America's Favorite Non-prehistoric Cartoon Family - The Simpsons Thread

[Octopus Prime]

King of the Hill had a similar episode around the same time, where Bobby is misdiagnosed with ADHD because he was on a monumental sugar rush.

Ritalin was in the zeitgeist in the early 2000s, I guess.

 

[Büge]

At least Clone High had the good sense to do a Very Special Episode on the subject

 

[Ludendorkk]

Unlike South Park, I don't think this one is trying to convince anyone that it isn't "real" (though the words ADD/ADHD aren't actually used, "hyperactivity" is) but it is one of those questionable "fear of the medication" episodes and I feel Bart's reaction to it is definitely problematic in presentation.

EDIT: Also an issue is a joke that implies that the drugs effect could be replicated "with regular exercise."

In my experience the result is exactly the same, people don't grasp the "nuance" (which I think is basically meaningless anyways).

 

[Johnny Unusual]

True. The end result is still socially irresponsible and stigmatizes medicine, making people question the choice to even try it.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Guess Who's Coming to Criticize Dinner?

When I got to university, I began writing for the student paper, a job I really enjoyed. I got to get free video games and CDs to review them. Now its not that I didn't work hard, but I feel like I probably didn't do a particularly good job, if only because I consider myself a better (amateur) critic today. One of the things was I also liked to write snarky stuff when the opportunity hit. I was a big fan of MST3k and Mike Nelson wrote of book of humourous movie reviews and I wanted to do something similar. Now I still like to write funny (or "funny") little essays about silly pop culture but I feel that like my focus is getting the wit after the reflection rather than simply trying to lead with it. My want to like things is greater than my enjoyment of trying to be witty. Oh, I do like the latter but even then, I want to enjoy things on a certain level, even if is not the reason that was intended.

In this episode, Homer ends up at a tour of the local paper and gains attention for his love of food. With the current food critic retiring, the editor suggests Homer try out. He does but writes an embarrassingly bad article. Lisa helps him write a new one and ends up becoming his ghost writer. Homer loves his work but soon finds that his fellow critics confounded by his lack of discernment. Homer, deciding to impress his fellow critics, begins arbitrarily giving EVERYONE bad reviews. Lisa, growing tired of Homer's smug superiority, quits as his writer. Meanwhile, Homer's reviews have made him the target of the chefs of Springfield, who send an assassin after him with a poison pastry. Homer survives the attempt but gets his comeuppance at the hands of the restauranteurs and assorted townsfolk.

I feel a lot of comedies that deal with critics (and some poorly written dramas) are often more interested in presenting critics as impotent losers who use their work as some sort of power trip. Even some of the better movies in this regard, like Ratatouille, might feature more nuance but at the same time it tends fall into a similar trap. This episode has that element too but interestingly it is written by Al Jean, co-creator of The Critic, who's title character is a bit pretentious but is a mostly positive character in how he approaches his work: though he is hard to please and has a cruel wit, he wants to be pleased and takes his work seriously. Al Jean has made a lot of decisions I don't agree with as the series showrunner ("What can you do?") but this is actually a pretty decent episode and I think it helps that he does believe in the job of critic that it doesn't come off as a series of putdowns on the internet types the show already was trying to dunk on for commenting on the show.

Not that its a particularly innovative journey. Once again, Homer stumbles on a job. But this time, he is extremely unfit for it. He has the passion but completely lacks all the proper skills. Obviously, there's the ability to articulate his thoughts and ideas, which becomes Lisa's job. But Homer also is easily able to dislike something as much as he likes it. In all honesty, from what we see of the restaurants of Springfield, most probably do deserve bad reviews. Terrible ones in fact. But its clear that Homer isn't interested in deserve so much as finding another avenue to stroke his own ego. I'm sure that Jean and the writers were aware of how this is easy to compare to, say the Internet reviews at the time. But thankfully, the episode spares us a lot of that so it sidesteps feeling like one big gripe.

Overall, this one is just an OK episode. It doesn't do something offensively wrong, thankfully. There aren't even any transphobic jokes in this one. But it is very much an episode more joke centered than emotion or theme centered. And that's fine. A lot of jokes work. Some work great. And you have Ed Asner doing a pretty good job in a small role. Its never going to be a top tier but it makes for a fun little treat until a better one comes along.

"Does the opening scene mirror the themes of the episode" watch 2021:

Not really. I guess Skinner suggests people pair up and we next see Homer and Lisa but I think that's just a coincidence mostly.

"If he's so smart, how come he's dead?"

"No please you got to help old Gil. What can I do for you? Dance for you? But you wouldn't even see-- All right, I'm dancin'."

"Who here reads Mary Worth... Let's move on."

"I wouldn't want to be married to her. I mean again."

"I'll have you know I wandered off from the tour."
I feel like a lot of these jokes are very much Homer in cruise control but a lot of these still work for me. I just like his unearned confidence that this statement gives him some sort of authority where there is none.

"We make a good team. A groin-grabbingly good team!"

"Wait a minute, there was no cane in Citizen Kane."
But I feel like there has to be, even if it was just incidental. This feels like a reason to rewatch it.

"This is Garth Tralawny, TV critic."
"Why you! You made them cancel Platypus Man."
"Homer! This is our theatre critic, Audrey Beaumont."
"And the Cosby Mysteries. That show had limitless possibilities."

"Nine thumbs up, what the Hell is that?"

"Marge, I'm sorry, but your cooking's only got two moves... Shake and bake!"
"You like Shake and Bake! You used to put it in your coffee."

Sadly, we kind of need a bee-filled atmosphere again.

Other notes:

I feel dumb for not noticing that, in his one line, the TV critic has a "gay voice".

I'll be honest, I feel like there are some episodes I've seen around the same quality that I've been harsher on if only because while they might all put comedy about character, this one doesn't get too mean and Homer's a jerk in a way that's fun to watch than just being a fucking drag by being too unpleasant. A little of that balance goes a long way.

 

[Octopus Prime]

I will say that Homer presents everything I look for in a critic, and what I strive for myself in offering reviews;
Everything is excellent

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Treehouse of Horror X

I remember Y2k. I don't think I ever bought the fear of some kind of computer apocalypse that people kept talking about but I'm only human. I did have moments of doubt. Frankly, its weird to be writing about such an apocalypse scare during a genuinely dangerous time that some people seem downright desperate to ignore. We are on what feels like what is close to the other side but at the same time, the covid virus will still remain with us in mutated forms and with poor behaviour and habits, it is easy to backslide. Not to mention that due to some awful leadership, some countries are living through a real nightmare. Some people have said this is the year they need feel good pop culture and I understand that. But frankly, in these times, horror is still a good genre. It can be an escape or it could be a way to process the nature of human weakness that remains with us.

In this episode, three more Halloween tales. In the first story, a parody of I Know What You Did Last Summer, Marge accidentally kills Ned Flanders in a road accident and believing no one would ever believe it was an accident, decide to fake a natural death. After the funeral, the Simpsons receive messages stating that someone knows their secret who is revealed to be Flanders, who survived due to in fact recently becoming a werewolf. In the second story in a general parody of superhero fiction, Bart and Lisa get into a radioactive accident on Halloween and get super-powers. They end up battling Comic Book Guy (as the villain The Collector) but lose, only to be saved by Comic Book Guy's kidnapping victim Lucy Lawless. In the final story, a parody of Y2k hysteria, the Y2k bug causes the Earth's machines against humanity. Lisa and Marge end up escaping in a rocket, though when Bart and Homer try to do the same, they realize they are stuck with celebrity losers headed for the sun.

After witnessing firsthand the downturn, I was delighted to see this episode's stories are all pretty funny and well-conceived. The first one's choice of parody, I Know What You Did Last Summer, seems like it could like later episodes where a more recent film is parodied (like the parodies of Split, Chronicle and The Shape of Water). But those are usually pretty much Mad Magazine satires without much thought, checking off boxes on a list. I Know What You Dididily-iddily Did instead keeps it simple and aside from the broadest plot details and Flanders outfit, it doesn't really try to parody the forgettable slasher. Instead, its a generally parody of the common thriller plot of someone threatening a murderer with the truth.

The second story, Desperately Xeeking Xena, has very little to do with Halloween, which would definitely become increasingly common in the series (most confounding: a parody of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly). But its still a delight and easily the highlight of a pretty decent episode. The writers get to let their geek flags fly with nerdy references but also allows Lucy Lawless a pretty good comedic turn. I've only scene scattered Xena episodes and was a little ambivalent on it, not really into its broad campy comedy but finding some of its emotional beats a little more effective than I expected. Nonetheless, I was more in Team Buffy, which sadly feels like the losing team in recent years. Anyway, this story is easily the most fun.

The final story is the weakest but still pretty fun. Life's a Glitch and Then You Die is definitely a flashback to a moment in pop culture. The fear and excitement of the new millennium felt palpable, even if it was just a bunch of numbers. Even if technically it meant nothing, such a milestone felt like something mankind would need to reflect on. King of the Hill actually had a pretty decent episode about it. Family Guy... well, that's mostly remembered for a Gary Newman slam and not much else, putting it heads above in the memorability department than other episode. There's not too much going on in the Simpsons take save for goofiness and some celebrity mocking. Thankfully, in retrospect, most of their targets still hold up, except Spike Lee, someone people seemed really down on at the time for reasons I don't know. Maybe his female characters lack proper development but since when was THAT an issue for the 90s? I will say, Tom Arnold's self-mockery is the highlight of the segment.

Other great jokes:
"I can't believe we escaped from those horrible vampires."
"But it was worth it to get back our Super Sugar Crisp cereal. ♩Can't get enough of that Sugar Crisp.♬"
"I'm having a hard time seeing. Homer, did you remember to put the foglights in?"
" ♬I guess I forgot to put the foglights in♪!"

Dan Castellaneta sells whispering to Flanders corpse about his plan.

"Bart, spooky roller disco!"

"Well well well, if it isn't the cutest little police officer in Springfield."
"You know we have feelings too, chief."

"She's been crushed... and so have the hopes of our mathletics team."
"Hold the funeral poindexter."
"*gasp* Poindexter?"

"XENA NEEDS XEX!"

"Wait a minute, Xena can't fly."
"I told you, I'm not Xena. I'm Lucy Lawless."
"Oh."

"I warned you the lord wouldn't stand for your mini-skirts and Beatle boots."
"I've resisted these for 25 years, why did I wear them today?"

"Well, look at the wonders of the computer age now."
"Wonders Lisa... or blunders?"
"I think that was implied by what I said."
"Implied, Lisa... or implode?"

"I mean, my shows weren't great but I never tied anybody up and forced them to watch. And I could have because I'm a big guy and I'm good with knots."

Other notes:

Wrong Maude Flanders voice sounds weird. Not worth killing her ugly, though.

One of the musicians in the ambiguous hair metal band is clearly modelled after Harry Shearer's Derek Smalls.

So... What we Nelson doing in the school on New Year's Eve?

 

[Johnny Unusual]

I mean, I feel like this is less pedantry and more a salient point to clear up some misconceptions (certainly on my part) that have notable mirrors to today's issues. Maybe the second part is but I don't like being wrong about people names but thanks for the correction.

 

[Daikaiju]

While I do know Y2K was a legit issue, my larger fear was people who might go bugnutz at the slightest hint that things were going to go haywire.

 

[Büge]

(creepy voice): I know you're alone.
Homer: Wh-who is this?
(creepy voice): Is this Maude Flanders?
Homer: No, it's H-homer.
Moe: Oh, hey, Homer, it's Moe. I must've dialed the wrong number.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

E'i e'i (Annoyed Grunt)

My father grew up on a farm and I got to visit my grandparents on occasion in Manitoba. As an indoorsy kid used to the comforts of the suburbs, farm life was often a little too quiet for me but we definitely got to do cool things like riding around on an ATV, catching garter snakes various other things. Apparently, my grandfather had to do a lot of innovating and engineering on the farm, using his wits to create chicken pluckers and other tools. This is something my father, who went onto become an engineer, took to heart. Even recently it inspired him to get a homemade lift made for him to help with mobility issues rather than buying a $5000-7000 lift. As for me, I've never been mechanically inclined but I appreciate that work like farming that requires self-sufficiency requires a level of ingenuity and problem solving.

In this episode, Homer watches a movie and is inspired to challenge people to duels in order to solve his problems. Unfortunately, when someone takes him up on it, he threatens him with a gun duel, causing Homer to flee with his family. Homer decides to hide out at the farm where he grew up and become a farmer. Homer guys all sorts of different seeds, plants them and hopes for the best but nothing happens. Homer adds plutonium, hoping that like in vintage science fiction, the plants will grow to super size. It doesn't work but sprouts do begin to slowly grow. At first it seems like tomatoes but after a taste, the Simpsons discover that the tomatoes and tobacco have crossbred and resulted in what Homer called Tomacco. The tomacco's addictive nature causes it to sell like hot cakes and has them approached by a cigarette company, hoping to take advantage of the legal soft area of such a new product. Homer plays hardball but that evening, Homer's entire crop is devoured by farm animals save for one plant. Homer tries to protect the plant but the farm is attacked by super-addictive and now feral animals, which causes Homer to lose the plant. Homer returns home, loses the duel and eats some pie.

E'i E'i (Annoyed Grunt) is an episode I'd call pretty weak but I don't hate it. For one, there's lots of tepid humour BUT there are some good jokes embedded in there to be sure. There's also very little cringe in this one. No transphobic jokes or particularly bad takes. Homer is a jerk but not to the degree where he is actively bullying anyone, instead being an oaf who makes some unilateral decisions that messes up their lives. Again. Frankly, given the choice, I can sit through a more all around generic episode easier than one that might have stronger jokes but also a less likable Homer. But overall, this one is still completely missable.

"Homer becomes a farmer" is probably the most generic logline for an episode I can think of and the episode doesn't seem to be doing much to sell it in terms of theme. The opener is pretty funny for ridiculousness and the horror movie finale makes things a little more fun but I don't think its an episode with a lot to say. Oh, it has some bits about the evils of the tobacco industry but I think it actually avoids saying something interesting that would have been interesting about modern day farming and getting in bed with big, unscrupulous companies but its almost all exclusively surface with little actual insight.

I will say that I do like that finale. Its not just the general horror movie vibe but it also feels like a horror morality play out of EC Comics or the Twilight Zone where Homer is protect his last vestige of for his greedy dreams as the very evil he created encroaches upon him. If anything, I think we could have spent more time on this element but its not too surprising that the show spends a lot more time on the second acts "general farm humour". A lot of it is weak but considering this episode was probably sold as "Homer the Farmer", the writer Ian Maxtone-Graham, probably felt he had to wring a lot of comedy out of putting the Simpsons in that setting. Instead, I feel like we were robbed of a bigger gonzo horror story with a moral bent.

"Does the opening scene mirror the themes of the episode" watch 2021:

A bit. I feel like it echoes a recurring theme through the episode that movies and pop culture has given Homer an unrealistic expectation on how pretty much anything works.

Jokes I missed before:
A lot of the credits in the Poke of Zorro. Curtis "Booger" Armstrong is actually a pretty undersung character actor.

Other great jokes:

"Oh, why did I have to slap a guy who says 'sah'."

"Oh, honey, I had the worst nightmare. This glove kept slapping people and I was getting blamed."

"Plutonium? Gee Homer, isn't that kind of risky? I guess you're right. It's not."

"But didn't Grasshopperus kill Chad Everett?"
"Only because he tried to reason with him."

"Oh, Daddy, this tastes like Grandma."
Holy Moses! This DOES taste like Grandma!"

"Dad, its a tobacco company. They make billions off of the suffering and death of others."
"Lisa's right Dad, they can afford a lot more."
"No! I--"
"I'm with Lisa, let's take them to the cleaners."

"You're about to launch a terrible evil on the world, you've got to destroy this plant."
"I know, honey, but what can I do as an individual? I wouldn't know where to begin."
"Just burn that plant right now and end this madness."
"I wish I could make a difference Lisa but I'm just one man."
"Grrr."
"I agree, but how?"

Other notes:
The Saving Private Ryan cola ad feels very The Critic but when Lisa lampshades the offensiveness of the premise reminds me of that time Pepsi tried to use Black Lives Matter to sell Pepsi. This is a thing that completely happened.

I think I've vaguely known about the Scarlet Pimpernel but his deal, guy who anonymously saves rich people from the rebellion during the Reign of Terror (I might be getting this wrong), feels like it aged weird.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

I was just doing my dishes when it hit me that this is the same plot of the HP Lovecraft story "Color Out of Space". It's the same damned thing and I only just got it. I think it bumps it up a little bit but makes me wished the writer leaned into it more.

 

[FelixSH]

The main thing that stuck with me, when watching this episode, was the scene at the end, when the corporate people fly away, but are attacked by the adicted animals. I remember them looking pretty scary.

In general, this is the first season that I watched while it first aired. It was also the first time, that I was disappointed by the show, on a regular basis. Not that I actively disliked the episodes, but they always felt somewhat off. Maybe it hit harder, because I had higher expectations. Exactly because it was the first season that I saw during the initial run.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder

As someone who looks after two kids for my sister sometimes I do worry that I am missing out on their development or missing what they want. Both kids often want to tell us things but are not always easy to understand and they tend to get frustrated when they can't get through to us. Sometimes their communication abilities are amazing. My niece has some developmental issues in communication but on occasion she can surprise with an unexpected complex sentence. My nephew, meanwhile, can remember surprising amounts and he surprised us by singing us the alphabet from beginning to end with ease. They have amazing abilities but I'm concerned that I am missing areas of growth and underestimating their potential.

In this episode, after a bad day at work Homer bowls a perfect game at bowling and becomes a local celebrity. But celebrity is fleeting and Homer soon faces an existential crisis when he realizes this. Worried that his life has peaked, Homer decides to dedicate his life to something else and chooses to make it Maggie. But Maggie, already ignored by Homer, is largely indifferent to him. Homer tries to win her over but all his plans fail. After an attempt to take her to the ocean, Homer almost drowns but it saved by Maggie, making Homer realized that he is loved by her.

This episode is a bit better than I remember but overall, this is another completely disposable episode. There's theming from beginning to end: Homer feels chewed up by life, feels unimportant, bowls a perfect life, feels important, realizes that the one accomplishment doesn't keep the feeling going together, spends time with Maggie who he made to feel unimportant and finds the consequences. In terms of structure, that's a great start. The one thing missing is the show misses that by making someone else feel special, it makes you feel special. Otherwise, its well considered. We have seen episodes focusing his failing as a father before but I feel like this is an angle that hasn't been dug into enough, especially for someone who can be as self-obsessed as Homer where he can actually acquire adulation through work and spending time rather than waiting for one perfect moment.

One of the wisest lines in Adventure Time is "Such is the cruel physics of love -- that those who crave it most will repel it and only the dang rich get richer". Homer is a man who is full of love but is also full of cravings that often get in the way of him remembering to give his big love. I think this episode is actually kind of good in the set up, with Homer discovering that this one perfect moment isn't a wave he can ride on forever. The latter half is a good idea but I don't think the episode sells the emotional punch of Homer realizing how estranged he is from a little baby. Like, the bread crumbs are there with Homer actively not spending time with his daughter but all the Homer spending time with Maggie stuff is ineffective, leading to a limp episode.

I think the trouble really begins when Homer attempts suicide. This isn't the first episode for Homer to do this but Homer's Odyssey WAAAAY back in season one worked hard to sell Homer being at the end of his rope and in a very bad place. This goes from Homer kind of mopey to trying to kill himself and all it really does is act as a cliffhanger, and not a very good one. Its bad but more than that its when the show loses its emotional anchor and it never regains it during the act when the show REALLY needs to be pulling at our heartstrings. Instead, its a series of tepid skits and finale that never quite brings things together. Its not like this is a "BAD" episode but that's just in the same way a C isn't a failing grade. Its nothing to be proud of, either.

"Does the opening scene mirror the themes of the episode" watch 2021:

Mostly that Homer is sleeping through his own life, missing a lot.

Other great jokes:
"I can't get in trouble if I can't see you."
"I'm afraid he's got us, sir."

Kids, today we have to talk about Krusty brand Chew Goo Gum-Like Substance. We knew it contained spider eggs, but the hantavirus-- well, that really came out of left field. So if any of you have experienced numbness or comas, send proof of purchase and five dollars to "Antidoe, P.O. Box 14--"

"Why won't they come over here? I'm so lonely."

"You ruined the act! I'll kill you!"
"He'll do it! I'm not the first Teller!"

"Burt Reynolds apologized to the Pope and promised to replace the windshield."
"Burt Reynolds, class act."

"I say it's time to put this one-trick pony out to stud!"
"Woo-hoo! First stop, Maude Flanders!"

"Well, this is a different zoo, featuring animals you've never heard of."
"Daddy, we're missing the fantastipotamus. She only sings twice a day."

"If you tie a string around your finger real tight, you can make it turn purple."
"I can see I'm not needed here."


Other notes:
Should have known this was an Al Jean episode from the non-sequitur "angry New Yorkers" gag.

 

[Octopus Prime]

NO ONE CAN ESCAPE THE KINGDOM OF THE MOLES!

That’s it; that’s the joke I remember

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Eight Misbehavin'

I'd be lying if I said I didn't want fame. I want to be seen. I want to be loved and respected. I want people to know my value. But what we want isn't what we need. Fame, like capital F fame, can really mess you up. Most of the really famous people I can think of, the kind that really earned it, seem to be unhappy with it. And child stardom often leads to some people either becoming fucked up or result in fucked up life experiences. I don't think we were meant to experience so much adulation from such a large group. Its the small scale love that is the most powerful and meaningful. But I still want fame.

In this episode, Apu and Manjula decide to try for a child. They end up getting pregnant but the birth results in octuplets. The birth results in a sudden rush of fame and gifts that the couple take advantage of for their family's well-being. But when nonuplets are born, the Nahasapeemapetalons are left in the lurch and struggle with day to day child rearing. It is then when they are approached by a mysterious man who turns out to be a zoo owner who wants to showcase the kids in exchange for childcare, a health plan and other perks. Though hesitant, the couple feel compelled to agree but are horrified that it isn't just an exhibit, its an exploitative, crass freakshow. Apu and Homer frees the kids from the zoo and Homer makes a deal with Larry for a humiliating show in exchange for letting the octuplets out of their contract.

As is evident, Apu episodes, even with good elements, aged pretty poorly. It definitely goes far beyond white actors playing non-white characters. Jokes are often very specifically about Apu being Indian. He calls his wife "curry face" and "chutney butt". And this episode unfortunately continues that down to the premise. After all, India is heavily populated country so of COURSE Apu is going to have a ridiculous amount of kids. So, yeah, very bad optics. The very premise of the episode is a very bad look. But is there anything beyond that?

Well, I'll say what lies beyond that is more interesting than good. It is an episode about a certain kind of celebrity and the idea of exchanging security for privacy. Its also about hard parental situations and the fact that the Nahasapeemapetalons don't have Simpsons-level vague financial security and despite Apu's steady job, they are surprisingly vulnerable. Their fame is the only thing protecting them, first as being an anomaly and brief news story, then as a zoo act. It would be easy to judge a parent for doing that but without assistance and a proper support network, it can be hard to get by. And this is explored a bit in the episode. But then its dropped. The couple plan simply to muddle through and get by somehow. The idea that the couple are willing to spare their children some screwed up exploitation in favor of braving a harsher reality sounds nice but it feels a little hollow, like they just needed the episode to end now.

So it is an episode that is... mostly not great. Not "terrible" but not great. The episode's premise is pretty bad but if you want to watch anyway for some decent jokes, there are a few. Also, I'm still mulling over the nature of the plot where a non-white family's children are being put on display and its a lot to take in both are "maybe this is powerful unintended satire" or "this is... just in bad taste". Hey, the episode's guest stars are pretty good. Sitcom creator Garry "call me Garry" Marshall and "Eddie Munster" Butch Patrick both appear. Patrick isn't given a lot to do but his lines are delightfully silly. Garry Marshall has a good voice and sells his lines. That's mostly what's going to stick with me.

Other great jokes:

"Everyone at school picks on the popli kids. Even I do. I just hate them so much.

"Kids are the best, Apu. You can teach them to hate what you hate. And they practically raise themselves with the Internet and such."

"Could you be anymore... HELLO!"

Homer's role play script scene is good. Somehow, not on youtube.

"I'm sterile, right baby doll?"
"Yes, dear, from the nuclear plant."
"Beeeautiful."

"I dare you to look at a kangaroo and not laugh."

"They're usually funnier."

The Baron is the best part. I love that the show has a baby for the express purpose of being hated.

"Quiet! You're breaking character!"

"Some are real. Some are just robots filled with venom."

Other notes:

Yet another "Oops, wrong kind of Indian" joke from Homer. Siiiiiiiiigh.

Everyone slipping Manjula fertility drugs without her knowledge is pretty fucked up, huh?

Ever make a decision you know is wrong. Like click on a youtube video about Apu just cause your kind of curious if the guy is either going to talk about coming to terms with realizing a character they love is racist or if it is a defense because Hari Kondabolu "didn't get it". I didn't watch... 45 minutes of video but I skipped around enough to see it was mostly the latter. I have things I could have done. Not all curiousities need to be satisfied, stupid.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Take My Wife, Sleaze

I'm an easily intimidated person. Not even by "tough" folks. Just anyone. I'm always afraid of mere constructive criticism or just being yelled at. I'd love to see myself as someone tough and cool when push comes to shove but my flight instinct is pretty strong in the face of a genuine threat. I get the desire to look cool and rebellious but I also have an instinct to do what I'm told that the world has proven repeatedly is wrong. So I pretty much get why someone would want to appear tough and how that can lead to a toxicity of the soul in trying to emulate a superficial strength rather than understanding what strength really is.

In this episode, Homer wins a motorcycle at a dance contest at a 50s diner. He falls in love with his bike and after seeing a 50s biker picture, he decides to form a biker gang, the Hell's Satans. The Hell's Satan provide mild inconvenience for Springfield but are pretty harmless. However, Homer gets a picture of the gang for a biker mag and ends up attracting the attention of a real biker gang... The Hell's Satans. Upset with Homer for using their name, they torment the Simpsons for days before heading out... with Marge. Homer hunts her down while Marge slowly reforms the gang. Eventually, Homer catches up and beats the gang's leader in combat and he and Marge return home while the Hell's Satans try to apply for jobs to improve their lot in life.

This is another Swartzwelder episode and like Bart Carny, it seems to be another episode about Homer obsessing about a life-style far less comfy than his current lot in life. This one feels less like its a classist punching down even though there's a similar mirroring... that while Homer romanticizes their lifestyle, really, they just want what they have. The Carnies and the Hell's Satans both steal a part of Homer's life... the Carnies steal Homer's home while the Hell's Satans steal his wife. But the Satans are presented as lacking in the kind of life guidance that Marge provides. By the last act, they become adorably dumb and sweet in trying to better themselves. The Carnies are baddies through and through but the Hell's Satans are people who didn't realize they could acquire Homer's life through the right approach. OK, its not realistic but I'm not too surprised Swartzwelder wrote this one if that's the message.

I think around this time Swartzwelder had an idea of Homer being a person who doesn't realize how good he has it and wants to prove himself impressive by imitating people who would much prefer to be in his shoes. I do think there's some potentially interesting class insight but Swartzwelder is more interested in generic "lowlives" and how its ridiculous to envy this life. But this still feels a little nicer than Bart Carny just by making the biker's a bunch of goofs. This is certainly helped by the casting, with the always game John Goodman AND Henry Winkler as biker toughs. They are people who seem like they want to be nice but are so inundated with violence, they literally try to solve clothing stains with it.

Structurally, its another weird one. Very little is happening in act one save for comedy and Homer getting a bike. I feel like rewatching a lot, there are a lot more going on to what I thought were unrelated first acts but now we are in the stage where act one is just there to fill some time with comedy. I do kind of get it: after watching Cartoon Network shows that can tell a satisfying story in half the times as the Simpsons, why not pad the rest out with jokes. But the padding tends to make things a little lumpy. Overall, its better than the last few episodes but mostly due to Swartzweldiantm humour and not so much being an insightful episode of television.

Jokes I missed before:

OK, holy shit, I did not pay attention to this insane song that is used in the episode before. Listen to the lyrics. All of them.

This insane song was written FOR THE SHOW by guest musicians NRBQ, which is why it is so cheezy and insane and weird. This feels more like a bit I'd expect from Arrested Development.

Other great jokes:

"Plus, you'll meet a dog who can't predict anything."

"Then three other things."

"Actual year may vary. Consult a calendar for actual year."

"That was a two-part episode."

"Church dismissed."
I just love to say things are dismissed.

"When will you teens learn to be uncool like everyone else?"

"How am I down $1000?"

"He's got a broom!"

"The gang is wanted in eight other states and we have a saying around here: let Michigan handle it."

"I've tried everything to get the blood and puke stains out. I've tried hitting them, I've tried yelling at them."

"Plus I think Rod and Todd are watching."
"No we're not."
Those are creepy kids.

"And the first step is an eye-catching resuME."
"I believe it is pronounced REsume."
"Actually, both are acceptable."

"Mrs. Simpson, I killed my pencil."
"Broke. You broke your pencil."
"I broke him."



Other notes:

Harry Shearer and Hank Azaria really make the "Christ Punchers" bit work with Azaria casually dumping something more awful than the previous suggestions and Flanders being taken aback. I mean, its not "inspired" and is pretty simple but I find it really works for me.

Hey, maybe not an extended bit where the bikers say she is not in danger of being sexually assaulted because she is not seen as attractive.

 

[Büge]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1398744512483184649

 

[Octopus Prime]

It’s hard to imagine Kirk bought that bed himself.

Or the mattress

 

[Johnny Unusual]

That's a terrible personalized plate. I mean, sleeping car IS a thing. Sleep car is not.

 

[MetManMas]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1398744512483184649

This started as what was gonna be a pic with a simple reference to how much the throwback race-car bed in New Horizons costs (3,800 Bells) but it evolved. Or devolved.

Here's Kirk's pathetic apartment.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1399130186419826690

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Grift of the Magi

I feel like I was never the right age to be the target for one of the HUGE Christmas toys except one... the NES. Sadly, instead I got the Sega Master System, which was the Lee Carvello's Putting Challenge of system options. I don't think its actually a bad system but it wasn't the system I wanted and the one game I had was a puzzle game with penguins and eggs. But our family generally wasn't chasing the big ticket item of the season. When the Tickle Me Elmo craze happened, it was a weird novelty and I didn't realize this was an echo of the similar Cabbage Patch Kids craze of the 80s. I don't know if this pattern will be broken by COVID but I suspect we aren't far from once again seeing "aghast" videos about Black Friday this year coming.

In this episode, Bart temporarily ends up in a wheelchair and the school finds itself railroaded into a sketchy building project for accessibility thanks to Fat Tony. Sure enough, the project is a money suck scam and the school is bankrupted by the mob. Eventually, the school is saved by Kids First Industries, who replace actual scholastics with a focus on toys. Lisa eventually learns that the kids are being used to group create a brand new toy for the Christmas season: Funzo. Lisa confronts Kids First Industries who confess the truth easily, as they've already gotten what they wanted. But Lisa makes a second discovery... that Funzo isn't just a toy built on the bones of the education system but it is also designed to take out other toys. Lisa and Bart get Homer to steal the Funzo's around town in order to save Christmas, which they do, then have a conversation about capitalism's place in society with Gary Coleman.

The Grift of the Magi is the fourth Christmas episode and of the first four it is the weakest. It also might be my favourite episode of the season so far. It is genuinely good. There's a lot to point to in terms of plot holes. How long it takes to make and market a toy. The fact that someone would definitely have opened up a Funzo before Christmas. The fact that the toy destroying feature doesn't make sense of giving Funzo a notable advantage instead of causing people to be pissed about Funzo. But that's OK. It makes more sense when viewed as sort of a fairy tale logic and metaphor. Its fine for plot points not to make sense in terms of literal events sometimes as long as it works in the grander sense. It doesn't hurt character or meaning. Its just some silly stuff that exist alongside a solid episode.

Now it is definitely weaker than a lot of the other Christmas episodes. The other episodes took the Holiday to explore some heavy emotions like shame, guilt and fear but this episode is different: a silly ride with a very cynical view of how America treats the education system and how capitalism uses us all. Springfield Elementary essentially collapses after Lisa even mentions doing the right thing, domino effect-style and Springfield's education winds up in the hands of predatory Lindsay Nagel and the ironically named Jim Hope, played ably by Tim Robbins in a role that reminds me of some others where a pretty big name plays a generic brown-haired marketing opportunist, like Brendan Fraser and Stephen Webber. It doesn't make sense for Funzo to "kill" other toys but as a metaphor for the cutthroat nature of business hiding inside a "cute" exterior, its perfect.

So its not as good but its still doing a lot right. And it is also very funny. It feels like the first episode I've liked this season without a caveat, There are better, but its pretty good. Gary Coleman's character is a non-sequitor but he is nonetheless very funny. There are lots of extended bits I like. The only cringe is early on when there is jokes about being "fruity" where Homer is STILL worried about Bart being gay, I guess. Apart from that, I has a point of view, a thing I feel becomes more muddled as the show goes on (lots of gesturing towards one but they feel the need to just say them following disjointed plots). It is mistrustful towards private enterprise when it encroaches upon our schools, as it should. Of course, the focus is much more on the gags and they are pretty solid all around. And isn't that the greatest gift of all? No. Love is. Why did you think #1 was funny gags? That's a stupid thought

Jokes I missed before:

That Homer's Funzo song was a reference to Tiny Bubbles.

Other great jokes:

"Aw, the zoning disk is warped."
Until the Simpsons gave up and just made knock off brand jokes, they used to do some funny fake board games and then have exactly ONE thing wrong with them to make them unplayable. It was a great time.

Ralph is a great actor.

"Valencia? These are juice oranges!"

"Uh, is this going to be like one of those horror movies where we open the door and everything's normal and we think you're crazy but then there really is a killer robot and the next morning you find me impaled on the weather vane? Is that what this is, Lisa?"

"The spirit of the season entered their hearts."
"Let's just agree that the commercialization of Christmas is, at best, a mixed blessing."

That Moe suicide joke is a funny to me but also fucking dark.

Other notes:

I love the touch that Funzo uses "vous" in basically the same way as Ms. Piggy.

Clarence Clemmons also appears as the narrator at the end. He's, like a music guy, I guess. He worked with Bruce Springsteen.

But you might know him like this:

I love the way he says "Tuxedo pants."

What you talkin' 'bout, everyone!

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Little Big Mom

Sometimes I need to lie to the kids I look after. Little things. You know, empty threats like "OK, I'm going without you" when the littlest is dawdling. I don't like using it. It works but it also upsets him a little. But getting the kids to do things is nearly impossible. They have more power than they realize. I'd never make a promise about a reward that I wouldn't keep but a minor unrealistic threat to get them to move along is sometimes needed. I don't like it and I always hesitate to use this tactic, as I much prefer honesty but herding cats is pretty darn hard.

In this episode, the Simpsons go skiing and Marge breaks her leg in an accident. While she's healing in the hospital, Lisa decides to take over her responsibilities but finds it nearly impossible to get Bart and Homer to pitch in. Completely stressed out, she ends up concocting a plan to make them think they have leprosy, telling them cleaning up will help clear it. Instead, Bart and Homer flee and end up convincing Flanders to send them to a leper colony. Marge and Lisa straighten everything out and the Simpsons have a vacation at the colony.

Going into this one, I had a feeling that I was going to find this to be a weak one. I was actually surprised that this one has a pretty decent first act with some classic lines. The entire first act is also entirely disposable in terms of plotting. But maybe that means the plot itself is disposable and the whole episode should have been sketches about the Simpsons skiing. The main plot isn't AWFUL but it feels like even the very specifics of the character dynamics haven't happened before, we've seen "Marge-less Simpsons" a lot.

There is a narrative throughline. The problem is, and this is a problem I have with later Simpsons, the throughline trails off with no real definitive final stamp. There's nothing conclusive reached and it doesn't seem like they are interested in getting us to ask questions of what we just saw. It is more like the episode peters out so goodbye. I remember Dana Gould has stated that writers on the show are not expected to get too precious with their scripts, as it goes through a big writer's room treatment. Part of me thinks this can be good early on (collaborative writing can yeild good results) but that it also means episodes that might have had more of a point get twisted out of the initial shape. I think this might have been meant to be about the guilt of parents lying to their kids. It does start that way, even baked into Marge trying to secretly give to goodwill. But I feel like there's no solid core and it feels a very shallow approach to a relatable situation.

Homer is, again, kinda sucky in the episode but thankfully its in a less awful way than some other episodes. Like, he never quite crosses that line into emotionally abusive like in Make Room for Lisa, despite the fact that episode had a "means well" Homer and this one is actively being a pain in the neck. Its another episode I can see a lot of interesting potential for either something emotional (I'm not taking poignant but rather relatable) or thoughtful about the nature of parenting. I believe it was Ebert who said "review the movie you saw, not the one you wished to see." But its hard when they dangle a more appealing episode in front of me. Still, its perfectly watchable and even better if you bow out at act one.

Jokes I missed before:

John Wayne having a guest appearance in the TV when Bart and Homer are watching... comedic domestic abuse.

Other great jokes:

"Get her! She's doing something!"

"Is this seat taken?"
"I think that's an armrest."

"Who's Disco Stu?"
Excellent low key callback.

"You're here to rest. If you want the window cleaned, just push the call button."
"Oh, I don't want to be a bother."
"Wouldn't bother us, it just turns up you're morphine."
"Oh, so it does."
"Stop pushing that!"

"Look, they're rusted through!"
"It's an illusion."
"No its not!"

Other notes:

They got the actual "You've Got Mail" guy to say "You've got leprosy."

Whoever is doing Lucy has a hilarious cigerette-y stage whisper.

Wrong sounding Maude is so weird. I mean, its not reason to kill her off nasty in a few eps, but still.

 

[yama]

Stupid Sexy Flanders in: "Take Me Out" - by request

takemeoutflanders.ytmnd.com

 

[Ghost from Spelunker]

This is one of my favorite post-golden era episodes. Maybe the plot is sort of trash, but there so many perfect jokes that it's always a blast to watch from start to finish.

"Nuh-uh, say it in Snowboard."

"That ought to hold it."

"I can't believe she went home with those guys."

"You're wasting thousands of dollars of interferon!"
"And you're interferon with our good time!"

"You stay away from Lenny."

"Hello, Lollipop Island? There's a little girl here who had too many sour balls!"

"Hey, stay away from the drums! That's my bit!"

"You don't think he could be at another bar, do you? Because I couldn't take that. (Sobs) I just-don't hang up on me..."

"Yay! Imagination Christmas!"
(Marge and Lisa don't try to hide their reaction)

 

[Johnny Unusual]

Faith Off

I gave up on religion long ago but I do see a beauty in it. I certainly don't like people using it to justify prejudices or general shittiness. Heck, based on American politics, the "meaning" of a religion's teachings are so malleable that it barely seems to have any meaning at all. Whatever you wish to believe, one can twist themselves into pretzels in order to view it in a way where you don't have to do any soul searching and instead make it serve oneself and proclaim that selfishness is REALLY about helping society. Do you know what really helps people? Helping them.

In this episode, Homer accidentally gets a bucket on his head and can't get it off. When the Simpsons accidentally wind up at a revival show run by a faith healer, he uses Bart as a prop in "healing" Homer. The healer convinces Bart to give faith healing a try and Bart does, to rousing popularity. Bart loves the attention but when Bart's "healing" indirectly sends Milhouse to the hospital, Bart decides to quit. But he's forced to try once more to help a football player win a game so his father isn't killed by a mobster. Bart seems to pull off a miracle, the game is won and Homer is saved.

This is yet another one where I feel like it is very close to being a much stronger episode if they injected a little more care into it. Its not that its a bad or sloppy episode, its just a bit shallow. The general message is one I can get behind: Bart gets into the miracle working business but mostly to serve himself but then he does a "real" miracle when it is about really helping someone else rather than grandstanding. I appreciate that this isn't Bart looking to make money but instead its about Bart being a showman showered in attention, which I'd buy. This feels like a solid first draft but I feel like the Simpsons writing room stopped workshopping towards a more well-rounded and satisfying story and more towards its comedy. And this is a funny enough episode but not so much that I wish it didn't pass on its opportunities. Bart's last act return to faith healing doesn't feel like we are taking an emotional ride with the character and more lurching towards the last plot point.

Again, this isn't a bad episode. I feel like the recurring theme at this point is "this isn't bad, I just see more potential than is exploited". But there is a fair bit of good. Quite a few good gags, including a gross one at the climax I appreciate. And the initial idea makes sense. Spiritual episodes about Bart make a lot of sense because he doesn't see himself as spiritual and sees religion as something he sometimes believes in (depending on the episode) but if he does, he's looking to exploit its rules. This actually makes a lot of sense: Christianity, at least in North America, seems pretty punitive, so much so they made a pretty great sitcom dealing with how stupidly simplistic that is. I feel like earlier episodes examined the idea of religion as a series of rules versus a guide for personal betterment. Profundity is no longer the interest of this series, for the most part.

Oh, hey, Don Cheadle is in this episode. He's pretty great as Brother Faith, the slick but maybe semi-sincere faith healer Bart meets. It is weird to have a quasi-positive faith healer on a show where general authority, religious or otherwise is something to be deeply mistrustful of. I really can't think of a faith healer as anything other than a predator using belief to prey upon people willing to believe. But it is understandable to want to make a fun faith healer because that kind of showmanship is pretty entertaining. And it makes sense for Bart for that to be an entry point into religion. He's a showman at heart and it is effective at getting people's attention. But like Bart as a faith healer, its a little lacking in substance.

Other great jokes:

"Yep, because of me all dorms now have security forms."

"I think I know that guy. He ran over the dean five years ago. Punch up that picture. Now age that picture five years."

"Good work. Now let's see whose having sex in the library."
"Aw, they scrambled it."

"God gave you the power."
"Really? Hmm... I would think he would want to limit my power."

"Hey, I'm doing the best with the material I have."

"Did you have to salt the Earth so that nothing would ever grow again?"
"Hehehehe yeah."

"Is he killing that guitar, daddy?"
"Yes, son."

"Big game fever is reaching a fever pitch as the fevered rivalry between Springfield U. and Springfield A&M spreads like wild-fever. This is writing?"
"I’m sorry Uncle Kent; I lost my thesaurus."
"'My thesaurus' … you’ll lose more than … In preparation for the big game, Springfield Stadium has caught additional seating capacity fever."

"Oh, you're only calling us a cow college cause we were founded by a cow."

"I guess I'll have to see someone else about my crippling depression. Y'arr."
"Wow. And I thought he had it all."

On Homer's tribute to hazing float.
"Wait, wait, I have a float, too. Listen up cause I have to explain a lot of it."


Other notes:

"Does anyone need that much porno?"
Welcome to the internet, Marge.

 

[Johnny Unusual]

The Mansion Family

I was brought up in the middle class life but I've definitely had some advantages. Due to my father's job there was a lot of travel and when I was 12-13, I spend 10 months in Thailand. While there, we ended up living in a suburban area and ended up making friends with some very rich neighbors. The neighbors took us to some cool places, including a weekend at a hotel and about $25 worth of quarters to spend at the arcade, which is a pretty big deal when you are a kid. But also, as a kid, its easy not to recognize the level of generosity and how fortunate one is to be pampered to such a degree. And it is easy not to be grateful if you don't.

In this episode, Mr. Burns wins a Springfield Pride Award for oldest Springfield resident, causing Mr. Burns to decide to go get a medical check up in the Mayo Clinic. He decides to get Homer Simpson to housesit and the Simpsons immediately get comfortable, Homer especially. Homer feels entitled and Marge keeps trying to remind him that he will have to give it up when Burns returns. Homer decides to have a one big bash to cap things off and is inspired to take Burns' yacht to international waters for a daydrinking party catered by Moe. However, the yacht is stolen by pirates. Burns' forgives Homer pretty easily and Homer returns home, upset to return to his life of financial mediocraty.

Another episode written by Swartzwelder and I feel like I was a bit hard on his last few but this one is one of the stronger ones of the season (my favourite is yet to come and might be a controversial choice. Or maybe not. Anyway, I like it.) But this one is one of Swartzwelder's stronger outings as of late and I think it is interesting that it is one that seems to be both embracing his personal libertarian philosophies and pushing against it. See, it mocks Homer for feeling entitled to a wealth he never earned but also mocking Homer's hubris for thinking his wealth will protect him in a world with no rules, as it turns out a rule-less world isn't a kind one. But maybe looking back, the latter is actually something that is common to a lot of these later stories: romanticizing being free of laws and putting on airs of freedom until it turns on you.

Unlike Bart Carny and Take My Wife, Sleaze, HOMER is the "lowlife" in this episode, recklessly taking full advantage of Burns' goodwill. Those other episodes have Homer admiring people who have "freer" lives than him, romanticizing their lives when all they want is what he has. Homer is not appreciative of what he has. But the script is flipped here, Homer is now the mooch and the parasite while Marge is trying to be responsible. Even in the end, Homer learns very little and he feels like he deserves Burns' life based on nothing at all. Of course, Burns also doesn't deserve Burns' life but the episode is mostly downplaying Burns' evil in favour of medical old man gags.

But the last act ties into the other side of Swartzwelder's pet themes of this era, discovering that freedom from the rules means freedom from certain protections. Homer isn't in trouble when he's causing havoc in the Burns manor but instead when he wants even more freedom and creates a mini-"paradise" of lawlessness with monkey knife fights. Then he discovers that at the end of the day, he's completely vulnerable to people who can just take. Of course, the episode, being a later one and a Swartzwelder one, is much more invested in a gag-fest and that's what it is. And a solidly one at that. But it also can't help containing some ideas about Homer wanting and feeling like he belongs in a certain lifestyle that he really doesn't.

Other great jokes:

My favourite bit is him passing to absolutely no one. Unfortunately, this cuts out Chapman's attempt to save Huey Long.

"Who's that fellow who always screws up and creates havoc?"
"Homer Simpson, sir?"
"Yes. The way I figure it, he's due for a good performance."

"Social security number: naught naught naught naught naught naught naught naught two. Damned Roosevelt.
Cause of parents' death? Got in my way..."

"Perhaps we should pay them a visit."
"A deadly visit?"
"Let's just play it by ear."

"They got my bus pass. THEY GOT MY BUS PASS!"

"Aw, we're going to die and I didn't taste cantaloupe."
"You ain't missin' much. Honeydew is the money melon."
Good line but I think I disagree, That said, if you have bad versions of either, I completely get turning on them. Sometimes they seem proper fresh but are flavourless.

"Furious George! What have they done to you? Smithers, he's going to need most of your skin!"

Other notes:

As soon as I saw "Springfield Pride" I thought "Man, these are going to be some unfortunate gay jokes, right?" and it wasn't.

Hey, Britney Spears, who is going through a re-evalution and people pointing out society kind of did her dirty.

 

[Octopus Prime]

Interesting True Fact;

I have a little toy of Britney Spears from this episode courtesy of a blind-bag of Simpsons Guest Stars I got in a Christmas stocking.

Kind… kind of low on the list of TV Show merch I enjoy having on my toy shelf, but it’s still among it!

 

[yama]

https://frinkiac.com/img/S11E12/619160.jpg

Did Homer just type a bunch of Nier lyrics?

 

[Mightyblue]

Gibberish generators for text fill ins are a thing!