Kate McKinnon Reprises Classic Alien Sketch in Emotional SNL Farewell
Saturday Night Live cold open, this week’s episode kicked off its season finale with departing cast member Kate McKinnon reprising Colleen Rafferty, the chain-smoking alien abductee with a fount of euphemisms for her body parts at the ready.
At the end of the episode’s “Close Encounters” sketch, McKinnon boarded the alien ship and delivered an emotional goodbye after 10 seasons at SNL that helped to effectively change queer representation there.
Aboard the ship, she said her final “Live from New York, it’s Saturday Night.”The sketch follows the usual setup that is a Pentagon debrief conducted by incredulous NSA agents played by Aidy Bryant and Mikey Day.
Cecily Strong plays her recurring abductee and host Natasha Lyonne plays the other. Those two experience only bliss and love aboard the alien ship while Rafferty endures a gauntlet of odd and questionable tests at the hands of the aliens.“It was different down in third class.
