[8.7/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] Pretty darn solid for a latter-day Simpsons episode! The A-story got some juice of matching the tones of a gigolo story with Bart schmoozing various grandmothers in exchange for treats and presents. But a story that could have gotten by on that premise alone gained strength from deepening things a bit when he runs into a grandmother uninterested in his put-on charms but who just wants to use him to get out of her nursing home.
Their scenes together are brief, and much of the force of the encounter comes from Jennifer Saunders nicely layered vocal performance, but it’s enough to give the main story just enough heft and provide a twist on the “Bart pulls a prank on the whole town and gets more than he bargained for” stock plot. I also really appreciated Bart’s characterization here -- he’s still a bit of a hellraiser and con-artist, only getting into the gig in the first place to spite Martin, but he’s also sensitive and perceptive enough to care that his new gray-haired friend might be looking to end her life with dignity. (And the quick gag that makes that obvious was a funny touch.)
That brings in the B-story, a somewhat late but amusing riff on last summer’s Pokemon Go craze. There’s not much to it, but Homer and Lisa bonding over the activity while getting nervous about hiding their skullduggery from Marge gives it some juice. And the jokes about the game, and how the augmented reality portion of it leads to people ignoring their real life surroundings in favor of their digital one, is cute enough, if not especially groundbreaking. The parody of the Pokemon TV show theme in particular is easy, but chuckle-worthy.
It’s an old trick at this point, but I also appreciate the nice combination of the two storylines, with Bart employing the Pokemon Go veterans to find the elderly friend he’s worried about. And the slightly-meta tag at the end of the episode, with jokes about Marge moving on to worrying about something new for next week, was just dark and winking enough to tickle the funny bone.
Overall, this one’s unlikely to win any awards, but it’s a well-written, funny episode with good characterization for Bart in particular and a nice guest star turn.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2017-05-02T17:21:15Z
[8.7/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] Pretty darn solid for a latter-day Simpsons episode! The A-story got some juice of matching the tones of a gigolo story with Bart schmoozing various grandmothers in exchange for treats and presents. But a story that could have gotten by on that premise alone gained strength from deepening things a bit when he runs into a grandmother uninterested in his put-on charms but who just wants to use him to get out of her nursing home.
Their scenes together are brief, and much of the force of the encounter comes from Jennifer Saunders nicely layered vocal performance, but it’s enough to give the main story just enough heft and provide a twist on the “Bart pulls a prank on the whole town and gets more than he bargained for” stock plot. I also really appreciated Bart’s characterization here -- he’s still a bit of a hellraiser and con-artist, only getting into the gig in the first place to spite Martin, but he’s also sensitive and perceptive enough to care that his new gray-haired friend might be looking to end her life with dignity. (And the quick gag that makes that obvious was a funny touch.)
That brings in the B-story, a somewhat late but amusing riff on last summer’s Pokemon Go craze. There’s not much to it, but Homer and Lisa bonding over the activity while getting nervous about hiding their skullduggery from Marge gives it some juice. And the jokes about the game, and how the augmented reality portion of it leads to people ignoring their real life surroundings in favor of their digital one, is cute enough, if not especially groundbreaking. The parody of the Pokemon TV show theme in particular is easy, but chuckle-worthy.
It’s an old trick at this point, but I also appreciate the nice combination of the two storylines, with Bart employing the Pokemon Go veterans to find the elderly friend he’s worried about. And the slightly-meta tag at the end of the episode, with jokes about Marge moving on to worrying about something new for next week, was just dark and winking enough to tickle the funny bone.
Overall, this one’s unlikely to win any awards, but it’s a well-written, funny episode with good characterization for Bart in particular and a nice guest star turn.