I have finally finished reviewing and annotating the second season of Saturday Night Live. I want to thank everyone who reads these reviews and I'm sorry that I can't post here as often as I'd like. My day job takes up a lot of my energy and some of these reviews take a lot of time and research to compile.
Since the reviews include sections about what stands out, what doesn't work, and classic moments (when they happen), I thought I would talk about the best and worst moments of the second season.
What stood out:
Surviving without Chevy Chase-The departure of Chevy Chase could've been the deathblow to a series that was already on the brink of cancellation. The cast, writers, crew and production staff weathered the storm and continued to produce strong episodes.
The emergence of writer Marilyn Suzanne Miller-I'm a big fan of Miller's work. During Season 2, she created several quieter "slice of life" sketches that gave the cast a chance to show off their acting skills. Miller also co-wrote several musical sketches. I particularly enjoyed "Video Vixens" and "Me," Laraine Newman's Barbra Streisand parody.
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What didn't work-Too many mellow Adult Contemporary musical guests. I won't mention any names here, but there were far too many occasions where a soft ballad brought an energetic episode to a screeching halt.
Classic moments:
The debut of several recurring characters and sketches-Season 2 featured the first appearance the Coneheads, Nick the lounge singer and Leonard Pinth-Garnell's "Bad" sketches. They would all become SNL staples over the next three seasons.
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