[8.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] Two good Homer/Marge relationship episodes in one season? In 2019? What world am I living in?
This was, suffice it to say, a really enjoyable watch for latter day Simpsons. I like the first act a great deal in particular, as it was fun to see Homer and Marge goofing off together at the wedding expo and just generally enjoying one another’s company. Some of the dirtbag teenage babysitter gags were a little broad, but for the most part the laughs were there, and the characters felt like themselves.
But I liked when the plot kicked into gear too! The idea that Homer and Marge get injured at the same time but respond in different ways in a nice little plot. Marge’s physical therapy and kite-surfing is solid. And I got a big kick out of Homer’s reversion to even worse laziness, thanks to his medicine and hallucinations of conversations with his hernia (voiced with joie de vivre by Wallace Shawn!). It’s an outsized but understandable basis for the conflict, and they do a lot of fun gags and nice design work with Homer and his little laziness-focused Jiminy Cricket.
The ending is a little contrived, but I like the little setups and payoffs. Lisa having to actually return to Jimbo and Shauna for relationship advice is a nice beat that makes the opening gagfest feel less pointless. The running gag of Wiggum and Lou ticketing cars is good for a few chuckles and helps feed Homer’s epiphany. And while getting caught in a wind farm while kite surfing is a little outlandish for my tastes, I do appreciate that Homer sees Marge and sees his own possibilities and the error of his ways. It’s a nice structure of the episode, with Homer and Marge bonding, drifting apart, and then bonding again.
The one thing I didn’t like was Nigel the New Zealand physical therapist, since none of his gags were funny. The pronunciation bits were pretty lame (though at least there was some setup and payoff to that one too), and the whole Russian sting operation bit with Wiggum was weak and just out there.
Overall, a solidly built Marge/Homer relationship episode with some nice running gags and a fun/wacky turn from Wallace Shawn to liven the proceedings.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2019-03-14T04:26:45Z
[8.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] Two good Homer/Marge relationship episodes in one season? In 2019? What world am I living in?
This was, suffice it to say, a really enjoyable watch for latter day Simpsons. I like the first act a great deal in particular, as it was fun to see Homer and Marge goofing off together at the wedding expo and just generally enjoying one another’s company. Some of the dirtbag teenage babysitter gags were a little broad, but for the most part the laughs were there, and the characters felt like themselves.
But I liked when the plot kicked into gear too! The idea that Homer and Marge get injured at the same time but respond in different ways in a nice little plot. Marge’s physical therapy and kite-surfing is solid. And I got a big kick out of Homer’s reversion to even worse laziness, thanks to his medicine and hallucinations of conversations with his hernia (voiced with joie de vivre by Wallace Shawn!). It’s an outsized but understandable basis for the conflict, and they do a lot of fun gags and nice design work with Homer and his little laziness-focused Jiminy Cricket.
The ending is a little contrived, but I like the little setups and payoffs. Lisa having to actually return to Jimbo and Shauna for relationship advice is a nice beat that makes the opening gagfest feel less pointless. The running gag of Wiggum and Lou ticketing cars is good for a few chuckles and helps feed Homer’s epiphany. And while getting caught in a wind farm while kite surfing is a little outlandish for my tastes, I do appreciate that Homer sees Marge and sees his own possibilities and the error of his ways. It’s a nice structure of the episode, with Homer and Marge bonding, drifting apart, and then bonding again.
The one thing I didn’t like was Nigel the New Zealand physical therapist, since none of his gags were funny. The pronunciation bits were pretty lame (though at least there was some setup and payoff to that one too), and the whole Russian sting operation bit with Wiggum was weak and just out there.
Overall, a solidly built Marge/Homer relationship episode with some nice running gags and a fun/wacky turn from Wallace Shawn to liven the proceedings.