Rate & Review: "The Wandering Juvie" (FABF11)

[Tibor]

EDIT: huh

[Tibor]

Originally posted by Spooner
Someone, please, explain to me what "character driven" means.

From all I can gather, it means that they didn't fuck up the characters enough for you to hate them.

Yes, from all you can gather, I'm sure.

Originally posted by Spooner
The OC is character driven. The Simpsons is (or rather, should be) humor driven. We tune into the Simpsons to get a few laughs, not to be told an interesting story.

"We" tune into The Simpsons to be entertained. Get a grip on what characters, stories, and humor are, please. Like DtB said, they're not necessarily exclusive. Really if you're going to mouth off... get stuff.

There's far more to humor than jokes. Some people actually don't care for being bludgeoned over the head with punchlines or having pies thrown in our face for a half hour.

EDIT: editing post and posted four times for some reason. i'm a tard, apologies

[Tibor]

EDIT: double post

[Mike Scully]

Since every recent episode I download won't work on Windows Media Player for some reason, I couldn't rewatch the episode, so nothing in-depth here.

This episode was a good respectable effort, but didn't do much for me. It was very plot-heavy, but actually ended up lacking in humor quite a bit. It focused on the characters of Bart and Gina and their emotions, and tried to develop chemistry between then, yet, instead of deriving humor from this interaction, this episode seemed to go for staight drama a lot of times, particularly the 3rd act. Which would be great, if the storyline was sensational enough to lift the episode. Unfortunately, the story seemed a little weak. I didn't really get why Gina was bullying Bart, and then suddenly acting like she loved him, constantly switching from one state to the next. The ending, with Gina not having parents, also had a tacked-on feel. The attempt at humorous interaction between Bart and Gina wasn't that great, the dialogue coming off as too juvenile, even for Bart (cooties, wanting to wizzle, making fun of each other). And in general, there were a lot of weak, offbeat gags (fartzilla, Homer pooping in the dressing room, the alien in Marge's pore), and Bart's prank didn't have much of a payoff. What I did like were the prison scenes in the second act, where Bart's sense of alienation was well-written and believable. Napier is good as the prison warden, but was actually funnier in Pokey Mom (though I hated the ep). Gina was a reasonably well-designed character. Wandering Juvie, similarly to Bart Wants What it Wants, is a Frink/Payne written episode featuring a love interest for Bart. A lot of the complaints I had about BWWIW were fixed in this episode. The story flowed much better, made Bart more sympathetic, and Gina wasn't nearly as cardboar-cutout a character as Greta. Yet, while BWWIW had consistently good gags for a sketch row, while Wandering Juvie ultimately doesn't deliver many laughs.

Grade: C+

[DaSimpsons]

no one piss Tibor off.

Anyway, i liked this episode a lot except for the stupid sucking air gag.

[ShadowBun]

I've been punished from the internet for a bit so I haven't had a chance to post my review, but here it is now.

STORY/CHARACTERIZATION

I'm happy to say that this was the real kicker of the episode. Both the storyline and characterization were really well-done, with a first act that smoothly led into the main plot, a second act that detailed Bart's fears and loneliness well, and a third act that delved into the newest one-time character (more on that later) and wrapped everything up nicely.

Bart was displayed as a prankster again, and I liked the idea of this prank. It wasn't a horrible crime or anything, but it was vicious enough to land him in juvie, and it was simultaneously an in-character thing for Bart to do. Good to see the Simpson boy finally doing some pranks again (I think the last big one he did was the butt-scanning in Special Edna). Bart in juvenille hall fearing for his life was done well, too, and showed that beneath his mischievious gags, he's a kid, frightened and homesick (it's important to establish this fact in the first half in an episode like this, when the theme revolves around it). If I have a small complaint, I think they took this idea just a little too far, making Bart into more of a baby than he actually was ("I have to go wizzle", and the lollipop scene). Beyond that, I definately enjoyed his interactions with Gina Vendetti, and I like how he never really loved her, but grew to like her after time (after initially hating her). Notice how immediately after being released from the handcuffs, the two clasped hands (showing, of course, that they initially wanted to be separated but grew accustomed to each other)? I thought that was a nice touch.

Anyway, Gina. I gotta admit, I really liked this character. I think she's the best one-time character in the entire Jean era. Yes, I know the tough-girl-on-the-outside-but-a-softy-inside character is nothing new in the world of TV (she reminds me a little of Helga from Hey Arnold), but the clever writing made Gina and her interactions with Bart a real joy to watch. It helped develop her farther from the tough-girl stereotype. I also liked her unpredictability...I notice there are a lot of complaints here regarding Gina's actual feelings for Bart (how she was kissing him then smacking him around a moment later), but it was yet another aspect of her character I liked. Obviously, she likes Bart but doesn't like when HE displays affection towards her (she's unloved, after all, and probably doesn't want to appear too soft-at-heart to others, opting to punch Bart directly after showing emotion to save face and keep her tough-girl exterior). Anyway, I liked 'er. Wow, this is long. On a side note, Marge was in-character completely. Great job.

Anyone notice the great attention to detail in this? We learn Bart still thinks girls have cooties right from the get-go, with the name Lotta Cooties in the marriage. A lot of hints seemed to be carefully placed at points in the episode that hinted to future things (heck, the idea of the marriage in general coincides with the future love plot in the show), and it made the episode feel very carefully crafted, with good transitions.

No one seems to have mentioned that this is Bart's first kiss. Er, unless you count the thing in Flaming Moe's.


HUMOR

I thought the humor was a bit weaker in this one...actually, just in the first act. In my opinion, the first act was pretty blah overall, with gags that just weren't very good, from Homer on the escalator to Homer in the stall, to Marge having the alien-thing in her pores (though I loved the line about its children). Also, Willie sucking Moe's air was weak and irritating, as was the entire tent collapsing (though it does make a point about mass stupidity). Good Wiggum line about the bribes though.

Second and third acts were much better in terms of humor. We got some great prison scenes, some sex jokes that were subtle enough to be appropriately funny, the great dance scene, the old man with the stick trying to shut the window, the pinecone gag (ouch), Homer as the guard, "If you can read this, you're overqualified," Cletus' wood carvings, and the guard's final line (HAH).

ANIMATION

I usually don't make this a separate category but this episode deserves it. WOW. Lauren Macmullian does it again, with a beautiful show to look at. Great use of shadows and colors in all the prison scenes, especially the escape at the dance. And that blacksmith section? Holy cow! Someone give this woman a raise.

OVERALL

Whew, this is too long. To sum it up, I loved the plot and characterization, but the humor was just a little thin in spots. The first act, to me, was the Achilles' Heel. The grade may rise slightly on a second viewing, but as for now, The Wandering Juvie gets a

B+ 4/5

[Rob G]

It was Bart's first *real* kiss (Flaming Moe's was more of a dare).

What's funny is that in all the previous three Bart/Girlfriend episodes, a kiss never happened... yet we had two here, one that caught Bart by surprise, the second he seemed to initialize.

As I said before, I think the Bart/Gina thing was more love/like than hate. Bart's still not sure about girls (cooties etc) and Gina's had a hard life and doesn't deal well with emotions.

[That Jerk]

I agree with shadow. For a 22 minute show, and giving time for the jokes, and the characters we know already to shine, i thought they did a lot with the little time allowed for Gina. A bipolar character is something new for the character machine that is this show. Every action or responce, while incorpoarting a lot of slapstick humor, told us a little more about her.

[deshem]

5/5 - Emotion, Matrix Spoofs, Plenty of jokes, a good Bart/Gina pairing, and no characters are annoying through the course of the ep, not even the goddamn Yes Guy! Brilliant.

[That Jerk]

Two great backgroung gags with Chief Wiggum this ep...
Anyone else notice Gina pushes Wiggum's box kite out of the way when they put her in the car, and Lenny's eyes shifting in the background when Wiggum gives him away...

[squishee lady]

It was alright. I guess the lack of character development in Gina bothered ne more than most. The whole thing with her and Bart seemed incredibly rushed to me. The first act felt really wasted, as Bart could have been sent to Juvie for lots of stuff, and the "fake wedding" seemed to take longer than it had to. I really would have like to see Gina introduced in the first act. This episode had some funny moments and a good plot, but I think they could have done alot more with it than they did. I give it a B/B-. Two "Meh" episodes in a row. Lets hope this stops here.

[Garp]

I have downloaded this episode. It was OK. Here goes my review. I hope there's not any grammar or ortography mistake.


THE FIRST ACT

This was the weakest part of the episode. There were lots of silly
jokes and seemed forced to me, just like if they were trying to get
fastly to the part where Bart goes to the Correctional.

It starts at Constington's, with some average jokes (the bum and the
sign, Homer at the stairs). The little monster in Marge's face was
kinda lame, too. Anybody noticed it? The microscopic goes from X5000
to X1000, but it should be X10000.
Homer at the dressing room was one of those jokes which aren't clever
but were funny. Wow, The Yes Guy didn't say "Yeeeeeees". Bart and the readers was a good point, and the Matrix parody was hilarious.

About the wedding, well... wasn't it a little strange seeing Moe, Carl, Dr. Hibbert, Lovejoy, Kirk, Flanders and Patty don't remembering that Bart isn't enough old to get married? The joke about people who were trying to breath was kinda lame. But the "Cash Bribes Only" and Bart's file were excellent jokes!
Anybody noticed it? There's a moment when Judge Harm's shadow becomes
a hammer shadow.
But then we have more bad jokes: Lenny spying Homer, cops using Ralph
to pick Bart.

Grade of the First Act: 3.25/5


THE SECOND ACT

This part was good. We see again the Warden from Pokey Mom (Al Jean
certainly loves meta-references), in an stellar role. The scene in the kitchen was good, and Homer's line "Oh, I get it: blame the strangler!" was great!
In the Juvie, the scene about the career day wasn't specially
memorable, but the Itchy & Scratchy cartoon was OK.
Bart walking along the playground was a good scene, where we can see
Bart acting like a scared kid. I don't think he was out of character,
it's easy to understand why he would have fear.
"Touch my fence again and your puberty will be very boring" was one of the best jokes of the episode. Fortunately, Gina didn't say "[...] and I'll chop your penis off".

Then, Homer tries to find a way to help his son. The joke about him
trying to read the sign was good, and same about his interview with
the warden. But then we see that he can only see Bart some days.
Good blunder, Homer. The dance scene was hillarious too, with another
very good joke: "I can close it faster, or I can close it right".

Grade of the Second Act: 4.5/5


THE THIRD ACT

This was by far the best part of this episode.
Snake was correctly used, and we have another meta-reference: the
promocards of this episode are the signs with Bart and Gina's face
which appear in the News. The next scene, with Homer explaining why
Bart has scaped, and the alien's dream, were great. In fact, I liked
the whole third act! Bart and Gina interaction was perfectly developed, Cletus had one of his funniest moments, we see the incredibly goodly animated scene where Blacksmith is making... a small key, Gina crying (this was actually sad, I don't think is forced at all), the Cops catching the bear, Gina saving Bart of going back to the jail, and finally the scene where all the Simpsons have a family dinner with Gina (another emotional moment). The Warden's joke must be my favourite joke of the whole episode.

Grade of the Third Act: 5/5

Average grade of the whole episode: 8.5/10, a B+/A- episode.

Lauren Macmullan did a good job with this episode, although it wasn't excellent: Little Girl in the Big ten, Moe Baby Blues and I, D'oh-Bot had a better direction, IMO.

[Homeboy]

Eh, I didn't know exactly WHAT to make of Gina referring to Bart as "family guy", but, other than that, and the fact that they had no further origin for her besides the fact that her family's imaginary,I give this ep a solid 4.5/5.
As for Bart having to watch an edited Itchy & Scratchy cartoon, it's "I & S & Marge" (1990) all over again, almost...

[silentmike]

Ever since judge whats her name showed up last season (I think) I knew they were going to make an episode about this.

For starters the poll is a little unfair see as nothing is better then a data with Sarah Michelle Gellar and you can't compare that to a 20min TV show even Simpsons.

But I liked this episode; it was good to see the family caring about each other (like the one where Marge and homer were on death road) instead of just being fine with the problem as they act in some of the new episodes lately. I liked the idea of Bart not being tough on the inside rather then him fitting in, I’ve never pictured him in the show to be as bad as nelson etr and seeing as he is only 10 I thought it worked well. Homer coming in a guard joke was very funny as well as his thoughts about the worst thing that could happen.

Sarah Michelle Gellar was greet as Gina probably the best one time characters that’s been in the show, she looked older then Bart properly like 13 or 14 and I’m not really sure what relationship that had in the episode its seemed more like a big sister little brother sort of thing (or maybe more like the Lara powers episode) but it was cool to see a really bad girl in the show properly a bit of Buffy in there somewhere. And it was nice to see she had a nice side to.

Ending was sweet and the joke about the prison officer was funny, "well I’ll just go home eat a microwave dinner, watch will and grace and cry my self to sleep" Marge: “would you like to join us" "didn't you hear I have a evening planed!", another guy who looks a bit like duke out of the critic who has the same voice.

Good episode (not better then a data with Sarah Michelle Gellar) 5/5

[Homer Jay]

Since, it got bumped, I'll comment on it. I think that this is a good episode filled with jokes. The storyline is one of the bettter ones involving Bart that we have seen in a while. I wish that the Homer working at juvie had been flushed out more, or not included. B

[y2dave2004]

3/5

[Postmaster]

I guess meh is the way to describe the episode. It was just genereally fairly good, quite consistent humour, decent enough plot, character of gina was ok.
there were some bad jokes, and it seems the episode simply underachieved in all areas but it wasn't that it was particulary bad.
just scrapes a 3/5.

[Dr Zaius]

Meh. No complaints here, I've forgotten most of it already. Sarah Michelle Gellar was very good. The whole Homer becoming a guard thing was useless.

Though Oliver Beene is a tough act to follow.

[Simpsons Forever!]

It wasn't exactly a disappointment, but certainly lacked something. I really liked Gina's character, it was well done and was studied in more depth than lots of other new characters. But Bart, on the whole was a bit disappointing. He should definitely been tougher throughout the whole episode, especially when it came to Gina. He was a bit too overshadowed by her and should have stood up for himself. That would have made for a much more interesting episode and would also have agreed more with his character. Then again, his beginning prank was excellent and the storyline was pretty good. Still, a good episode overall and one of the better of Season 15 so far. 4/5

[Drunk Barney]

4/5

First act: 5/5 (prank)
second act (in prison) 3.5/5
third act (coming out 4/5

OVERALL= 4/5

[M Prower]

I liked this episode, but I think they could have thought of a better prank for Bart to pull to get him sent to juvie. The scenes at the juvenille hall were quite amusing, and it was nice to have a guest star not play themselves, Gina was a good character. Other good moments included Cletus' whittling; "Sometimes I whittles' the future" and the warden at the end (who I believe is the same one from Pokey Mom); "Didn't you hear me?! I have plans tonight!"
Overall, 4/5

[George Cauldron]

The Wandering Juvie was simply bland, virtually lifeless, but still tolerable. Sarah Michelle Gellar herself gives an average performance as Gina Vendetti, a female juvenile hall escapee who escapes with Bart, but any development between her and Bart felt either rushed, forced, undeveloped, or just unimaginative. There were some isolated funny moments but the whole thing completely lacked in the memorability factor. I know that The Simpsons is one of those television shows where you have to watch an episode several times to really get the jokes, but in this case, I'm going to have to watch this one several times over because I can't bloody remember anything from it!

[Cartoonnetwork]

I know that The Simpsons is one of those television shows where you have to watch an episode several times to really get the jokes, but in this case, I'm going to have to watch this one several times over because I can't bloody remember anything from it!

Well, at least the very last joke is pretty funny and memorable, I think.

[Sarcastic Guy II]

Boring. 2/5

[Semaj]

3.5/5

There's been better Bart-has-a-crush episodes, but this was okay.

[Maxxmuscle]

I love the part where Homer went into the fitting room thinking it was the
bathroom following by The yes man saying Sir other customers need to use
that dressing room. That yes man is so funny in this episode.

[Muppets Go Midevil]

Terrible Episode who of the worest ever

[amir05]

great episode, one of season 15's best 4/5

[Dr. Bartley]

One of the best of Series 15 - 5/5

[Rory Mitch]

2/5

Below average. Seemed to get worse as the episode went on. I was looking forward to this one, but its left me dissapointed.