The first Saturday Night Live episode since the end of the months-long writers’ strike started with a somber message from the series alum Pete Davidson. He began his cold open by referencing “the horrible images and stories from Israel and Gaza,” then quickly addressed the elephant in Studio 8H: “I know what you’re thinking—who better to comment on it than Pete Davidson?” But however preposterous that premise might sound, Davidson’s cold open and his later monologue made the case for what entertainers—and comedians, especially—can offer audiences in moments of crisis. The 29-year-old comic reminded viewers that his own life had been shaped by a violent attack: When he was 7, Davidson lost his father, a firefighter who died on 9/11. “I saw so many terrible pictures this week of children suffering—Israeli children and Palestinian children—and it took me back to a really horrible, horrible place,” he said. He recalled his mother trying anything she could to lift his spirits after his father died, including buying him what she thought was a Disney movie but was …