The Simpsons Season 5, Episode 2
Cape Feare
As i said earlier while i think Cape Feare is great i don't love it as much as everyone else. As a kid it was probably a top five episode but over time and multiple watches the jokes don't work for me as well and in some cases they don't work at all anymore. There isn't much else to this episode other than humour which isn't a bad thing but if you don't find it completely hilarious then it won't be a favourite. Saying that i still do love this episode and always have a good time watching it. When i was saying there isn't much more to this episode i was mostly talking about emotion or great satire, one extra thing it does have is great music, possibly the best in the show.
Now onto those jokes. Always loved the General Krull joke, it is just so absurd that a dictator would take the time to finish off a little girls letter to her penpal and whoever did the line reading (think it was maybe Hank as it sounds a bit like Moe) did a great job. Homer mistaking the letter as adressed to him is great, i love the idea that when he realizes it is for his ten year old kid it is fine, and the deliery is excellent he sounds all "oh how silly am i, here son take your death threat".Love Grampa randomly being there to deliver his Matlock joke, "it was probably the evil Gavin McLeod or Georrge Coover Lyndsay", one thing i've always found incredibly weird about that scene is how Grampa's face doesn't change at all even when he says "that's good eating" in a more excited happy tone; that always weirded me out even as a kid. Jesus, i haven't watched it in a while and i forgot about that radio joke ; love the song choice and the idea that a radio would just allow a death threat over the air and that the guy would read it so matter of factily. Two of the people going to kill Bart fakeouts work for me, Ned's one because he just sounds so friendly even when he says something like schools should force you to say prayers, and Mrs Krabappel's just cause i love the idea of 10 year olds putting on a school play of a horrific murder and Martins delivery of his line. I miss those Moe is a despicable scumbag jokes like the panda one here and the whale one in Springfield Files, now he is just a suicidal, unlucky, downer.
Kelsey Grammar runs Phil Hartman and Al Brooks close for me as the best recurring Simpsons Guest Star. Cape Feare is actually my second favourite Bob episode after Sideshow Bob Roberts but i have to say this is his best performance, such a greet voice. The parole hearing isn't a great scene for me, the only joke that works is Die Bart Die, just because i love the idea that he explained away a tattoo because it said the bart the and not die bart did. I mean ok that's certainly better but why do you have a 10 year old boys name tattoo'd on you? Not to mention all the problems you've had with him haha. The thing is there's a joke i really hate here, and always have: the "Noone German could be evil" one. I can't believe it is such a quoted joke as if it is a classic, it is really bad and stupid to be honest. Stupid jokes can be great but this is also really convienent and dumb in more than one way. Firstly, you have to accept that someone; someone on a parole board no less, can be completely unaware of something that most 8 year olds in the world know of the nazi's and that she'd have an absurd idea that a certain country can't produce bad people. I know i'm overreacting and overanalyzing it, if it was a throwaway joke that everybody has forgotten then i'd be fine but it seems to be well regarded and remembered. The best thing about the Bob being obnoxious at the cinema joke is the idea that none of them would notice someone with Bob's hair sitting a seat in front of him until he turned around haha. I know it is really weird, but that change from Bob's serious manly workout to him enthusiastically going along with the women's aerobics video used to be my favourite joke in this episode. My favourite(s) now are probably Homer's "BART DO YOU WANT A BROWNIE BEFORE YOU GO TO BED? and BART DO YOU WANT TO SEE MY NEW CHAINSAW AND HOCKEY MASK?
. Jesus, as i said some of these jokes don't work for me as much anymore but that one will never get old.
One of my main problems i have with the jokes are the ones that go on really long. I was reading somewhere that before The Simpsons these jokes hadn't really been seen, the ones that start off funny then become unfunny then become funny again because it just keeps going. Well i'm sure that they were innovative at the time but now they are just annoying, and i feel they get less funny everytime you see them; with the famous example being the Bob and the rakes jokes. One more gag i don't really like anymore is the last Grampa and Jasper one, it doesn't bother me like it does some others that it is absurd; i just don't find it particularly funny anymore.
Anyway without going into every last single line i'll say that i do still love this and always get enjoyment out of it, just not as much as i used to. Don't worry though JJ, it is a beloved episode wouldn't be surprised if i was the only one to be negative and i was still largely positive.