So, Dave Chappelle’s back in the SNL saddle again. Fourth time’s the charm? Maybe. This time, the backdrop was particularly, shall we say, piquant: a mere 48 hours before Donald Trump’s second inauguration. You could practically feel the tension radiating from Studio 8H – that “laughing on the edge of a volcano” vibe. How would SNL handle Trump 2.0? With Chappelle at the helm, it was a predictably unpredictable mix of political haymakers, self-deprecating shrugs, and some seriously weird detours.
The cold open, an MSNBC special report, featured anchors (Ego Nwodim and Andrew Dismukes) bravely trying to pretend they weren’t about to lose their minds over the looming Trump presidency. Their vow to ignore the inevitable daily firehose of crazy? Yeah, that lasted about as long as a snowball in a tanning bed.
Chappelle’s monologue? Pure Chappelle. He went straight for the political jugular, calling out the current state of affairs and making a plea for, of all things, decency. Remember decency? It feels like a quaint relic from a bygone era. He also riffed on the L.A. fires, his own reputation as comedy’s enfant terrible, and the truly bizarre Diddy saga. Because even with the political apocalypse looming, the world keeps on weirding.
To get some extra perspective on Chappelle’s return – and the minefield that is political comedy in the age of Trump – former SNL cast member Jerry Minor weighed in. Having been part of the show during the 2000 election debacle, Minor knows a thing or two about walking the tightrope between satire and just plain bad taste.
The episode itself was a mixed bag, as these things often are. Bowen Yang’s George Santos (already a breakout character) popped up in the cold open, a perfect embodiment of everything that’s both hilarious and horrifying about modern politics. Chappelle’s monologue even included a tribute to Jimmy Carter’s work in Palestine, a moment of genuine sincerity that felt almost jarring amidst the comedic jabs. And yeah, they acknowledged Biden’s exit, which seemed to bring on a wave of “remember when things were just…normal-ish?” nostalgia.
Chappelle, seasoned SNL veteran that he is, steered the ship with a certain world-weary charm. He navigated the political minefield with a mix of sharp wit and a surprisingly earnest undercurrent. Not every joke hit the mark, but hey, that’s live TV. The whole thing felt like a reminder that even when you’re politically exhausted, laughter – even the slightly nervous kind – can still be a pretty powerful thing.
Saturday Night Live airs Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC.