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Ripkens25's Replies
It's pretty evident and consistent....if you're a Republican, you like and respect Kayleigh because she stepped into a difficult role, always came prepared, and could handle the bullies in the press room. If you're a Democrat, you hated Kayleigh, and you simply parrot the following crutch: "Lies, lies, lies..."
If you're an Independent, you don't walk lock-step with EITHER party....you're able to be objective, and observe the positives and negatives in both parties, and weigh each issue on its own merits. I'm amazed at how many people still lump themselves into groupthink on one "side" or the other...and just speak in absolutes about the other side with no nuance or grey area whatsoever. People who paint with a broad brush like that just lose all credibility with me immediately. They can't be impartial, and this is why there is such a divide in this country right now.
As an Independent, I'm able to acknowledge Jen P. did just fine up there, and will only get better. Furthermore, I'm optimistic about Biden, and I want him to do well. I'm pulling for him. I think one of the problems with Trump's term is....he didn't make nice with the people he should have buddied-up with, and it hurt him irreparably. If he had just played nice in the sandbox with people like Schumer, Pelosi...and the press, they'd not have made it an agenda to hate on him and go after him at every turn.
Trump did some important things that never got the praise they deserved. This, because most of the media are Liberals...but also, he went to war with them. If he had charmed them in those press briefings, the tone and focus of their reporting (and the daily stories on CNN.com) would be different. Also, he chose the wrong angle to brand the news with. Instead of saying: "Fake News, Fake News".....he should have been saying: "Biased News, Biased News". Much of what the media reported was based in truth....but it comes down more to what they chose to focus on. There was an agenda. Every day on CNN (on TV and their website), I'd say about 98% of their stories focused on anything negative about Trump and his administration they could find. They HATE him. You can practically hear them high-fiving each other off-camera after another gotcha story. (For example, Cuomo and Lemon).
None of the positive things he did ever got any attention. It amazes me how poor his diplomacy and people-skills are. Especially when you consider the positions he has held. I almost think he may have a form of aspergers.
Ultimately, he was never out to win a popularity contest. He said what he intended to do. And then, once elected...he set out to follow through on those promises. I admire him for that. I didn't like everything he said or did, but i can acknowledge that he did some very important things, and i'm not going to just stamp him with the "100% Bad, No good at All" hate stamp. To me, that shows no ability to think critically or objectively, at all.
You didn't see some of those graphic fight scenes, like the one at the beginning when those thugs tried to steal the limo?
She's fine. But she also has the advantage of representing a milquetoast president everyone in the room wants to like and respect. The press is biased to the left. And...they hated anything and everything associated with Trump. The deck is stacked in Jen's favor....and she learned something very valuable when watching much of the previous administration's dealings with the press: Play nice with them (even if you hate their guts)...and they won't be quite so out to get you. This is a lesson Spicer and Sanders never quite practiced.
Kayleigh was outnumbered and it was like going up against a firing squad, daily. However...she was always extremely prepared, and....very quick on her feet....so when they tried to bully her and brow-beat her, she was able to push back and give as good as she got. This is probably why CNN stopped airing the daily press briefings. Unlike the previous Press Secretaries who got pushed around, Kayleigh was typically the smartest person in the room, and would often wipe the floor with those jackals, and expose their hypocrisy.
CNN used to have Kayleigh on as a talking head regularly about 5 years ago while Trump was campaigning for the presidency. As usual, the panel of analysts they'd have would essentially be the strongest Democrats they would find....stacked against the weakest Republicans they could find, at a ratio of 5:2....(plus, the hosts were obviously Democrats). And yet....she'd routinely kick their asses and make them look foolish. So eventually, they stopped having her on.
She's an impressive young woman, and did her job extremely well, under very challenging circumstances. The press entered that room each day wanting to pelt her with hate stones and gotcha rocks. With Jen, they walk in wanting to toss Hawaiian leis at her.
Growing out of it is your constitutional right.
You should move on from it then.
SNL is a tradition, and iconic. And be careful what you wish for, because once it's gone, there will never be a show like it again. Once it's gone, so will be another bastion of your youth.
SNL was never designed to be perfect, polished or even funny ALL the time. It was dubbed the live show with "not yet ready for primetime performers". And its very concept is pretty awesome. A bunch of performers in NY just down the street from the theater district, gather at a small theater at 11:30 PM and perform for a small theater audience (and us at home) in the true spirit of live theater and improv. What a great NY tradition. And even when a big name does a cameo (like Paul McCartney, Alec Baldwin, Mick Jagger, Tom Hanks, DeNiro, Steve Martin, Obama, etc...) they have to show up at that studio in the middle of the night (sometimes flying across the country just to do so). This, because of such a great and treasured tradition.
It's the show you snuck to stay-up and watch on a late Saturday night, well past your bedtime (because you heard your older brothers/sisters talking about things like "Mr. Bill"..."Eddie Murphy"....."The Sushi Chef", etc, etc.
It's the show you were finally able to stay up and watch when you got a little older (but not yet old enough to drive), and looked forward to watching after The Love Boat and Fantasy Island.
It's the show that was there in the background on a TV during a college dorm party...or perhaps the show you turned on after coming home from a great night at the bar.
It's the tradition that has always been there.
And it's perfect BECAUSE of its hit-and-miss imperfections. Sometimes, a failed sketch can be the best kind. Not to mention the ad-libs, the live flubs and the performers sometimes just trying to keep it together and not bust out laughing.
And BTW....part of the tradition is the passing of the torch, as some of the veteran performers (like Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, Eddie Murphy, etc, etc....) exit the show, and hand the baton to the new faces, some of whom themselves will become legends. It would be a terrible idea to just blow-up one cast and add all new faces in the next season.
In any case, if you no longer appreciate the tradition of SNL....just walk away. There's no need to call for its demise. Just...watch something else. This is Lorne's baby. A cool, former hippy who still has mad respect and pull at NBC because of SNL. And if he's reading this...I hope he keeps the show running for as long as he wants to. With the thousands of cookie-cutter shows being mass-fed to everyone these days...maybe SNL doesn't get talked about at the water cooler anymore, but it has a heart and spirit that....well, once it dies out, so does another part of our youth. That is all.
The gimmicky flashbacks have gotten way overused and now it's just a stale and tired bit. And the drama........the DRAMA. And I thought Grey's Anatomy heaped-on the cheesy drama and monologues! This show makes Grey's look like a sit-com.
And don't get me started on that damn music playing in the background of every scene....to help spoon-feed every emotion to us. Seriously, do any of the people on this show ever have a light-hearted moment? Smile? Go to a concert....or the bar...or a baseball game? Lighten the eff up.
It has become a drinking game. Each time a character goes off into a preachy, drama-filled monologue, take a sip.
Done with this sullen, depressing, sappy drama-fest.
He always struck me as a rather one-trick pony. He milked that over-exaggerated smile and “all-RIGHTY-then” bit for a decade, and I just got sick of seeing that face of his. Maybe he just got over-exposed...like Sandler and Farrell.
What’s with all the hate for Mike Farrell in real life? I don’t remember him ever getting any bad press for being a tool. Am I missing something?
Meh, she's kinda sleepy attractive in a scrappy kind of way I suppose.
I'm just kidding. It was indeed a great and unexpected/random cameo.
Who cares?
Who is Karen Heard?
I think Ken has been doing an excellent job. He really understands the pace and rhythm of the show, and is able to keep things moving...while also knowing when and where to add a comment or two. He's extremely smart (obviously)...as was Alex, and that really helps, because he can add color or context occasionally to the answers.
I was surprised at what a natural he is...and I suppose a lot of that comes from how often he has been around the show in the past. His legacy on the show, and his love and respect for Alex...make him the perfect fit. And, he has shown he is comfortable in front of the camera being a host.
Keep Ken as the new host! (Assuming he wants the gig)
Cage is cool. He's shown he can be great in several genres of film. He just catches flack for taking some cheesy action flicks. But he generally nails everything he's in. I've been a fan ever since Valley Girl. He also catches some grief for being eccentric....but I think that just adds to his mystique. Heck, he's a huge Elvis fan....and ends up marrying Elvis's daughter! That's pretty impressive! He's a big fan of Superman comics/movies, etc....and names his son Kal-El. Love it! He just needs another calm, serious role in a big budget, A-list movie....to remind everyone how good he really is.
Whereas Johnny Depp....bought into his own legend. He believed it....and he makes the (pretentious) choice to ONLY play eccentric, artsy roles in the past 2 decades (probably because he's just too GOOD for regular Hollywood fare). (And don't say: "Well....aren't those pirate movies commercial/Hollywood films?" He does those just so he can dress up in those eccentric clothes with all the jewelry and talk like Keith Richards.....and show us how...eccentric he is)
Ever since he developed that phony accent, started wearing eyeliner, started accessorizing like Steven Tyler, with more tattoos than Dennis Rodman....and started acting all artsy pretentious (similar to Sean Penn), I've considered him a tool.
But Nic Cage....how could you NOT love this guy?? If you need a reminder, watch Honeymoon in Vegas, one of the most under-appreciated comedies of all time.
It’s kinda funny...they weren’t sure how to leave a placeholder for Dutch (in case they can ever get Chad McQueen to do a cameo), so they put him in the joint. I suppose that makes sense—Dutch was a hothead.
And you sound like a troll, or just not very smart. Or both.
Maybe it’s because the snow and ice build-up on the tracks. If they don’t continue to move (and plow through the ever-accumulating snow), they’re dead stuck. Plus, movement generates kinetic energy. A moving car generates heat easier and quicker than a parked car. Maybe they invented an engine that can re-channel that energy.
They can get their dues by starting new, fresh franchises......not hijacking previously established ones. There's striving for equality, and then there's slamming the pendulum all the way the other way and breaking it in the process. Why try turning Superman into a female and minority....when you can instead create a new superhero and make her a minority female? THAT...would be cool and creative, not silly and obvious pandering, which is not empowering....it's patronizing.
liscarkat....this post is spot on across the boards. One of the best I've seen in a long time. 100% AGREE.
I'd say the Letterman/Ferguson one-two punch was a good one....and yes, probably the last bastion of good late night talk shows, before it all went really bad. However, they (and their shows) were not both in their primes when they were back to back.
Those of you lucky enough to remember Dave back when he was on later (after Carson) at 12:30....remember a completely different David Letterman. He catered to college kids staying up late. He wasn't NEARLY as political....and when he was, it was even-handed to both sides. When Dave was on at 12:30, he was less polished, more subversive, more daring and more creative. He'd do everything from man-on-the-street bits....to throwing various items (like watermelons) off the roof of their building. The city of NY became a huge player in his comedy and bits. Instead of suits every night...he wore khakis and a baseball hat. Dave was loose, irreverent and fun. And he'd have a lot of subversive and unique guests on....like Sandra Bernhard, an early and less-known Howard Stern, Warren Zevon, etc...). Dave lost a lot of his edge when he moved to the 11:30 timeslot....and eventually he turned into a liberal, hateful db....who had a lot of hate in his heart for conservatives. I still liked Dave (primarily for how great he was during my college years)....but he turned into kind of a dick...albeit still a talented one.
Ferguson would not have flourished in the earlier timeslot. He was good at being that hidden gem in the late timeslot that you just kinda discovered (rather than the glossy, corporatized 11:30 guys who get all the commercials and advertising). He was more like the way early Dave used to be. Subversive, naughty, a rascal who liked to push the envelope and see what he could get away with....sometimes just to crack HIMSELF up!
Back in the day, you never really knew what political "side" the hosts (like Johnny, Jay, Dave) leaned toward. Their humor wasn't hateful or mean-spirited....it was even-handed on both sides, rather than a biased agenda. These days....guys like Colbert and Seth Myers are SOOO far to the left, they don't even pretend to hide their bias, their hate and their cherry-picked agenda. Effng jerks. I can't stand either of those weasels (and I'm an Independent, BTW).