Rate and Review: 500th Episode "At Long Last Leave" (PABF07)

[Zombies Rise from the Sea]

At Long Last Leave

So it finally comes down to this. After 9 milestone episodes and 499 episodes; we have finally reached the 500th episode! With this, the series has finally matched Gunsmoke in longevity (the show feels the need to celebrate this with the opening scenes which showcases past couch gags and a sequence where it pulls out to reveal even more past couch gags that reveal the number 500, talk about not celebrating meaningless milestones.) but is longevity all it's cracked up to be, especially with an episode as bad as this one; I'm aware of the title screen at the end that told people to get some fresh air (which I have more of), they must of got wind of my comments/criticisms.

*sigh* Let's get this over with.

From the moment I've heard the plot for the 500th episode, I've dreaded it. I mean The Simpsons weren't exactly a bad family, from the first few seasons; they were just a family living in the town of Springfield. It wasn't until Season 9 that they finally became somewhat of a menace (thanks to Scully) and the further they got along, the more exaggerated the family's antics became. This is one of the problems the premise suffers from, the reason why they don't want the Simpsons around is solely because of the exaggerated antics that cause Springfield trouble; stuff like trying to set the moon on fire or forcing a tital surge of water all throughout the city; all stuff that's exaggerated, cartoonish and just plain bullshit. Not only that, but after all those years, why hate them now? I mean surely we've had some people hate them but most of them have been able to deal with them, hell; some even like them. You telling me that they now hate them, and that they hate them for reasons that are totally contrived? I thought this was going to be about the subtle things but instead it's like the things that confound me, even The Simpsons don't do much to prove their status as people as they feel like cartoon characters with barely any sense of personality; the scenes in the city hall exemplifying this.

We've seen the Simpsons move out of Springfield before and in the movie it's used as a good point but even with the expulsion; there was nothing they could do to make their situation interesting. Even when they movie to the outland where everything is under the radar; the characters aren't there, the connections aren't there and everything feels out of place; as I said before, these aren't the same character's we come to know and love; these are different characters. (I do appreciate the attempt to have them act like a close family in the beginning, that was nice.) The outlands themselves and the way the outlands is revealed is sudden, and abrupt; they do look interesting but we barely get any sense of the community at hand, the only shots we get is when Homer goofs off and the fake opening which was poorly produced and lacked the impact that the Thompson opening had; there was something that could of been done with the community, something that would of shown the differences between the two towns and shown how The Simpsons ultimately feel better in Springfield but it never comes to that; instead it's only featured in a small number of scenes, and that alone is a complete waste of potential.

The moments of Springfield are the ones that are going to be well remembered, mainly due to the emotional content of it. Those scenes are well positioned, well intentioned and despite the terribleness of the episode, the moments that have heart; of course it doesn't matter much if it's placed in the most awkward of positions, I mean we've had The Simpsons basically liking the outland community (except Marge) and to see Homer and Marge have emotional moments in the places where they used to be is headscratching. I guess it was better then having them see whether or not life without The Simpsons is better but still; to have emotional content to make up for wasted potential is fucking disgraceful. Again, these moments are done well, these moments are emotional, they're also the best executed but it does nothing but cover up the flaws, which are exposed when the behavior of Springfield in those scenes are exposed.

Let's not forget about how the plot goes from various points very abruptly. It's like at one point they're at point A then they're at point X then they're at point B and they're at point X and then point X somehow becomes point Y. The Fox-forced four act structure ruins anything the episode have and instead of having ample time to include the stuff they want, they're forced to sequence stuff in a way that somehow forms an episode. Additionally, there is stuff that is also undeserved; we've had Springfield hate The Simpsons but after a speech from Marge, they decide to move in with the Simpsons and rebuild their community and add internet? (which leads to a painful Lisa moment.) Why not ask them to move back into Springfield? Their actions aren't making sense; it's like an attempt at having the episode end in a sweet moment but that moment fails because none of it is deserved, none of it works and all of it is just lazy. Really, really lazy.

This also translates into the humor material of the episode; gone is the delivery style that actually mattered and in it's place is attempts to do what Family Guy is doing, (that cringeworthy Lisa and Homer dialog in the beginning is an example.) in terms of the plot, the fakeout is okay but it barely does anything for the plot; it just exists as something that the writer had in mind for the plot but forgot what. Additionally it's just tiring that they have the characters explain stuff instead of letting the jokes do their thing; we are intelligent people, we don't need stuff flashed in our face like we're idiots; we can understand what you're trying to do just fine. The guest appearance from the WikiLeaks guy is a total waste; it isn't satirical, it literally sounds phoned-in and it's not even edgy; that spreads to the Simpsons themselves who sound as phoned-in as the guest star.

Additionally; with this episode Michael Price is officially the worst writer on the Simpsons. This is just an example of what happens when you rest on laurels you never even had in the first place; the writing is just an attempt to capture various magical moment but the problem is those moments aren't sticking and it feels forced as a result. There is also a large showing of "convenience" everywhere we look, as if he couldn't find a way to segue into those segments naturally. It's like "we're driving, oh look; there's something important.", that is just bad writing. I've read his interview and while he does seem like a nice guy, he just represents everything that is wrong with the Simpsons; everything. The 500th episode should of been given to a guy who was more capable, more experienced and more determined.

That's not to say the 500th episode isn't worthless as a whole but it does suck balls. The jokes suck, the plotting sucks (with the exception of one good moment), the characters sucks, it has no impact whatsoever and it makes Michael Price, a guy who's studied theater look like a hack. It is appreciable that they wanted to do something special with the family but the 500th episode is all hype; there is barley any reason you should see this.

2.5/10

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

You're being a little harsh on this episode, man.

I swear, I think some people just want to give it either a 1/5 or a 5/5 just because it's the 500th episode.

[Tubbb!]

Let's not forget about how the plot goes from various points very abruptly. It's like at one point they're at point A then they're at point X then they're at point B and they're at point X and then point X somehow becomes point Y.

The "classic Simpsons" side of me wanted to point that out, but the "it's 2012, season 23, and I know the plot is going to jump from point to point" side of me said "Fuck it." It really felt odd to me, but they had to do away with (what I'm sure would have been) the crazy antics of Marge and Homer as they made their way back into town for classic gems such as "Drunk on Lard Lad" and "Bowling Hi-jinks."

Additionally; with this episode Michael Price is officially the worst writer on the Simpsons. This is just an example of what happens when you rest on laurels you never even had in the first place; the writing is just an attempt to capture various magical moment but the problem is those moments aren't sticking and it feels forced as a result.

I had this thought the other day: "I wonder if some people are writing for this show now just because they want it on their resume, and not because they actually want to do it." It sure feels that way sometimes.

[Bleedin' Gums Murphy]

Zombies, I cannot criticise your review at all due to the remarkable detail but as someone that usually agrees with your ratings, I honestly find that this episode - Despite its obvious limitations and cringeworthy moments, as you mentioned with the Lisa/Homer conversation - is still worth much more than 0.5/5. I'm not saying it's a classic by any stretch of the imagination but I think that most of the jokes, dialogue was pretty amusing, if not laugh out loud worthy, and well there are not enough clear examples that I can think of in terms of what was great about the plot or storyline but yeah I think you're being harsh, respect your opinion as always tho.

[Captain Squid]

1.0/10? Man, that is HARSH! Especially when you think Politically Inept, With Homer Simpson, The D'oh-cial Network and Moe Goes From Rags to Riches are all better episodes.

[Dobbie]

No surprises that this episode earned itself some mixed reviews. I personally didn't enjoy it much. Some good references from past episodes and the couch gag would have been fantastic had they not ruined it with the needless 'bonus' of Homer choking Bart after the slideshow.

First of all: The 4-act structure doesn't work and surely someone has to realise this eventually?

A mixed bag of content in there with a few good dialogues/scenes followed by a cringeworthy moment was pretty much the 'core' of this episode. The Outlands was boring (bar Maggie who made it interesting) and Assange probably had the most useless guest role I've seen in a while.

Focusing more on the plot: Why was Grandpa excluded from the banishment? I can't say I actually saw him after the first two acts so where did he go? The ending moved too fast and there was zero development for the conclusion of the episode. Why did everyone become jealous of the Simpsons' new lifestyle? Surely it would have been better had Marge's speech changed their opinion towards them?

This probably would have been better had it been given more time. It probably had potential but it couldn't be realised within a 20-minute time limit. Everything felt so rushed but it had some decent moments and dialogues to make it alright but still lacking in depth and quality overall. 2.5/5.

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

First of all: The 4-act structure doesn't work and surely someone has to realise this eventually?

Seriously, this has come up in every single thread since it started.

[zartok-35]

I'm amazed so many people think this epsiode is "decent", because it isn't. I watched it again, and it still isn't working for me.

[Xt'Tapalatakettle]

Started strong, but sputtered halfway through and eventually came to a screeching halt.

Plot reminded me of the Movie and Trash of the Titans, but those were done much better. This gets a C/C+, or 2.75/5

[The Governor]

I'm amazed so many people think this epsiode is "decent", because it isn't. I watched it again, and it still isn't working for me.

Take away the 500th episode hype and the couch gag, and the majority of votes would be 2 or 3 outta 5. (Or, the good votes could be attributed to the three or four still frames from the classic era.)

[Zombies Rise from the Sea]

Zombies, I cannot criticise your review at all due to the remarkable detail but as someone that usually agrees with your ratings, I honestly find that this episode - Despite its obvious limitations and cringeworthy moments, as you mentioned with the Lisa/Homer conversation - is still worth much more than 0.5/5. I'm not saying it's a classic by any stretch of the imagination but I think that most of the jokes, dialogue was pretty amusing, if not laugh out loud worthy, and well there are not enough clear examples that I can think of in terms of what was great about the plot or storyline but yeah I think you're being harsh, respect your opinion as always tho.

I respect your opinion as well; but I honestly didn't find anything that was funny; had heart or had anything appealing. I might of been somewhat insulted by the way The Simspons were portrayed but we shouldn't let loads of history pass by Springfield as a whole; that may have been a bit bias but I didn't find anything that counteracted that, there were barely any emotional moments that connected with the viewer and the best one in the episode seems designed to grab people; a well designed episode would have moments that don't stand out, that aren't out to convince viewers (due to a lot of bad scenes) this was not a well designed episode and as a result it suffers. I didn't find anything in the dialog that was decent but to all his own, there are some okayish stuff in the dialog but most of it felt disconnected.

You may be right that I was a bit harsh on it but then again, a critics job is to review an episode and point out any flaws or any positive points; however, I will rethink the rating. I still think the episode sucks though but you do have some good points. I'm not rating it 1/5 because it's the 500th episode (as evident by the milestone episode reviews I've been doing) but because I didn't think there was anything in the episode that was worth watching, even without the 500th episode moniker; the rating would mostly be the same.

[derek anthony]

i have a question, is this episode the series finale, i heard somewhere that it was, and i want to know if it is or not

[River Felix]

I thought it was a reasonable episode but it ended so suddenly that I didn't know what to make of it, the title card was hilarious but at the same time made me think "This would have been so much funnier if they wrote the episode better then this".

[zartok-35]

i have a question, is this episode the series finale, i heard somewhere that it was, and i want to know if it is or not

No, the show gets to carry on even longer, renewed to season 25, apparently. Some of the members on here are going to quit watching after this one, though.

[jordanwj]

i have a question, is this episode the series finale, i heard somewhere that it was, and i want to know if it is or not

That's called wishful thinking, it should be but as of now it isn't. Lisa has yet to go GaGa.

[Blobulle]

Pretty good episode, I especially liked when Homer said "I'm sick off watching FOX", but the story was meaningless.
3.5/5 rounded up to 4/5 for the poll.

[ThankYouComeAgain]

Hi! New Member Here!
2/5
Meh this episode wasnt that great at all.Especially for a 500th episode.Say what you want about the 400th episode but that one actually made me laugh(though I havent watched it for a long while)
I liked some of the throwbacks at first but seriously in the end they just served me to realize ONCE AGAIN how much this show has fallen
I cant wait till this show ends(Please Lord let it end)
I mean Im pretty sure anyone in this forum would be a much better showrunner then Al Freaking Jean

[Bert Stanton]

Started off brilliantly, but it felt rushed like last week's episode.

The divide in good to bad episodes of this season is tremendous. Looking at < 3 or 8 + out of ten, very little middle ground in my opinion.

probably an 8.5/10 for this, pushing for a 9 but the ending wasn't great (as pointed out by the above 100 posts). I actually found myself wanting this episode to go on a little longer.

[Mr. Krikt]

Oh man, so much to say about this one but I'll save most of it for later.

Marge misses Springfield so much, she has to go back, along with worrying about Maggie. Then she tells people she's carved a life out for herself which she loves in the Outlands.

Wiggum says he's not fooled by the disguise. After he gave Homer his gun.
Homer and Marge sneak to the town center wearing the disguises and then? Oh right, they don't wear them again, even when right in their own street. I guess it was just for the gun joke which didn't make sense.

I can't wait to see the next episode where they're all living in the Outlands.

[lovebug]

I tried watching this episode, but it made me a bit sad for some reason. It's depressing to see the characters that we used to know and love act like such bastards....

[Homer I Am]

5/5, this episode has restored a little of my faith in the show. It almost reaches Classic Simpsons standards, but I felt the storyline weakened halfway through the episode with the whole town of Springfield getting jealous and eventually wanting to move into The Outlands (which actually pissed me off). It seems that the writers sort of gave up halfway through. Half of the jokes were mediocre while the other half were hilarious, I loved the scene were Ned got a log smashed into his stomach and when Homer got his head stuck in a vehicle he created coming out with a deformed face. Homer isn't as dumb as he usually is (which is good), he actually created a vehicle that moved instead of falling to bits and was actually caring like he was before Mike came and made him a dumb jerk. The episode was pretty depthful except for the last minutes, but I felt the emotional side of things should've been beefed up a bit. However this episode has the emotional core that the pre-season 10 Simpsons had, like Holidays of Future Passed. This episode now makes me think that The Simpsons are still capable of going back to their Golden Age but aren't motivated enough.

[Bella Drape 'er]

It was actually promising at some points, like when Homer and Marge sneaked into town with their Smithers and Burns' disguises.

Aside from that, it was a pretty bland episode just retconning old story ideas (You Only Move Twice, Cape Feare, etc.).

So, another 1.5/5 adjusted up to a 2/5 for the poll.

[That Don Guy]

Obviously the couch gag showed a montage of couch gags but can anyone explain the pattern they were doing? It clearly wasn't every episode, was it just a random montage? One from each season? Can someone help me out?

Hey, bradbradford asked...(and when I realized that I could get around U-Verse's shortcomings by copying the couch gags onto my hard drive and then use my video editing software to step through them, it was easier.)

In fact, there was an order; with one exception, they appeared in the order in which they first appeared on the show.

Couch Gag Facts

The 500th episode couch gag was the 292nd different one (if you don't count the two episodes consisting of multiple couch gags used on other episodes separately).

Most couch gags are used multiple times in the series, so they could have used all of them - however, for some reason, these five were left out:

• Everybody sits on the couch, and nothing happens (first used in Season 1 episode 7G09)
• Everybody runs into each other and shatters (first used in Season 4 episode 9F21)
• Everybody runs into each other and they become a giant blob (also first used in 9F21 - the third one from 9F21, where they run into each other and explode in a giant fireball, does appear)
• The couch is inside a snow globe (first used in Season 9 episode 5F07)
• The Simpsons are standing on a subway platform at the "Springfield" stop; a subway train stops with the couch inside, and they board it and sit on it (first used in LABF13 - I have a feeling somebody thought this was a repeat of the one used in BABF11, which was also a subway-based one, but in that one, the stop is "Evergreen Terrace", and they are sitting on the couch on the platform when the train arrives)

They appeared in the sequence in the same order in which they first appeared on the show, with one exception: the one that was shown seventh in the montage (with Homer being squeezed off the couch) actually appeared third in the series (there were only five couch openings used in the first season; this was one of them).

[MagicalManFromHappyLand]

This was wasted potential, great plot idea, interesting start but it got worse at each act. This episode had a big plot for a 20 minute slot and they still choose to waste time with Julian Assange guest starring, who had some of the worst voice acting there's ever been.

Apart from a few minor issues, this was probably one of the best episodes of season 23, some decent jokes, a plot that's never been done in the TV series, decent characterisation and little time wasting. Nothing special, but that's still better than most episodes this season.

3/5, better than I was expecting

[The Governor]

5/5, this episode has restored a little of my faith in the show. It almost reaches Classic Simpsons standards, but I felt the storyline weakened halfway through the episode with the whole town of Springfield getting jealous and eventually wanting to move into The Outlands (which actually pissed me off)...The episode was pretty depthful except for the last minutes, but I felt the emotional side of things should've been beefed up a bit. However this episode has the emotional core that the pre-season 10 Simpsons had, like Holidays of Future Passed. This episode now makes me think that The Simpsons are still capable of going back to their Golden Age but aren't motivated enough.

You gave this a 5/5 after saying they half-assed it!? Maybe you should've goneout and got some exercise before saying how great it was.

[CMYK]

I just watched it and I enjoyed it.
Some bits where dry but a definite 4 / 5 for me!

[Matty]

5.79 million viewers for the 500th episode, holy crap

The screwballs have spoken

Or was this episode too lousy even for Fox to want to promote it? I thought they normally celebrate the 300th, 400th, 450th resulting in big ratings


(2/5 for the laughs that didn't quite hide the poorly developed plot and some lame ideas)

[cloneasaurus]

Man this episode was sloppy. What some people saw in this I'll never know.

• First things first... the intro. The chalkboard gag was actually pretty good and inventive, I liked it. And whilst I liked the idea of seeing all the couch gags I still thought its execution was dodgy and it felt a bit hacked together. I mean, it starts off normally, then suddenly just flicks though all of them. And Homer strangling Bart for no reason was weird. But I did like the composition that played over all the couch gags.
• The actual episode begun rather poorly. Kent went over this whole "emergency procedure" thing for ages and it felt like a sorta ridiculous way to get everyone to go to the meeting except the Simpsons.
• The actual meeting felt like it dragged for ages and I never felt that the town's hate was justified at all. And moments that were meant to be dramatic were cluttered with clumsy filler dialogue, mainly provided by Homer. That said it did provide the only actual laugh of the episode for me: "Not that expensive but still pretty annoying" (the banner under the Squirt and the Whale callback).
• The outlands stuff was fairly brief, thinking about it. I really liked the music during the parody opening sequence, but everything else was just rather boring and not funny. And considering I know nothing about Wikileaks, Julian Assange's performance passed me by and I didn't really care. I thought the execution of his lines was pretty dull and passionless so that didn't help.
• Marge and Homer returning to Springfield was probably my favourite part of the episode; it's always nice seeing Homer and Marge's relationship and I actually thought the bullies were used well.
• Ending was pretty bad. When everyone turned up, I was surprised it was the end; it felt like there were at least 5 minutes left. Whether or not that's a good thing or a bad thing, I don't know... but this episode honestly felt like it had a lot of filler in its dialogue, which may or may not have contributed.
• I'm sorta torn on the ending message about the fans. On the one hand I enjoy the call-out and they're probably just having a laugh. But if they're actually being sincere with the sentiments behind the message - that criticism of the show is limited to 'internet nerds' and they should, I dunno, lower their standards/get a life - well, I just think it shows how out of touch the writers are. But to be honest I just think it's a light-hearted call out if a tiny bit cynical.
• I was disappointed there weren't more references, because it's the 500th show and that, but I'm not gunna judge this different from others because it's the 500th. Because that just makes no sense

Basically whilst some of the faults of this episode stem from the premise - which unfortunately just could not fit well in to 22 minutes - most stem from typical problems that the show has today. Unfunny jokes that are forced in, clunky dialogue that grinds the show to a halt, some annoying characters... all of them were on display here. It's unfortunate, because I was really ready to get in to this episode, but I just couldn't.

2/5, C-

[lagozzino]

You gave this a 5/5 after saying they half-assed it!? Maybe you should've goneout and got some exercise before saying how great it was.

Good, so I'm not the only one who finds it weird that people are giving perfect scores even after complaining about major flaws. I thought that was just the way things got graded around here...

[bradbradford]

Thanks That Don Guy, I really appreciate it. That baffles me that they were five away from using everyone and just didn't do it. Strange indeed.