SNL Recap: Miley Cyrus and The Strokes

This week, the show’s cold open replaced their usual political bit with a look at the celebrities who have recently hit rock bottom. Leading the “winner’s circle” was, of course, Charlie Sheen, played by the brilliant Bill Hader. He throws out jokes about winning, losing, and tiger blood, but the real hilarity comes from the disgraced celebs hanging out with him – including a publicly intoxicated Christina Aguilera, the apparently anti-Semitic former Dior designer Jon Galliano, the controversial Libyan president, and Lindsay Lohan, portrayed by Miley Cyrus.

Miley’s monologue was mercifully short, unlike her dreadful hair extensions, but did include an amusing song in which she apologized for not being perfect. She also pointed out that there are worse things she could have done (don’t you know salvia is legal?) and that other celebrities already have done. For a moment, it was almost like she was a normal human being.

The writers chose to embrace Miley’s rather recent past as a Disney child star with a skit about how Disney Channel teaches acting, which includes lessons on always being the loudest one in the room and clichés like spying from a doorway. And if you’ve ever even so much as passed through a room where the Disney Channel is playing, you’ll get this one — the horrifically bright lighting and garish colors that actually seem to coat the screen in neon. It was funny to see SNL take aim at the kid-friendly channel by way of their host, who managed to act her part decently. Good thing too, or her four years as Hannah Montana would’ve been a waste of time.

Usually SNL skits do a good job of showing off the host’s range of talent, but they focused more on Cyrus’s singing than acting. Perhaps they have as little faith in her acting abilities as those of us above age thirteen do. She wasn’t terrible, but she didn’t really show us anything new either. Everyone was interested to see her up against her impersonator, Vanessa Bayer, on SNL’s reoccurring “The Miley Cyrus Show.” But instead of a funny, awkward encounter between doppelgangers, we got Cyrus impersonating, of all people, Justin Bieber. Again, she didn’t do a horrible job, but it was a job just about any other actor could’ve done. The best part was when “Justin” said he had a “swagger coach,” who I completely believe exists in real life.

The Strokes were their usual leather-clad, perpetually-in-need-of-a-haircut selves. Miley Cyrus introducing them in a Strokes t-shirt was baffling. How old was she when Is This It came out anyway? Eight?

Ultimately, Miley Cyrus didn’t blow our minds, but she didn’t drive us to suicide either, so I’d say that’s a win for everyone. Choosing not to address the recent remarks by Billy Ray Cyrus that his daughter’s television show ruined his family was a wise choice, because no audience wants to think about show business wreaking havoc on people’s lives — at 12:30 on a Sunday, everyone just wants a good laugh.

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