5/2 - R & R: The Simpsons - "Simple Simpson"

[NeueZielZeon]

Homer decides to become a superhero named "Pie Man". Bart becomes his sidekick.


Looks like there's going to be ample time for various comic book/superhero parodies in this episode, judging from the promos. Lets hope it's some sort of biting satire on the superhero industry and not just a bunch of wacky stuff that happens.

[Space Cadet]

I don't have high hopes for this episode, but I'll watch. It's written by Jon Vitti, so it could be good.

[stewiegrifin]

its wierd i see all these posts on how people bash these last few seasons but its funny how the simpsons still draws millions of people each week... this episode looks ok but i never really sat down for a new simpsons episode since the one where homer turned into a warrior robot for bart

[Killtacular]

That was the most idiotic parody of Spiderman I've ever seen.

Jesus, Vitti, what the hell happened between The Critic and The Simpsons that made you so god damned unfunny? OH MAN A PARODY OF THE KISSING SCENE, THAT'S NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!

GOOD MATERIAL:
Argument between Wiggum and Lou over Lou's accuracy

BAD MATERIAL:
EVERYTHING ELSE

STOLEN MATERIAL:
American patriot music just an act to sell records - South Park
Several Alf Claussean musical stings - The Critic

[SirLemming]

ACT 1:
This episode started stronger than most. Lots of laughs. "Promiscuous Idiots Island" was great, from the name of the show to the well-timed rock-throwing to the peninsula revelation. And then there was the subsequent comment about FOX. The bacon commercial was funny for many reasons, but my favorite part was Ralph inexplicably being on the pig conveyor belt.

ACT 2:
I see, so it's actually a parody of the Spider-Man movie. Aside from the gags about Homer's secret identity that seem a bit recycled from "The Computer Wore Menace Shoes" (Mr. X), this is turning out to be a surprisingly good episode. The fact that it's done parody-style makes the wacky adventure work, since it doesn't seem like it's supposed to be part of reality.
Funniest part: "No, I am not your father! I... murdered your father!"

ACT 3:
...not so good. And recycled from "Homer vs. Dignity", with Mr. Burns forcing Homer to do something he doesn't want to. Clearly the weakest act.


All in all, I thought this episode was going to be a train wreck, but surprisingly, I think it was one of the funniest of the season. The third act brought it down, but overall it "felt" really good. Unfortunately, it doesn't tell us anything about future episodes, since they couldn't get away with most of the funny stuff in the second act in a normal episode.

[Fett One]

This was a decent episode. I really liked the ending because nobody believed him.

[CryptiniteDemon]

I really liked this ep. Laughed all the way through it. A+ this week.

[Japanbird]

That was the most idiotic parody of Spiderman I've ever seen.

Jesus, Vitti, what the hell happened between The Critic and The Simpsons that made you so god damned unfunny? OH MAN A PARODY OF THE KISSING SCENE, THAT'S NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE LOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!

GOOD MATERIAL:
Argument between Wiggum and Lou over Lou's accuracy

BAD MATERIAL:
EVERYTHING ELSE

STOLEN MATERIAL:
American patriot music just an act to sell records - South Park
Several Alf Claussean musical stings - The Critic

God. You are an idiot.

We're all sick of you. Die.

[Japanbat]

Mr. Wilson, I could count how many times you ripped off Aqua Teen Hunger Force in your 'cartoon' High Score. But I've decided not to waste 36 hours of my life that way.
I liked the episode. Good stuff.

[Simpler Simon]

Yeah the 3rd act was weakened by recycling the Homer vs. Diginity idea, but the ending with nobody believing Homer was Pieman and the appearance of "Cupcake Kid" brought it back. Not as many parodies as I'd thought there'd be (Milhouse's comic books aside) but at least the story stayed consistent.

EDIT: Oh, yea the pie tin was signed Simple Simon :D

[DSRGirl]

There are 3 Simpsons


Simpsons One. (Seasons 1-8).

Simpsons Two. (Seasons 9-13)

Simpsons Three (Seasons 14+).

Simpsons One are the Classic episodes most everyone enjoyed, that balanced Simple plots, funny jokes and emotional moments all in one. There were some misses, but for the most part, it was a success and everyone who watched it enjoyed it. Guest characters were used, but served some sort of purpose as themselves or another character.

Simpsons Two took away the emotion and character development from the episodes and put the Family in zany comedic adventures that didn't have to make much sense. The plots were simple, and were classified as having a disjointed beginning with are a fairly forgettable (if not horrible) ending. The hottest celebrities were brought in to make someone say "Look there's So and So" for about a minute or so.

Simpson Three tried to put back in emotion and the drama from Simpsons One, and also complicated the stories a lot, making them far to confusing and weird to even enjoy that much. While there are no real horrible episodes, there are few good ones. Simpsons Three also has incredibley outdated humor generally, and gives little about continuity or trying to change the status quo. The celebrity guests were lesser known and usually only had one or two lines. Hell, even the freakin creator of the show was reduced to that.


"Simple Simpsons" is a good Simpsons Three episode. There's an attempt at emotion (Homer choosing between continuing to be Pieman even though it's against Lisa's wishes) but still has those complicated plot problems. (The plot goes from Homer trying to win a golden ticket to go to a bacon factory to judging a pig competition to pieing the Rich Texan to becoming a Superhero to being forced to work for Monty Burns to the ending). The outdated humor in this sense is a "Spiderman" Parody. You know, the two year old movie. Then again, Shrek 2 is also going to parody Spiderman at least in one scene, so I guess animation (that isn't South Park) is usually behind the times. The only real continuity mentioned was that Lisa is still a Buddhist. None was really broken (more so then usual) but the episode did succumb to the "bring a celebrity in for 30 second" joke. In this case, it was Nicole Nicholas, who had an ACTUAL purpose when she guest starred in Futurama (in "Anthology Of Intrest One" and "Where No Fan Has Gone Before"). You can't say the same here can ya? Addmitngly, there were some funny jokes (like say Nelson introducing Milhouse to Fist Face, or Bart being the Cupcake Kid, or Marge saying only an idiot wouldn't know that Homer was Pie Man) but is that what's the Simpsons have come down to? A few jokes we can laugh at each weak and then cringe or meh at the other ones. Looks to be that.

[Killtacular]

Mr. Wilson, I could count how many times you ripped off Aqua Teen Hunger Force in your 'cartoon' High Score. But I've decided not to waste 36 hours of my life that way.
There's only 73 minutes of Bonus Stage material, actually.

[NeueZielZeon]

Wow, I know it's commonplace at Toon Zone that Matt Wilson's opinions are not shared by all, but just...wow. No offense, but I wouldn't badmouth a mod, no matter how different his opinion is compared to your own.

[SirLemming]

Mr. Wilson, I could count how many times you ripped off Aqua Teen Hunger Force in your 'cartoon' High Score. But I've decided not to waste 36 hours of my life that way.
I liked the episode. Good stuff.Whoa. Stop right there.

Or at least go to PMs.

We don't need to start that argument.
(And besides, I strongly disagree, aside from the Blue & Red guy in Bonus Stage, which Matt more or less owned up to in "Character 2".)

[Team Joker]

I imagine many of the people complaining were just looking for mistakes, gaffes, and so on. There were so many "next week is going to suck" posts last week. I rather enjoyed this episode, and I've been disgusted with my fair share of episodes a couple seasons ago. Well, a few at least.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this episode, and I think if those determined to hate it would let themselves, then they would like it, too. Or at least not find the "worst [some aspect] ever" in every episode.

[Japanbird]

What? Is this the third reich, or something? It's not like I give a **** if I get kicked off this board anyway. Wilson needs to be taken down a few pegs.

[Delthayre]

Sometimes I think about writing a satire about a future where no one is allowed to have an opinion that isn't universally positive, but then I decide against it becase we seem to be too near to the day when people will regard that as a utopia.

[Japanbird]

I dream of a world where people's opinions aren't universally negative too. Weeks before something airs. Especially when they are human wastelands parading themselves around as "animators".

[Japanbat]

Much of Bonus Stage seems to be similar to ATHF, from forced cameos from the Mooninites and the Plutonians. Not to mention similar in tone. They're similar, except in quality.
Matt Wilson's faux Warren Ellisian posting style is frankly grating and idiotic.

[livingfruitvirus]

What? Is this the third reich, or something? It's not like I give a **** if I get kicked off this board anyway. Wilson needs to be taken down a few pegs.
i thought it was pies

[SirLemming]

What? Is this the third reich, or something? It's not like I give a **** if I get kicked off this board anyway. Wilson needs to be taken down a few pegs.You mean a few pies?
EDIT: Curse you, LFV.

And Japanbird, you might want to stop double-posting, but more importantly, you really need to stop in general. Don't give us some crap about utopia and free speech. This is a thread for Simpsons talkback.

[Allen's Nickname.]

What? Is this the third reich, or something?You should use something more obscure. Like: "WHAT IS THIS OCEANIA OR SOMETHING?"

[The Landstander]

:evil:

Matt Wilson vs. Japan

WHO WILL WINS?

:evil:

On a side note, I missed the episode. =(

[DSRGirl]

Originally Posted By JapanBird
Much of Bonus Stage seems to be similar to ATHF, from forced cameos from the Mooninites and the Plutonians. Not to mention similar in tone. They're similar, except in quality.
Originally Posted By Matt Wilson When Bonus Stage First Came Out

Purposefully-limited animation with geometric designs, and adopting influences from ATHF and H*R, while still keeping the High Score feel and character relationships. I think you'll get the idea.Sure there's influnces, but Bonus Stage and ATHF are very different. A joke or two does not mean it's a ripoff.


i thought it was piesOR IS IT?!!!!

Yes it is.

[Japanbat]

Yeah, ATHF is funn--nah, won't go there.

[NeueZielZeon]

Anyways, I came out of this episode pleasantly surprised, like many episode this season that seemed to have unapealing premises. I'll admit, it wasn't clever in the least, but it was still humorous. Wiggum continues his streak of greatness this season (with the great argument with Lou about accuracy), seeing Burns evil is always a good thing, and Homer's attempt at clever puns while delivering his pie-based justice ("I ran out of pie-related puns!" :splat: ). Plus, a shot against FOX is always good, no matter how obvious it is, and I found even more humorous that the "promiscuous idiots" line was featured hot on the heels of the aftermath of the strike.

Grade: B+

[Japanbird]

You mean a few pies?
EDIT: Curse you, LFV.

And Japanbird, you might want to stop double-posting, but more importantly, you really need to stop in general. Don't give us some crap about utopia and free speech. This is a thread for Simpsons talkback.
I sure did bring those subject up!

You people disgust me.

[Japanbird]

Also, I love the part where I double posted.


BECAUSE I DIDN'T.


Idiots. I swear to God...

[Japanbat]

YOU JUST DID

BTW: Family Guy rules.

[Japanbird]

It Sure Isn"t Derivitive Of The Simpsons!

Also, That Episode Where The Family Becomes Superheoroes?! Brilliant Satire!

[HumanWormbaby]

Stop pretending you're two different people.

I didn't catch this episode, but my brother told me it was pretty mediocre.

[Japanbat]

Differing IP addresses! They're not just for breakfast anymore!

[Japanbird]

What he said.

Also, your brother sucks cock!

LOOK! I AM BEING CUTTING EDGE! LIKE WILSON IS! LOVE ME!

[Delthayre]

I'm definitely in the camp that thought that it started out respectably but declined thereafter. Some of the initial characterization was fairly apt, but it muddled apart as things went on. The recycled "emotional" conflict was an unwelcome mistake on Viti's part and I really could have done without the Dalai Lama flying off as he did. Oddly enough, that was almost predictable.



You people disgust me.Please write a twelve-page APA format paper on the subject.

I also suggest you reconcile the two halves of your personality. There's no point in having more than one if they're really just two esentially identical ways to repeat the same exhausted rhetoric.

[Team Joker]

Everyone's being a bit too extreme here.

1) People are determined to hate Simpsons.
a) They are resistant to change.
b) They do not want to admit that something is happening to at least
partially invalidate their conclusions.

2) People like categorizing and quantifying, to often foolish ends.
a) Everyone grades everything. C+!
b) People create artificial phyla in which to insert things.
"Simpsons 1, 2, 3"? With specific cutoffs? Whee!

3) Wilson's use of ATHF influences goes far beyond one or two jokes.

4) Simpsons is not as bad as most people seem convinced it is.

5) I was trying to assess this all rationally. I had trouble.

[stewiegrifin]

funny how quickly you all reply on the simpson talkback threads

[Spider-Man]

Japanbat and Japanbird - please, if you got complaints, air them in the Feedbacks & Suggestions forum instead of trying to laughably pick on a poster in public. Yes, I do agree his "High Score" stuff is pretty crappy, but take it elsewhere. I'm no mod, but I find this really annoying. We're here to talk about the new Simpsons episode.

As for the episode, I thought it wasn't too bad. I haven't been enjoying The Simpsons too much lately, but this episode had a bit of charm to it. Aside from that dated spoof of Spider-Man (don't know how man times I've seen that), this episode had some good laughs in it. Wiggum was pretty good in this episode, and I found the mock comic titles hilarious. I got a big kick out of "The Fantastic Floor" and "The Green Listener."

[Japanbat]

"exhausted rhetoric"?
There are others who dislike Wilson? All these years I thought I was relatively alone.

[Japanbird]

I also suggest you reconcile the two halves of your personality. There's no point in having more than one if they're really just two esentially identical ways to repeat the same exhaused rhetoric.
That could be, quite possibly, the most unintentionally ironic thing I have ever read.

[Matthew Williams]

...why is this still open?

[Matthew Williams]

reopening thread. Please keep all bashing, Simpsons or otherwise, to a civilian level.

(and ATHF influences are bad because...?)

[Delthayre]

That could be, quite possibly, the most unintentionally ironic thing I have ever read.
No, the most unintentionally ironic thing you could read is the diary of a cow who suffers from that "unable to form permanent memories" disease that's been popular since Memento came out and thus cannot remember that the steaks he so loves so dearly are beef and that he is a dirty cannibal.

This is fun now, I need to stop.

[DSRGirl]

(and ATHF influences are bad because...?)
... eh, I got nothing.

On a Simpsons related joke, after the Family watched the reality show, Homer said something like "once a network signs your rights, they can embarass you all they want" or something like that. Was that a joke against the network? I think it was.

[Proto DUDE]

I laughed harder at the Spicy Chicken Burger commercial that came on during the second Simpson's commercial break between Act 1 and Act 2 than I did at any point during the episode at hand. Messed up plot, terrible jokes, and rehashes. I'll admit that this is better than last week's episode, because I actually chuckled at some point.

[Peter Paltridge]

You really needed to turn your brain off to enjoy this one, and I shouldn't have to turn my brain off when I watch The Simpsons. The first act was great, and the county fair jokes felt like the show in its prime(really, county fairs needed a good ribbing).

After Homer becomes Pieman, the Spider-Man references weren't that funny, just there. "Let's mention this because it's a famous scene." Okay....your point is?

[Animelee]

Why is everyone so upset about the Spider-man parody? It's a very popular scene, and it's most probably going to be spoofed by various shows for years to come, so who cares? Anyways, the first two acts were great, but as soon as Mr.Burns found Homer on his couch, it went downhill, and it only started to pick up at the Dalai Lama scene. A pretty good episode to me, but not as good as Jon Vitti could've done.

[lostrune]

Plus, a shot against FOX is always good, no matter how obvious it is, and I found even more humorous that the "promiscuous idiots" line was featured hot on the heels of the aftermath of the strike.

Not only a shot on Fox, but they also took a shot at how commercials pay for the shows and people who complain about it. :D

Episode started out hot but became cooler as it went on....

[simpspin]

Why is everyone so upset about the Spider-man parody? It was blatently obvious. I'm surprised the writers didn't include some other overdone material, like Bullet time, or Bart going 'whussssssup!' to Pieman, too. As for the episode, it was pretty good, but the third act was a descent to the unfunny scenarios of Seasons 10 and 11.


A pretty good episode to me, but not as good as Jon Vitti could've done.I'll say it agian, nowadays the credited writer only comes up with 30 percent, or less of the final script. If an episode rules/sucks, it's a group effort.


You really needed to turn your brain off to enjoy this one, and I shouldn't have to turn my brain off when I watch The Simpsons.Just because the show is popular it doesn't mean you should have to blame yourself for finding reasons to enjoy it.

[DarthGonzo]

Why is Japanbird's horribly offensive reply still up there for all to see?

I swear, some people can't even adhere to simple rules of human conduct.

[Fone Bone]

I love how Krusty got a pie in the face because his "Show has declined slightly in quality over the years". Very self-referential. I liked this episode a lot. Homer being a superhero needed to be done someday. The opening Fox parody was also withering in the best possible way. Neat episode, but I'm not that picky. :shrug: ****.

[candy17]

I was playing on my sister's Gameboy and watched some of this episode and the Blue Collar Workers Tour on Comedy Central. From what I saw, it didn't look that wacky, but the third act kinda sucked. I give it a B.

[SirLemming]

Certainly the Spider-Man parodying was not the best aspect of this episode. The kissing in the rain scene didn't have enough satire in it to be much more than just... "Hey, this scene is like that scene, get it?" The only thing they really did with it was Marge's comment about seeing up his nose. The costume-making scene was a little more clever, although I would've liked to see increasingly absurd things flying across the screen as the montage went on.
But while the Spider-Man parody wasn't all it could have been, it did set up a platform for an enjoyable episode, even though the best gags had nothing to do with the parody itself.


Why is Japanbird's horribly offensive reply still up there for all to see?

I swear, some people can't even adhere to simple rules of human conduct.For some more fun, look near the bottom of page 9 of the "High Score Weekly Updates" thread. Suddenly what happened here will make a little more sense.

[simpspin]

Homer being a superhero needed to be done someday. The opening Fox parody was also withering in the best possible way. Neat episode, but I'm not that picky. :shrug: ****.Homer a superhero was done before in the Simpsons Comics (#28). He thought he could be Radioactive Man and Falloutboy was Leon Kompowski, the guy who thought he was Micheal Jackson from "Stark Raving Dad."

[wrenchien]

that's it. japanwhatsit is not permitted near my house anymore.

not that he never was...

i wonder if homer will be a superhero again? especially in treehouse of terror? would be nice to see them mock hellboy....

[stewiegrifin]

they seem to lose some ideas from the show by putting them in the comics, because if they did eps like the comics ppl would no and pitch a fit :sad:

[Nick K.]

Well, this thread was funnier then Simpsons this week. I liked it though... It had a nice super hero tone to it...

[Spastic Minnow]

I thought it was a generally pleasurable episode. Nothing fantastic. Wish they wouldn't have done the prank-monkey gag again, but it was short lived.

I think my favorite part was Homer running around the plant only to lie on Burns couch.

[Mr. Midnight]

Did this strike anyone else as nothing more than a rip off of Less Than Hero, a Futurama Episode where Fry, Leela, and Bender becomes superheroes?

[Delthayre]

Did this strike anyone else as nothing more than a rip off of Less Than Hero, a Futurama Episode where Fry, Leela, and Bender becomes superheroes?
Not really. There were some shades of it on the fringe, but the circumstances were different enough that, outside of the very basic concept of the premise, they were fairly distinct.

[Bartman3010]

The only time I ever laughed, and it wasnt very hard, was when Homer ran out of puns for his pies when he nailed Burns.

But yeah, lots of overused/rehashed jokes.

But man, lately the 3rd act of episodes this season really kill the show. I still think they air waaay to many commercials. It feels like that the episode is 8 minutes tops. I know Al must be pretty tired from being producer since back in the day, they had less commercial time. But I still feel we're seeing more commercials than actual Simpsons airtime. I really want them to fight to get more time, or even have 2-3 part episodes. Thats what they probably should've done with the Skinner/Edna episode. The only 2 parter this show ever seen was Who Shot Mr. Burns, which was for a contest, and was an end and beginning for a couple of seasons.

Anyway, long story short, these episodes seem to be way too short and missing some plot points that could help the story, I'm sure Matt has enough money that they could fit in 2 or 3 more minutes an act.

[SirLemming]

But man, lately the 3rd act of episodes this season really kill the show. I still think they air waaay to many commercials. It feels like that the episode is 8 minutes tops. I know Al must be pretty tired from being producer since back in the day, they had less commercial time. But I still feel we're seeing more commercials than actual Simpsons airtime. I really want them to fight to get more time, or even have 2-3 part episodes. Thats what they probably should've done with the Skinner/Edna episode. The only 2 parter this show ever seen was Who Shot Mr. Burns, which was for a contest, and was an end and beginning for a couple of seasons.

Anyway, long story short, these episodes seem to be way too short and missing some plot points that could help the story, I'm sure Matt has enough money that they could fit in 2 or 3 more minutes an act.The commercial break between Act 1 & 2 was atrociously long. When they came back it was already 8:15, which of course is supposed to be at the halfway point of the episode, not the 1/3 point. Of course, the third act was short, since it started around 8:25 or so, so... I'm not sure whose fault this was.



I think my favorite part was Homer running around the plant only to lie on Burns couch.Yeah, that could have been straight out of the golden age. Reminds me of that one episode (the one where Marge gets arrested) where Mr. Burns opens his secret chamber that has a long series of industrial-strength, high-security doors, and he unlocks them and at the end of the big door-opening sequence, Homer is somehow inside the chamber, eating a sandwich.

[lostrune]

I thought I remember seeing that opening theme before though... a few weeks ago? :confused:

[Fone Bone]

I thought I remember seeing that opening theme before though... a few weeks ago? :confused:
I knew they were going to use the Batman couch gag. I JUST KNEW IT!