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Spicey's back -- and with even more delicious treats to chew on.
After a triumphant character debut on last week's Saturday Night Live, Melissa McCarthy returned to last night's Alec Baldwin-hosted (his 17th!) edition of the show, much to delight of "Spicey" fans and chewing gum enthusiasts alike.
The comedienne reprised her buzzy portrayal of White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer with a subtle nod to her real-life counterpart's commentary on the performance. He'd told Extra that while he found her "funny," he did think she could stand to "dial back" a notch and use way less gum in the bit -- rumor has it, he even wanted to poke back by bringing a squirt gun to one of his daily pressers but was shot down by President Donald Trump, who wasn't thrilled about having his male official portrayed by a woman.
In response, McCarthy's "Spicey" claimed to be toning down the 'tude a notch to take a calmer approach and arrived with just one giant stick of gum instead of downing a whole bottle, like last time.
In keeping with the substantive side of last week's jests, Spicey hit back at the press who asked him the hard questions (namely, about the Muslim Ban and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals' refusal to withdraw a stay preventing the Executive Order's enforcement) with name-calling and belittlement, and once again used patronizing props to skirt around the real answers. Not only did Spicey lose all chill again, chasing journos around with a newly motorized podium this time, but the character also resorted back to that hilariously circular logic line to defend Spicer's inaccurate claim that Atlanta had been the site of a recent terrorist attack, blaming it instead on the press who quoted his erroneous identification.
Kate McKinnon also redoubled on her chameleonic appeal with a brief cameo as newly minted Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but perhaps the standout moment of the segment was when Spicey followed in on Kellyanne Conway's controversial on-air endorsement of Ivanka Trump's products in response to Nordstrom's decision to pull the line -- and as blatant a commercial as Conway's words were, Spicey's approach was full-on QVC status.
Sadly, SNL fans didn't get to see Rosie O'Donnell step in to replace the Grim Reaper as the face of Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist, this week as many had hoped. But McCarthy's Spicey impersonation is quickly joining ranks with Baldwin's uncanny Trump runs as the highlight of the season for the show's political zings.