The Simpsons: "The Simpsons Christmas Special" AKA "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire"

Premiered December 17, 1989.

"If TV has taught me anything, it's that miracles always happen to poor kids at Christmas.
It happened to Tiny Tim, it happened to Charlie Brown, it happened to the Smurfs and it's gonna happen to us!"
-Bart Simpson

It's Christmas time in Springfield and the Simpson family is gearing up for the holiday season.

Homer (Dan Castellaneta)  is anticipating a Christmas bonus from his job at the nuclear power plant.  His hopes are dashed when his boss Mr. Burns (Harry Shearer) announces that there will be no bonus this year for "semiskilled" workers.  Homer is upset, but comforted by the fact that Marge has a stash of Christmas funds.

Unfortunately, Bart gets a tattoo at the Springfield Mall.  The tattoo-removal operation is successful, but it wipes out all of the Marge's Christmas money.

I like how the tattoo parlor is decorated for Christmas. 
Doesn't the proprietor look a bit like "Comic Book Guy?"

Homer is crushed, but doesn't tell his family about the cancellation of his holiday bonus.  Instead, he takes a job playing Santa Claus at the mall in order to earn more money for presents.

When his Santa "salary" amounts to only $13.00, he takes the advice of his friend Barney (Castellaneta) and decides to gamble his paltry wages at the dog track.  Homer bets on a longshot named Santa's Little Helper.  Will Santa's Little Helper win the race and save Christmas for the Simpsons?

J.A. Morris says:

The Simpsons is one of the greatest TV series of all time.  “The Simpsons Christmas” special is considered the first episode of the series.  After revisiting this special 30 years after it premiered, I can tell it was excellent from the beginning.

It tells a very relatable story.  Lots of people have Christmas experiences that are similar to Homer’s problems.  Either you don’t have enough money to get that special gift, or stores run out of the item your loved one wants.  It seems like the end of the world.

However, when all hope is lost (SPOILER ALERT), Santa’s Little Helper jumps into Homer’s arms and Homer brings home the greatest gift, as Marge says “something to share our love and frighten prowlers.” 

“The Simpsons Christmas Special” features the perfect combination of humor and holiday sentiment and it's just as great today as it was when it first aired.

J.A. Morris' rating:

4 candy canes!

RigbyMel says: 

I remember watching and enjoying "The Simpsons Christmas Special" when it first aired back in 1989.   As the oldest of four children,  I related strongly to the sibling rivalry between Bart and Lisa. 

I also loved its skewering of some of the more saccharine elements of holiday entertainment coupled with the portrayal of a family that has lots of problems but genuinely loves and cares for each other.  The Simpsons have been around for so long now, that I don't know if current audiences necessarily appreciate how revolutionary and subversive the show was back in the late 1980s/early 1990s. 

The special successfully satirizes and pays tribute to the typical Christmas special, a feat that is not always easy to pull off.   Bart cynically tells Lisa that "there's only one guy who brings us presents",  but also cites Tiny Tim and Charlie Brown while invoking Christmas miracles and it doesn't feel inconsistent or out of left field because of the clever writing. 

Since this is the first "official" episode of the (now) long running series, there's some evidence of the show attempting to find its way -  for example Homer sounds a bit more like Walter Matthau than his current incarnation does.  But the wonderful snark and joy of the show is already present.   

We are introduced to a lot of characters including The Simpson family themselves, Mr. Burns, Barney (with yellow hair!), Patty & Selma, Flanders, and of course, Santa's Little Helper.    

I find that this special holds up extremely well after 30 years and tend to watch it at least once every holiday season.  Highly recommended. 

RigbyMel's rating:

4 candy canes! 

The Simpsons: "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment"

Premiered March 16, 1997.

"Oooh, it's been St. Patrick's Day for hours and I'm still not drunk yet!"
-Homer Simpson

It's St. Patrick's Day in Springfield.

Marge Simpson takes her kids Bart, Lisa and Maggie to the annual St. Patrick's Day parade.  Bart sees a man selling plastic horns and asks for one.  Marge is reluctant, reminding that Bart that he's gotten similar horns in the past and thrown them away before he got home.  She buys him a horn anyway.

At the same time, parade devolves into a drunken brawl.  The Duff Beer float shoots beer into the crowd with cannons.  Bart just happens to to be blowing his new horn near the Duff float so beer goes directly into the horn (turning it into a beer bong!) and Bart swallows enough to get quite intoxicated.

Bart's drunkenness is captured on camera and airs on the local evening newscast.  The citizens of Springfield are enraged and some even call for banning alcohol.  At City Hall, a clerk discovers that Springfield passed a prohibition law a century earlier and the law is still on the books!  Alcohol becomes contraband in Springfield!

In order to enforce this law, the city brings in a lawman named Rex Banner.  He arrives and takes over, dismissing the ineffective police Chief Wiggum.  The chief is crushed.

The prohibition law gives Homer Simpson an idea.  He visits the dump and collects Duff's discarded barrels of beer, which still contain alcohol.  He takes the beer and conceals it in bowling balls as part of an elaborate alcohol distribution scheme.

Homer sells beers to Moe and others and makes lots of money in the process.  The press learns of this, but Homer's identity remains a mystery.  He is branded "The Beer Baron."  Rex Banner is aware of his existence and is determined to bring the Beer Baron to justice.

J.A. Morris says:
As we've said here before, there aren't many St. Patrick's Day specials, episodes or movies, so this Simpsons episode is an nice addition.

Like most episodes of The Simpsons, "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" begins with a story that is dropped by the end of the first act.  The St. Patrick's Day portion of the episode ends at the 6-minute mark.  But the holiday serves as the fulcrum that sets the prohibition storyline in motion.

"Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" is an homage to classic gangster movies and the TV show The Untouchables.  I've long been a fan of Dave Thomas, best remembered as Bob McKenzie on SCTV.  He does a great job voicing Rex Banner.

Dan Castellaneta is great as usual voicing Homer, who gets most of the good lines of the episode.  In fact, the end of "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" features one of Homer's best quotes of all time.  Sorry, but you'll have to watch to find out what it is.

In addition to the St. Paddy's parade and the prohibition plot, "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" opens with Lisa and Bart going to school on St. Patrick's Day, with Bart failing to wear green.

Bart suffers the way kids did in my elementary school when they didn't participate in "the wearin' o' the green."

"Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" is a great episodes of one of the best series of all time and is highly recommended for St. Patrick's Day viewing.

J.A. Morris' rating:

4 shamrocks!

The Simpsons meets Edward Hopper!

RigbyMel says:

I am a big fan of The Simpsons and this is a great episode.   As J.A. Morris mentions,  the homages to gangster movies are pretty brilliant.   I particularly liked that Moe's Tavern masquerades as a pet shop to shake off the cops and various Springfieldians reaction to the return of Prohibition (collapse seems  to be a popular response).

The St. Patrick's Day portion of the episode is also pretty darned funny and really plays with the notion that this is really a holiday for amateur drunkeness with a veneer of Irish heritage.   It's well worth pausing during bits of the parade to see what is going on with each float and in the crowd.  

That being said,  I am going to deduct a bit from my rating since the St. Patrick's Day portion really only lasts for the first couple of minutes of the episode!

RigbyMel's rating:

3 shamrocks

The Simpsons: "Treehouse Of Horror XXIV"

Premiered October 6, 2013.

We're treated to three new Halloween vignettes!

"Oh The Places You'll D'oh!":

On Halloween night, Bart, Lisa and Maggie have contracted the mumps and aren't allowed to trick or treat.  When their mother goes out to a Halloween party, they're visited by an anthropomorphic cat named the Fat In The Hat.  He takes them out trick or treating.

But it turns into a night of murder and mayhem.

"Dead And Shoulders":

Bart is decapitated in an accident involving a box kite (and a helicopter!).  When he wakes up, his head has been grafted onto Lisa's shoulder.  Dr. Hibbert says it was "the only way to add a year to his life" and take 30 years off Lisa's.  Bart is disgusted by this and is determined to kill Lisa and take over their body.

"Freaks No Geeks":

Homer, a circus strongman has designs on marrying Marguerite, the trapeze artist.  But he changes his mind when he sees that Moe, a member of the circus' "Freak Show" has a valuable ring.

Homer talks Marguerite into marrying Moe out of pity...so Homer can kill Moe, marry Marguerite and gain possession of the ring!

J.A. Morris says:

Another solid Halloween effort from "Bat Groening" and company.  Not every "Treehouse Of Horror" specifically relates to Halloween, but this year's certainly does.  It's fun to watch The Fat in the Hat commit various crimes with trick or treaters and Halloween decorations in the background.  And it's a great Dr. Seuss parody, referencing the Grinch and The Lorax, in addition to The Cat In The Hat.

"Dead And Shoulders" is the weakest portion of the episode.  But it's still fun, highlighted by another humiliation of Seymour Skinner at the hands of his mother.  

The first thing that comes to mind regarding "Freaks No Geeks" is that it references Todd Browning's horror classic Freaks.  When I was growing up, that film was practically banned from television and home video.  Now it's "mainstream" enough to get referenced in a prime time series.  Homer's scheme involving Moe and the ring are among Homer's dumbest ideas (and that's saying something).

We also get a to hear Homer perform "Entrance Of The Gladiators" with lyrics ("This is the song that year at the circus, sung by a guy that you see at the circus!").

"Treehouse Of Horror XXIV" is a fun Halloween episode that I recommended, even if it's not exactly a classic episode I plan to revisit every year.

J.A. Morris' rating:

3 jack o'lanterns.

RigbyMel says:

This is a fun installment of "Treehouse of Horror".  As one would expect of The Simpsons,  it's very funny and cleverly written.  My favorite sequence was "The Fat In The Hat" -  the Dr. Seuss parody was spot on and wickedly amusing.

I also really enjoyed the extended couch gag opening sequence masterminded by Guillermo del Toro, which was a tribute to all manner of sci-fi and horror awesomeness over the years.

I will leave the exhaustive breakdown of each reference to other websites and just point out a couple of personal favorite references, like seeing H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allan Poe and Ray Bradbury (we even see Bradbury working on The Illustrated Man - so to speak) hanging around the streets of Springfield and various old school Universal movie monsters turning the tables and chasing the townfolks with pitchforks and torches.

 Moreover,  there are several incarnations of the Phantom of the Opera that show up, which made me very happy.

The Simpsons manages to remain smart and funny after more than twenty years, which is quite an achievement in and of itself.   This edition of "Treehouse of Horror" is well worth your time.

RigbyMel's rating:

3 and 1/2 jack o'lanterns.