[7.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] The third act of this one goes really off the rails. Homer’s rage boils, him kinda sorta turning into The Hulk, and the whole “he needs to express his rage or he’ll die” thing is a bit off the wall even for The Simpsons. There’s parts of it that are enjoyable -- I can’t deny that seeing Homer hulk out has its charms -- but it feels like a typical late-season Simpsons refuge in over-the-top wackiness in lieu of being able to end a story.
Still, up until that point, I actually really liked this one. There’s a nice spoof of the then-budding world of flash animation and the internet bubble that I remember all too well. Bart’s efforts to imitate a cool artist who visited his school hit waaaaay too close to home, which suggests the show was on to something. And Homer’s internet celebrity status and Bart’s role as a creator with his dad as his “muse” is cause for a lot of fun! The humor isn’t flawless, but it’s definitely on point here, which keeps things light and funny.
Plus there’s Stan Lee! Celebrity cameos, particularly ones where the celeb plays themselves, are typically poison in double-digit episode seasons. But Lee has such an established persona, and is so willing to let himself be the object of fun, that he becomes one of the more memorable guest stars from after the show’s golden years. His encouragement to Bart, his promotion of Marvel comics characters over rivals, and his planting himself at Comic Book Guy’s shop and trying to hulk out are all enjoyable bits.
Overall, this is another post-classic episode that goes off the rails a bit in its last reel, but which has a lot of solid gags and spoofs that give it a quasi-classic feel up until that point.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2019-12-05T22:14:16Z
[7.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] The third act of this one goes really off the rails. Homer’s rage boils, him kinda sorta turning into The Hulk, and the whole “he needs to express his rage or he’ll die” thing is a bit off the wall even for The Simpsons. There’s parts of it that are enjoyable -- I can’t deny that seeing Homer hulk out has its charms -- but it feels like a typical late-season Simpsons refuge in over-the-top wackiness in lieu of being able to end a story.
Still, up until that point, I actually really liked this one. There’s a nice spoof of the then-budding world of flash animation and the internet bubble that I remember all too well. Bart’s efforts to imitate a cool artist who visited his school hit waaaaay too close to home, which suggests the show was on to something. And Homer’s internet celebrity status and Bart’s role as a creator with his dad as his “muse” is cause for a lot of fun! The humor isn’t flawless, but it’s definitely on point here, which keeps things light and funny.
Plus there’s Stan Lee! Celebrity cameos, particularly ones where the celeb plays themselves, are typically poison in double-digit episode seasons. But Lee has such an established persona, and is so willing to let himself be the object of fun, that he becomes one of the more memorable guest stars from after the show’s golden years. His encouragement to Bart, his promotion of Marvel comics characters over rivals, and his planting himself at Comic Book Guy’s shop and trying to hulk out are all enjoyable bits.
Overall, this is another post-classic episode that goes off the rails a bit in its last reel, but which has a lot of solid gags and spoofs that give it a quasi-classic feel up until that point.