(long) A review of "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife (HABF08)"

[The long of it]

So who says it's hard to get a script on "The Simpsons"? All you have to do is star in an internationally-acclaimed TV show of your own, and you're in. Why, you might even get to act in the show you wrote! At least, that's the path that worked for Ricky Gervais. And, I'm happy to say, the results worked for me, too.

For "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife," Gervais decided to place the Simpsons on a reality show. If you remember "Helter Shelter (DABF21)," then you'll know this isn't the first time we've seen that (or even the second, if you count Lisa's turn on "L'il Starmaker" in "A Star is Torn (GABF13)"). I liked "Helter Shelter" when it aired, but this episode tops it, making several good observations about how reality TV is made without resorting to some of the silliness of the earlier show. For example, take the scene where the producers of "Wife Flippers" try to get Marge's consent to appear on their show. "If you agree," they say, "it'll make a terrific act break!" Not only do they prompt her for a spontaneous decision, but they make her give several readings of it, just to get the perfect one.

The concept of "Wife Flippers," by the way, is that Marge and a mom from another family will swap places for a week, as camera crews film the adjustments everyone makes. Her new "husband" is Charlie. One of the advantages of writing your own show is that you have the opportunity to write a juicy part for yourself. Gervais takes advantage of this, playing Charlie to a tee. Normally the target of his shrewish wife's vitriol, Charlie's at first grateful that Marge appreciates him. It doesn't take long before he's fallen in love with her. I know this should be easy since it's a part he wrote for himself, but Gervais really nails it. He's likeable, if incompetent, like a less-crude version of Homer. Even when he's botching a misogynist joke (one of the show's best scenes, by the way), we still think of him as essentially a nice guy. A later scene, where Charlie plays a love song for Marge, is pure gold. (Gervais wrote not only the lyrics, but the music as well. What a show-off.)

The rest of the material is pretty good, too. Events begin at a party where Lenny shows off his new high-definition plasma TV. I loved Homer's instant obsession, planting himself on Lenny's couch and not budging for three days. Even the kids get in on the act; sent to retrieve their father, they immediately join him when they realize Lenny's TV isn't just a plasma TV, but a *high-definition* plasma TV. In the hopes of winning cash for a TV of their own, the Simpsons appear on "Wife Flippers." While Marge is off with Charlie, Homer must deal with Severity, Charlie's fittingly-named spouse. The "book reports" she forces Homer and Bart to do on their TV watching is good, but the producers were wise to keep the focus on the less-predictable Marge-Charlie aspect of the story. Finally, there's an excellent callback to Patty's sexual orientation to wrap up the show. I knew the producers were going to make further references to Patty as a lesbian, but I didn't know they'd be this good.

I must make mention of tonight's opening couch gag, a live-action version of the show's usual opening. It's the one that's been circulating on the Internet for a couple of weeks now. In the animated opening, the characters had a bit more energy (or at least, they seemed to move faster). Nevertheless, it does a good job of capturing the key elements: Bart's blackboard gag, Maggie's checkout, the driveway scene, and so on. (And wow, Springfield Elementary looks a lot drearier in real life!) I spent the rest of the episode wondering how the scenes would have looked if the live actors had continued to play OFF.

I don't get the Beeb locally, so I've never seen the British "Office" or Ricky Gervais. I can't tell you how much of Gervais' humor filtered through "The Simpsons" team of in-house writers, but I can say this episode seemed a little fresher for having an outside perspective on things.

Hmm, I wonder if Steve Carrell is up to writing an episode ...

[The short of it]

Here's the secret to getting your script on the show: Be the star of an internationally-acclaimed show of your own. Gervais makes a good case for himself as a fanscript writer. Even though the Simpsons have been on reality TV before, this episode finds new and witty things to say. The funny writing is topped with an excellent vocal performance by Gervais as the put-upon husband who falls in love with Marge in a wife-swapping show. With the intriguing live-action (!) opening, funny first-act setup, clever third-act wrap-up and Gervais' rambling over the closing credits, this is an excellent episode literally from start to finish. (A)

[DYNs]

...	Lenny appears to have upgraded his parties?  (At his New Year's
	Eve party, he didn't even have a clock)
...	when Lenny unveils it, the TV is showing a scene from the
	"Phantom of the Opera" movie?
...	in the Simpsons' universe, "The Tracey Ullman Show" is
	apparently still on the air?
...	Marge taps her foot to Charlie's song?
...	when Charlie steps in front of the fireplace, we can see his
	legs in silhouette through his robe?
...	the shadows were moving realistically across the walls, as they
	would in a fireplace-lit room?
...	the words and music of "Lady Blue" and "End Credit Ramble" were
	penned by Ricky Gervais?
...	not to be outdone, the show's own Alf Clausen wrote the music
	for "Picture In Picture"?  (Gervais again did the lyrics)

[References]

"This Is Your Life" (TV series) - title a spoof (and a fitting one, since "This Is Your Life" was also an "unscripted" series)

Newsweek (newsmagazine) - Lenny's parody version is called, "Newsfake"

Time (newsmagazine) - famous for its annual "Man of the Year" issue

"Freak Out" (song) - cold sore jingle sung to this tune

"Best Damn Sports Show, Period" (TV series) - tour guide refers to one of Fox's sitcoms as "the worst damn comedy show, period"

"Wife Swap" "Meet Your New Mommy" (TV series) - "Mother Flippers" a rip-off [See "Personal Comments & Observations" for more]

"The Office" (TV series) - isn't Ricky Gervais' character an office manager on this show?

Air Force One (Presidential plane) - Lisa flown to New Haven on Frito-Lay's "Air Force Yum"

"The Apprentice" (TV series) - the show where Donald Trump employs his catchphrase, "You're fired"

[Previous Episode References]

[7F18] Someone uses the "I'm dying ..." psych-out [DABF21] Lenny lives next door to a jai alai fronton (at least he got rid of that big glass wall!) [DABF21], [GABF13] For that matter, the Simpsons on a reality show [GABF04] The show where Patty comes out as a lesbian

[FFF]

Lenny's magazine cover:

Newsfake

    [Lenny]
        MAN OF
       THE YEAR

"Family Circus" cartoon:

       [Billy in a barber's chair,]
       [  talking to the barber   ]
    Don't bother, it'll just grow back

Boy's roadside cosmetic procedure stand:

    BOTOX
     $5

Sign at Fox studios gate:

       [Fox logo]
     NUMBER TWO WITH
    PRISONERS 18 - 49

The worst damn comedy show, period:

    Jody's World       [Spade]
                       [head ]
                       [shot ]
                   With David Spade

Fox reality shows:

         DWARF         MILLION
          OR            DOLLAR
        MIDGET?            FART-
    AMERICA DECIDES        OFF       ["Fart-off" is inside a cloud]

Casting call sign:

    CASTING CALL
      "MOTHER
      FLIPPERS"

Amateur singers' cage:

     American
      Idol
    HOLDING PEN

Homer's DVD:

HOMER gone WILD

             VOLUME
                6

Film crewmen's signs:

    WHAT      DON'T
     A        WASTE
    JERK      SIGNS

Frito-Lay helicopter:

    AIR FORCE
       YUM

[Personal Comments & Observations]

While touring the Fox back lot, the Simpsons meet Dan Castellaneta, better known to us as the voice of Homer. (In the Simpsons' world, he's still an actor on "The Tracey Ullman Show.") I think that's his actual speaking voice, based on interviews he has given.

The "Mother Flippers" producers tell Marge that if she agrees to be on the show, it will make a good act break. Presumably, they're referring to "Mother Flippers," but it's also the act break for this episode of "The Simpsons."

Lisa says she's seen "Mother Flippers" before, as some other show. Actually, she's seen it *twice* before. "Wife Swap" and "Meet Your New Mommy" (and "Mother Flippers," while we're at it) have the same premise: Let's take women from two wildly different backgrounds, have them switch places, and tape the ensuing hilarity! One show -- "Wife Swap," if I remember right -- is on ABC, while the other is on Fox, which means that "Mother Flippers" is actually copying from its own network. Both shows premiered at about the same time, and there was actually some sniping going on as to who was stealing from whom. In reality, the idea, like many successful ones in American TV, was borrowed from a British show with the same premise. As opposed to completely American fare, like NBC's "The Office."

Some of the criticism directed at reality shows is that they aren't as spontaneous as they seem. Consider the act break, where the producers have Marge give a few different readings of, "I'll do it!" Some reality shows have made their subjects re-do things because the cameras didn't get them the first time around. (Supposedly, "Survivor" had contestants re-do a contest, being careful to get the same results as the first time around, because the producers wanted a better camera angle on the action.)

When trying to woo Marge, Charlie tells her, "we're alone now." Sure, if you don't count the camera guy, the sound guy, the grip, the director, and so on. (To be fair, I think people really do get used to having the crew around after awhile, and start to act as they normally do when they aren't being filmed.)

The cameraman says he didn't get Marge's nice speech about Homer, but he did get Charlie's confession about the parentage of his son. That plays to a common complaint by people who have been on reality shows: that they are edited to make people seem nastier than they really are.

Charlie Sheen -- Actor, currently appearing on the CBS sitcom, "Two and a Half Men." (The extra half-man is a boy, in case you were wondering.) No matter what role he is in, Sheen has this emotionally detached, aloof persona; hence, Homer's comment about the soulless look in his eye.

David Spade -- Another actor, currently appearing in numerous commercials for Capital One. (Or maybe they've moved on -- their latest had has an incompetent guardian angel.) Before that, he was on "Saturday Night Live" and "Just Shoot Me." Spade has a sarcastic, cynical edge that makes him an unlikely choice for a cutie-pie sitcom like "Jody's World" appears to be.

Mischa Barton -- I *think* she's an actress on "The O.C.," but can't say for certain since I've only seen two or three episodes of that show. "The O.C." is a hit for Fox, which may be why the network has erected a statue in her honor.

Ryan Seacrest -- The host of "American Idol." I'm just mentioning this for our overseas viewers, since most Americans know who he is.

David Letterman -- Host of a late-night talk show on CBS, the home network of "CSI: Miami." His guest, "Alias," is probably Jennifer Garner, the star of that show. "CSI: Miami" airs at 10:00pm (EST) Mondays, while "Late Night with David Letterman" runs from 11:35pm to 12:37am, so you can figure out how long Homer was asleep.

Lake Havasu is in Arizona. Its main claim to fame is that London Bridge was transported there, stone by stone, and rebuilt as a tourist attraction. So if you Londoners have been wondering what happened to it ...

New Haven is a city in Connecticut which, as Marge notes, is nicknamed "The Nutmeg State." As far as I know, no British landmarks (save for Ricky Gervais) have been relocated there.

Thought gay marriage was a divisive issue? Some states are considering whether or not to allow gay couples to adopt. Others are floating propositions to allow (or bar) gay couples from adopting children; apparently the Simpsons live in one of these states.

You know, if Patty and Severity do try to adopt, Fox could make a reality show of that!

Benjamin Robinson wrote:

I'm pretty sure that's 2F01 (dead serious about going to Itchy and Scratchy Land), unless there's one I'm forgetting in 7F18. There's also one in CABF11 (dead tired of babyproofers who don't provide a free estimate).

Mm-hmm - sarcasm? - Ricky Gervais and his mate Stephen created both the original UK and the US versions of The Office. For those that haven't seen the UK version, it's really odd hearing such a familiar voice and character coming out of a Simpsons cartoon on the screen. Gervais plays the lead role in The Office and his very particular style of dialogue ("... I'm a bit of an elbow man meself, actually [giggles] ... bit different ... bit weird ... not _sexual_ [gurn]") takes you straight back to him sat behind his desk at Wernham Hogg.

Ricky's dialogue works best when it's coming from his own mouth, I'd urge you to see the original The Office if you get the chance.

<snippety>

Ricky Gervais also guest starred in an episode of Alias, cool way to name-check your mates, huh?!

h

I agree. Although the 'elbow man' line WAS straight from the Office, therev was somethig about the general tone, or timing, or something, that seemed to be lacking in this ep.