SNL Recap: Jesse Eisenberg and Nicki Minaj

In his opening monologue, he was enthusiastic and jittery, comparable to a caffeine addict who just found out Starbucks does delivery. Of course, there was an immediate plug for “The Social Network,” because obviously it hasn’t been hyped enough already. The first thing he did was address the perception that he’s shy and nerdy, assuring the audience that he’s actually quite cocky in real life, much like a “freight train of confidence.” I expected the “SNL” writers to push Jesse straight into the funny stuff, ignoring his public image; instead, they used it as comedic material. Then, just when I thought “The Social Network” crap was over, they brought out Andy Samberg as Mark Zuckerberg, and then gasp, the real Mark Zuckerberg. Awkberg!

The beauty of “SNL” is that if a skit falls flat, it’s over in a few minutes (much like classes in the quarter system) and there’s the chance that the next one will be hysterical. This is the case with the digital short ‘The Creep’ by the genius trio The Lonely Island. On the surface, it’s a music video about creepers, with the added bonus that it features the dulcet tones of Nicki Minaj, who was the musical guest for this episode. But more than that, it’s the physical exaggeration of something we all do, usually with our faces lit by the eerie blue glow of Facebook, and that’s why it’s so fucking funny. Even better, it’s mercifully free of overt sexual references, which can be amusing in moderation — a concept not found in the digital short “I Just Had Sex.”

Nicki Minaj, love her or hate her, sang well for someone rocking a twenty pound lace dress and three foot high hair. She looked outlandish, but it was within reason — unlike previous performances by Katy Perry and Lady Gaga that left you wondering how they managed to perform while wearing outfits composed entirely of plastic and glitter.

Nicki tried her hand at acting in the Bride of Blackenstein sketch, portraying the title character with all the sass you would expect from the music industry’s most popular new female rapper. She swung her (padding-enhanced?) ass around the stage, capturing the attention and obedience of the men, while fulfilling all the stereotypes about the dominance of (black) women in relationships. Sure, it was cliché and overdone, but you couldn’t help laughing when she informed a confused Blackenstein that she wasn’t getting married until he put a ring on her finger. Undoubtedly, this was one of the best forays into acting by a musical guest on “SNL” in a long time.

So even if Jesse Eisenberg isn’t the greatest comedian of all time, he’s still pretty funny to watch, especially in conjunction with a real breakout star, Nicki Minaj. As far as season 36 goes, Jesse/Nicki wasn’t quite up to the hilarity of Jon Hamm/Rihanna, but they definitely weren’t as bad as Scarlett Johansson. Then again, even a hamster on a wheel is funnier than ScarJo.

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