[8.4/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] This is a weird episode in that, at around the halfway mark, it starts to feel like a “Treehouse of Horror” installment. The episode goes from an exaggerated if reasonably down to earth (by Springfield standards at least) story about the school losing funding, to a crazy corporate conspiracy involving destructive robots and a karate-kicking Gary Coleman.
But despite that escalation, the episode hangs together better than a lot of Mike Scully-era outings. It goes to loony places, but there’s a cause and effect every step of the way, and a reasonably clear progression that’s missing from similar season 11 episode. It’s also one of the comic highlights from this season. Everything from Mr. Burns investment in the school play, to Homer’s buffoonery when stealing the Funzos, to, god bless him, poor dumped on Gary Coleman, “Grift of the Magi” brings the laughs. Some of them are a little cheap, and the corporate satire is a little thin, but the characters feel right and it got more guffaws out of me than a lot of episodes from this era.
Overall, I may be grading this one on a curve a bit given the company it keeps, but this is a very funny episode that goes to some crazy places, but sticks to its story surprisingly well. It’s a X-mas commercialism satire that takes a while to get to the point (and makes in a semi-zany way), but ends up being funny enough to get a pass on its more out there elements.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2018-12-20T00:04:30Z
[8.4/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] This is a weird episode in that, at around the halfway mark, it starts to feel like a “Treehouse of Horror” installment. The episode goes from an exaggerated if reasonably down to earth (by Springfield standards at least) story about the school losing funding, to a crazy corporate conspiracy involving destructive robots and a karate-kicking Gary Coleman.
But despite that escalation, the episode hangs together better than a lot of Mike Scully-era outings. It goes to loony places, but there’s a cause and effect every step of the way, and a reasonably clear progression that’s missing from similar season 11 episode. It’s also one of the comic highlights from this season. Everything from Mr. Burns investment in the school play, to Homer’s buffoonery when stealing the Funzos, to, god bless him, poor dumped on Gary Coleman, “Grift of the Magi” brings the laughs. Some of them are a little cheap, and the corporate satire is a little thin, but the characters feel right and it got more guffaws out of me than a lot of episodes from this era.
Overall, I may be grading this one on a curve a bit given the company it keeps, but this is a very funny episode that goes to some crazy places, but sticks to its story surprisingly well. It’s a X-mas commercialism satire that takes a while to get to the point (and makes in a semi-zany way), but ends up being funny enough to get a pass on its more out there elements.