SATURDAY NIGHT LATER

Marina and Madalyn dive into an episode chock-full of fun ideas — and break down how those ideas could have popped even more. Join as we talk through the structure and specifics of each sketch!

Marina’s plug: check out the single-location feature comedy she co-wrote and co-directed with Niccolo Aeed — THIS WILL NEVER WORK! Starring a bunch of comedy folks you have definitely seen on your screens.

11/19 at 5pm PT / 8pm ET — Screening followed by Q&A

https://kinema.com/events/THIS-WILL-NEVER-WORK-h6dw9z

11/25 - 11-29 — one-time, three-day rental window (with limited tickets!)

https://kinema.com/films/this-will-never-work-s-uoee/rent

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MUCH to discuss this episode! And Madalyn and I had a great time talking through it all with Ben Wietmarschen (Funny or Die, The Onion, The Tonight Show, JFL, MLB).

Ben’s Plug:

Long-Haired Business Men’s IMDB page — and don’t forget to rent it when it comes out on November 17th!

Marina’s Plug:

THIS WILL NEVER WORK virtual film screening on November 19th:

https://kinema.com/events/THIS-WILL-NEVER-WORK-h6dw9z

THIS WILL NEVER WORK rental window November 25th - November 29th:

https://kinema.com/films/this-will-never-work-s-uoee/rent

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How do you keep your sketches specific?

How do you avoid having your button overshadow your idea?

And… did this episode have THREE sketches we’d email to friends?!?!?!?

All this and more in this week’s episode of Saturday Night Later, with the amazing Monique Moses!

Monique’s Plugs:

“INT. UCB” — Pilot show! (Wednesday, 10/28/26)

https://ucbcomedy.com/show/int-ucb-a-writer-showcase-812453/

And stay tuned for the next ASSSSSSKETCH in November!

Thanks for reading Unusual Things: A Guide to Sketch Comedy! This post is public so feel free to share it.

The first SNL US/UK crossover episode!

The first SNL US/UK shots fired!

And… one of the most bizarrely handled reveals in a sketch we’ve ever seen???

All this and more in this week’s episode!

Referenced in this episode:

MLK Day, by Laura Canty-Samuel:

An episode that was fun to watch and learn from — hits, misses, and all.

Take a listen!

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A lot to say about this episode!

And we get into all of it.

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Why does an impressive prop sometimes interfere with a sketch?

How do you know if a sketch isn’t set in the “right” place?

And… do YOU think legal made that blur that vagina-gun prop at the last minute?!?!?! (We sure do!)

All this and more on this week’s episode of Saturday Night Later, with special guest Jonathan Braylock!

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Jon’s Bio:

Jonathan Braylock is an actor, comedian, writer, and producer. His writing credits include Ted Animated (Peacock), Golden Axe (Paramount +), Grown-ish (Freeform), The G Word with Adam Conover (Netflix), and Astronomy Club: The Sketch Show (Netflix) in which he also co-created and co-starred in. Other acting credits include NCIS: New Orleans, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Broad City, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Jon co-hosts the popular podcast Black Men Can’t Jump In Hollywood, celebrated by Splitsider, Rotten Tomatoes, and the BBC. He can also be seen performing regularly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in Los Angeles.

Links from Jon’s plugs:

Golden Axe: https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/golden-axe/

Black Men Can’t Jump [In Hollywood]:

An all-around charming episode — with fun premises, big swings, and interesting misses!

Check it out! And don’t forget to get a ticket to the virtual screening of Marina’s film THIS WILL NEVER WORK on Wednesday, September 30th, at 5pm PT / 8pm ET.

Thanks for reading Unusual Things: A Guide to Sketch Comedy! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

THIS WILL NEVER WORK:

https://kinema.com/events/This-Will-Never-Work-ele2te

Why is it hard to make horniness into a sketch?

How do you avoid having a disengaged Voice of Reason?

And… how do you write for a non-actor host?

All this and more as we discuss this weekend’s episode of SNL!

Marina’s Plug:

Check out a virtual one-night-only screening of the feature film she co-wrote with Niccolo Aeed, THIS WILL NEVER WORK — this Wednesday (9/30) at 5pm PT / 8pm ET!

https://kinema.com/events/This-Will-Never-Work-ele2te

Thanks for reading Unusual Things: A Guide to Sketch Comedy! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

I LOVE pitch meetings.* At their best, they’re the perfect middle ground between work and play — a chance to bat around sketch ideas with your friends. But I realized that if you’ve never been on a sketch team or in a sketch class, you probably haven’t ever gotten to see a pitch meeting in action.

… Until now!

A few months ago, I put out feelers to a bunch of different sketch teams to see if they’d be willing to share their pitch meeting. To my absolute delight, a fantastic UCB NY Maude team** called First Wife (directed by Chet Siegel) generously agreed! They recorded their meeting earlier this month, and I’m so excited to share it with you now.

Their pitches are so funny — but, even more importantly, they do such a wonderful job of supporting, developing, and playing with each other’s ideas. This meeting embodies so many of my favorite things about sketch, and we’re all so lucky they let us be flies on the wall.

If you’ve never seen a sketch pitch meeting before, I think you’ll learn a lot from this. And if you HAVE seen sketch pitch meetings before, I think you’ll still have a great time watching this one.

Huge thanks to First Wife and Chet Siegel. And go check out their show on October 5th, at 7pm ET! I’m excited to see what sketches make it in!

WRITERS: JR Atkinson, Henry Block, Rel Francis, and Charlotte Polk

ACTORS: Allisha Edwards, Luke Halferty, Shannon Keye, Jack Maloney, Harris Solomon, and Julia Zhen

Directed by Chet Siegel

*A pitch meeting is the first meeting in the cycle of a new sketch show. The members of a sketch team, led by a director, share their ideas with each other, and collectively tease out where those ideas might go. Over the next few weeks, those ideas turn into drafts of sketches. Then those drafts become rewrites. And then those rewritten sketches are whittled down into a lineup that becomes the show. Over the course of the month, a writer might write anywhere from 3 - 6 different sketches for consideration.

** Maude teams are UCB’s sketch house teams, assembled by the Artistic Director based on packets (for writers) and auditions (for actors).

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