Review: The Simpsons “The Dad-Feelings Limited”

 

 

Overview:

After an exhaustive day of taking the kids to birthday parties, Homer and Marge are looking for a little bit of adult company.  They find themselves at Moe’s Tavern for Trivia Night where they get partnered up with Comic Book Guy and his wife, Kumiko.

As Kumiko spends time around Marge and family, she finds a new ambition to have a child of her own. Unfortunately, Comic Book Guy doesn’t feel the same.  So, the Simpson family tries to help change his mind.  But it has the adverse effect of pushing him over the edge.

Comic Book Guy returns to his childhood home.  Confronting the damage of his youth may be the ticket to help Comic Book Guy get his head on straight again.

 

Our Take:

How can you not love these random January episodes of The Simpsons?  They are like a little treat to help you get through the mid-season break. Unfortunately, that means that the next new episode of The Simpsons will not be released until February 14.  But for now, we got ourselves a fresh episode to dive into.

This episode is another exploration of a Springfieldian.  In this case, Comic Book Guy, who has seen an increased amount of screen time over the last few years.  However, we dig a little deeper in this episode with a Wes Anderson-esque look at his youth.  And how his family of collectors neglected him into the lifestyle that he is known to live today.

Initiating this origin story involved bringing up some deep-seated issues for Springfield’s largest collector. Specifically, on the topic of having kids and raising a family with wife, Kumiko.  Hilariously, Comic Book Guy initially shows reluctance towards children based on his pure hatred for the small humans that torment him at work. But it turns out that there is much more depth to Comic Book Guy than we could have ever imagined.

Some fans who are not as completist as others may be uncertain of who exactly Kumiko is.  It is not your fault.  Kumiko made a splash in Springfield back in season 25 when she found a connection with our beloved Comic Book Guy.  Since then, she has assisted at The Android’s Dungeon & Baseball Card Shop.  However, her appearances have been minimal since becoming wed to Springfield’s biggest nerd.  Though an episode like this one is a great example of her value to the series.

Additionally, Kumiko finds a new voice with Jenny Yokobori taking over duties for Tress MacNeille. A shift that was initiated amid the Black Lives Matter Movement which saw multiple Caucasian voice actors concede their characters of other races.

There were also a couple of significant guest stars to appear in this new episode.  Bob Balaban takes the role of narrator to help capture the feel of a true Wes Anderson parody.  And appearing as Comic Book Guy’s father, Postage Stamp Fellow, is none other than Ghostbuster Dan Aykroyd.

Comforting is the use of the Simpsons family throughout this episode.  More and more the show is becoming loose with making other citizens of Springfield the star for half-an-hour.  However, through this piece, the Simpsons are intertwined with the plot and have an investment in the outcome.  They are not off having their own adventure with no connection.  Instead, they are involved in every step of the way.

This was a heavier story out of the comedy sitcom but takes on some major themes like fatherhood and childhood neglect.  The episode handles these tones with some humorous moments.  Meanwhile, the style change for Comic Book Guy’s background story helped to elevate this episode into something unique.

It was an unexpected direction for an episode involving Comic Book Guy. Typically, the writer’s take the opportunity to take jabs at nerd culture. Much like they did earlier this season when they sent him to Comic-Con. But this was a story about a man overcoming his fears of becoming a father.  It is great to see such a beloved character find some more depth, and it opens the doors for a future episode involving Comic Book Guy’s new child.