NHC Weekly Episode Club 2.0

[zartok-35]

Directed by David Silverman, venerable master of the Simpsons, assistant director Mark Ervin. All the good animators are on this episode; and Eric Thomas, who never again worked on The Simpsons.


Last week we experienced the "Jeffery Lynch effect", this week we're dealing with the "Silverman advantage". David Silverman practically created the animation style that is The Simpsons, and time and time again he proved that he was the best at distorting it. This is the episode features the wildest spectacle executed on The Simpsons; yes, this is the one where Homer has a heart attack!

This is the Silverman advantage in its strongest form. Homer quickly snaps through a number of frantic poses that look as nightmarishly uncomfortable as the ordeal he is experiencing, and contort the neck in ways that are not humanly possible. This scene would have been handled by the man himself, and it's a sheer delight to look at frame by frame!




A triumphant achievement in animated expression!

Sergeant Mort brings his sizeable eyes to the breakfast scenes where Homer craves some pork rump, and refuses his oatmeal.


Sarge also does the closing scene of Homer recovering from surgery.


Nancy Kruse handles the Springfield COPS sequence at the start of the episode.


Nancy also animates Dr. Nick's TV commercial.

Nancy draws eyes large like Sarge, but with more detailed facial features.

Lance Kramer animates Burns talking about the poisoned donut. Note the niblet eyebrows.

Lance also does the scene with Homer and Flanders at the hospital, where Homer has niblet eyebrows.



Istvan Majoros is particularly conspicuous during this period, drawing Homer with a straight head, angular hair, and straight eyebrows. Istvan anaimtes the scene where Marge and Homer are calculating finances.


The previous scene with Homer and Dr Hibbert is also by Istvan.


Barney and Moe at the hospital.

Istvan also does the "1000 knives of fire" scene.

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Most of the food in bed sequence is animated Noah Miller.

Then he does the reaction to Dr Nick's commercial. Noah draws shorter noses on the characters.


Lando Baeza did the radioactive bloodstream scene.

Lando also did the scenes of Homer driving behind the house.

It's always Hans Moleman driving the semis.

The "You're adopted, and I don't like you" scene with Homer and the kids looks to be the work of Andi Klein, with small pointy noses.



Chris Loudon animates Homer at the insurance office. Note the large nose.

[Toomanygrandmas]

Homer's Triple Bypass: A Review



Ah, 'Homer's Triple Bypass'. I enjoyed watching this episode, because it simply is a good episode. No, scrap that. It's a great episode.... no, it's simply an excellent episode. It's one of the greatest episodes of Season 4, and I'm sure that many will agree in saying that Season 4 is a solid season. The episode offers everything. Naturally, as it is about a serious matter, there are scenes of genuine emotion. Yet there are also some very, very funny moments. There are three episodes that deal with Homer in a situation where he could easily die: 'One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Bluefish' and 'So It's Come To This: A Simpsons Clipshow' (by easily die, I'm talking about medical reasons et blah). 'Homer's Triple Bypass' is probably the best, though 'One fish' is still very good ('Simpsons Clipshow' is not good, however). Anyway, on to the review.

Humour
So as I said earlier, you wouldn't expect an episode about Homer requiring heart surgery as a particularly funny one. Well, 'Homer's Triple Bypass' is a funny one. Very funny, to be accurate. The humour is relatively consistant throughout. The jokes are spot-on during the first two acts, but are still solid in the third, more serious, act. What you might think that this results in is slightly jarring humour - a funny moment, then a serious moment, then a funny moment again, ruins the impact of emotional or tense scenes. In some points of the episode, it felt like this was the case, but I don't think that it really was that much of a problem overall. The episode starts off strongly. The Springfield Cops thing is amusing, and so is 'Put out an APB for a male suspect, driving a...car of some sort'. I also enjoyed Homer selectively deciding what had a bug on and what didn't in his breakfast. There were numeous scenes at the power plant that made me laugh. Mr. Burns and the poison donut was one of them ('damn their oily hides!'). The exhange between Homer and Burns was gold, especially Homer's heart attack pause at 'inefficacious'. Mr. Burns' reaction to Homer 'dying' was an amusing moment, as were 'Remember your hippopotamus oath' and Hibbert raising the price when Homer has another heart attack.

Though the first act certainly was funny, I think I found myself laughing more at the second one. Homer's meeting with the clerk at Happy Widow's Insurance (the sign of the dancing widow is hilarious) has to be one of my favourite scenes in all of Season 4. Homer's excuse that he thought it said 'brain hemorrhages' was great, but what I really found funny was
Homer: I made an H!
Clerk: That doesn't count!
Homer: Looks like an X.

I laughed at Homer's attempts at getting 50,000 dollars from the religious leaders. Oh, and 'Bed Goes Up, Bed Goes Down...'. I just had to find a gif of it to plonk in the review. The last act, though a more serious one in nature, still had plenty of gags to smile and even laugh at. Most of the humour in this act derives from the antics of Dr. Nick - a character I don't normally find that funny, but find hilarious in this episode. Most of the guests visiting Homer in hostpital were funny (special props to the scene where Barney thinks Homer was gonna have a sex change - that was gold), but I wasn't keen on Abe's visit. I know he doesn't have the best of relationships with Homer, but that line just felt too cruel for Abe. Dr. Nicks reaction to watching the surgery was something to relate to - I'd be an awful surgeon. Oh, and 'People Who Look Like Things'. That's a cruel show, and sounds trashy, but I'd probably watch it anyway. There were a few funny moments in the operation room. Finally: 'Well, if it isn't my old friend, Mr. McCraig, with a leg for an arm and an arm for a leg!'

Plot and Characterisation

There isn't much to say about the plot and characterisation in 'Homer's Triple Bypass', because it was great. End of.

..Okay, I'll go into a bit more detail. The premise was something we had seen before (sort of), but it was done in a way that it seemed fresh - in 'One Fish, Two Fish', the kids never find out of the danger Homer is in. The pacing was solid, as in most classic episodes. There was not a particular need to develop a complex story. The characterisation - fine (except for that one scene with Abe), Homer was perfectly likeable. What really is excellent in this episode though, were the emotional moments and story. 'Homer's Triple Bypass' is one of the few episodes that is genuinely sad at points. Whilst many classic-era episodes have emotionally driven plots and the such, few are actually sad. Though we know that Homer isn't going to die, it is still quite the moment when Bart and Lisa talk to Homer on what might be his deathbead.

Conclusion
'Homer's Triple Bypass' truly is an excellent episode. This is no surprise, as it is from Season 4, home to many true classics. It offers a simple yet compelling story, solid character interaction, and solid humour. This isn't a top 10 episode for me, but is probably comfortably nestled somewhere as a top 25 episode. If 'Homer's Triple Bypass' happens to be on someone elses top 10, then there really is nothing surprising about that.


Bed goes up. Bed goes down. Bed goes up. Bed goes down...

9.25/10

[CousinMerl]

Well, whatta ya know; here I am again and with a little review in tow:




Written by Gary Apple & Michael Carrington and Directed by the great David Silverman, 'Homer's Triple Bypass'. is in my (and in many others) opinion a really good episode. It's really entertaining, fun and almost perfectly manages to combine hilarity and emotion in a surprisingly good plot, which is as we know about Homer having several heart attacks and ultimately having to go through an heart surgery session that might help him or might possibly kill him if it goes wrong. I think that with this episode, the staff did exceptionally well and dare I say it is almost flawless since I can barely find anything I dislike in the episode; it's just that good. Speaking of the animation, it is simply put great; it's warm, colorful and surprisingly really expressive, such as in the much talked about scene in Burns' office when Homer suffers his first near fatal heart attack but also in the majority of the episode; There's also some great uses of shadowing such as when Homer tells the kids his somewhat sugar-coated story about his impending heart surgery. The characterizations are pretty much spot on, there are many great character interactions and the episode is very well paced too. The questionable doctor Nick Riviera, who plays a big role in the last act, is used in a great fashion; definitely one the best uses of the character on the show and also one of the first times he has played a rather big role.

Of course, there's lot's of humor in this episode; the opening sequence with the Springfield cops (the callback later on at the emergency room was fun too), Homer insisting that there's a bug in the oatmeal and throwing it away but ignoring the bug on the bacon he's eating afterwards, Moleman crashing the truck carrying the house where Edgar Allan Poe was supposedly born in thanks to Homer's constantly bumping into him ("Now you've done it"), The dialogue between the gas station attendant and his companion Billy, Burns and the 'poisoned donut' ("Damn their oily hides!"), Homer's heart attack scene in Burns' office, including the cancellation of the condoleance ham (the animation definitely makes this scene), the ambulance stopping at the deer crossing ("How do they know to cross there?"), the two short flashback bits with young Homer (him eating a pizza slice, which apparently came out of nowere, as a newborn and the choir sequence), Hibbert messing with Homer ("Remember your hippopotamus oath"), the body fat analysis test ("Woohoo!, look at that blubber fly!"), Homer revealing that they gave up the health insurance at work for a flipper game in the lounge (prompting a rare "d'oh" from Marge), Homer's fixation with the defibrillator (if I'm not wrong, his liking of defibrillators are referenced later on during the series), Dr. Nick's commercial (in general, Nick in this episode is pretty funny), "Bed goes up, bed goes down, bed goes up, bed goes down..." and "cloud goes up, cloud goes down, cloud goes up, cloud goes down...", "Well, I've got news for ya: this ain't makeup!", Homer's 'replacement' at the plant, 'People Who Look Like Things', "What the hell is that?" (hilarious line considering it's just before Homer falls asleep on the operating table) and Mr. MacGreg, with a leg for an arm and an arm for a leg.

As for the final scene, seeing Homer post-operation on the hospital bed with a cheesy smile, Bart and Lisa cheering and how Marge has a relieved and loving look on her face is a great payoff and the last shot of Homer's heart thumping to the beat of the show's theme (with a brief stop) is icing on the cake. Overall, it is definitely a great episode and one of the best from the fourth season; one thing I like a lot is that it as said, manages to balance both a bucketload of humorous moments and emotion that works in the story without tainting the emotion and that is definitely something that makes the episode stand out a bit; it could have been just a gag fest but they decided to add emotion to it and that worked out really nicely. I have seen the episode many times but it still holds up with it's story, humor and emotion so all in all, it is definitely a favorite of mine and it definitely deserves all the praise it gets; top marks.

[Toomanygrandmas]

Well, it's my time to choose the episode for the club. It is a shame that the discussion has been dying down in recent weeks. I don't expect my choice to have a great amount of discussion - though I am sure that there is much to say in the reviews about it because of the satire in the episode. It is a slightly generic choice (which is why I was surprised that it hadn't been picked already), but it is an episode that is hard to ignore. My pick is:

The Itchy and Scratchy and Poochie Show

[Oh, that's raspberry!]

Sheesh this is the fifth Season 8 episode of this thread! Not a bad thing but considering this will probably be the last or second to last episode for this thread I think Season 8 wins the most episodes chosen from contest for sure!!!

[Toomanygrandmas]

Yeah, Season 8 sure does win in that regard. I can't figure out why, but hey

[CousinMerl]

Good choice and yes, it's definitely season 8 domination (but I can't really complain seeing as I think it's a great season).

[Oh, that's raspberry!]

The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show

I find it rather fitting that this episode happens to be the one up for discussion first after news that the series has been renewed for two more seasons. It really is ironic when you think about it(or perhaps just coincidental) that the entire point of this episode seems to be commenting on fans who were complaining about the quality of the series....in season 8. It is commonly known by those who regularly peruse this place that people were claiming the series jumped the shark in season 4, perhaps even earlier. Naturally each passing season would have at least some fans complaining the series had lost its way. This episode had to be a commentary directed towards them most of all. Season 8 is commonly perceived to be the last season with more good episodes than bad(again kinda ironically.) Considering all this the notion that the fans should appreciate all the laughs they've been given regardless of whether or not a show has been able to remain as good as ever is well....even more relevant today than when it was written. I sincerely doubt any one working on the show during this time had any idea it was less than a third of the way finished.

The episode itself is also perhaps ironically the final one with the Itchy & Scratchy characters as the main focus. The opening scenes with Roger Myers Jr.(this character's final appearance as well) seem to be at odds with how he is portrayed in Itchy & Scratchy & Marge. What I'm referencing here is his relationship to Krusty. Here Krusty seems to be in charge, going so far as to threaten Myers where as in the previous episode Krusty acted nervous around him, obviously seeking approval. I guess you could just say the power balance between the two has obviously shifted. The problem though is that no one is watching Itchy & Scratchy. The writers are quick to explain, through Lisa, that nothing is wrong with the show but that the years have lessened its impact. This is really the writers addressing the concerns with those fans I mentioned earlier regarding The Simpsons, and this technique of using the characters to symbolize concerns over the show is used multiple times in this episode, but more on that later.

Well Lisa's explanation comes only after a wonderful scene that comments on the nature of fickle fans. Milhouse's comment regarding winning something by watching is particularly funny. It is decided to help keep Itchy & Scratchy fresh a new character must be introduced. Like using Lisa before the writers are quick to make it painfully obvious to the Simpsons audience why this might seem like an unnecessary and desperate move for any series when we are introduced to Roy, a very funny character who we'll, appropriately, never see again. I'm only surprised he wasn't a green alien who only Homer could see. Anyway we get a scene with all the writers of Itchy & Scratchy filled with Simpsons writers cameos which I'll allow someone else to mention. Eventually it is decided that a cat and a mouse must be joined by a dog, Poochie.

Poochie's design scene is another nice touch added to the episode commenting on what new characters need to be in order for success. It is the attitude that seems to matter the most. Not coincidentally Roy and Poochie happen to be wearing similar clothing....Homer is eventually given the role of Poochie and gets a few scenes at the Android's Dungeon that seem to once again be using characters to allow the writers to make a bigger point. This time they outright ask their fans why they spend all their time watching a child's cartoon series. The scene comes off as rather mean-spirited to me, but perhaps it is just the sharpness of the satire here as I can't help but notice how much time I spend watching the Simpsons. Yet this should not be considered a bad thing as satire is ultimately an attempt to encourage the betterment of mankind. Still, very sharp satire indeed.

Poochie is hated by everyone, perhaps even Homer as his brain is quick to point out. The writers go to the character well to make their point yet again when Comic Book Guy and Bart have a wonderful little conversation regarding the expectations of the fans. One thing I'll definitely give this one is the satire here is perhaps as strong as any other episode ever. A Marge scene about poor writers which intentionally gives her crappy dialogue seems to support this notion. Poochie is abandoned despite Homer's protest and all is right with the world as Itchy & Scratchy are back to their good old formula...yet the kids are quick to turn off the TV regardless as the episode ends.

So then I have to wonder if maybe the writers were just laying out their own expectations for the future of the series? Maybe they were saying they expected more and more people to tune out over the years while still trying to make the show as good as possible, viewing this drop-off as inevitable? Perhaps they were trying to say that trying new things, while seemingly desperate, should be a wake up call to end a show that no longer has any fans at all? Or, perhaps we should just take what Bart and Lisa say at face value and either be happy the show still exists at all, or stop watching? And now we've come full circle haven't we? This episode, perhaps more than any other, was made for the fans of the show as I've already said. It raises interesting questions over the fate of long-running television series but leaves the answer up to interpretation, at least in my mind. And so too do I. There is no doubt that this is a fantastic episode, but it has never been one of my favorites. I appreciate its existence and Poochie has actually gone on to become a surprisingly popular minor character, but I just don't find it as funny, or fun to watch as I do several other episodes which focus more so on OFF, even in the 15 years to follow. 5/5 though anyway to be sure.

[CousinMerl]

Really good review, raspberry. One thing I really like about the episode the fact that members of the Itchy and Scratchy staff are in fact animated versions of Simpsons staff members such as Bill Oakley, Joh Weinstein, George Meyer and Mike Scully.

I will rewatch the episode so my review should be up in a while.

[zartok-35]

Directed by Steven Dean Moore, animated by Alex Ruiz, Ray Persi, Shaun Cashman, assistant director Nancy Kruse, Brad Ablson, Greg Lovell, Julius Preite, Bonnie Fishbon, and Erick Tran, Mark Watts, and Hunilla Fodor.

The prolific "Worst. episode. ever." sequence with Bart and Comic book guy is by Ray Persi, the last person you would expect to find on a Steve Moore show.


Ray also animates part of the scene where Homer meets June Bellamy.


I believe the "Hugging in your sleep" scene is by Ray, also.


Nancy Kruse animates Marge and the kids at the store.



Alex Ruiz animates Krusty chewing out Roger Myers. Krusty has lots of cool expressions here.


Alex also handles Homer's audition.


The scene where Poochie is designed(By David Silverman) is probably by Shaun Cashman.


Bonnie Fishbon handles the dinner sequence where Homer angrily eats chicken after discovering the plans for Poochie's demise.

Bonnie always drew funny looking and mis-shapen eyelids.


Most of the premiere scenes are handled by Bard Ableson.



Jules Preite animates the scene where Poochie dies.

[Toomanygrandmas]

Great review