[The long of it]
The producers are fortunate I watch new episodes a second time (on tape, after the original airing) before I review them, because "Yokel Chords" was better the second time around.
Actually, this episode was two very loosely related stories in one. In the first, Lisa puts her smarty-pants skills to use by tutoring Cletus and Brandine's young 'uns. The story is played as a take-off of "The Sound of Music." To be honest, the first time around this plot didn't do much for me; it seems like there's been a lot of musical parodies lately, and it's a crapshoot as to whether they'd be any good or not. On the second viewing, I was more accepting, as the musical numbers entertaining enough to make them worthwhile diversions. (I particularly liked the bit where she took the kids to see a Bu�el film. That certainly won't mess them up. Much.) They also didn't slow the plot much, one of my complaints with musicals. Indeed, the kids' singing actually becomes a plot point when Krusty turns them into a sort of hillbilly musical revue. Some of the kids develop into more than just funny-looking caricatures with odd names, which is laudible. There are some interesting ideas here, like the way Lisa rescues the kids from the school district's neglect, only to see them exploited by Krusty, but they aren't emphasized quite enough to make an impression.
The other half of the story fares better. Bart scares the schoolchildren with the fanciful tale of Dark Stanley, a school cafeteria cook who supposedly snaps one day and makes soup out of some annoying students. (The animators switch into another style for Bart's story. It reminds me of Ed Gorey[?], although I assume it's a reference for something else.) That stunt lands him in the office of a psychologist, where he and his shrink, Dr. Swanson bond. Unlike most mental health professionals in the "Simpson" universe, Swanson is played pretty straight (by Meg Ryan, if I understand correctly) and comes off as a competent professional. She's pretty good at getting Bart to open up, playing Mad Libs and "Death Kill City" with him. Most of the interest in this half of "Yokel Chords" comes when the sessions end abruptly -- the school district will only pay for so many -- and Bart pines away for her. This might have been an intriguing full-length story for an episode, one where we'd learn something about how Bart ticks, although I'm not sure if it would have been funny enough to carry the whole half hour.
There's a lot of scattershot elements -- the music, some touching scenes with Bart, Lisa going on a crusade, some jibes at show biz, and a small galaxy of guest voices (in addition to Ryan, James Patterson, Stephen Sondheim, and Peter Bogdonavich have cameos). Even after two viewings, I have to feel that "Yokel Chords" never quite coheres into one good episode. There's a little too much going on, and not enough of it is that memorable. Perhaps I'll have better luck watching it a third time.
[The short of it]
Whew. There's a lot going on here: Two plotlines, some animation trickery, a Lisa crusade, some Bart bonding, three musical numbers, and more guest stars than I care to count. Things improve on a second viewing; I liked the musical numbers better, and Cletus's kids come across as believable characters, but the elements don't cohere into one really good episode. (B-)
[DYNs]
... the superintendent's name is Gary Chalmers? ... Lisa takes the kids to see "An Andalusian Dog?" (It's the feel- good hit of the summer!) ... Dr. Swanson takes a quick glance at the cash before deciding whether or not to accept Bart as a patient? ... you can still see the box factory near Krusty's studio?
[References]
"The Sound of Music" (movie) - the musical numbers in the show patterned after the ones in the film, specifically: - "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?" - "The Hills Are Alive (With the Sound of Music)" - "A Few of My Favorite Things"
Daily News headline - Once ran the headline, "FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD"; compare to Lisa's "SKINNER TO HICKS: 'DROP DREAMS'"
President George W. Bush - one of Cletus's kids is named Dubya, after the President's nickname
"Grand Theft Auto 2" (videogame) - Death Kill City II has similar name and packaging graphics
"The Apple Dumpling Gang" (movie) - the Spuckler children called "The Appalachian Dumpling Gang" [For those outside the US: The Appalachian region is the hilly area in the Eastern US where hillbillies supposedly come from]
The Blue-Collar Comedy Tour - Krusty's knockoff version called "The No-Collar Comedy Tour"
"The Honeymooners" (TV series) - Cletus and Brandine's closing scene echo's Ralph and Alice Kramden from this show - the ending graphic -- Cletus's face in the moon -- also very similar to the show's, which has Ralph's face there
[Previous Episode References]
[FABF18] Parody of Daily News "Drop Dead" headline appears
[7F06] Lisa's fall down the gorge similar to Homer's (like father,
like daughter, I suppose)
[1F16] Box factory appears[FFF]
Lisa's "Daily Fourth Gradian" headline:
SKINNER
TO HICKS:
"DROP
DREAMS"Gap gift card:
$5
GIFT CARDChinese restaurant:
The Lonely Dragon
Videogame:
death
kill
city IIdeath kill stories
Mad Libs page:
CARNIVAL FUN
Ferris burp and [underlined words are hand-written]
---- [in blue ink ]
NOUN merry-go-booger
------
NOUNare my favorite rides
at the carnival.
Dr. Swanson's article in "Psychiatric Quarterly":
Effectiveness of Clozapine
versus Olanzapine and
Risperidone in Patients with
Chronic SchizophreniaBus banner:
KRUSTY'S NO-COLLAR
COMEDY TOUR[Oops!]
* The text on the Mad Libs page didn't match what she was reading out loud to Bart.
Anti-goof: After Whitney's pigtail is accidentally cut off, it stays off for the remainder of the second act.
[Personal Comments & Observations]
Bart has a dream where his family were television cartoon characters, whose show led to the creation of Fox News. The bit about "cartoon characters" should be obvious. "The Simpsons," along with "Married With Children," has been credited with assuring Fox's survival as a broadcast network, which in turn led to the creation of the Fox New cable channel.