Rate and Review: "Lisa Goes Gaga" (PABF14)

[Mr Black]

They're going Gaga over it.

with a dry cool wit like that you could be an action hero

[leprechaun_dan]

Is there a way to change your vote in any way? I'd like to change this to a 2 upon re-watching it

[Food Blog]

Ehh. They were WAY too nice to Gaga. I feel that it should be an expectation for the guest star to be roasted thoroughly if they accept a cameo - anything else comes across vain and ungraceful on their part and desperate on the show's part. I've never been a huge fan of guest appearances on sitcoms in general (would rather those who are OK at voice acting would take bit parts), and I'm not that fond of the tradition of immortalising celebs in The Simpsons, preferring a more character-driven ep. I liked a few of the jokes here, but none of them were ones that relied on Gaga - bits like Ralph, Cletus, "honk your jazz tube" (and other Homer lines), and Nelson's anecdote about his mother were well-played. Most of Gaga's scenes were pretty embarrassing and hard to watch (not that she'll have noticed), and I feel that the writers missed out a much greater point about why Lisa should be disappointed in such a celebrity: Lady Gaga places false importance on individuality. Her stuff about inspiring the uninteresting people isn't such a bad thing (age-old role of a pop singer?); it isn't the issue - I expected Lisa to be bothered about the fact that Gaga can get away with being a huge weirdo just because she's Gaga, and that any other girl would just be laughed at (as Lisa is whenever she tries to express herself).

It was probably not the angle they were going for, but on a personal mental level I found Gaga's behaviour to make base-level satire - her insistence on not leaving until every person in the town was "fixed" at her own hand, the fact that she had to kiss someone who was uncomfortable with any physical contact with a stranger (she's always trying to stick forks in the conservative masses over the LGBT issue, doing stuff just to get a rise out of people instead of really supporting anyone), the general melodramaticness of her psychic abilities and crying diamonds or whatever (this was exactly what she would want in the episode, even if it was all written without consultation). Unfortunately I don't feel that I can give the writers credit for that level of amusement I found, because it's impossible for me to believe that they thought that hard about it - for me, ultimately, this episode showed more concisely than ever that everything unquestionably has to be about Lady Gaga. They would've gotten away with it, if they hadn't written Lisa's opinions on the matter so badly...

ETA: Worth pointing out that I neither like or dislike Lady Gaga particularly - I have a tendency to be cynical about celebrities anyway. If she "inspires" or entertains some people that's OK with me; I think she has a couple of decent songs and occasionally an interesting outfit, but isn't the most original (or awful) celebrity by a long stretch. My comments on the episode have been fuelled more by acknowledgement than not/being a fan.

[Dandu386]

"a watermark appearing at the button left of the screen telling me to immortalize the moment in a tweet with the hashtag #GagaKissedMarge? It's a sad reflection on the quality of the show that something like that is supposed to excite the viewers and get them to talk about it on the internet. The #GagaExpress too.

That didn't happen, at least not as part of the episode. If you saw those things it was something your local TV station did.[/QUOTE]

I hate this twitter rubbish shoveled at us on the TV screens. I miss the days when TV stations had no logos during programming. In fact, TV was better when most shows were aired from 16mm film.

[The Angry Animated Comedy Nerd]

That didn't happen, at least not as part of the episode. If you saw those things it was something your local TV station did.
I hate this twitter rubbish shoveled at us on the TV screens. I miss the days when TV stations had no logos during programming. In fact, TV was better when most shows were aired from 16mm film.

No .... Fox did that in the USA.. every copy of this on demand has a 'Marge kissed GAGA' deeeeerrrrp twit mark... at the part.

It's really sad.

Not even Al Jean did this.... this is a Fox thing.. and I was disgusted.. Fox was saying... tweet about what we tell you is exciting (even though it was dumb) ... or face Fox's wrath, you fucking sheep?!

Fuck off, Fox.

[Mozy]

I thought the whole "make out scene", which really wasn't as crazy as people has made it seem, was totally pointless.

[Malaise Forever]

Well I finally decided to watch it and...it is the worst episode ever. BUT, it had some few decent gags including one that made me laugh: the "Just waiting for a train" sign.
I swear they should do another episode similar to "22 Short Films" with only crowd characters, that's the one thing they still always get right IMO.

So overall it's slightly worse than The D'oh-cial Network, which had a little charm I guess. 1/5

[tvguy347]

It was fine. I loved the airport scene. I like seeing Gaga, but there was just some sort of missing element to the whole thing... or maybe an element that was present that through the episode off. A solid 3/5.

[The Governor]

I thought the whole "make out scene", which really wasn't as crazy as people has made it seem, was totally pointless.

I wasn't too far off.

[Mother Teresa Jr]

Gaga makes Michael Jackson-like history on The Simpsons + ratings

Gaga joins an extremely long list of superstar musicians who played a guest role on the show. Some of those include Aerosmith, Sting, Tom Jones, Linda Ronstadt, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, James Brown, Peter Frampton, Cypress Hill, The Smashing Pumpkins, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams Jr., U2, Dolly Parton, Elton John, The B52’s, Willie Nelson, The Who, *N Sync, R.E.M., Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Tom Petty, Elvis Costello, Lenny Kravitz, Brian Setzer, Little Richard, Blink 182, “Weird Al” Yankovic, 50 Cent, Fantasia Barrino, Mandy Moore, Metallica, The White Stripes, Ludacris, Lionel Richie, Ted Nugent, Fallout Boy, Coldplay, and Katy Perry.

Episode Description:
In the episode, “Lisa Goes Gaga” Lady Gaga passes through Springfield via train while on her way to a concert; when she sees how low the city’s self esteem is, she takes it up herself to cheer the whole city up. However, no one in town is more depressed than Lisa, who was voted Most Unpopular Student by her peers. She tries to reverse her status as one of the least popular girls in school by ghostwriting positive things about herself on the school blog under the heading “Truth Teller”. When Bart finds out her secret and reveals it to the school, her social ranking plummets to a new low – until a psychic force tells Lady Gaga that Lisa needs her help immediately. After much soul searching and yelling at Lady Gaga for trying to help, Lisa realizes that her outburst helped her because she is finally expressing her anger instead of bottling it up inside her (referring to Lisa tearfully telling Homer and Marge that she never began sobbing at home over her lonely status unless she knew they were both asleep), in effect making Gaga’s mission successful. Lisa then catches Gaga just before she leaves town to apologize, and after being forgiven Lisa and Gaga perform a duet together. With Gaga’s assistance, Lisa and the entire town of Springfield realize that being yourself is better than being like anyone else.
However, not since Michael Jackson’s legendary secret guest appearance (credited as John Jay Smith) has a musician possibly had such a large impact on an episode’s story. Fans will remember that Michael appeared on the Season 3 premiere, “Stark Raving Dad” from September of 1991. In that episode Michael playing the role of some one who believes himself to be “Michael Jackson” from a mental hospital. He forges a bond with first Homer, and then Bart Simpson. Lady Gaga’s episode has something in common with Michael Jackson’s episode, each of them feature original songs dedicated to Lisa Simpson. “Stark Raving Dad” features Michael Jackson performing the duet, “Happy Birthday Lisa” with Nancy Cartwright. (Voice of Bart Simpson) “Lisa Goes Gaga” features two songs directed at Lisa, “Little Monsters” and “Superstar”, which is a duet with Yeardley Smith. (Voice of Lisa Simpson) Below you will find a cool behind the scenes video with Simpsons creator, Matt Groening and Lady Gag taking about the uniqueness of the “Lisa Goes Gaga” episode from Fox.com!
Congrats to you Lady Gaga for finding such a cool way to make TV history!

____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ________________________________________


Billboard Music Awards rating:
With its scripted fare already off for the summer, ABC brought home another Sunday win last night with the Billboard Music Awards. Although down three-tenths of a point in its demo rating from last year, tying it with the 2006 low, fast affiliate numbers give the three-hour broadcast the night's strongest adults 18-49 performance with a 2.7 rating and 7.4 million viewers. With a lead-in from the America's Funniest Home Videos finale, down a tenth from last year (and last week) with a 1.5 adults rating, the network earned a 2.4 rating with adults 18-49 and 7 million viewers.

Fox ratings:
Fox saw some growth with finales during the animation block. After an encore of The Simpsons, an original episode of the veteran series rose 11 percent for a 2.1 rating among adults 18-49. An hourlong Family Guy also grew one-tenth of a point for a 2.5 rating in the demo. The Cleveland Show was steady with a 1.3 among 18-49-ers, while Bob's Burgersslipped just one-tenth for a 1.7. The network averaged a 1.9 adults rating for the night and 4.1 million viewers.

NBC ratings:
Encores of America's Got Talent led into the two-hour Celebrity Apprentice finale on NBC. The series managed to grow nearly half a point with its adults 18-49 rating from the previous week, but it was down 27 percent from the previous season's 3.0, making it the lowest finale for the franchise. NBC earned a 1.6 rating among adults 18-49 overall, with 5.6 million viewers.

http://clizbeats.com/lady-gaga-joins...-gaga05221203/

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/liv...rentice-327210

[The Governor]

"Cartoon character guest stars on Cartoon Show" would've been a better headline.

[leprechaun_dan]

[Bartesque]

Is there a way to change your vote in any way? I'd like to change this to a 2 upon re-watching it

Yeah, i wish I could change my poll vote to a lower score too

[Technus]

....

OMG, classic! lol, that ending would have been so much better! I could not even finish watching this episode, it was just so appalling. That has never happened to me before. But when Lisa and GaGa started singing, I was like.. ok, I'm out..

Can I give a negative score?

oh well, 0/5

I just hope the show doesn't get canned over this fiasco of an episode.

But yeah, a train that shoots out rainbows, psychic abilities, crying diamonds, everybody worshiping Gaga like some sort of goddess.. come on, really? she's not that great, not even close to Madonna or MJ, and they never had an entire series revolve around them.

[Zombies Rise from the Sea]

I just hope the show doesn't get canned over this fiasco of an episode.

Don't worry, it's been pre-renewed for 2 seasons; when Season 25 comes around, then you can worry.

[Dobbie]

'Worry'?

Well I suppose you could use that word...

[Financial Panther]

I would worry after season 25; I mean, even if the episode is bad, it's always fun to come here and post my feelings about the episode and see how other people found the episode. I would definitely miss that.

[Technus]

Don't worry, it's been pre-renewed for 2 seasons; when Season 25 comes around, then you can worry.

that's good to hear, I just hope they don't make another episode like this again.


oh yeah, and to end the season on this episode.. eeek.. definitely not saving the best for last there, lol.

[The Governor]

Don't get to laid back--I'm sure Al Jean is contemplating on how to get Justin Beiber to appear on the show. It's only a matter of time...

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

that's good to hear, I just hope they don't make another episode like this again.


oh yeah, and to end the season on this episode.. eeek.. definitely not saving the best for last there, lol.

Actually, it was one of the best of the season.

[Financial Panther]

I wouldn't say that, but it definitely wasn't as bad as people are making it out to be.

[The Governor]

Yeah, it was. I despised N'Sync when they were really popular, dreaded "New Kids..." and was ready to say it sucked, but it still managed to get a 3/5 for having some of the funniest material in S12 before the "Navy" crap kicked in--Ralph as Baritone, LOL! On the other-hand, L.G.G. was shit terrible and the message of "Be yourself by not being yourself, I'm Lady Gaga!" was so vile and unfunny it came off as a promotional piece that would seem more at home on Stefani's resume. This wasn't a Simpsons episode written by professional writers, it was a Simpsons fanfic written by her entourage on whiskey latte break.

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

I wouldn't say that, but it definitely wasn't as bad as people are making it out to be.

It's not saying much though.

[FredSomething]

Well, it was weird enough that it made me seek out a forum to see what people were saying about it. And then I found out I was already registered here, so I suppose last time that happened was a couple of years ago.

I gave it a 3/5 because I still watched the whole thing, although that might've been mainly out of curiosity. I found myself turning down the volume for the songs. I actually like to occasionally listen to some of Gaga's own stuff, but what they had in this show was just awkward.

I didn't know Gaga was going to appear before watching this. When I saw what was coming, I was wondering if this was going to be slightly more topical and relating to the protests against her in Indonesia and such, maybe trying to point out how ridiculous that was. And with that I expected it not to be the main element of the episode.

I think the whole Lisa's self esteem issue has been done enough by now. I get that many people haven't been watching the show all along, but I feel like that should've been settled by now. Although they did okay with it this time, for the most part.

I didn't mind Gaga being on the show by itself, but I think they would've been able to make it a better episode if she had a much smaller part in it.

[phantomstrider]

I made an account just to see the discussions about this episode. I'm surprised the discussions have been so sober so far actually. I personally found this an episode that seemed insulting to the intelligence of the Simpsons' prime audience.

The people who brought us revolutionary, intelligent topics such as controversy on the teaching of creationism in school have now resorted to giving big celebrities like Lady Gaga's personal tributes. I mean, does anyone apart from 12-16 year old girls really get a "self-esteem boost" from Lady Gaga's songs? Apparently the whole town of springfield is inspired about her songs about "wanting your disease" and other such inspiring lyrics such as "rah ah ah I want your vertical stick". Truly inspiring, brilliant stuff. What a charitable, self-confident woman to sing such lyrics.

Oh good. I'm Lady Gaga's "little monster"... Because she's such a freaking inspiration to me.. What the hell does "little monster" even mean?

I would have thought having Lady Gaga prance around Lisa's house while making out with her mother would remind Lisa of the revolting image Lady Gaga teaches to our upcoming generation of young women and the huge success she receives from the majority of society for doing this. I honestly thought Lady Gaga would be Lisa's worst enemy for her Paris-Hilton-like portrayal of women. I was hoping Lisa would tear her apart, but apparently they have alot in common? *shrugs*

Also, seeing someone as headstrong and intelligent as Lisa allowing herself to be stomped on by an uneducated redneck schoolyard for an hour didn't seem that interesting or (believe it or not) funny for that matter. I always saw Lisa as a stronger person than that who has grown from the 500 episodes of this happening before that and was sad to see her being so unusally pessimistic. And rather than concluding with an intelligent scientist woman talking to Lisa or maybe a female lawyer? They get Gaga to do a dance number (what?).

And honestly, am I the only person who doesn't find it funny to see Moe, a person whose got no friends or significant others, being made more miserable and lonely? Honestly I'm almost happy he was hit by the train so he doesn't have to listen to the town's mockery anymore and can be left in peace.

I normally really like Simpsons episodes. They make me smile and laugh. But honestly.. this episode was just.... incredibly weak. I know this isn't everyone's opinion, but this episode pushed me into writing about it. It is probably my least favourite episode.

And that's my two cents...

[TriforceBun]

Welcome to the boards, phantomstrider, and nice first post. I agree that the show's handling of Lisa and Gaga's relationship was irritating. The worst thing about it is that it was going places when Lisa was unimpressed with Gaga, but they soured it by ending it in the most banal way possible.

I'm unfamiliar with Lady Gaga so I'm also wondering what the whole "little monster" thing is about too. Is it just an "embrace your true self" kinda message, or what? I guess that's fine if your starved for attention and have the budget for meat dresses, but she's hardly a Mother Theresa here.

[Prune Tracy]

I thought "Little Monsters" was just a name for her fans. Like Glee and Gleeks.

[Red Tree]

One of Lady Gaga's tours was called "The Monster Ball" and "Little Monsters" was a phrase copyrighted for promotional purposes on that tour. It goes beyond the likes of "Gleeks" because it officially endorsed and merchendised (unless Gleek is now also copyrighted, I don't know.)

I don't care for Lady Gaga one way or another as an artist, so I went into this episode without too many expectations. There have been a couple of episodes this season that I enjoyed a lot, so I felt like this had potential. I also expected Gaga's role in the episode to be typical of most celebrities on the show these days, with her appearing for a few moments to say her catchphrase and then leave.

I was surprised when she turned out to be the main character of the episode, and I don't think it was a good decision. Like most of the celebrity guests, Gaga is not a voice actress. Because the episode focused on her so much, her weakness here really showed. I think some lines that had the potential to be funny were killed by her delivery. I don't doubt that she put a lot of effort into it, but she shouldn't have had such a big role.

I wish the plot of the episode had gone in a different direction. A lot of people have mentioned how shamelessly everyone in Springfield worships Lady Gaga, which is true, but I don't think that was the biggest problem. I think the problem was the dynamic between Gaga and Lisa, and how Lady Gaga is consistently in a position of power over her. I don't know how well I can explain this but I'll try; Lisa Simpson is a strong kids who almost always manages to get on equal footing with people at the end of the episode. She doesn't stay weak forever. In this episode, it felt like she did.

I'm going to try and explain this by comparing it to Moaning Lisa, because it has obvious plot paralells: Lisa feels like shit, her family can't help her, and she ends up re-gaining her confidence after bonding with another artist. How these stories unfold illustrates my problem with the Lisa/Gaga dynamic. In Moaning Lisa, Lisa sets out on a journey to find herself; in this episode, Lady Gaga sets out on a journey to find and "fix" Lisa. Lisa is drawn to Murphy by respect and a shared love of music; Lady Gaga is drawn to Lisa by magic powers. Lisa and Murphy bond over Jazz; Lady Gaga throws canned, faux-inspirational phrases at Lisa. Lisa rises to be Murphy's equal when she plays with him; Lisa is briefly Gaga's equal when she rebels against her, but immediately regrets it and grovels. Lisa returns home, having found peace on her own; Lady Gaga leaves town on a technocoloured train with lips while Lisa continues to grovel alongside the rest of Springfield.

That's what I mean when I say that Lisa is weak throughout the episode, and it isn't fun to watch. Being in this position didn't even further her character, it just lead her to a typical "I'm fine the way I am after all" ending. I just feel like it did a massive disservice to her character. Not that this hasn't happened before, though.

My other big problem was that throughout the episode, I felt like I was being sold a product. Join Lady Gaga(TM) at the Monster Ball (TM)! You are ALL Little Monsters(TM)(C)! But I guess that's a lot more petty so I won't try to justify it.

[phantomstrider]

Thanks for the reply Triforce. I appreciate the warm welcome. Its good to know that there was alot of other people who were bothered by this episode.

Redtree, I think you summarised what bothered me most about this episode and I agree wholeheartedly with you. Part of what is interesting about Lisa is she stands on equal footing through her intelligence and wisdom with people, whether they are celebrities or world leaders. In this episode, Lisa seems like such a weak, helpless character while she is normally a headstrong, wise character. Instead of standing on equal footing with Gaga her big mental breakthrough for the episode is joining the masses to grovel before an attention-seeking pop singer.

It wouldn't be so bad but Lady Gaga promotes everything Lisa stands adamantly against, so it bothers me to see her groveling. It would be like if Stan from South Park started taking life lessons from Paris Hilton.
Its bad enough that the entire town worships her for some reason, but even the individual of the town who always says "this is wrong, people" even if she stands alone begins to grovel under a shallow celebrity. And honestly, there's nothing wrong with Lisa being cynical on occasion. Between Lisa and Gaga, I certainly know who I think is the more emotionally stable and wise person.
I think writers have to be careful how they "develop" their characters who represent the introverted, thoughtful portion of society. I guess I enjoyed Lisa's character more than I realised, because I was so bothered to see her character so badly represented in this episode.

Ah.. My post is too long again.. But anyway, thanks Triforce and Redtree. Its good to be writing on a forum again.

[Lovemusicxx]

I enjoyed a few parts of the episode. Skinners joke '' not knowing about children '' was really funny. However their were a good few times I felt I was watching a lady gaga advert. The Gaga and Marge kissing bit seemed like something wrote into the script just for publicity for the episode or to get people talking, which to be fair it did. It had to much Gaga for me. But to fair the Simpsons have often built episodes around guest stars. This one just wasn't as funny as others. But there was good bits in the episode. The Simpsons writers have lost their touch a little but I feel it's nothing that can't be brought back. Plus TV is always changing. I think the episodes that were out when I was a kid were hilarious but at the time they came out everyone probably didn't like them. To sum up, not a great episode but high hopes for the next season