Rate/Review "Marge and Homer Turn a Couple Play" (HABF16)

How would you rate tonight's episode?


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Wow, this episode doesn't deserve the hate it's getting, at all.

It started off on a good note with the couch gag being excellent, even if it was from a previous episode. Other good things include: The credits of the Hunch Show which were pretty funny, The ball hitting the Man instead of the target next to him, Abe and Jasper's Past, Homer and Bart's reaction to the first Tabitha song, The commentator at the game was cool, The design of Moleman's Girlfriend was hilarious, The ice tea gag was enjoyable, Homer's certificate, Homer's ten O'clock appointment, Homer's notepad, The argument Bart and Lisa can hear from the school yard, Bart at the second tabitha song, Marge's reaction to Buck and Tabitha breaking up was pretty funny even if it was a little drawn out, Bart seeing tabitha on the lamp was funny, Duffman in the blimp and the screen next to Marge.

But with the good things comes a few bad things, Homer's plan to sell his tickets was boring, the baseball signing gag was drawn out and wasn't very funny and Homer trying to uncross Marge's arms was just plain crap.

But the episode featured some great Homer lines including "Marge, Can we get a troff?" "No-one's right and no-one's wrong...till i say so" "Even while making love to his own marge" "Why 'cause i'm fat!?" and "Don't tell the Hamburger in my car!"

So this episode was a great end to a (IMO) fairly solid season, even if other people don't like the season that much. i take back my 4/5 rating and give it a solid 5!
 
I really dislike this one. It felt incredibly lame and I didn't really laugh once. I hate to be so hard on an episode, but I really don't see the love for this one. 1/5
 
Season finales are usually the highlights of the recent seasons, but not this time. This episode is probably the worst of the season 17. Another dull marriage crisis plot, some less memorable one time characters, dragged jokes and jerkass Homer are just a couple of things that made this episode so disjointed.

The first act was bland and rather unvaried. Homer telling Marge to act like they’re in love was terrible, as well as him not recognizing himself on a Kiss Screen. The only part I liked was another one of grampa’s neverending stories, which are pretty much always funny.

I dislike Homer’s recklessness about helping the couple to fall in love again, and his relationship with Marge during this part of the episode wasn’t to great. The neckrub scene was disturbing, but the joke with Homer’s bib cracked me up.

The last act was filled with failed jokes, such as Moe’s appearance, Marge being surprised at the door and Homer trying to separate Marge’s arms. I liked the gag with three Duffmen, but that’s pretty much it...

D-
 
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.
 
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God, this was a shitty episode. I didn't laugh at all, and when I don't laugh, usually the plot keeps me somewhat focused and entertained. Not the case with this episode, as the entire episode was complete horseshit and didn't keep me entranced in the plot whatsoever. It MIGHT have been good, but wasn't. Just boring, lame, lacking any sort of comedic value whatsoever. Whenever it airs as a rerun, I delete it right off my DVR because I can't stand to watch it. 1/5
 
So we end Season 17 with another marriage crisis episode....but not Homer and Marge this time! In fact, they are the counselors! And yeah...that's the plot.

I didn't hate this episode...but it wasn't really good either. It's the kind of episode that's really only good if you just need to kill time or have it on while doing something else. Even then you'd still be kinda....well strange to pick this over most other episodes. I didn't remember this one much at all going in to this re-watch...and I'm afraid having literally just watched it that I'm already starting to forget. I have already said this in previous episodes from this season but I gotta say Zombies post above really does sum up most of my feelings. I did notice several repeated jokes here. Sideshow Mel and his girlfriend, Moe....just being creepy, the overly extended gags like Homer with the balls or trying to pry Marge's arms loose(I actually like this second one), and of course Bart being turned on by the singer. Again I didn't hate this episode so I'm not gonna give it a bottom tier score, but it isn't good. A kind 2.5 rounded down to a 2 on the poll I'd say.

And that's Season 17....finally. How long ago did I start my re-watch for this again? 3 months? More? It was at times a chore to get through but I'll leave my lingering feelings for my blog posts. Expect them to at least start sometime within the next several days.
 
Terribly boring Homer&Marge marriage crisis story nearly completely laughless with a weak plot and several cringeworthy jokes. Grade: F
 
Just watching this on Channel 4 and eh, it's OK.

Not great, not abysmal, just a smooth entertaining ride with fun gags.
 
Just watched it too. The jokes are mostly good, but the plot needed a little more time to develop I think.
 
ugh why ask Homer and Marge for Marriage counseling when they had at least 3 MARRIAGE CRISIS EPISODES THIS SEASON seriously though. Because they wanted to make fun of Britney and K-fed's marriage so much

thank god today Much is going to start airing season 18
 
Not bad, but nothing memorable. Marge and Homer counselling another troubled marriage is actually a pretty good idea, but the episode never does anything interesting with it. The chosen couple – Buck and Tabitha – are bland and forgettable. The voice acting is decent enough – Mandy Moore is surprisingly good actually – but they never develop beyond very basic archetypal/stereotypical characteristics.

The episode also avoids exploring what makes Homer and Marge’s marriage work despite the difficulties and hardships they are routinely confronted with. There are one or two cursory nods, but they don’t offer any fresh insight and serve only as the punch line for a couple of average jokes (including Bart and Lisa overhearing an argument from miles away).

Once again, I reiterate that the show still has decent ideas but a combination of laziness and/or complacency prevent them from coming to fruition. On the plus side, the episode is functional and it doesn’t fall back on yet another marriage crisis. There are also some decent gags that generate some laughs. I’ll list the ones I liked:

  • The Hunch TV show spoofing detecting shows
  • “The isotopes are winning? To the bandwagon!”
  • Grampa’s story about pretending to be a woman to avoid World War II
  • The first counselling session – “no one’s right and no one’s wrong…until I say so”, Homer writing about lady parts on his notepad, ”…even while making love to his own Marge”
  • ”Let’s compromise and say nobody said it”
  • “Like America’s credibility on the world stage, that ball is gone”
  • The Marge and drunken Homer file photo Brockman broadcasts
  • The word on the back of Homer’s head – good decision not to show the audience
  • The multiple Duffmen gag
Some additional things I disliked:

  • Throwing the batteries is a bit random
  • Homer not recognizing himself on the kiss cam is a bit silly – he's not that stupid
  • Why does Buck choose Homer and Marge over anyone else shown on the kiss cam? How does he find out where they live? Also, following Homer and Marge into the kitchen uninvited while they're having a private conversation is a bit creepy.
  • Homer giving Tabitha a neck rub while eating chicken
3/5
 
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Act 1 - Nothing interesting
Act 2 - Nothing interesting
Act 3 - The best:oops:

So lame, boring episode, full of useless cliché and (how I dare to forget) ANOTHER MARRIAGE CRISIS STORY. Not surprising, even after decade the writer and director (Cohen and Anderson) are still considered as bad

There were a few of good moments (for some reason I remembered several Duffmen joke😁). Either "The Monkey Suit" or "the Mock and her Homer" would be better season finale

plot 14/25
absurdity level (the possibility of what is happening) 19/25
comedy 6/25
originality (level of references and of unoriginality) 20/25

TOTAL 61/100 (2/5, down from 2.5, with rounding or C). MEDIOCRE!
IMHO, the worst season 17 episode and the 2nd worst season finale overall
 
Too stereotyped story. If Buck also was voiced by guest star I'd surely say the episode is "just to put guest star" typed.

Luckily, there were some really funny gags/jokes. Sorta… cartoonish.:P
Tabitha was meh character (b*tch only in the "dancing with the lamp" scene). But the songs were funny.

plot 11/25
absurdity level (the possibility of what is happening and whether I liked it) 22/25
comedy 10/25
originality (level of references and whether I liked them) 23/25

TOTAL 66/100 (3/5, rounded up from 2.5, or C). MEDIOCRE!
 
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