Rate and Review "Funeral for a Fiend" (KABF01)

[Malaise Forever1]

Great episode. Had a "Simpsons Movie" quality to it.

[the simpsons brainiac]

4.5/5
Homer made me laugh.

[Mr.Penguin]

I really liked this one. It felt a bit short (like all of these episodes do) and the "mystery" aspect wasn't done as well as it could've but it didn't annoy me that much. The designs on Bob's parents were great and I'm glad that they didn't focus on his family that much. The callback to Bob and Snake being friends was cool too. That lawyer in the courtroom scene sort of reminded me of Lionel Hutz (it's the kind of line he wouldv'e said too); they should use him as the family lawyer instead of Gil [who's apparently still alive]. This one was animated really well too (that amazing looking Itchy and Scratchy cartoon and Bob going crazy).

About a 4.5/5

[El Fuego]

3/5

Homer was funny in my opinion
I liked the oprah joke

The krusty song was funny but then they drag it out too long (perhaps to fill in time because they don't have enough material?)

In my opinion, there were a lot of jokes with potential but the punchline is weak or they drag out a joke for too long.

The episodes are getting better, though.

[moeistheirleader]

Alright, as you may know, every week I come here and say this episode sucked/end the series already/ the last thirty minutes have been an abortion of humor.

Unfortunately for me and my love of kicking those who are down, this episode was actually quite good. While I came in with low expectations as the last few sideshow bob episodes have been utter shit, they really managed to put together a very respectable episode this week.

While there were some low points with another Opal show and Kieth Oberman's appearance, the story and writing were for the most part witty and fun. Probably the best episode in years.

3/5

[blue_pants]

Interesting note: most of the Itchy & Scratchy sequence in this episode was fully animated here in the U.S. at Film Roman. If you have the episode recorded, watch some of it frame-by-frame to see the difference between good animation and mass produced animation that comes out of Korea.

Example:

Yep, yep! That is my boy Dane Romley work right there! If you don't believe me check out his deviantART page http://morpheus306.deviantart.com/

[Nameless]

Plotwise it was a block of concrete compared to the snow blocks that came before.

...That was a really odd metaphor, so I'll move on.

It was passable enough and did manage to skip over one or two of the annoying elements that plague new episodes so frequently. They really need to stop using Bob every one or two seasons before he gets too tired, or only use him when they're really sure they have a decent script.

The 'Bob goes insane' end did give it an odd feeling of closure, though.

A B- for now.

[Dave Shutton]

I personally thought David Hyde Peirce did a wonderful job returning as Cecil, i would watch an episode only about him without Bob. I really like how Peirce talks so proper and inteligent yet pitiful. Last night some of my favotire parts were with Cecil (i was really expecting more of him ) "Your right it is boring" and the ending when Snake clubbed them all made me laugh.

A great idea i thought of last night would have been if Bob's annoyinh baby Gino had been put into foster care instead of going into jail with the rest of the family (which makes no sense). And being adopted by baby Gerald's family and have the two join up against Maggie, just a thought to give Maggie some more screen time.

[Tomacco]

"The joke's not funny, and the bid not sufficient!"
Definitely the best end of episode joke of the year.

[Dave Shutton]

"The joke's not funny, and the bid not sufficient!"
Definitely the best end of episode joke of the year.

yeah thats it, i couldn't remember it. Great line

[Itchy]

3/5 Decent episode. I wish Cecil had a bigger part in it though.

[TriforceBun]

I quite like Botticelli, actually.

So what can they do with Bob now? Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing Cecil attempt some revenge due to Bob being driven mad by the Simpsons. While the Bob episodes of late haven't been as good as they were in the past, they're still generally interesting and it's fun to check up on the psychopath every couple of years.

I'm also curious if they could incorporate Krusty or even Sideshow Mel back into Bob episodes. Perhaps Bob tries to come back to the Krusty show and the kids end up liking him more than Mel? Bob's relationship with Krusty has sort of already been touched on with Jackanapes and Last Gleaming, though.

[Dave Shutton]

I quite like Botticelli, actually.

So what can they do with Bob now? Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing Cecil attempt some revenge due to Bob being driven mad by the Simpsons. While the Bob episodes of late haven't been as good as they were in the past, they're still generally interesting and it's fun to check up on the psychopath every couple of years.

I'm also curious if they could incorporate Krusty or even Sideshow Mel back into Bob episodes. Perhaps Bob tries to come back to the Krusty show and the kids end up liking him more than Mel? Bob's relationship with Krusty has sort of already been touched on with Jackanapes and Last Gleaming, though.

I made a thread all about this in the general disscussion forum

[The Foot]

The episode started off a little slow, but the pace picked up quickly.For the most part the jokes were funny and story was clever. The Frazier parody with Cecil hit the mark. While the ending was predictable, with Sideshow Bob coming out of the coffin faking his death, it was still enjoyable to watch. Good episode. 4/5

[Ramier Wolfcastle]

Thanks to the power of downloading, I have finally gotten to see this episode.

It wasn't until watching the running credits in Act 1 that I realized that this was the start of the real Season 19, and the KABF production line! Most of the Executive Producers and Co-Executive Producers from the JABF episodes remain the same, except that Dana Gould has left and Don Payne has stepped down to Consulting Producer. Ron Hauge is now a Co-Executive Producer after usually being just a "Producer." But my heart sank a bit when I noticed that Rob Lazebnik was listed as a Co-Executive Producer. He held that same position in seasons 11-12, the low point of the series, and wrote Homer vs. Dignity, a god-forsaken awful episode.

Other low points in the episode were the Opal Scene, the Keith Olbermann dream going on too long, and the echoing joke in church. But the bulk of the episode was downright enjoyable! Kelsey Grammer, David Hyde Pierce, and John Mahoney were brilliant as Bob, Cecil, and the father of the family. And the best part of all was  Bob faking his death. I knew it! They wouldn't kill off a classic character in the first episode of the production. ...

All I can say is, it ties with I Don't Wanna Know Why the Caged Bird Sings as the best of Season 19. The KABF series begins with a bang! (But so did the JABFs with Haw-Hawed Couple...) I've got a feeling the quality of the show is improving.

5/5

[Colonel_Cool]

Season 19 is not that bad so far in comparaison with season 17

[Lobster Harmonica]

Decent episode. The best Sideshow Bob episode since Brother from Another Series. There were some moments that were quite good but overall it felt a bit boring. 3/5

[Mr_Scorpion]

A huge improvement over The Italian Bob, which is one of my least favorite episodes of all time. Bob was in good form, his annoying family was pushed to the background, and they even managed not to fuck up Cecil, which was a nice surprise.

My only major complaint was the first act. A Sideshow Bob episode should have more than enough to fill 22 minutes without devoting an entire act to Tivo jokes that might have been relevant 8 years ago. First acts lately have done one of two things; get me excited for a good episode that never comes (HaK) or delay and shorten a good episode, like this one.

But once we eventually get to the Bob storyline, it's worth it. Bob's restaurant scheme doesn't really seem to make much sense, but I'm willing to give some suspension of disbelief because of all the great stuff going on here. The absolutely ridiculous anagram, Homer never comprehending that he isn't at a restaurant, the long pause before Bob bursts back into the room... the entire scene was very well-written and funny.

The courtroom stuff wasn't quite as great, but it was still never boring or cringe-worthy. Homer's sudden accusation of Bart was hysterical, and probably my favorite part of the episode. I wish Bob's death had been given more weight though. It seemed like the writers assumed that we'd know Bob wasn't really gone, so they didn't feel the need to give the situation any kind of drama, which is a shame. I would've liked to see Bart respond to his enemy's demise in a more three-dimensional way than just not caring. Maybe if we hadn't wasted so much time watching Marge watch Tivo, they could have explored it further. Oh well.

The ending felt rushed, but it still played out nicely and came to a satisfying (if predictable) conclusion. It was nice to finally hear Homer's "fear of coffins" line too. After three misfires in a row, the Sideshow Bob saga is back to its roots and back on track. Hope it lasts.

3.5/5, rounded to 4

[bobservo]

Yep, yep! That is my boy Dane Romley work right there! If you don't believe me check out his deviantART page http://morpheus306.deviantart.com/

Great job! Why can't we get more animation like this in the actual episodes? I know Groening and co. don't like off-model key frames and models, but I really noticed the extra bit of work that went into this episode. I could've sworn that Silverman had a hand in it.

[shark_vs_gorilla]

Yeah I agree some of my favorite Homer scenes from an animation standpoint are the crazy off model ones that Silverman did. This eps I&S had that Silverman-esque feel to it

[TheForbiddenDonut]

Abstaining from going off-model in EVERY frame is a terrible rule to go by in animation. Didn't know it was an ideology held by the staff of the show.

[Valhum]

OMG totally loved it, one of the best Side Show Bob episodes IMO

[Mindy Simmons]

One thing that I gained a delayed appreciation for in regards to this episode is that not only is it an obvious homage to "Black Widower," but its almost a send up of the "sleuthing" in BW. I think Bob's plan was purposefully outlandish and the clues Lisa put together were meant to be as obscure as possible. I think comedy was the goal of this one, not so much the suspense/mystery of BW. This may be the most tounge-in cheek SSB episode, even more so than "Cape Feare."

[TriforceBun]

Abstaining from going off-model in EVERY frame is a terrible rule to go by in animation. Didn't know it was an ideology held by the staff of the show.

Agreed, unless perhaps it's something like King of the Hill.

[Dark Homer]

Didn't like it. My guess is that someone really, really wanted to do a whole bunch of tivo jokes so they shoehorned it into a Sideshow Bob episode with the flimsiest of transitions (Sideshow Bob's diabolical scheme is based entirely on the off-chance that the Simpsons might see the commercial he made?). All the constant "ironic" point-out the-formula, "uh oh here we go... again!" winking at the camera got incredibly tiresome and did nothing but make me more aware of just how formulaic it was. It felt like the scene in "Brawl in the Family" where Smithers comes in and says "Maggie shot Mr. Burns again!" extended to 22 minutes. There were one too many "rake gags" - scenes that go on too long, like Krusty's song and the atrocious echoing gag - but no time to allow the audience to really feel Bart's isolation from the rest of the town (done well in "Bart's Inner Child," "The Telltale Head" and "Black Widower"). Bart going to say goodbye to his nemesis was an intriguing premise that needed more poignancy (I'm thinking in particular a "Bart Sells His Soul"-type monologue) but instead the whole ordeal just felt flat. At least the writers had the good sense to not give Sideshow Bob Jr. a lot of dialogue.

[I Shot Mr Burns]

I really liked this one, one of my favourite bob episodes (even though i love nearly all of them except the italian one). I thought the moment when Bob said 'lets give the people what they want' and emerged from the coffin was perfect, especially the muic and I love who everyone in Bob's family is evil. Overall i liked the solid plot and the strange scene weith bob using the laptop was well explained.

5/5

[BrideofMoleman]

Why do the Police always step in right as a big action sequence is going to happen?

I personally would have liked to see more on the Terwillingers vs Simpsons. Also, they have got to stop spending so much time on first acts that are barely connected to the main plot. And Bob's "plot" to catch the Simpsons in his trap seemed rather unnessecary and over-the-top

[The,Bart,The]

Feet...killing?!

[Sloppy Jimbo XOX]

most ive laughed at simpsons in ages. all the characters were in good form, homer and sideshow bob in particular. the story was good too, even if the tivo jokes wasted a bit of time

4/5

[Reservoir Dog]

I liked it. It was a good funny episode, with the usual incredible Kelsey Grammar dialouge that we have all come to expect. I'm not too sure about the whole family aspect, but they havent been on screen enought for me to care either way so far. With everything that was good about this episode, there were some really stupid things about it. The cleverness of the twist and realization was nowhere near any of the earlier Sideshow Bob episodes such as Krusty Gets Busted, Sideshow Bobs Last Gleaming and Black Widower. The episode didnt lay in anything earlier about the twist, it was just one scene of Lisa sitting on a porch. Very retarded. Despite my gripe with the third act, the rest of the episode was very entertaining and I know I will enjoy the next Sideshow Bob episode and I already cant wait. 4/5