34x02 One Angry Lisa

[5.8/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] This one is a big “Eh” from me. The A-story has a solid idea, but squanders it. The notion of someone having an emotional affair with their Peloton instructor is a little out there. That said, you could do something with one partner in a marriage finding comfort in a parasocial relationship that’s giving them a new sense of fulfillment alongside their new hobby, and another feeling betrayed when they went to great lengths to make that new hobby possible.

But this is too cartoony and extreme to carry any of the emotional weight The Simpsons wants it to. I’m bearish on Homer/Marge relationship drama episodes to begin with, but this episode never bothers to interrogate why there’s a disconnect there that leads Marge to fantasize about her cycling instructor. All they have is the outlandish premise, absurd escalations in Marge’s obsession, and a passel of fellow angry husbands who’ve all but lost their wives to the great cycling lotharios.

That might be more tolerable if there were a host of good laughs in this one, but it’s a pretty mild half hour of television in the comedy department. The show can’t muster much in the way of funny observations of Pelotons and the culture that surrounds them, or the criminal justice system in Lisa’s story. The lack of emotional depth might not be so bad if this one were just funnier.

But god help me, remember when Homer/Marge relationship drama episodes had stakes and emotional impact? When Marge was tempted to cheat with Jacques, her bowling instructor, it ended with a personal dilemma over whether to go through with it or vindicate her relationship with her husband, only to choose Homer when it counted. When Homer was tempted to cheat with Mindy, his co-worker, he was devastated because he felt the universe was pushing him toward something he didn’t want, but ended up pushing back and having a romantic evening with Marge. The resolutions centered on the characters and what they mean to each other.

This one ends with...Homer getting into a ridiculous fight with the Peloton instructor and Marge using her new cycling skills to traverse a veritable Springfield obstacle course to stop it. It’s a goofy set piece that just glues the husband and wife back together without finding anything human or relatable to earn it. Feh. The ending is the worst part.

The B-story isn’t much to write home about either. Lord knows there’s plenty to satirize about local court proceedings (The Simpsons has done it as well as anyone in the past), but there’s not much juice in the orange here. Lisa accidentally getting jury duty is, again, a little out there, but has possibilities. And I appreciate the minor continuity of a return appearance from Judge Constance Harm. But again, the flaws in the system Lisa witnesses are too goofy and absurd to have any teeth as a real critique, and it makes her rant at the end come off as less impactful. Again, not much in the way of laughs from Gil’s ineptitude or other courtroom mishegoss either, which is a real missed opportunity.

Overall, showrunner Al Jean’s first at-bat for season 34 is firmly in “swing and a miss” territory despite some solid ideas in both the A- and B-stories.