When “SEAL Team” debuted on CBS in the fall of 2017, it was a show I hadn’t even planned on watching. I thought it would be your typical CBS procedural with some “rah-rah America hell yeah” energy thrown in. It just wasn’t the type of show I was looking for.

But, as one should with entertainment, you must watch something to truly know it. I gave “SEAL Team” a shot, primarily because I’d been impressed with cast member Max Thieriot’s performance in A&E’s “Bates Motel,” and now, after seven seasons and 114 episodes, I can honestly say it’s been one of my favorite shows of the last seven years.

“SEAL Team” was so much more than I expected. It wasn’t just a brainless, rah-rah military show. Sure, it was one of the most action-packed shows on television, with scenes capable of making your heart pound while watching, but where it shined was on the home front and through getting into the minds and heads of these American warriors.

Another aspect of “SEAL Team” that’s almost shocking on television today is it was able to air seven seasons and more than 100 episodes while never lacking in quality. I felt like this final season was just as interesting as any of the ones that came before it.

The seventh season focused primarily on how Jason Hayes (David Boreanaz) was dealing with his head injuries, the fallout of his calling the military out for not caring about such injuries, and how his 20-plus-year career as a Navy Seal would play out. The most significant side plots were Ray (Neil Brown Jr.), who went on what amounts to a retirement tour with the Bravo Team, and the addition of a new character, Drew Franklin (Beau Knapp), who joined the team under mysterious circumstances.

The final season did a terrific job of integrating the Drew quickly with it being only 10 episodes, something it had done the season prior with the addition of Raffi Barsoumian as Omar Hamza, who replaced Thieriot’s Clay Spenser when Thieriot left the show to lead his own drama “Fire Country” on CBS.

“SEAL Team” wrapped up in a manner that I believe should excite fans of the series. I won’t get into the odds and ends of how everything wrapped up, in case folks haven’t gotten through the end of season seven yet, but all the threads are neatly tied, and there shouldn’t be anything that leaves fans of the show upset.

I have no doubt the show could’ve continued further. As I said, there’s no lack of quality over time with the show, but there’s nothing wrong with a show going out on top before it has the time to grow stale.

“SEAL Team” more than earned its trident over its seven seasons. 

by Julian Spivey
The second episode of the milestone 50th season of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” saw stand-up comedian Nate Bargatze return as host less than a year after making his hosting debut on the show.
Bargatze’s SNL debut in season 49 was one of the best-received episodes of the season. It included memorable moments like George Washington’s Dream, which many hailed as the show’s best sketch in years, and the music video Lake Beach.

Bargatze may not have been as funny the second time, but he seemed more comfortable. The cast was clearly having a good time with him, and the show, overall, felt more relaxed than last week’s season premiere.

Here are the best and worst moments from the episode: 
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Best
George Washington has more dreams. It was risky for ‘SNL’ to bring back last season’s best sketch for a sequel as recurring bits, something the show rarely does these days, and they are never as memorable and pleasing as the first time. And while George Washington’s feelings about the duality of many English language words weren’t quite as funny as last year’s take on the differences between England and America, it was still pretty humorous, and Bargatze, a rare host with a recurring sketch, fits the writing of the sketch perfectly with his signature deadpan humor.  

Worst
If you had told me one of the most disappointing moments of Bargatze’s episode would’ve been his monologue before the show, I would’ve thought you were insane. Bargatze might be the single funniest stand-up comedian of this moment, and his monologue from last year was a highlight of an excellent episode. If there’s one thing Bargatze should knock out of the park on ‘SNL,’ it's his monologue. While Bargatze’s homespun humor revolving around how some words, like ‘oil’ are hard to say for Southerners and the embarrassment of having two Door Dash drivers show up at your house at the same time did provide laughs, it simply wasn’t as good as one what expect from a comedian of Bargatze’s stature. 

Best
Heidi Gardner has been one of my favorite cast members since her debut season on the show. Her willingness to dive in and go for laughs at any cost is something I’ve always loved about her. And she certainly dove in and dove in hard during Saturday’s Mile High Burger Challenge, where her character must try to eat the largest cheeseburger you’ve ever seen in your life in 10 minutes or less. What ups the ante is that this is happening during a family conversation about what to do with their elderly father, who might have dementia. When Gardner faceplanted full speed into the burger, something that caused nearly everyone in the sketch, but especially Bowen Yang, to break, I couldn’t control my laughter. 

Worst
There weren’t any eye-rolling-inducing sketches on ‘SNL’ this week, which is hard to do for any sketch comedy show with comedy being so hit or miss. Still, the one that spoke to me the least on Saturday night was the Sabado Gigante sketch featuring Marcello Hernandez as Don Francisco and Bargatze as a pulled-from-the-audience contestant who doesn’t understand a lick of Spanish. Bargatze does really well in these fish-out-of-water bits, but this gave me the fewest laughs of all that appeared on the show this week. 

Best
The golf tournament pre-tape featuring Bargatze as a professional golfer having the worst of all luck had me in stitches. From the moment he hits the bird on his tee shot, you know this guy isn’t going to have anything go his way. For me, the biggest laugh was the upside-down dead turtle in the pond. The “what can possibly happen next” aspect of the sketch, coupled with Bargatze’s reactions to his horrible luck, made this one of the night’s best moments. 

Worst
What’s going on with Please Don’t Destroy? The comedy trio of Ben Marshall, John Higgins and Martin Herlihy appeared in nearly every season 49 episode and in many shows before that since joining the show as writers and digital video guys in 2021. It is bizarre for them not to appear in the first two episodes of season 50. It occurred to me how odd it was when this weekend’s episode featured a digital short from The Lonely Island crew with Andy Samberg, who’s been hanging around to show to play Doug Emhoff in the cold openings, and Akiva Schaffer as two businessmen rapping about a business idea called “Sushi Glory Hole.” The video/song was fun, don’t get me wrong, and it’s nice to see a Lonely Island bit in the milestone 50th season, but where are my Please Don’t Destroy guys? 

The 50th season of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” began on Saturday, Sept. 28, hosted by “Hacks” stars and multiple-time Emmy Award winner Jean Smart.

Here are the best & worst moments of the season premiere: 
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Best
‘SNL’ always seems a little more fun during election years – although 2020 was a huge disappointment with the stunt casting of Jim Carrey as Joe Biden to go along with the stale Donald Trump performance of Alec Baldwin.

There was still hope that this year’s election would provide some fun, even with Trump still involved (James Austin Johnson’s accurate portrayal brought new life into the performance). The season premiere didn’t disappoint, opening with an almost 15-minute sketch focusing on political rallies of both Kamala Harris and Trump.

Maya Rudolph has reprised her role as Kamala Harris, which she debuted during the 2020 election season. It’s a solid performance that mixes accuracy with a “fun aunt” personality.

I had figured ‘SNL’ might be done with the stunt casting of prominent political figures letting cast members have the spotlight instead, but they immediately put that to bed with the debut of comedian Jim Gaffigan as Harris’ running mate Tim Walz. Gaffigan is the perfect casting for the role and did a supreme job as the Minnesota Governor, so I couldn’t be upset about it. The casting of former ‘SNL’ cast member Andy Samberg as possible First Gentleman Doug Emhoff was a bit more confusing. Samberg has never been known for impressions and doesn’t have the right feel for Emhoff, though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t laugh.

The best new impression of the sketch came from perhaps the finest impressionist in ‘SNL’ history. Dana Carvey returned to Studio 8H to debut his terrific impression of President Joe Biden. Amazingly, he’s the 10th different person to portray Biden on the show.

The most head-scratching impression, even more so than Samberg as Emhoff, was Bowen Yang as J.D. Vance, a move that sees ‘SNL’ go from an accurate portrayal to one of intentionally mocking the real-life person. I’m for it because I know how much it’ll probably get under Vance’s skin. 

Worst
So, there was nothing during the season premiere that I felt was offensively bad, but there was one sketch in the second half of the episode I knew undoubtedly wasn’t for me, and that was The Talk Talk Show with Charli XCX featuring Yang as the pop star. I’m sure members of Gen Z may have enjoyed it, but rarely has an ‘SNL’ sketch ever made me feel old, and at 37 years old, I knew this one was for folks younger than me. 

Best
Yang has made quite a name for himself for the wild and wacky Weekend Update spots he’s done over the years, like the iceberg that sunk the Titanic. One of his best yet came during the premiere when he portrayed the internet’s cutest new sensation, Moo Deng, the pygmy hippo, as a celebrity struggling with newfound celebrity in a clear take on pop star Chappell Roan. The sketch included Moo Deng hilariously demanding “hose” and then being sprayed in the face with water while trying to drink the water. It was a perfect showcase for Yang’s brand of humor, though it has gotten him into a bit of hot water from some fans mistakenly feeling he was being mean to Chappell Roan, who he’s a fan of. Chappell Roan will be a guest on ‘SNL’ on Nov. 2. Maybe the two can do a bit together? 

Worst
Spirit Halloween’s response to the show’s satirical Spirit Halloween ad. ‘SNL’ did a humorous commercial on the premiere about how Spirit Halloween swoops into all of your city’s abandoned buildings for one month a year to sell you Halloween costumes. It wasn’t an original idea but a comical one with some good lines. Then, the next day, the actual Spirit Halloween, thinking it could out comedy, the professional comedians acted butt-hurt on social media, mocking the show with a new costume of a ‘SNL’ cast member with the packaging reading: “dated references,” “unknown cast members” and “shrinking ratings.” It’s not the first time a company has taken an ‘SNL’ sketch far too seriously, and every time, the business comes off looking ridiculous for doing so.  

Disclaimer (AppleTV+) – Friday, October 11
All of the other great actresses of the modern era have brought their talents to the small screen, so now it’s Cate Blanchett’s time with AppleTV+’s psychological thriller “Disclaimer.” The seven-episode limited series, written and directed by Oscar-winner Alfonso Cuaron, sees Blanchett as a respected journalist/documentarian who discovers she is a novel's main character, revealing a hidden secret. The series co-stars Oscar-winner Kevin Kline and Oscar-nominated actors Sacha Baron Cohen and Kodi Smit-McPhee. 

Shrinking (AppleTV+) – Wednesday, October 16
“Shrinking,” the Bill Lawrence/Brett Goldstein/Jason Segel-created comedy that stars Segel as a therapist struggling with grief after the death of his wife, was one of the best new series of 2023 and returns for a second season on AppleTV+ on Wednesday, Oct. 16. The best thing about “Shrinking” is the wonderful chemistry between the ensemble cast that includes Harrison Ford, Jessica Williams and Christa Miller that made for some of the biggest laughs on TV last year. 

2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (Disney+) – Saturday, October 19
Disney+ will carry the 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony live for the second year. This year’s Rock Hall inductees are A Tribe Called Quest, Mary J. Blige, Jimmy Buffett, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & the Gang, Alexis Korner, John Mayall, MC5, Ozzy Osbourne, Suzanne De Passe, Big Mama Thornton, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield. The star-studded evening will include appearances and performances by Kenny Chesney, Chuck D., Roger Daltrey, Dr. Dre, Sammy Hagar, Jelly Roll, Dua Lipa,  Demi Lovato, The Roots, James Taylor, Keith Urban and more. An edited broadcast will appear on ABC on New Year’s Day 2025.

Before (AppleTV+) – Friday, October 25
AppleTV+’s limited series “Before,” premiering on Friday, Oct. 25, is exciting primarily for two reasons: 1) Billy Crystal’s first significant role in some time 2) Billy Crystal in a dramatic role. Crystal stars as a recently widowed child psychologist whose newest client is connected to his past. The 10-episode series co-stars Judith Light, Rosie Perez and Jacobi Jupe.  

Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen (Disney+ & Hulu) – Friday, October 25
“Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen,” premiering simultaneously on Disney+ and Hulu on Friday, Oct. 25, is being billed as “the most in-depth look ever at the creation of the [Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band]’s legendary live performances.” The documentary, directed by Thom Zimny, includes footage of rehearsals, backstage moments, archival clips and reflections from Springsteen himself. It’ll be a must-watch for Springsteen fans.