Scullyfied Simpsons: Season 9, Episode 25: "Natural Born Kissers"

Nothing like your 11th anniversary to realize you have old cake in the fridge.

Airdate: May 17, 1998

Synopsis: It's Marge and Homer's 11th anniversary. However, recent events (such as having their anniversary dinner at a family restaurant) have them fear that the zest in their marriage has run out. While trying to get a motor for their freezer, the two get stuck in a muddy driveway in the middle of farm country. Hiding out in a farmhouse, the risk of the farmer catching them inside reignites the fire in their relationship, and the two realize that their relationship reignites when the risk of being caught in compromising situations increases.

Meanwhile, Bart and Lisa find Abe's old metal detector. After finding tons of junk, the two eventually locate a copy of an alternate ending to Casablanca. Let's just say, the ending isn't what one would consider a classic.

Review: Shorter review than normal here, because there isn't too much to dissect. Earlier episodes did the "zest in love life" plot better, added more pathos, more character development, and were funnier. It seems like this episode was just done to appeal to fanservice, as well as see how far the writers could "push the envelope", and didn't really bother to make that many other benchmarks in terms of quality.

It's amazing that, by the standards of the show, this was one considered one of the more "risqué" episodes. Remember- around this time, "South Park" was stretching the boundaries of what a cartoon could show. It seems like this episode was constructed as a response- a more risqué, envelope pushing episode. Nowadays, it's a relatively tame episode. Strip away the more "edgy" content, and what you have is a rather pedestrian episode- Marge and Homer have a marriage crisis, a plot point which would be a cliche of the Al Jean years. If you want to be "edgy", at least have substance.

I don't know- maybe 12-year-old me might have liked it because it was "edgy", but with years gone by, I just feel like it's a typical Scully-era episode- decent situation, zany buildup, zany ending. It's far from the worst offender- it's still a bit funny, and characterization was pretty decent, if milquetoast - but it's not the most outstanding thing I've seen this show do.

The message of the A-plot? Don't break the law. It's too much trouble for everybody involved.

Strangely enough, I found the B-plot a bit more interesting than the A-plot. Bart and Lisa finding an old movie actually could've made for a decent A-plot in and of itself- sort of a remake of "Three Men and a Comic Book" meets "Lisa on Ice" meets "Day the Violence Died". We could've seen some great character interaction between the two- something we really haven't seen all season. Here, finding an alternate ending to Casablanca only allows for enough material for a B-plot, and with what little time it's given, it's executed very well.

In fact, that plot showcases the satire aspect of The Simpsons more than the original. In trying to find treasure, Bart and Lisa come across an ending to Casablanca that is far, far happier than the one in the movie. It's pretty clear that the ending is a spoof on the strict standards set for movies well into the 70s- movies like All that Heaven Allows, for example, had to slip their depressing messages under a thin cover of "happiness". Casablanca is well remembered because it's ending wasn't happy, and it's characters didn't just stick themselves within archetypes, and the movie was more than just a simple romantic drama.

This episode also reveals, rather ironically, that a bad ending can erase a lot of goodwill that a piece of media built up prior to the climax. If there actually was an ending like that, and it got slipped in, I doubt Casablanca would be as popular as it is now. Hear me, Simpsons writers? Finish strong- otherwise, you will encounter the wrath of geeks! (Ah, who am I kidding- they stopped caring years ago.)

The moral of that story? Metal detectors are time sinks, and cliches are awful. (Al Jean musn't have paid too much attention to that last point.)

Game, set, match for season 9. Next up for our trashing? Season 10.

Tidbits:

• I'll admit right now- the setup to the A-plot is pretty funny. Marriage in a rut, plus old cake, plus forgetting to close the freezer? Brilliant. (Just wondering- why was the fridge also open? Ah, never mind.)
• Gil's back! Remember- he used to sell shoes? Now he sells cars... and can't do that well at all. Methinks that's going to be Gil's character- an utter failure at everything he does. He probably wouldn't have been used as much in later seasons if Phil Hartman hadn't been shot. What a shame.
• I just love the look on Maude's face when she notes Ned's obvious golf advice. It's the face that shows, as happy as their marriage is, there's still some small differences between the two of them, rather than Maude just being a female Ned. I love those subtle moments of character... when I catch them.

Zaniness Factor: 1.5- even with the ending, the episode is still relatively grounded.

Jerkass Homer Meter: 1. In fact, I think Homer is a bit milquetoast here. Calm before the storm? I hope not. (Hint: it probably is.)

Favorite Scene: Nothing too outstanding in this episode, but I found the "Casablanca Alternate Ending" brilliant enough to get this award.

Least Favorite Scene: Let's face it- the second half of the A-plot was just an excuse to push the envelope. Oh, and Homer gets hurt a lot during that.

Score: 7. Barely. 

Now, to end the season (and other seasons of Scully's era of The Simpsons), I'm not going to do a traditional "wrap-up". Rather, I'm going to include that in a "Not Another Top (X) List" post. That post? The 9 worst episodes from Season 9.