The Best & Worst Sketches From Chris Hemsworth's 'Saturday Night Live'

Last night, Chris Hemsworth returned to Studio 8H to host Saturday Night Live for a second time, proving that he's one of those hosts who can come back anytime and have a lot of fun. He's not quite on par with Justin Timberlake, but he's charismatic, funny, and really throws himself into every sketch. He didn't suit up as Thor this time, but if you've always wanted to see him in a dress, now is your chance. We recap all the sketches from the whole Chris Hemsworth Saturday Night Live episode below!

The Best

Star Wars Toy Commercial – It's not just because this is a Star Wars-themed sketch, this is just a great mockery of certain kind of adult Star Wars collectors who are really particular about what they do with their toys. God help you if you don't make the figures fight correctly or make the Millennium Falcon land the right way.

Time to Bleed – Whenever one of our main characters gets shot in a movie, it's never as big of a deal as it should be. They take the bullet, but still do what they need to do in order to be the hero. And that's where this great short begins, but then the macho attitude about not getting the bullet wound taken care of gets out of hand. It's a brilliant premise and it's executed fantastically, including Sasheer Zamata's role as Chris Hemsworth's partner.

George W. Bush – Since SNL hasn't had much luck with their parody of Donald Trump, mostly because they let him host and his persona is already too ridiculous for spoof, it was time to go back to the well with the return of Will Ferrell as George W. Bush. The former president puts his hat back in the ring by showing how much better he is that the current pool of candidates for the GOP. It's a little easy, but Ferrell's Bush is always a treat.Continue Reading Chris Hemsworth SNL Review >>snl-hemsworth-bumper3

The Average

Brunch – Chris Hemsworth in a dress and wig may seem like a cheap gag, but it's the heightened reality of this sketch that really made me laugh. The overacting combined with the nonchalant approach to something so ridiculous really made this work, with Cecily Strong being the best out of the group. Hemsworth was just so earnest and funny in this one. Plus, Aidy Bryant's last line was gold. However, it did seem to go on a little too long.

Christmas Sing Along – Honestly, I'm a little surprised this wasn't a 10-to-1 sketch, because it was really odd. And while Hemsworth and Cecily Strong were top notch with this one, along with the perfect reactions from their three friends, sometime the pacing just felt weird, and it didn't land quite as well as it seems like it could have. I'm not entirely sure why, but something felt off. Still some solid laughs to be had though.

Male Strippers – This kinda reminded me of the high school theatre show sketch, but just with a different batch of performers putting on a bad show. It's definitely a funny premise, and Hemsworth putting the dollar bill in his wallet gave me a good laugh, but it could have used something a little more to make it funnier.

The Worst

Brother 2 Brother: Wrestling Meet – I don't think this worked well enough the first time Hemsworth hosted to warrant it being a recurring sketch. It's the same joke repeated (which happens with recurring sketches obviously), but it's not the kind that works when it repeats, even with Hemsworth doing such a good job as a Disney Channel sort of star. However, it might work with a different host and different cast member, like one with Scarlett Johansson and Kate McKinnon would be fun.

On the Record – Even though Kate McKinnon and Jay Pharoah have their respective impressions down, this just didn't feel like it was clever enough to work. Bobby Moynihan's Chris Christie isn't bad, but the way they use the character isn't anything new. This kind of sketch shows what makes political satire hard, especially when the real headline-makers are so silly on their own.

Pirate Ship – It's a shame that Jon Rudnitsky's first starring role in a sketch turned out to be such a dud. The idea of this sketch is funny, and that pirate ship is cool, looking good enough to be stolen from the Peter Pan Live set, but the comedy just isn't there. Rudnitsky gives it everything he's got, but it doesn't make the material better, sadly. I was reminded of Paul Brittain's Wyndemere from a few years ago, which wasn't really one of my favorites.snl-hemsworth-bumper1

Weekend Update

The interaction between Michael Che and Colin Jost from the monologue is exactly what Weekend Update needs more of. If Jost and Che pretended to be friends more often than just co-workers (they really are good friends), then Weekend Update wouldn't feel so wooden. It's been better over the past few episodes, and their back and forth about Trump is solid writing. But at the same time, it doesn't feel as genuine as it could without them being a little more relaxed. It also doesn't help that since SNL had Trump host, their mocking of him just doesn't feel right.

Angela Merkel On TIME Person of the Year – Who would have thought that Angela Merkel would ever be such a fantastic recurring character on Weekend Update? Kate McKinnon did, and she's always wonderful as the German chancellor. Kate McKinnon should also be the TIME Person of the Year just for her portrayal of Merkel.

Leslie Jones On Breaking Bad – We've had a break from Leslie Jones for a little while, so having her back at the desk worked a little better for me. Her intense passion for Breaking Bad is pretty funny, but not nearly as funny as envisioning Breaking Bad with Jones and Jost in the lead roles.

The Host

Congratuations, Chris Hemsworth, you're fantastic. It's one thing to be handsome, fit and nice, but the fact that he's also funny and has no problem hosting Saturday Night Live is almost too much to handle. This hosting turn for Hemsworth made me want to see him in some kind of action comedy, or at least taking on more supporting comedy roles like his turn in Vacation. His monologue was hilarious, painting him as a roughhousing, pranking big brother on the set who just can't see that no one likes it.

The MVP

snl-hemsworth-brunchChris Hemsworth – I know this is the third episode in a row that the host has landed the MVP slot, but they've all just been fantastic by giving each and every sketch 100%. Plus, none of the other cast members really stood out in more than a single sketch. That's not necessarily a bad thing though, because it means everyone gets their time and there's not a star who's hogging the spotlight. Even Hemsworth was only in one of the best sketches of the night, but his performance in all of them was great.

The Final Word

Though the best sketches this week weren't quite as good as the best sketches from last week's Ryan Gosling episode, Hemsworth proved that he can handle Saturday Night Live easily, and will always be a welcome host whenever the opportunity arises. As far as the rest of the cast, they need to figure out how to make the political stuff better. The climate right now is so goofy that it's hard to find anything to mock. Trump isn't like Sarah Palin in his ability to be spoofed, and that's making things really hard on the satire side of things. Hopefully that will change as time goes on.

We'll be back next week with the last episode of 2015, hosted by Tina Fey & Amy Poehler.