Rate/Review Simpsons Christmas Stories (HABF01)

[Mr. Kurns]

I don't mean to trample on you or your idea.

Nah, that's cool, I wanted to see what people thought, I haven't even seen the episode yet what with me living the in the wretched hellhole that is Australia.

[DotheBartman]

This episode seems to be more in line with the latter-seasons tradition of having a non-THOH trilogy roughly every two seasons (Spinoff Showcase in season eight, Bible Stories in season ten, Tall Tales in season twelve, Tales from the Public Domain in season thirteen, Margical History Tour in season fifteen, and now this). I don't know that they could really think of three new ideas every year for the Christmas shows anyway, so I would doubt it'll happen. And I'm not sure that Christmas episodes in general are a tradition so much as just something they've done a bunch of times, though they do seem to be doing them at least once every two seasons also now.

[Mike Scully]

Can I ask Channel Surfer & Mike Scully what grades you gave it?

I missed this episode due to being out of town. Though I'll post a review once I see it.

[Jeff]

wasn't a great episode but since i'm a sucker for christmas episodes i'll give it a (4/5)

[coltonwiggum]

Now that I re-watch this episode, I'll change my opinion. I really liked the second act, and I think it could have made a great whole episode. Maybe it could have turned out to be one of Grandpas boring stories at the end, but right before the credits have him find the watch in his stocking. It would be awsome! But, its to late now. Dammit, I wish that I wrote for the Simpsons.

[90'sCartoonMan]

I don't think they should keep this format for Christmas episodes, especially since Halloween pretty much has that covered.

An enjoyable episode, even if the framing was terrible. They took a long time to set up the Lovejoy/Flanders/Homer thing at church just to have it for only one segment.

Homer's story itself was fun. I especially liked the Three Stooges stuff.

The second segment was definitely the weakest. Although I really enjoyed Dan and Harry's performances as young Abe and Burns, the whole thing was just too wacky for me (although the reindeer dogfight made me laugh). They shouldn't have had all that Tahiti stuff.

The third segment was hilarious. I especially loved Krusty and Willy. The whole thing was well done.

[BonerLand]

The Stooges bit was really great to see, this is probably one of the best episodes so far this season.

It really kept me interested (I seem to start channel surfing while watching some of this season's epps) (A-)

[simplysimpsons]

Something's wrong with the volume on the version of the episode I have (Although it's probably just my sound card broke again) so I'll have to keep this kinda brief:

It was mixed, but I enjoyed it overall. The first story was good (despite some of the comments here!) Yes, the family playing characters in the past has been done to death but this seemed fresh and original, and there were enough jokes to keep it going from start to end. It was great to see Dr Nick and Burns again too in good roles. B+

The second one was the weakest. Hank Azaria did a great voice as young Burns though, and the plot was coherent - but the ending felt like it was missing something and there were few memorable lines. Those that were memorable were both good and bad which isn't so great. C+

The third - definitely the best. Absolutely fantastic minus the crazy cat lady and probably the raccoons (The cat lady would have been funny, as others have said, if we hadn't seen her so often already). The songs were imaginative and hilarious. I thought Moe's suicide attempts would be horrible, but they were good. I wish they had done a whole episode like this! Grade A

It's worth noting that the animation was absolutely stunning the entire episode. I'd even go as far as saying the best of the series yet. The characters looked excellent and movements were fluid but classic at the same time.
But overall, despite a kinda weak second act, this is a keeper that I'll be playing at every future Christmas. B+, 4/5. Have a great Christmas Al J, Matt G and everyone!

[momsaysimcool]

The second one was the weakest. Hank Azaria did a great voice as young Burns

he did?

[Veryjammy]

I just watched The Nutcracker again and I seriously love the ending. It's heartwarming, clever, sincere and true to the characters; it gives more insight into Marge and Homer in thirty seconds than whole episodes of generic break-up crap #147 followed by lame reconciliation line ('You're the real endangered species'). I loved how they slowed the pace down, didn't feel the need to fill it with gags and were content to let their actions speak for themselves at points. I want more like this. Just weird that it had to come at the end of a 6 minute musical short.

[simplysimpsons]

er...Harry Shearer! sorry, didn't know what I was thinking...!

[grissom]

"Simpsons Christmas Stories"

Three part episodes like this have always been hit-or-miss, but one positive thing about them is that if one segment fails, it's over within a few minutes. Unless of course all of the segments are terrible, in which case that doesn't apply at all, but with this episode, it did. One segment was pretty awful, but the overall episode still gets a good grade since the bad segment was sandwiched in between two good segments. This episode's first segment was good overall. Not outstanding, but good. Jokes were solid for the most part, and it was good to see a lot of secondary characters used as characters in the story. That's another strength of episodes like this with a history related segment, characters we know are used as characters from the original story, but also keep some of their normal traits. Homer and Marge as Mary and Joseph were funny, and I couldn't stop laughing at Moe bowing down to the duck with the halo for some reason, the way Mr. Burns looked down at him and said, "What the hell are you doing?" cracked me up. Segment two was not nearly as good. The plot was really strange and disjointed and there seemed to be a lack of any actual attempts at humor. Mr. Burns as a young soldier was aggravating and unfunny, and the ending was ridiculous. Abe's brother actually being alive and living in Tahiti? It's just so stupid. It reminded me a lot of some script left over from the Scully era that finally got animated because Jean's people couldn't think of anything else to use. This segment really did drag the episode down. The final segment was nothing short of brilliant. It was similar to the episode "22 Short Films About Springfield", which, as its title suggests, is a collection of short stories about many different characters written so that they intertwine with each other. This is one formula for an episode that has actually been underused. It's a unique way to write an episode, and in both cases it turned out great. I would even go as far as to say that this Christmas version could've been expanded into a full episode instead of just a short segment. The jokes came fast and were consistently funny. The fact that most of it was set to music just made it even better. Overall, this was a good episode, but I would've liked it a lot more if the second segment had been better. B

[Gibbles]

I would find it hard to believe that any one could watch this episode and not find something they like.

Act 1 started with the usually set up that has the characters telling each other the 3 stories that will be told thought out the episode, but as it turns out this set up is abandoned in act 2, (most likely due to the nutcracker thing being impossible for one of the characters to tell) so some of it feels like wasted time. However the Lovejoy and the train and Ned made it worth while.

The Birth of Christ sequence is done pretty well and full of some funny gags like the re gifting of Mer, and Homer's/Josef wine getting turned into water by Bart/Jesus. The Mr Burns King thing felt a little tacked on in an attempt to give the thing some drama, but it seemed to work out in the end because the Christmas tree thing was a nice touch, despite how ludicrous it was.

Act 2 stood out with its amazing animation, possible the best the show has seen to date. Harry Sheeree did a great job with the young voice burns which as others have said ironically is practically what Burns sounded like in the fist couple of seasons. I wasn't keen on seeing Santa as a real person but I am just gonna agree that it is not part of the Simpson's main reality. And I agree that the chase on the rain dear needed music.

Act 3 was the best of the bunch and a great way to end and episode. We get to see a bunch of Springfield landmarks, supporting characters, and the family acting as them selfs. Not to mention the songs were pretty well done, I especially enjoyed Homers one about finding a gift for Marge. I still don't find the cat lady funny and seeing her sing among the popular towns people seems like an unholy event of her becoming a full time regular, which seems wrong.

The episode ends with a sweet emotional ending that fits in well with the Christmas spirit and does a great job of showing how much Marge loves Homer.

Overall 5/5, there are a few nitpicks, but this episode was pretty much perfect.

[babjay]

My take on the episode:

Couch Gag: This was pretty good, and quite well done/though, some of this Seasons Couch Gags have been excellent, such as the ones from The Girl Who Slept Too little, and Marge's Son Poisoning, but unfortunately, the episodes haven't been excellent.
Grade: A

The First D'ohel: I didn't mind this one. The first minute or so of it went badly though, it was unrealistic, and was a lame way of explaining how Homer became Reverend for the Sermon. The story was strong, I don't usually like Characters playing Historical characters (eg: The episode Magical History Tour from Season 15), but this wasn't bad. The scene overall didn't bring many laughs to me, but it was good, and enjoyable to watch. The Christmas Tree bit was funny, as well as the parts with Bart (Jesus).
Grade: B

I Saw Grandpa Cussing Santa Claus: The storyline of this segment was interesting, but bad. They should have made Cyrus Grandpa's war buddy, with him posing as Abe's Half-Brother was just ridiculous and Un-original. I can't remember any Laugh Out Loud Jokes, and the gag about Grandpa and Mr. Burns Spooning was pointless, and just not-funny. The plot, as I have said, was original, but it didn't seem to have an awful lot to do with Christmas.
Grade: B/B+

The Nutcracker… Sweet: This, in my Opinion, was the best of the three. It reminded me of the classic Simpsons Episode "'Tis the Fifteenth Season'" from Season 15. They should have based the whole episode on this segment, it would have made it a lot better. The joke with Willie was funny, and the music was well-done too. The Crazy Cat Lady made another return in this episode. This was the only episode with her in that I have ever seen that I have laughed at. I don't really see how Matt Groening and the Writers think that she is funny, but this was an exception. This was the one that I enjoyed the most, and has got me into the Christmas spirit!
Grade: A

Overall Review: This episode, like Season 17, was/has been really Hit and Miss. Some jokes were great here, and some were not. This was still one of my Favorites of the Season, and put me in the Mood for the holiday.
Overall Grade: B+

4/5

[Reverend Lovejoy]

However the Lovejoy and the train and Ned made it worth while.

Nice to know I'm not the only one who thinks that way.

Babjay, did you post that review on the Krustylu Studios forum? I remember commenting on that Homer line. It is lame, cos of the writers desperate urge to shove Lovejoy out of everything. Anyway, it says everywhere that his car broke down, but it was the train set. WTF?

[babjay]

Yeah, I've posted it on a few forums now...

[Flimpson Tide]

They're not trying to shove him out of everything...

[Gibbles]

I think it was more of a set up to have Homer telling the story, if Lovejoy told it then it would have been more accurate to the bible.

[Reverend Lovejoy]

They're not trying to shove him out of everything...

Depends which way you look at it.

Simpsons Christmas Stories - Lovejoy's trainset breaks down (what are the odds?) leaving Homer to do the sermon.

I've grown a costume on your face - Only see the same characters in the crowd shots, ignoring others (like Lovejoy), for no obvious reason.

Milhouse of sand and fog - Church scene cut short so the Simpsons can go to a black church, again for no obvious reason.

The girl who slept too little - Lovejoys appear in the crowd protesting against the stamp museum, but don't say anything, and you never see a good shot of them.

See Homer run - Everybody runs for Mayor? Yeah, right...

Last of the red hat mammas - Helen Lovejoy only appears once, and doesn't join the group, yet Agnes Skinner and a bunch of unknown characters do.

Yeah, it's probably paranoia talking, but you see what I mean.

[Mira]

You do realize that you are completely out of your head?

[Flimpson Tide]

They aren't intentionally ignoring Lovejoy. They just don't use him unless there's a joke or part where they need to, which is pretty much what you can say for nearly every character. Characters like Smithers, Barney, Maggie, Jasper, Rod, Todd, Chalmers and Bumblebee Man aren't used much either, but they aren't being unused on purpose.

[Postmaster]

My feelings are probably closest to veryjammy's.

First Segment was fine although the wraparounds in the church were the best part.
But It just lacked a bit of story tension and just started to feel a bit meandering and dragged on, but there were some laughs, it's such a cheesy joke but I loved "I'm watching the orange bowl" amongs other things B-
Second Segment was kind of the opposite the wraparounds were poor (and it felt like something must have been cut out of the energizer bunny advert. So someone please tellme what the joke was) but the main bulk of the story was good and turned into an intresting and creative little story with a good action sequnce. But it just generally needed to be funnier, and as other have said they really should have ended the story on finding the clock. C+
Nothing much to add on the last segment, it was great but just felt like it needed something else which makes it all the more annoying that they wasted time at the end of the 2nd segment. But it was a really great ending. B

Overall a B-

[Reverend Lovejoy]

You do realize that you are completely out of your head?

Oh, thanks, Mira, I'm certainly flattered. Thanks for telling me something I already know.

They aren't intentionally ignoring Lovejoy. They just don't use him unless there's a joke or part where they need to, which is pretty much what you can say for nearly every character. Characters like Smithers, Barney, Maggie, Jasper, Rod, Todd, Chalmers and Bumblebee Man aren't used much either, but they aren't being unused on purpose.

True, but other, worse characters are being used all the time, like the cat lady, or CBG. I'm sorry, but it does seem that way to me.

[California Prunes]

This was a really nice, well done episode which was a welcome improvement on most sesaon 17 outings so far.

First segment was pretty good. There were lots of great jokes, and the story itself was well told in a typical Simpsony way. Homer was in really good form here, some of his lines were true highlights of the episode. B+

Second segment was definitely the weakest, but not horrible by any means. It was a fresh idea, it was nice to see Grandpa again and the story was well done but there just wasn't really enough good humour to hold my interest. Plus the ending was bad (the whole 15 wives thing + Grandpa's comment.) C+

Third segment was definitely the best. Just really sweet and original, this segment seemed effortless, and I mean that in a good way. Moe's annual suicide attempt stuff was actually really funny this time, mainly because Moe was quite an endearing character, maybe some of the best of him we have seen for years. The whole Homer looking for a present for Marge and the ending were perfect warm Christmas touches which blended with the theme well. A-

Overall, Ill give this a solid B+. Third best of the season so far.

Also I would like to mention how this was the first episode this season that felt like one from the classic era. I don't really know how to explain, just the writing in general had that certain 'flow' to it.

Merry Christmas everybody!

[Drunk Barney]

The First D'ohel: C/C-
I Saw Grandpa Cussing Santa Claus: B/B-
The Nutcracker… Sweet: A/A-

Overall - B

(may edit with review later)

[Adam R]

Good episode, second part had a sucky ending. First one was quite good, last one was the best.
8/10

[Terrier Williger]

I didn't enjoy the 2nd act at all, but at least this episode has given me the first hand experience of what it's like listening to one of Grampa's long, crazy, boring stories.
1st act ok, if a little boring, but the 3rd act really shone.
overall score 6/10 [3/5]

[TriforceBun]

Finally, some originality! I loved this--it had humor, heart, and creativity in each segment.

The First D'oh-el: So am I the only one that really likes these? I love seeing the original designs and backgrounds, as well as how each character fills a historical role. You can tell a ton of work gets put into the design of these, but that doesn't automatically make the segment good (ahem, King Henry VIII...). Fortunately, I found a lot of laughs within this segment, surprisingly little offensive humor, and most impressive of all, they actually managed to make Bart as baby Jesus believable! Excellent, excellent animation and use of music too.

Gags were fast and funny, with Ned's priest suit, "A pregnant virgin!? That's every man's worst nightmare!", "But nothing to hang on the wall..?" Frink's myrrh, evil Burns instead of wacky Burns, Frink's ramble of "good King Herod, but you don't really have the good," Moe's "There won't be any (breakfast)" delivery, Dr. Nick again, "He looks just like his dad," "This is the worst Christmas ever!" the thunder when Homer is about to choke Bart, the goofy orange bowl gag, "Wise man, eh?" "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, we got a great family!" "Manger danger!" "No one will ever speak or write of this again..." duck with a halo (though Moe's line seemed unnecessary), the Christmas tree, and the last line. A-

I Saw Grampa Cussing Santa Claus: This segment is getting a lot of flack, but I thought it was thoroughly original and entertaining, with that fun, adventurous feel of the Hellfish episode. Once again, we see a great, evil Burns, and I loved his youthful voice (as well as Abe's). There weren't as many laughs-per-minute as the first and third segments, and the ending was a little rambly, but the rest of it was very clever, original, and violent. It's good to see Abe as a strong war hero again. The animation and direction, particularly on the dogfight scenes, was amazing. I'm stunned at how far this show has progressed visually over the past four years or so.

And for the traditional string o' gags I liked, the Energizer commercial (enough of Tress already though!), "Bart, why'd you ask a follow-up question?" "Well, I don't usually drink after lunch...the sky's filled with that plane that crashes into the boat!" Burns flirting on the radio, "Months turned back to days..." "Hey sailor, my eyes are up here!" the Christmas palm tree, "It's Christmas, I wanna shoot something!" "He's German! That's good eatin'!" "Or my name ain't young Grampa Simpson," Rudolph in the snake, "Let's go, ya flying hat rack!" the reindeer dogfight, the toy battling, Abe tying up Burns in a Christmas sweater, and "I said wives, not girlfriends!" all hit the mark. B+

The Nutcracker...Sweet: I've been looking forward to this segment for a long time, and it didn't disappoint. It was a bit different than I expected, but amazingly successful at what it attempted. Great sight gags, lots of characters, wonderful use of music, and a happy, uplifting feeling abound in this segment. I particularly loved Marge's gift to Homer, and I agree that it's one of the best looks at their marriage the show has done in a long time. Now for the gags...

"Perhaps the worst version ever. -Superintendent Chalmers," "No leaving after your kid is done," "We're still doing act two, I'll be in the audience! Boooo, this is terrible!" Homer slapping his head in frustration when Marge starts singing, Bart's "wide load" tie, "Inbred, Bath, and Beyond" (wow, took three viewings to see this)...geez, I should just type out all these lyrics, they're hilarious. So were the sight gags with the Christmas tree on fire and Willie's double thought bubble (hilarious!), "These holiday cookies swell my fat!" the crazy cat lady (eh, she's probably Tress's funniest character anyway), the Jewish scene, the family hiding from Grampa, "You got me a gift? Rancid lard!?" Krusty's flashback (though it broke the flow a bit), Moe's attempted suicide with the string of popcorn, the sled, "No one gets my organs," the gun, the oven gag, the uplifting "I already got you a wool hat!" Homer's song and dance..."Ugh! Eighteen wheels and they ALL miss me!" ...Wow, the use of music in this segment is fantastic. A

So call me an overly-positive punk, but I loved this one. The animation and music were amazing, and there wasn't a single bad gag to be found. Perhaps most important of all, the episode just felt fresh and original, something memorable that sticks out from the rest of the season. The gags were better than See Homer Run, the emotion better than Marge's Son Poisoning, the originality better than The Girl Who Slept Too Little, and the animation and use of music better than anything this season. So for that, it gets a very strong A- 4.5/5, and my Best o' the Season So Far stamp. 'Tis the seventeenth season!

[Simpsons Forever!]

The first act was boring, the second was over the top and all over the place, but the third saved the episode - it was brilliant! 3/5 B-

[Greased Scotsman]

I WAS PROMISED A VERSION OF SIMPSTASIA!!!!!!!!!

Other than that, good episode. First story was a little dull, but the other too were great.

First D'ohel:B
Grampa Cussing: A
Nutcracker: A

Overall: A-

Edit: 1000TH POST!!