The Simpsons Project #7

The Simpsons Project #7 (Season 1, Episode 7)
The Call of the Simpsons
Original airdate: 2/18/90

With the last Simpsons Project (Case File #6: "Moaning Lisa"), we completed Disc 1 of the DVD set for Season One. Progress! Today, we take a look at a rather famous episode, "The Call of the Simpsons".

The episode begins with Bart and Homer doing some yardwork in front of the Simpson home. In one of those nice touches that gets funnier with time, Bart is forced to mow the lawn using one of those old non-motor push mowers. Bart looks over to see the elder Flanders boy, Rod, mowing the Flanders' lawn on a (then) state of the art sit-down mower. Bart complains, but Homer tells him not to compare their family to the Flanders', and to be content with what they have.

At that moment, Ned arrives in a brand-new gigantic RV, complete with deep fryer and satellite dish. Homer's fatherly advice is quickly dispensed of, kicking off his series-long jealousy of Ned and his self-consciousness about the state of his family compared to the Flanders'. Homer decides immediately that he needs to one-up Ned, so he brings the family down to Bob's RV Round-Up to purchase their own recreational vehicle.

Bob is a sleazy salesman voiced with gusto by longtime Simpsons contributor Albert Brooks, who immediately plays off Homer's insecurities and irrational line of thinking. Bob shows Homer the Ultimate Behemoth, an RV so big it has its own satellite orbiting earth and four deep fryers, "one for each part of the chicken". In introducing the Ultimate Behemoth, Bob is moved to say with awe, "Man built this. It's...a vehicle."

The bargaining hits a snag when Bob checks Homer's credit and a siren goes off. Homer simply can't afford the Behemoth, but he's ashamed to go away empty handed. Bob tells him the only RV he could possibly afford is a run down used piece of junk, and after some hilarious dramatic cajoling, Homer buys the RV.

The next scene opens with the family packed and ready to break in the RV with a camping trip into the forest (Homer decides to pack the TV). Not long after they hit the road, Homer has everyone hopelessly lost in the woods. The problem is compounded when Homer nearly drives off a cliff. The family escapes, but the RV is destroyed, and with no means of transportation to get out of their situation, they're forced to improvise.

Homer and Bart go off in search of help, not realizing Maggie has decided to join them. When they hear her pacifier behind them and mistake the noise for that of a rattlesnake, they frantically run away, leaving Maggie behind in the woods. The Simpson males fall off of another cliff and over a waterfall, while Maggie befriends a group of grizzly bears.

The family had great confidence in Homer early in the series, even though he was already doing idiotic things that constantly got them into trouble. Even Marge was under the impression that Homer was an "experienced woodsman". Later in the series the family would largely blow him off or talk back to him when he tried to take charge of a situation, but in early episodes like this they have a lot of trust and faith in him.

After unsuccessfully attempting to catch food (resulting in Homer being attacked by a plethora of animals), Homer punches a beehive to eat its honey. To escape the ensuing bee barrage, he runs into a nearby muddy creek. An amateur nature photographer happens to be filming, and thinks he has inadvertently taken footage of Bigfoot. The footage quickly reaches the media, and the news coverage of a slow-motion Homer spouting off an angry, indecipherable string of nonsense is hysterical.

As often happens in The Simpsons, a media circus ensues. Marge and Lisa are rescued and Marge instantly recognizes "Bigfoot" as Homer. A series of great "spinning newspapers" follows, one with the tagline, "Bigfoot's Wife Pleads: Call Him 'Homer'!"

Homer and Bart eventually stumble across the grizzly den to retrieve Maggie, then come across a group of Bigfoot hunters, who tranquilize him. The episode ends with Homer watching news footage of scientists prodding him and discussing his "sloping, ape-like forehead". Marge consoles him and they turn the TV off.

Albert Brooks on The Simpsons is gold, and he produces the best lines of the episode. Early Simpsons episodes were based more on plotlines than one-liners, and though the story is strong and humorous, there aren't a ton of belly laughs. Still, a solid first season entry.

B

Homer: Is that a good siren? Am I approved?
Bob: You ever known a siren to be good?

John Lacey