The Simpsons have been on the the air for 20 seasons and yet Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie haven’t aged a day. To say The Simpsons is a legacy of creator Matt Groening’s at this point would be an understatement – not only has the show been on for 20 seasons, but for all 20 of those seasons it has pushed the boundaries of what’s acceptable to air on television and remained culturally relevant.
As the years have gone by and The Simpsons has evolved some might say that the show has “lost its way” or “isn’t the same” – but I ask, who are you to say how The Simpsons should or shouldn’t be? For 20 seasons I have watched every single episode and I think the show has never been anything else except for just unapologetically The Simpsons. Sure, we have seen some characters come and go and the show is a perpetual shark jumper, but in my eyes this series has always maintained the perfect balance of slapstick and satirical comedy – which is probably why it has been around for so long and maintained consistent wild popularity through most of them.
Though, The Simpsons is not infallible; the creators and writers have experienced the occasional criticism, controversy, and misses just like any critically-acclaimed television show. The difference with this series though is that they keep pressing on and keep making a quality prime-time show. Perhaps one issue with a series like The Simpsons that runs for so many seasons is that they all kind of begin to blend together. Of course, you have the early years that stand out as the “golden years” (seasons 1-9) and then after that we have the kind of adolescent years (seasons 10-16) and now we are getting into the “later” years of The Simpsons (seasons 17-current). I do feel that the series experienced a bit of a slump in some of those middle years, perhaps I was burnt out, maybe the appearance of more “edgy” cartoons like Family Guy drew my attention away, in either case I am quite enjoying these later years of The Simpsons as they experience somewhat of a resurgence.
It may seem a little odd that Fox decided to jump from releasing The Simpsons: Season 12 on DVD to releasing Season 20 but they obviously wanted to commemorate this monumental event. The Simpsons: Season 20 includes all 21 episodes from the 2008-2009 season that include guest appearances by the likes of Denis Leary, Emily Blunt, Anne Hathaway, Jodie Foster and Ellen Page. Season 20 had some memorable episodes in it like, “Mypods and Boomsticks” in which Homer becomes suspicious of Bart’s new friends being terrorists based on their religion and Lisa gets addicted to downloading music to her “MyPod”. Also in this season is the relevant “No Loan Again, Naturally” in which the housing market is harpooned, and the great season finale with “Welcome to Homerica” where Springfield citizens play border patrol against the Ogdevillians who are swarming to Springfield after their economy collapses. The Simpsons has always been great at political satire and this season has some really great examples of this – somehow getting us all to laugh at serious subjects that were/are plaguing our society.
There isn’t much in the way of special features in this 2 Blu-ray/4 DVD set. In fact, the only one included in the set is “The Twentieth Anniversary Special Sneak Peak by Morgan Spurlock” which is a bit of a let down because I fail to see why they couldn’t just include the twentieth anniversary special in its entirety with the twentieth season. The video transfer of this season is of course far superior to seasons past; starting with episode 10 of this season The Simpsons started being broadcast in 720p High Definition (a decision that also justified a new opening sequence!).
For any Simpsons fans out there, this is obviously a “must have” to add to your collection. The Simpsons: Season 20 is available now on DVD and Blu-ray!
Blu-Ray Disc Content
Disc One:
o Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes
o Lost Verizon
o Double, Double, Boy in Trouble
o Treehouse of Horror XIX
o Dangerous Curves
o Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words
o Mypods and Boomsticks
o The Burns and the Bees
o Lisa the Drama Queen
o Additional Bonus Features Include:
• “The Twentieth Anniversary Special Sneak Peak by Morgan Spurlock”Disc Two:
o Take My Life, Please
o How The Test Was Won
o No Loan Again, Naturally
o Gone Maggie Gone
o In The Name of the Grandfather
o Wedding for Disaster
o Eeny Teeny Maya Moe
o The Good, The Sad and The Drugly
o Father Knows Worst
o Waverly Hills
o Four Great Women and a Manicure
o Coming to HomericaDVD Content
Disc One:
o Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes
o Lost Verizon
o Double, Double, Boy in Trouble
o Treehouse of Horror XIX
o Dangerous Curves
o Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross WordsDisc Two:
o Mypods and Boomsticks
o The Burns and the Bees
o Lisa the Drama Queen
o Take My Life, Please
o How The Test Was WonDisc Three:
o No Loan Again, Naturally
o Gone Maggie Gone
o In The Name of the Grandfather
o Wedding for Disaster
o Eeny Teeny Maya MoeDisc Four:
o The Good, The Sad and The Drugly
o Father Knows Worst
o Waverly Hills
o Four Great Women and a Manicure
o Coming to Homerica
o Additional Bonus Features Include:
• “The Twentieth Anniversary Special Sneak Peak by Morgan Spurlock”About THE SIMPSONS
The longest-running comedy in television history, The Simpsons exploded into a cultural phenomenon in 1990 and has remained one of the most groundbreaking and innovative entertainment franchises, recognizable throughout the world. Matt Groening created the infamous Simpson family: Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie Simpsons – all now identifiable by their silhouettes alone. Currently celebrating their 20th Anniverary, The Simpsons will air their 450th episode in January 2010. The show has received a Star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame, enjoyed the successful release of their first feature film, The Simpsons Movie, opened The Simpsons Ride at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida and Hollywood, CA. and been honored with five U.S. postal stamps personally designed by Matt Groening.The Simpsons is a Gracie Films Production in association with 20th Century Fox Television. James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, and Al Jean are the executive producers. The Gracie Films Worldwide Brand Division develops and produces the DVD collections for the series. Film Roman, a Starz Media company, is the animation house.
You can find The Simpsons: Season 20 at Amazon.com.