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Saturday Night Live shows just how much of a joke the first presidential debate really was

Saturday Night Live shows just how much of a joke the first presidential debate really was

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Last night’s Saturday Night Live went for the lowest of the low hanging fruit last night: the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. The show introduced Alec Baldwin as Trump for its cold open sketch, with Kate McKinnon reprising her role as Clinton.

Last week’s presidential debate was ready for satirical treatment, and SNL hit all of the high points: Donald Trump’s sniffing and various denials, as well as Clinton’s attempts to appear relatable and her shimmy. Most of all, it pointed straight to the ridiculousness of the evening and showing the extreme contrast between the two candidates.

However, the best joke of the night happened right at the beginning: a fantastic callback to the late Gene Wilder’s introduction in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which saw McKinnon coming out aided by a cane, only to leave it behind with a somersault. Given the enormous perception from the general public that Hillary Clinton is dishonest, it’s a clever joke. As Wilder noted when he took on the role, he wanted viewers to realize that they couldn’t tell when he was lying.

This isn’t the last that we’ll see of the pair: Baldwin will be reprising his role as Trump on the show in the future. If there’s one thing for certain in this election, the ridiculousness isn’t going anywhere.