Rate and Review: "Hardly Kirk-ing" (RABF05)

How would you rate this episode?


  • Total voters
    119

Johnny Deformed

Executive Vice President
Joined
Nov 15, 2012
Messages
21,835
Location
i don't know where i am
February 17th, 2013: Bart and Milhouse explore the perks of being an adult when a shaving experiment leaves Milhouse looking exactly like his father. Also, Marge desperately tries to save Maggie from the dangers of children's television. Discuss!
 
Initial thoughts: Please be good. For the love of GOD, please be good!

ACT ONE:
"The Land of Forevermore Closing in three weeks" LOL!
That sure was an odd "shaving accident." Thanks for the misleading information yet again, FOX.
A magical voice-changing tie, eh? Overlook the stupidity of it, Tubb! OVERLOOK IT! MUST... ENJOY... EPISODE.

ACT TWO:
This second act really needs to pick up the pace a little. First act spent too much time on the Skype gag, and really slowed the pace.
Kirk Evelyn Van Houten... HA!
What the Hell was up with that noise in the voting booth? :confused:
Huh. Maggie's eyes are controlled by her pacifier. Second time we've seen this happen. (See The Ten-Per-Cent Solution )

Sigh. Second act didn't pick up too much.

ACT THREE:
Homer's new super power: THE MAN WHO COULD FIND ANYTHING.

This is boring and... bland.

ACT FOUR:
The tie can also turn him into Duffman. That sure is one magical fucking tie.
Homer strangles Bart, and it's over.

*Begin "The Longest Daycare"*

Wow. "There wasn't anything offensive in it, so..."
I have said that phrase so much in regards to modern Simpsons episodes that even I'm tired of it.
Just a really bland episode with two stories that did nothing, and went nowhere.

2.5/5 for some decent laughs... 2/5 for the poll because I can't bring myself to hit "3/5" in the poll. Mmmm... maybe I'll revisit this one tomorrow, and vote then. Yeah, that's what I'll do.
 
Last edited:
This...was AWESOME! Hilarious from beginning to end. The episode started off well and just got better. The only thing about the episode I didn't like was the end of the first act. The Milhouse/Homer argument went on too long. The subplot was good too. It went in nicely with Homer's character that he would be obsessed with such a thing. It also intertwined nicely with the main plot. Funny, original, and a pleasure to watch. 5/5, best of the season by a country mile.
 
Pretty meh.
Nothing offensive, but the laughs, for the most part, dried up after the second act.
I liked Homer fixing Marge's face (reminded me of Brush With Greatness), Milli Vanilli (no refunds), E-Zee-Pee Z, "Let's beat up a philosopher to find out", "Nobody leave till every puppet dead!" and Homer's amusing subplot.
 
inoffensive but dull. if the simpsons wants to be great again it's going to have to do things that are special, unique, insightful and interesting etc. this episode kinda felt like a fanfic, because none of the episode seemed as if it couldn't have been thought of by a 12 year old.

one thing i do like about these new episodes is that the kids seem fairly well written. it's sad then that an episode so kid heavy came out so dull. i can't remember too much of what happened. D+ 2/5
 
ACT ONE:

A mixture of pretty good and horrible. The gags in the book store were a bit time wasting, although I liked the one with the story telling lady. Then it just jumped into the main plot for no reason, and the start was pretty lame. Bart just got some idea to throw glue at Milhouse for no reason, and then his hair was able to be shaved out that easily because a ten year old boy knows how to use a razor. Then a tight tie makes Milhouse sound like a father? Whaaaat? I'll have to see how this goes.

ACT TWO:

Tons of plot holes here - nobody's wondering why Kirk's walking funny? Nobody notices the face of a ten year old with his tiny arms sticking out from out o his coat? Also, where IS Kirk this whole time? However, despite the weird premise, I enjoyed most of this act because I felt myself laughing at a good amount of the jokes. Homer wanting the subscription to Highlights magazine had my laughing pretty hard.

ACT THREE:

It was kinda stupid, but I'm enjoying the subplot of Homer getting better at finding stuff after he looking through a children's book. But now the premise is starting to get even stranger - Milhouse is acting like an adult one minute because of him being in character, the next he's back to palling with the kids like usual. Also, still no sign of Kirk.

ACT FOUR:

Now the premise ends with... the kids buying a condo for no reason? With the agent wanting to have sex with "Kirk" for whatever reason? Whatever. The real Kirk finally shows up at the end with no explanation as to where he's been this time, just like I predicted.

OVERALL:

Despite the horrible premise, the jokes were the funniest I've heard in a while. The premise gets a 2/5 while the jokes get a 4/5. I guess that adds up to a 3/5 (C+)
 
That was nice and painless, with some pretty good jokes and ideas. Matt Nastuk did a fine job, too. I feel pretty good giving this one a 4/5.
 
Lotta fun was had with Milhouse masquerading as Kirk. Kirk/Milhouse speaking with Homer at the end of the first act was funny, the second act with the bullies and truck scenes and the voting scene and callback all got solid laughs, as did the Duffman voice callback near the end. Homer doing those hidden objects books was boring so I grew worried when I realized it was gonna be a running plot point throughout, but it grew on me to an extent. I at least enjoyed the bedroom scene involving it. The episode felt very quick, likely to accommodate the Longest Daycare, going by my clock it began at 7:59 and was over by 8:26. Bart's let's see how long we can run with this type line in the first act was pretty clearly the writer's speaking through the characters and I found it amusing. I dunno I'll say 3.5 rounded up to be nice, maybe it's helped by following one of the worst episodes in recent memory.
 
Normally I'm diametrically opposed to the way Financial Panther responds to an episode... but not tonight.
I loved this episode as well. Easily the strongest "hit ratio" of jokes that work vs. those that miss of the season.
Stands out in sharp contrast to the crammed to the brim with "dead on arrival" jokes of last week's Tim Long episode.

The unadvertised Homer subplot was inventive and the main plot felt fresh and unrecycled. We've had the kids mistaken for teenagers in the past ('Little Big Girl' and 'Little Girl in the Big Ten' being the obvious examples) but this ep actually had a lot of fun with the premise.

Also, the best use of Milhouse in a long, long time. Certainly best in the HD era. I even enjoyed the bonding moment he had with his Dad at the end to cap things off.
 
This was the funniest episode of the season.

I'm being honest, I really don't have anything to say that is negative about this episode, outside of maybe a slight nitpick here or there. Sure, it wasn't an episode that was very deep in its subject matter, it didn't really have a big plot to speak of, all it really was was a funny premise that the writers just took and ran with, but they ran really far with it, and it worked. We've all joked about it before, Milhouse's parents look way too much alike and look just like him, so yeah, what if they took that idea to a plot where Milhouse impersonates his dad? I guess the idea of how they pull it off was a little strange, but once that idea gets off the ground, it was really funny. I kept wondering what they were going to do next with this premise, and I can't say I was ever bored or disappointed with what they came up with to do. Once Lisa got involved with the scam, I was worried that it would all come to a screeching halt, but they managed to get her involved believably too, even tying in the earlier strands of the jazz concert and the toddler videos. I also got kind of worried when Milhouse and the Real Estate Lady got together, since I wasn't sure how far they were going to take it, and if it was going to get uncomfortable. However, they still managed to make it all quite funny.

Then there's Homer's little subplot with his obsession with children's search books. It's funny to see Homer get involved, since he would be the kind of adult to be completely taken in by picture books intended for children. It didn't have much to do with the story until the final act, and even then that was a thin tie-in at best, but again, it was just very funny, with Homer and Marge's bedroom scene probably being the stand-out. That is really the strength of this episode overall, the humor. The story wasn't all that big or creative, but the reading lady, Milhouse choking Bart, the final scene with Kirk, it all really made me laugh. I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being my favorite episode of this season. I give it a strong 4/5 (very close to being a perfect 5/5).
 
I found this episode pretty boring actually....I only laughed once at the end with Bart and Homer that's it. None of the jokes really worked for me. 1/5

Also when Lisa got skyped by Bart/Milhouse I thought I was being skyped as I had my Skype up and running while watching it. lol I'm surprised Simpsons used the actual skype sound.
 
Really enjoyed this one! Lots of good jokes, and generally an all around fun episode. I'm really glad they didn't shoehorn some life threatening situation or anything. Just a solid Bart & Milhouse A-plot, which reminded me of the classic B-plot where the boys buy a warehouse, and a good Homer B-plot. Thankfully, they didn't devote a lot of time to the Homer bits, so it was a good balance. And the fact that both plots tied together really well was great.

The whole episode actually had a very strong Seinfeld vibe thanks to Gammill and Pross. It was pretty much a "show about nothing", but there were a lot of solid jokes and just as in Seinfeld, the two plots tied together.

Second favorite of the season behind The Day The Earth Stood Cool. A strong 4/5

Edit: y'know, it actually reminded me of a good Simpsons Comic.
 
The whole episode actually had a very strong Seinfeld vibe thanks to Gammill and Pross. It was pretty much a "show about nothing", but there were a lot of solid jokes and just as in Seinfeld, the two plots tied together.
Here's hoping they get included in the regular writing rotation going forward for at least one episode per season. They've still got it.
I know they'd have to sacrifice one of Tim Long's annual THREE butcher jobs to make room for them but... somehow... I think he'll survive.
 
Kind of a cute little outing - I suppose. I became discouraged with the parodies of reality TV and children's programming, which The Simpsons has done multiple times apiece. They've parodied shows like Deadliest Catch to death already (and with a parody of Storage Wars coming up soon) and, as for children's programming, they're just ragging on whatever children's entertaining is popular at or around the time of the episode's respective airing (Itchy and Scratchy vs. Ren & Stimpy, Roofi vs. Raffi, Teletubbies parodies). Little Poindexters seems a little outdated. I couldn't get into it much, and the subplot was really, really weird.

We got some good Milhouse stuff, though. They didn't treat old Millie as a punching bag for divorce jokes; we had two mischievous boys find the best prank ever and had them experimenting with it. Heck, Don LaFontaine, the old movie announcer guy, got his start doing the same thing: using his deep voice to trick adults.

The kids then took it too far and got lost downtown. I'm surprised they didn't have Lisa be impressed with Milhouse in this ep. One has to suspend their disbelief, like with the unwitting timeshare salesperson and even Luann not catching on to the ruse, but the gag worked because of some well-written, double talk-infused dialogue. How much difference is there between a confused 10-year-old and a balding, insecure, socially awkward adult?

There were some dumb jokes, like Skinner and Chalmers at the election, but I found this to be about as enjoyable as "Changing of the Guardian"; inoffensive, rather light-hearted and not taking entirely too many risks.
 
First I want to say that I've been told by [MENTION=13536]Jims[/MENTION] that I have no chance of being a moderator but (just to spite him) I am going to follow my schedule as planned for the next thirty days (by the way this is my real 15th post of the day because I counted earlier and it was only 14 at the time.
Anyways now the episode review.

Simpsons Hardly Kirking review
Act 1
Well at first the show had already lost me with the whole shapes and Kids Book Store bit. Then it started to get me smiling (for the first time in the episode I might add) when Homer reading a find the hidden object book and then I finally started to laugh (instead of smile) after we got to the main part of the plot. Because of the crummy opening this act gets a solid D
Act 2
In the second act I got the same as I got at the end of the first act only more of it, just a few occasional chuckles nothing more nothing less, but I did like that for once one of the new episodes had some plot progression instead of just failing jokes filling up the entire second act for once, and I did like the 23 year late return of “The Jazz Hole”
Overall this act gets a D+
Act 3
Well I did like that we finally got back to the subplot before I forgot about it ,but I not like that it was starting to overshadow the main plot of the story. Also this has been the worst act of the show
Overall an F
Act 4
Yep another short act I would rather like it if it was 4 equal acts rather than 2 full acts and 2 half of an acts. Now the episode review first I didn’t like that the (show) was implying that the sales lady was going to sleep with Millhouse. Also I think that the subplot (just like the second act) was flushed out after never really doing anything but waste time. Lastly I did not like that homer openly acknowledges that he doesn’t want to strangle Bart yet does anyway
Overall act rating D-
Overall episode rating D
 
I concur with the "painless" comments. This one was quite likeable, and an example of an episode which works well enough that disbelief is suspended due to the pleasing cartoon nature of the deception. It did however give me a heavy feeling of de ja vu through the entire first act - as if I had literally seen half the episode before. What didn't help that, was Bart and Milhouse's romp reminding me of the one where Bart has a driving license. Homer was believable with his puzzle book obsession, and I thought it was cute how this actually appeared to have a real world positive effect that pleased Marge (because he's usually so useless). The "educational TV" idea was interesting to me, having seen a lot of news about this kind of thing since I was little - I liked how they handled that. I didn't like that Milhouse's imitation was implied to be so strong that an adult woman wanted to sleep with a prepubescent boy. That felt incredibly cheap. Also wondered where the heck Kirk was the whole time - was that even mentioned? All in all, I have nothing to say that hasn't already been said. Mostly enjoyable, especially by current standards - I think I would've liked this one as a kid. A few moments where it appeared that not enough thought was put into it (e.g. shooting glue at Milhouse's head for no reason, Homer coincidentally finding the place because "free breakfast" even if it is in character), but given that the episode had a short intro and ran to full time, I don't feel inclined to downmark it for that.
 
This is the best Season 24 episode thus far. I liked it very, very much. It just proves to show you that character-driven episodes will always outdo the ones that focus on guest stars. There were a lot of laughs and the plot was clever. Homer's antics were pretty fun, too. I give it a 5/5.
 
Oh yeah, I dug the meta gag with Milhouse's voice being lowered = Kirk, and Kirk's voice being lowered = Duffman. Duffman is pretty much Kirk with a bit more punch.

Also, Bart quoted Ralph, so this episode indirectly quoted Duffman and Ralph, and neither character appeared.
 
3.5/5
Wow that was actually a pretty good episode, almost all the jokes worked even the bullys were funny.I especially liked the meta joke with milhouses and Duffmans voices.
Also this episode probabbly had the best episode ending joke of the season.
 
Much better than last week's episode. This episode was okay and had more than 2 decent jokes! I enjoyed the first act with The Simpsons going to the bookstore and Maggie being obsess with the children show. Kinda surprise that Bart, Homer, Lisa, and Maggie got scared when Marge said no TV for 24 hours. With all the electronics the show has nowadays, you'll think they'll forget television! I also liked that the episode focus more on the kids than Homer and Marge. It was kinda refreshing.

Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded to a 4)
 
This was actually very enjoyable. It wasn't hilarious, but there was a steady stream of amusing gags, and minimal cringeworthy moments. I liked the B plot, because it felt different from usual B plots. It never really established itself as a complete plot, so it didn't feel obligated to spend a lot of time on it, thus not making it feel too underdeveloped, and giving more time for the main plot, which didn't feel very rushed. Third best of the season, behind To Cur, and the THOH.

Act 1: A-
Act 2: B+
Act 3: B-
Act 4: B
Overall: B+ or 3.5/5, rounded up to a 4
 
The episode ended at 8:27, presumably to make room for Maggie Simpson in: The Longest Daycare. Anybody outside of the USA get a longer opening (all we got was the title, the couch, and the TV)?

In the opening, Lisa seems more disgusted by Marge's hair than by Homer's head.

Marge says books were used to educate children "from 1910 until 2002", but "Baby Einstein"-style VHS tapes do exist.

Homer's license plate number is 1PHL07.

Maggie Simpson in: The Longest Daycare has a TV rating of TV-PG-V.

Written by Tom Gammill & Max Pross
Directed by Matthew Nastuk
Billboard: none
Blackboard: none
Couch: A knight decapitates Homer (and takes off most of Marge's hair) with his sword
Special Guest Voice: Kevin Michael Richardson
Also Starring: Pamela Hayden, Tress MacNeille, Chris Edgerly, Maggie Roswell
Overseas Animation: Rough Draft
TV Rating: TV-PG-DLSV
 
Writing this as I watch it.

- Another couch gag where only Homer is injured/dies/etc. Tiring to the point where I knew the rest of the family would be spared as soon as the knight walked into the room. Also, another knitpick, but it's bothered me for aaages. Whenever a character is decapitated in the Al Jean era (whether it be in fantasy sequences or, more commonly, treehouse of horrors) the head always remains alive. It takes away from impact and makes the show feel like a bugs bunny cartoon. It happens again in this couch gag -- again, I'm literally expecting it at this point.

- Even though we all saw it in the preview clip, I like how it opened with the Baby Poindexter video. Captures the audience's attention in the first shot and has them wondering what's going on.

- Animation/sfx goof? The puppets on the video rattle like they have bells on, but they don't have bells on.

- DVD Useless, Generation Ruined is pretty funny.

- "GASP! Don't watch that DVD!"
"LOOK AT ME!"
"Maybe instead of watching TV with the kids you could take them outside!"

In the words of Roger Daltrey, "Shut the fuck up, Marge!"

- LOL! "That's the way people talk about Ralph!", Bart in response to Marge describing his intelligence.

- Kind of surreal knowing Bart and Lisa grew up on DVDs.

- Freeze frame gags in the bookstore -- that you actually have to freeze to view! Is this a first for the Jean era?! What happened to the days of Homer asking the audience if they've read everything?

- ...Oh, wait, they done a close up of all the books a few seconds later.

- "Spot the hidden objects."
"You're pretty pushy for a book I just met". LOL.

- "Have you seen Lisa and Maggie?"
"If they're not a trumpet or a rolling pin then no." Homer's been pretty funny in this episode so far -- haven't found him humorous or likeable in ages.

- LOL @ the dynamite in the bookstore, and Homer overlooking it. I also loved his, "Got 'em!" after spotting his kids. Again, good Homer characterization for once.

- Hahahaha @ the epoxy fight. I'm actually enjoying this episode, although I am high.

- Hahahahhaaha @ bart holding up a photo of Kirk next to Milhouse. "Oh my god -- you look just like your dad!" I don't know if it was just to help the audience, but it was funny either way.

- HAHAHAH holy shit at Milhouse's voice changing to Duffman's. Fucking retarded, but hilarious.

- Lol @ Milhouse peeing. Reminds me of Larry in Curb Your Enthusiasm. This is seriously the funniest episode I've seen in ages.

- "Hello, Lisa? This is my daddy. I mean -- Kirk Van Hounten." Hahahahaha. I feel retarded pointing out every time I've found something funny but it's such a rarity for the show these days that I feel it needs to be pointed out. I'll stop now though, at least until something really funny happens.

- "I can reach the poisons now! Each with an inviting skull and crossbones." Hahahaha.

- The bullies are finally acting like bullies again. Yay.

- Lisa and Marge at the play was kinda boring, until "Nobody leave until every puppet dead". lol.

- I like how the seemingly inconsequential Baby Poindexter stuff at the start actually impacted the main plot later on.

- Why is Professor Frink taking marriage counselling? Isn't he only 12 years old?

- "And worst of all, you cast my vote!" Kirk's first line in the episode has made laugh.

- "It was pretty cool having your life."
"You mean that?"
"I'd be happy to wind up just like you."
"I hope you remember that when I can't pay for your college."

Touching and funny ending -- just like the old episodes.

***

So this was really good. Not classic episode good, but waaaay better than 99.99% of Jean episodes.

5/5 by Jean standards, and 2/5 by classic era standards.
 
Good little episode that wasn't like any other, really. I liked how Homer's subplot worked with the main plot - it was actually really fun and enjoyable. The plot was pretty good, though I wish Kirk was included more with the story. Almost every joke was great, some had me in stitches. Very big improvement over last week's near-disaster. However, I wish it had been longer - it was only 19 minutes. They could've easily had more scenes, but it still worked.

7.8/10 or 3.9/5 rounded to a 4 on the polls.
 
Back
Top