[8.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] This was a lighter, but still very enjoyable episode. The opening riff of Seaworld-style water parks was full of amusing gags, and it segwayed nicely into the main storylines.
The A-story, with Homer buying a boat, worked well for wht the show was doing. The opening beat with him having to break it to Marge, and her going “you wore me down” was an amusing note for the characters. It’s a nice swerve from the show’s usual “Homer does something dumbM<arge disapproves” routine. The fact that Homer had to sign up more and more people tao take shares in it to make the repairs viable worked as a place to take the story. And the whole thing being resolved with the boat sinking but Home reassuring all his co-investors that they can at least boast the mental boost of having owned a boat is a good place to end. I also enjoyed the new salesman character, whose con artist ways were a good laugh. It feels weird to say this in season 31, but I hope he becomes a recurring part of Springfield.
I also liked Bart and Lisa’s story about freeing animals. It’s a tidy little tale, but the idea of Bart getting a jolt from pranking for good, only to get over his skis when what works for a killer whale doesn't work for a gorilla and he needs to enlist Lisa’s help, comes together nicely. There’s some fun animation with Shame-U the whale and Lolo the Gorilla. And Bart’s charge from altruism and Lisa’s clever (if outsized) way of hiding and reassuring the gorilla all worked well.
This episode was a little loony in the humor department, with a lot of cutaway gags and animals acting outside of normal animal behaviors, but I got more laughs out of it than a lot of modern day Simpsons episodes, so I am loathe to complain about what worked pretty darn well here. My only major complaint is the cameo from Jane Goodall (who looks exactly the same character model-wise as her spoof equivalent. Dr. Bushwell), whose vocals were awkward and whose dialogue was pointless.
Otherwise, this was a really fun outing that doesn't try to light the world on fire with either of its stories, but which does really nice, funny work with both of them.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2019-11-07T20:22:29Z
[8.3/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] This was a lighter, but still very enjoyable episode. The opening riff of Seaworld-style water parks was full of amusing gags, and it segwayed nicely into the main storylines.
The A-story, with Homer buying a boat, worked well for wht the show was doing. The opening beat with him having to break it to Marge, and her going “you wore me down” was an amusing note for the characters. It’s a nice swerve from the show’s usual “Homer does something dumbM<arge disapproves” routine. The fact that Homer had to sign up more and more people tao take shares in it to make the repairs viable worked as a place to take the story. And the whole thing being resolved with the boat sinking but Home reassuring all his co-investors that they can at least boast the mental boost of having owned a boat is a good place to end. I also enjoyed the new salesman character, whose con artist ways were a good laugh. It feels weird to say this in season 31, but I hope he becomes a recurring part of Springfield.
I also liked Bart and Lisa’s story about freeing animals. It’s a tidy little tale, but the idea of Bart getting a jolt from pranking for good, only to get over his skis when what works for a killer whale doesn't work for a gorilla and he needs to enlist Lisa’s help, comes together nicely. There’s some fun animation with Shame-U the whale and Lolo the Gorilla. And Bart’s charge from altruism and Lisa’s clever (if outsized) way of hiding and reassuring the gorilla all worked well.
This episode was a little loony in the humor department, with a lot of cutaway gags and animals acting outside of normal animal behaviors, but I got more laughs out of it than a lot of modern day Simpsons episodes, so I am loathe to complain about what worked pretty darn well here. My only major complaint is the cameo from Jane Goodall (who looks exactly the same character model-wise as her spoof equivalent. Dr. Bushwell), whose vocals were awkward and whose dialogue was pointless.
Otherwise, this was a really fun outing that doesn't try to light the world on fire with either of its stories, but which does really nice, funny work with both of them.