R&R Dog of Death

[brody]

Watched this about a week ago, and I must say, despite a few very funny moments, this is an incredibly dark and depressing episode. The lottery fever at the beginning was pretty funny, as was Kent Brockman. However, the dog plot just seemed to have little merit. He gets an operation which makes the family have to lose a lot of money, which causes him to run away and become Mr. Burns attack dog, and then in the end he comes back and everything is back to normal. Watching it just is kind of gloomy. I did love Homer's fantasy about turning into gold, Homer saying that Brockman couldn't buy a.....dinosaur, and the Clockwork Orange parody. But overall, meh.

3/5

[Sniper Squirrel]

Loved this episode, especially the lottery frenzy and the "Clockwork Orange" tribute, I also love Burns' performance 4.5/5

[Super Comic Book Guy]

Meh it was ok, the funniest bit in the show was this scene:

Grampa: Uhh i knew we wouldn't win

Homer: Well why didn't you tell the rest of us?...(Throws minitable) WHY DID YOU KEEP IT A SECRET!!!.

[Charlie]

And don't forget:

If you were 17 we would be rich. But nooo you had to be TEN.

4/5

[Rest your giant head]

I gave it 4/5,excellent one. The whole plot was amazing,well written all around. I love the part where Burns is training SLH.

[Drunk Barney]

Very poor for Season 3's standards. But it was still a pretty good episode. B/B-

[flamingtuna]

Unfortunatelty, this was one episode that didn't make me laugh at all. Also, the seroius "theme" was not very........
well put together.............................
and watching it was a rather bore........
except the first 10 minutes. those were ok


3/5

[TheForbiddenDonut]

Criminally underrated in my opinion. Most of the time it seems this doesn't get a very good grade solely because it is an SLH episode. I didn't care much about it the first time I saw it, but this episode just had so many laughs (Barney's and Homer's conversing with each other, Kent Brockman, the Shirley Jackson's lottery part, several little gags concerning the lottery, Homer as a golden giant, SLH's video concerning animal cruelty, Homer put in a ton of lines, the veterinarian, Mr. Burns moments, etc.). The list is near endless. 4.5/5 rounded down to a 4/5, because it is still not a perfect episode.

[J-Spot]

Not one that I would count as a classic. Although the show has had plenty of great sad moments (ie Mother Simpson), this one doesn't really deliver enough funny to balance it out. I'll take Bart's Dog Gets an F over this any day. 2/5, by classic era standards.

[Smell ya later]

The only real highlight in a fairly dark outing..........."This is the part of the job I hate". 2/5.

[Nebuchanezzar]

This, for me, is everything a Simpsons episode should be. It's essential viewing for any fan.

The premise is simple, yet effective for The Simpsons. Whilst the idea of a dog going missing has been done, and can be done in every avenue of entertaininment it doesn't decrease how much one can like this episode. Yes, it's almost cliched in some ways, but it's cliche is only due to the preceding forms of media that have overdone the story. As is stands, The Simpsons have done it the best.

The plot is handled well with a seemingly unrelated first story that acts as the introduction for the bulk of the episode. This subplot doesn't take up a lot of time, yet it acts as an exciting and hilarious introduction to the episode. From there, it heads in the direction of overdone dog movies, yet comes out being quite touching for the viewer. A child losing their pet due to monetary cirsumstances is certainly something that a lot of families have gone through, and it's more than a respectable scenario for The Simpsons to go through. The conflict of money is handled nicely with Marge & Homer trying to downplay the conflict, with Bart & Lisa acting as the other side of the argument. The entire family is characterised well and in fairly conservative roles that allow them to keep their dignity and appealing natures in an episode which could easily threaten them (especially the adults).

The later conflict of the dog causing problems is completely understandable and sympathetic to the nature of humans from what I've seen. The dog running away then acts as a further catalyst for further conflicts which are resolved in a very emtionally driven yet highly enjoyable Simpsons style.

The episode is chock full of hilarity, which actually gets it the bulk of the high score from me. From the get go of the lottery story to the text appearing on screen at the end, the humour really doesn't stop. Yes, some of it is dog related but it's still extremely funny. Some of the better Homer jokes can be seen here, with his reaction to losing the lottery (Why did you keep it a secret?) and his disdain for caring for the dog later on in the episode. Mr. Burns also has his moments, with the animation of the "poka poka poka!" scene being pretty hilarious. Burns is also perfectly characterised as the evil old conservative capatilist who's tremendously out of touch with the real world ("I can't wait to start pawing througn my garbage") we've all learned to hate. Mention also needs to go to Skinner, who gets an awesome portrayal in this episode as the epitome of his strict, Vietnam ravished character ("One eraser? I've been done over by this government before. I was in Nam! - ...") that he should be.

The music and visuals of the episode, although already mentioned deserve further credit. The Peter & the Wolf musical piece heard over Santa's Little Helper helps a scene that's already animated in an extremely unconventional, yet perfectly suited way. I simply adore that scene, and I can't wait for it to come on every time I watch it.

The Clockwork Orange parody also serves as my favourite movie reference on the Simpsons. It's bloody hilarious and I can never control my laughter any time I see it. It works so well within the context it's used in, it doesn't seem at all forced, it goes on for just long enough and the visuals from the movie translate brilliantly into the episode. It's the reference that all other references should struggle to be like. Adding even more to its credibility is that a person who hasn't even seen A Clockwork Orange will find it highly entertaining, and highly relevant to the plot (and let's face it, a lot of references in the cartoon world of Family Guy/Simpsons aren't).

"I love you boy...love you boy...love you boy...love you boy..." spoken by Bart serves as an awesome climax for the narrative, coming out sweet in the end. I simply adore the ending, and it goes even further by having the Simpsons family stroking their beloved dog in the end. Awww, how heartwarming.

10/10 - Even though some might view the story as being cliched and hence not worthy of such a score, I don't consider it that way. It's perfect.

[Veryjammy]

-

[Nebuchanezzar]

Is this to say I should expect a whole bunch of posts aimed at attacking my review, by Veryjammy (amongst others)?

[The Foot]

I didn't think too much of this episode the first time I saw it. After repeated viewings I found myself liking the episode. The plot is decent and there are enough funny moments to be enjoyable. B

[Dieing Tickles]

I like it. The plots really good. 4/5

[simplysimpsons]

5/5 all the way. Emotional, top-notch characterisations and a very deep and heartwarming story. Plus, IMO, the most spot-on and hilarious satire the show has ever done (the lottery). A+

[Reservoir Dog]

Another "money problems" episode

[Rax]

"Marge, I've figured out an alternative to giving up my beer.
Basically, we become a family of travelling acrobats!"

Everything with the lottery and the family's money problems as well as isolated character humor is hilarious (TheForbiddenDonut listed most of it), the problem is just that the story asks me to feel sorry for a character I have no empathy for at all, and the problems just go away for no good reason at the end (like "Bart's Dog Gets An F", however it was even more bothersome there). There's so little time spent on SLH becoming evil and then good again, it's pretty ridiculous really. But luckily, there's so much more going on here that justifies a grade as high as A- for such a silly plot.

[Oliver.]

Not the best Simpons episod I have watchedt, weak story.
3/5

[Fox Executive]

same here, 3/5

[Moe Nopoly]

i wouldn't count Santa's L. Helper to my favorite characters, so a story based around him is in general not so interesting for me personally.
This one is not bad, the idea that the Simpsons all have to suffer money shortage because of him, is interesting and also provides some funny moments.
But not the whole time and some boring moments in this episode too.

the end was funny with:

"No dogs were harmed in the filming of this episode. A cat got sick and somebody shot a duck, but that's it."

3/5

[erpistria]

"Smell ya later" I have the exact same avatar in another message board (about dogs). I just can't put in words how much I love this episode. Dogs in cartoons are portraid (did I kill the spelling?) as human like odd creatures. SLH is really a dog in his cartoon nature.
I adore him. And in this episode we see him at his best.
5/5

[Starman]

Easily in my top 10 favorite episodes ever. A++

[sconer]

Not the greatest episode, but not the best. Definitely has a dark side to it. 3/5

[ThatAsianGuy]

liked the clockwork orange allusion, 5/5

[rmd]

Not the greatest episode, but not the best.

[TerwilligerBob]

Yeah, it was dark and depressing, and could've used more humor. I did like the realistic and relatable plot though, and have always liked SLH, such a Simpsonish dog. The lottery frenzy was pretty hilarious, and I really liked Mr. Burns's performance and the Clockwork Orange parody. The episode itself was a bit weak, and didn't really have enough going for it, so 4/5.

[Sprocketeer]

I absolutely love the first act in this ("No, you've got the wrong number, this is 9-1...2"), along with one of the finest Kent Brockman moments in the entire series, but it goes on a small slippery slope from there. 3.5/5

[The Sovereign]

4/5

loved the scene where SLH runs away to peter and the wolf and the clockwork orange reference

[Jesse Pinkman]

my opinion changes on this one a lot. one on hand, it is funny and well written, on the other hand, it gets a little boring. so i got to give it a 4/5, because it kept me entertained and was funny