The Simpsons - "Mona Leaves-a" - Talkback [5/11]

[Space Cadet]

http://library.toonzone.net/talkbacks/fox.jpg


Premieres: May 11th at 8:00 PM Eastern

Writer: Joel H. Cohen
Director: Mike B. Anderson

Here's the synopsis for this episode:


When Homer mother, Mona, returns, he is reluctant to trust her for leaving him so many times as a child.

[btv]

I'm praying, PRAYING the writers don't ruin what could be one of the most emotional episodes of The Simpsons ever.

[Desensitized]

I'm praying, PRAYING the writers don't ruin what could be one of the most emotional episodes of The Simpsons ever.You said it before I could.

This will be compared to 'Death Picks Cotton', so it has a lot to live up to.

[DarthGonzo]

Wait...another Mona Simpson episode?

They raped the integrity of the original "Mother Simpson" episode the last time they felt compelled to bring Homer's mom back. Why oh why are they bringing her back again.

Bah.

[Space Cadet]

Wait...another Mona Simpson episode?

They raped the integrity of the original "Mother Simpson" episode the last time they felt compelled to bring Homer's mom back. Why oh why are they bringing her back again.

Bah.

Yet, we'll have to watch just to see how this will turn out.;):p

[Darklordavaitor]

This will be compared to 'Death Picks Cotton', so it has a lot to live up to.
Indeed it shall.

[Dub]

Oh wow.

Ending of the first act was....awesome. Here's hoping they don't ruin it.

[Dudley]

Well, her death was pretty sad.

[garfield15]

Ohnononononono. Please please don't let this happen. I really don't want Homer's mom dead. Not like that.

[ShadowGUN]

Nooooo. I like Grandma Simpson:crying: :crying: .

[Dub]

"What a surprise~ Joe Jesus Junior is gonna set us all straight!" LOL

[Djm912]

Can I just saw that I loved Maggie's nod after Marge's story. :anime:

[Dudley]

Ohnononononono. Please please don't let this happen. I really don't want Homer's mom dead. Not like that.

How did you want her to die?

[Movie06]

A missile launch? That was unexpected.

[Desensitized]

That was handled surprisingly well. I'm just sort of disappointed they didn't use Hank Scorpio or something for the missile silo part.

[Mr. Ralph]

alright, admit it: who else cried?:crying:

[Dudley]

Who was the episode in memory of?

[Jolly Bengali]

How did you want her to die?

At least she didn't die by getting knocked over by T-shirt-firing guns.

[NewcomerDC]

Anyone see the end? If Elsie Castellaneta is who I think it is, I believe Homer's mom died in real life and this episode was made in her honor.

[creativerealms]

Not bad at all, much better then Grandma Simpson's last episode. Not as good as "Death Picks Cotton" but one of the more successful emotional Simpsons episodes in a long timer. A good way to get rid of a very good character that should not be used too much.

[NewcomerDC]

Who was the episode in memory of?
The first person I believe is the mother of the voice actor of Homer.

[zoombie]

She survives being in a runaway pattywagon in the last episode, but dies just sitting on a sofa. That is sort of ironic.

But I loved that she wanted to stop a nuclear missle with her ases, that was so cool.

[ShadowGUN]

Not bad. Love the way Homer use the cement brink to take out the guards.
The montage at the end was sweet. I gonna miss Grandma Simpson.

So Grandma Simpson will what 7th recurring charactert that die. Let see Maude Flanders, Amber Simpson( Homer vegas wife), Snowball II(The original), Bleeding Gum Murphy, Dr Nick and Marge's dad. I'm missing anyone?

[Game Freak 4]

Not bad. Love the way Homer use the cement brink to take out the guards.
The montage at the end was sweet. I gonna miss Grandma Simpson.

So Grandma Simpson will what 7th recurring charactert that die. Let see Maude Flanders, Amber Simpson( Homer vegas wife), Snowball II(The original), Bleeding Gum Murphy, Dr Nick and Marge's dad. I'm missing anyone?
When did Dr. Nick Reveria die?

[Desensitized]

When did Dr. Nick Reveria die?
In the movie.Though I suppose he could be brought back.

[DarthGonzo]

Gil also died in a recent episode.

[Master Moron]

Not bad. Love the way Homer use the cement brink to take out the guards.
The montage at the end was sweet. I gonna miss Grandma Simpson.

So Grandma Simpson will what 7th recurring charactert that die. Let see Maude Flanders, Amber Simpson( Homer vegas wife), Snowball II(The original), Bleeding Gum Murphy, Dr Nick and Marge's dad. I'm missing anyone?

Who is Marge's dad? For some reason I can't remember him.


Gil also died in a recent episode.

When did Gil die? It sounds familiar, but I can't recall.

[Desensitized]

Who is Marge's dad? For some reason I can't remember him.We've barely seen him. "Fear Of Flying" and "The Way We Were", are really the only episodes that hint at his character.

An episode that deals with Marge's family would be nice.

[warnerbroman]

When did Gil die? It sounds familiar, but I can't recall. he died by going nuts and electricuting hi,self to oneup homer

[DarthGonzo]

he died by going nuts and electricuting hi,self to oneup homer

That wasn't Gil. That was Frank Grimes.

Gil died within the last season or so. But I can't remember which episode.

And Scratchy dies all the time. ;)

[SirLemming]

Not a total disgrace, but still pretty ho-hum. I found the story just wasn't told very well, for two major reasons. First of all, it seemed like Mona interacted only with Homer in the entire first act, and not with the rest of the family. We can presume that this happened offscreen, but the story just didn't feel complete. It's probably due to how much they had to cram into the episode. The other area where they faltered was in not showing anything about the family finding out that Homer had been captured. Again, we can sort of presume that they noticed he hadn't come down yet and then figured out where he was, but then again, we can presume a lot about the plot if we really want to. It's a lot more fun to actually see it, though.

[btv]

My hopes were so high for this episode. I told myself while waiting the whole week for it "Please don't let the writers screw this up." And after watching it... I dunno how to feel. http://nohomers.net/images/smilies/ashamed.gif

Let me be frank. I liked how the first act ended, but hated how they played the death off. I enjoyed evil Burns (because old Burns... we have enough old characters on the show), but I didn't like how it was just a very played-out predictable scheme. The video will was fine, but it didn't have the poignancy that I was expecting from it. Like I said... I don't know how to feel about this.

Mona is/was one of the only Simpsons characters to really deserve a well made emotional send off if/when it ever did occur. This episode should have played off more as a Bleeding Gums Murphy sort of episode then a Homer espionage episode. How they could have fixed this is simple: ax the mall opening, chop off the slapped together montage at the end, and have it just focusing on Homer and his mother's death. King of the Hill did this amazingly well, and I guess I was expecting The Simpsons to follow in kind of the same trend (except without the negativity of the character, of course).

However... nothing ever plays out like you want it to. I'm not a writer, so I don't know how the process goes. But what I do know is, when you have a character with such presence in a series that has been the subject of many special, emotional-based episodes, you don't send her off with a whimper when it comes time for the character to die. Don't get me wrong - the 1st act break was fine, but how it all went about before and afterwards was disappointing. I was expecting it to come back focusing on Homer dealing with the death, but instead it went off in a completely different way. http://nohomers.net/images/smilies/sad.gif

So I don't know what to rate the episode. Part of me says B, but I know that's too generous. However... it seemed like a good episode. I don't know.

[Classic Speedy]

Did they say what Mona died from?

Anyway, the episode was going OK until the missile silo stuff. Why was this in an episode about Mona's death? It felt incredibly out of place.

[sdp]

It wasn't bad but it was not great either, I've only watched the first grandma simpson episode so maybe my opinion would be different.

I didn't understand why Homer was upset if he was happy at the end of her first appearance but I guess if she came back in another episode it makes the first act a lot better since he actually has a reason to be "mad".


How is Amber Simpson a re-curring character? Wasn't she only in one episode?

You forgot to mention Dr. Monroe, though he never died in any episode he was mentioned as dead in a special. Also Frank Grimes is a re-curring character I guess since his son who is thought to be him appears in another episode. I guess Snowball I, III and IV don't count? And Mole Man has "died" on various episodes but I guess not really permanent.

[Jolly Bengali]

I thought this was a pointless episode. The montage at the end was OK, and the first act break was pretty sad, but otherwise, Mona's death just seemed like an excuse to setup a lame Bond parody. Also, the voice acting was really noticably weak tonight; it feels like a lot of jokes are ruined by delivery that's off (such as the Kwik-E-Mart scene).

It was quite a disappointment after the superior My Mother the Carjacker, which actually added some depth to Homer and Mona's relationship and was also one of the funniest episodes of the Jean era.

[ToOn~g@l]

For some reason, Homer spreading his mothers ashes reminded me of the movie Elizabethtown where Orlando Bloom's character did that same thing with his dad. It was a good episode too, not as emmotional as it should have been but still a good episode. I'm also kind of surprised that Grampa outlived her, she seemed more healthy than him.

[Master Moron]

That wasn't Gil. That was Frank Grimes.

Gil died within the last season or so. But I can't remember which episode.


How did he die?


};2864929']It wasn't bad but it was not great either, I've only watched the first grandma simpson episode so maybe my opinion would be different.

I didn't understand why Homer was upset if he was happy at the end of her first appearance but I guess if she came back in another episode it makes the first act a lot better since he actually has a reason to be "mad".


How is Amber Simpson a re-curring character? Wasn't she only in one episode?

You forgot to mention Dr. Monroe, though he never died in any episode he was mentioned as dead in a special. Also Frank Grimes is a re-curring character I guess since his son who is thought to be him appears in another episode. I guess Snowball I, III and IV don't count? And Mole Man has "died" on various episodes but I guess not really permanent.

Dr. Marvin Monroe came back a few seasons ago. Marge mentioned that she thoguht he was dead and he replied that he was only ill. Though, we haven't seen him since.

[Classic Speedy]

Gil was shot during a bank robbery in "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings". Poor guy could never get a break; it was his first day on the job, he was finally happy, and BAM, bad luck comes crashing into him again.

[nakak]

Gil was shot during a bank robbery in "I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings". Poor guy could never get a break; it was his first day on the job, he was finally happy, and BAM, bad luck comes crashing into him again.
Gil survived the shooting. He was seen again in "Funeral for a Fiend" as one of the juries.

[HEATXZ]

It was a good episode
I like the part when Homer beats up the stuff hippos

[dth1971]

R.I.P. Mona Simpson.

As for the episode: I even liked the appearance of Lance Armstrong in the ESPY Awards and the Build-a-Bear Workshop parody.

[Classic Speedy]

Gil survived the shooting. He was seen again in "Funeral for a Fiend" as one of the juries. Technically, I never said Gil died. I just said he was shot. ;)

Though I forget, did he have any speaking lines in "Fiend"?

[The Irishman]

It was an all-right episode. The gravity of the storyline was undermined by the whole evil-scheme idea, which by the way, has nothing, nothing on 'You Only Move Twice'. Overall, there were a few funny jokes, but The Simpsons was the weakest link of the evening for me :(

7.5/10

[Undrave]

The ad really shouldn't have spoiled Mona's death ><

I dunno but it didn't feel very emotionnal to me... I think the transition between the house and funeral home was WAY too quick.

I did like the Kwik-E-Mart scene...

"That's the thing with your religion, it is such a downer!"

[Neo Ultra Mike]

You know we've had a lot of attempted Death Cheats this season. Off the top of my head, we've thought Milhouse's parents bit it in "Little Orphan Millie", Sideshow Bob kicked the bucket in "Funreal for A Fiend" and that Martin was no more in "Dial "N" For Nerder". Or rather we would of if it weren't obvious those deaths would just be fake and the characters would come back in some really implausible way. The same could of been though for Mother Simpson. Espically since she's a character whose thrived on Death cheats. Homer thought she was dead for the longest time, she thought Homer was dead in the beginning of "Mother Simpson", she faked her death in her last episode to save her son and herself and as Homer himself noted kind of has a habit of disappearing a bit too much on him. This time though she actually did die for good. Yeah there were implauibitiles behind it (the exact way she died, her last request as talked about later on) but it actually happened beieve it or not. They even had an ending montage of all of her most important scenes in the series just to drive in the point that she's gone. It's kind of sad since she was a nice character but since we really don't know much about her besides being a good mom with a hippie side we really didn't get much of a chance to connect.

Still seeing Homer sort of see through his grief about the entire think was nice, from the actual jokeless act break (I was hoping for at least one of those if this was going to be a somewhat serious ep) and fufilling her last wish. So at least if he dosen't have closure on anything else he at least has it with his mother. Still though it could of been handled better. I mean really did we need an entire missle plot for the family to solve? Hell did we even need the other Simpsons there? Couldn't it have been More Homer reflection on his mom, or would that have gotten in the way of trying to fit in another Bond movie refrence into the show. (At the very least, couldn't they of made it Scorpio, not Burns who was behind this? Or would getting Al Brooks have cancelled out Glenn Close's preformence or something?). So I couldn't really care anything about that plot besides Homer's cinderblock weapon and there being only 10 guards. There were some good moments otherwise in the ep though: Moe giving disappointment to passing by attempt at parkers (though that lasted too long really), the build e bear parody store (mainly for Bart's prank and for once there NOT being a video there for the family to watch), Homer eating the entire pie while being annoyed with Mona, Lenny's mom liking Carl more (I think a joke in another ep said they had the same mom but glad to see that wasn't true), the video will (mainly for Bart rubbing his gift in Lisa's face), and the already mentioned ending montage. In short they could of done a better ending ep for Mona but nothing too terrible (even if the missle stuff wasn't that good... at all) and at least she went out on a decent ep unlike say "Husband And Knives" which probably would of turned Homer wanting to reconnect with Mona into Homer trying to reconnect with Marge for some stupid reason.

[simpspin]

I really can't stand how the modern Simpsons gets credit for trying to be something. It tried to be emotional, so that makes it emotional....It tried to be funny, so it's funny. Meh... :sad:

Mona Leaves-A tried, and failed miserably at being that sad send off, but instead was a lame Bond/Scorpio parody. It's almost seemed like the last clip of scenes was added so the audience would remember the whole point of the episode. At times I wonder if the writers even know what show they're writing for and more importantly...do they even care anymore?

[SirLemming]

The more I think about it, the less the final act makes sense. The episode easily could've been done without the James Bond caper, which didn't really feel true to The Simpsons and also didn't add anything to the core story. Why couldn't spreading the ashes be the end of the episode? Homer's motivation after that point was confusing. I'm still not sure why he was upset, and I'm not sure why he became un-upset either. It certainly wasn't very interesting and could have been left out, leaving more room for the more important storyline.

[Swordfish_II]

Save stuff like this for Futurama. They know how to make it work.