‘SNL At Home’: A Critical Flop But A Ratings Winner – What The Audience Got That The Critics Missed

As if we needed any further evidence that COVID-19 ruthlessly spares no one from its scourge, America’s sturdiest comedy workhorse, Saturday Night Live, has been sidelined since March 7th, when Daniel Craig served as host.

Like anything, SNL has become quite familiar, something we’ve taken for granted.

Most of us have made due by replacing old routines – dining out, going to the gym or catching a movie at the cinema – with new ones (ordering in, working out and binging movies and TV at home.)

But certain aspects of life simply can’t be replaced. 

Despite Zoom’s best efforts, we long for the human connection we get when we go to school in person together, work side-by-side at the office or humbly kneel as one, at our places of worship. 

We miss the shared experiences of being in packed arenas and stadiums watching our favorite teams compete, or fist-pumping in unison as a concert performer sings a well-known anthem.

We’ve learned that nothing beats the carefree and spontaneous bustle of strolling around our town squares, shopping districts and favorite malls, sometimes all alone but always in the broader company of others seeking the elixir of human connection.

It’s notable, therefore, when anything comforting and normal makes its way back into our lives. 

45 years ago, creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels and his team of “Not Ready for Prime Time Players” impudently arrived on NBC’s late night schedule. In the over four decades since, we’ve watched this bratty, irreverent sketch show mature into a cherished American institution.

No other TV series has created so many movie stars.

No other TV series has won so many Emmy Awards.

No other late-night program stars a guest host.

No other sketch show has endured this long, here or around the world.

So it matters when SNL stops showing up in our lives. We notice. 

When the attacks of September 11^th occurred, it was only three weeks later that SNL returned to air. In what is likely the show’s most famous exchange, Lorne Michaels asked then Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, “Is it okay to be funny again?” Without missing a beat, Giuliani replied, “Why start now?”

The relevance of SNL returning to air only weeks after the worst attack on American soil in history can’t be underestimated. Seeing first responders standing shoulder to shoulder with cast members not only touched our hearts but brought us together as a country. The shock and terror of the attacks had gripped us; SNL’s return inspired citizens to loosen that grip, draw a collective, deep breath and allow the power of SNL’s comedy show to help all of us move towards overcoming, healing and renewal.

For SNL At Home, the show aptly picked Tom Hanks to host. Hanks, and his wife Rita Wilson, are among the most famous celebrities in the world struck by the virus to have survived it. Seeing Hanks healthy and strong transcended good taste on behalf of Lorne Michaels and the network. 

SNL returning with Hanks messaged something even bigger and more important. Things as silly as producing a sketch comedy show may look and feel different during the pandemic — the cast, by necessity, had to produce sketches from home — but we must all do our best, even under the most challenging of circumstances, to never give up.

Hanks said in his opening monologue in prepping the audience for the more low-tech nature of this special return episode, “Is it going to look a little different than what you’re used to?” he asked. “Yes. Will it be weird to see sketches without big sets and costumes? Sure. But will it make you laugh? Eh. It’s SNL. There’ll be some good stuff, maybe one or two stinkers. You know the drill.”

He could’ve added, “And for you critics out there, it doesn’t really matter if this show stinks or not. What matters is we made it. I made it. And we’re all showing that you can make it too. Don’t give up.”

When the ratings came in, SNL soared to new highs despite lukewarm reviews by critics.

Sometimes critics just don’t get it.

Tom Hanks is alive. The cast is alive, despite having lived and worked in NYC during the peak of the outbreak. 

The show may look and feel different, but it’s back on its feet.

We need SNL and when it shows up, especially during trying times, we reward it. 

America gets it.