writing staff leave after the finale, closing the show's first golden era.

  • Season 6

    Season 6 (1980-81): The infamous post-Michaels collapse under Jean Doumanian — critically savaged and near-fatal, capped by Charles Rocket's on-air expletive and Doumanian's firing; Dick Ebersol takes over mid-season and Eddie Murphy debuts, beginning his breakout. Cut to 13 episodes by a writers' strike.

  • Season 7

    Season 7 (1981-82): Ebersol's rebuild — Eddie Murphy becomes the show's biggest star, carrying it through a fallow period with signature characters like Mister Robinson's Neighborhood.

  • Season 8

    Season 8 (1982-83): Murphy at peak dominance; the show effectively runs on his star power.

  • Season 9

    Season 9 (1983-84): Murphy's reign continues; the Ebersol era consolidates around a smaller ensemble.

  • Season 10

    Season 10 (1984-85): The "all-star" season — Billy Crystal, Martin Short, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer join; star-studded but uneven, remembered largely for its one-season wonders.

  • Season 11

    Season 11 (1985-86): Lorne Michaels returns with a completely new young cast (including Anthony Michael Hall, Robert Downey Jr., Joan Cusack, Randy Quaid, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller) — considered a disaster and nearly canceled, with Lovitz's pathological liar a lone bright spot.

  • Season 12

    Season 12 (1986-87): The rebuild that worked — Phil Hartman, Dana Carvey, Jan Hooks, Kevin Nealon, and Victoria Jackson join; the show stabilizes and begins climbing back.

  • Season 13

    Season 13 (1987-88): The golden era takes shape as Dana Carvey's characters become breakout hits; a writers' strike shortens the season.

  • Season 14

    Season 14 (1988-89): Wayne's World debuts and becomes a phenomenon; the show is culturally ascendant again with Carvey, Hartman, Miller, and Myers leading.

  • Season 15

    Season 15 (1989-90): Julia Sweeney's It's Pat and Jack Handey's Deep Thoughts enter the culture; the golden era is at full strength.

  • Season 16

    Season 16 (1990-91): Chris Farley and Chris Rock join a cast of remarkable depth; Wayne's World heads toward the big screen.

  • Season 17

    Season 17 (1991-92): Hartman's Bill Clinton arrives during the 1992 campaign; the Wayne's World film turns a sketch into a franchise; Carvey's Bush and Perot define election satire.

  • Season 18

    Season 18 (1992-93): Often cited as a peak season — Farley's Matt Foley debuts and the Carvey/Hartman/Myers/Rock/Farley/Sandler/Spade ensemble fires on all cylinders.

  • Season 19

    Season 19 (1993-94): The golden cast begins to fray — Hartman and Myers depart; the season is more uneven as the era's end approaches.

  • Season 20

    Season 20 (1994-95): The mid-90s low point — Sandler and Farley are fired, Myers is gone, and the show draws "Saturday Night Dead" headlines; Norm Macdonald's Weekend Update is the highlight of a transitional, turbulent season.

  • Season 21

    Season 21 (1995-96): The rebuild — Will Ferrell, Cheri Oteri, and Darrell Hammond join; Norm Macdonald's deadpan Update becomes the show's best feature and the show revives.

  • Season 22

    Season 22 (1996-97): The comeback consolidates; Norm Macdonald's Update peaks, then he's controversially fired at season's end; the Ferrell-era recurring-character comedy begins to gel.

  • Season 23

    Season 23 (1997-98): Post-Norm transition; Ferrell's George W. Bush emerges and Celebrity Jeopardy hits its stride; the late-90s Ferrell era takes shape.

  • Season 24

    Season 24 (1998-99): Molly Shannon's Superstar and the Ladies Man become films; the show's recurring-character comedy is at full commercial tilt.

  • Season 25

    Season 25 (1999-2000): The 25th anniversary; More Cowbell — widely called the show's greatest sketch — airs; a landmark year for the Ferrell era.

  • Season 26

    Season 26 (2000-01): Ferrell's George W. Bush debuts during the contested 2000 election; the political cold opens become appointment viewing.

  • Season 27

    Season 27 (2001-02): The post-9/11 premiere — one of the most important and moving episodes in TV history, as the show helped the nation process tragedy; Ferrell's final season.

  • Season 28

    Season 28 (2002-03): Ferrell departs at season's end, closing the era; the show faces another rebuild.

  • Season 29

    Season 29 (2003-04): Tina Fey and Jimmy Fallon's Weekend Update becomes the centerpiece; Rachel Dratch's Debbie Downer debuts; the post-Ferrell transition finds its footing.

  • Season 30

    Season 30 (2004-05): The 30th anniversary special; Fey and Amy Poehler become Weekend Update's first all-female anchor team; a strong, celebratory season.

  • Season 31

    Season 31 (2005-06): Lazy Sunday goes viral and launches the digital-shorts era — the show's second life on the internet begins with Andy Samberg and the Lonely Island.

  • Season 32

    Season 32 (2006-07): Dick in a Box becomes a viral phenomenon and Emmy winner; the digital shorts peak and SNL's online reach rivals its broadcast one.

  • Season 33

    Season 33 (2007-08): The writers' strike halts production for months; the show returns in time for the 2008 campaign — a disrupted but consequential season.

  • Season 34

    Season 34 (2008-09): Tina Fey's Sarah Palin during the 2008 election — the show's most culturally consequential political moment in decades, drawing record audiences; the viral streak continues.

  • Season 35

    Season 35 (2009-10): The Wiig/Hader/Armisen/Sudeikis era matures; Seth Meyers' Weekend Update anchors strong ensemble comedy.

  • Season 36

    Season 36 (2010-11): The Hader/Wiig golden era at its peak; Stefon ascends and the Lonely Island shorts keep landing.

  • Season 37

    Season 37 (2011-12): Kristen Wiig's final season; The Californians debuts; the show sends off one of its defining stars.

  • Season 38

    Season 38 (2012-13): A major cast infusion — Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Cecily Strong, Vanessa Bayer, Taran Killam — sets up the next era; McKinnon's star begins to rise.

  • Season 39

    Season 39 (2013-14): Seth Meyers leaves and Colin Jost takes over Weekend Update; McKinnon's impressions break out; the modern ensemble coalesces.

  • Season 40

    Season 40 (2014-15): The 40th anniversary special — a massive, celebrated reunion; a strong and nostalgic season.

  • Season 41

    Season 41 (2015-16): Larry David's Bernie Sanders arrives as the 2016 campaign begins to dominate; ratings start climbing toward the Trump-era surge.

  • Season 42

    Season 42 (2016-17): The Trump-era peak — Alec Baldwin's Trump and Kate McKinnon's Clinton cold opens make SNL must-see TV, with its highest ratings in decades and maximum cultural centrality.

  • Season 43

    Season 43 (2017-18): The Trump-era satire machine stays at full throttle; the show remains the center of political comedy.

  • Season 44

    Season 44 (2018-19): McKinnon's Rudy Giuliani and Pete Davidson's Weekend Update spots define the season; Adam Sandler's return hosting brings an emotional tribute to Chris Farley.

  • Season 45

    Season 45 (2019-20): The pandemic pivot — Saturday Night Live at Home remote episodes process a national crisis in real time, proving the show's function as communal comfort.

  • Season 46

    Season 46 (2020-21): The 2020 election cold opens — Maya Rudolph's Kamala Harris and Will Ferrell's returning Biden; the show returns to live broadcast under Covid protocols, and a Dave Chappelle hosting gig sparks major controversy.

  • Season 47

    Season 47 (2021-22): Kate McKinnon's final season; the Adam Driver-hosted Undercover Boss sketch is instantly hailed as an all-time great; a strong late-era year.

  • Season 48

    Season 48 (2022-23): Post-McKinnon transition with a wave of new cast; the Please Don't Destroy pre-taped bits become a signature; the show refreshes for its next era.

  • Season 49

    Season 49 (2023-24): Taylor Swift hosts to a massive ratings spike; Nate Bargatze's acclaimed double-turn; the season builds toward the 50th anniversary.

  • Season 50

    Season 50 (2024-25): The 50th anniversary season — the Homecoming Concert and the Anniversary Special become cultural events (the special alone won seven Creative Arts Emmys); a year-long celebration of the institution, though regular episodes remained typically uneven.

  • Season 51

    Season 51 (2025-26): The post-anniversary reset — a large cast turnover (five departures, five arrivals); critics note a sluggish start amid the churn as the show pushes into its second half-century, with a UK adaptation announced for 2026.

Who it's for

Sketch-comedy fans; viewers who enjoy topical political satire and pop-culture parody; people who like short-form comedy with recurring characters, impressions, and a live-event feel; anyone interested in American cultural history and comedy's star pipeline; viewers who want a weekly, current, shared national reference point rather than a binge narrative.

Who it's not for

Viewers who prefer serialized narrative television with ongoing plots and character arcs; people with low tolerance for inconsistent, hit-or-miss comedy blocks; anyone put off by political satire or by a perceived partisan skew in the jokes; those expecting subtle, quiet, or understated humor; and completionists who would be daunted by the sheer volume — 50+ seasons of late-night episodes is a genuinely long commitment. — adult humor · sexual content (mild) · language (occasional profanity, typically bleeped) · substance use (references)

Birds of a feather...

  • TVThe Larry Sanders Show (1992)

    Both are behind-the-scenes comedies that turn TV production into a mirror of ego, insecurity, and the transactional nature of fame. SNL's live-wire immediacy and Larry Sanders' documentary-style intimacy both expose the gap between public persona and private desperation, and both find dark comedy in network politics and the pressure to stay funny.

    90%
  • TV30 Rock (2006)

    A workplace sitcom built around the production of a live sketch show, 30 Rock shares SNL's metafictional DNA: the chaos of writers' rooms, guest hosts, corporate notes, and the absurd collision of creativity and commerce. Both shows are obsessed with celebrity, self-referential humor, and the joke behind the joke.

    86%
  • TVKey & Peele (2012)

    Both are sketch comedy institutions that lean on rapid character transformations, recurring archetypes, and a willingness to go from silly to pointed in a heartbeat. While SNL spans politics and pop culture, Key & Peele focuses that same satirical energy on race and identity, making them soulmates in using the sketch format to hold a mirror to America.

    80%
  • TVThe Simpsons (1989)

    Two long-running landmarks of American comedy, both function as ever-expanding satires of the culture they inhabit. SNL's topical sketches and The Simpsons' Springfield both love parodying celebrity, media, politics, and family life, layering quick-fire jokes over an affectionate, nostalgic core that rewards longtime viewers.

    76%
  • TVPortlandia (2011)

    Portlandia is the indie-sketch cousin of SNL: both use recurring characters, deadpan-to-surreal tonal shifts, and affectionate mockery of subcultures. Where SNL tackles the national zeitgeist, Portlandia squeezes the same performative-identity obsession into hipster micro-culture, but the comic machinery -- and the pleasure of watching characters commit fully to ridiculous premises -- feels remarkably similar.

    70%
  • TVAll in the Family (1971)

    Both treat comedy as a weapon for talking about the country's rawest political and social tensions. All in the Family's living-room debates and SNL's weekend-update satire both weaponize caricature and uncomfortable laughter to expose prejudice and hypocrisy, and both are inseparable from the era they were responding to.

    55%