Itchy and Scratchyland
As a kid, I was never super interested in Disneyland. I think I asked about going since I did know some other families who did but my parents weren't interested and I became less interested pretty quick. No yearning. I did go to some theme parks, particularly Legoland in Denmark (I still remember being bummed I was too young for the go-carts) so that was cool. Ironically, I'm actually now more interested now. Not because I particularly like theme parks or that I'm the biggest Disney fan (though I like things they have absorbed into the collective) but because I have a bit of a fascination with what it is. On the one hand, brand protectiveness has made Disneyland (or... Disneyworld? Those are two different things, aren't they? I don't know the difference). Seems to be an experiment in making the best amusement park experience that seems insanely dedicated to doing everything just right and making it a true experience. On the other hand, there's also elements of it that mirror the general sinister darker side of the Disney company, which can produce effective products and even works of art (that are products) that resonate in the minds of the people. And this episode explores that with the same fascination, I think.
In this episode, Bart and Lisa manage to convince Marge and Homer to go to Itchy and Scratchyland on its opening weekend. After a road trip across America, The Simpsons finally make it and financial opportunism aside, the glorious excess and fun captivates the Simpsons (despite Marge being upset by the violent theme). However, Bart and Homer get into trouble, embarrassing Marge. As they exit the park, they find themselves under attack by the park's animatronic attractions, which have gone berserk. The Simpsons manage to survive and Lisa convinces Marge that despite everything, this is, in fact, their best vacation.
This is the first episode where it feels like the show is actually taking on Disney as a company, long before Disney took control of the once subversive (and now just crass) franchise. I think at the time, other shows might have gone after the company having sappy, precious films with wacky animal sidekicks or something. The Simpsons explores Disney the brand while also tapping into what I assume what writers have gleamed from their own family vacations. Here, the park has genuinely great rides and attractions and lots of effort but at the same time is definitely trying to bilk saps while they are shocked and awed by the fun of the park. Just because the product is impeccable, doesn't mean its not trying to sell you Itchy and Scratchy money.
I feel like the show is also taking on cartoon violence again, which is interesting considering the nature of cartoon violence at the time. Specifically that the Simpsons was definitely the most violent of the shows at the time. But not only that, but cartoon violence was only just coming back into vogue. For a couple decades, cartoons like He-Man and Super Friends could only hug each other to attack or throw punchable rocks. Taken at face value, Marge's disgust is understandable but it reflects weird. However, taken as disgust at brand crassness and trying to take your kids somewhere fun only to find the content of what they are being sold distasteful, I very much relate. I'm a nanny and when I show my niece "youtube videos", they come in two forms: great like Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers (I love that my niece absolutely adores Mr. Rogers) and less than, like those weird algorithm based youtube videos. Aside from being janky and weird and dumb, they aren't objectionable but knowing a bit of the background and that it is less an "independent creators making kid content" and more "fly by night money making operation", its often unpleasant to sit through. Even worse are videos of kids playing with toys, which I don't let her watch but my dad does. So I can very much relate to Marge having weird feelings about bringing the family to a warped, violent theme park that she finds full of unpleasant values.
The episode itself is a parody of Westworld, though likely was inspired more by the success of the also-Crichton Jurassic Park (which gets a reference in the episode), with the final joke being for the Simpsons, a deadly theme park still would count among their better vacations. While a lot is owed to simply looking at what Disneyland does and parodying it (including "Parents' Island", a delightfully on the nose reference to "Pleasure Island"), I feel like the show simultaneous got to create a grotesque parody of the park while making one that looks kind of fun. Like, I don't want to go on the log ride that gouges out your eyes if you do it wrong, but everyone seems to be having fun until it turns into a nightmare. The show itself is now a Disney product, but it as a parody of the company and the park, its probably one of the most effective. I feel like while the writer's intellectually know there is something very wrong until the hood of the park and of Disney in general, they also have some genuine affection for the park and Disney films. There is a wonderfully nasty parody of the Sorcerer's Apprentice and with Disney so ingrained in the cultural DNA of pop culture, its hard not to have at least some affection towards the products of the company, while keeping a suspicious eye towards the company itself.
Jokes I missed before:
Really dedicated to their horrifying theme.
Funny joke about the nature of nostalgia but didn't this park just open...
Other great jokes:
"I'll just be sitting here reading this adult's newspaper."
"And talk about a preachy book. Everybody's a sinner... except this guy."
I love the use of this image. Plus the moment when the kids get their hopes up and prematurely cheer when they think they hooked their metaphorical fish. Also, Marge being excited by the bird sanctuary is perfectly Marge.
"Mom, that's veal."
Ha, that waiter is an asshole.
I love how true to form the "Itchy and Scratchy and Friends" auxiliary characters feel but also there's a symbol of hate amongst them?
"Roger Meyers Sr., the gentle genius behind Itchy and Scratchy, loved and cared about almost all the peoples of the world. And he in return was beloved by the world. Except in 1938, when he was criticized for his controversial cartoon, '
Nazi Supermen are Our Superiors.'"
Look, I know that it doesn't matter because it would never actually hurt their bottom line so its not like the biggest deal, but I am still amused that Disney owns and airs this.
"We also arrested your older, balder, fatter son."
"I wish there was a hole I could just crawl into and die."
"OK, throw her in the hole."
Man, the security is obliging.
Jokes that aged weird:
This episode was just released the week before Pulp Fiction gained wide release and totally revitalized his career. He seems to be starring in exceptionally bad movies as of late but somehow the hasbeen joke doesn't quite work the same now for some reason.
Other notes:
I kind of wanted to get to talking about Springfield in Universal Studios Florida but as I was writing it, I decided to see if I could wait to discuss it in another episode since I realized I wanted to say a lot about it.
The Li'l Bastard brand of products makes a return here. I feel like Bart's very own Acme (albeit more affective) fell by the wayside eventually.
Its funny that 4 years after the beat em up game, the show finally gets to feel like a beat 'em up.