Saturday Night Live -- Gwyneth Paltrow with Cee Lo Green -- Sketch by Sketch Review 1/15/11

Kristen Wiig as Greta Van Susterin hosts a show devoted to FOX News' attempt to become more civil. Bill Hader shows up as James Carville, doing a funny attempt to piss off the entire FOX News team by telling a lengthy story that hits every liberal cliche in the book. The funny parts are undone by terrible pacing and an ending that completely dies.

MONOLOGUE -- GWYNETH PALTROW -- 4

Gwyneth Paltrow talks about her love of country music but shows that she knows nothing about it when Kenny Rogers (Jason Sudekis) comes up and asks her to sing Islands in the Stream. She tries to fake her way through when Cee Lo Greene comes up to help her. Pointless and unfunny.

THE SCARF, THE SMOCK, THE LEG WARMER, THE SLEEP MASK, AND MORE -- 6

NBC capitalizes on its success of The Cape with superhero shows based on other articles of clothing. Fitfully amusing.

SECRET WORD -- 3

This is the third or fourth time they've done this Password parody with Kristen Wiig playing an idiotic actress who keeps screwing up the game. Gwyneth Paltrow plays a snooty socialite who can't find a clue that her partner can relate to.

SNL DIGITAL SHORT -- SHOTS WITH PEE WEE HERMAN -- 10

Pee Wee Herman shows up in a bar with Andy Samberg, where they get completely drunk, do Tequila on the bar, later meet up with Anderson Cooper, which results in an epic intervention. Best Digital Short of the year.

TAYLOR SWIFT, JAY Z, AND OTHERS AT A BAR MITZVAH -- 4

Another sketch that gives the cast an excuse to impersonate people, this time with entertainers performing at a Bar Mitzvah. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Taylor Swift expertly as she changes the words to one of her popular songs to be more Jewish. Jay Pharoah is less successful as Jay Z doing the same. Abby Elliott plays Katy Perry in such a way you can't hear a damn thing she's singing. Cee Lo Green fares best, singing "He-brew" to the tune of "F--- You", and actually redeems the sketch with his good humor.

FORGETTING THE FCC -- 6

A repeat of last year's unfortunate Jenny Slate sketch in which she dropped an F bomb, this one has Gwyneth Paltrow playing a record executive upset about Cee Lo Green not being able to sing his song, "F--- You". The entire sketch is built on substitutes for different R rated profanities. It would be funnier if the performers weren't trying their best NOT to say the real words. This leads to an an introduction of Cee Lo.

CEE LO GREEN -- FORGET YOU -- 5

I love this song, but in a censored form it's just sad. Cee Lo does his best, but it's a bit like watching a cat get neutered.

WEEKEND UPDATE -- 2

Jimmy McMillin of the Rent is Too Damn High Party (played by Kenan Thompson) shows up to announce his run for President of New York in a funny bit. Vanessa Bayer shows up to do Golden Globes party coverage with some Nasim Pedrad and Bill Hader doing bad impersonations of Christina Aquilera and Cher. And Kristen Wiig and Fred Armisen rope Gwyneth into their comedy abortion that is Garth and Kat. Terrible.

Funny lines

"In 1787 shooting a bullet was slightly faster than throwing one."

GLOBE THEATRE PREVIEWS -- 5

This spoof of coming attraction cliches set at the Globe Theatre during Shakespeare's days does amuse in spots, but like so much these days seems either too obvious or too fitfully paced to really sustain much laughter. Jay Pharoah's comments are hysterical, if stereotypical.

THE FRESH PRINCE OF BEL AIR BOXED SET -- 6

Jay Pharoah does a great job as Will Smith, who is shown being interviewed about his time on the show. Pharoah captures his exaggerated method of speech and facial expressions perfectly. Sadly, the bit relies a bit too much on a series that has faded from most of our memories.

SPANISH ESPN SPORTS CENTER -- 5

Spanish words mixed with English expressions and names sound funny. That's the bit. I think Seinfeld covered this in '92. I laughed a bit in spite of my self, but this is simply lazy writing.

CEE LO GREEN - BRIGHT LIGHTS BIG CITY -- 8

A nice rockin' little tune from Cee Lo

NEW COHOST FOR PARKER SPITZER -- 4

Bill Hader plays a repugnant Elliot Spitzer auditioning cohosts for the show. With the exception of Gwyneth Paltrow's amusing Heidi Klum, the sketch goes nowhere, and is clearly just last minute filler.

OVERALL -- 4

Gwyneth Paltrow seems like a capable host, but the writers are asleep this week, providing horrid sketches that bring in the worst of the recurring ideas and horrible new ones. Only the Digital Short offers much in the way of laughs.