Is SNL Taking Over NBC?

At times it may seem as if Saturday Night Live is taking over NBC. I worry that all the attention and praise heaped upon SNL this last season may stretch fans a little thin. The show is as strong as ever, thankfully, and it's alum are doing great things but it seems like NBC may be on a mission to fill what little non-Jay Leno airtime they have with SNL projects. That's placing a lot of pressure and hopes on only two franchises.

With the election last year Weekend Update Thursday editions seemed like a necessity. Their ratings, as well as those for the multiple SNL specials (Presidential Bash, 90's Pop Culture), were a good thing for both the network and the franchise and proved that the show is doing just as well as at anytime in it's history.

Now, with SNL television and movie off-shoots, Lorne Michaels has a huge list of winners and losers. In the movies, for each winner there seem to be multiple losers. For every Wayne's World, there's a Cone Heads (which bombed as a sitcom first, then later as a movie), Night At The Roxy and Stuart Saves His Family. Granted, televison's 30 Rock is a stellar show with heaps of critical praise and awards and Jimmy Fallon's new Late Night has been doing good but for every winner Lorne Michaels produces for the televison network there's also a loser like The Tracy Morgan Show.


I don't think the new Weekend Update Thursday Edition will do badly, quite the opposite actually, as word has leaked that both Amy Poehler and Tina Fey will make appearances, but let's hope they stop there.

In the 2009 season NBC will be broadcasting five shows featuring SNL alum. They are 30 Rock, featuring Tina Fey and Tracy Morgan, Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, Parks And Recreation with Amy Poehler, Community starring Chevy Chase and Saturday Night Live Weekend Update Thursday Edition. That's a lot of airtime for one group, no matter how brilliant they are.