Sterling K. Brown's SNL episode was "almost great"

The A.V. Club

Some fine actors flounder on SNL because the writers don't know what to do with them or they just aren't good at live TV. "As it turns out," says Dennis Perkins, "Brown is one of those actors whose dedication and talents (he’s an experienced theater actor) provide an irresistible focus for the show to build around." And Brown's stellar effort started with a superb monologue. "Now that’s how you do an SNL monologue," says Perkins. "Tight, anchored by the host’s strengths, and no musical numbers or audience questions. Sterling K. Brown came out and planted a flag ...The monologue is thankless. Standups have it best, but mainly because they can just do six minutes of their act in isolation from what has traditionally been the home of Saturday Night Live’s laziest ideas. (Which, okay, is saying something.) Doing jokes about his series This Is Us and its reputation for heavy-duty tearjerking might have been expected, but Brown’s commitment to replicating his character’s justifiably lauded penchant for emotionally devastating speeches made the whole monologue lift off and soar."

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