Meta’s Portal to support live American Sign Language interpreting apps

On Thursday, Meta, Inc. announced that its video chat device Portal (previously the Facebook Portal) will support an app for live American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting services.

That means people who are “Deaf, DeafBlind, Hard of Hearing, Speech-Disabled or have hearing loss” will be able to use Portal for video chats with people who do not communicate in ASL, via a live human interpreter. That’s called a Video Relay Service (VRS).

Portal will now support a VRS app from ZP Better Together, LLC. The app is free for all users — it’s actually funded by the FCC! And while other devices, like an iPad, can support some VRS apps, members of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community can apply for a free Portal through ZP Better Together’s website.

“The combination of ZP’s apps and video relay service with the Portal’s AI-powered Smart Camera that automatically keeps people in frame is game-changing,” Meta’s Head of Accessibility Mike Shebanek said in a statement. “It delivers simplicity, connectivity, and the freedom to move and communicate using both hands.”

SEE ALSO:

4 ways mobile apps could be a lot more accessible

Portal is the video chat device the company formerly known as Facebook debuted at the inopportune moment that it began facing privacy scandal after scandal — which made it basically drop like a rock. Even if Facebook wanting to sell customers on having a camera in their homes is a tough pill to swallow, some credit where credit’s due: It was the first device that would “follow” a speaker in a video chat as they moved.

Other companies, like Amazon, have since integrated that feature into their video chat devices. So any edge the Portal had with people who want to move around while they video chat pretty quickly dissipated.

That’s all made the Portal a somewhat minor player in the device wars. Even so, more accessibility is a win all around.

Mercedes’ first electric AMG is a show-stopper with massage seats

It might not look like an electric sports car, but the first all-electric Mercedes-AMG EQS certainly feels like one. What presents itself to the world as a traditional model in the car brand’s storied lineup is, under the hood, clearly a car for the post-Tesla world.  

The performance version of Mercedes’ first electric sedan is arriving in the U.S. early next year, the German automaker announced Sunday. It looks similar to the original EQS variants that just came out this month, but the AMG configuration (that’s the name of Mercedes’ performance line) has plenty of flashy ways to turn heads on the Autobahn and interstate. 

Some are skin-deep. The AMG-trained eye will immediately notice the vertical struts on the front grille indicating it’s the high-performance version. Inside, the seats have a sporty look and you’ll find the AMG graphic on the seats and headrests.

A Mercedes logo on a silver car with trees in the background.

Look closely for some AMG clues.
Credit: Sasha Lekach / Mashable

But during a two-plus-hour drive in the AMG EQS from Palm Springs to Manhattan Beach, California, earlier this month, I gained a deeper appreciation for the newest EV from Mercedes. It’s electric luxury through and through, from the sleek door handles to the impressive acceleration. With over 330 miles of range on a big 107.8 kWh battery, it’s an electric powerhouse. 

Its AMG features come through despite the bigger, S-Class sized vehicle with a full trunk and roomy backseat. This isn’t technically a sports car but it still hustles going from 0 to 60 mph in 3.2 seconds with a 155 mph top speed. That’s faster than the base EQS models that take up to 5.5 seconds. 

The performance EQS has a long legacy to live up to, and the expected (unannounced) price will certainly keep up with Mercedes-level expectations. The EQS starts at $102,310, so the AMG version will kick it up a notch.

The steering wheel is one of the notable differences from the non-AMG, with a thicker grip, flat bottom, and extra buttons for quick access to different drive modes, like slippery for wet conditions or comfort, sport, or sport+ for those different driving situations. For the true AMG aficionados, the secret way to uncover the “race start” feature still involves pressing on the pedals in a certain order — like in other (non-electric) models.

Since it’s an EV with no internal combustion engine, it’s a fairly silent ride. That must be why Mercedes added what it calls an “AMG sound experience” (AKA fake engine-inspired noises) when the car is in performance modes. This feels like a desperate attempt from Mercedes to hold onto its traditional gas-powered legacy, and it’s ultimately unnecessary. But for anyone mourning revving engine sounds, turn up the volume.

In contrast to the “AMG sound experience” the giant door-to-door dash screen shows that Mercedes now has both feet firmly planted in the 21st century. Called the Hyperscreen, this screen stands out as one of the standard features on the AMG EQS (usually a $9,000 add-on). While cruising through the California desert, I went deep into the “zero layer” touchscreen experience. The zero layer layout tries to learn your preferences over time, and reduces sub menus and other potential distractions. I quickly adjusted to the large size, especially since it made it easy to get to the massage settings for the driver and passenger seats while driving.

Los Angeles skyline in the background through the windshield of the car.

Say hello to 56 inches of screen.
Credit: Mercedes-AMG

The immense width of the screen makes for a unique passenger experience. The co-pilot gets their own dedicated screen real estate, meaning they can take over music and other media playing or browse different features and settings. The passenger doesn’t need the driver’s permission to initiate a massage.

The oversized hyperscreen really shines with mapping tasks. I didn’t even miss Google Maps while using the built-in navigation system. I could add in stops along the way, plan my trip based on charge levels, and see nearby charging stations.

On the screen behind the steering wheel (which is not a touchscreen, but controlled through buttons on the wheel) I could set the display to show the map view, a nice touch that reminded me of the Google Maps integration in Polestar and Volvo

But being a luxury Mercedes, even the navigation goes the extra mile. On the main 17.7-inch center screen or in the heads-up display projected in front of the driver on the windshield, you can opt in to see augmented reality directions. So if you need to turn right, giant blue arrows will point toward the right. On the main screen, a live video image is displayed with an AR layer showing what lane you should be in or what direction you’ll be heading.

A map screen behind the steering wheel.

Maps everywhere.
Credit: Sasha Lekach / Mashable

A screen on a car dashboard.

Mapping it out with some enhancements.
Credit: Sasha Lekach / Mashable

Even though I only used up less than half the battery on my drive (thanks to an efficient regeneration system while braking and going downhill), I headed to a charging station to see what it’d be like during a road trip. Through the navigation system built in I found a nearby ChargePoint station at a hospital parking lot. It said a few chargers were available, which I confirmed with my eyes as I pulled in.

These were standard Level 2 chargers, but the EQS can handle faster charging on 200 kW DC fast-charging plugs, which add 180 miles in 19 minutes. 

Although I didn’t charge up, I saw how easy it would be. While in the parking lot, two women walked by and ogled the car. Seeing their interest I showed them around the vehicle and the massive screen. One asked about range and was impressed when I told her it could go more than 300 miles. They were even more impressed when I said I’d used the driver assistance system, which comes standard, for a lot of the freeway driving, and that it could even change lanes for me if I put on my indicator. 

While driving through LA county’s typical stop-and-go traffic I didn’t feel so sporty, but every once in a while I’d need to get to an exit or shake a tailgater, and I would zip over. Drivers of those LA cars probably rolled their eyes at a classic LA situation: getting outmaneuvered by a flashy Mercedes. But this was different from all those other times. It was an electric Mercedes.

TikTok’s bet on turning viral kitchen creations into takeout is half-baked

TikTok is launching a takeout business called TikTok Kitchen, and we have questions.

The social platform has plans to let people order delivery for dishes based on recipes that have gone viral, Bloomberg reports. The menu will include baked feta pasta, corn ribs, a smash burger, and pasta chips, and will change when new recipes start to go viral. 

TikTok partnered with GrubHub and a company called Virtual Dining Concepts (VDC) for the venture. VDC is a platform that lets clients license recipes and brands to spin up takeout-only menus made in the kitchens of other restaurants, or in delivery-only restaurants, known as ghost kitchens. In addition to TikTok Kitchen, it’s partnered with YouTuber Mr. Beast to sell viral smash burgers, as well as other influencers, media brands, and celebrities.

There will be 300 kitchens churning out the viral dishes at launch, with 1,000 planned by the end of 2022. 

TikTok has 1 billion users and plenty of money. Even with 1,000 restaurants, we don’t see this being a huge slice of their revenue. In fact, TikTok says it will use the proceeds to pay the creators of the recipes. So what, exactly, is the point of delivering all this lukewarm food? It seems like a marketing stunt based on the novelty of being able to order something you’ve spent countless zoned out hours watching in a vertical video.

Whether TikTok Kitchen is a stunt or money-maker, the concept is questionable.

First, the claim that TikTok will pay recipe creators is nice but has plenty of holes. Viral recipes often have more than one video that popularized them, and those videos aren’t necessarily from the original recipe’s creator. Take baked feta pasta: It first went viral on Instagram in a post from a Finnish blogger, but made the jump to TikTok when @feelgoodfoodie and @grilledcheesesocial clocked the trend and posted their versions of the dish. So who actually gets the credit, and the cash?

The answer seems to be that sometimes individual creators will get paid, and sometimes that money will potentially go to TikTok’s creator fund.

“Proceeds from TikTok Kitchen sales will go to both support the creators who inspired the menu item and to encourage and assist other creators to express themselves on the platform in keeping with TikTok’s mission to inspire creativity and bring joy to its users,” TikTok told TechCrunch.

It’s not clear whether that means the creator fund will be increasing, or whether TikTok will just have to divert fewer advertising dollars to the creator fund. With so few details about how TikTok will identify and pay recipe-makers, TikTok Kitchen seems like another way the company is making money off of the people that actually power the platform.

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Gorgeous, gorgeous girls take over TikTok

Next is the question about why anybody would be ordering this food. On the one hand, it makes sense that getting to eat something you’ve watched come to life on your phone would be satisfying. Who hasn’t wanted to slice into an extremely complicated and beautiful cake after watching The Great British Bake Off?

But part of the reason dishes go viral on TikTok in particular is because they are so easy to make. Baked feta pasta gets you a creamy, flavorful pasta sauce just by melting a block of cheese with some tomatoes. Other viral recipes basically require one trip to the grocery store and an air fryer. Why would you order an easy-to-make recipe when that same money could get you something it would take way more time and effort to make yourself?

The answer, of course, is for the novelty of it. Millions of people have watched Emily Mariko turn her leftovers into a visually mouth-watering salmon rice bowl, but probably only a fraction of those viewers have actually flaked salmon for lunch themselves. 

So the logic isn’t sound for why a person would pay money for other people to make something designed to be easily made at home, but that doesn’t mean people won’t be getting those corn rib orders in. In fact, people probably will — and then make a TikTok video of the experience. Maybe this half-baked idea is actually genius. Sigh.

Willem Dafoe is and always was the best Spider-Man movie villain

Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock got the most fulfilling arc. Jamie Foxx redeemed his maligned take on Electro. But Willem Dafoe? In Spider-Man: No Way Home, he pretty much repeated what he did almost 20 years ago. And it was perfect.

Almost 20 years ago, the moviegoing world got its first real taste of what a big, serious take on Marvel Comics movies could feel like. Director Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man was and still is a revelation for the genre, packed with thrills and seat-edging action that feels like it’s ripped directly from the printed page.

Central to that success was Dafoe’s Green Goblin. He owned every single one of his scenes as he charted Norman Osborn’s experimental serum-fueled descent into madness. It’s the voice. And the laugh. He sounds like the comic book villain you hear in your head when you’re reading speech bubbles off the page.

Just revisit this classic scene of Goblin’s big coming-out party moment in Spider-Man. You don’t even have to watch; just listen. The strained throatiness that makes every line read sound like a malevolent cackle is bone-chilling. Even behind that mask and thick armored flight suit, you can feel Dafoe inhabiting the exaggerated proportions of a broken genius driven mad by his own power.

Maguire, a more-than-serviceable Spider-Man himself who mostly just lacked the playful energy of his comic book counterpart, shined brightly next to the foil Dafoe gave him in Osborn. Comic book movies depend just as much on their villains as they do on their heroes, if not more. Most villains are one-and-done propositions who are there to wreak havoc before ultimately being defeated. So the pressure is on to sell that villainy.

It’s not clear until you see the full story unfold, but No Way Home pins so much of its emotional journey on Dafoe and his portrayal of Osborn. He’s the lens through which Tom Holland’s Peter Parker comes to understand that being hero mean not being choosy about who you save. He’s the chaos agent behind Peter’s greatest loss, and his continued existence tests the absolute limits of Spider-Man’s commitment to wielding his “great power” responsibly.

It’s a lot for any one actor to take on, especially when the character in question has been gone for two decades and has no real in-universe to any of the people in his orbit. Dafoe’s Osborn isn’t just a man out of time; he’s in another universe entirely. But the same serum that broke him all those years ago is still powerfully coursing through his veins, and the derangement it creates gives him a potent tool to hang his performance on.

A still from the 2002 movie 'Spider-Man' featuring the Green Goblin in his full flight suit and grinning helmet combo, standing on top of his glider. The upward angled shot captures the Goblin from below, adding to the sense of menace.


Credit: Moviestore/Shutterstock

So once again, Dafoe goes full Goblin. When Peter’s “tingle” (aka Spidey Sense) outs Norman’s true intentions for the first time, he shows us all what we’ve been missing. His sneering cackle isn’t just a sound; it’s a full-on physical performance. Dafoe’s face transforms with Grinch-ian proportions as the monster within emerges and a thin, malevolent grin that’s instantly more menacing than any mask he’s ever worn spreads across his face.

That cackle is unmistakable, just trademark Dafoe. It’s like he channels the whole history of exaggerated villainy into a single moment. There are less convincing cartoon baddies. He nailed it already way back when in Spider-Man, and No Way Home proved that the man has still got it.

There’s a reason people still go wild in theaters almost 20 years later when Dafoe trots out the Easter egg-y line “You know, I’m something of a scientist myself.” That evil grin, that nefarious cackle. This Goblin made such a huge mark in 2002 that his unlikely appearance in a 2021 movie fully stands out, even with two other famous Spider-Men and an entire rogue’s gallery of bad guys all returning.

SEE ALSO:

‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ is too much, and I’m not mad at it

So much of the latest Spider-Man feels like it was built to provide closure. Not just for Maguire’s and Andrew Garfield’s respective Spideys, but also for the villains they fight to save. No Way Home could easily be our last dance with most of this crew simply because everyone who was created outside the current timeline finally has a proper ending. I sure hope not, though.

The return of Green Goblin isn’t just a reminder that, hey, Willem Dafoe is really good at this. He also gave Holland-Spidey something he hasn’t yet found in the MCU: a true nemesis. We don’t know what’s next for our latest Spider-Man; all we can do is hope Holland’s dance with the multiverse is far from over.

The hottest way to flirt is by creating a Spotify blend playlist

The digital era has revolutionized how we flirt. Hitting on people now transcends the apps, in an inarguably humiliating combination of tasteful thirst traps, subtweets, and carefully curated emoji reactions. I firmly believe you can tell immediately when someone has a new crush because they start posting on their Instagram Stories about 10 percent more often.

For me, all of that is, at its core, boring as hell. The only way I actually want anyone to flirt with me online is with a Spotify blend playlist.

Like the mixtapes of our forefathers, sharing music is still the hottest way to tell someone you’re into them. But mixtapes and personalized playlists take a lot of time, effort, and knowledge of someone else’s taste — which you might not have in the first few weeks of dating. So I’d like to introduce you to the premium alternative: Spotify blend playlists.

Blend allows two Spotify users to merge their musical tastes into one curated playlist. It creates what your music might sound like if you were to, say, pass the aux back and forth during a road trip, or while you’re cooking dinner together. Basically, a blend is going to show you what music you two have in common — and it gives you a fascinating opportunity to see if you like what that looks like. For instance, when I blend with my friend and bandmate Michael, we get a playlist full of Tyler, The Creator and bubblegrunge; when I blend with my friend and roommate Izzy, we get a lot of Doja Cat and indie pop. 

Spotify blend is the hottest way to digitally flirt with anyone, full stop. You can romanticize your relationship through it, make fun of each other’s music taste, and lean into what you have in common.

“The fun thing about music is that it can take you to a time and place, and you can relive those shared moments and experiences with someone else through a song,” Spotify Associate Designer Rosie Maharjan said when the feature was released in June. “Blend is a simple way to show someone you’re thinking about them. It’s small but so thoughtful and offers an avenue to get to know new friends or catch up with old ones.”

Three screenshots from Spotify that show the steps to creating a Spotify blend playlist.

Three steps to hitting on someone well
Credit: Screenshot Spotify/ Mashable

SEE ALSO:

How to share a Spotify playlist

To use the feature, click the search button in the middle of your bottom menu on the Spotify app. Then, scroll down to “Made for you.” Now, you should see a section titled “Made for two,” which will include all of the blends you’ve made so far, and an option to “Create a blend.” Click that, choose the option “invite,” and send it to whoever you think is hottest. Once they accept, Spotify will automatically generate custom cover art and a new playlist that combines your listening preferences and tastes.

I’m not saying creating a Spotify blend with someone you think is hot is the only good way to flirt with someone online today — I’m just saying it’s the best way.

Fitness trackers aren’t just for humans. Ask your dog.

Dogs can’t tell us that they crushed their workout. That’s where smart collars come in.

Collars with GPS aren’t anything new. But earlier models were designed for tracking working or sporting dogs in the field and their bulkiness and unwieldy antennae weren’t exactly consumer-friendly. 

In recent years, however, several new companies have improved on the concept and repackaged it for the average pet-owning consumer. There are several on the market (Fi, FitBark, Whistle, to name a few) and they’re all waterproof, sturdy yet lightweight devices packed with GPS, WiFi/cellular connectivity, long battery life, and activity tracking. 

Just like Fitbit or Apple Watch, smart collars (or pet wearables) use sensors and motion tracking to gather data about your dog’s habits. The app shows graphs and charts of doggy data about their activity and sleep. 

Smartphone screenshot of daily steps counted in a bar graph.

Credit: Fi

Smartphone screenshot of dogs ranked by steps.

Credit: Fi

But, humans and dogs have been best friends for tens of thousands of years. Do we really need an app to tell us about our dogs? Why do we need a device that tells us what a responsible dog owner should already know? Apparently there is more to be learned about our furry friends.

For one thing, dogs can’t verbally tell us what they need.

“I cannot just look at [my dog] and say, ‘Hey, did you sleep well last night?’ But I can actually pull my app and see.” It’s a sound argument from Jonathan Bensamoun, founder and CEO of smart collar company Fi. 

Surprisingly, Bensamoun isn’t someone who is obsessed with trackers. “I’ve tried all of the trackers and every time after a day, I’m like, ‘Okay, cool, what do I care?’ If I had a bad night of sleep, I knew that before [my Apple Watch] told me.” But for Thor, his German Shepherd, it’s different. “When it comes to my dog, absolutely. It’s super reassuring.

Bensamoun says while the activity features are fun and useful, the location tracking is absolutely Fi’s primary function.

Victor Esteves and his Golden Retriever/German Shepherd mix, Harvey were in a wooded park in Boston when Harvey took off into the woods and didn’t respond to Esteves’ calls. After 15 minutes of frantic searching, Esteves found Harvey hunting for moles. “Of course he was happy-go-lucky,” Esteves said, but that was the moment when he decided to buy a Fi collar. “I feel a huge peace of mind knowing that he has it.”

Image of black and tan dog with tongue sticking out being held in his owner's arms

Happy-go-lucky Harvey just wanted to hunt for moles.
Credit: Victor Esteves

Losing your dog is every owner’s worst nightmare. So the ability to track your dog’s whereabouts is an undeniable value proposition. But it’s the activity tracking that raises questions about the role of tech in our lives.

Bensamoun says the company wanted to avoid users getting obsessive about accumulating steps. “When we build these features, we make sure that we don’t create the wrong incentive. You don’t want to just create like a leaderboard and be like, ‘Okay, go walk your dog 100,000 steps a day.’” The interface shows how many steps dogs are getting in a bell curve distribution. That way users can get a sense of what’s a normal amount of exercise, and what’s not.  

“If anything,” Bensamoun said, “the incentive we’re trying to create there is consistency.” All the activity tracking — the steps, the streaks, the goals, the bar graphs — is about meeting your own goal for your dog, not some universal standard. This effectively removes any direct competition. 

Of course with all this dog activity data, there’s gotta be some friendly rivalry between dog owners. “I live for the notifications that say, ‘Riley is scored in the top [ranking] of Australian Shepherds in the area,’” said Jo Tic, who has a Fi collar for Riley, her almost two-year-old Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mix.

Does she ever feel like the competition gets to be too much? “Actually, it never stresses me out,” said Tic. “It just gets me really excited to see the potential because I think I feel inspired by what other dog owners and other dogs do.” Tic, who lives in Austin, TX volunteers as director of fundraising for a foster group in Texas. “If anything, I like to celebrate other dogs’ successes.”

For David Buccola, a carpenter from Manhattan, NY seeing a dog inch ahead on the leaderboard motivates him to walk his dogs. Buccola who has two Chihuahuas named Taco Bell and Lexi Bell likes to prove people wrong about the breed. When Lexi scores high in the ranking, “I get such a kick out of that. It defies the stereotype that she should just be carried around in a little purse or something, but she loves to get out there.”

Image of two Chihuahuas standing on a rocky overlook.

Taco Bell and Lexi Bell aren’t interested in your anti-Chihuahua prejudices.
Credit: David Buccola

Buccola and his wife, who have FitBark GPS devices for Lexi and Taco, often go for bike rides in northern Manhattan. They have baskets on their bikes for when the dogs get tired, but they’re routinely amazed by their little dogs’ endurance. “These devices make you realize that our dogs can do a lot more than we give them credit for.”

Like Buccola, being able to track activity has made Jo Tic feel more in tune with Riley. It’s the consistency of the tracking that allows her (and her veterinarian) to look for trends or find answers. Tic recalled how Riley wasn’t eating the day before this interview. So she looked at the Fi app. “I saw that we actually got so much exercise on our hike, she was probably just pooped out.” 

Tic also says when she goes to the vet, she can just pull up the data and share exactly what’s going on. That’s exactly why Dr. Ernie Ward, a veterinarian and founder of the Association for Pet Obesity and Prevention (APOP) is a fan. 

“Most of the time when I’m in the exam room and I’m asking the client, ‘So how often or how much do you walk your dog a day?’ I mean, most Americans are going to say, I don’t know, you know, 30 to 40 minutes a day. When we actually match that up with the data that’s reported on a device, that objective device, it’s like 12 minutes.” A 2011 review of studies reported that humans asked to report their activity level tend to overestimate by an average of 84 percent. It stands to reason that we would do something similar with our dogs.

Dr. Ward says that weight loss for dogs is “60 to 70 percent diet-related,” but activity trackers can help by providing accurate data about how much or how little exercise your dog is getting. 

“I think people are under a misperception that their dog stays in the yard and runs around in circles all day long and the reality is about 16 hours a day your dog is probably laying down somewhere completely inactive.”

SEE ALSO:

The best fitness trackers for keeping up with your goals

For dogs that are being led toward a specific goal, this benchmarking can be particularly useful. When Sassafras Lowrey’s dog, a Newfoundland named Sirius, had double knee surgery, she used FitBark to track her rehab progress. Lowrey, who is a dog trainer and author, was also working with a veterinary physical therapist for Sirius, but the metrics gathered by FitBark helped Lowrey to see Sirius’ improvement over time and boosted morale.

Image of Lowrey and her dog Sirius on her hind legs on a sandy beach.

Lowrey used FitBark to gather different metrics about Sirius’ knee surgery rehab.
Credit: Sassafras Lowrey

Smart collars may seem like more intrusive tech that bombards the data-weary public with still more data. But if they let us know where to find our dogs, keep us honest about exercise, and give us other health insights about our best friends, maybe they’re worth it. 

Tina Fey replaces Colin Jost in a ‘dreams really do come true’ Weekend Update on ‘SNL’

There was no set, no graphics, and an audience of only three people, but Tina Fey hosted Saturday Night Live Weekend Update again, and for just a brief moment in time, things were good.

Fey stepped in to replace co-host Colin Jost during an abbreviated and pared down SNL that sent the studio audience home along with most of the cast and crew. If you’re going to have an audience of only three people, you could do a lot worse than having the trio of Tom Hanks, Paul Rudd, and Kenan Thompson on hand to laugh at jokes, though.

Mostly it’s just thrilling to have Tina’s comic sensibilities and tack-sharp timing in the Weekend Update chair again. Especially since she and Che both took the time to brutally rib an absent Jost.

An ‘SNL’ HomeGoods commercial becomes a heartfelt, deranged plea for grandchildren

Not every mom wants to be a grandma, but these moms definitely do.

Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon light up this Saturday Night Live sketch about a HomeGoods commercial shoot that goes flying off the rails. The director (Paul Rudd) just wants these two women to be real on camera and talk about what they’d like in a holiday gift. Their answer is a tale as old as time for anyone who’s ever had a pushy, baby-wanting mom: grandchildren.

Rudd is mostly just there as these two powerhouse comics do what they do so well, from Aidy’s intentionally weird line read of “grandchildren” which moves the emphasis to the middle syllable to Kate’s… Kateness. She really has her own weirdo vibe in every sketch, and it shines brightly here.

Pete Davidson gets old and bitter in the oddest and most self-aware ‘SNL’ sketch of 2021

Remember when Pete Davidson was that doofy younger guy on Saturday Night Live who couldn’t seem to ever keep it together when things got funny? This sketch paints a picture of what he could be like as an old man in 2054.

It’s more dark and depressing than funny and unhinged. Just a portrait of a guy who’s been through it now trying to keep the magic going in front of crowds who only seem interested in having him “do Chad.” But that’s what is so great about it.

Davidson has absolutely been through it, more than once. Millions of SNL fans have watched him mature over the years from a troubled young person with loads of obvious talent into a brilliant performer who regularly lights up the stage with cutting musical parodies and scene-stealing Weekend Update appearances. “An Evening With Pete,” which is what the sketch is called, finds humor in the ring of truth it exposes.

Also, Paul Rudd gifts Pete a giant bag of weed. That happens, too.

Paul Rudd gamely opens an omicron-addled ‘SNL’ with Tom Hanks and Tina Fey

It still wasn’t as weird as that time Adam Pally and Ben Schwartz hosted The Late Late Show after a New York City blizzard (remember those?) would’ve otherwise shut down production.

The decision-makers behind Saturday Night Live decided on Saturday to pare things back in light of spiking COVID-19 cases and the arrival of the omicron variant. At first, that meant no studio guests. Then musical guest Charli XCX’s planned performance got shut down.

When the show finally aired at 11:30 p.m. ET, the house band consisted of only one tenor sax and one piano, and the celebrity guest who swooped onto the stage from the back of the set was Tom Hanks instead of Paul Rudd, the night’s host.

Hanks was probably meant to participate in the night’s festivities anyway, since Rudd was set to join SNL‘s illustrious “five-timers” club as one of the few to achieve a hosting five-peat. But Hanks also previously stepped up to help SNL with the show’s first at-home episode of 2020, so there was a sort of poetic justice to him starting things off as COVID once again loomed large over the production.

As opening monologue bits go, the celeb-filled stage made the most of their opportunity. Hanks was soon joined by fellow five-timer Tina Fey — with both wearing luxurious smoking jackets bearing a shield-shaped “5” patch — and together they welcomed a smiling, “extremely disappointed” Rudd to join them. Moments later, Kenan Thompson, SNL‘s longest-tenured comic, stepped out to welcome Rudd and hand him a five-timers smoking jacket of his own.

It’s a weird, awkward, sincere, wholesome, and — thanks to the antics of Steve Martin and Martin Short, who appeared in a video call — ever-so-slightly spicy kickoff to an outside-the-norm SNL. A little piece of TV history being made before your very eyes.