Top 10 Times SNL Made Fun of Teen Shows
#10: “Disney Channel: Middle School Kids Inspire Marvin” Season 36
Top 20 Times Disney Channel Shows Got Serious
Anything is possible… within reason! While this Disney Channel inspired bit doesn’t set out to mock one particular show, it’s commenting on the hyper-positivity all of those series tend to promote. In this sketch, Marvin’s friends are all surely convinced that with the right attitude, he could walk on his broken knee. Even his teacher– played by Fred Armisen – seems to believe he can do it. Marvin tries and fails several times– and his failures are exaggerated hilariously by Kenan Thompson’s dramatic performance. The moral of the story is: don’t fall for peer pressure– even if it’s inspirational.
#9: “Buffy the Vampire Slayer Reboot” Season 23
Top 10 Times Buffy The Vampire Slayer Tackled Serious Issues
What an epic ‘90s crossover! When actress Sarah Michelle Gellar hosted the show, we were treated to a “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” spoof. But it wasn’t what you might expect. As the final season of “Seinfeld” was airing while “Buffy” was just gaining traction, it was only appropriate that they pay homage to both series at once. This sketch makes light of what can only be assumed to be the real, mundane vampire problems that would never be featured in the teen drama. And in the meantime, Gellar shows off her acting chops with a fantastic Elaine Benes impression!
#8: “Blossom” Season 19
Top 10 Most Stylish Cheryl Blossom Outfits
This parody perfectly captures and exaggerates the spirit of its source material. As the NBC sitcom “Blossom” often tackled serious issues its protagonist was having, this sketch took that concept and ran with it. “Saturday Night Live’s” Blossom is struggling with taking her relationship to the next level… for the fourth time. It’s completely over-dramatic, and of course, insanely hysterical. As if that wasn’t enough, the cast and crew managed to make a shot-for-shot recreation of the show’s opening sequence. And of course, it’s amazing. We bet fans struggled to watch “Blossom” the same way ever again after this!
#7: “Fresh Prince” Season 43
Top 20 Times The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Tackled Serious Issues
If you’re trying to one-up “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song, you’ve got big shoes to fill! The series is beloved by many, and this sketch expertly adds even more humor to an already funny premise. Will – played by “SNL’s” Chris Redd – still gets into a fight on his West Philadelphia playground, and is still sent to Bel-Air. But his foes don’t let him off as easily. Taking the show’s upbeat intro, the parody adds in its own twists and lyrics, and creates an intense crime drama. This happened before the reimagined 2022 series put its own dramatic spin on the classic, too! Maybe they were taking notes?
#6: “MTV: Maternity Television” Season 36
Top 10 Times Nickelodeon Shows Made NO Sense
Nothing screams “quintessential teen TV” quite like an MTV classic! Making fun of the absurdity of programs like “16 and Pregnant,” this sketch comes up with a bunch of new shows for the network. Naturally, they’re all baby, pregnancy, and/or maternity-themed derivatives of series we already know! Funnily enough, these fake names don’t sound too far off from reality! Is that a good thing? No, not really, but it shows that “Saturday Night Live” clearly has their finger on the pulse of the culture and knows how to embrace it. And, it reminds us how wild those shows actually are.
#5: “Malibu High” Season 38
Oh, to relive the high school days…there are so many things we’d rather do. This sketch starts off as a mockery of the classic teen high school series, but adds a twist. All the actors have aged thirty years, and are still playing the same roles. The bit is able to play on the expectations of the teen drama with an older cast — and expose the ridiculousness within the genre. Plus, all the reboots in film and television lately certainly make it feel even funnier. After all, how many networks are there, trying desperately to revive series that are long gone?
#4: “The Sopranos Diaries” Season 38
Top 10 Times Adult Cartoon Shows Made Fun of Each Other
Here’s another crossover for you– and it may be the most surprising one of all! After “The Carrie Diaries” premiered and proved to be a fun teen prequel to the adult “Sex and the City,” “SNL” took a stab at the idea. But instead of a cute quirky girl, our protagonist is a young Tony Soprano and his crew. All of the impersonations in this sketch are spot on, and the concept is a perfect way of parodying the CW show without directly copying it. Now, we kind of wish there was an episode two of “The Sopranos Diaries”!
#3: “Riverdale” Season 44
Top 10 Times Archie Was the WORST on Riverdale
Whether you love it or hate it, you have to admit that “Riverdale” certainly lends itself to jokes. When the original show is already so over theatrical, to bring the drama to the next level requires total absurdity. But “Saturday Night Live” brings it! Host Halsey plays Betty, as she and Jughead say goodbye to her deceased cousin – played by Pete Davidson. But the perished relative can’t seem to keep his mouth shut, with the actor constantly disrupting filming. Be honest: if the CW put this scene in an actual episode, would anyone notice?
#2: “Gossip Girl: Staten Island” Season 35
Top 10 Times Gossip Girl Tackled Serious Issues
Blake Lively left Serena van der Woodsen at the door for this performance – you can barely tell that she’s the actress behind that hair! We love that she was in on the joke in this “Gossip Girl” parody. The sketch takes all the preppiness out of the CW series and replaces it with calzones, cheetah print, and lip liner. Every line is perfectly written and delivered, taking the nuanced relationships of the original and completely satirizing them. But most of all, each of the names in this clip are amazing. Come on – a character called “Chandelier Martini”? That’s just plain genius.
#1: “Dear Sister” Season 32
Arrested Development vs Dear White People - Bingeworthy? MojoTalks
Did you know that this classic “SNL” digital short was actually inspired by “The OC”? It’s funny even before you realize that it’s a parody – which makes it even better when you do! The Lonely Island came up with the idea after watching the teen soap opera, which featured some pretty outlandish scenarios. The song that plays– “Hide and Seek” by Imogen Heap– is even the same one that can be heard in the intense season 2 finale of the show. It’s a hilariously entertaining reminder of the series we once took so seriously, and shows us how out there some of the plot lines really were!
