Illustration by Winter Somera

Is “Saturday Night Live” a show that hasn’t been funny in years, or hasn’t ever been funny, or has been funny the entire time? Ask anyone, and you’ll get a different answer. For better or worse, “Saturday Night Live,” or “SNL,” has been on the air for 49 years, and since its inception, has been at the center of the debate about what’s funny.

“SNL” debuted on Oct. 11, 1975, with a cast of eight. It had a completely different feel compared to other shows at the time. With a cast of amateur twenty-somethings,  “SNL” became known for its groundbreaking format and counterculture voice.

Commemorating 50 years this fall, a movie about the making of the very first episode of “SNL” called “Saturday Night” hit theaters on Oct. 11, 2024. And it’s fantastic. So what did that very first episode actually look like?

From its inception, “SNL” was an anarchistic mess of sketches that could never have made primetime. From the first episode alone, there are sketches that range from somewhat off-putting, to strange, to completely outlandish.

The first ever sketch broadcasted by “SNL” is a strange bit about an English tutor (played by head writer Michael O’Donoghue) teaching an ethnically ambiguous John Belushi phrases that only pertain to wolverines, before he keels over and dies. A very odd opening to a very odd episode to a very odd show.

After the wolverine tutor were sketches about bees in a hospital delivery room, a (not delightfully) nonsensical “Muppets” sketch, a short film by Albert Brooks  musical guests Billy Preston and Janis Ian, and far too many stand-up monologues by host George Carlin.

Aside from Carlin, there were two comedians who did stand-up sets during the episode. One was Valri Bromfield who gave confusing impressions of different schoolhouse archetypes, and the other was Andy Kaufman doing his “Mighty Mouse” routine, which was the first time it was broadcasted.

The now iconic routine consisted of Kaufman playing a record with the “Mighty Mouse” theme song on it, and mouthing along only to the parts that go “Here I come to save the day.” The routine is everything “SNL” promised to be. It was poignant and weird. It was awkward and bizarre. It didn’t make any sense at all, but somehow, it made sense for the show. It was a piece of anti-comedy right in the middle of several scripted, well-crafted set up-punchline jokes that manages to hold up extremely well, even 50 years later.

The first ever episode of “SNL” is an oddball but a loveable one. Each gear turns with its own little quirk, but maintains a consistent tone, with a good number of jokes that still pack a punch. It feels risky, but the risks are rewarded, because everything weird or different pays off so well.

Conversely, the first episode of the 50th season of “SNL,” which aired Sept. 28, 2024, was mind-numbingly boring, fitting exactly into the typical modern format of the show. Starting with a lackluster political sketch (whose sole purpose seems to be recapping the political events of the summer), the first episode’s tone is uninspired, and falls flat at every moment.

From the misuse of guest host Jean Smart, to the low-effort (and painfully unfunny) bland sketches, the first episode of the 50th season was missable at best, and at worst, a waste of 90 minutes.

The newest season of “SNL” feels like it hasn’t found its footing yet. 17 cast members make it hard to remember everybody, and even harder for anybody to stand out. It doesn’t help that “SNL” alumni Maya Rudolph, Andy Samberg, and Dana Carvey have returned for guest appearances on every episode so far.

Season 50 feels clunky, and with so few of the jokes landing, it isn’t an enjoyable watch. Each sketch feels like it could be funny, or even interesting, but they all end in the same predictable and expected mess that managed to feel as medium as anything possibly could.

For example, the final sketch of the episode is about a real housewives style group bickering about who amongst them is actually a business woman while a waiter brings out a tray of hot food that he’s unable to put down. On paper the sketch sounds funny, and it sort of works, but it fails to be anything more than a funny premise without a real punchline.

In contrast to Season 50 is the lively, exciting energy pulsing through the dramatized “Saturday Night.” The film brings back what made the original “SNL” so groundbreaking.

“Saturday Night” is a breathy, anxious nightmare in the best way possible. From start to finish, every second is chaos, giving the whole film a wicked pacing that is referenced within the film by a returning motif of minutes passing on a clock.

The film is packed with jokes, drama, and the Murphy’s Law of it all. By the end, I’d forgotten that there had been a literal fire at the beginning — until a character mentioned it. It’s all so beautifully hectic that it becomes difficult to keep track of all the memorable moments.

Every setup leads to a successful punchline one way or another, which makes the whole film delightful. It was exactly what I was expecting, and exactly the film I wanted to watch. The film even inspired me to go back and watch episodes of “SNL’s” first season.

As fantastic as “Saturday Night” is, part of what really sells it is how odd and dynamic the first episode of “SNL” was. There were so many pieces that don’t fit the modern bill of an “SNL” episode: the two different musical acts, the multiple guest acts, the weird breaks for George Carlin’s stand-up. It’s interesting because it isn’t stuck in the “SNL” formula, or any formula, for that matter.

Funny or not, the very first episode of “SNL” is doing something unheard of, and on top of that, it’s taking chances the modern “SNL” wouldn’t think to make. Modern “SNL” episodes aren’t unwatchable because they aren’t funny; they’re unwatchable because they don’t risk anything with the jokes they’re making.

It’s inconceivable that anyone would want to make a biopic-style biopic film about the making of the first episode of the Season 50. The new season still has time to find its place, but it doesn’t feel like it will ever find its way back to its eccentric roots.

But if nothing else, “SNL” gave us Andy Kaufman’s bizarre and fantastic Mighty Mouse bit, and that’s all anyone could really ask for.