About Last Night…THE SIMPSONS, THE EQUALIZER, and BOB’S BURGERS

Let’s talk about Sunday night’s TV!

THE SIMPSONS: I’m not a VENOM superfan, but I loved “Denim.” (It might be more impressive that it grabbed me the way it did because I don’t have the emotional attachment I have had to other homages they’ve done?) I really, really loved how they utilized the stop-motion animations for Denim; it was instantly a decision that made me not want to tear my eyes from the screen. Mixed media art in this kind of show is, simply, so cool. (Yes, I’m a nerd, that should never have been in doubt.) But it was also a simple, compelling story: Homer, Marge, and a clingy (literally and figuratively) pair of sentient pants. It was the strongest segment of the night, for me.)

(But, also, I loved the Haunted Mansion homage in the second segment, as the paintings expanded while Mr. Burns took an elevator downstairs.)

THE EQUALIZER: This was a rough episode. Unfortunately, the case, specifically, didn’t click for me.

It hit me while watching tonight’s episode that the side effect of the team being split is that it’s also making the episodes feel more chaotic, too. Prior to this group dynamic splinter, a lot of episodes had the storylines split into Team Equalizer and Family Life; sometimes they’d intersect, sometimes Dante would be more or less closely aligned with Team Equalizer, but there were frequently A- and B-stories. Now, because people are split off, we’re technically having the case, plus individual stories for Dante, Mel, Aunt Vi, and a little bit of D’s story, too. To properly service all of the characters, it feels like we’re being split in a way that isn’t giving anything the time it might actually deserve.

Now, is that an intentional choice by the writers? It could be! The purpose of it might be to make us feel as unsettled as virtually everyone in the show is. (And, presumably, there may have been some real-life factors that led to limited availability, too.) But it could also just be they’re trying to utilize every single series regular, so we have an episode like this where there are really four stories going on, and arguably at least two of them didn’t get the depth they deserved.

BOB’S BURGERS: Using American cheese for a cheese war is so funny—who has time to unwrap the slices?! But congrats to Tina on her victory. (Also, was this a thing kids do in real life? It’s fine and funny if the show made it up, but it feels niche enough that it’s very possible this was a childhood ritual I simply didn’t go through.)

I can’t believe it took Linda this long to find a good way to eavesdrop. But good for her!! This will bring a little extra fun to her day. (Sorry to the people she’s going to spy on now.)

Which shows did you watch last night?

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