"THE SIMPSONS: THE COMPLETE TWELFTH SEASON"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: **** (out of 5 stars) STARRING Dan Castellaneta as HOMER SIMPSON Julie Kavner as MARGE SIMPSON Nancy Cartwright as BART SIMPSON Yeardley Smith as LISA SIMPSON Hank Azaria as VARIOUS Harry Shearer as VARIOUS Not Rated Studio: FOX Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
It aired almost ten years ago, but the twelfth season of “The Simpsons” has finally hit DVD. This season is paying homage to the Comic Book Guy, featured conspicuously on the cover. Pulling from the popular culture circa 2000, “The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season” makes light of everything from “The Matrix” to Insane Clown Posse, along with digs at Internet journalism and the reemerging environmentalist movement (with killer dolphins and Lisa’s stint as a tree-hugger). Homer sells out to Monty Burns, Sideshow Bob returns in hopes of killing Bart for a sixth time and the Comic Book Guy gets his own “Worst. Episode. Ever.”
WHAT I LIKED
By the twelfth season, you should know whether you’re a fan or not of this classic animated series. After a dozen years on the air, “The Simpsons” has become less counter-culture and more standard. The edgy jokes are masked a bit better in this season, making things watchable for a family audience. (In other words, episodes that feature characters coming out of the closet have been put back in the closet.)
However, “The Simpsons” still manages to have a lot of fun and stay irreverent, even in the midst of its PG-13 mentality. Series regulars have become caricatures, which lets they be funnier in the context of the show. We don’t see as much of Monty Burns and other supporting characters, letting the core Simpsons family keep their own spotlights.
The series begins with the ever-popular “Treehouse of Horror” Halloween special, and it wraps up with “Simpsons Tall Tales,” which put the family in classic stories for hilarious results.
I’ve said this before about “The Simpsons,” and I’ll say it again. It’s easy to just simply dismiss the entire season as genius, so let’s leave it at that. At this stage in the game, seven years before the show made a very successful leap to the big screen, it has hit a wave that it continues to ride each week on FOX.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
There’s not a lot to dislike about this DVD set, unless you have a particular problem with the characters or the show itself. However, by season twelve, you should know if it’s your cup of tea or not.
DVD FEATURES
Probably the most impressive part of “The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season” is that the DVD package continues to comprehensive. And I don’t just mean the packaging itself, although that’s something to note as well. With the spotlight on the Comic Book Guy, the four discs come in a fold-out mural done in a comic book convention motif. A staple-bound episode guy featuring Comic Book Guy includes comprehensive notes on each episode that also highlight all the special features.
The features themselves continue to be quite meaty, especially for a twelfth season release (and we all know that most series run out of special features by season five). These include a special season introduction by Matt Groening, audio commentaries on every episode and deleted scenes on most episodes, which include commentaries and can be embedded into the viewing of the episodes themselves.
Like previous seasons, there are animation showcases, which include multi-angle playback for storyboards, animatics and final product. Selected scenes from various episodes also highlight the return of the animator’s commentary.
Additional features include a spotlight on the 2000 Global Fanfest, various commercials (including the Bart Simpson Butterfinger campaign), original sketches, a multi-language feature and “Comic Book Guy: Best. Moments. Ever.” highlighting his years on the series.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Fans of “The Simpsons” and anyone looking for a fine time to jump into the series.
