SNL Giving Martha a Free Pass?

Ana Gasteyer's decision not to return to Saturday Night Live this season probably seemed like a good thing for Martha Stewart. The absence of Gasteyer — whose dead-on send-up of Stewart was the stuff of SNL legend — meant that Lorne Michaels and Co. would likely miss out on the golden opportunity to lampoon the embattled domestic diva's current ImClone stock woes. Or would they?

"I talked to Ana about this, and I'm hoping that if we do a Martha skit she will come back," head writer and "Weekend Update" co-anchor Tina Fey tells TV Guide Online. "We don't have one planned right now, but we'll wait and watch the news and see if Ana is around and feels like coming in." Gasteyer's spokeswoman confirms that the new mom "agreed to return as a special guest star for something specific" like a Martha sketch.

When Saturday Night Live kicks off its 28th season this weekend — with guest host Matt Damon and musical guest Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band — should we anticipate a spoof of this summer's other major story: American Idol?

"I watched American Idol every week and I loved it," says Fey, who just picked up an Emmy for best writing in a variety series for SNL. "I think it feels like it's too past it. I think we'll wait until the second one."

Somewhere, Brian Dunkleman is breathing a sigh of relief.