Fans Can't Handle How Extra Taylor Swift's 'SNL' Performance Was

Taylor Swift's Reputation era is officially here, and if the Nov. 10 album release didn't properly get you psyched for The New Taylor, her latest appearance probably did the trick. Taylor Swift's Saturday Night Live performance of "...Ready For It" was the perfect representation of her new album — and it let her show fans a new side of her that she hasn't really explored in her live performances before.

Every time Swift releases a new album, a new style and persona comes with it. When 1989 came out in 2014, she was all about the crop tops and light hearted, colorful aesthetics. But now that Reputation is here — the era of the snake — she's messier, rougher around the edges, and so far, she's going so much darker than ever before, and all of these qualities were definitely tied in as she performed on SNL.

When Swift took the stage on Saturday night, dressed all in black with that flawless cat eye she's always been known for, it wasn't her outfit that made fans take notice. Actually, it was the microphone she was holding... and the fact that it was wrapped in a sparkly gold snake, the same symbol she's been embracing since she first announced her new album and its first single, "Look What You Made Me Do."

As you probably already know, when Kim Kardashian leaked the infamous phone call between Kanye West and Taylor Swift regarding those "Famous" lyrics, people immediately began the #TaylorSwiftIsOverParty, calling her a snake and posting snake emojis all over Swift's Instagram comments. But in the "Look What You Made Me Do" music video, that snake imagery was everywhere. She's embraced the snake, and it made her SNL performance that much more unforgettable.

And, fans were living for it on Twitter. The common reaction to most things Swift has done in the months since she first announced Reputation has been, "Wow, she really did that," and this snake mic situation is no different.

There's nothing not to love. Swift has been known for using sparkly mics in the past, but this one very clearly tops any that came before. And of course, the reason Swift's SNL performance will be so memorable goes so far beyond just the snake microphone. It's been three years since she released new music, and although that drought was agonizing for fans, it looks like she didn't let any of that time go to waste. Because not only did she sound awesome, but it looks like Swift has picked up a few new moves, too.

If you've been paying attention to anything Swift-related over the last couple of years, you know she's been facing a lot of hate on the internet. And two of the things she's been most criticized for by her detractors? Her voice and her dance skills.

But Swift's voice was on point, and her choreography was too. She owned the stage and worked the crowd, gripping that snake mic with all the confidence in the world as she winked at the camera. After she stayed silent for so long on social media, it was hard to predict what this time in her career would be like, but now that she's given her audience a little taste of it, it's clear there's more where this is coming from.

In fact, if SNL is an indicator of what Swift has in store for her live performances (and hopefully, her Reputation tour), fans have a lot to be excited about. As the new Snake Queen herself — and if she wants to go by that name, after that microphone, that would totally be OK — would say, "let the games begin."