Review: The Simpsons “Yellow Mirror”
Overview (Spoilers Below):
The Simpsons struggle to find the light through two dark, curious tales.
Our Take:
The Disney+ exclusive episodes of The Simpsons have proven that there’s no limit the dysfunctional family can’t push through, notably for their satire. We saw Homer tackle characters from “Top Gun”, “Mad Men”, “Funny Face”, and the infamous “Joker” movies. Additionally, we saw its noir tale of betrayal and murder through Marge’s con-artist ways, which has been my favorite so far. Now, for its third and final exclusive episode of season 37, The Simpsons is tackling the bizarre and creepy world of “Black Mirror”, a dystopian anthology series that focuses on various stories involving technology amid contemporary social issues. I’ve not watched a single episode of that series, which is one of the three shows responsible for reviving the anthology television format. However, I did hear some discussions about it, which is good enough to understand the context The Simpsons is satirizing.
“Yellow Mirror” consists of two bizarre tales in which the Simpson family encounters strange events caused by technology. The first, “The Way We Wasn’t”, sees Homer being transported back to 1974 by a peculiar light after a blackout. This leads him to question whether his life with his family has been a dream all along, prompting him to create a franchise inspired by his “adventures”. This segment delivers plenty of humor that isn’t afraid to satirize itself, along with a return to the old-fashioned format from earlier episodes. However, its real hook is Homer’s psychological distress towards reality vs. fiction while living in an alternate lifestyle. It may not explore this aspect on a more emotional level, but it serves as an oddball “what if” scenario that pushes Homer to take a different approach to his life.
The second segment, “I Have No Tablet, But I Must Stream”, is the best of the duology, which, unsurprisingly, centers on screen addiction, particularly toddlers. In this case, Marge distracts Maggie with a MyPad to take a break from her baby responsibilities. However, Maggie grows a bit too attached to the videos on the tablet, leading her to help an AI program named Hailey take over the city’s electronics and trap the other toddlers and their parents in City Hall. This segment handles this relatable topic effectively through its humor and writing, exploring the pressures of human connection amid the rising trend of technology and screen addiction. While it can be frustrating to tackle baby duties while handling your own responsibilities, it’s certainly better than having a fictional character on the screen teach your kid.
Overall, “Yellow Mirror” is another strong special that uses the show’s satire and heart to deliver wit and entertainment. While the first segment has some small shortcomings in the psychological perspective of reality vs. fiction, the second segment compensates with a smart and addicting portrayal of tech addiction from toddlers. As a result, I would consider this the best exclusive episode Season 37 offered on Disney+, or, in this case, the strangest. With three back-to-back successes for these specials, this shows great promise for the series’s upcoming 38th season, which will provide a similar episodic format with 15 television episodes and several exclusives for Disney+. The question now is which of these specials will the Simpson family tackle next?
