Truean linked this Simpsons episode in the happy thread, and I quite liked it.
A new (ish) Simpsons that isn't stuck in mediocrity? Color me impressed.
What sucks:
- Perhaps I'm used to children's cartoons, but I do think the moral could've been a bit more explicitly laid out at the end (most notably the supporting arguments). The song at the end would absolutely reek of hubris outside of context. Even in context, it could be interpreted as "having self esteem means you don't care what anyone else thinks" and "being a pompous, self assured asshole is a good thing."
- Simpsons fails at most visual jokes. A good half of them made me eye roll (like the giant shoes on the train).
- I don't like some of the absurdity for the sake of jokes (such as "crying tiny diamonds"). Certainly not a complaint I limit to Simpsons, either; "absurdity" is not the same as "wit." It breaks suspension of disbelief if you can't come up for a reasonable explanation as to why it happens. It's fine if things are silly and improbable. Not so fine if impossible, unless it's a pre-established rule of the work's universe.
What's awesome:
- The depth! I'm surprised how much thought was put into many of the scenes. Notable ones would be what Homer said to Lisa near the end (quite ironic), and Lisa's rant at Lady Gaga. Also Lisa's forum posts, on second viewing.
- I might go so far as to say it's the best celebrity cameo on the Simpsons I've seen. It made fun of Lady Gaga without mocking her, she didn't (actively) solve the problem in a deus ex machina fashion like most Simpsons cameos, and she was an interesting character even for those who don't know much about her (like me).
- Adding to that, it was an excellent portrayal of how telling those with low self esteem to "be yourself" never works. They're not comfortable with themselves, and throwing attention (even positive) just makes it worse since it puts them in the spotlight. Lady Gaga was wrong, and Lisa's epic beatdown was, indeed, epic.
- Further adding to that, I've watched quite a bit of the Simpsons, so I know their usual style (at least in the first 10 seasons). Had this been made back then, Lady Gaga would've been right, Lisa's rant at the end of act 2 would've been used to highlight her fault, and act 3 would've been her realizing it. It was refreshingly flipped, with her realizing she was right all along.
- The episode as a whole did hit kinda close to home for me. I've never made sockpuppet accounts, but I have (frequently) pretended to be someone I'm not so as to try and get accepted. Lisa wore a mask at the start, lying about who she was so she could say what she thought (that she was smart and all that), when she should've said it herself. Homer was right when he talked to her near the end, saying "the problem was you pretended to be someone you're not." (though he misidentified why that was bad, as he's Homer) Only when she said what she thought, as Lisa, straight to that oblivious celebrity's face, did she become happy again.
The "be yourself" moral is a common one, but few actually do a good job of showing the problem from the depressed person's perspective. How they're unhappy with themselves and how they put on masks and costumes and suits of armor to hide what they think is "shameful." How they become recluses to stop others from having to endure their presence. And most notably, how hiding things out of fear of embarrassment becomes a self fulfilling prophecy (note that the kids only ever mocked her for lying to them about who she was, and not the things she said on her sockpuppet account). Thumps up, Simpsons. If any of the other recent-ish episodes are remotely like this one, I'm picking you back up.
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Topic: Cartoon/Western Animation Thread. (Read 323438 times)