Sorry I missed last week’s episode. I fell asleep before it started. Curse humanity! As you can see, I’m able to stay awake this week, and should be able to make it through the episode. And speaking of missing things, if you missed my soapbox Sunday morning (there’s that optimism creeping in), don’t worry, the benevolent Murtx has allowed me to get a new slot on Tuesdays, so I will be there then. As for now, the show is about to begin, and me being the only InsidePulse T.V. staffer who probably isn’t watching the Survivor Finale, am ready to review it for you.
“The Simpsons”, Sundays at 8:00 P.M. on FOX.
“Fat Man and Little Boy”
Special guest voice- The always delectable Eric Idle in a brief role as a television wildlife expert.
The gist of it- Bart loses his last baby tooth which sends him spiraling into a mid-life crisis. He gets out of it by finding his voice in novelty t-shirt making and is sponsored by novelty king Goose Gladwell. Together they make a fortune on the shirts, and Homer doesn’t have to work anymore,. Instead of enjoying the laziness like you’d expect, he doesn’t like that Bart is the breadwinner, and tries to ease his sadness by being a good parent to Lisa. We all know how that usually turns out.
Favorite moments-Projectile novel, Chalmers drives a camry, “That gossamer witch”, Bart’s muzzle, Sergeant Activity’s insurance activity, knock-off toy memories, McAlliste’s reading of Frost, “As if I’d ever want to stop trucking, Flande’s “get bent logic. Wiggum smashing one of Bart’s lights out, “Proud Nubian princess, score!”, “We pass the slavings on to you”, Osama Bin Scratchy, “Nothing makes a parent happier than when an eccentric single man takes a liking to their child”, dental plan (Lisa needs braces), The roar of the alpha male (and it aint Monty Brown), C.H.U.M.(Even if he’s not as cool Linguo), The quality of Korean animation, The Yellow Panther, “It takes a marine honor guard to fold it”, The loopy lawyers, Goose Gladwell’s valuable lesson, Gladwell’s Vietnam origins, and the rapping toilet seat,
What flat out sucked- The last act wasn’t as good as the first too, and relied too much on the Bart-Homer hatred and unlikely the unlikely chemistry of Lisa and Homer as friends. Homer wants to be a good parent, doesn’t know how, tries too had, but still wins Lisa over. It gets a little tiresome after awhile, probably because they’ve used this plot in the past three years then they did in the ten years before that. And shoving it into the last act was a bit unnecessary.
Most Valuable Character- Captain McAllister- Yaaarggghhh!!!! The lonely sea captain probably belongs on a fish-stick box instead of being a living, breathing Springfieldian, but the simplicity of his character is what makes him so entertaining. You don’t expect him, but when he shows up, you’re always glad he’s there.
Personal thoughts- A funny episode, with some dark humor that clicked. The last act isn’t as strong as the first two, but it’s not bad enough to ruin the show, and has enough moments in it to be entertaining in it’s own right. We’ve yet to have a glorified home-run this season, although their have been some well-earned laughs, which isn’t great, bur acceptable, and really after fifteen years, that’s good enough for me.
In honor of that salty sea-captain I christen this week’s top three the top three best Captain McCallister moments.
3. “McAllister and the Squid reconcile their differences” from “Home’s Barbershop Quartet”. Ah, the magic of music. The captain is trying to kill a giant squid, but the B-Sharps “Baby On Board”starts playing over the radio, and the madness stops. “I only tried to kill you because I thought your belly was full of gold”
2. “McAllister tutors Homer on raising lobsters” from “Lisa Gets an A”- When Homer walks his lobster across the beach, McAllister is the first to tell that he’s a wimp. Even funnier is the fact that McAllister owns a school that teaches lobsters. If only we could get an episode about that!!
1. “All you Can Eat” from “New Kid on the Block”- One of the classic Homer moments, as Homer tries suing the Captain and his Frying Dutchman restaurant for false advertising. McAlliste’s description of Homer as bottomless bellied beast at the end is priceless.
See you on Tuesday in my column, Wednesday for South Park, and next Sunday for the last Simpsons episode of the year.
