Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play
Season 17 finally concludes with the same type of episode that it began with, a episode relating to a form of marriage; but this time, it's about two people who have their own problems with marriage and Homer and Marge get roped in to help them out with their rocky relationship... Except one's a parody of a southern baseball player and the other is Britney Spears. In this case, the idea of Marge & Homer as Marriage Counselors is an interesting one and the unique couple may interest what could be considered just another love plot but both of those end up to be inconsequential, as the episode ends up being dull as dishwater.
For one, while the plot moves at an alright place; there doesn't seem to be anything interesting or even entertaining (save for a few Homer moments.), I found myself feeling like I was watching our characters council some guest stars about their marriage and not giving much of a damn, even when they throw in the cliched scene where their marriage is in the rocks again and when they tie the entire thing to a couple of baseball games going on. I know that the Simpsons has done sitcom plots before but those episodes had something that hooked you in and kept you hooked; granted, there are attempts to hook you but those feel awkward as fuck and as such they tend to get in the way of a plot that's already in the way in the first place.
It wouldn't be awkward if the characters managed to play their part but they're as awkward as ever. The scenes involving Marge and Homer while they're counselors didn't feel natural, nor did the dialog scenes and the "tension" between them; the tension in particular feeling out of place and seemingly forced. (I mean since when does arguments devolve into two people arguing just because the plot calls for it?) Homer and Marge arguments lacked believability and watching them up close, seemed like pointless bickering rather then two people disagreeing with each other. I admit, there were some good scenes involving the two (mostly involving analyzing the family and some scenes at the ballpark) but those are very far and few in between.
The guest stars don't seem to fare any better, due to obvious reasons of course... I will note that the Britney Spears girl and the guy do have some personality and seem to play their roles well but other then that, they're pretty paper thin. It wouldn't be a problem if they acted in a enjoyable/relatable way but the way they're portrayed and the personalities they are given manage to prove a major problem and the entire way the episode resolves around them just detracts from the episode as a whole. Even though the arguments are valid, the way they argue, the way they fight, the way they get together, the way they break up and even when they're together just doesn't feel like what any real life couple would do; hell, if you're watching the episode then the stuff that they do don't even look right. I would blame that on the Britney Spears parody which wasn't a good idea in the first place; the guy does do some stuff a real-life boyfriend would do (like play good or bad depending on the situation, generic sitcom stuff but still.) but he's still paper thin; regardless, even if the Britney Spears character was removed; it'd still be dull as hell. It's things like this that makes me wonder whether or not this premise would be done justice in the classic era.
Speaking of which, there are some good jokes in this (I admit, the Duffmen did give me a laugh), most of the characters contribute good moments and some good ideas even get out but as usual; we're left with the jokes going on for too long (I have to wonder, why stretch them if they land the first time; it's not like we can't get the joke the first time!) and the really unfunny jokes stuffed in there. The most cringeworthy being the Britney Spears parody, which I felt lacked lots of substance and hit the really, really easy targets (which are focusing on sexuality, the backup dancers, the awkward presentation and the stripper like performances; all of which was parodied back when Britney Spears first hit the scene.). It also detracted from a lot of the episode in terms of watchability. I mean I don't want to watch an episode and have to face tons of forced sexuality in an attempt to be relevant.
On the other hand, it's always nice to see KBBL playing a major part in an episode...
So this review details what I think of Season 17; forgettable, middling and lacking in any interesting or memorable details. This episode ends the season as it did the last; though it's not terrible, it isn't any good though and the fact that I found myself struggling to remember just what the hell happened doesn't improve the signs surrounding this episode. Mostly every character here acts in an unbelievable way and alot of the stuff just don't connect. Again, it's not terribly bad (though the title obviously is.) but it's a very disappointing way to end a season.
4.0/10
Now if only I can muster up the strength to get through Seasons 18 and 19.