[The long of it]
Back when he was regularly posting reviews to this newsgroup, Haynes Lee earned a local sort of fame by composing his own titles for new episodes. If I had to do that for this show, I'd be inclined to call it "An Affair to Forget." (Hey, I never said I had Haynes's knack for catchy titles.) "A Star is Born-Again" is a comic love story, but it's hampered by a romance that doesn't quite gel.
The love affair in question involves Ned Flanders and Sara Sloane. Ned, you know already; he's the same square, button-down, pious chap you've come to like over the years. He's feeling particularly lonely now that it's time for Springfield's jellyfish festival. Having no one to dance with, he retreats to his store for a date with "the twins" -- federal and state income tax forms. Sara Sloane is a hot -- career-wise and physically -- actress from Hollywood. She meets Ned while buying something from his store, and seems immediately drawn towards his honest good nature. I can see why Sara might find Ned attractive. After being surrounded by the usual Tinseltown sycophants and phonies, Ned must be a refreshing change of pace. What I never quite understood was why Ned so doggedly stuck with Sara. Although a genuinely nice person, Sara represents a lot of things that Ned's gone on record as opposing: making racy movies, wearing revealing clothing, and suggesting pre-marital sex. For that matter, the entertainment industry as a whole is one Godless sinful octopus for him. I could see Ned and Sara being friends; if he can make nice with Homer, then he can clearly get along with people who don't share his view of the world. But lovers?
Now that I think about it, "A Star is Born-Again" might have been funnier if Ned and Sara had been "just friends." It would have been amusing to see them try, and fail, to convince the tabloid press that the two weren't an item just because they happened to be seen in public together. Instead, we get an unremarkable central romance which, since it's a central part of the story, makes the episode as a whole a little flat.
At least there were some humorous bright spots to perk things up. Try to listen to the singer's lyrics at the Jellyfish Cotillion; they're really funny. The tabloids don't figure heavily into this tale, but I liked it when one reporter asked the hapless Flanders, "Do you plan to kill [Sara] like you killed your first wife?" Ned's efforts to protect Sara's decency on the set of her movie are amusing, as is an encounter with autograph-hound Lenny. The high point of the show, however, is the fantasy/nightmare Ned has when Sara suggests he move to Hollywood. Ned pictures a crazy caricature of the town, complete with dozens of porno theaters, where his own sons tool around in a fancy car, claming to be movie producers. (And Jewish ones, besides!) There's even a funny cameo by "Simpsons" producer James L. Brooks.
"A Star is Born-Again" is lackluster episode, but not a bad one. No one comes across as unlikable, there isn't any jockey-elf wackiness, and the main plot is introduced during the *first* act and resolved in the third. Still, the writers said they killed off Maude in part to let Ned test the dating scene, and so far neither he nor they have had much luck. I guess we'll have to wait for a sequel if we want to see a Hollywood ending.
[The short of it]
A "mismatched lover" comedy with Ned and a hot Hollywood starlet probably seemed like a good idea, but in practice I kept wondering what convinced Ned they could be more than friends. (In fact, it would have been a funnier episode if Ned and lover Sara had remained "just friends.") There are some good funny moments, like a "Hollyweird" fantasy that features a cameo from James L. Brooks (yes, *that* Brooks) but overall this is a lackluster episode. (C+)
[DYNs]
... Sara Sloane has her name above the movie title, a sign of the studio's confidence in her drawing power? ... Homer apparently confuses "tabloids" with "Altoids" (the curiously strong mints)? ... a beautifully-orchestrated version of "The Itchy & Scratchy Show" theme plays as Ned talks to Sara at the Springfield Bowl? ... right now, the date can be written as "3/3/3"? This has nothing to do with "The Simpsons," but I thought it would be neat to point it out.
[References]
"A Star is Born" (movie) - title a spoof
Sydney (Australia) Opera House - girl on "Modern Sandcastle" cover makes a model of this building
"Born Free" (movie) - theme to the film plays as the jellyfish wash ashore
Cinco de Mayo (Mexican holiday) - Homer mentions this holiday which translates to "Fifth of Eight"
The Academy Awards (movie awards) - Homer also mentions the "Hobo Oscars" as another hot date event
"Something Wicked This Way Comes" (novel) - store at the mall called, "Something Wicker This Way Comes"
"Horse with No Name" (song) - after meeting Sara, Ned sings his plan for their date to this tune
"My Best Friend's Wedding" (movie) - Sara stars in, "My Best Friend's Gay Baby"
Heaven's Gate (cult) "Heaven's Gate" (movie) - Flanders uses this as an exclamation. Many viewers are likely to think of the cult, especially given Flanders's religious personality, but it could also be another movie reference (given that he's dating a movie star)
"SpongeBob SquarePants" (TV series) - Ned likens Sara's movie to "SpongeBob NoPants"
Cher (singer and actress) - to distract the reporters, Ned builds a "Cher-crow"
Winona Ryder (actress) - someone accused of shoplifting a kayak, like Ryder was accused of shoplifting clothing
"Terminator" (movie) - Wolfcastle laments that, "My libido has been terminated"
"The Benny Hill Show" (TV series) - the sped-up Keystone-Kops style foot chase - the music heard during the chase is similar
"deadheads" (fans of the Grateful Dead, a band) - Ned refers to his admirers as "Ned-heads"
"Entertainment Tonight" (TV series) - news of Sara's marriage is a story on "Publicity Tonight"
[Previous Episode References]
[AABF10] One of the tabloid reporters asks Flanders if he plans to kill Sara as he killed his first wife
[FFF]
Lisa's beach magazine:
MODERN
SANDCASTLEBart's beach magazine:
BAD BOYS'
L I F EMaggie's Sunscreen
\|/
-S-UNSCREEN
/|\ --------
(SPF 1000}
--------Banner at dance:
THE JELLYFISH COTILLION
Skinner's suggested wedding tape:
FREE
WEDDING MUSICNewspaper headline:
LONELY MEN
DIE EARLYT-shirts in The Leftorium:
LEFT I
HANDERS [heart]
RULE! SOUTH
PAWSStores near The Leftorium:
I CAN'T
Expensive Coffee BELIEVE
In Little Cups IT'S A
LAW FIRM!SOMETHING WICKER THIS WAY COMES
Movie poster:
NOW PLAYING
SARA SLOANE
IN
MY BEST FRIEND'S
GAY BABYTabloid headline:
THE NATIONAL
WHOOPS SARA LIVES IN
SIN, MESSClapper:
A 86 | 102 | 1
09 0649 00 <- digital readout
SARA SLOANE IN
"THE ZOOKEEPER'S
WIFE"Things in Ned's Hollyweird fantasy:
Evangeline (?) billboard, the former Brown Derby restaurant, the
Capital Records building, Mann's Chinese Theater, and of course,
numerous adult movie theatersThe Hollyweird walk of fame:
GODLESSNESS
[movie icon] DRUG ABUSE
[recording icon] ADULT
SITUATIONS
[television icon]Ad on Hollyweird bus:
ALL MALE! [Speedo] X
ALL NUDE! [ guy ] X
XAt the bottom of Wiggum's portfolio:
555-0488 CLANCY WIGGUM
ActorConcert sign:
THE SPRINGFIELD BOWL
JOHN WILLIAMS
CONDUCTS THE MUSIC OF
ITCHY & SCRATCHYEntertainment news show sign:
PUBLICITY TONIGHT
Cookie's advertisement:
COOKIE KWAN
REALTY
555 DO IT[Oops!]
* What the heck was up with Luanne Van Houten's voice? Did she just swallow a frog?
[Personal Comments & Observations]
Mayor Quimby mentions that the jellyfish returned in time for "May sweeps," which I guess would be of some concern for people living in a television show.
Laser eye surgery is the latest technique in sparing near- and far- sighted people the horrors of wearing a pair of glasses. In a normal eye, light passes through the cornea, which focuses the image on the retina, which in turns transmits the picture to your brain. The corneas of people with near-or far-sightedness focus the picture a little ahead or behind the retina, causing blurry vision. The procedure uses precision cuts with a laser to alter the shape of the cornea, focusing light on the correct spot. That is, if the procedure works properly. Sometimes, something goes wrong, with consequences ranging from slightly blurred vision (i.e., you'll have to wear glasses, after all) to blindness in the affected eye. That's a drawback for an operation that's essentially done for vanity's sake. The mistake rate has gone down, but some doctors advise against the surgery anyway. Hibbert is apparently among them.
This headline Flanders reads is actually true. Studies have shown that men who are single, on average, die a few years earlier than their married counterparts. (I can picture Al Bundy saying, "Maybe it just *seems* like longer when you're married.")
Twinkies and Ding-Dongs are two American classics in the field of recreational noshing. Made by the Hostess corporation, Twinkies are oblong yellow cakes that have creamy white frosting on the center -- sort of like an inside-out cake. Ding-Dongs, I'm not as familiar with. They're made of chocolate cake and have the same filling as Twinkies, but I think they're shaped differently, squatter and round, like a cupcake, perhaps.
In gauging his prospects with Sara, Ned contrasts himself to Arthur Miller. Miller was a playwright who was married to blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe. Most observers at the time thought it was an odd pairing, this serious author and the actress known for her frothy, lightweight movies. Maybe they were right; the Miller-Monroe marriage was brief.
Ned also mentions Lyle Lovett, the gangly-looking country singer. He shocked the celeb-watching world by marrying pretty actress Julia Roberts. (Or maybe Roberts shocked the world by marrying Lovett. Whatever.) The surprise was justified, for this marriage, too, was short-lived.
Sigfreid and Roy are a pair of magicians working the Las Vegas scene. For the highlight of their flamboyant act, they make rare white tigers disappear into thin air. (Hey S&R, if they're so rare, how about conjuring up new ones from thin air? That would be more useful!) They are not married, but rumors persist that they're a couple.
Sara ticks off three subjects of discussion: botox, tae bo, and Xbox. Botox is a cosmetic procedure designed to lessen wrinkles. The doctor injects botulism toxin (hence the name) into the problem area, causing the muscles to become mildly paralyzed. Once they are relaxed, the wrinkles fade. The strange procedure is mostly taken by women, but I can see actors getting into it to preserve their movie-star looks. Tae Bo is a fitness regime combining Taw Kwan Do martial arts and boxing, which first became popular in trendy Southern California. Xbox is Microsoft's entry into the game console market, competing with Sony's Playstation 2 and Nintendo's Game Cube 64. The Xbox hasn't sold as many units as the market-leading PS2; perhaps the relative rarity makes it "hipper" in Hollywood circles. Or maybe one of the writers has one and wanted to give it a free plug on the show.
Rod and Todd appear to be driving a convertible E-class four-door. (Note the distinctive round-headlight front end.) The boys must have had it custom-built, because Mercedes hasn't made a four-door convertible in more than 40 years. Then again, it was just a fantasy sequence, so perhaps we can forgive this little inaccuracy.
In "real life," Sara Sloane is also a Mercedes owner. That's an SL she's driving. It has the previous-generation bodyshell, so it's probably a year or two old.
Speaking of cars, Marge mentions that part of "Stroker Ace" was filmed in Springfield. This Burt Reynolds, ah, vehicle was a comedy about stock car (as in NASCAR) racers. Most reviewers wound up quoting Reynolds from "Days of Wine and D'oh'ses (BABF14)": "It's ... garbage."