After the much-celebrated 50th anniversary of Saturday Night Live (SNL), expectations were high for the episode featuring comedian Shane Gillis. 

The milestone celebration set a tough bar for anyone stepping onto the stage, but Gillis’s performance, 

which came with a considerable amount of buzz given his controversial past, was far from the comedy spectacle many hoped for.

Gillis, known for his edgy humor and his contentious departure from SNL in 2019, seemed like a fitting choice for a host following the grand, nostalgia-heavy anniversary show. 

His return was seen as a moment full of potential tension—his provocative comedy style could offer an interesting juxtaposition against the liberal, star-studded history of SNL. 

However, what could have been an entertaining and boundary-pushing monologue fell flat.

Gillis opened with a riff on the idea of Donald Trump returning to office, joking that Trump was already “hitting us with 5th grade level ideas.” While this aimed to surprise the audience by attacking a target not usually associated with his base, the punchlines quickly lost their punch. The comedian’s attempt to dissect geopolitics, particularly Iceland and Greenland, felt disjointed and failed to connect with the crowd. The highlight of his monologue—about Biden spacing out during speeches—felt outdated, adding little to the conversation beyond recycled political humor.

The most awkward moment came when Gillis attempted a bit about white men’s obsession with whether the women they date have had sexual encounters with Black men. The joke never landed, and despite his attempts to circle back to it at the end of the monologue, it remained unclear and uncomfortable. By this point, even the SNL band seemed visibly disengaged, leaving Gillis in a moment of self-awareness. His admission that he didn’t know how to finish the joke highlighted just how lost he had become in his own set.

As the monologue came to a close, Gillis gave an underwhelming “so-so” gesture toward the front row. It was unclear whether he was rating his own performance or the reception he received, but either way, this moment of self-doubt mirrored the lackluster reception he received earlier in the show. In fact, the gesture echoed the same one he made at the end of his monologue the previous year, signaling a troubling lack of growth in his comedic approach.

Throughout the rest of the night, Gillis stuck with a singular character: the disaffected, lonely man struggling to make sense of his life while battling alcohol issues. This recurring character was featured prominently in sketches like “Dad’s House” and “CouplaBeers,” where he portrayed a man trying to grin and bear his troubles. While the character had potential for nuanced comedic exploration, Gillis’s performances felt formulaic, without the sharp edge of originality that made his early work stand out.

The saving grace of the evening came in the form of Heidi Gardner, who played a key role in bringing some energy to a sketch about meeting her boyfriend’s parents. In the sketch, Gardner’s character demands a perfect selfie, commanding Gillis to capture various angles and make adjustments to his shots. This moment felt like a breath of fresh air, thanks to Gardner’s charisma and comedic timing. Her quips about Gillis’s fictional parents were particularly sharp, injecting some humor into a show that otherwise lacked consistency.

While much of the night seemed to stumble, there was one shining moment worth mentioning. The cold open, featuring Mike Myers as Elon Musk, was a rare highlight. Myers, who had been absent from SNL for years, took on the role of the controversial tech mogul with ease. His portrayal of Musk as a glitchy, unpredictable figure was both hilarious and spot-on. Myers’ Musk, sporting a Tech Support t-shirt, delivered a chaotic yet entertaining performance that had more personality than much of the evening’s sketches combined. His erratic energy and portrayal of Musk’s ridiculous, self-serious stances offered a refreshing contrast to Gillis’s often uninspired performance.

In the end, Shane Gillis’s return to Saturday Night Live left more questions than answers. While his performance didn’t exactly capitalize on the unique tensions surrounding his comeback, the episode itself was a reminder that even in a long-running show like SNL, not every host can strike the right chord. Hopefully, for his sake, this appearance won’t be his defining moment on the show. As for SNL, it will be interesting to see what direction the show takes in the future, and whether they’ll find a way to avoid repeating the missteps of this episode.

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