Rate/Review "Mona Leaves-a" (KABF12)

[Mike Scully]

Glenn Close guest-voices as Mona, Homer’s mother, and Lance Armstrong as himself in another all-new May Sweeps episode. When Homer’s mother Mona unexpectedly passes away, Homer is filled with guilt for not telling her how much he loved her before she died. To make it up to her, Homer decides to fulfill her final wishes by throwing her ashes over Lake Wastershare at Springfield Monument Park.

http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stori...6/simpsons.jpg

[D'ohmer]

I liked it a lot. The first two acts showed emotion. The third act is like something you would get out of seasons 10 and 11, but I don't think that's bad. The ending was also nice. 4/5

[Robbie]

Didn't really care for it, should have been handled so much better than this. 2/5

[McClure]

I just made a thread... I guess you should delete it.

Anyway, that was pretty bad. Mona's voice sounded VERY off and a lot of the jokes just fell flat. Pretty much the entire first act was just a bunch of random unfunny jokes (that thing with Moe and the car door did not need to go on for a minute).

Once Mona came back, there seemed to be a lot of false emotion and wasn't done particularily well.

There was some okay stuff in the episode, such as the stuff with Lenny's mom, and the final act was okay (nice to see evil Mr. Burns return who doesn't know who Homer is... Although it was pretty brief).

All in all, 2/5.

[HappyPalooza]

"You keep disappearing and reappearing and it's not funny! You're just like that show, Scrubs."

5/5

[TheForbiddenDonut]

"You keep disappearing and reappearing and it's not funny! You're just like that show, Scrubs."

Was this an actual line of dialogue from the episode?

[Robbie]

Was this an actual line of dialogue from the episode?

Yes.

[TheForbiddenDonut]

Yes.

Terrible.

Yes, I know I haven't seen the episode, but that's me reviewing the infinitesimal portion of the episode that I know exists, and here's me leaving before I get yelled at by someone.

[btv]

My hopes were so high for this episode. I told myself while waiting the whole week for it "Please don't let the writers screw this up." And after watching it... I dunno how to feel.

Let me be frank. I liked how the first act ended, but hated how they played the death off. I enjoyed evil Burns (because old Burns... we have enough old characters on the show), but I didn't like how it was just a very played-out predictable scheme. The video will was fine, but it didn't have the poignancy that I was expecting from it. Like I said... I don't know how to feel about this.

Mona is/was one of the only Simpsons characters to really deserve a well made emotional send off if/when it ever did occur. This episode should have played off more as a Bleeding Gums Murphy sort of episode then a Homer espionage episode. How they could have fixed this is simple: ax the mall opening, chop off the slapped together montage at the end, and have it just focusing on Homer and his mother's death. King of the Hill did this amazingly well, and I guess I was expecting The Simpsons to follow in kind of the same trend (except without the negativity of the character, of course).

However... nothing ever plays out like you want it to. I'm not a writer, so I don't know how the process goes. But what I do know is, when you have a character with such presence in a series that has been the subject of many special, emotional-based episodes, you don't send her off with a whimper when it comes time for the character to die. Don't get me wrong - the 1st act break was fine, but how it all went about before and afterwards was disappointing. I was expecting it to come back focusing on Homer dealing with the death, but instead it went off in a completely different way.

So I don't know what to rate the episode. Part of me says B, but I know that's too generous. However... it seemed like a good episode. I don't know.

[son of a wiggum]

I have to say I really liked this. Sure, Mona's voice seemed off, but she wasn't around for long enough for it to become a problem. Thought there were some nice scenes with the family, specifically the mall and the mountain. When they were starting to climb the mountain, I was beginning to worry they'd waste the rest of the plot on the climb, but they handled it in a good (if not slightly bizarre) way. I had absolutely no problem with the missile, and it seemed to add more to Homer's complex emotions than take away from them.
It's almost sad how much I'm grateful for these days. I'm glad they didn't have Homer just stand there and say, "This is the vase my mom's ashes are in. We decided to have her cremated." They let the audience get that by themselves. Also, they managed to keep a character dead instead of keeping them alive as they have done on three previous occasions this season.
Wasn't perfect, but it's as close as they get nowadays. 5 / 5

[Yankeesfan21]

I give it a 4.95/5. There where some funny parts and the end kind of made me cry with Homers flashback of his mother. What was that song at the end? I thought it was used before.

[justsimpsons.com]

Good episode. Good, not great. 4/5

[Itchy]

I was a bit surprised to see Mr Burns, I was actually expecting Hank Scorpio.

[simpsonfan4510]

Was this an actual line of dialogue from the episode?

yeah it was...

[bobservo]

I'm not here to tell anyone that their opinions are wrong (though this is definitely going to sound like it) but I think some of these ratings are inflated by memories of "Mother Simpson"--the ending of which, by the way, still gives me goosebumps to this day. But "Leaves-a" just felt like a meaningless grab at an "event" episode, which apparently didn't work because it was the lowest-rated episode in the history of The Simpsons.

Mona's death wasn't as careless or crass as Maude Flanders', but her arrival at the Simpson home was completely contrived in that it felt like she showed up there just to die. I would have been happy if she had only appeared in season 7 and season 7 alone, but her death was another example of the writers completely disposing of a plot thread for the sake of getting one episode's worth of material--just like with the Skinner and Krabapel split a few years ago. But even with my disagreement over the reuse of Mona, this could have been an opportunity for Homer to explore his relationship with his mother (and maybe Mona's past); instead, we got a tired James Bond parody and an out-of-place adventure that immediately downplayed Mona's death as the chance for a wacky caper. And, as expected, there was no moment of quiet poignancy when it was all over, like at the end of Mother Simpson; instead, Al Jean gave us a cloying montage because he and his staff are completely terrified of placing any demands on the audience whatsoever.

One bright moment in this episode was Burns' reappearance and Shearer's spirited (for once) performance. It'd be nice to see more from him, though it's doubtful that we will at this point in the show's history.

2/5

[Green Man]

It was a well,well episode. i don't know why the ratings were so low. 3/5

[Universal Polymath]

Anybody notice Seth and Munchie at the funeral home, right at the beginning of act two? Nice touch.

Before watching the episode tonight, I forced my family to watch "Mother Simpson" from my DVD set with me. It was the first time I had seen that one in awhile, and it was really enjoyable for the whole family. I was really worried, though, that the new episode's inevitable inferiority would be all the more obvious right after such a classic.

Well, sure, "Mona Leaves-a" was no "Mother Simpson". But that's no surprise. Actually, the bigger surprise was that it was much better than I thought it was going to be. Well, up to a certain point. The first two acts, for the most part, were quite good. The emotional material wasn't handled nearly as well as it would have been around season seven or eight, but at the same time, it wasn't a complete disaster. The first act break was genuinely sad (and Homer's "I've been a real turkey" card was really cute), though I wish we would have gotten just a tad more of Homer's initial reaction.

So I was completely with the episode, right up until it is revealed why Mona wanted her ashes spread at the top of the mountain. After that, and into the third act, it just got far too silly. The final montage of clips was a nice touch, though, and the last moment was really sweet (which, in this case, didn't bother me in the least).

As for the jokes themselves, there were some pretty good lines throughout. I didn't like Moe's gag that opened the episode, but the following scene in the mall was pretty good. I didn't think Homer's attack of all the hippos in the store was all that funny, but the cut to them casually walking up their front walk with Homer casually whistling right after made it funny. I liked "The Defender" (but could have done without its return in the final act). I laughed at Grampa's tap shoes - That was a well-executed one. Homer's "Everyone loves to be corrected" reading also really made me laugh, as I'm always correcting my family's grammar and it bugs the hell out of them. I could have done without him getting stabbed in the head with Bart's knife (saw that gag coming from a mile away, anyhow), as well as the whole pot gag.

Overall, I'd say it was a pretty decent send-off for the character, but I wish the episode focused more on Homer's guilt, grief and eventual healing, rather than the over-the-top mindless "action" of the final act.

Ah well.

4/5 (I'm feeling generous)

[Semaj]

I really wish they would've left this alone.

What they came up with anyway was great.

4.25/5

[lionelhutz123]

5/5 simply an amazing episode. I think they executed the emotion of mona's death in such a sensitive way. The jokes came subtle and there were many laugh out loud moments. Epic plot also, I love how burns was used at the end of this episode. Nothing was awkward in this episode, everything was just perfect.

[SilverEagle]

5/5 simply an amazing episode. I think they executed the emotion of mona's death in such a sensitive way. The jokes came subtle and there were many laugh out loud moments. Epic plot also, I love how burns was used at the end of this episode. Nothing was awkward in this episode, everything was just perfect.

I agree. I loved this episode, and the ending (by which I mean the very last scene) was very touching.

It wasn't perfect, however. Not even close. Homer was a dick to his mother and, though he realized it later, the whole thing didn't quite make sense to begin with. The third act was unnecessary, but I thought it was pretty cool anyway. It just didn't fit. But, overall, this was fantastic. I thought most every joke hit home perfectly, excepting the usual two or three that fail (Moe in the parking lot, attempting to not digest the pie, etc.)

Whatever. 9/10. If more episodes were like this, the show would be consistently watchable.

[arii]

So I'm a bit of a wuss and did cry a little a few times: the first act break (which was very, very well done) and the ending (which was a very sweet little moment to close on). I wish the episode had been more grounded as a whole though, because it probably would have felt a lot better that way.

It wasn't all that funny - there were a few good jokes, of course, and thankfully there weren't any at a horrible expense to Mona. But it started with a poorly done unrelated half of a first act that just wasn't all that funny. Loved Homer's weapon. And his initial feelings towards Mona were compltely understandable, and it was good to see Homer still show concern for his mom - he's appropriately hurt after being brought down too many times, but when she dies, his responses were very well done. The thing with Lenny's mom was kinda cute, and Apu trying to console him was nice - I would've preferred Flanders to have tried to console Homer as well rather than simply say that Apu is wrong (something like, you know, "Oh, she's up in Heaven right now, looking down on you - and she knows you're going to be okay," or something like that. Not exactly but you know... it would've been better than just saying that Apu was wrong).

Unfortunately the episode kinda went into extreme wackiness - and while it was great that they remembered that Burns has to be present, it would have been nicer to have seen more of him. It was also kinda cheesy how everything Mona gave the family ended up helping out but... ah. Liked the call-back to the chain and cinderblock though. And the ending actually was pretty sweet.

A high 4/5 because I'm a softie and while it got a little out of hand/lame at times, they treated her death pretty well and had a couple of really, really nice moments. Unfortunately the worst of the Mona episodes, as it can't even really stand up to Carjacker (which was much more well done). It really needed to be more grounded.

[HappyPalooza]

I really like that the first act break didn't have a joke. When was the last time that happened?

And the third act was a bit of a slap in the face with the missile and action scene. It was by no means bad, it just didn't have a place in the episode at all, with the montage exception.

[Matt B.]

5/5 Great episode

[Universal Polymath]

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Mona's voice seemed a little off in my last post - Glad to see others felt the same way. Like I said, right before the new one, I watched "Mother Simpson", which made it all the more obvious.

It didn't bug me too much, though.

[Ezekiel 25:17]

"My aquarium!" ROFL

solid 4/5

[Gatorgod]

Mona's voice did seem a little off, but that caused me to like the episode just a little more. Hawhaw, Lenny's mom don't like him.
I was kinda expecting Mona's ashes to form a image of her head, as cartoons are apt to pull, I'm glad they refrained from that obvious visual tool.
You know something? for one moment, when Homer was being held captive in that missile silo, I almost imagined Hank Scorpio would make a surprise cameo. Ohwell, Burns is such a sufficient-suitable regular, who needs Hank?

I do 5/5

[tom cody]

3/5, started off with so much promise but fell off in the middle of the 2nd act.

[chagopian]

It's not exactly as good as the first one, or as sassy as the second one, but this is going to find its place in the Simpsons universe as a very likeable episode. We're treated to great season 8/9 esque Simpsons jokes, intertwined with a very post-modern Simpsons ending, and it's a blast to watch. However a stupid beginning, a dumb Moe joke, and a slightly out of place Bond parody are all misplaced, or un-needed. The episode shows neither sign of evolution or revolution (which the show needs), but it's still a very welcome episode. But the series can't last on life support (classic albeit) Simpsons, there needs to be a shakeup, and there needs to be one soon. And if any proof is needed, just look at the anticipation or reaction of this episode. It's like people didn't know, or care, that Homer's mom was coming back. 4 years ago, we got a completely different kind of reaction. And that was just four years ago.

On a side-note, did anyone else notice how well they played that Abe's tap dancing shoes joke? That felt very classic in my opinion (not the setup but the delivery of the gag).

[HappyPalooza]

On a side-note, did anyone else notice how well they played that Abe's tap dancing shoes joke? That felt very classic in my opinion (not the setup but the delivery of the gag).

Yes, that was great. I laughed.

[SneakTheSnake]

I think that, if you take "Mother Simpson", "My Mother the Carjacker" and "Mona Leaves-a" as a trilogy, this would be the weak one of the three. "Mother Simpson" proved to be a great emotional trip, revealing her complicated past and establishing Homer's mixed feelings. "Carjacker" seemed to have a closer connection to the first (though Homer's finding of Mona seemed extraordinarily far-fetched), but there were some honestly sweet moments and character development - I particularly liked the Homer / Mona montage. That episode wasn't perfect either, though; you'd figure a woman with the sense and secrecy Mona had to keep upon herself wouldn't admit in public to signing false names on park registries, knowing it was illegal. We'll save that for sometime elsewhen.

What really surprised me was Homer's initial total rejection of Mona. His frustrated and (justified?) coldness toward Mona came off pretty clearly, and his message was consistent. Another surprise came in her sudden departure and her constantly being there in the house after Homer's unusually strong negative signs.

While there were some nice gags here - I really liked Bart, Moe and Ralph here, and Ned's / Apu's religious discussion, almost a continuation of S16's "Midnight Rx", seems to make them a great duo - there were a few big miffs that prevented me from enjoying this episode. I think it came in the sheer unlikelihood of some events' outcomes, which reminded me of S11 - ash going directly into the computer, as per Mona's wish, Homer parachuting out of a gigantic explosion, and the clip montage, consisting of only about FOUR episodes, which the SAME song from the PREVIOUS Mona / Homer montage just seemed outright odd and lazy. Also, why would Mona tell Homer she was about to go out and chain herself to something? In that part, Homer looked older than when she "left for twenty-seven years".

Homer certainly had a strained relationship with his mother, and Abe didn't seem to have it much better off, but she became a pivotal part of Homer's adult life just the same. To see this chapter of Homer's complex character closed (probably for the rest of the series) leaves more hope for me that the series will eventually come to an end itself.

Because of my enjoyment of Mona's character, Bart's lines and Moe's aribtrary schadenfreude, I would have to give this a six-point-five or so.