14 DAY TRIAL // A new season of NBC’s Saturday Night Live premiered this weekend, with Marvel’s hottest star, Chris Pratt, on hosting duties. Reviews for his performance are mostly positive, with a couple of sketches raising eyebrows because of their content, but not all the numbers are in yet.
However, two of the moments that most got attention from the media and TV bloggers are the Marvel sketch / faux trailer and Chris’ opening monolog, which also included a bit in which he played the guitar and a completely unexpected cameo from real-life wife Anna Farris. Both these videos are available below, at the end of this blog post. I want us to focus on the Marvel sketch because, as funny as it appears at first sight, it’s actually completely accurate. In it, we hear that Marvel’s most recent blockbuster, this summer’s “Guardians of the Galaxy,” with Pratt as lead, is an unexpected hit because it was based on an obscure comic book. From that to the conclusion that Marvel can make a hit out of anything is but a step, so the sketch proposes possible titles for other blockbusters, like “Creatures of the Cosmos,” “Bus People,” “Pam,” and the “Pam” sequel. The idea is that Marvel can make millions off of anything it touches, which, at this point, is actually the truth. I remember the reactions to the first “Guardians of the Galaxy” trailer and how most people weren’t convinced it would sell – and then it went on to make almost as much money as “Avengers.” And then Pratt became the hottest leading man around, and everyone was happy. The conclusion is that Marvel has found a niche in which it can excel, and while we may laugh at this sketch for how silly it is, it’s probably not far from reality. Of course, a movie like “Bus People” would only sell if Pratt or another handsome and lovable actor was in the lead. Enjoy the two SNL sketches!
