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America's Favorite Non-prehistoric Cartoon Family - The Simpsons Thread
- Thread starter Johnny Unusual
- Start date
To the episodes credit, there’s a sizeable chunk of new footage in the episode; clips don’t even start until midway through. Now the second clip show, that’s a rough one.
To this day, I’m not sure if “Oh Nuts” is supposed to be Homer disappointed that he just crushed himself, or him being happy because he’s eating something with peanuts
To this day, I’m not sure if “Oh Nuts” is supposed to be Homer disappointed that he just crushed himself, or him being happy because he’s eating something with peanuts
The DVD commentary for So It's Come to This... said that Fox forced them make the clip shows, and they tried their darndest to make them more like real episodes.
Except that clip show about love, I didn't enjoy that much and I forget the commentary on it.
Except that clip show about love, I didn't enjoy that much and I forget the commentary on it.
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They couldn't even bring themselves to talk about that episode, and were mostly just making small talk through it, IIRC
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Meanwhile, The 138th Episode Spectacular is exactly the right way to do a clips show.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
All Singing, All Dancing at least is remembered because of Paint Your Wagon. When people were saying "the second clip show was shit" I was like "the Troy McClure one? No. The one with Homer as Forrest Gump? Mmmmmaybe? I mean, 'You'll Never Stop the Simpsons' is still good." I completely forgot that the Love Clips Show was a thing.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The Front
I long wanted to be in the creative arts. Its not too late. It never is. Well, except when you die or something. But I wanted that to be my career. As a kid, I would draw maps of video game levels I'd like to make. Later, I liked to make up plot lines for my favourite comic books. I took English in university with plans to be a writer. But I was busy with the hard work of being a student I didn't do any writing. OK, that's not true, I wrote a couple articles a week for the student paper. This, however, was not the kind of writing I wanted to do. And I think for any kid who wants to be a writer, the lesson is not to wait for an educational system to tell you when you are ready, just start ASAP and make all the (non-problematic) mistakes and grow from there. If my niece and nephew become even the slightest bit interested, that's what I would tell them.
In this episode, Bart and Lisa decide to write their own Itchy and Scratchy episode and send in a spec script. After its rejected, they decide to put Grandpa's name on it and it is not only accepted, it is lauded by the producer. Soon, Bart and Lisa strike a deal with grandpa: Abe gets the cheques and the kids live their dream job of writing the show. Meanwhile, Homer decides to finally earn his high school diploma.
The Front is a good episode but I don't know if I could tell you what it is trying to say. My best guess is to be wary of what you attach your name to but for whatever reason, it kinda didn't FEEL that was what it was about. From a structure standpoint, it makes sense: both the kids and grandpa are happy with their arrangement until he sees what he's been party to and he feels he must speak up. And there's nothing wrong with that as its a good concept to mine but for whatever reason it feels a little thrown in. Not every show needs a message or a lesson. It can be a stellar series of jokes. But I feel like the ending it loaded but I'm not entirely sure in what way. It could also be mocking the animation industry in general and considering what it was in the preceding decade its hard to blame them. But even that seems mostly whittled to a joke about "Action Figure Man". The He-Man jokes was mostly about him getting nervous at a wedding, I guess.
Perhaps (and this is coming to me as I write this sentence) there is something ambitious going on. Thematically, the kids and grandpa are the same characters. The kids are the young writers who don't even care about money, they just want to do a thing. Grandpa is the old writer, now disillusioned with an entire industry and perhaps his own work. It might also be reflective of the push and pull within the show itself. I rewatched Conan talking with other Simpsons writers of the era for an hour and a half and he noted the younger writers wanted to push the show further with outlandish jokes and the producers (and previous writers) tried to rein in the more human element that marked the show early on. So maybe its just a broad examination of what it is like to work in animation: start with passion and become a cynical crank with serious opinions on things.
This is definitely an episode for animation buffs and Simpsons buffs. Tons of jokes about the Simpsons writers, we see Lisa and Bart "break" a story (in the kind of quick smooth way it happens in fiction), and lots of references to things like recycling backgrounds. Apparently the episode's plot was sparked by three teens who sent in a spec script for Tiny Toons that actually got made (I vaguely remember that one). I feel like spec scripts for ongoing TV shows aren't really things that happen much any more due to changes in the industry (if I'm wrong let me know) but we definitely live in a time were people regardless of age can do their own thing and attract some big attention. Granted, often it helps also to have the income to do these things but with communication technology now so advanced, there are new avenues to success for creative types. I don't think we'll see anything like a thirteen year old getting a job at DC Comics again (and growing up to be a somewhat tyrannical figure) but at least there are, in theory, fewer barriers between an artist and their audience.
Homer's subplot actually takes a lot of the first act before being made much smaller. Its a fun bit of business where Homer goes to his high school reunion and earns a ton of "prizes" and loses them when it is revealed he didn't graduate.. Its got some funny jokes and helps fill the show a bit. But only a bit. This is an episode so short, they had to include "The Adventures of Ned Flanders", a wonderful bit I wish they would have done more frequently. Though it did evolve into 22 Short Stories About Springfield, which is a classic.
Jokes I missed before:
Not a joke but this is the first time I noticed they couldn't get Alex Rocco in for Roger Meyers Jr. I was like "he sounds wrong" and it turned out it was Hank Azaria. He does a good job but lacks that lived in voice.
Other great jokes:
"How did you take off your underwear without taking off your pants."
*extreme existential confusion* "I don't know!"
"That's right, I did the Iggy!"
Activities: None
Sports: None
Honors: None
I feel seen.
Grandpa's little song when Homer wheelbarrows him to the nut house.
Other notes:
Also, Jon Lovitz is replaced in the role of Artie Ziff. Dan Castellaneta sounds NOTHING like Lovitz, though his pronunciation of the word jealous is perfect in tone is not is voice.
This is the second Ren and Stimpy reference this season. Not sure what to say beyond that.
I long wanted to be in the creative arts. Its not too late. It never is. Well, except when you die or something. But I wanted that to be my career. As a kid, I would draw maps of video game levels I'd like to make. Later, I liked to make up plot lines for my favourite comic books. I took English in university with plans to be a writer. But I was busy with the hard work of being a student I didn't do any writing. OK, that's not true, I wrote a couple articles a week for the student paper. This, however, was not the kind of writing I wanted to do. And I think for any kid who wants to be a writer, the lesson is not to wait for an educational system to tell you when you are ready, just start ASAP and make all the (non-problematic) mistakes and grow from there. If my niece and nephew become even the slightest bit interested, that's what I would tell them.
In this episode, Bart and Lisa decide to write their own Itchy and Scratchy episode and send in a spec script. After its rejected, they decide to put Grandpa's name on it and it is not only accepted, it is lauded by the producer. Soon, Bart and Lisa strike a deal with grandpa: Abe gets the cheques and the kids live their dream job of writing the show. Meanwhile, Homer decides to finally earn his high school diploma.
The Front is a good episode but I don't know if I could tell you what it is trying to say. My best guess is to be wary of what you attach your name to but for whatever reason, it kinda didn't FEEL that was what it was about. From a structure standpoint, it makes sense: both the kids and grandpa are happy with their arrangement until he sees what he's been party to and he feels he must speak up. And there's nothing wrong with that as its a good concept to mine but for whatever reason it feels a little thrown in. Not every show needs a message or a lesson. It can be a stellar series of jokes. But I feel like the ending it loaded but I'm not entirely sure in what way. It could also be mocking the animation industry in general and considering what it was in the preceding decade its hard to blame them. But even that seems mostly whittled to a joke about "Action Figure Man". The He-Man jokes was mostly about him getting nervous at a wedding, I guess.
Perhaps (and this is coming to me as I write this sentence) there is something ambitious going on. Thematically, the kids and grandpa are the same characters. The kids are the young writers who don't even care about money, they just want to do a thing. Grandpa is the old writer, now disillusioned with an entire industry and perhaps his own work. It might also be reflective of the push and pull within the show itself. I rewatched Conan talking with other Simpsons writers of the era for an hour and a half and he noted the younger writers wanted to push the show further with outlandish jokes and the producers (and previous writers) tried to rein in the more human element that marked the show early on. So maybe its just a broad examination of what it is like to work in animation: start with passion and become a cynical crank with serious opinions on things.
This is definitely an episode for animation buffs and Simpsons buffs. Tons of jokes about the Simpsons writers, we see Lisa and Bart "break" a story (in the kind of quick smooth way it happens in fiction), and lots of references to things like recycling backgrounds. Apparently the episode's plot was sparked by three teens who sent in a spec script for Tiny Toons that actually got made (I vaguely remember that one). I feel like spec scripts for ongoing TV shows aren't really things that happen much any more due to changes in the industry (if I'm wrong let me know) but we definitely live in a time were people regardless of age can do their own thing and attract some big attention. Granted, often it helps also to have the income to do these things but with communication technology now so advanced, there are new avenues to success for creative types. I don't think we'll see anything like a thirteen year old getting a job at DC Comics again (and growing up to be a somewhat tyrannical figure) but at least there are, in theory, fewer barriers between an artist and their audience.
Homer's subplot actually takes a lot of the first act before being made much smaller. Its a fun bit of business where Homer goes to his high school reunion and earns a ton of "prizes" and loses them when it is revealed he didn't graduate.. Its got some funny jokes and helps fill the show a bit. But only a bit. This is an episode so short, they had to include "The Adventures of Ned Flanders", a wonderful bit I wish they would have done more frequently. Though it did evolve into 22 Short Stories About Springfield, which is a classic.
Jokes I missed before:
Not a joke but this is the first time I noticed they couldn't get Alex Rocco in for Roger Meyers Jr. I was like "he sounds wrong" and it turned out it was Hank Azaria. He does a good job but lacks that lived in voice.
Other great jokes:
"How did you take off your underwear without taking off your pants."
*extreme existential confusion* "I don't know!"
"That's right, I did the Iggy!"
Activities: None
Sports: None
Honors: None
I feel seen.
Grandpa's little song when Homer wheelbarrows him to the nut house.
Other notes:
Also, Jon Lovitz is replaced in the role of Artie Ziff. Dan Castellaneta sounds NOTHING like Lovitz, though his pronunciation of the word jealous is perfect in tone is not is voice.
This is the second Ren and Stimpy reference this season. Not sure what to say beyond that.
The Ren & Stimpy reference earlier in the season felt like it came from a team that really liked the show. The animation was pretty much exactly Ren & Stimpy, even if the voices weren't.
The Ren & Stimpy reference in this episode is more taking a jab at John K. for the notoriously long episode development times that would be one of the reasons why he was fired.
The Ren & Stimpy reference in this episode is more taking a jab at John K. for the notoriously long episode development times that would be one of the reasons why he was fired.
Not only did The Adventures of Ned Flanders spin-out into one of the best episodes of the series, but so did Homer Goes Back to School! Purely in terms of legacy this may be the single greatest episode in the series!
Been 25 years and I still have no bloody idea what the title refers to.
Been 25 years and I still have no bloody idea what the title refers to.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Grandpa is the titular "Front" for Bart and Lisa, who are the actual writers.
Oooooooooooh
zonetrope
(he/him)
SIR, you LOCKED my OFFICE and I WANTED to get my HARVARD MUG!
It's also a direct reference to the 1976 blacklist comedy starring (but not directed or written by) Woody Allen.
It's also a direct reference to the 1976 blacklist comedy starring (but not directed or written by) Woody Allen.
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Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
A lot of them do. Next to Swartzwelder is Al Jean, talking about he wrote his senior thesis on life experience.
Which reminds me of a great joke I missed.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Whacking Day
I miss being a teacher. I guess I do teaching as a nanny but its not organized. There's a real joy seeing a student start to get something. While I enjoyed teaching in Korea, it was actually pretty hard to gauge my efficacy there: I was only to give my students a very short test and each class numbered around 40 students. In such circumstances, it is definitely hard to guarantee that each student gets the attention they need. I've personally found that the magic number is between four and six. Everyone is likely going to get attention then, which is basically what happened when I was teaching in China with smaller classes (and much younger students). Sometimes I wish I could go back and try to do some of my lessons better and find ways to optimize my students getting the attention they need. With public schools being so crowded, its hard for everyone to get what they deserve in terms of an education.
In this episode, Bart's mischief gets him expelled from Springfield Elementary. With no other school willing to take him in, Marge is forced to home school Bart and she ends up doing a good job of it too. Meanwhile, Lisa is sickened by a Springfield holiday: Whacking Day, in which the towns citizens beat snakes with sticks. When Bart comes across the suspect origins of the holiday, he and Lisa team up to stop the snake massacre and set the town straight.
Its funny, I don't think I forgot any jokes from this one but its been so long since I've seen it, I forgot they come together to make a strong episode and one with some good stuff to say about education as a concept, even if it is unendingly suspicious about educators in systems. For example, the entire first act is Skinner showing Superintendent Chalmers (in his first appearance) around the school while it sets up Bart for monkeyshines. Both characters come off quite bad and it paints a terrible picture of the educational system. Skinner plays the role of bootlick trying to appease Chalmers by lying while Chalmers informs us that geography education is halted due to poor testing and there are going to be "two 'r's come October." Outside the school is worse: Colonial Fort Springfield perpetuates pleasing historical propaganda and kicks Bart out when he points out a historical inaccuracy. Marge is easily the best teacher in the episode. She doesn't have to please any higher ups and genuinely wants her son to be well-taught. She finds ways to make him interested in classic literature like Johnny Deformed and when Bart likes it, follows it up with further related lessons.
The education Bart receives gives him some good critical thinking skills and allows him to help Lisa win the day against Whacking Day. And lets talk about the Whacking Day half of the plot. Not all of The Simpsons has aged well but this plot feels evergreen; taking a hard look at traditions and established norms that may be in some way harmful and deciding they need to go or be changed. Here, a real education is given to Bart and he can see past even what his teacher cannot: what a sham the holiday is. I feel like there's a scene missing where Bart and Lisa actually decide to team up but probably they 1) ran out of time and 2) assumed the audience wouldn't bat an eye if a foregone team up just went all mise en scene. Bart is never actually shown that he particularly wants or needs to help his sister after spending most of it separate from her. Doing that makes sense but it would also probably needlessly slow down a quick, fun episode. And it still does a great job showing how education can inspire people to change the world for the better.
Lets also talk about Superintendent Chalmers. From the jump he's a great character and his chemistry with Skinner is top notch. Chalmers is prickly and constantly grills Skinner but rarely seems to lower the boom on his obvious lies (a formula which culminates perfectly in Steamed Hams, where Chalmers probes like a perfect detective, giving Skinner so much rope to hang himself and then letting it slide completely). I imagine he was intended to be a one off character but Harry Shearer and Hank Azaria bounce off each other so wonderfully, particularly during the "r"s as "b"s mumbling finish which sounds very improvised. It actually makes little sense when you break down the fact that Skinner's "cold" makes him mishear letters and it really shouldn't satisfy Chalmers the way it does but I feel like within the internal logic of improv, it works.
Jokes I missed before:
Not a particularly strong joke, but I missed that "The Truth About Whacking Day" was written by Bob Woodward.
Other Great Jokes:
Man, this one is packed. Pretty much anything with Chalmers.
The "where are they now" joke is top notch stuff.
"Is Whacking Day over?"
*Boo!*
"Thank you. Thanks for coming out."
"Pleasing taste, some monsterism."
"That is not ein booby."
I love Itchy and Scratchy completely foregoing comedy for a historical murder re-enactment.
"That's why they call it Fort Sensible."
"You people make me sick!"
"YAY!"
"Were they even listening to me?"
"I don't think so, no."
"I took many a lump... BUT TWAS ALL IN GOOD FUN!"
"You people are just a pack of fickle mushheads."
"He's right!"
"Give us Hell Quimby!"
Other notes:
Nice touches: Skinner dropping from the ceiling for no reason other than effect. Also, Kearney getting a five o'clock shadow, which will lead into the recurring joke that he is much older than he appears.
Weirdly drawn character or is the show inclusive enough to have a background character with marfan syndrome.
The show continues my favourite running gag through this season: that Bart wants nothing more than to be a 19th century orphan in the streets of London.
I love Marge being way too pleased with herself for buying a bell, then it turning out to be annoying AF. This feels weirdly real.
I miss being a teacher. I guess I do teaching as a nanny but its not organized. There's a real joy seeing a student start to get something. While I enjoyed teaching in Korea, it was actually pretty hard to gauge my efficacy there: I was only to give my students a very short test and each class numbered around 40 students. In such circumstances, it is definitely hard to guarantee that each student gets the attention they need. I've personally found that the magic number is between four and six. Everyone is likely going to get attention then, which is basically what happened when I was teaching in China with smaller classes (and much younger students). Sometimes I wish I could go back and try to do some of my lessons better and find ways to optimize my students getting the attention they need. With public schools being so crowded, its hard for everyone to get what they deserve in terms of an education.
In this episode, Bart's mischief gets him expelled from Springfield Elementary. With no other school willing to take him in, Marge is forced to home school Bart and she ends up doing a good job of it too. Meanwhile, Lisa is sickened by a Springfield holiday: Whacking Day, in which the towns citizens beat snakes with sticks. When Bart comes across the suspect origins of the holiday, he and Lisa team up to stop the snake massacre and set the town straight.
Its funny, I don't think I forgot any jokes from this one but its been so long since I've seen it, I forgot they come together to make a strong episode and one with some good stuff to say about education as a concept, even if it is unendingly suspicious about educators in systems. For example, the entire first act is Skinner showing Superintendent Chalmers (in his first appearance) around the school while it sets up Bart for monkeyshines. Both characters come off quite bad and it paints a terrible picture of the educational system. Skinner plays the role of bootlick trying to appease Chalmers by lying while Chalmers informs us that geography education is halted due to poor testing and there are going to be "two 'r's come October." Outside the school is worse: Colonial Fort Springfield perpetuates pleasing historical propaganda and kicks Bart out when he points out a historical inaccuracy. Marge is easily the best teacher in the episode. She doesn't have to please any higher ups and genuinely wants her son to be well-taught. She finds ways to make him interested in classic literature like Johnny Deformed and when Bart likes it, follows it up with further related lessons.
The education Bart receives gives him some good critical thinking skills and allows him to help Lisa win the day against Whacking Day. And lets talk about the Whacking Day half of the plot. Not all of The Simpsons has aged well but this plot feels evergreen; taking a hard look at traditions and established norms that may be in some way harmful and deciding they need to go or be changed. Here, a real education is given to Bart and he can see past even what his teacher cannot: what a sham the holiday is. I feel like there's a scene missing where Bart and Lisa actually decide to team up but probably they 1) ran out of time and 2) assumed the audience wouldn't bat an eye if a foregone team up just went all mise en scene. Bart is never actually shown that he particularly wants or needs to help his sister after spending most of it separate from her. Doing that makes sense but it would also probably needlessly slow down a quick, fun episode. And it still does a great job showing how education can inspire people to change the world for the better.
Lets also talk about Superintendent Chalmers. From the jump he's a great character and his chemistry with Skinner is top notch. Chalmers is prickly and constantly grills Skinner but rarely seems to lower the boom on his obvious lies (a formula which culminates perfectly in Steamed Hams, where Chalmers probes like a perfect detective, giving Skinner so much rope to hang himself and then letting it slide completely). I imagine he was intended to be a one off character but Harry Shearer and Hank Azaria bounce off each other so wonderfully, particularly during the "r"s as "b"s mumbling finish which sounds very improvised. It actually makes little sense when you break down the fact that Skinner's "cold" makes him mishear letters and it really shouldn't satisfy Chalmers the way it does but I feel like within the internal logic of improv, it works.
Jokes I missed before:
Not a particularly strong joke, but I missed that "The Truth About Whacking Day" was written by Bob Woodward.
Other Great Jokes:
Man, this one is packed. Pretty much anything with Chalmers.
The "where are they now" joke is top notch stuff.
"Is Whacking Day over?"
*Boo!*
"Thank you. Thanks for coming out."
"Pleasing taste, some monsterism."
"That is not ein booby."
I love Itchy and Scratchy completely foregoing comedy for a historical murder re-enactment.
"That's why they call it Fort Sensible."
"You people make me sick!"
"YAY!"
"Were they even listening to me?"
"I don't think so, no."
"I took many a lump... BUT TWAS ALL IN GOOD FUN!"
"You people are just a pack of fickle mushheads."
"He's right!"
"Give us Hell Quimby!"
Other notes:
Nice touches: Skinner dropping from the ceiling for no reason other than effect. Also, Kearney getting a five o'clock shadow, which will lead into the recurring joke that he is much older than he appears.
Weirdly drawn character or is the show inclusive enough to have a background character with marfan syndrome.
The show continues my favourite running gag through this season: that Bart wants nothing more than to be a 19th century orphan in the streets of London.
I love Marge being way too pleased with herself for buying a bell, then it turning out to be annoying AF. This feels weirdly real.
That's Wendel?
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
So... why was Wendel pushed back to grade two?
jpfriction
(He, Him)
Grendel.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Marge In Chains
Usually, I try to start with discussing an aspect of my life that is reflected in this episode (and vice versa). Self-indulgent? Sure. But it makes sense since I grew up with the Simpsons and it is deeply intertwined with my life and how I see the world (sorry if they seem trite, annoying or just whiney). Instead, I want to start off with the unfortunate use of the opening act in 2020. It can be a real shame when good, or at least harmless, culture is co-opted by shits. I don't think I was ever going to be the audience for the dopey stoner comic "Boy's Club" but it seems a shame that Matt Furie, who by all accounts is a sweetheart, had one of his funny animal characters, Pepe the Frog, turned into a literal symbol of hatred via the art of memification. Furie tried to take back his character but after realizing it wasn't possible, he literally was forced to kill him off in a free comic for free comics day, giving a character a respectful funeral to say goodbye to any hope that Furie had any ownership of this character that wouldn't be fraught. Similarly, this episode recently became important in this, our year of pestilence, with an opening plot point involving an Asian flu being released into Springfield has been re-purposed by alt-right shit bags to laugh about the "China Flu" that is NOT a China Flu that is COVID-19.
In this episode, the town is beset by a flu and Marge becomes more overworked than usual. While shopping under a lot of stress, Marge absent-mindedly shoplifts a bottle of bourbon for Grandpa. Immediately, the town turns on Marge and the trial ends up going quite badly and Marge ends up spending 30 days in jail. Marge acclimatizes to her tough situation and even makes some friends but misses her family. Meanwhile, the reprecussions of Marge's absence ends up snowballing into a city-wide riot.
I knew this was a good one but I'm shocked HOW fucking good it is. Its funny and its sweet and I was surprised how intelligent and empathetic it is in its examination of America's views and attitudes towards crime and punishment. There's a lot to unpack and its all really good. It starts with the crime itself: the crime was an accident, Marge stopped and was being extremely compliant, no one takes time to consider (or even care if) it was an error and even without those aspects, the reaction of the police is completely over the top. The disturbing thing is that it barely even counts as satire considering how not far removed it is from where America seems to be: acting like even the smallest infraction is something out of Robocop's Detroit.
Then there's the town reaction: everyone turns on her and starts talking shit about her. Its extremely small, petty stuff that's supposed to compound her criminal profile like webbed toes and a hair in a cookie she made (though to be fair, it might have been a very long hair). Even the Flanders turn on Marge for the infraction of... fixing a crooked painting. Marge committed a "crime" (at the barest minimum of the legal definition) and everyone decides to rescind their empathy towards her. I think Apu's thinking is wrong and cruel but it does make a kind of sad sense: the Kwik-E-Mart is CONSTANTLY being wronged, so he's finally happy to have someone who "wronged" him he can put behind bars. People can be cruel to criminals but being a criminal isn't the same as being a bad person. It just means being a person who, for whatever reason or intention, broke the law.
We get the more human side from Marge and her family. There's still a lot of comedy but as is often the case, Kavner brings so much humanity to an over the top situation, bolstered by the strong writing. She gets to be funny, too, but most everyone else in Springfield ends up being a ridiculous jerk to make Marge's situation more Kafkaesque and Marge being so sweet and human and played with relative emotional realism makes the consequences of this silliness surprisingly palpable. This isn't the most emotional episode but it is one where that emotion is placed almost entirely in Marge's court and then runs with it and then is arrested for travelling.
The episode's finale is knowingly absurd but it also brings home the point. It begins when a bake sale is behind on its goal by $15 and the town can't afford a statue of Lincoln. I love that NO ONE is willing to chip in $15. Instead of a statue of Lincoln, Springfield gets a statue of Jimmy Carter, a president who, like Marge, got WAY more vitriol than he deserved. The town riots in response and they come to the conclusion this never would have happened if Marge Simpson hadn't brought in $15. Its so silly but I think it also works in terms of messaging: criminals are people. And people are what make up our community. The community turned on Marge and then it wasn't until it was too late that it was realized that Marge had so much value to the community. That could be any person given a trumped up charge far beyond the crime.
The Simpsons has often been a very liberal leaning show, certainly on a social level, but not every plot or episode has aged in that direction. In those terms, as an examination of the American treatment of crime, it holds up very well and has been even more pointed when we can clearly see this kind of shit happening more disturbingly, viscerally and often lethally in black communities. Boy is the Simpsons, a very very white (by way of yellow) show, not equipped to handle that subject matter. But as a more abstracted and general look at the weird lust to punish people for small, perceived infractions, this is a surprisingly smart take on it.
Jokes I missed before:
Followed by a clever use of paper and tape.
Other Great Jokes:
Oh, this one is chock-a-block with good ones.
Troy McClure smashing an orange with his face is a pitch perfect parody of informercial logic before internet supercuts of "people don't know how to do normal things in informercials". The reveal that Homer does the same thing is perfect.
"Don't panic, just come up with a good story."
"My name is Mr. Burns."
A less political and better meme that went around in March was "WHERE DO WE GET THESE PLACEBOS" which captured a moment perfectly.
"The network slogan is true: Watch Fox and be damned for all eternity." Truer now than ever.
Mr. Hutz is WAY too excited about the smoking monkey. I feel like he bought them under the assumption that others would be as into them as he and he was wrong.
"Don't tell anyone but Marge Simpson was arrested for shoplifting"
"Let it go forth from this time and place: Marge Simpson is a shoplifter!"
If I was a lawyer.
"This verdict is written on a cocktail napkin. And it still says guilty. And guilty is spelled wrong."
My guess as to the spelling? "GILLTY"
"Your mom's a jailbird."
"So's yours."
"Oh yeah. Let's play."
Other notes:
David Crosby as Hutz's sponsor plays it VERY gently. Its surprisingly tender.
Is one of those "people of different cultures" cultures a man just dressed like Elvis? I think that's not how I'm supposed to read that but I'm not sure what they are going for with the blue haired guy.
After watching that intro, like ALL my life over and over and over, I've finally noticed something. I know some of the characters are somewhat off model but I SERIOUSLY never noticed that Helen Lovejoy has Maude Flanders hair coloring.
Usually, I try to start with discussing an aspect of my life that is reflected in this episode (and vice versa). Self-indulgent? Sure. But it makes sense since I grew up with the Simpsons and it is deeply intertwined with my life and how I see the world (sorry if they seem trite, annoying or just whiney). Instead, I want to start off with the unfortunate use of the opening act in 2020. It can be a real shame when good, or at least harmless, culture is co-opted by shits. I don't think I was ever going to be the audience for the dopey stoner comic "Boy's Club" but it seems a shame that Matt Furie, who by all accounts is a sweetheart, had one of his funny animal characters, Pepe the Frog, turned into a literal symbol of hatred via the art of memification. Furie tried to take back his character but after realizing it wasn't possible, he literally was forced to kill him off in a free comic for free comics day, giving a character a respectful funeral to say goodbye to any hope that Furie had any ownership of this character that wouldn't be fraught. Similarly, this episode recently became important in this, our year of pestilence, with an opening plot point involving an Asian flu being released into Springfield has been re-purposed by alt-right shit bags to laugh about the "China Flu" that is NOT a China Flu that is COVID-19.
In this episode, the town is beset by a flu and Marge becomes more overworked than usual. While shopping under a lot of stress, Marge absent-mindedly shoplifts a bottle of bourbon for Grandpa. Immediately, the town turns on Marge and the trial ends up going quite badly and Marge ends up spending 30 days in jail. Marge acclimatizes to her tough situation and even makes some friends but misses her family. Meanwhile, the reprecussions of Marge's absence ends up snowballing into a city-wide riot.
I knew this was a good one but I'm shocked HOW fucking good it is. Its funny and its sweet and I was surprised how intelligent and empathetic it is in its examination of America's views and attitudes towards crime and punishment. There's a lot to unpack and its all really good. It starts with the crime itself: the crime was an accident, Marge stopped and was being extremely compliant, no one takes time to consider (or even care if) it was an error and even without those aspects, the reaction of the police is completely over the top. The disturbing thing is that it barely even counts as satire considering how not far removed it is from where America seems to be: acting like even the smallest infraction is something out of Robocop's Detroit.
Then there's the town reaction: everyone turns on her and starts talking shit about her. Its extremely small, petty stuff that's supposed to compound her criminal profile like webbed toes and a hair in a cookie she made (though to be fair, it might have been a very long hair). Even the Flanders turn on Marge for the infraction of... fixing a crooked painting. Marge committed a "crime" (at the barest minimum of the legal definition) and everyone decides to rescind their empathy towards her. I think Apu's thinking is wrong and cruel but it does make a kind of sad sense: the Kwik-E-Mart is CONSTANTLY being wronged, so he's finally happy to have someone who "wronged" him he can put behind bars. People can be cruel to criminals but being a criminal isn't the same as being a bad person. It just means being a person who, for whatever reason or intention, broke the law.
We get the more human side from Marge and her family. There's still a lot of comedy but as is often the case, Kavner brings so much humanity to an over the top situation, bolstered by the strong writing. She gets to be funny, too, but most everyone else in Springfield ends up being a ridiculous jerk to make Marge's situation more Kafkaesque and Marge being so sweet and human and played with relative emotional realism makes the consequences of this silliness surprisingly palpable. This isn't the most emotional episode but it is one where that emotion is placed almost entirely in Marge's court and then runs with it and then is arrested for travelling.
The episode's finale is knowingly absurd but it also brings home the point. It begins when a bake sale is behind on its goal by $15 and the town can't afford a statue of Lincoln. I love that NO ONE is willing to chip in $15. Instead of a statue of Lincoln, Springfield gets a statue of Jimmy Carter, a president who, like Marge, got WAY more vitriol than he deserved. The town riots in response and they come to the conclusion this never would have happened if Marge Simpson hadn't brought in $15. Its so silly but I think it also works in terms of messaging: criminals are people. And people are what make up our community. The community turned on Marge and then it wasn't until it was too late that it was realized that Marge had so much value to the community. That could be any person given a trumped up charge far beyond the crime.
The Simpsons has often been a very liberal leaning show, certainly on a social level, but not every plot or episode has aged in that direction. In those terms, as an examination of the American treatment of crime, it holds up very well and has been even more pointed when we can clearly see this kind of shit happening more disturbingly, viscerally and often lethally in black communities. Boy is the Simpsons, a very very white (by way of yellow) show, not equipped to handle that subject matter. But as a more abstracted and general look at the weird lust to punish people for small, perceived infractions, this is a surprisingly smart take on it.
Jokes I missed before:
Followed by a clever use of paper and tape.
Other Great Jokes:
Oh, this one is chock-a-block with good ones.
Troy McClure smashing an orange with his face is a pitch perfect parody of informercial logic before internet supercuts of "people don't know how to do normal things in informercials". The reveal that Homer does the same thing is perfect.
"Don't panic, just come up with a good story."
"My name is Mr. Burns."
A less political and better meme that went around in March was "WHERE DO WE GET THESE PLACEBOS" which captured a moment perfectly.
"The network slogan is true: Watch Fox and be damned for all eternity." Truer now than ever.
Mr. Hutz is WAY too excited about the smoking monkey. I feel like he bought them under the assumption that others would be as into them as he and he was wrong.
"Don't tell anyone but Marge Simpson was arrested for shoplifting"
"Let it go forth from this time and place: Marge Simpson is a shoplifter!"
"This verdict is written on a cocktail napkin. And it still says guilty. And guilty is spelled wrong."
My guess as to the spelling? "GILLTY"
"Your mom's a jailbird."
"So's yours."
"Oh yeah. Let's play."
Other notes:
David Crosby as Hutz's sponsor plays it VERY gently. Its surprisingly tender.
Is one of those "people of different cultures" cultures a man just dressed like Elvis? I think that's not how I'm supposed to read that but I'm not sure what they are going for with the blue haired guy.
After watching that intro, like ALL my life over and over and over, I've finally noticed something. I know some of the characters are somewhat off model but I SERIOUSLY never noticed that Helen Lovejoy has Maude Flanders hair coloring.
Episode had one of my all time favorite imagine spots;
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Wait, Martina? I always thought it was "Bartina".
So did I, but Frinkiac disagrees
