Review: The Simpsons “Diary of a Chimpy Kid”
Overview (Spoilers Below):
Bart and Lisa adopt an abandoned baby chimp and clash over their surprisingly different parenting styles. When the chimp is abducted by a private wild animal zoo, the family goes on a mission to rescue him.
Our Take:
Season 38 of “The Simpsons” has gotten off to a strong start with a “Get Him to the Greek”-like plot involving Homer delivering a renowned yet crazy children’s author. Unsurprisingly, it’s a pretty wild task for Homer, but it isn’t without tenderness, celebrating the children’s books that inspired countless generations. In the next episode, we see the Simpson family tackle another assignment as crucial as picking up a well-known literature celebrity: raising a baby chimp. Despite the title referencing the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, the episode sadly doesn’t follow the plot of Jeff Kinney’s children’s novel series. However, I wouldn’t mind a Simpsons episode that parodies the book’s storyline and art style. Maybe have Bart be the wimpy kid while we’re at it?
Instead, the episode reuses the premise involving a character raising an animal, whether a dog, cat, or even a monkey. In this case, Bart and Lisa find themselves in a parental battle as they attempt to raise an abandoned chimp that once belonged to Krusty the Clown. While Lisa becomes a parent who lets the chimp explore its horizons, Bart becomes the most obnoxious of the bunch: the overprotective parent. While the plot is familiar by design, the episode continues the season’s ability to elevate its predictability through its humor and some on-the-nose callbacks. One such example is how it pokes fun at the public domain, with Itchy and Scratchy being in a religious episode because someone other than Krusty bought the rights. At the very least, it’s more tolerable than what they did to Winnie-the-Pooh in “Blood and Honey”.
It’s no surprise that “Diary of a Chimpy Kid” is another episode that revamps familiar ideas through charm and references. The “Curious George” joke was pretty obvious, and the inclusion of Phil Collins’ classic song, “You’ll Be in My Heart”, from “Tarzan” was fitting, given both involve monkeys, yet it got an unexpected laugh out of me. But amid the monkey business, it’s also an episode where Bart and Lisa work together toward a common goal and learn about the importance of parenthood. It may not be highly original in regards to its premise, but it is a diary that’s worth monkeying around over.
