[5.0/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] I figured out that this was an Al Jean showrun episode before the credits rolled, and I wish I could tell you why. Maybe it’s the use of characters like Gil and The “Yes” Guy who seemed to be some of Jean’s favorites. Maybe it’s just the general tone, which skews a little older in its perspective than the eps showrun by Matt Selman. Or maybe it’s the fact that, at most, I had a few mild chuckles in this one. Whatever the reason, these types of episodes stand out in this era of the show, where Jean’s installments are fewer and further between.
The idea of the sportscar salesman using his ersatz lamborghini-slinging techniques to pretend to be Homer’s friend just to get him to sign off on a renovation next door has something decent to it. There’s some emotion in Marge and Homer enjoying having “couple friends” only to feel used when the Blackburns seemed only to want to ply them with the finer things so that the Simpsons wouldn’t be able to contest their noisy construction plans. Heck, I even like that the couch gag ties into the main episode plot, setting up that Homer’s fantasized about these fancy cars.
But all the luxury sports car-based humor feels pretty hoary, and Homer’s revenge being to convince a store full of suckers that it won’t improve their public is weak broth. The ending just sort of putters out, without a real satisfying or believable resolution, or much in the way of humor.
The B-story is no better. Again, there’s a grain of a good idea with an exploration of the bullying dynamics at Springfield Elementary. There’s something to the idea of Nelson being a menace, and Bart and Lisa turning the tables on him via cyber-bullying. But all the bullying arms race with Nelson, Bart, Lisa, and Hubert Wong get too goofy, without actually being funny, too quickly. The B-plot also feels like it barely has an ending.
There’s a few mild laughs to be had here. The kindergarten bully telling Bart, “There’s the easy way, and the easy way...we’re kindergarteners,” got a chuckle out of me. And there’s something light but sweet about Lisa threatening to expose Nelson’s treatment of an injured hummingbird, only to reveal him taking tender care of it. But otherwise, the comedy in this one is mild rather than worthy of big laughs.
Overall, this is the type of episode that reminds you that the show’s taken a turn for the better in recent years, but that the change can’t save episodes still run under the prior regime.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2023-12-08T06:32:15Z
[5.0/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] I figured out that this was an Al Jean showrun episode before the credits rolled, and I wish I could tell you why. Maybe it’s the use of characters like Gil and The “Yes” Guy who seemed to be some of Jean’s favorites. Maybe it’s just the general tone, which skews a little older in its perspective than the eps showrun by Matt Selman. Or maybe it’s the fact that, at most, I had a few mild chuckles in this one. Whatever the reason, these types of episodes stand out in this era of the show, where Jean’s installments are fewer and further between.
The idea of the sportscar salesman using his ersatz lamborghini-slinging techniques to pretend to be Homer’s friend just to get him to sign off on a renovation next door has something decent to it. There’s some emotion in Marge and Homer enjoying having “couple friends” only to feel used when the Blackburns seemed only to want to ply them with the finer things so that the Simpsons wouldn’t be able to contest their noisy construction plans. Heck, I even like that the couch gag ties into the main episode plot, setting up that Homer’s fantasized about these fancy cars.
But all the luxury sports car-based humor feels pretty hoary, and Homer’s revenge being to convince a store full of suckers that it won’t improve their public is weak broth. The ending just sort of putters out, without a real satisfying or believable resolution, or much in the way of humor.
The B-story is no better. Again, there’s a grain of a good idea with an exploration of the bullying dynamics at Springfield Elementary. There’s something to the idea of Nelson being a menace, and Bart and Lisa turning the tables on him via cyber-bullying. But all the bullying arms race with Nelson, Bart, Lisa, and Hubert Wong get too goofy, without actually being funny, too quickly. The B-plot also feels like it barely has an ending.
There’s a few mild laughs to be had here. The kindergarten bully telling Bart, “There’s the easy way, and the easy way...we’re kindergarteners,” got a chuckle out of me. And there’s something light but sweet about Lisa threatening to expose Nelson’s treatment of an injured hummingbird, only to reveal him taking tender care of it. But otherwise, the comedy in this one is mild rather than worthy of big laughs.
Overall, this is the type of episode that reminds you that the show’s taken a turn for the better in recent years, but that the change can’t save episodes still run under the prior regime.