And live from Central, it’s opinions on the new SNL season.

It’s the beginning of fall, which only means one thing: SNL is back! The season premiere was live in New York on Saturday, Sept. 29 and was hosted by actor Adam Driver with music guest Kanye West. Old skit concepts made their way through the season as well as newer and more relatable skits.

The premiere started with a political cold open skit about the relevant Brett Kavanaugh, sexual assault hearings. SNL did what it does best by humorizing a controversial political occurrence and giving parts to well-known and loved actors. Appearances were made by Matt Damon as Kavanaugh and previous cast member Rachel Dratch as Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar. While some might think that the Kavanaugh hearings were too serious to be turned into comedy, SNL writers remained respectful of  Dr. Christine Ford and only mocked people who they viewed as deserving.

“When I watched the Kavanaugh hearing, I was already laughing about how much of a sob story he was telling and how he used so many dramatic tactics throughout his testimony,” senior Kennedy Kasten said.

Kavanagh was not the only controversial thing about the season premiere of SNL. Kanye West caused dispute with his bold political messages. Wearing a “Make America Great Again,”  hat was a daring thing to do, especially on SNL a show with well-known liberal backgrounds. However, West was not afraid to show off his political beliefs during his performances. West preformed two of his songs: “I love it” featuring Lil Pump and Adele Givens, and “We got Love” featuring Teyana.    

Cast member Pete Davidson had a light shined on him during the season premiere because of his eventful break from the show during which he became engaged to popstar Ariana Grande and subsequently gained fame. The episode was full of allusions to his new stardom by including it in Driver’s monologue and the weekend update. There was even a whole skit dedicated to him, in which cast member Kyle Mooney is jealous of his costar’s attention and copies his every move, including dating celebrity Wendy Williams.

Skits included relatable topics such as the videogame Fortnite and fraternity parties. But, those weren’t the only new additions to the episode; new feature cast member, Ego Nwodim, made her appearance during the season premiere. With a whole season ahead of her, she has a lot to prove to SNL fans, and people are excited to see what she has to offer.

SNL’s 44th season has many political and cultural events to mock, but what will the audience be getting? So far the show has much comical promise so fans are optimistic about the upcoming season.