Review: The Simpsons “Top Goon”

Overview:

Moe tries to find meaning in his life while coaching a youth hockey league team. Unfortunately for him, his best player, Bart, gets pummeled every week by the opposing teams and he’s unable to score any goals. With his arch-rival, King Toot (Will Forte) of King Toot’s Music Store, boasting about his team’s success, Moe can’t help but feel lost. Everything looks hopeless until Nelson joins the team and becomes Moe’s “goon”, his real “diamond in the urinal.” Nelson relishes his opportunity to protect Bart and doll out some brutal ice rink justice. 

With the team rolling and Bart scoring goals, nothing can stop the Bar Flyers, except maybe the Bar Flyers themselves. When things become complicated, Nelson quits the team and finds a home with the only place that will likely take him, the Mafia (obviously). 

Our Take:

“Top Goon” is a take on The Mighty Ducks, with a ne’er-do-well coach leading a team of misfits and hooligans to glory, well maybe to the brink of glory in this case. When Moe recruits Nelson to join his team, everything falls into place and things no longer look so bleak. Bart returns to his goal-scoring ways and Nelson thrives as a goon. But obviously, things can’t be that simple and a wrench is thrown into Moe’s master plan. Nelson becomes overzealous and takes out the very kid he was supposed to protect. This was predictable, and maybe a bit clumsily written, but it led into the real story quite nicely. 

Moe taking on a fatherly role to Nelson is something I certainly never saw coming, yet it was a very sweet element to add to the story. Sure it was surprising, but the two of them undoubtedly fit very well together. It was an excellent pairing of two down-on-their-luck characters with very few positive things going on in their lives. This development was a very wholesome plot point that kept the story moving forward, even if it may have been predictable. Moe chasing after Nelson and fighting for his “goon” was almost tear-worthy and a plot point that made up for the shallowness of the rest of the episode. 

Where “Top Goon” faltered was in the lack of following established Simpsons’ cannon. In episode 6 of season 8 “Lisa On Ice”, Lisa found her way onto a hockey team as a star goalie and Bart’s nemesis on the ice. In this episode, she is safely off of the ice and never even mentioned for her goalie heroics. This is ultimately disappointing because it would have been an excellent way of updating a hockey-themed episode while still maintaining consistency. It would have been really cool to see The Simpsons’ siblings together again on the ice, but instead, we are left out in the cold while hoping for a rematch or even the two of them teaming up. “Top Goon” isn’t nearly as strong narratively as “Lisa On Ice” and feels very thin apart from the relationship between Moe and Nelson.  

The highlight of the episode has to be when Nelson attends Goon camp, where he learns the tools of the trade. It’s where the best visual gags occur as well. Nelson being overrun by a gang of raccoons and other rodents while attempting to protect his “primary” was a certified belly laugh. And the most touching moment of “Top Goon” was when Moe showed up for Nelson’s graduation at goon camp. Was it a bit sappy? Maybe. But it was a very effective moment and helped seal the bond between the two. Nelson has found fatherly figures before in previous episodes, but Moe seems like the most logical fit. Moe also tried his hardest to be there for Nelson, both physically and emotionally. That’s more than what can be said about Homer, who made his displeasure for kid’s sports well known, though it did lead to an excellent exchange between him and Chief Wigum, who is now apparently a foot guy. God bless his sole. 

“Top Goon” features a basic story that doesn’t really take any chances. This episode is a fairly standard take on the “troubled kid meets a troubled fatherly figure” story. Luckily for the writers, the combination of Moe and Nelson works well. Their relationship development comes off naturally and is something viewers can really get behind on. Unfortunately, the rest of the episode lacked the same tender love and care. There wasn’t anything new to see in “Top Goon” and the “been there done that” story played out as expected. Without many memorable moments from this episode, “Top Goon” winds up as a missed shot. It was a decent effort, but nothing fans of The Simpsons haven’t seen before.