Rate/Review "Springfield Up" (JABF07)

[Rest your giant head]

I’m impressed with the way this episode turned out, because I was a little bit afraid of continuity errors – thankfully, there weren’t any. This was entertaining, funny, experimental and original. What I liked a lot about this episodes is seeing some of my favorite Springfielders being 8 years old, but still being hilarious. Who would’ve thought that comic book guy had a beard when he was a kid?

Some of my favorite bits include Frink’s time machine, the origin of crazy cat lady, and the origin of Disco Stu – I’m sure most of the people thought it was the Sea Captain. I found Homer very interesting through the years of making the documentary as well – being impressed by the squeeky toy, having job as a question asker in commercials, and doing open casket caricatures. The scene with his one-man garage band was hilarious.

The story changed a bit in the third act, with Homer desperately wanting to be rich. It was odd that Homer was so unsatisfied with his life. However, the ending with people of Springfield showing how much they like him and envy him in a way made me smile.

A

[Nauru-1]

I think things fall apart a little once you get to the Homer in Burns' mansion and stuff, but this was a relatively decent later Jean episode helped primarily by the unusual setup. I don't consider it anything special, but it's entertaining enough for a 3/5.

[HRH Sir Prince Charles]

I'll confess, I'm a huge fan of the Up series. I've been watching the documentaries since I was a kid with my parents, and the concept of a Simpsons parody of them had me very excited and might have colored my opinion of the episode.

This is my favorite late Jean episode. 90% of it works perfectly, and what doesn't work isn't horrendously bad. Eric Idle is exceptional as Desmond, nobody is too out of character and the jokes almost all hit. The ending was very rushed and the episode does fall apart slightly when Burns comes in, but I'd still give it a 4.5/5

[Bella Drape 'er]

Very inventive episode. The sheer delight of its complex structure caught me off guard on my first watch. But repeated viewings have helped me fall in love with the episode - and although the ending is sloppily put together, it is still a hilarious and very enjoyable episode.

4/5

[CollectorCharlie]

The Cat Lady's origin surprised me. Had no idea that was her at first. Nicely done.

[Financial Panther]

I don't think this episode is that great. I like the whole flashback part, but when we get to the present and Homer living in the mansion, everything quickly falls apart.

[Safety Inspector]

A+
Excellent episode. I have learned a lot of the new about the past of Simpsons characters.
My Top 100 and another great Matt Warburton's episode

[Alcatraaz]

What do you know, I just saw this episode on WBIN yesterday!


I thought of this episode as a sequel to the previous documentary episodes, kinda like the 138th episode spectacular, except it is in show. I like how Eric Idle could actually be considered a guest star and not just another one shot. The continuity in the episode was mediocre-I couldn't exactly figure out how Homer getting into Burns' mansion fits into the main plot. The only other thing I hate about this episode is that it was shortened (just like old times!) for a Simpsons Movie trailer on the 1st airing. Other than those, this is a great, sophisticated modern episode.


A

[Zombies Rise from the Sea]

Springfield Up

The documentary aspect of the episode is a really interesting idea; just think about it, a documentary of Springfield's most famous characters with their own look into the past and future, it's interesting because it gives us a look into Springfield as a whole similar to the "22 Short Films about Springfield" episode; their lives, their professions, how it all works in unison to the town of Springfield and the pinnacle moments of their lives. It's one idea that would provide a hell of an episode that'd rival the aforementioned episode above, even prove to be the best episode of Season 18 but instead that idea goes mostly to the wayside for an episode about Homer.

Don't get me wrong, they do utilize the idea in some areas. They frame most of the episode around the documentary and we get to see some of our character's who are not named Homer past and present; those shown have good moments that could easily be included in a classic era episode (at least in terms of history) and provide what could of been the episode it was supposed to be. One thing to note is the history provided for the Cat Lady. ("Elanor") I mean she's one of those characters that the staff seems to appreciate, including her in mostly every episode; I don't know why the staff likes them so much I mean most of the Simpsons community thinks of her as nothing special yet the writers seem contempt to place her within every episode possible. It is nice that they're exposing a non-special character though by showcasing how she became the cat lady, it's one of the bright spots in Modern Simpsons because of how much care they're putting in a character that most of us could care less about; for one episode, we're getting a sense of her being an actual intellectual character rather then a somewhat questionable character... Though I do want to know what the writers see in the Cat Lady that we don't.

The episode revolves around Homer and his desire to impress the documentarian ("Delcan Desmond") by any means necessary; while Homer living it up is an impressive plot in theory, it doesn't work out like you expect. Don't get me wrong, the plot itself holds up decently but it seems like it was created for the documentary framing device as a whole rather then something that could support it's own episode; if you remove the device from the episode, it might still be decent but it wouldn't be something truly special; it may seem like something special but in the end, it's just dressed in pretty clothing. While what is shown is better then usual for Season 18, it feels as is it isn't going far enough; you think that with the premise that they're given they'd put more effort into making it truly special but they never go above and beyond, feeling as if they're walking around just doing their usual thing despite the unique aspect of the episode and this is an episode where going above and beyond would of truly helped this episode reach heights it was supposed to reach in the first place; if you're expecting this episode to reach those heights, you'll be disappointed.

The first half holds up pretty well... Homer's showcase of the good life is sensible as it is charming and most of it doesn't get in the way of the episode. I have to say, they showed some pretty decent restraint when it came to this episode, I thought they'd go all wacky with the extravagance; well they do introduce Dolphins into the mix (which is pretty cringeworthy) but other then that, nice restraint. What is shown plays into the format of the episode well and it contributes to a somewhat decent surprise (though it gets more old and obvious the more times you watch it.), we're actually being somewhat convinced and that as a whole makes the episode work... However, things start to fall apart by the second half of the episode; what could of been a turning point for the episode instead signals the beginning of it's regression, cultivating to an ending that somehow renders the entire episode generic. Much of the content here starts to resemble modern Simpsons which it's jokes that are unneeded and it's emotional moments that are generic and gimmicky; there is something to be had with Homer and the documentarian in the third act but it doesn't seem to be exploited, instead it seems to switch between being a gag and being something sentimental and not deciding which one to settle on; in fact it seems to be a major problem throughout the second half, the best Simpsons episodes manage to balance their emotional and comedic comment and while this episode does have admirations of joining those ranks, it can't seem to effectively balance them (emotional moment being diluted by an unnecessary comedic moment and vice versa) leading to some wasted moments and a diluted payoff at the end, a payoff which I admit tried to be emotional (and it somewhat is as it contains charming scenes that you won't regret watching and a message that's worthwhile) but just seemed like all the other modern Simpsons episode endings out there.

There are some good moments throughout the plot that make watching it worthwhile but those moments are mostly in the past; there are some good moments in the present like Mr. Burns and Mr. Smithers and some of Lisa's voice acting but still... It's always nice to see Homer and Marge's past even in these modern times mainly because of the sentimental value that they hold and it's also nice to see that they didn't waste a majority of those moments; Homer's moments are somewhat interesting but they have some things that the Modern Simpsons are known for, mainly having Homer do weird stuff and yell out stuff obviously; those moments are surprisingly complacent compared to the entire episode though those moments when they do happen are really distracting. Homer's edgy personality hasn't been forgotten (his band, his tattoos, his dislike of kids...) and as a plus, manages to be done in a way that adds to the episodes and is somewhat reminiscent of the classic era; in that these scenes aren't overly obvious or distracting, they're just sentimental and reflective. There are scenes where he gets a couple of jobs but since they fit within the context of the plot, I don't mind much but most of the jobs that he does do are pure modern Simpsons, especially that infomercial bit. Marge's moments are good too though, her small scene in the high-school is good but it makes us wish what happened had they included more of that. No matter, the true moments are when both of them together... Taking care of the kids, being there for each other, those moments manage to show why Homer & Marge make a good couple; they're not the best moments but they provide most of the heart in the episode. Plus the scenes that are in black & white are one of the nicest scenes the show has ever done, mainly for it's sensible, realistic portrayal of Springfielders as kids with only some elements feeling off. (Side note: what is it with Moe? First he's born ugly then he's born a son of a Yeti now he's made ugly? I did find young Moe cute though...)

One has to think what would of happened had they removed the Homer plot and focused on it being a documentary from beginning to end. I mean sure, it wouldn't have the Homer plot but it would be kind of like "22 Short Films about Springfield" in that it would of explored Springfield's characters growing up and even revealed some information about Springfield's minor characters; it would of shown how the people shown contributed to Springfield, made it a part of their lives, how they revolve their lives around Springfield and how Springfield as a whole revolves around them. It could of been a major win for the city of Springfield and for the show as a whole (even though it's in the 18th season.) and it would of gotten even more praise. However, I doubt the writers could write an episode without Homer Simpson so yeah... But despite that, one has to think what could of been done to improve the episode; for one, they could of tried to keep the documentary thing for the entire episode; there are a lot of scenes where the format is messed around with to fit a joke or a scene which they think is truly important, there is even a time when the format itself is dropped around the end of the episode. Keeping the documentary thing would of made the episode more gimmicky (and there are parts where the gimmicks show) but at least it would of given it a consistent feeling and ultimately led to something more; they treat the documentarian almost like a character, someone who is either behind the character and or narrating the thing. I think that they should of kept him the same way and not try to transition him to being a character who hangs out at Moe's bar, that way it can keep the artistic feel while making the character's delivery more unique and fitting with the episode; besides, the documentarian is supposed to be a documentarian, not an actual character.

I can understand why people rate this highly, it has it's characters in a plot which ultimately leads itself to a message which people like, it has charm, it has a format which somewhat works and it's better then most of Season 18. However, there are a lot of things that people seem to gloss over; things that severely harm the episode... I understand if you want a ray of hope but to ignore the things that hinder that way of hope well just doesn't seem to be the right thing to do. The episode starts off well in it's first half with it's charm and it's sensibility then severely declines in it's second half with it's muddiness and it's uncertainty. The format is unique but it's ultimately tossed to the wayside near the end and not given the proper usage it should have gotten and there are certain points of the episode where you have to think what could of happened had they gone the extra mile. It's not a bad by any means but it's certainly rated too highly for what it is, it's a decent Season 18 episode but it's not the best of the season or even the series.

6.0/10

[LangdonAlger]

Love this ep.
• Decland Desmond
• the baseball team basketball team ownership line. From child homer
• the condomint pen
First post here!!