Sabrina Carpenter pulled the notoriously challenging double-duty as host and musical guest for the third episode of Saturday Night Live Season 51, and the results were, frankly, deeply disappointing. While Carpenter brought an undeniable commitment and sparkle, she was let down by an alarmingly weak script.
This episode proved to be the worst of the season so far, arguably falling short even of the already poorly received season premiere. The persistent lack of original, sharply written material continues to plague the show, leaving a talented cast and host floundering.
EPISODE GRADE: D+ (Last week: C-)
The Sophomoric Low Point: Fart Jokes
A clear sign of the creative desperation was the fart-joke sketch, “Surprise.” The premise—a coworker’s surprise birthday party goes horribly wrong when the shock causes her to uncontrollably flatulate—was the definition of juvenile humor. Yet, the segment was saved from complete disaster by the impressive performance of featured player Ashley Padilla. Padilla’s portrayal of Laura, the mortified and humiliated office worker, was a masterclass in committed, dramatic acting in a deeply silly scenario. Her internal shame and subsequent attempt to power through the embarrassment was genuinely funny, but it’s a sad indictment of the show that its single most compelling comedic performance of the night was anchored in bodily function humor. It raises a troubling question: Is SNL deliberately dumbing down its humor for a broader, less sophisticated audience, mistaking volume for wit?
Why are they letting Marcello do this?
The episode also suffered from the return of two of the most despised recurring characters in recent SNL memory, both played by Marcello Hernandez. The show’s cold open saw the reappearance of Domingo, the unapologetic homewrecker. This sketch, which parodies popular songs with lyrics detailing a woman’s affair, was a hollow rehash of previous iterations. It was essentially pointless, relying on the audience’s prior knowledge of the plot rather than delivering new, funny developments.
Worse still was Hernandez’s appearance on Weekend Update as the “Movie Guy.” This character is a grating, nonsensical comedic bit, built almost entirely on the trope of the “happy-go-lucky, unaware, over-the-top wacky Latino.” The humor, if one can call it that, comes from nothing more than exaggerated gesticulation, an aggressively cheerful delivery, and an air of general obliviousness. It’s a lazy stereotype that is, at the very least, woefully unoriginal, and at its worst, borderline racist. It’s the kind of simplistic, one-note character comedy that needs to be retired forever; its continued existence on SNL is inexplicable in a season so desperately in need of innovation.
A Glimmer of Hope: The ‘Snack Homiez’ Podcast
The one sketch that offered a genuine flicker of promise and a direction the show should be pursuing was the “Snack Homiez Podcast.” Led by Chloe Fineman, alongside Sarah Sherman, Veronika Slowikowska, and Jane Wickline—all playing pre-teen boys—the segment satirized the ubiquitous, low-stakes podcast culture. Their pitch-perfect delivery of hyper-specific, nonsensical Gen Z slang while discussing snacks gave off a low-key, inspired Wayne’s World vibe. While it wasn’t in the same class for the sophistication of humor as the Mike Myers and Dana Carvey classic, it displayed a refreshing observational quality and a willingness to commit to a bizarre, hyper-realized world. This is the kind of character-driven, culturally aware sketch the season needs more of.
The Pre-Taped Lifeline
The one shining, consistent success of Season 51 so far has been the pre-taped segments. Once again, they provided the episode’s only reliably solid laughs. The pre-tapes in this third episode included the excellent “Grind” music video—a send-up of awkward middle school dance grinding—which was a great ensemble piece. Also memorable was the “Nightmare Weekend” trailer, which cleverly used the aesthetic of a Blumhouse horror film to depict the excruciating social anxiety of having annoying relatives visit for a long weekend, featuring Carpenter and Ben Marshall. These cinematic, highly produced pieces demonstrate a technical skill and narrative focus the live sketches are utterly lacking.
The Host’s Performance
Sabrina Carpenter herself was a decent enough sketch performer, committing fully to her roles, whether as the farting office worker’s friend or a concussion-addled motivational speaker. However, her overall presentation leans a bit too heavily on her sex appeal. Her monologue and several sketches played into her “pop star sex kitten” image. Her musical numbers, while polished and well-choreographed, felt more designed to keep teenage boys busy in the bathroom than to break new musical ground or offer a compelling live performance. They were spectacles of choreography and costume, prioritizing visual titillation over raw vocal or instrumental artistry.
In the end, this was a profoundly weak episode, squandering a double-duty host with tired premises, lazy characterizations, and a fear of actual satirical risk.
Overall Episode Grade: D+
Next month, Miles Teller kicks off November for SNL. This will be the actor’s second hosting gig. Hopefully, the writing staff will have better material for Teller and the bloated cast. Season 51 is shaping up so far to be one of the worst seasons in years.
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