Rate & Review: "Pretty Whittle Liar" (UABF09)

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Brad Lascelle

Brad Lascelle

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Season 33, Episode 16
Original Airdate: March 27, 2022

Writer: Joel H. Cohen
Director: Mike Polcino
Showrunner: Al Jean

Synopsis: Cletus discovers that his wife Brandine has been hiding a secret love... of learning.

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R&R Poll Average Score: 2.77 / 5 (as of September 23, 2022 / 30 votes)
IMDb User Rating: 6.2 / 10
 
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One thing I strongly believe is that a good episode of the Simpsons should not have it's quality determined solely by how funny it is. I still really like the Saga of Carl and The Color Yellow.

This episode is another reason why. It wasn't bad per se, however it was chalk full of funny jokes, one of the few recent times I've audibly laughed multiple times in an episode (I don't audibly laugh very easily)

However the plot was just meh. Nothing really of note happened in the episode.

Tldr, had lots of funny jokes and a just okay plot.

3.5/5 rounded to a 3
 
This wasn’t great, but it could’ve been worse. They really like using Cletus lately, and I get the feeling it’s because hillbillies are still acceptable to ridicule. While they tried to give Brandine some background and show that she was smart, I think it could’ve been fleshed out more if her story were given more time. I was glad the speculated marriage crisis between Homer and Marge never really materialized, but I question Marge’s ignorance. She knew in the past that she could’ve done better, and while I’m not trying to be a stickler for continuity, it‘s a little hard to believe that she really didn’t know this.

The Lisa plot was fine too, although I really wished Allison Taylor had been in that group, because my theory for a long time has been that she has pretended to be just another normal kid since the events of ”Lisa’s Rival” so she doesn’t get harassed anymore. It would’ve been perfect to see her in there. Brandine’s urge to Lisa not to hide her smarts was sweet, but it did make it kind of sad to think that Brandine considered herself too old and stuck in her role to let her intelligence flourish.

It’s still hard to get invested in a story with such flat characters, and I do appreciate the attempt to give Brandine some time. And while I said I would’ve liked it to be fleshed out more, it might have ended up being too much time dedicated to a character who is still ultimately quite one-note.

Still, nothing really struck me as truly bad in this episode; just a lot of “meh” throughout. I’ll give it a 3/5. Given the plot, this was about as good as I think it could’ve turned out.
 
I'll have to re-watch it to get a better idea of the overall episode. I enjoyed the A story but the B story reminded me of Bart's Comet too much. My opinion at the moment is teetering between "Eh" and "Meh"
 
A pretty meh episode. The Brandine main plot just rehashed the old "blank lives with the Simpsons" and we all know Brandine's newfound intelligence is not gonna be a remembered thing by the writers (I'm sure she'll go back to her original character, if there was any, in her next appearance) so it's hard to get invested in the plot. Plus we got Cletus leaving her, and then after one sit down with Homer he gets a library card and by that time it's the end of the episode. The B and C plot just felt so jammed in. First another mini Homer and Marge crisis. Is Homer really too good for Marge?? Jean really loves tossing those jokes in every time he runs an episode, there so lackluster at this point. Finally, our C-plot is another rehashed plot of Lisa finally making a friend, this time with a club of kids who are really smart but pretend to be dumb. After joining their club off-screen, Lisa then confesses she's smart to everyone after a talk with Brandine, so what was the point of that plot? Lisa gained nothing out of it and came out the way she came in. I guess we did get her to talk about female heroes again because to the writers she's their feminist playtoy. Also, I feel so bad for Miss Hoover, she's been flandarized so bad by the writers as some discount Krabappel who much like the other underwritten female characters in the show is a b*tch to every other character she interacts with. 2.5/5 rounded to a 3.
 
Wow, ok, ‪atleast it wasn’t an entire character overhaul in order to do a centered episode on a character.‬ So I guess I was wrong and they were being careful with this one in regards to not doing anything fucked up or potentially offensive. Good for them. But it was still meh.
 
Huh, maybe it's because I had gutter level expectations, but I have very few issues with this episode given what it set out to do. The Lisa subplot was razor thin, but at least it had thematic relevance to the main plot which I thought was, well, unexpectedly pleasant! Even the Homer and Marge stuff elicited some smiles with a great ending to boot. This all just came together well in a lightweight sort of way and, for a story about the Spucklers, I'll take that. To hell with it, 4/5. This was Jean's best effort as showrunner in quite some time.
 
Lisa's subplot woulda been a good chance to use not just Allison but the other kids that got dumbed down like Wendell and the twins, instead the only existing character there is Database who doesn't remotely hide his nerdiness? Instead I guess they just made Skinner dumb instead. TBF Selman wouldn't have taken that apportunity either.

Also this is really driving me nuts but I hated how much they go on about Brandine having layers and stuff... I think we can infer that you don't need to have characters say it outright several times. And well, it's hurt by virtue of being yet another Spuckler episode. I'd say I'd hope the next character-focus episode could pick someone better but then iirc the next one's a Shauna ep so the answer is a "fuck no" there. Speaking of, she tries to attack Lisa and gets no comeuppance because both Jean and Selman are under the delusion that she's not terrible.

There were a couple decent gags though, Disco Stu's rhymes and Milhouse not wanting his lunch money back. They weren't hilarious per se but got a smile.

Not sure I can entirely put my finger on it also but Jean's episodes really feel... threadbare. Hardly anyone has any relevence and a lot of the characters don't talk like people or are just... well, like Skinner in this one. It's not got anything bad enough to really makea 1/5 but there's something about the way this was written that pisses me off in some way. I think it's that everything is either hammered in or so obvious that it feels patronizing. This isn't a show for infants, most of us can INFER things.

Also why was it Skinner at the end of that who gets stood up? Ms Hoover was a bully and the non-teaching bullies tried to beat her up so why not have her stand up to one of them? It would've been really satisfying to see her stick it to either Ms Hoover or Shauna. Not just for this ep but also in general (see: "Sorry, Not Sorry")
 
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This episode was alright. I groaned at the thought of another marriage crisis episode but I think they focused enough on the other plotlines to keep it from bothering me. The Lisa plot wasn't really well thought out imo but the whole deal with Brandine and Cletus was very sweet. So, 3/5
 
So, I've just watched the episode, and personally, I feel like this episode was completely pointless. Like, they set Brandine up to get smart, but then they do nothing with that, not to mention her & Cletus's marriage crisis made zero sense. Its just as bad as Yokel Hero for me, which I also found boring and forgettable. Part of it could be due to my low opinion on the Spuckler clan as a whole. Honestly, this could easily be worse than Yokel Hero.

Also, the more I think about it, I feel like Brandine being at the Simpsons house was kind of random, they don't seem to build that up, as I don't really remember Marge interacting with Brandine as much as Luann, Bernice, Manjula, Helen, Maude or even Sarah.

When it comes to the Lisa B Plot, I feel the same way, Toby & Myles were okay, although I'm pretty sure Myles is a reused character design from Kyle, who appeared in "Father Knows Worst". Also, the whole secret smart kids thing made zero sense to me, as you have Martin and Database as the two most well known intelligent kids in the 4th grade, Database is even amongst them, although I am surprised Martin isn't. I do like the idea of the B plot thou. Also, how is Shauna at the Elementary School, isn't she like 15/16 years old? Although, the same could be said for the 3 bullies who often appear in school. They could use Sara & her friends, or Donna and her friend from the classic Seasons as bullies, or even some 5th Graders or Bossy Riot. Hell, use Francine. I could go further, but it would go more into my personal complaints regarding The Simpsons.

Another thing I have read so far regarding the episode is that Allison doesn't appear in the club, and it is noticeable. She does appear briefly in the 2nd grade classroom rubbing one of Nelson's former lackies heads for some reason. Although part of me does wander if the showrunners even care for Lisa's classmates, as when it shows Ralph for the first time, there is no one behind him, but the next time they show him, Janey is seen behind him looking at him perplexed due to Ralph being Ralph. Anyway, back to the episode, I don't know if Allison would of made any difference in this episode or not, given how little is really in the B plot. Same goes for other smart characters like Martin, Isabel and the other Superfriends. Also, where was the overachiever girl from "Stealing First Base", as she could of very easily being in the background with the other secret smart kids.

I think what they should of done, was ditched the Brandine story, and replaced the B plot with the A plot, and maybe give the B plot to Homer or to Bart, who barely even appeared in this episode. Pretty sure Bart only had like, 1-2 lines and only appeared during the dinner scene. Also, I have read people talking about a C Plot, but I can't really see any.

If there is one positive I do have, is that they don't do any marriage crisis plots with Marge & Homer. Ralph and Milhouse were also funny in this episode, although most things Ralph does makes me chuckle regardless.

Also, while I'm thinking about it, the fact that Database is a secret smart kid is confusing, as his whole character gimmick is that he's the most nerdiest kid of them all, and even has the stereotypical nerd voice. The only reason I could see Database being there is that Matt Groening apparently considers Database to be one of the most worst/annoying characters.
 
Feel the a plot maybe coulda worked if maybe instead Brandine did flop at the book club meeting and instead of a marriage crisis she instead decides to hang around with Marge because the Simpsons obviously lead interesting lives, make it like some self-discovery thing.

For the B plot I guess it did more its own space but at the same time, doesn't really need to exist in its current form. I guess it established Lisa having some antagonists that have something over her. But again neither of them have any payoff at all. Again it might've been better if it was Ms Hoover and maybe not just the smart-kids +Milhouse standing up for her... could even have a funny bit where Janey and the others admit they don't care about whatever it was Lisa was going on about they just wanted an excuse to run a teacher out of the room.

But I guess this is kind of a problem with most of Lisa's plots like this but there's this serious feeling of elitism. Doubly so knowing most of the writers see themselves as Lisas. They use her as a mouthpiece or self insert a lot, and what does it say about them when every story amounts to "everyone but me and maybe one or two guest stars are subhuman dreck unlike us *smart people*" which was kind of a thing with the A plot too. And given how patronizing the writing was then yeah, seems like that's how they see people.
 
So after watching this I rewatched Yokel Hero and realise I dont like it as much as I thought. While I was kind on the extended amount of time given to the hollywood executive at the time, and still do think he's mostly funny, it does make me realise the main plot was extremely thin compared to this one. This one also got side tracked to save time, but at least did so with something more relevant via the flashback to show how they met. Lisa's subplot about not hiding your intelligence was also thematically relevant so that's good. This was kind of marriage crisis based, but it didnt really go that far and was more about other people's perception of their relationship. Plus the ending was sweet. I dont know how to feel because despite being a better executed Yokel Hero, its also kind of just a really similar plot only a season later, so Im not sure if I should be praising it or not.

The big problem for me is that every plot line feels forced into place in the first place, so the solutions feel a little hollow. Lisa was never one to hide who she was so learning to not do that feels like a pointless lesson. Homer and Marge, while overall everything in the plot makes sense, almost feels out of place this season (though Ironically fits a lot better when paired with Yokel Hero where Homer spends a night in jail for being drunk). The Cletus/Brandine crisis about him not knowing this side of her kind of clashes with the fact that in their last episode a season ago they both learned a lot about film from squatting in an abandoned Blockbuster, and just in general I found the idea that it would cause a rift in their marriage a little thin. I get Simpsons has floating canon but it feels a little egregious here. It made more sense when later on its more implied that he didnt know her and that smarter people look down on his lifestyle so that worked better, but it should have started with that. At least they didnt end the episode with Brandine deciding to be "dumb" again for her partner and instead ended with him making the effort to try and meet her at her level. In comparison Yokel Hero pretty much ended where it started.

Also while I got the Lisa subplot I didnt really like much of it, but mainly because I just didnt find the classroom scene or the cafeteria scene very funny. Audibly cringed at the "I am smarticus" thing. Anyways, Im writing far too long for an episode Im gonna give a 3/5.
 
It was a genuine pleasure to hear the familiar hum of Al Jean's corny joke machine. Dare I say best episode of the season?

5/5
 
Adding new kids when there's suitable Simpsons characters already established in the lore is a pet peeve of mine, even worse is using the wrong kid. Others have pointed out that the inclusion of Database makes absolutely no sense. I question the whole premise as well. I like a little continuity in the simpsons and the fact that they are just now discovering that Lisa is one of them bothers me.

I don't have the same hatred for Shauna as some of the others have on this board but I didn't like seeing her in the school.. It's a bit of a nitpick since Kearny has a son which makes no sense.. I think they tried to replace Laura Powers with Shauna since the whole kid crushing on his older babysitter is a common trope. It seems they pushed it a little too far for some people.
 
Frankbags said:
I think they tried to replace Laura Powers with Shauna since the whole kid crushing on his older babysitter is a common trope. It seems they pushed it a little too far for some people.
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I know its the whole "Precocious Crush" trope, which is a trope I'm not a fan of unless its done right, the only two I can think of is Bart & Laura, and Dipper & Wendy in Gravity Falls, although I think its downplayed in both cases. In Darcy & Shauna's case however, it was WAY too far.
 
Yeah prococious crushes are fine and all... unless it's reciprocated at all. But if we're talking about *that* episode, that's not even what it was. It was an older girl dragging a ten year old in a relationship, a borderline sexual one, that was endangering him. Then later she forcibly makes out with him just to make Chalmers think he's her boyfriend (and... also isn't alarmed that his daughter apparently is dating a ten year old).

Actually the "only just discovering Lisa was smart" thing could have lead to a funny twist. Like maybe the kids are actually dumb but think they're smart pretending to be dumb?
 
3 stories, er? In order

Act 1 with nice start of Brandine backstory only was amusing. That was the development I had I imagined for the most part - not too brutal nor too "yokel-ish". Good.

Then, when the story affect on *sigh* H&M crisis I was going to yawn:boring:… what I actually did. However, there are some really funny moments. I just lauded of laugg from Homer's fantasy about "why does she stay with him?"😂. The ending was predictable: Homer tried to prove the answer doing something, and that's all ended with lovely speech. Cliché, but that speech was really lovely.

So, one of the most unfinished scenes was Brandine and Lisa's final talk about "refusing/staying being smart". No doubt, you thought about pointing on similarity, like Brandine will does the same, she had said to Lisa. But not vice versa. Despite the final part of this story was done well, but because of ONE scene had left an unpleasant residue on my soul.

The most memorable joke: reference to vaccines name as Spucklers kids:D

And, of course the negatives:
flashback about yokel love was understood, but in the same time, just uninteresting;
Cletus - as usual this character wasn't SO good, but as someone already said, there could be much worse (in fact, IMHO, this was one of the best his appearance in years)
and final I didn't like - Lisa's plot. It was so outdated and really could be done many years earlier. Bad-to-meh

In summary, seeing on all stories, I gave to episode 3/5, down from strong 3.5. Comparing to what I really had expected, it surprised me in a good way

P.S. this was the first time I personally heard Brandine's character in original sounding and must praise TressMacNeil for voice overing it.
 
Might as well do a review.

This was a Jean episode? Honestly, this really felt more like a Selman episode to me rather than a Jean episode. The emotions from the characters felt real and had no pretense behind either Brandine or Cletus. I liked the idea of giving her a new hairdo and Lisa & Marge trying to console her as much as they could. The Lisa subplot was interesting as it kinda shows how smart people get teased by bullies in today's day & age, so I'm glad everything worked out in the end. Nice to see an episode once shift to characters not really being the Simpson family. Basically a better "The Wayz We Were" with more grounded storytelling. I was afraid of this being a 2nd Yokel Hero, but thankfully I was proven wrong.

A generous 7/10.
 
BlitzPhoenix98 said:
This was a Jean episode? Honestly, this really felt more like a Selman episode to me rather than a Jean episode.
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And it's ironic how a faux Selman episode run by Jean ends up being better than the last four legit Selman episodes.*

*If it weren't for the subplot, I would've considered Boyz n the Highlands to be the better episode.

Last week I said that even if this wasn't very good it was still gonna be better than the previous episode simply for not being it, and I still stand by that. In terms of the three episodes we've gotten within the last few years to be Spunkler centric, this was OK but I think that might have to do with how unlike The Incredible Lightness of Being a Baby and Yokel Hero, more time is put on Brandine rather than Cletus who they attempt to characterize in more ways besides hillbilly stereotypes. Though the plot as well as how it ends does leave a bit to be desired.

I didn't really see the point of the subplot and it came off as slightly unfinished. And yeah, why create some random nameless characters to make up the smart kids (which necessitates having to use someone outside of the cast of regular and semi-regulars) rather than using the ones you already have? Though I'll take Lisa here over her coming across as a very self-entitled brat in Boyz n the Highlands.

2.5/5 rounded up to a 3.
 
Well Selman was credited after Jean... not sure if it makes it so that Selman helped a bit, but it sure feels like it.
 
Also, why is it that people were afraid of Joel H. Cohen? He has written goodies such as Million Dollar Maybe, Homer the Father & The Debarted before.
 
@BlitzPhoenix98, He's also got some stinkers under his belt such as 2015, 2016 and 2018's THoH's, The Hateful Eight-Year Olds (minority opinion) and The 7 Beer Itch (even though I don't hate that episode as much as most and would take it over most of the best praised episodes of it's season).
 
BlitzPhoenix98 said:
Well Selman was credited after Jean... not sure if it makes it so that Selman helped a bit, but it sure feels like it.
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Gosh! I didn't noticed. Apparently it started with U-production cycle.

It's like it was earlier: minority showrunner's name came in titles before the major one, who credited for every episode:corny:. In the same time, now both showrunners credited in credits for every episode, but the order, who's first, differs only (note for Wikisimpsons, @LetsPlayNintendoITA)
 
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