The Palin and Hillary Clinton opener was solid, with Fey doing Palin’s “aw shucks, God is great” perfectly. It was like Fey was served up a Billy Wagner fastball right down the middle and knocked the shit out of it. Video below:

Phelps on the other hand looked, well … like a fish out of water at times. (Sorry!)

The episode featured a cameo from an old school Charles Barkley mid-80’s Sixers jersey (pictured above), which brought a tear to my eye. That was one of few highlights from the evening.

In a bit Phelps did as himself on the “Charles Barkley Show,” the Olympic swimming legend simply forgot to bring the funny. That seemed to be the trend throughout the night.

When they tried to make fun of Phelps ridiculous eating regimen, the jokes just didn’t click. Wow, he eats a lot! Video below:

Why was Phelps unable to translate his dominating persona in the pool to the comedic stage in New York? Well, because he’s a swimmer. Despite 99.5% of the world not giving a shit about swimming except for one week in August every four years, Phelps was able to truly capture the attention of the American public and the rest of the world while he was in Beijing.
It’s simple really. For men, Phelps appeal when he is in the water is on par with Jordan on the hardwood or Tiger on the golf course. We love watching the best in the world simply dominate.

It’s simple for women too. While Phelps is certainly kind of goofy looking, the ladies still swoon for him. When you have a body that looks like it’s been chiseled by Michelangelo himself, that goofy white boy smile isn’t so bad. And when that body is on NBC covered in clothing, that appeal is diminished.

But does being a tad awkward prevent you from killing it on SNL? Not at all. An article in the Baltimore Sun ranks the top five athlete performances on the show. Fellow goofy looking white guy Peyton Manning wins the top honors. For my money, if you want an athlete to be funny, I’ll take Sir Charles any day of the week.

Phelps on the other hand, he was kind of turrrible.

But for my money, you really can't beat commentaries by Bennett Brower.

By the way, this month also marks the 10th anniversary of Latrell Sprewell choking P.J. Carlesimo.

Chris Farley's Sports Skits And Other Classics [100 Percent Injury Rate]
Spree's Choke-Job Turns 10 [SFGate]

(Ed. Note: Our favorite Chris Farley character, without question, is "The Chris Farley Show." We channel "The Chris Farley Show" every time we interview someone we legitimately admire.)

For a variety of reasons, I hadn't watched Saturday Night Live in a while. I considered giving it a go after Justin Timberlake cut a hole in a box, but I never got around to it. Of course, there was no way I was going to miss Peyton Manning hosting, and I was hoping that while I watched, I'd pick up another reason or two to keep watching SNL.

And I did. I will watch again, the next time Peyton Manning is hosting.

I'm sure all the cast members are individually talented, and maybe they had an off night, or maybe they all willingly took a backseat for Peyton ... but I've gotta tell you, I didn't laugh often last night when Peyton Manning wasn't involved. The highlight was the above United Way commercial parody (I'm a sucker for injured-child humor; I'm not proud of it), and the "I carried a slice of ham in my pocket all day just so I'd have a secret" line is sticking with me.

He won a Super Bowl, and he successfully hosted Saturday Night Live. But the most amazing thing he's done over the last few months might be making damn near everyone like him.