Harry Styles gets a low-energy ‘SNL’ return

I wanted more from this episode. When it was announced that Harry Styles was returning to host SNL for his second time, I had to go through some YouTube clips to remember what he brought to the table when he last hosted in 2019.

There were some great sketches! Styles and Aidy Bryant together in “Doug” is a classic. He was fun as a white dude boldly proclaiming he was going to pick up a bunch of Popeyes chicken sandwiches. (This was 2019, you have to remember.)

But that spark was missing this weekend.

I kept waiting for the sketch that would crack through the monotony of this episode, but it never came. Styles was a perfectly fine host, but the episode never elevated itself beyond Styles doing the bare minimum of what SNL asked of him.

It’s unfair for Styles to have to follow Ryan Gosling as an SNL host. Styles is a megastar. He sells out tours. He stars in movies. But Gosling absolutely broke SNL last week. The deck was already stacked against Styles. But the show didn’t do him any favors with the material we got this week.

This is the second time in three weekends when SNL failed to provide its host with a rundown of sketches suited to his abilities. (Yes, SNL is on a four-episode run of dudes hosting the show.) Connor Storrie could’ve been a breakout SNL host, but his episode came and went with little support.

I assume that Jack Black is going to deliver another monster episode when he hosts in April. But it’s unfortunate that Styles had to get lost between him and Gosling.

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COLD OPEN

Trump’s Gas Prices Cold Open

“At least it was short,” I wrote in my notes about the cold open.

I was thrilled to see this episode of SNL kick off with a scene featuring Mikey Day, Ashley Padilla, Marcello Hernandez and Sarah Sherman. Short of including Andrew Dismukes, that’s the dream team! Those are the people I want to see on SNL.

But then the rug was violently yanked out from under our feet.

It was a “James Austin Johnson as Donald Trump, breaking the fourth wall” cold open.

Guys. Lorne Michaels. Whoever is reading this newsletter. Please — PLEASE! — stop doing this. Everyone is tired. We don’t want this anymore. Just let Day and Padilla convince us that they’re parents trying to decide which of their children they have to leave behind to afford gas.

• “How about Ashley Padilla?” Yes! The star of SNL is somehow still a featured player.
• “Did someone say booze?” Man, Colin Jost loves this. But I worry that Pete Hegseth loves it too. And that feels like it breaks some kind of SNL code.

THE MONOLOGUE

I don’t remember what Styles’ monologue was when he last hosted SNL, and I’m pretty sure I won’t remember this monologue.