Saturday Night Live -- Jim Carrey and the Black Keys -- 1/9/11 -- Sketch by Sketch Review

Fred Armisen plays Mike Bloomberg in some odd makeup that makes him look like Barack Obama. He sounds a bit like Bloomberg, but looks nothing like him. The sketch is something about the snow removal problems NYC had, but is mostly an unfunny snore except for the ending bit about snow being cleared because of a drunk snowplow driver. A listless openin g that the studio audience finds much funnier than the home one does.

MONOLOGUE -- JIM CARREY -- 7

Jim Carrey brings the manic energy he's always brought to everything. He lets everyone in the audience know he's all about the positive and humorously asks for an audience member's hand in marriage. One of the few good monologues this year.

BOSLEY HAIR RESTORATIONS -- 4

Seriously SNL, this is the third time. Come up with something new.

BLACK SWAN -- 8

Jim Carrey and Nasim Pedrad play ballet rivals to play the black swan, giving Carrey a chance to do his best In Living Color silliness. Carrey effortlessly plays a goofy swan. Oddly, in a way Carrey reminds me of Kristen Wiig in the way his character behaves, but Carrey seems more intent in throwing his all into it than just selling it with a funny voice. Amusing

FINDING YOUR POWER -- 7

Jason Sudekis plays a self help guru who lets people tell their stories of asserting themselves and then undercuts them with hidden camera video showing the stories they told were lies. Funny. Especially Jim Carrey's video shot from a hidden camera inside his wife's mouth.

GRADY WILSON'S TANTRIC AND TASTY - 3

This is the 382nd SNL commercial for Grady Wilson sex position DVDs, which I've never found that funny. Jim Carrey gives his all in his portion, but this sketch needs to be retired to the Sanford and Son junkyard.

THE WORST OF SOUL TRAIN -- 8

An infomercial for the Time Life set devoted to the worst of Soul Train, featuring Jay Pharoah as a Cameo type singer, a 26 person "family" group, Jason Sudeikis as Ocean Billy singing Get Out of My Car, Get Into My Trunk, and more. This should be SO much better than it is, given how inane these infomercials are.

BLACK KEYS -- HOWLING FOR YOU -- 8

Nice to hear a real rock group on SNL for a change. Great song, sounds like a 50's or 60's throwback brought into 2011.

WEEKEND UPDATE -- 7

John Boehner and Nancy Pelosi (Wiig and Hader), in a funny bit, exchange gavels. Pelosi then shows how easily Boehner cries by talking to him about cheaply patriotic and sentimental things. Bobby Moynihan returns as his character who misunderstands the news, bringing me a laugh with his assertion that gays in the military was part of the "Don't Speak, Don't Spell" campaign and that John McClain from Die Hard was against it. He also lets Seth know that Brett Favre has announced he's retarded. Andy Samberg returns in a bird costume as Cameron the Red Winged Blackbird to explain why birds and fish are dying in a funny sketch about the impending apocalypse. Their last explanation of why both are dying is hysterical.

Funny line:

(On Jerry Brown being sworn in again as California Governor) -- "Brown said his first order of business was to find that loose floorboard where he hid his weed."

CARNIVAL RIDE -- 7

Taran Killam, Jim Carrey, and Bill Hader play robotic figures in a carnival attraction being ridden by Kristen Wiig and Kenan Thompson. The ride breaks down and the robotic figures suddenly get very creepy. Brief, but funny.

THE FORTUNE TELLER -- 8

Jim Carrey plays a former impressionist turned fortune teller who channels dead celebrities instead of the relatives of the people who paid to have their fortune told. Carrey does Jimmy Stewart, Billie Holiday, an awesome Alan Thicke, Ms. Piggy, Kermit the Frog, and Charles Bronson. His ending impersonation of Sammy Davis Jr. has a surprise.

BLACK KEYS -- TIGHTEN UP -- 8

Another good song from the group.

A TASTE OF NEW YORK -- 1

Kristen Wiig, Fred Armisen, and Jim Carrey play a scruffy band at a hotel lounge who sing downbeat lyrics about the city. That's the joke. Dreadful.

OVERALL -- 7

On a day when I needed a laugh, Jim Carrey brought it. The sketches weren't necessarily brilliant, but there was enough silliness and amusement from almost everything to make this one of the best episodes of the season.