cd8a34cc   
   From: mxg77@po.cwru.edu   
   Copy: mxg77@cwru.edu   
      
   Episode: fine. Milhouse as Kirk and the kids' traversing the world of   
   adults was kind of fun. Homer's hidden pictures plot was a little odd   
   but it was nice that it sort of helped at the end I guess.   
      
   Timing: UGH. You'd think these severe shortenings to shoehorn in   
   "world premieres" would have ended after the first few seasons (or   
   JABF07). See below. (Also, bottom thirds for the short? Come on.)   
      
      
   DYN:   
   ...the "noisy dinner" lady never actually turns the pages of the book   
   (given the way that bit ended it may suggest she really wasn't reading   
   from it at all)?   
   ...Bart arranges his cue cards back-to-front?   
   ...a condom is shown and "used" (is that a first?)   
      
   Previous episode stuff   
   3F18: The ol' getting-sticky-stuff-out-of-hair bit   
   5F17: Lisa gets stuck downtown because Marge won't take her to a high   
   culture thing   
      
   Meta   
   -Lisa's (and Maggie's) hair shape is drawn attention to twice: once,   
   subtly, at the bookstore, and again when Bart calls Lisa "starfish   
   hair"   
   -ratcheting Milhouse from Kirk's voice to Duffman's voice calls a   
   little attention to the slight similarity in those two voices, though   
   not nearly as much as Family Guy's Carter/Hartman/Seamus gag a few   
   years ago.   
      
   The episode ran very short. See below.   
      
      
      
   The Longest Daycare: some rambling thoughts   
   This is the first time I saw it. Overall decent. Wasn't crazy about   
   the operatic segment (despite the homage to older toons), but the bow   
   fakeout was clever.   
   Presented in 16:9. I don't know what its aspect ratio in theaters was,   
   but if it wasn't 2.35:1 then it was at least not produced with TV   
   overscan in mind, as the sides were a little cramped.   
   No majorly overt references to 8F18, but I liked the minor ones, like   
   the headmistress, A is A, and a nod in "Raggedy Rand" dolls.   
   Music by Hans Zimmer. Alf Clausen lost out on scoring The Movie to   
   him, unfairly I thought. This seems like rubbing salt in the wound.   
   I DO NOT LIKE the way this was shoved in (about 8:27 to 8:32, with   
   Family Guy starting on time at 9). It's not as if Fox doesn't   
   occasionally just run its Sunday programming late instead of/in   
   addition to joining in progress when sports run long; cutting 2-2.5   
   minutes out of the new Simpsons episode (total runtime about 19:09)   
   and new Bob's Burgers is pretty bad. The Simpsons started with a   
   clouds/couch-only opening, and assuming that same couch (the knight   
   beheading Homer) was the "real" one the rest of the opening only adds   
   about a minute to the runtime. Was something else major missing, or   
   was it still a very short ep? Stay tuned for the repeat, I guess.   
      
      
   Speaking of shortening episodes:   
   I didn't catch the beginning of PABF21 (Moonshine River) when it reran   
   in December, but I did this time (7:00, 2/17). It's missing. Instead   
   of a fairly lengthy sequence with a long couch gag (related in some   
   way to - ready? - The Longest Daycare), it's just clouds/TV (with the   
   original's nonstandard TV music replaced by the generic).   
   The rest of the episode is timed out the same, and even though the   
   couch gag contest is now down to three finalists, the whole spiel   
   about submitting entries is still there. (As with the second airing,   
   the Andy Williams dedication is gone.)   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)