Chris Rock Hosts SNL Premiere: Watch Video Of The Best & Worst Sketches

Saturday Night Live waited nearly a full hour to address the elephant in the room — President Donald Trump's coronavirus diagnosis — during Saturday's Season 46 premiere. Although POTUS' medical crisis was alluded to in the debate-themed cold open (featuring Jim Carrey's debut as Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden), it was Weekend Update that did most of the heavy lifting with regard to his hospitalization.

"This is awful news for us because Trump was actually supposed to host SNL next week," Michael Che deadpanned. "By the way, is anyone surprised by this? I honestly thought Trump was trying to get coronavirus... All those mask-less rallies [he] was having — that was him being safe?"

The rest of the show was mostly business as usual. Chris Rock entered Studio 8H wearing a surgical mask, then removed it for a pandemic-themed stand-up routine that acknowledged the limited, in-person audience made up of first responders. After that came a series of sketches inspired by this unprecedented moment in history and how it has come to effect both everyday people and those in the entertainment field — including out-of-work stunt doubles.

The episode also featured a tribute to late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (watch here), a powerful performance by musical guest Megan Thee Stallion (more on that below), and the debut of three new featured players: Lauren Holt, who played a character named Irma Gerd; Andrew Dismukes, who played a Buffalo Wild Wings delivery boy in a lackluster NBA Draft skit; and Punkie Johnson, who appeared opposite Chloe Fineman in the best sketch of the night.

What sketches stood out this week? And what missed the mark?  Grade the episode in our poll, then scroll down for all the highlights (and lowlights).

Chloe Fineman wowed me last season when she appeared on Weekend Update and debuted several impressions timed to the Academy Awards, including Renée Zellweger as Judy Garland and Meryl Streep as Little Women's Aunt March. She outdid herself again last night, imitating not only Barrymore (to a tee!), but also Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman.

Maybe it speaks to my sense of humor. Or perhaps it speaks to just how badly I needed a laugh after being let down by Jim Carrey's debut as Joe Biden. Whatever the case may be, I was chuckling throughout this unremarkable skit about a potential super-spreader event at a federal office building, where evacuees from a change-of-name office included Edith Puthie, Alma Holzhert and, um, Duncan Dixon-Coffey. ("Irma Gerd," indeed!)

Aside from any one of Heidi Gardner's alter egos, Bowen Yang's "trade daddy" is probably the most reliable recurring Update character for a few laughs. This time he came equipped with Tik Tok dances, Megan Thee Stallion lyrics and Succession references.

The last-minute reveal that Zach's stepfather was the actual Kenan Thompson, and not a Kenan Thompson character, was a pretty great way to end the sketch. If only the three-and-a-half-minutes that preceded it had been anywhere near as clever! Instead we got Kyle Mooney doing his usual schtick while spouting out the occasional reference to early-aughts pop culture.

Megan Thee Stallion used her turn as musical guest to make a statement about the Black Lives Matter movement and the need to protect Black women like Breonna Taylor. During "Savage," she singled out Daniel Cameron, the Kentucky Attorney General overseeing the Taylor case.

That was followed by a second song in five-to-1 slot, "Don't Stop" (watch video here).

What sketches stood out for you this week? And which missed the mark?