man, this show is all over the place! They should bring Nick back just to confuse it more... very poor end to a show! I can't wait to see how they completely ruin this in the next four episodes
[7.5/10 on a Selman era Simpsons scale] Another good year! Some wild swings with all three of the stories this year, and some measured successes as well.
The first segment, riffing on NFTs, is probably the weakest, which is a good sign for the episode because even it was fun. I wouldn’t say there’s a ton of trenchant observations about the NFT market, just the usual “crypto bros stink”, “these dumb things used to be valuable” type shtick. But I actually love the conceit of Marge going into the virtual world to rescue Bart after he’s become an NFT. There’s a real Tron/Matrix/Snowpiecer vibe to the whole thing, which is a neat mash-up for a Treehouse of Horror segment.
Plus, the animation here was surprisingly good. The NFTs Marge runs into aren’t the cleverest takes on the genre, but there’s some extra expressiveness and fidelity when she fights them. Little details like Mihouse and Ralph getting mixed together when Kirk and Clancy try to push their kids into the digitizer at the same time makes it feel appropriately horror-esque. And I like the sort of Twilight Zone twist of Homer selling himself as an NFT to Mr. Burns for a hundred million dollars. The closest thing to an incisive observation here is the whole idea that the train runs on FOMO, but as a pure romp, this one is quite entertaining.
My favorite segment was probably the middle one. As someone who enjoys Fincher-esque flicks, a combination of Seven, Silence of the Lambs, and another film for an omnibus gritty killer movie parody is a winning idea. Putting Lisa at the center of it in an alternate timeline follow-up to “Cape Feare” only ups the ante, especially when she has to partner with Sideshow Bob in the future.
MMy only gripe is that this one isn’t especially funny. (Though I got a kick out of the fact that Homer choked on a tennis ball.) But I’ll take interesting, scary, and even clever in a Treehouse of Horror segment, even if the laughs don’t flow freely. Lisa as a grown-up profiler, tracking down a series of murders of grown-up Springfield Elementary students, and enlisting Bob for help, is a premise that sets up a nice riff on the investigatory thriller genre.
I appreciate how the twist has its cake and eats it too. On the one hand, it’s implausible that Lisa would have a second personality doing all the killing and eluding her notice and the whole scheme is pretty baroque. But it’s also a spoof of those kinds of neat but implausible twists, and so can be credited for lightly spoofing that sort of crazy twist. And god help me, something about her getting revenge on Bob with the help of a grown-up Maggie. Plus, the tableau the killer leaves make this one impressively (and artistically) gory.
The final segment is the most high concept, but it wins on that concept alone. The whole notion of the entire town turning into Homer-esque versions of themselves becomes more of a gimmick than a story, but I don’t really mind. It’s fun to see the designers and animators going off and Homerifying everyone in Springfield. The twist of Homer being enchanted, rather than repulsed, by the Homer-y version of Marge is amusing. And there’s even a touch of social commentary on how doomed the world would be with a population that’s anti-expert and against intellectualism of any sort. Honestly, it feels like more of a commentary on the pandemic than last season’s lockdown episode.
Overall, a good batch of spooky stories this year, with each one having a creative idea at its core, and each having plenty of fun and inventiveness with the execution.
a banger! and how is that even legal? lol
Man. Season premier and he's already going all out more than ever before.
That'll be a close one.
Diane's backstory of how she got on board with the plan is interesting but I don't geht how she could be that stupid. Working with bad guys is never a good idea - how could she ever trust them - and how could she love Michelle so much as to risk everything?!? :o
"Fuck." - That was quite a phone call :D
That quick and efficient discussion between Peter, Rose, Chelsea, and Maddie was nice.
I'm a bit confused though that Peter and Rose didn't take one of the two cars... I would've definitely used them to quickly escape from the crime scene and then ditched the car.
"Fuck no. I think one call was enough."
And when Rose pulled the gun xD
They make a fun duo.
Their proof doesn't seem undeniable to me at all. How would the metadata of pictures proof anything if you could arbitrarily alter it?!? IMO they have more than enough other proof though to convince someone (just the conviction might be a problem).
"I would never hurt Michelle Travers."
That's quite surprising...
[8.0/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] As a devotee of so-called prestige television, this was right up my alley. I loved the homages here, from Fargo, to Breaking Bad, all the way to Dexter’s famous grapefruit (I agree, it’s not subtle). And while I admire both the tributes and the guest stars (Brian Cox!Timothy Olyphant! Cristin Miloti!), I actually love the way The Simpsons apes these shows in this one.
It’s not just a Simpsons episodes with a few call-outs to prestige T.V. The episode actually goes pretty big in terms of its formal audaciousness, using flashy HBO/AMC/FX trademarks like split screens, match cuts, and unique framings for various scenes. It’s more of a prestige drama starring Simpsons characters than an episode of The Simpsons that happens to be about those sorts of dramas. I appreciate Matt Selman and company being willing to really go for it in terms of the look and feel of the episode.
And it’s a good melding of the two sensibilities as well. I like the raw story here. Ned Flanders finding a bag of money that accidentally gets him wrapped up in the world of crime is right out of Fargo (which makes me chuckle a little since for years, fans joked about how Fargo film star William H. Macy would make a good live action Flanders). There’s some real meat to his story, from wanting to honor his grandfather, ginning up some jealousy from Homer, and wondering if he’s being karmically punished for taking some pride in his good deed when he donates the purloined cash to a local orphanage.
It pushes Ned out of his comfort zone, not only having to deal with gangsters, but also feeling like he has to lie to Marge (albeit to protect Homer and reckon with his motivations for putting his name on the donation (even if it’s technically his grandfather’s name). It’s a character study for Ned, in a way not unlike legitimate award-winning dramas, and I dig that.
At the same time, Brian Cox’s debt collector character is the perfect spoof of a premium crime drama heavy. (My prediction: He’s actually the young hippie to whom Flanders’ grandfather loaned money for bread, hence his start with “debts”.) Cox’s delivery is fantastic, and his goons roughing up folks in unique ways, especially Comic Book Guy, is a lot of fun,
Of course, it’s pretty clear that this is a What If? or Treehouse of Horror-style non-canon story once Disco Stu and Mr. Burns bit the dust. But even there, the show does well at mimicking Sopranos-style violence, with a humorous twist. (I loved how aghast Snake was when he finds the scene at the donut shop.)
The romance angle with Barbara, the manager of the orphanage, is a little odd in the finish, but still amusing. She seems perfect for Ned, and the pair having a lovely, quaint time, only for Ned to find out she’s Sideshow Mel’s wife who has an “arrangement” with her husband. Their scenes together are amusing in the squareness, and I guess the reveal works in a “this would freak Ned out and make him wonder if he’s being punished” sort of way, but it’s a little out there.
Still, I appreciate the continuity of it, since Mel has mentioned his wife Barbara before! In the same vein, I love that the mix-up with the goons kidnapping Homer instead of Ned comes from Homer’s well-established trait of “borrowing” all of the Flanderses’ stuff. These are some nice touches, pulled from past episodes and used for good purposes in the new one.
On the whole, this is a big swing for The Simpsons, which I always admire, but this one connects much better and much cleaner than the average post-classic episode. You love to see it.
one of the movies that you don't want to re-watch because it makes you so uncomfortable, although the topic is (sadly) still as relevant today as it's 10+ years ago. The ending had so many flaws and didn't convince me at all. Aside from that, the best part is hands down the actors which both are my favourite - I found myself entranced by Elliot! Absolutely terrific performance and I'll keep on watching everything they appear in.
I finally managed to return to these great characters after a couple of years, I watched the first two seasons when it was still on Netflix and after that I had no access to the new seasons as Amazon was not available in Poland back then. In the meantime, I read all but the last Expanse novels and loved them, both the "old" characters as well as the new introduced in the saga, so I wonder how it would play out in the show and whether they introduced profund changes from the books. Though I must say I really enjoyed this episode, it is visually stunning with the spaceship and all, and I missed all the main characters though I couldn't recall some of the background ones.
The situation at Roci is really tense after Naomi sent the protomolecule to Fred Johnson (though I am not sure whether Naomi really does it in the novels?) and it is a bit of a sad start to the season, but on the other hand the message Alex records for his family is quite moving, from what I recall from the novels, Alex does return to his wife and child in the later novels but as he confesses here in this scene, he cannot really live without piloting ships and isn't happy staying too long in one place, this is something he cannot change in himself. The scenes with Avasarala and Bobbie are also very emotional, and both of them are among my favourite characters both in th novels and the show.
I guess it is much easier to write a critical review but rather difficult if you really enjoyed everything about the episode, I can't wait to watch more :)
Honestly Gyllenhaal nailed his role. What an insane take on a lifestyle that is actually some peoples job. Well done movie
Jake Gyllenhaal is mesmerizing as Louis Bloom, the thief who stumbled upon the wonderful world of TV news. Louis is sympathetic and despicable. Is he the pro or antagonist? He's criminal and hero at once. The things he does are rotten. He's so weird and dysfunctional, yet smart and manipulative. One thing is for certain, he's a seriously neat character.
Rick (Riz Ahmed) is the guy that you really want to pull for. He's Louis's first employee and pathetically naive. Until the final act, when he actually manages to manipulate Louis. Nothing is really as it seems here. This is a fun, tense film that will keep you guessing and entertained.
It was nice of them to have Jackie for dinner. No, wait. I meant to say that something has obviously been eating at Jackie. No, wait. That's not it, either. I meant to say that it's obvious that they're all getting fed up with Jackie. No, that doesn't work, either. Oh, never mind. I can't quite figure out what I'm wanting to say here, so I'll just chew on it for a while.
Found my attention waning during this one. It's looks like the show might have second season syndrome
It was a hell of a setup to build on after all.
I am that guy. So. Satisfying.
I really want Drummer to become a series regular next season.
"Okay, I'm going to need that gun back." Classic.
- How'd she look? (...) No, I mean, like, what was she wearing?
Holden, do not put your dick in it. It's fucked enough already.
Chrisjen really is the star of the show isn't she? :sweat_smile:
High brow story points aside it was great to see Bobbie kick some ass.
"Fuck these people, if they don't see how glorious you are they don't deserve you."
This was absolute cringe at the beginning
Thank the God of the Wilderness for hearing me (us?) and finally bringing present-day Shauna back into the others' fold. At first I thought we were gonna get trolled when Jeff got the phonecall and then maybe was going to withhold or prevent Shauna from that invitation. Fortunately he continues to be a cooler character than that. Plus him rocking out to “Fuck the Police” while his wife and daughter were being questioned insides the station lmao.
