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[UberTag]

Some highlights from last night's (actually decent for once) episode...

Theater Etiquette from "Steal This Episode"

 

[TheOddOne]

Yeah, really fun episode.

Seth Rogan tho.

 

[trinest]

Wait people liked the episode? I didn't know what point it was trying to make and in general some of the spoken references were just stupid. It all in all was a very confusing episode.

 

[PeakPointMatrix]

Aw, that's some nice authentic glory days Marge right there. Reminds me of her letter to the Barbera Bush.

Also, thought Married to the Blob was pretty decent. Loved the Miyazaki tribute, episode in general got some good laughs out of me.

Ghost wife, are you finally happy?
KIND OF!

 

[Ahasverus]

Wooo what a great episode, reaaaally

 

[UberTag]

Also, thought Married to the Blob was pretty decent. Loved the Miyazaki tribute, episode in general got some good laughs out of me.

The episode really picked up once it just went completely off the wall with the Miyazaki tribute and intervove it into the storyline. Wasn't anything special up until that point but overall the ep wound up above average by Tim Long standards.

Glad they didn't retcon the marriage at the end of the episode - should result in some Kumiko cameos in the future and gives CBG some nice character development. Shame they didn't take the same approach when Moe dated an equally Tress MacNeille-voiced character in Maya - but he's more of a staple character whom they probably didn't want to mess around too much with.

There's a new episode in two weeks - and then nothing until early March (due to the Olympics, Oscars, Super Bowl and Daytona 500).

 

[Thomas_Daly]

wow what amazing episode the last 2 were

steal this episode was amazing

love the simpsons

 

[UberTag]

They're still planning on it.
It wasn't the fabricated extra from Four Regrettings and a Funeral.
My bet is that it'll wind up being Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky but we may not find out until Season 26.
Depends on when it airs.

I take back my original prediction. Seems too bland although I wouldn't be surprised for Jackie Mason to be in this episode as a fake out. (Dude's 82 so it's not like he's going to be around for the long haul regardless of whether they kill off Rabbi Krustofsky or not.)

Now that the show's writers have gone on record that this will take place during the Season 26 premiere (hence, it's being positioned as a big deal) and Hank Azaria has gone on record stating that all of his characters are safe, my prediction on who gets killed off is none other than Barney Gumble.

 

[UberTag]

The Simpsons returns this Sunday with not one - but TWO - new episodes starting at 7:30pm.

In addition to that, the 2nd half of Season 25 kicks off with an amazingly animated couch gag sequence courtesy of Oscar-nominated French animator Sylvain Chomet - the man behind The Triplets of Belleville and The Illusionist.

Check out the full couch gag here!

UPCOMING EPISODES

DIGGS - Sunday, March 9th {SPECIAL START TIME OF 7:30pm}

Bart is rescued from a confrontation with Springfield Elementary’s bullies by Diggs (guest voice Daniel Radcliffe), a recent transfer student and aspiring champion in the niche sport of falconry. But, Bart soon discovers that Diggs wants to do more than just wrangle falcons: he wants to take to the sky himself.

THE MAN WHO GREW TOO MUCH - Sunday, March 9th (yep, this is a double header)

On a research trip, Lisa is shocked to discover that Sideshow Bob is now the chief scientist at a massive chemical engineering company, but her fears are allayed as she becomes enamored with his likeminded appreciation of high-culture. Meanwhile, Marge’s attempt to preach healthy sexual practices to a teen church group goes awry.

THE WINTER OF HIS CONTENT - Sunday, March 16th

Marge invites Grampa and two other octogenarians to live at the Simpsons’ house after the Retirement Castle is closed for health violations, but she quickly becomes frustrated with Homer when he starts embracing the “old person lifestyle.” Meanwhile, at Springfield Elementary, Bart defends Nelson’s affinity for hand-me-down underwear, leading Nelson to befriend Bart.

THE WAR OF ART - Sunday, March 23rd

After Lisa’s new pet guinea pig destroys the Simpsons’ living room art, Marge falls in love with a beautiful painting at the Van Houten’s yard sale, which Homer snaps up for 20 bucks. But, when Lisa reveals it’s by a famous early 20th century painter and could be worth $100,000, Marge and Homer face a dilemma: split the money with the Van Houtens, or keep the cash as a “cushion” for their kids.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE LIKE A REFEREE - Sunday, March 30th

This FIFA World Cup-themed episode will feature Homer and his recruitment as a FIFA World Cup referee, after Lisa praises his integrity in a Springfield Elementary speech contest held on the youth soccer field. The episode follows Springfield’s most famous family as it journeys to Brazil, only to find Homer’s honesty put to the test by one of the slickest South American gangsters in the soccer match-bribing business.

 

[ЯAW]

Both episodes were bad. The Falcon episode was just kinda bland. Also, they really should stop using Bob. Some times he is friends of Simpsons and a family man and other times he is still a maniac. Oh, and Edna is now officially dead

 

[Gentleman Jack]

The Edna thing at the end was awkward and depressing.

I was taken aback that the abstinence counseling story was better than the Sideshow Bob story. The class seeing Homer/Marge as finger puppets and Kearny breaking into a finger puppet store was hilarious.

I missed most of the Diggs episode but it looked awful.

 

[Exterminieren]

The Simpsons go to Brazil!

Again!

Ugh.

 

[Messypandas]

Are those crossover episodes still planned?

 

[The Lamonster]

Are those crossover episodes still planned?

Yep - Simpsons LEGO is coming, and Simpsons+Family Guy as well.

I'm also looking forward to the return of Cleveland Brown to Family Guy

 

[UberTag]

The Edna thing at the end was awkward and depressing.

I was taken aback that the abstinence counseling story was better than the Sideshow Bob story. The class seeing Homer/Marge as finger puppets and Kearny breaking into a finger puppet store was hilarious.

I missed most of the Diggs episode but it looked awful.

Diggs was actually better than expected. It was co-written by Dan Greaney who brought us both King-Size Homer and Summer of 4 Foot 2 during the classic era so that's not too surprising. It's not that the story was all that outlandish but it took some fresh material and treated it with sensitivity, delivered a solid guest star performance and everyone on the show was solidly in character. The "where's my money" gag to kick things off had a nice payoff with Dr. Hibbert as well.

The Sideshow Bob episode was garbage (apart from Kearney robbing the finger puppet store).

The LEGO crossover episode has a date. It airs the first weekend of May. The Futurama crossover ep may still air this season as well.

The Family Guy crossover will air in the fall and is, technically, a Family Guy episode.

 

[Joni]

The Triplets of Belleville opening was beautiful.

 

[PeakPointMatrix]

Disappointed by the Sideshow Bob episode. Felt all over the place, and no real strong gags. The way Bob is being treated is a bit too outlandish, even for the Simpsons. Superhuman strength? Face falling off? Probably the only thing to make me crack a smile was the call back to the rake joke.

 

[lunchtoast]

The Triplets of Belleville opening was beautiful.

Yeah, took me a minute to realise what I was seeing. Still need to watch triplets.

 

[The Real Abed]

Disappointed by the Sideshow Bob episode. Felt all over the place, and no real strong gags. The way Bob is being treated is a bit too outlandish, even for the Simpsons. Superhuman strength? Face falling off? Probably the only thing to make me crack a smile was the call back to the rake joke.

At least we'll always have Cape Feare. And Brother From Another Series. And Black Widower. And Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming. And that's about it for the good episodes. (Also Krusty Gets Busted)

 

[Joni]

Disappointed by the Sideshow Bob episode. Felt all over the place, and no real strong gags. The way Bob is being treated is a bit too outlandish, even for the Simpsons. Superhuman strength? Face falling off? Probably the only thing to make me crack a smile was the call back to the rake joke.

The face falling off was a callback too. To the terrible, terrible The Bob Next Door. It had quite a bit of callbacks. They had him falling off the dam for Brother from Another Series, and his appearance in the seat reminded me of The Italian Bob. You know, considering the callbacks, could Sideshow Bob be the character they're killing off next year? He is an Emmy winning character.

 

[UberTag]

The face falling off was a callback too. To the terrible, terrible The Bob Next Door. It had quite a bit of callbacks. They had him falling off the dam for Brother from Another Series, and his appearance in the seat reminded me of The Italian Bob. You know, considering the callbacks, could Sideshow Bob be the character they're killing off next year? He is an Emmy winning character.

They've already confirmed they're not killing off Sideshow Bob.
Smart money is on Rabbi Krustofsky again.

 

[Joni]

The A-plot was really weak this time, but I liked The Warriors parody and the fact they brought back Nelson's friends.

 

[UberTag]

The A-plot was really weak this time, but I liked The Warriors parody and the fact they brought back Nelson's friends.

The Warriors parody was parody for the sake of parody (it's not like they did anything with it; nor was it funny) and bringing back the Weasel kids from Bart the General was blatant nostalgia pandering. Same reason they had Danny DeVito voice Herb for an answering machine message in The Changing of the Guardian and Mr. Bergstrom appear out of nowhere in The Kid Is All Right.

The last two episodes have been all kinds of awful. Hoping for that trend to reverse next weekend. I'm optimistic because it's a Selman showrun episode featuring the Van Houtens.

 

[Joni]

There was indeed no good reason for the parody, but I still liked the parody itself.

Did I also see a small nod to Community, or was the air conditioning repair course just something random?

 

[UberTag]

Here's a quick look at the episodes that will air over the next three weeks...

UPCOMING EPISODES

YOU DON'T HAVE TO LIVE LIKE A REFEREE - Sunday, March 30th

Homer is recruited as a World Cup referee after Lisa extolls his integrity on the youth soccer field in a Springfield Elementary speech contest. But when the Simpsons travel to Brazil, Homer finds his honesty tested by one of South America's slickest gangsters in the soccer match-bribing business.

LUCA$ - Sunday, April 6th

Marge is concerned that Lisa is dating below her station when she brings home competitive eater-in-training Lucas Bortner (guest voice Zach Galifianakis), and she enlists Homer to help Lisa explore other options. Meanwhile, Bart is thrilled to receive free gifts from Snake Jailbird after he helps the convict escape from a jam, but when a betrayal from Milhouse puts Snake back in jail, Bart must forge a plan to set him free.

DAYS OF FUTURE FUTURE - Sunday, April 13th

Set in the future, Homer has a new clone for every time he dies. Lisa is married to a zombie version of Milhouse, while Bart deals with custody issues with his ex-wife, Jenda. Each defines what love means to them.

 

[Ahasverus]

The Brasil episode and the Days o Future Future (lol) look like garbage. Intrigued by the others.

 

[TheOddOne]

Days of Future was actually decent and at the same time totally weird. Felt like something out of Treehouse of Horror.

Also, there is a lego episode coming up?

 

[UberTag]

Days of Future was actually decent and at the same time totally weird. Felt like something out of Treehouse of Horror.

Also, there is a lego episode coming up?

You'll note from my episode rating in the OP that I was none too impressed with Days of Future Future. It was zany for the sake of being zany without any of the humor or character affection. Even most Treehouse of Horror episodes know better than to make Lisa a necrophiliac, have Bart participate in clown orgies while his father watches from a screensaver and have Marge kill herself so she can join Homer on a flash drive.

Conversely, I have high expectations for the Lego episode. It's a Selman ep and the concept boasts a ton of potential if they treat it right.

 

[TheOddOne]

You'll note from my episode rating in the OP that I was none too impressed with Days of Future Future. It was zany for the sake of being zany without any of the humor or character affection. Even most Treehouse of Horror episodes know better than to make Lisa a necrophiliac, have Bart participate in clown orgies while his father watches from a screensaver and have Marge kill herself so she can join Homer on a flash drive.

Oh god, describing it just shows have bizarre it is. Oh Simpsons, how far have you fallen.

 

[Joni]

What is the latest opening a parody of?

 

[UberTag]

What is the latest opening a parody of?

According to this article, it's not really supposed to be a parody of anything in particular.

It's more like an homage to a short film that polish animator Michal Socha released when he made his mark on the industry back in 2009 that he was able to revisit here with a Simpsony twist.

 

[The Real Abed]

Well I'm sure I don't need to mention that today is 20 years since Bart told Marge that no one would be laughing at things they did 20 years later.

Sad thing is I can't tell if he was right or not.

 

[UberTag]

I still laugh at the show all the time. I've watched (and laughed at) a bunch of classic era episodes over the past day.
And, based on my episode ratings in the OP, I've even found some eps from this season that have been passably decent.

 

[The Lamonster]

Yep, while seasons 3-8 are the sweet spot, season 25 is far from the worst season. I still chuckle at least few times each episode.

And this is kind of off-topic, but I think one element that may have even improved is the artwork in the recent seasons. Not necessarily the animation but some of the backgrounds and character design have been fantastic, especially now that it's in HD.

 

[Joni]

I laughed a couple of times with todays episode.

According to this article, it's not really supposed to be a parody of anything in particular.

 

[UberTag]

And this is kind of off-topic, but I think one element that may have even improved is the artwork in the recent seasons. Not necessarily the animation but some of the backgrounds and character design have been fantastic, especially now that it's in HD.

I agree with you wholeheartedly on this point.
I didn't much care for the writing in last night's episode but it looked gorgeous thanks to Matthew Nastuk's animation direction.
Certain directors really bring out the sparkle in HD Simpsons.

Most detractors will never acknowledge this as they'll just point to Marge's lifeless eyes at the checkout counter in the new opening and assume all of the artwork is half-assed now.
I would just like to see more consistency in direction than anything.

 

[Toadette]

I still chuckle at least few times each episode.

same here i like the simpsons people always pick on it

 

[The Lamonster]

I totally forgot until just now but that Duffman ending to last night's episode was amazing.

Need more of that kind of goofy stuff in new Simpsons.

 

[UberTag]

Season 25 is almost done. Here are the premises for the final 3 episodes of the season...

UPCOMING EPISODES

BRICK LIKE ME - Sunday, May 4th

Homer wakes up in a world where his family and everyone in Springfield are made of Legos. Can he "put together" how he got there, and figure out how to get home before he's stuck in a world of bricks forever?

PAY PAL - Sunday, May 11th

Marge swears off befriending any more couples when Homer offends their charming new British neighbors. But when Lisa declares that she, too, doesn't need friends, Marge reconsiders.

THE YELLOW BADGE OF COWARDGE - Sunday, May 18th

Bart is plagued with guilt when he wins the annual “last day of school” race around Springfield Elementary, with an assist from Nelson (Nancy Cartwright), who beats up front-runner Milhouse (guest voice Pamela Hayden). Meanwhile, Homer tries to bring back the annual 4th of July fireworks display after it’s canceled for budget reasons.

 

[UberTag]

Because I have a strong suspicion this weekend's episode is going to wind up being something special, I want to hype it up a bit more then usual.

So here we go...

'Brick Like Me' Episode Trailer
Animation Domination Promo #1 - The Simpsons Go LEGO This Sunday!
Animation Domination Promo #2 - It's an Un-Brickin' Believable Night of All-New Animation Domination
Clip #1 - There's Something Different
Clip #2 - Nothing Can Go Wrong in Homer's Playground
Clip #3 - Springfield Elementary Collapses, Brick-by-Brick

 

[The Real Abed]

I'm avoiding spoilers. But I'm looking forward to this episode.

 

[Joni]

The LEGO episode reminded me of Community. Personal crisis leads to someone thinking he is in a toy world and being confronted with the actual world.

 

[Ahasverus]

Great episode. The last 3 seasons or so have produced quality episodes, I'm thankful for that.

 

[Toadette]

loved the hole homer saying i was in a world where everything is Lego and i learned to be a better parent and Lisa saying wasn't that the plot to the lego and homer interrupts her while Emmett & Lucy are in the background lol

 

[Joni]

Ned Flanders has fallen very far.

 

[ЯAW]

Wasn't important character besides Edna supposed to die this season? So, is somebody going to day next sunday?

 

[UberTag]

Wasn't some important character besides Edna die this season? So, is somebody going to day next sunday?

The much-talked about character death is supposed to take place during the Season 26 premiere.
Expect this week's finale to be your run-of-the-mill unfunny retread.
Ian Maxtone-Graham and Billy Kimball (both in their mid-50s) only excel at writing format bender episodes like 24 Minutes and Gone Maggie Gone.
This isn't one of those.