What 'SNL' Can Learn From 'New Girl'

Tuesday's New Girl marked a momentous occasion: Damon Wayans Jr.'s Coach was welcomed back into the fold by his buddies (and Jess, whom he completely forgot even existed), and, as sitcoms go, chaos ensued. Unfortunately, the momentous occasion was accompanied by a sort of meh episode overall, but Coach! Coach was back!

This episode saw Coach exiting one relationship (with his not-seen New Girl girlfriend and with the sadly deceased Happy Endings) and entering back into a new one: the loft. And so he whisks the boys away to a strip club, upsetting the balance of Nick and Jess in the process and kind of/sort of driving Jess into the arms of the beautiful, beautiful Taye Diggs. It was an enjoyable episode overall, but not exceedingly notable, except for the fact that Damon Wayans Jr. was there.

To compensate, here are three notable things that made me go "whoa" about tonight's episode of New Girl:

We remembered how smoking hot Taye Diggs is.

Would anyone else have been a little bit okay with Jess stepping out on Nick with Taye Diggs? No? Just me? But he's Taye Diggs. Naked in her bed. Give the girl some wiggle room, ifyouknowwhatImean. He's married with kids in real life, Zooey Deschanel — this might've been your only chance.

At least Cece should've gotten all up in that.

There were not one, but three black dudes.

Was this only big to me? That they casually added another black guy to the ensemble as if this show's quiet problems with Winston's storylines never existed? That Coach and Winston kept being onscreen together, both with storylines, and it wasn't an "either/or" situation? That they so casually bashed tokenism in the face with some strip club lobsters? Who knows what will happen after this episode. The future is up in the air — but it just felt so natural.

Did no one else high-five the air when Winston dropped that line about who'd get arrested first when they were outside the police station? Just me?

What I'm saying is SNL could take some notes on how to notice talented people of color.

Jess and Nick defined their relationship.

The sitcom world's best kissers are now officially boyfriend and girlfriend — which is nice, but we also thought that happened in the first episode of this season. Still, progress!

Now we've just got to wait to see how and when this all blows up in their faces.

Image: Fox