I Stayed Up For This?

I'm just wrapping up watching tonight's episode of SNL, something I haven't done in at least three years. We've enjoyed MadTV lately and I usually just turn the TV off after that since we're both ready for bed. But tonight, I kept it on for some reason and switched over to what used to be the funniest 90 minutes on TV. But wow, I can't believe the show has an audience left at all. The only funny sketch came late in the form of Natalie Portman performing a vulgar rap track that was so over the top that I had to laugh, even if it was more than a bit of a guilty kind of laugh. Even FOB couldn't save this episode. They're one of the few punk/emo/rock bands with any originality or any talent. But it was lost due to the typically awful mix that is so sub-par, the SNL sound people should have been fired long ago for allowing such an awful sound to come from their stage weekly.

I remember more than a few nights watching SNL with Crchair and Sean and laughing..a lot. Sure, there were stinkers. But I'd be curious from anyone who has been watching regularly if this is the quality that the show has been running at for some time, or did I just catch a fluke episode that illustrated everything that annoys me about SNL?