The Simpsons "Tis' The Fiftheenth Season" Talkback (Spoilers)

[DianaGohan]

It's The Simpsons Holiday Special Of Season Number 15. So what's it about? Calm down, I'll tell you.

Homer is given a Joe DiMaggio rookie card by Mr. Burns (who has no idea how much it's worth), so he sells it for a lot of money. After spending most of it on himself, Homer comes to realize his greedy ways when he sees "A Christmas Carol" on TV. So he reverses course and starts to do favors for everyone he can, making Flanders jealous by becoming Springfield's new king of nice. He and Flanders then engage in a head-to-head "nice-off".

Also look for another appearence by Fat Tony in this episode. Anyway, hopefully this episode will be filled with enough holiday cheer so that you won't automatically hate it. Anyway, review.

[Animelee]

Sounds like another "Homer's Wacky Adventure" episode. :(

[Dee]

You've got like 2 and a half hours until the show actually airs http://forums.toonzone.net/images/smilies/shrug.gif

but I look foward to seeing Flanders... jealous.

[Animelee]

Just saw it here in Canada. They aired it early on another channel.

All I have to say is: Those friggen raisins! They gave me nightmares when I was a little kid, and, now, as a teenager, they still scare the **** out of me.

FRIGGEN RAISINS! I WANT TO SHOOT YOU ALL!

[Dee]

Just saw the couch gag....

hehe, anime has been simpsonized!

[Dee]

Just saw it here in Canada. They aired it early on another channel.

All I have to say is: Those friggen raisins! They gave me nightmares when I was a little kid, and, now, as a teenager, they still scare the **** out of me.

FRIGGEN RAISINS! I WANT TO SHOOT YOU ALL!
The Simpsons had PRUNES.

[wrenchien]

Nice anime bumper of the simpsons. wow, sailor moon lisa. good thing we're going back to the moon, soon. ultrahomer and robot boy.. and who was marge again.

homer choked some birds, LOL!

so grampa on glucose now!

i guess both i and homer got dvd. neat.

cassie - is she related to burns!? maybe a replacement.

what the!?!? real claymation in an animated show!?!? the. what the!? THAT'S freaky stuff.

christmas convoy!?!? uHhh.

i still wonder how bart can be 11 when the series is 15 years old now.

more claymation!!!??!!? incredible. mocked mr mcgoooo. too. nice fire.

wow, even trek came online. about time they hit the simpsons after their futurama experience. boy, scotty will have nightmares. just don't tell him about his days on that ... uh, series. for kids. in space. with the. blue guy.

marge is creepy when she eats that steak.

boy, homer is sure hitting burns up for the tithe. no blood in there, huh?

ha ha, your position has been usurped. that's got to be a line to remember.

pain is the cleanser!!! wow.

mom flanders is suspicious, isn't she??

now they make fun of the grinch on top of everything else. WOW!

i don't believe he cloroformed that bear!

nice ending.

this may be the only episode of the simpson i'll care about this year watching, maybe. but it was worth watching. every moment.

carved up psychically like a roast beast,

wrenchien

[Mist]

Wow, i'm pleasantly suprised. Putting that "Today is the Birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ" at the end.

So far, this season seems to be a mild (very mild) improvement over last year's. It was nice to see Homer... nice. He's been a whiny selfish annoying hateful jerk for the past few years. Although i didn't like some of the mean-spirited humor in it, such as Moe trying to commit suicide, and nobody caring.

Ned is just as annoying as ever. I hope nobody actually gets the impression Christians really act like him. >.<

[Golden Darkness]

Nice anime bumper of the simpsons. wow, sailor moon lisa. good thing we're going back to the moon, soon. ultrahomer and robot boy.. and who was marge again.


I don't know... but you forgot Pika-maggie.

[SirLemming]

'Tis the fifteenth season.
But I wouldn't have guessed it!

This was a very enjoyable episode. I barely ever cringed. It's an episode that doesn't make you mourn over how great the show used to be; it's still obviously not as good, but it's good in its own way. It was relatively good-natured, with a light seasoning of humorously sinister moments. Homer actually wanted to do what was right, and the family was in character. The focus of this episode was tighter than usual. The scenes in the power plant reminded me of old episodes! They actually carried out reasonably long conversations for once!

The bad parts:
-Homer built an ice skating rink. What the heck?
-Another reference to the Lenny's eye thing. That's one of those gags that's too self-referential. It's supposed to be funny just because "it's that thing he does".
-Marge's reaction to the pork chop. Thankfully, Homer took a little bit of the edge off with his "creeping me out" comment.
-Moe's annual suicide attempt. It resulted in a fairly funny moment, but I couldn't feel completely good about it.

But pretty much everything else was good. I hope they can keep this up.
Specific good parts:
-The skating rink idea may have been far-fetched, but Comic Book Guy had a hilarious (and well-timed) moment on it (when his pants split, he tied his jacket around his waist to hide it, and his jacket split).
-snowman with an axe in its head

[JTurner954]

Oh my gosh, that was a great episode. I haven't laughed that much consistently since the "History" episode of Home Movies. It had a strong opening as usual (California Prunes), kept going with a story with Homer that wasn't too outrageous and still managed to throw in more spoofs (Mr. Magrew, Urkel's and Star Trek's Christmas, Things UnNecessary), and gave some minor characters like Comic Book Guy, Gil, Tatem, and Snake some funny material. I also like the statue with useless facts ("This statue is unreturnable").

This may be my favorite Simpsons Christmas episode (it's my favorite of the season so far). Overall grade: A+

[Batman's Biggest Fan]

Wow, you people liking the Simpsons? geez, that's a shock.

[Carolina Red]

I liked the little anime knockoff they had too, and the little chloroforming scene. He uses chloroform a lot, but I liked it especially when he used it and accidentally came up with Mountain Dew.
It was nice to see Flanders act a little rough for once, because he has been depressive over the past few seasons.

I just found it funny in general to see non-Catholic/Christian people like Apu and family and Lisa celebrating Christmas. The special parodies were good too, as well as Mr. Burns' ignorance at not realizing how great Joe Dimaggio was. (there's a reason why he card is worth lots!)

The best part was Hans Moleman's flare/star scene. Now I liked how they did that. Overall, I think it was the best that I have seen of this season's stuff that I have seen.

[Morac]

Nice anime bumper of the simpsons. wow, sailor moon lisa. good thing we're going back to the moon, soon. ultrahomer and robot boy.. and who was marge again.She looked like the woman in G-Force (http://www.absoluteanime.com/g-force/jun.htm) (Battle of the Planets)

I thought this was a good episode. Lots of laughs in this one. Some of them borrowed from Family Guy's tv parody shtick, but I didn't mind.

[NeueZielZeon]

Another solid Christmas episode.

Well it wasn't rolling on the floor laughing, the episode's Christmas atmosphere was very well done, and the shear number of parodies were enjoyable (The California Raisins, the Grinch, It's a Wonderful Life, and of course, the Christmas Carol Parodies). Though there were plenty of good moments, such as Moleman's signal flare being the "star" at the end of the Grinch, the flaming tree ("Why does everything I love always burn?"), and the entire Grinch parody alltogether. Another solid entry into the season.

Grade: B+/A-

Season standings:
THoH XIV - B+
My Mother the Carjacker - B/B+
The President Wore Pearls - A
The Regina Monologues - D+/C-
The Fat and the Furriest - B+
Today, I am a Clown - B- (changed grade, used to be a C+/B-)
'Tis the Fiftheenth Season - B+/A-

[DianaGohan]

A Very Good Episode
Is This One You Know
"Tis The Fifteenth Season"
The Simpsons Episode Review Gives The Reasons.

The Jokes Were Really Non Stop
Starting With The Couch Gag Anime Ripoff
And Then To The Actual Plot
Which Actually Progressed And Did Not Rot

It Went From Homer's Greed
And Him Learning Of People In Need
To Flanders Acting Jealous
So He Tried To Be More Zealous

So He Gave All The Townspeople Gifts
This Nearly But Homer In A Fit
And Then Lisa Did Remind
That Christmas Definition's Should Be Redefined

Since It Should Be Less About Material Goods
But This Fact Homer Misunderstood
And Took All The Town's Presents Away
And So When It Became Chrsitmas Day

Another Angry Mob Was Formed
But Soon There Decison Was Reformed
When A "Miracle" Was Seen In The Sky
And Soon Singing About How The Angels Cried

The Jokes Here Were Good To
From The Parody Of Mr Magoo
To The Star Trek And Family Matter Version
Of "A Christmas Carol", Not To Mention The Conversion

Of Buddha In Homer's Thoughts
Getting Arrested By The Cops
Educational Video Games
That Bart Almost Bought Into (Oh, What The Shame)

Secret Santa's That Gave Out DVD's
Homer Giving A Version Of Jesus Christ's Navity
The Ice Skating Ring And Rod And Tod's Action
And Homer Mocking The Grinch In A Yultidue Reaction

To What He Heard From Lisa, Who Had A Good Line When She Was Saying
"This Was Offensive To Christians And Raisins"
It Wasn't Too Wacky, The Characterizations Were Tight
So Nothing Was Wrong In This Part Of Holiday LOL Night

The Simpsons I Reailze Can Still Throw A Good Pitch
So I Must Apologize For Acting Like A B****
Saying The Show Might Be Bad, Excuse My Naivete
So To Make Up For It, I Give This Show An A.

[Alaskanbullworm]

Wow, this season has been better than the the previous years. This episode was good and had some pretty funny scenes. There was nothing too farfetched (except for that Marge porkchop scene), and there wasn't a big guest voice like almost every single episode. Definately a much better improvement.

The best part was Hans Moleman's flare/star scene. Now I liked how they did that.

Yeah, I laughed out loud at that part. Good ol' Moleman.

"Oh good, rescue dogs"

[Dee]

I LOVED this episode! full 10 stars! I really enjoyed Comic Book Guy's appearences, as well as the Grinch parody.

It was so darned funny!

[Speedy Boris]

Yeah! Very nice! A Christmas special that isn't A) mean-spirited (Miracle on Evergreen Terrace) and B) ridiculous (Grift of the Magi)! The TV/movie spoofs were a harken back to the peak of The Simpsons, especially the dead-on parody of what a Mr. Magoo Christmas special would be like, bad jokes and all. No useless guest star appearances, no over-the-top plot, and everyone stayed in character, even Marge, who didn't pull any of that stand-up stuff she's been doing lately. Best gags: Mr. Burns getting prodded at church to give more offering, Hans Moleman (we haven't seen him in ages!) and the "rescue dogs", the Grinch parody, and Comic Book Guy ripping his pants. Best episode of season 15 thus far. GRADE: A. And I want that factoid reader. :D

[Mek]

Ned is just as annoying as ever. I hope nobody actually gets the impression Christians really act like him. >.<

Same here. Although I do like Ned Flanders, but mostly when he's used as a secondary 'few scenes' person.

Damn, I missed the couch gag. >.<
Shame FOX doesn't permit screencaps, or else I'd ask for one of the couch gag. :sad:

[Failure]

I gotta say, except for the awful Simpsons in Britain episode, I'm really liking this season. No, it's not classic, but it's a season (provided it keeps up the quality) I'd buy on DVD in the future. I think it's just refreshing to be able to watch a Simpsons episode and respond by saying how entertaining it was then by saying how many times it made me cringe.

'Tis the fifteenth season.
The bad parts:
-Homer built an ice skating rink. What the heck?
-Another reference to the Lenny's eye thing. That's one of those gags that's too self-referential. It's supposed to be funny just because "it's that thing he does".
-Marge's reaction to the pork chop. Thankfully, Homer took a little bit of the edge off with his "creeping me out" comment.
-Moe's annual suicide attempt. It resulted in a fairly funny moment, but I couldn't feel completely good about it.

I'm pretty much in agreement with you here.
-Actually I didn't mind the ice skating rink, since, like you said, there was a great CBG gag in there.
-The Lenny's eye thing... I dunno, it's not bad, but it's kinda played out.
-Marge's pork chop didn't sit too well with me, but Homer's comment was great. It's like the writers knew that the viewers would feel that it was kinda odd and commented on it. I thought that was really clever.
-And Moe's annual suicide attempt... I know Moe's never been a happy camper, but I think they should lay off Moe's suicidal tendencies, it feels like they're forcing it.
The only thing that I didn't like too much was Flander's reaction to Homer's goodness. Isn't jealousy a sin? I woulda thought he'd be much more introspective and less eager to get revenge.

But otherwise, great episode. Let's hope they keep up the good work in the new year.

[mobo85]

Wow, i'm pleasantly suprised. Putting that "Today is the Birthday of our Lord Jesus Christ" at the end.

And singer Barbara Mandrell! Typical Simpsony gag.

[Animelee]

The Simpsons had PRUNES.

I thought the episode was coming on at 8 PM, so at 7:02, I started flipping channels, when I saw those friggen prunes dancing and signing. Noticing the typical Simpsons TV border, I kept tuning in, and then I realized I was watching the new episode an hour earlier. I missed the first two minutes, so I assumed they were those friggen raisins.

Prunes, raisins, it doesn't matter -- they all should die.

[Kouji Tamino]

Whoooa... Some raisin/prune hate here... :eek: Creepy...

Anyway, this was definetly the best Simpsons episode I've seen in a while... (I haven't seen much of this season, yet...)

One of my favorite parts was when Bart was playing the game, then realized it was educational. :D I used to be pretty good with state capitols...

[The Drizzle]

All I have to say is: Those friggen raisins! They gave me nightmares when I was a little kid, and, now, as a teenager, they still scare the **** out of me.

FRIGGEN RAISINS! I WANT TO SHOOT YOU ALL!

Strange stuff scares kids, so I won't fault you there. The California Raisins STILL scare you, though? Seek professional help. :sweat:

[Pepperidge]

Not fantastic, but very enjoyable. This season has successfully given the impression of being not bad at all. Now let's see if they can make the show good.

It showed twice here in Canada, and I STILL missed the couch gag. I'm really kicking myself here.

[TnAdct1]

Nice anime bumper of the simpsons. wow, sailor moon lisa. good thing we're going back to the moon, soon. ultrahomer and robot boy.. and who was marge again.

Homer: Ultraman
Bart: Astroboy
Lisa: Sailor Moon
Marge: Princess (Jun) from Battle of the Planets (Gatchaman)
Maggie: Pikachu from Pokemon

[simpspin]

Well, if it wasn't for the reasoning for Homer to steal the gifts (because Lisa's said it's the 'buddah' thing to do), this would've been a near perfect episode. Otherwise, ALL of the parodies were funny as hell. The Trek/Christmas carol was one of the funniest things I've seen in a LONG time, along with the California Prunes.

This IS the best episode of S15, by far.

GRADE: A- 8.5/10

Jake
www.maggieanderic.com

[Martianinvader]

So....wacky....can't...breathe...gaaaak!

It's fine when Family Guy does all these spontaneous "other place" or "other show" references, because they can do them FUNNY. The raisin thing wasn't all that great.

The anime couch gag(about time) and the plot of Homer out-nicing Flanders(whoda thunk?) were pluses. Flanders always annoys me somewhat every time he's on though. He's making fun of ME.

The ending where Flanders reads from the Bible and then Quimby cuts him off and Homer gives his weak version...I guess now we know how Groening would have written "Charlie Brown Christmas"....

It had a couple good parts but there's no way it holds up to Christmas classics like Bart's shoplifting episode, or the first episode. In fact, it's about on par with the Gary Coleman episode(ouch!) I'll be nice and give it a C minus.

[Martianinvader]

*looks at other posts*

Huh? I wasn't expecting you guys to like it. Now I look like Charles Manson by making that post. Dang you all....

[Pepperidge]

Is it just me, or have they not played "Marge Be Not Proud" in a long time? I think they left it off of that holiday special DVD too.

I mean, it was my favourite holiday episode, let alone one of my favourites in the entire series!

[PaQ]

This was a good episode.
I missed the first 10 minutes but I saw the rest and was LMAO for most of it.
Great line by Homer when he saw his name on the tombstone:
Homer - "Not loved by Al?! NOooooooo!!"
Nice job of mimicking the grinch with having Homer steal the gifts, I even liked how Homer was singing.
Seeing Flanders getting out-flandered was hilarious.
Overall an B. I didn't list even some of the better parts but I really liked this episode, it didn't seem like a sappy holiday episode.

[Ericthehedgehog]

Homer doing the Grinch thingy. Ha!

[dth1971]

Nice satires on the California Raisins, Rankin-Bass, the Grinch, and Mr. Magoo!

[Bubblegum Girl]

That was pretty good Christmas Simpsons special. I really like that parody of "Mr.Mcgoo's Christmas Carol"(Which I didn't get to see) and that those Christmas Carols parodies, especially that Star Trek/Christmas Carol. I loved that Grinch parody song. :D

[DianaGohan]

Well, if it wasn't for the reasoning for Homer to steal the gifts (because Lisa's said it's the 'buddah' thing to do), this would've been a near perfect episode.

Lisa didn't say it was the Buddah thing to do. She said that as a Buddah she feels happier without present material goods and that it's more about the spirit of Christmas then about getting gifts. Of course, replayed in Homer's mind, that about equals "Steal the gifts and you'll make Christmas better". Since we all know how Homer can't handle that sort of logic without reworking it in his own way.

[Krypton710]

Can anyone post the lyrics to Homer's version of "You're a mean one Mr. Grinch"
BTW: Buddah+Police=XD

[Tim Vee]

Awesome. The best bits were the parodies of Christmas carols, the scenes with Hans Moleman, CBG, and Snake, and especially the bit with Buddha and the cops. "I'm not going back to prison again!"

Rating: 8 Astrolabes out of 10

[Animelee]

Ironically, I happened to catch the real Mr.Magoo Christmas special, today.

[TimTwoFace]

Was it perfect? No. Was it the best Christmas episode to date? No. But I still really liked it, and the basic premise of the show wasn't bad, either. 3.5/5 stars for me. :)

It's nice to see that someone besides myself remembers the California Raisins and their Christmas special of the late 80's; I kinda wish I still had that on tape somewhere. Ah well, I still have the action figures and some of their cassettes. :D

-Tim
(Who hears things through the grapevine.)

[lostrune]

Homer: Ultraman
Bart: Astroboy
Lisa: Sailor Moon
Marge: Princess (Jun) from Battle of the Planets (Gatchaman)
Maggie: Pikachu from Pokemon

BTW, courtesy of Steven Scott, here's a pic and a couple of animated gifs:

22kb pic ('http://www.simpworks.com/steven/anime.couchscene.jpg')
1mb animated gif ('http://www.simpworks.com/steven/s15e07.couch.gif')
3mb animated gif ('http://www.simpworks.com/steven/s15e07.couch.large.gif')

Can anybody read the kana on the bench?

[FavreFactor]

The Simpsons has 1 of the best TV shows ever! I think they need some new shows though beacuse there showing the same ones over and over!

[SirLemming]

The Simpsons has 1 of the best TV shows ever! I think they need some new shows though beacuse there showing the same ones over and over!
Umm... Is this a joke?

[Chris Wood]

Can anybody read the kana on the bench?

Yes, it says "Simpsons."

Best line in this episode:
Ned Flanders (while yanking on his moustache): "Pain is the cleanser!"

Hahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BabySealClubber]

I thought it was a really good X-mas episode if not more than just alittle uneven. I do criticize the producers for taking what in my opinion was a sappy ending way out, despite the tacked-on Moe suicide.

Who beside me expected and would have preferred to see Hans Moleman's flare/heavenly star drop down and hit the sack of gasoline soaked presents tied to the roof of Homer's car?

Still, it was good to see Lisa address the buddest at Christmas aspect of her personality again. I read that when Paul and Linda McCartney did the Lisa's a vegetarian episode they agreed to do so only if Lisa stayed a vegetarian in the series as she has. I wonder if they made the same deal with Richard Gere. :)

[The Falcon]

i loved the krusty the clown version of the operation game. "ow. you tweaserd (sp) my wang" my dad and i couldn't stop laughing. we'd calm down for a minute or so and then just bust out laughing again

Falcon

[Yash]

[CONTENT REMOVED]

You can get banned for that. Seriously.

[Nick K.]

Great Ep! Simpsons has got some fire now! I loved the Grinch thing and all the other stuff in this ep. A rating!!!

[Jeffrey]

You can get banned for that. Seriously.
For what?:confused:

[Yash]

For what?:confused:

He posted a link to a Simpsons site to download the episode for anyone who missed it.

[DianaGohan]

That is a serious no no doceggman 2003, and you get very well banned for that you know. Hope you learned your lesson.

[Zebi]

Can anyone post the lyrics to Homer's version of "You're a mean one Mr. Grinch"

You're a hero, Homer Jaaaay
You're as crafty as a skunk
They'll thank you in the morning
For stealing Flanders' junk,
Homer Jaaay,
You're a double-bacon genius burger
And just a little drunk

I listened to the Grinch parody a couple of times to get the lyrics right. Please post a correction if there's something I got wrong.

I really liked this Christmas special. Definitely not as good as the earlier Simpsons Christmas episodes, but still pretty darn good. My favourite parts were the anime couch gag, the Star Trek and Mr. Magoo parodies, and Homer's version of "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch."

Edit: Made corrections to the lyrics as pointed out by BlackoutCreature, and my mispelling of "couch", as pointed out by alextoon.

[BlackoutCreature]

You're a hero, Homer Jaaaay
You're as crafty as a skunk
They'll thank you in the morning
For stealing Flanders' junk,
Homer Jaaay,
You're a double-bacon genius burger
And just a little drugged

I thought the final line was "and just a little drunk". That would rhyme better and make more sense for Homers character.

[Krypton710]

Thanks avron and you're right blackout creture the last line was "just a little bit drunk" (that was the only line I remebered :p)

[Alex Toon]

You're a hero, Homer Jaaaay
You're as crafty as a skunk
They'll thank you in the morning
For stealing Flanders' junk,
Homer Jaaay,
You're a double-bacon genius burger
And just a little drugged

I listened to the Grinch parody a couple of times to get the lyrics right. Please post a correction if there's something I got wrong.

I really liked this Christmas special. Definitely not as good as the earlier Simpsons Christmas episodes, but still pretty darn good. My favourite parts were the anime cough gag, the Star Trek and Mr. Magoo parodies, and Homer's version of "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch."

I don't remember any anime cough gag.

[Zebi]

BlackoutCreature, thanks for correcting me on the lyrics - I've edited my post with the lyrics so it has the correct line. alextoon, I meant to say couch but misspelled it, thanks for pointing that out. :sweat: