Rate & Review: "Heartbreak Hotel" (XABF15)

How would you rate this episode?


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Brad Lascelle

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Season 30, Episode 2
Original Airdate
: October 7, 2018
Writers: Matt Selman & Renee Ridgeley
Director: Steven Dean Moore
Showrunner: Matt Selman
Synopsis: Marge and Homer's marriage is tested when they travel to a tropical island to compete for a million dollars on Marge's favorite reality competition show.

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R&R Poll Average Score: 2.89 / 5 (as of September 24, 2021 / 46 votes)
IMDB User Rating: 6.1 / 10
 
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It was OK, but a lesser Selman offering for sure. I thought there would be more jabs at reality TV, but there were very few, if any. Homer and Marge getting eliminated immediately was a decent twist, and I thought the scene with Homer eating a chocolate bar was going to be something fabricated by the staff, which I think I would’ve preferred. It would’ve put them against the staff and maybe gotten rid of the marriage crisis; however, it could’ve ended up too much like Helter Shelter. The beginning of act 2, which was apparently a parody of Virginia Woolf, went on too long and was pretty annoying. Still, despite the tired marriage crisis plot, there were some decent things in this episode, and I liked Marge coming back on the reality show and failing at something herself. It also didn’t feel as forced of a way to get her forgiving Homer as it usually does. I’ll give it a 3/5.
 
I can't really lie. This episode could've gone better. A LOT better. Let's hope the next episodes are more entertaining.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I have to imagine our younger viewers are baffled by 3-plus minutes of black and white 1960s theater parody</p>— Matt Selman (@mattselman) <a href="https://twitter.com/mattselman/status/1049093327570710528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2018</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<sigh> Okay, here's the problem I'll elaborate on as someone who is plenty old enough to appreciate both Virginia Woolf and black & white 1960s theater parody... and apparently too old to embed tweets properly. Parody works when it doesn't come off so heavy-handed and forced. It didn't feel so much like Marge and Homer retracing the steps of Martha and George so much as they were role-playing as these other characters that were clearly not them and/or how they would act and/or behave. When you made that the crux of the episode's conflict it became problematic.

And I'm ALL for black & white homages handled in inventive ways... like the incredible Dial "M" for Murder or Press "#" to Return to Main Menu homage to Strangers on a Train in Treehouse of Horror XX. THOH sketches are afforded a degree of parody latitude that isn't give elsewhere because they're non-canon exhibitions where you can take established characters and thrust them in inventive roles where they wouldn't otherwise be used. You can't just jury rig them into a non-THOH episode because it seems like a fun idea - and, if you do, you'd better nail the execution. I think it might have worked had there been more nuanced Woolf tie-ins throughout the ep instead of it being isolated to the 3rd act or if someone like Rob Oliver or Mike B. Anderson could have salvaged the juxtaposition with strong direction.

It's a shame, too... because I'm a reality TV junkie and really wanted to get on board with this premise. I did appreciate the homage to Claire's infamous self-melon shot from The Amazing Race.
 
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I have to set my expectations for this season.. it's really hard for me to put words to my criticism about parts of the show, maybe it's the tone, maybe it's the storytelling or the pacing, this felt like an episode from the mid teen seasons.

Nothing really stood out at me in this episode, there were a few lines and I thought the boys digging the pool was a nice little scene. The only other reaction I remember having is the barman at the hotel, from a distance it made me think of of the Yes-Man character and I'll admit I was a little disappointment when it wasn't him.

I enjoyed the black and white homage to who's afraid of virginia wolf, being one of my favorite movies I think helped my appreciation. Unfortunately it went a little long and they were a little too obvious about it.
 
2/5 - they pretty much telegraphed the whole "It's going to turn out to be Homer's fault" part, and the hotel just seemed to be an excuse for the song.

In the attic, there are boxes marked "Dreams Denied" (the Ringo Starr painting), "Dreams Deferred" (a quilt), and "Dreams Shattered" (Marge's popsicle stick artwork).

How did they make the audition DVDs?

The show has had no problem mentioning NASCAR before; why is it a problem now?

FASCAR car sponsors: Buzz Cola, Krusty Burger, KBBL, Duff, Powersauce Energy Bars, Blue Bronco?, Laramie Cigarettes, another Buzz Cola?, then the first Buzz Cola car appears again.
Blue Bronco energy drink first appeared in "Bart Gets a Z"

Homer and Marge are told that if they reveal anything, they can be sued for up to $1 million. Most reality show contestant contracts say $5 million.

In the black & white segment, Marge says, "What a dump! What's that from?"; this is also a line from the first (non-pilot) episode of Duckman.
What's that, you say? "What's that from?" is the version in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and that Elizabeth Taylor's character is referencing Bette Davis saying "What a dump!" in Beyond the Forest?

How would Marge have known how Nick did in the three-legged challenge?
 
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A revelation I was surprised to discover in my lead-up speculation for this episode is that Matt Selman is only 50/50 in delivering high quality modern Simpsons from episodes he also has a hand in writing.

GOOD EPISODES: The Food Wife (S23), The Day the Earth Stood Cool (S24), Sky Police (S26), There Will Be Buds (S28)
SO-SO EPISODES: Gorgeous Grampa (S24), Covercraft (S26), The Great Phatsby Part II (S28), Heartbreak Hotel (S30)

Also, those of you who've been perusing the list of post-Classic Era episodes I systematically compiled over on ResetEra will note that none of these 8 episodes above made the cut (I would subjectively make an argument that There Will Be Buds is deserving... but I stuck to my guns on the criteria to qualify) whereas SEVEN Selman-showrun episodes that he was not attached as a writer did make the cut (Halloween of Horror, Steal This Episode, The Book Job, The Town, A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again, Brick Like Me, The Marge-ian Chronicles) along with SIX episodes that he didn't showrun that he did write (Trilogy of Error, The Haw-Hawed Couple, Oh Brother, Where Bart Thou?, The Dad Who Knew Too Little, Girls Just Want to Have Sums, Behind the Laughter).

My takeaway... I want to see Jean showrun the next Selman script and I want to see Selman showrun the next Jean script. And I bet both would turn out better than if they showran themselves.
 
It was pretty good. Not the best, but not the worst. Just pretty good.
 
The Tennessee Williams section was amusing but would it be so wrong that Marge was the one who screwed up? Same premise, Homer the boob changed how I was liking this Episode. Would have been nice to see them take the piss out of reality shows since I'm not a really big fan.

Toilets got a phone, I don't know why? Ok, that was funny.
 
Loved Homer's reaction to having to stay in the hotel for six weeks. If the studio is paying for it I would want to be the first kicked off of a reality show.
 
I'm personally sick of "Homer and Marge marriage crisis" episodes, so I didn't had many expectations from Heartbreak Hotel at first, but I was intrigued then, due to the minimalist promo and the fact it's a Matt Selman episode. It can be seen from the beginning with the absence of the opening.

The first act is decent, a bit long and recycled, but not really unpleasant. I enjoyed the twist at the end of that act, even if it was revealed since a long time (sigh). I wondered where the episode would go after, but it was pretty disappointing at last.

It's a confused episode, the plots and subplots follow each other, first we have the Amazing Place competition, then we have Homer enjoying the life in a hotel far from the kids and his everyday life but not Marge, then Marge learns by her husband how to appreciate it too (with a pretext but nice song, I always like hearing Dan Castellaneta sing), and then Marge see Homer screwed up the first step...

The last act begin with a weird parody of Virginia Woolf (very good movie by the way), I mean, I think it's weird because it feel forced and badly put into the episode, it's here just to be here, it's not even an imagine spot, it's a canon scene made as a (too obvious) parody, and it doesn't work. Anyways, fortunately the crisis between Homer and Marge didn't take too long, and I liked the ending with Homer enjoying to not be the one who screwed up this time, it's funny and it avoid a cliché ending.

Overall, it's a pretty forgettable episode (as a proof, I remember had a few chuckles, but I don't really remember the jokes of this episode). Not so bad, but not very good. At least, it's a full episode, since there's no opening, and the ending credits contain some scenes too, no waste of time. Let's say 2.5/5.
 
They completely squandered all over their reality tv parody which would've made for a slightly more interesting episode in favor of yet another tired Homer & Marge marriage episode. Except this one had the balls to end in such an Ass Pully and unsatisfying way that ultimately accomplished nothing but manage to make an already boring episode as bad as the FG episode that aired the same night.

.5/5, rounded up to a 1 for the poll.
 
I could barely finish the episode. Not only was it pretty well-worn territory and not exactly gutbustingly funny, but Marge's voice has gotten borderline unlistenable... I didn't realize Julie Kavner was 68, wow.
 
Very mixed with this episode. I found that it has some good ideas for a plot, but then it felt like they just kept shuffling different plots which eventually leads to yet another marriage crisis.

I liked the first act with the introduction of ''The Amazing Place'' (which does sound like a lazy made up name), the host was an okay character and I liked some of the challenges they did. Marge is being the expert and jokes about how long that show lasted, which leads to a rather funny montage with the kids repeatingly asking her to participate. The VCR recordings and the try-outs had a few good laughs.

Then I was... actually not so surprised to see Homer and Marge lose the very first challenge as it got already spoiled long before the episode got released. This is where I wondered if this episode would've been better if they just had them do more challenges, rather than ending up in a hotel where the episode didn't really go anywhere. Shouldn't they have known that they had to reside for 6 weeks before signing up? Did they expect Patty & Selma to stay with the kids for that long? The few things I did like from the hotel scenes is Homer's singing part which is actually pretty good. And the phone scenes with the lawyer was pretty funny.

The last act with them spoofing Virginia Woolf felt kinda forced and lasted to long. The Black & White theme worked better when they used it in Dial "M" for Murder, which had some thought to it rather than trying to parody something so badly. I didn't like Marge teaming up with Nick and basically the relationship she was trying to create with him, it also felt odd that Nick's wife was not being involved at all. The challenge was okay and I liked how Marge screwing up which gives Homer something to... act so happy.

I'm not entirely sure what to think of this episode, but so far it didn't do much for me. It feels like they could've made a much better episode if they wouldn't go to the more boring directions where they could have taken the story to. Maybe this episode would've been better if it was something like a 22 minute parody of ''Total Drama Island'', which would mean giving all contestants their own unique personality and design so people might get into their characters. Let Homer and Marge compete in all sorts of silly challenges, rather than taking most of the episode inside a hotel where all that happens is brewing another marriage crisis. I do like the idea of using reality TV shows as a theme for an episode, but it feels like they could've executed this better for this episode. The jokes also severely lacked when it comes to reality TV.

There are a couple of things that I did like. Marge has been given a bigger role where she is centered more than Homer, and the kids player a proper part into convincing them to participate despite all the failed attempts. This episode will probably end up being rather forgettable, though I find it about average.

2.5/5
 
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I found this to be a decent and promising episode (well, at least for the first half). It certainly had some problems that kept it from becoming as good as it could have been which was unfortunate as it looked rather good to start with so it was disappointing but not that awful at all.

I liked the premise about Marge along with Homer entering as contestants in the island reality competition show (I don't like reality shows but the Simpsons getting in on one of those was a nice plot idea) but things not turning out as expected. The plot was well set up with Bart & Lisa pestering Marge to enter and the reveal that the reason she refuses being that she & Homer got rejected over and over was well done & Lisa successfully entering them with an video edit of Marge's rejection reactions was nice lead-in. Marge & Homer getting eliminated before they could even get to the main part was an good twist and their necessary long stay at the hotel not to reveal anything was handled nicely to begin with. Marge being depressed about their failure and being away from home while locked in the hotel while an overjoyed Homer handles his stay there well (even singing a cover on Elvis' Heartbreak Hotel' which was amusing) and getting Marge to feel better was stuff I liked; while it wasn't great it kept my interest.

Then they get to the part where they see the reality show in editing process it comes out it was Homer's blunder that made them lose immediately which leads to her getting mad at him, changing the story into one of those tired marriage crisises and the 'Virginia Woolf' parody in black & white came off as forced and bizarre, unnecessary and went on forever (I'm not too familiar with the original work but it shouldn't matter and I can least appreciate the visuals, but this sequence was clunky and unnatural). It got a little bit better once it was revealed that one of the eliminated couples can re-enter but only with switch partners, leading Marge to do it with this Nick guy, competing in the mango challenge & Marge blowing it by forgetting one simple ingredient of the mango drink & Homer being happy that he wasn't the only one who blew it was an nice, ironic ending.

The animation was nice if unspectacular, it had some nice gags here and there (for one thing I liked the pit of monkeys that had to be soothed by flute music) and the characterizations were good (I didn't find anything really objectionable aside from the exaggerated parodic sequence). As said, the plot was alright and had it's moments up until the marriage crisis which felt just tacked on and got resolved really quickly to boot so I really wish they had pulled a different plot twist to spare us this (such as their loss maybe being a ploy from the production company to pull something on them, such as filming their doings at the hotel or something, I dunno; that could have made it work, or maybe an extension of the brief subplot with Bart, Lisa & Maggie at home while being looked after by Patty & Selma which I did enjoy).

So anyway, it was an okay episode at best and I didn't think it was awful at all, though if they just hadn't pulled that old cliché in the second half and went with something more original and actually interesting instad (without a parody which just ate up time) it could've come together nicely since it really seemed like it was going somewhere good with Marge and Homers dynamic but then they dropped the ball. What a shame. One of the less impressive Selman efforts.

3/5 (it could've been closer to a 4/5 if not for the marriage crisis and the out of place parody).
 
On one hand, it feels a little late in the game to be parodying reality shows. On the other hand, I've never been a fan of them and they are still a thing, so it's still relevant and I could appreciate the jabs.

That made it a fairly enjoyable parody, though the story wasn't without its issues. Homer being the one to have actually screwed up was a rather obvious twist and it made Marge look really petty, though fate paid her back when she did mess up, got mocked, and left Homer with some semblance of high ground. I did have a knee-jerk "Ugh, not another marriage crisis" reaction the minute it went that way, but at least this was in the context of a competition and Marge being fanatical about it, so it was better than usual. Kind of.

I appreciated the Virginia Woolf parody (even though I'm not familiar with the source material) and didn't mind the out-of-character stretching because of the creativity, but it was a bit random and went on for too long. I'd have actually preferred more cuts back to the shenanigans the kids were getting up to for a bit of levity. It felt like a missed opportunity not checking in with them again and perhaps seeing the "pool" completed. Nelson's confused "Haw-Haw" got me; there were just enough beats before that to make it awkwardly funny.

It was OK. For an episode where Marge and Homer fight, I didn't find it nearly as grating as usual, and while I probably would've preferred it go down a different route - maybe being about Marge learning to relax and enjoy a free trip, then maybe having to be talked into competing again when they invite eliminated couples to rejoin - judging it by the route it actually took, it was alright. 3/5 with nothing I really disliked, but still well short of stellar.
 
I made an account just to vent about how bad this episode is. The black and white 'parody' was unwatchable. Worst episode ever.
 
Notes as I watch:

-I'm a huge Survivor fan, been watching the show since I was 10, so this Survivor reference-filled opening act is pretty fun. That said, have we all forgotten that The Simpsons were already on a reality show in Season 14's "Helter Shelter", and they hated it? So why the sudden enthusiasm for reality shows?
-One difference is that Season 14 was made during the peak of reality show fever and contained numerous references to them, especially the scandalous fad that was Joe Millionaire. This episode, however, references the longevity of Survivor and seems to be made for the post-fever era of reality TV. Doesn't excuse the fact that the family seems to have completely forgotten their previous unpleasant reality show experience.
-Marge saying "noob" was pretty funny (it was weird how much it tied in with the episode)
-Bart and Lisa nagging Marge to try out for the show was a nice throwback to the Mt. Splashmore scene, though obviously far inferior.
+The different boxes of "dreams" in the attic.
-Well that's the end of that, I guess. Marge and Homer eliminated right away. Not that I thought this episode would be about their reality show experience, but that could've been an interesting road to go down.
-First act has been good. Not particularly funny, but fun. I can dig that.

-Can't have an episode without a montage. At least this one was short. I do like the Vince Staples song, though.
-I did like Homer's song, as unnecessary as it was. Normally I complain about every episode needing a song (and a second montage), but this was alright.
-Since when is Bart able to boss Nelson around?
-Well, we've reached the "marriage crisis" stage. Here we go.

-Wondering when the black and white stuff would start. I'm not sure why exactly this needs to be part of the episode. It really does feel random.
-So this is a reference to Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? -- pretty unsettling to see Marge and Homer acting like this.
-Nice reference to sex.
-The hashtag references were funny at first, but now there's just too many.
-Well I guess Homer just stated the reason for this whole marriage crisis--to give himself a chance to be the one pitied while Marge is the jerk.

This was okay. The best part for me were the Survivor references, though there were a lot of them and I'm never too keen on an episode that relies so much on referencing another show. Still, the first act was fun and the scenes of them at the hotel were fun. But an episode can't just be fun, so being that this episode consists primarily of Homer and Marge alone, of course they had to tack on a marriage crisis. And tack it on they did. The Virginia Woolf "parody" (it was really just a parallel, there wasn't much parody) presents a couple at their worst, and this reality show-based fight between Homer and Marge is what spawns it? It was simply over the top for the plot (especially given how quickly the crisis was averted) so I'm not sure why it was there. Every episode needs a conflict, but this one was phoned in. This episode was also fairly low on laughs, though there were some amusing moments, like Homer's song, the audition tapes, and the final challenge. And while I do value these single-plot Selmans (SPSs) more than most HD episodes, this one was not one of his better efforts.

2.5/5, rounded up to 3
 
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This one wasn't particularly interesting to me, nor was it terrible to watch - it was just okay. The premise of the episode was intriguing but it quickly went nowhere fast IMO. I liked Bart and Lisa bothering Marge about the game, and I also liked them getting their parents selected to compete. Homer not being a jerkass and not being completely responsible for him and Marge failing was refreshing, and the scene with the kids building the pool made me laugh. Other then that there really wasn't much that I overly enjoyed, and at the same time I really didn't hate anything either.

Just okay. 3/5
 
This started well, and I particularly enjoyed the idea of Bart and Lisa trying to something nice for their parents and genuinely pulling it off.

Going in, I doubted they could do another marriage crisis well, so I wasn't a hundred percent looking forward to this. But the situation Homer and Marge were in was very different to anything from before, which kept me interested. Plus, I could tell that they were going for Marge being the main wrongdoer this time round, - which again kept me interested.

Having Homer and Marge go straight out of the competition seemed quite jarring, because of how much this show and Marge's expertise in it had been built up in the previous couple of minutes. However, we get several enjoyable scenes at the hotel - one of the highlights being Homer barely containing his happiness to be away as Marge proceeds to describe their "nightmare" situation.

Homer's musical number was okay, it wasn't anything exceptional, but it felt fitting for his showcase of the hotel to help Marge relax. Another good couple of jokes came during the lawyer-monitored telephone home to Bart and Lisa.

Oddly enough, I get the sense that a lot of people lost interest whenever the marriage crisis started. It's definitely because of how often we've seen these over the years, but I still find this funny, as its the whole point of the episode.

I lost interest slightly too when the crisis came around, and I expected them to take a relatively predictable story from then on. Instead however, they threw in the black and white theatre parody. That got my attention again.

As a whole, I think the scene arrived in a little too sudden (then again, I don’t see other way of putting it in), and maybe went on for a tad too long.

From the point of view of the episode’s story, it was really interesting to see Marge act so differently, and for Homer to take the abuse so meekly. I guess he figures the whole thing was his fault, even if he wasn’t aware what he did at the time. But usually the two of them will have some kind of dumb argument, or Homer will try to back himself out of the disaster he’s created. SO to see Homer just accept his wrongdoings and carry on is definitely different.

Again, by the end of the episode, it’s interesting to see that Marge is the overall wrongdoer in this crisis. She overreacted completely to something that Homer wasn’t even totally aware he was doing wrong, and got fairly consumed by her ambition to win no matter what it did to her husband.

The characters were certainly self-aware of the role reversal by the end of the episode, as expressed by Homer when he says to Marge “this is how you feel all the time?” It was kinda funny to see this, but I mostly just feel sorry for Marge, who looks really miserable by the time its all over.

Looking at the episode as a whole, the funniest portion was the very start when Bart and Lisa worked as a team to cheer up their parents. Well when I say team...

There were a lot of good laughs from things like the producers mistaking Bart and Lisa for “married kids;” and Bart describing his overall role in the video editing process as “I gave notes which were ignored!”(what made this line especially funny to me, was because he says this so happily).

The kids were certainly underused this episode (especially when they were so involved at the start), and because a lot of the jokes dropped off after a while, I think they should have left time to cut back to Springfield more often for comic relief, just to see what Bart and Lisa were up to. Nothing amazing, just a random, unrelated joke similar to Bart getting the other kids to dig a pool.

I’m all for the jokes in an episode largely dropping off to make room for a story in The Simpsons; they’ve done it before and it can be really great. But the marriage crisis story wasn’t going to be able to cut it this time.

Considering how often a marriage crisis plot has been done, the only way they can really top themselves is to have Marge leave Homer, kick him out, or something similar. And they wouldn’t be able ot let Homer come back for any reason, he would have to genuinely change. This obviously would never happen, as it would change the current format, so really what they can only do is take it to a future-themed episode, and expand on something like Homer quitting drinking (which has been mentioned in other future-themed episodes).

So anyway, Heartbreak Hotel wasn’t as good as last weeks episode, but it still gets extra points for trying something different, and for having another go at a Marge-centred plot. Because I don’t watch any reality TV, I feel like other people might get a bit more enjoyment out of some scenes (I understand the jokes, It’s just I think another person might enjoy them more).

All things considered, I’ll give this episode a solid 6/10. There’s really nothing bad, about the episode, nor is it very bland. It just comes across as so-so, with a lack of jokes for a stretch of the episode.
 
I felt really stupid but I thought that my phone was glitching when it went to black and white and I restarted it.

I really like the idea of the kids getting them in using the clips from the other tapes that they had sent
 
I do not understand the disagreement or the contempt for this episode. Okay, it is true that it is far from the best offer of Matt Selman, either as a writer or as a showrunner, but the notes he receives from the general consensus, both in nohomers and in IMDb, are exaggeratedly negative.

The first thing to analyze, and also the most negative of all this, is that fateful black and white scene. Seriously, they did everything wrong at the beginning of the third act. To begin with, the duration is three minutes, which makes the surprising turn monotonous. Second, I do not understand why this style was implemented; if it is part of the arrangement that Selman tries to make, because this time it went wrong and, if it is a tribute, I do not see the reason for doing it. Third, in these three minutes most of the plot of marital problems is developed which, of course, was the weakest in history. Fourth, the characterizations in these minutes were terrible. Both Homer, who is a selfless submissive, and Marge who is aggressive and heartless with her husband and, to top it off, trying to make her jealous of a stupid reason. Fifth (and last, I think) Nick and his partner have absolutely nothing to offer. Especially the woman, who is there observing the situation without caring.

I agree that those three minutes are fateful. But what about the rest? The first act is agile. A good presentation of the conflict is made, we see Bart and Lisa working as a team for their mother, we see Marge with the possibility of fulfilling her dream, and we see the family enjoying in front of the television, as in the old days. I think the second act faced the wrong side. I would have liked to see Homer and Marge participating more in Amazing Place instead of their stay at the Hotel. However, I like how Homer lives a luxury stay while dealing with Marge's sadness, and I liked the song with which this is solved a bit. Then we have those three terrible minutes, to reach a final conflict and a final outcome and, although both were obvious to me, I think they had a nice execution.

What was done I liked, but I think this could have been much better. Not only would I have liked to see more of Amazing Place. I was also dissatisfied with what we see of what happens in the house of Los simpsons meanwhile. It is a single scene in which, for some unknown reason, Bart forces his friends (among them, Nelson) to build a pool, with the approval of his aunts. I did not understand why it was not deepened in it or, failing that, why it was included. In general, Heartbreak Hotel seemed like a good episode, but it is definitely disappointing when you think about who the showrunner is.

I voted for a 4/5 in the poll to balance, but my note is a solid 3/5.
 
Part of me kinda wanted to see Marge and Homer ace the challenges through the course of the Amazing Place show, but that definitely wouldn't have made for a very interesting story.
 
This episode is OK and an improvement over Bart's Not Dead, even though it's hardly one of the standout Selman episodes. For a marriage crisis episode, there were some interesting elements to the plot involving the game show and the hotel. I agree with the reviews that stated the black-and-white parody lasted too long, although, apparently an actor from the original movie it was parodying reprises his role, which is neat since it was so long ago. The ending wasn't really satisfying, but the episode's plot was pretty thin, so it's not a huge flaw. Overall, nothing that great, but there was nothing awful about it, either.

3/5
 
A stray and trivial observation, but the thought occurred to me that it's funny that it took 30 seasons for the show to have an episode called "Heartbreak Hotel". It seems like such a stock title for a television series to parody or reference. Granted, it doesn't seem to have been used all that often, but it still feels like a title The Simpsons would've co-opted or parodied long before now. Anyway, as I said, just a random thought.
 
Max Power's review


Some quotes:
• "It's not terrible. It's disappointing. It's disappointing that writers have to resort to the same plot for the umpteenth time".
• "It would have been fun to see what the Simpsons had to say about the reality shows that take place on an island, and not just mock reality shows in general".
• "The first half of the story kept me optimistic. (...) The second half made everything to lose".
• "Homer's reaction to knowing that he will have time to rest from everything that ails him is pretty funny".
• "The parody of Who is Afraid of Virginia Woolf? It does not add anything to the episode".
• "The plot is presented in an unbalanced way".
• "There is not much of the subplot; It's not original".
• "The intent of the episode was good, but the way they executed it leaves a lot to be desired".
• "It usually happens that when I watch an episode for the second time I find things that make it more acceptable. But, this time, it was the opposite".
• "I do not want to see this Marge again".

Note: 4/10
 
Um... I thought the joke about the car they couldn't figure out how to fit into the challenge was quite funny?

​D
 
S30E02: "HEARTBREAK HOTEL"
Written by: Renee Ridgeley & Matt Selman
Directed by: Steven Dean Moore

Thoughts:
- woo not even two pages in this R&R. i knew i was needed.

- ok so first off i want 2 call out the title. HEARTBREAK HOTEL the fuck is this. no pun for me? heartbreak d'ohtel too forced? heartbreak in the N2-O2-Ar-CO2-Ne-He-CH4? altho i suppose my energy would be better saved for the episode literally just called krusty the clown thats coming up.

- so we immediately jump right into (it is a selman after all) the simps on the couch watchin THE AMAZING PLACE, a parody of reality competition shows. this parody is so timely that theres an epic recreation of that one viral clip from a decade ago where someone tried slingin a watermelon and it ended up smackin her in the face. marge is shown to be an expert on the show and is able to accurately guess whoever will win. lisa and bart urge marge to try out to be on the show but she sheepishly declines. as evidence of her fandom we see marge owns the "terrible home game", which is sittin on a Shelf next to epic parodies like BATTLEBOAT and MOUSE CATCH. also the shot of the game is overlayed with a marge mutter because this show is obsessed with sound.

- bart and lisa do the mt splashmore thing where they bug marge to go on the show, first at church (fair enough), and then at a... FASCAR race. ok first of all thats a bit of a random progression, and second of all the way they set this shot with the FASCAR logo bein very prominent at the bottom means they absolutely Needed u to know this was not just any Generic car race, but a FASCAR race! so gutbusting! also they've mentioned NASCAR on the show numerous times right? wiki simpsons seems to agree with their absolutely hilarious FASCAR page. that means someone on the staff thought FASCAR was actually a funny parody. i'm thinkin way too much about this 2 second shot, but like, goddam folks, FASCAR!!!

- at the dinner table bart and lisa continue their pestering until marge tells them to stfu. homer says she needs to tell them the secret to which bart says they know all the family secrets, lisa adding that "dad lost our college funds investing in a chain of chewing tobacco cafes". homer rebuffs them by saying Dippin Dens was a great idea, and i guess he was just holding a Dippin Dens prospectus because he lifts it up to drive his point home. man this show sure plays Fast & Lose with the rules of reality now doesnt it, and for jokes that are not even good. guhhh

- marge takes bart and lisa to the attic where she shows them countless audition tapes she's made over the years. in one of them homer asks "why are you still doing this we were already on that show where we had to crawl into a drainage ditch" to which marge replies "that was just you and it wasn't a show it was a Police Bodycam". first of all what, second of all does no one tell you to trim your jokes. homers response that "that was a good show" also makes him a bit too stupid for my liking, plus thats 3 uses of the word "show" in the span of like 10 seconds, sounds awkward. feel like no one rewrites these episodes anymore.

- marge exits sadly saying she will never be on the show. lisa says "reality shows love a sob story and we've got a storage bin full of tears" and bart says "and i've got a sister who will edit them together while I feed the dog marshmallows and see what happens". the joke on its own is pretty shrug, but whats bizarre is that its followed by a 15 second montage set to elevator music where we alternate between jokeless shots of lisa editing the tapes and then shots of bart feeding SLH marshmallows. ok what? this wasnt necessary at all, like maybe if they did something humorous with SLH and the marshmallows but its literally just bart feeds SLH marshmallows, he gets fatter, and then he eventually bites bart to stop him from feeding them to him. yeah that definitely wasnt the bare minimum of what i pictured when bart made that above joke. couldve been a cute deleted scene maybe, but its just clock eating. (in an episode that isnt exactly full to the brim with content but we will get that later)

- cut to THE AMAZING PLACE tryouts in springfield, where the line is populated entirely with recurring characters because theyre the only ones that exist anymore. also whats weird is that this is presumably for couples but moe is just standin there by himself. what does he think is gonna happen.

- when its bart and lisas turn to audition a tress macneille producer stands up and goes "oh my god married kids! you're in the show!" err since there were more than a handful of Platonic duos in the line to audition i am skeptical as to why the producer assumed this!! fight back against hollywood pedophilia!

- lisa says they're here on behalf of their parents and bart takes a producer's laptop and plugs a usb stick into it and begins Playing video simply by pressing one button. not even taking into account the fact that i bet the dinosaurs on the staff have no idea have a usb works its weird they just Let him do this. but in any case bart and lisa's random audition works, so i guess you can put people on the show without their consent. thats a bit icky. also theres a joke where wiggum charges in wearing only a grass skirt which breaks and his junk is covered up by a Huge pixelated bar. guess he is packing heat in more ways than one.

- marge is opening the mail (theres another hysterical dippin dens joke here) and she reads the amazing place acceptance letter and suddenly the host of the show and a fullblown camera crew is surrounding her. bit hard for this to be a surprise in that case.

- so homer and marge are whisked away to the island where THE AMAZING PLACE takes place and the funny airplane parody name is AIR AIR. i can literally feel the writers not even trying as i read these jokes. you do not need to make such bad parodies its distracting. just leave the airplane fucking blank and i wouldve questioned it less than AIR AIR.

- so the first challenge is "we took one item from every person's bag and hid it in another contestant's luggage". homer finds the item in his but marge takes too long and they get Eliminated. marge begins crying and we have to hear kavner try and act hoarse. jesus eugh, i hate to bag on kavner's voice since she is a Staple of the show and i dont think she isnt trying, but this is just hard to hear, she sounds straightup 100 years old these days. its not your fault julie, the show has just lasted too freaking long.

- so alright act 2 begins and i admit its interesting the script doesnt have homer and marge stick around on the show for hijinks, maybe this could be refreshing keeping selman in mind. homer and marge are sent to a hotel because going home would reveal theyve been kicked off which the staff cant have, so they have to stick around for 6 weeks. homer and marge want to call the kids but fear getting in trouble so blue haired lawyer is in the room suddenly, and he says that if u live in georgia revealing uve been kicked off gets you the death penalty. hey the last episode had a georgia joke too, guess its on someones mind.

- homer puts on Glasses to read a script to the kids during his phone call, but then they vanish from his hands in the next shot. epic freaking fail & this show cannot get anything right.

- homer Consoles marge by rubbing her shoulders, as she lists off all the reasons the 6 weeks will be bad, but he finds them good! (no work, no kids, no grampa, etc.) its a bit of a hacky joke, but i like how they at least keep it subtle by having his face get increasingly happier with everything marge lists off, before he rapidly puts on a droppy sad face for marge when she looks at him. its hard to trust simpsons writers to have faith in their visuals without homer explicitly spouting THESE REASONS ARE GOOD AND PLEASE ME, so although this is the bare minimum i'll give them a point.

- homer fantasizes about his upcoming vacation to a montage set to vince staples' "big fish". hearing vince staples in the simpsons is welcome, but startling. really is a jarring in your face reminder that this show is ACTIVELY BEING MADE. also in one of the shots he appears to be on the toilet taking a shit but his pants are on. oops

- after the montage we see homer at a hotel bar talking to the Tender named curtis, who sounded unfamiliar so i headed to imdb who told me he is voiced by al jean's longtime personal assistant joe clabby! just a reminder he's the guy who tried twittering at sports illustrated swimsuit models to get them to come to zombie simpsons table reads. ah what a career he has had indeed.

- homer returns to the hotel room where marge is moping about being the reason they're stuck there. theres a Really odd bit where homer is sitting next to her on the bed and then theres a shot of marge where homer definitely wouldve been in the shot but instead hes invisible? then they cut again and hes back? like this isnt something i had to watch 100 times to notice it stuck out as jarring pretty immediately. the lack of things that get caught sometimes amuses me.

- ok to convince marge the hotel is great homer starts singing a mediocre parody of "heartbreak hotel", you know, the elvis song. dan isnt a bad singer but his homer-as-elvis impression kinda falls a little flat. plus it has typical modern simpsons jokes in it, like homer randomly declares he will "eat Toblerone-y" because they needed something to rhyme with "phone-y" and theres just a toblerone lying there that he holds up to the camera.

- the next day we see marge is convinced the hotel is not so bad and that she isn't even worried what the kids are up to. cut to bart making nelson/ralph/milhouse dig a hole in the simpson house backyard in order to have a pool. lisa cries foul before famed babysitters patty and selma appear and say they want a pool, with selma commenting she just got her first wax in years and that it hurt so bad she needed an epidural. then theres like a few weird seconds of silence before nelson throws out a confused "ha ha??". well that was pointless and gross. ahem moving on!

- homer and marge are walking down the hall where they come across a slightly ajar door that says THE AMAZING PLACE POST PRODUCTION. ok marge said this was a chain hotel earlier and yet apparently the editing room of a tv show is located in it? and just accessible to everyone? nonsensical. also the guy happens to be editing the Exact scene homer and marge were in when they walk in. fuck this god dam show.

- homer and marge watch the footage which somehow has audio even though the editor is wearing headphones. the footage reveals marge didnt screw up at all because her hidden item was a chocolate bar that homer ate!! even though he doesnt discard the wrapper and the time he takes to eat it is way longer than the time it took in the original scene... but ok cool. anything for your marriage crisis.

- ok the joke where homer says "i'll sleep on the couch" and we smash cut to him sitting on the hotel couch which is right next to marge in the bed is pretty good, even if it is punctuated unnecessarily by marge Grunting and homer Moaning.

- alright so after the ad break we get the Main Event of the episode which is an elongated black and white parody of virginia woolf. and yeah, not gonna mince words, it's freaking real dumb crap! not only does it last for a torturously indulgent 3 minutes, it's incredibly dry and not clever at all. so basically what happens is marge and homer meet a couple who were eliminated from the show and marge bonds with the Male of the relationship. btw the couple are characters are from virginia woolf, with george segal reprising his role as nick. i guess that's kind of neat trivia since the movie is pretty old at this point. but basically all that happens in this scene is homer and marge squabble in old-timey film fashion and marge gets horny for nick. i guess maybe if you're a huge fan of the movie you might find it funny, but this is truly pointless shit. selman cramming his nerd fantasies into episodes is occasionally cute but this comes out of left field and eats the clock to an absurd degree.

- so when that's over with we cut to homer and marge in the lobby still bickering. the host from amazing place enters and announces "deadweight drop", where you can get back on the show if you pick a new partner. marge says she will pick NICK which somehow elicits a gasp from everyone surrounding them, although i'm not quite sure how they're familiar with the marge/nick dynamic or why this is gaspworthy after the host literally explained the premise.

- homer says "at least my friends and family wont see me get humiliated" only for the camera to pull out to show a cameraman in his face!! stupid joke but whats weirder is that the cameraman tries to get a closeup of like, his eyeball. and then another cameraman appears to film his chin. we couldve got the joke without homer being inspected like an animal!

- so the final challenge is Mango Tango where you have to make 6 mangoritas then carry them across a log bridge where UNDER the bridge theres a pack of monkeys going crazy and you have to soothe them with music. well marge and nick complete the task, but end up failing because marge forgot to put salt around the rims of the drinks. marge watches the winners celebrate calls herself a NOOB and we pan out to reveal the simpson family watching the episode as its airing as homer gleefully rewinds the noob comment. homer makes fun of marge for failing and i guess now theyre on equal ground. the end!

- well nope because theres a brief scene during the credits where the simpsons watch ANGER VS ANGRY. its a pretty bad parody of skip bayless shows where they just yell about sports. yep that was very necessary. good thing its one of those weird bits that only runs over Some Of the credits.

The TL;DR
i never really held selman in high regard, but even then its hard not to see this as underwhelming. theres a bit of a unique aspect to the marriage crisis this time, and the plot isnt very stupid and moves along ok, but most of the Jokes are just totally dead on arrival and the setpiece isnt interesting enough to carry it since despite the reality show backdrop being relatively fresh it still isnt gonna spice up a conflict where the ending is this predetermined. and the virginia woolf garbage was a travesty. outside of that this is very standard Modern Simpsons which feels weird for selman, hes made his imperfect episodes but they usually have some special interest elements that at least makes discussing them easy. this tho i got nothing, and even if i did i know theres more marriage crises in this seasons future so i better save my words. this episode gets the coveted rate of 2/5. see u soon on the classic MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY TO HEAVEN!
 
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