Scullyfied Simpsons: “Children of a Lesser Clod” (Season 12, Episode 20)

Warning – events seen in this episode are not as heartwarming as this screengrab from Frinkiac.com would lead you to believe.

“All my love has come back in trophy form!” – Homer Simpson. Spoiler alert, that’s one of the less asinine things he says all episode.

Airdate: May 13th, 2001

Written By: Al Jean

Plot: A trip to the YMCA ends badly for Homer Simpson, as his attempt to score during a basketball game results in a rather substantial ACL tear. Stuck at home after the surgery, he finds himself babysitting the Flanders kids. This starts a domino effect that sees him start his own daycare center. His newfound affection for taking care of his kids winds up preoccupying him so much that he forgets about his own offspring, much to their displeasure.

Review:

Why is Jerkass Homer so infamous?

Really, it seems like, more than any other aspect of The Simpsons’ shift in tone and characterization as it reached the double-digit seasons, Jerkass Homer gets quite a bit of focus. It almost feels as if that was the sole reason behind the decline – “the show sucked around the time Homer became an idiotic ass.” Yes, that’s a simplification, but it seems to be one of the most common complaints about the show’s decline once Mike Scully took over as showrunner.

The thing is, Jerkass Homer is arguably as much a symptom as it is an individual ailment affecting The Simpsons. Yes, the fact that the central protagonist decayed into an almost astonishingly unlikable human being pretty much removes any hope for wanting him to succeed, and the fact that he still gets off easy removes the hope for an interesting sense of comeuppance, thus removing the viewer from an interest in the story. However, it’s indicative of a much larger rot at the show’s core. After all, Homer was always a bit of an ass at first glance – he was stupid, self-centered, and somewhat of a lout. However, not only were these balanced out by a certain innocence and a fierce devotion to his family, but he was so often written as a multifaceted and human character. In fact, that’s where so many of my favorite episodes come from. The character has degenerated into joke fodder, meant to get the easiest and broadest laughs with no regard for empathy or audience relation, all while undermining the smartness of the show before it and the stories that stem from that brilliance.

It parallels what happened to the series. Once challenging the status quo of network sitcoms and cartoons, The Simpsons wound up almost embracing the cliches of both simultaneously in a way that left neither party satisfied. Jerkass Homer is merely the prime example of a surprisingly complex and moving show being reduced to a simplistic and surprisingly callous shell of itself. It is a series that has become more insular, and in spite of the increased insanity of the plot twists, has become more rote and almost predictable. The soul is gone, the body is kept alive by the powers that be who refuse to do the merciful thing and let the show die.

But die it won’t. So instead, we must do the next best thing and leave it be for our sanity. We’re down to our last few episodes. And how appropriate a title to warn us of what we can expect as “Children of a Lesser Clod”?

I’m not gonna beat around the bush anymore – this episode was surprisingly awful. I mean, I wasn’t expecting much, but this failed to deliver on even my dramatically reduced expectations.

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Tennis the Menace” (Season 12, Episode 12)

“There’s a lesson here for all of us – it’s better to watch stuff than to do stuff.” – Homer. If watching stuff involves this episode, I’m going to doubt that nugget of wisdom.

Airdate: February 11th, 2001

Written By: Ian Maxtone-Graham

Plot: Attempts to plan Abe’s funeral result in Homer getting a tennis court. Why? Potatoes. He becomes the local tennis goof, all while Marge wants to play the sport more seriously. The tensions between them grow, and when Homer enters the duo in a doubles competition, Marge wastes no time in having Bart take his place.

Review:

As the cliche goes, all good things must come to an end. And as this episode demonstrates, that phrase can be extended to mediocre-to-decent things.

I mean, the past couple of episodes of The Simpsons that I covered were… not that bad. They had their shortcomings, yes, but given that their immediate predecessors possessed area-code terrorism, characters getting molested via (and by) a panda, a slapdash parody of The Prisoner, and an ending that wasn’t, the trio contained sustainable plots, character pathos, some attempts at development, comedy that didn’t feel like scraps on the Family Guy floor, and all put together in a way that didn’t make me feel like I was being spat on by the writers, a feeling that is (unfortunately) too common with modern Simpsons.

It had to end sometime. And of course, it had to end with quite a thud. This is going to be a quick review because I don’t know how much I have to say here. But let’s get it out of the way – “Tennis the Menace” was painful, one of the worst episodes of The Simpsons I’ve reviewed so far. It’s not because of an infamous moment that mitigated any positives, but more because of being broken throughout on almost every conceivable level.

Scullyfied Simpsons: “The Great Money Caper” (Season 12, Episode 7)

“Why are you frosting that old throw pillow?” – Marge Simpson. Just cue the hijinks music, because you know things are going to go south from here.

Airdate: December 10th, 2000

Written By: Carolyn Omine

Plot: A bizarre space-related fish incident causes substantial damage to the Simpson sedan. The estimated cost of repair is $6850. Initial plans to have Bart turn magic tricks on the pier fare poorly for Homer. Abandoned by his father at the pier, he manages to get sympathy money from the townsfolk. Noting the buckets of cash that ensued, Homer and Bart decide to become professional scam artists. As the screencap above implies, this does not end well for them. Or does it?

Review:

The abyss is not a pleasant place to be – little light breaks through the surface. This is especially true if you’re using it to compare it to the quality of a cartoon.

Over the course of my reviews of The Simpsons, I’ve covered many an episode that made me baffled as to how it was allowed to go out the way that it did. Some of what I had to cover was absolutely shocking – botched characterization, abysmal plotting, noticeable mistakes that are exposed by the issues surrounding it, lazier animation, and constantly telling the audience to try and do better. (Worth noting, Rebecca Sugar is a Simpsons fan. Make of that what you will.)

I still maintain that my least favorite episode of The Simpsons is “Alone Again, Natura-Diddily”. As I said in that review, it was the perfect storm of almost everything I disliked about the show’s post-golden era, and altered the universe in a way that was soulless and irrevocable. It was crass, callous, made the main character out to be unbelievably odious, soulless… the episode was just an unpleasant viewing experience I have no desire to inflict upon myself ever again.

I will, however, give the episode one unqualified positive. It’s not nearly enough to get its “0” rating revoked – it’s still the nadir – but credit where credit is due. The episode was at least complete. Yeah, it’s still absolute garbage, but the episode at least had some semblance of a plot, odious and obnoxious as it was. There was at least an end to the episode, even if it was pretty damn vapid and didn’t make up for the travesty of the rest of the episode.

Contrast “The Great Money Caper”. Let me just put it this way… does an episode deserve a critique if it’s practically unfinished?

Ah, what the hell, it was aired by the FOX Network. Fair game, in my opinion. (Besides, way back when, I reviewed that Red Dwarf pilot that never aired on USA television. Make of that what you will…)

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Insane Clown Poppy” (Season 12, Episode 3)

“For a clown, you’re not really a lot of fun.” – Sophie. Pretty interesting analysis of one of The Simpsons most iconic side characters.

Airdate: November 12, 2000

Written By: Don Payne and John Frink

Plot: While signing books at a town book fair, Krusty the Clown meets a girl claiming to be his daughter. Given that she has green, curly, pointy hair, and triggers a flashback to Krusty’s liaison with a soldier during the Gulf War, she might have a point. His attempts to bond with the daughter are awkward, but the two do share a small bond over music. However, Krusty gambles the violin away dur

Review:

Let’s not beat around the bush here – “Insane Clown Poppy” is less awful than it’s predecessor. Unfortunately, “less awful” can mean anything, and in this case, it does not work in the episode’s favor. More specifically, this episode is uninteresting, and much of what is of note here is rather boring.

But first, let’s flashback to what made this series so iconic way back when.

The world of The Simpsons was constructed as a microcosm of America around the end of the Cold War – the late 80s to early 90s. Pretty much everything that defined the nation around this time found its way into the show, be it representative of a piece of pop culture or an idea within our society. The Springfield Nuclear Power Plant was representative of corrupt business culture, the Elementary school a symbol of decaying educational systems, et cetera. Even individuals served as representatives of American culture – for example, the Quimby family was a swipe at the Democratic political dynasties, as well as corruption and nepotism in politics overall; Lovejoy a religious figure who had seemingly lost the spirit of his faith; et cetera.

Krusty the Clown is probably the oddest aspect of this symbolism. He was based on a style of entertainment that had already been on the wane by the late 80s – local children’s programming – and is virtually extinct nowadays. However, he was symbolic of the two faces of celebrity; he demonstrated the family-friendly public face, and the sleazy, money-chasing private facade. He got his own fast-food chain that sells slop to the townsfolk, will merchandise any sort of poorly-made product, blows through money like it’s no tomorrow (“I thought the Generals were due!”), dodges his taxes on an industrial scale, smokes like a chimney, drinks like a fish, is willing to sell intellectualism down the river (hence why Bob snapped), and has slept with countless one-night stands, resulting in many illegitimate children.

So, what if we were to take a look at one of those aspects individually? It’s been done before – “Bart the Fink” exposed his corruption (which was so brazen, it took five minutes from the start of the investigation to send him down). “Homie The Clown” looked at his horrid money habits. “Bart Gets Famous” looked at how he played into the fleeting nature of celebrity. And now, this – an expose into one of his illegitimate children entering his life, and this time, not as a made-for-tv movie.

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Days of Wine and D’oh-ses” (Season 11, Episode 18)

In context, it’s a good metaphor for the episode. Out of context, it’s a sublime metaphor for the series!

“There’s a line in `Othello’ about a drinker:`Now a sensible man, by and by a fool, and presently a beast.’ That pretty well covers it.”  – Barney Gumble, Puke-a-hontas, “A Star is Burns”. Weirdly apropos given the episode covered today.

Airdate: April 9th, 2000.

Written By: Dan Castellaneta and Deb Lacusta

Plot: Barney Gumble is disturbed when he sees a video of his birthday party. There, he was so drunk as to become the largest fool in the town. Combined with the constant mockery from his fellow barflies, he decides to quit drinking for good. But the temptation still remains, especially when the less-than-teetotal Homer tags along on his path to sobriety.

Review:

Season 11 of The Simpsons really does feel like a show clinging to life, to relevancy, to any sort of cohesion that is ebbing away.

I mean, the remanents show does so nowadays by the proliferation of guest stars, as well as attempts to be relevant that often indicate that a trend or meme is deader than dead. But in terms of narrative, Season 11 of The Simpsons seems to be indicative of a show realizing that the story engine has mined the well dry. However, it was also too successful to end – whether it was the writers, the voice actors, or the network executives, they were too proud or too greedy to let the show come to a natural end.

As a result, what we have so far this season (besides the increase in gimmicks and the show’s world collapsing into a black hole of inane insanity) are the gambles made on three characters – Apu Nahassapeemapetilon, Ned Flanders, and Barney Gamble. The nature of their circumstances were all radically reformed, albeit in different ways. Apu and Manjula decided to start a family, got his wish in the most extreme way, and now has to deal with eight children – making the stressed-out father the central component of his character (whatever is left, anyway). Ned Flanders, long the happy-go-lucky yin to Homer’s yang, had his wife die… in an accident caused, exacerbated, and downplayed by Homer… and I’m going to stop there because my blood is boiling already.

Barney’s change is the most unique. It’s not something that actually comes out of nowhere, but actually has its roots in the show’s broader narrative. Of course, I feel like the aforementioned changes might have been executed well (or at least, had some small level of merit) in another universe. So the question is, how do the writers do on this particular gamble?

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Saddlesore Galactica” (Season 11, Episode 13)

What are the odds that somebody made that face when reading the script for the first time?

“I’d like to play me latest chart-toppah. It’s called, ‘Me Fans Are Stupid Pigs.'” – Dream Bart, “The Otto Show”. Who knew he would nail a Simpsons writer just eight years later?

Airdate: February 6th, 2000.

Written By: Tim Long

Plot: Springfield Elementary’s Concert Band comes in second place at the county fair, beaten by Ogdenville Elementary, who have recovered well enough from their Lyle Lanley Monorail related debacle to perform “Stars and Stripes Forever” with glow sticks! While Lisa is ornery about the failure, more pressing issues take precedent.

You see, Bart and Homer come across a trick-performing horse that is abandoned at the fair by his deadbeat and abusive owner. Rescuing him from destruction, the two decide to race him to pay the bills. Initial failures lead to the duo trying to remarket the horse, and soon, Bart and Homer become the team to beat. This results in the ire of the other jockeys, who kidnap Homer and reveal themselves to secretly be undergrown-dwelling elves.

Yes.

The jockeys are elves.

There are Jockey Elves in The Simpsons.

Who all live in a fiberglass tree and threaten to eat people’s brains.

…

No, I was not written under the influence of a controlled substance while watching this episode.

Review:

This review has been five years in the making.

The Simpsons has been on the air as a television series for twenty-nine years this December, sending out 639 episodes as of the publication of this post. With such a vast variety of episodes, there are bound to be both high points and low points, no matter what you make of the later seasons. While most of my favorite blogs despair about the current state of the series, the truth is that there are plenty of people who still like the new seasons. Opinions, indeed, have ranged from “this show is permanently dead” to “the show has rebounded” to “the show did decline, but it’s still pretty damn good” to “AL JEAN FOR PRESIDENT!” So unlike what you would expect from The Review Nebula and Dead Homer Society, Simpsons fandom is rather diverse in opinion. And you know what? If you like contemporary Simpsons, that’s cool. I disagree with you, but… that’s cool.

That said, if one speaks broadly, one can ascertain certain trends in episodic opinion. And with that in mind, I think I can safely say that no episode of The Simpsons is loathed more viscerally than “Saddlesore Galactica”.

Yes, “Kidney Trouble” is widely disliked for transforming Homer into an odious figure, but fans have provided arguments trying to excuse his cowardice (even though I personally disagree with said arguments). “Homer Vs. Dignity” gained a lot of hate for the infamous “Panda Scene”, but there’s still debate over what occurred there, as well. “No Good Read Goes Unpunished” does have a lot of people that agree with its message. And while “Lisa Goes Gaga” is universally despised, there is no denying by that point, most of the show’s fans had thrown their hands up and either accepted that an episode like that was bound to happen or quit the show in despair long before it aired.

“Saddlesore Galactica” is often cited as a certain threshold for the series. Many fans often poll it as the show’s event horizon – the moment when they realized that the show’s decline was irreversible. At the very least, it is almost universally described as the show’s most outlandish episode.

So… why do I agree with them? And to what extent?

Scullyfied Simpsons: “The Mansion Family” (Season 11, Episode 12)

“John, we went on the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride at Disneyland. Maybe you should write an episode about that.”
“Sure, pirates, whatever.”

“We made it, son. International waters – the land that law forgot!” – Homer. Well, the law might forget what happens on international waters, but the Review Nebula always remembers.

Airdate: January 23rd, 2000

Written By: John Swartzwelder.

Plot: After former “Springfield’s Oldest Citizen” Cornelius Chapman dies at the Springfield Pride Awards Ceremony, new record holder Mr. Burns decides to have his health checked out. To have his house kept during the weekend, Homer and the Simpson family stay over. Homer, ornery over not being recognized at the aforementioned ceremony, takes well to the fancy life. Indeed, to celebrate, he decides to throw a party, one that ultimately sends him into international waters to circumvent alcohol laws… and sends him into conflict with pirates.

Review:

“Monty Can’t Buy Me Love” remains one of my least favorite episodes of the Mike Scully Era of The Simpsons. In short, it encapsulates a lot that critics dislike about the show – established character traits are all but forgotten about, the characters began to revolve around a more insolent and moronic version of Homer even when the script didn’t call for it, celebrities that were once lampooned were now being treated with kid gloves, and the third act goes completely off the rails for reasons I can only assume were thought up under the influence of rotisserie chicken.

The complete character assassination of Mr. Burns, in particular, remains tragic. He was one of the show’s central agents of conflict, and by nullifying that, character-driven plots were tossed aside in favor of the slapdash and outlandish plotting we see at the moment. “The Mansion Family” is his first episode since, well…

…unfortunately, this episode is not that much better. In some ways, it’s slightly less egregious. In others, it’s even more obnoxious.

Particularly since this episode also serves as a sequel to a classic episode, “Homer the Smithers.”

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Take My Wife, Sleaze” (Season 11, Episode 8)

No, I did not find this on DeviantArt. (ORIGINAL CHARACTER DO NOT STEAL!)

“When you get a job interview, try not to call your employer a punk, or a skank.”  – Marge Simpson. Give this episode credit – we could take her advice here.

Airdate: November 28th, 1999

Written By: John Swartzwelder

Plot: A trip to a 50s kitsch diner lands Homer a motorcycle in a dance competition. Having learned to ride it, he decides to start up his motorcycle gang. They mainly serve to commit petty annoyances around town. But trouble starts when a biker gang with the same name as Homer’s gang comes into town, livid.

Review:

Season 11 of The Simpsons is a season that, quite frankly, doesn’t know what the hell it’s really doing so far.

On one hand, you have episodes such as “Eight Misbehavin”, “Days of Wine and Do’hses”, and “Alone Again, Natura-Diddily”. These episodes attempted to dramatically shift the status quo of one of the most iconic television franchises in all of history. However, most of these changes didn’t concern the immediate Simpson family. Which is fine, except that these episodes would ultimately mix in the Simpson family, by which I mean, Jerkass Homer would be welcomed into their lives despite oftentimes screwing things up royally. Besides that, these episodes couldn’t resist a lot of trappings of their contemporaries – attempts at seriousness and occasional social commentary were damaged by the inane plot twists, increasingly unsympathetic characterization of our protagonist, and the show losing grip of reality.

Then, of course, there are episodes that don’t really pretend to be about anything and tend to revolve more around stuff happening. They’re both equally bad – the “serious” episodes often befuddle (if not outright offend) me because of how poorly they measure up to their predecessors in Seasons 1-8, while the latter… well, they have no freaking structure at all.

Hence, “Take My Wife, Sleaze”, or as I like to call it, “We made Homer an artist and a director already, let’s make him a biker.”

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Eight Misbehavin” (Season 11, Episode 7)

“They’re a ravenous swarm of locusts just eating and screaming and grabbing and poking and pulling and drooling, and two have cradle rash. How do you get cradle rash when you sleep in a suitcase?” – Apu, describing the confusing realities of having children.

Airdate: November 21st, 1999

Written By: Matt Selman

Plot: A meeting with the Simpson clan at the Shøp department store gives Apu and Manjula baby fever. Despite their best efforts, they wind up having trouble conceiving. Thankfully, an attempt involving a poorly-written script winds up successful, and with the help of everybody giving Manjula fertility drugs (including Manjula herself), an attempt at one baby leads to eight children. The initial shock is later replaced with stress, as the media coverage eventually collapses, leaving the duo on their own.

Review:

Full disclosure – no, I’m not using this review to analyze The Problem With Apu and the Simpsons recent reaction thereof in a manner of “Is Apu a caricature”. I’m not South Asian, I’ll let them come to a democratic consensus on whether or not Apu (or at least modern Apu) is beyond the pale. All I’ll say is that the writers’ response in a recent episode was so poorly executed in terms of characterization and dialogue, as well as so childishly ham-fisted, that it would’ve destroyed any point they made. Even if they admitted fair play to Problem With Apu, they likely would’ve done so in a way that sunk the show.

Moments like that make me embarrassed to have become a Simpsons fan in the first place, and that recent response honestly made me contemplate reassigning the spot of “favorite show” to either Gravity Falls or Red Dwarf again, because at least those shows didn’t call their critics jackasses while producing some of the most incompetently written television of all time.*

Speaking of which, Season 11.

Scullyfied Simpsons: “Beyond Blunderdome” (Season 11, Episode 1)

Our hero – proclaiming his wife as property because Mel Gibson is at the front door. Were these writers trying to make him unlikable?

“Movie tickets? That’s hardly worth destroying a car!” – Homer Simpson. To be fair, that is a fine piece of logic, that I’m sure will carry through the season.

Airdate: September 26th, 1999

Written By: Mike Scully

Plot: An electric car manufacturer entices potential buyers to test drive with possible gifts. Homer’s reward for test-driving (read, destroying) the car is two tickets to a test screening of Mel Gibson’s newest movie, Mr. Smith Goes To Washington. While Marge (who is infatuated with Mel) loves the movie like most of the audience, Homer is much more critical. It’s Homer’s critique that gets through to Gibson, however, and the duo embark on a controversial edit of the film to amp up the action.

Review:

Wow! I’m actually impressed! I can tell from this episode alone that Season 11 is going to be haphazard. That takes a special kind of effort, writers, but you showed it! Good for you – enjoy my somewhat neurotic rant on this episode.

Yup, Season 11 starts off on a rather… less than satisfactory note with the aptly-titled “Beyond Blunderdome”. (They tried to make a punny, and they made a funny in ways they didn’t imagine.) So, what do we have here? Jerkass Homer? Homer getting a job? Zany schemes? Jerkass Homer getting a zany job? Well, you guess right if you got the latter, but there is one big issue with this episode that would damage it, even without the Mike Scully cliches.

It’s a love letter.

To Mel Gibson.