The Simpsons: Days of Future Future, review
R.I.P Homer #1. The Simpsons Days of Future Future is past and the present will never be the same.
The Simpsons “Days of Future Future” is yet another future episode and the future ain’t what it used to be. It can mess with Simpsons canon. I’ve always assumed there would be a future with a President Lisa Simpson. I assume it will happen before Malcolm from Malcolm in the Middle will be president. It’s a future I look forward to. Not only will she legalize “it” for Bart, both Lisa and Malcolm are both really intelligent people from families who know what’s what in the world. Not that I want a President Frankie Muniz or President Yeardley Smith, well maybe Yeardley, President Yeardley sounds like it will be comic gold. But I digress.
I’m going to miss Homer #1, his irrepressible humor, his insatiable hunger and unquenchable thirst. We’ve gone through so much. And come back for seconds. Free refills and all the shrimp we could eat. Thank science for Professor Frink, until Bart recorded over Homer, he begloibened the day. Homer has had a storied story. He came into this world a kind of magical gorilla, lived as a fat, fat, fat, reckless fat pig, died his way into the future future through a series of surplus wholesale clones, will be downloaded onto a zip drive, turned into a screensaver (bonk, bonk, ooh corner, badonk) and finally transported into a robot who sounds like Kazoo, the alien on The Flintstones. Very fitting. Except Homer’s junk, which comes separately and has to be assembled by hand.
The future in Springfield is a conglomeration of the myths of TV and movies made fleshy yellow. Bart feeds the dinosaurs from Jurassic Park , I mean Cretaceous Park, like he was working at Seaworld, only without the dolphin abuse. Lisa does charity work for the undead, her future being written by The Walking Dead. Her future marriage to Millhouse is in a rut until Millhouse gets bitten by a zombie and Lisa by the love bug. Once you go zombie you never go back. Just like bubble wrap is the great equalizer.
The Simpsons is playing it fast and loose with death this season, what with the death of the most beloved person in Springfield, the real-life death of Marcia Wallace, whatever happened to Nelson a few weeks ago and, I swear, Hans Moleman has died at least four times this year. The Simpsons play with the idea of Homer dying a lot. Probably more so after Matt Groening’s father, who Homer is based on, died. It’s a scab he just has to pick. In a past future episode (if this is beginning to sound like the Mad magazine version of the Poseidon Adventure, go down to go up, good), when Lisa tells her mom she’s marrying a Hugh Grant kinda guy, Marge says “I wish your father were here,” no Homer will not have had died in that future, he was out. The Simpsons has prepared us for Homer’s death. But not Abe’s, he’s at Homer’s funerals. Cremo, the crematorium-bot is ever-ready, though.
The Simpsons are a resilient family. Marge forever finding the bright spots and the spots she has to clean. She immediately accepts Homer #2. No reservations. A big hug. No mourning period. All fine and no looking back. One good scream ought to do it. And it does. In the future, it will cost Bart a week’s pay to have memories like that erased from his brain at Moving On. The Simpsons know how to cope. Bart copes with his divorce with a string of one night stands, including one where he learns what else Miss Hoover can hoover. Lisa does better than cope. She loves the sickness, while hating the sick, a turn on the love the sinner while hating the sin. But with zombies, there is no sin. Just brains. No breathing, no asthma. And now that Lisa has those vegetarian brains, for Zombie Vegans, or Zegans, meh, she is fulfilled. Thank goodness there’s no cure for zombies.
The Simpsons’s “Days of Future Future” is a laugh every 2.5 seconds, allowing for wind resistance. A very worthy entry into what will someday be an even longer running longest running show that has ever walked slowly up a flight of stairs. I absolutely love Jerry, Bart’s future ex-wife’s new soon to be ex-Alien lover. Nelson’s mom still has to strip at the age of 87 because there’s no more retirement. Even with 99 Democrats in the Senate, because the Republican still knows how to get things his way. Of course Ralph Wigum will be the new chief of police, he’s a chip of the old cop. Santa’s Little Hybrid is an unnatural progression that Cosmo doesn’t teach about.
This episode is a bit of a woo-hoo, indeed.
“Days of Future Future” is a play on a Moody Blues album, Days of Future Past, that the Moodies recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra in 1967. It marked their emergence from a British blues band harmonizing on “Go Now” to a prog-rock band with hits like “Nights in White Satin” and “Question.” (Great finger crunching chords.) But more importantly they appeared on The Simpsons.
“Days of Future Future” was written by J. Stewart Burns. The Simpsons stars Dan Castellaneta as Homer Simpson, Groundskeeper Willie and Principal Skinner, Julie Kavner as Marge Simpson, Selma and Patty Bouvier, Nancy Cartwright as Bart Simpson and Nelson, Yeardley Smith as Lisa Simpson, Pamela Hayden as Millhouse. Hank Azaria plays Professor Frink, Moe Szyslak (normal person) and the waiter with the attitude. Guest star: Amy Poehler.
But It All Went By So Fast: Krusty-Os made from 10% real food. First Church of Springfield Sign: Homer Simpson Clone Funeral. Previous Donations Honored. Simpson family banner: Welcome Back From The Dead, Dad. The future Bart lives at The Loft at Springfield Elementary. Cretaceous Park, Now Correctly Named. Zombie Rescue Mission: Used Brains, No Stems Please. Adult Skateboards For People Who Used to Be Cool. Moving One: Give Yourself a Present. Escape from the Past. Sign at Swapper Jack’s: Let Our Lettuce Tell You How Fresh It Is. Maggie has a date in the same restaurant that Bart has dinner with his soon-to-used-to-be-ex-wife. Bart Profile at Moving On: Bart J. Simpson, Not Very Smart. Use small words as if to child. Male Age 40, 5’ 7”, Eye Color – Black.
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Culture Editor Tony Sokol is a writer, playwright and musician. He contributed to Altvariety, Chiseler, Smashpipe, and other magazines. He is the TV Editor at Entertainment…