I don't think this was the best way to mark The Simpsons' 500th episode milestone. There have been far superior episodes this season, such as The Book Job and Holidays of Future Passed. At Long Last Leave was a bit of a let-down. They did a couple cool things, like the alternate beginning theme and Homer and Marge sneaking around Springfield, but other than that there were very few smiles to be had.
The plot utilized in the episode has been tread in different variations plenty of times in previous Simpsons episodes - to greater effect. Even the idea of Springfield having a secret meeting was eerily similar to the classic Malcolm in the Middle episode where the town has a block party every time Malcolm's family goes out of town. I would have liked to have seen some more originality. How many times before have we watched the Simpson family adapt to a new way of life? You'll find that this episode and The Simpsons Movie have a lot in common. What way is that to mark the occasion of reaching 500 episodes? With all that said, it still is a fantastic achievement. I don't think the core of the show is too tired to reach 600 episodes; I think that the writers have settled for what's easy too often since the turn of the millennium.
Here's to many more episodes, and here's to hoping they're better than this one.
The plot utilized in the episode has been tread in different variations plenty of times in previous Simpsons episodes - to greater effect. Even the idea of Springfield having a secret meeting was eerily similar to the classic Malcolm in the Middle episode where the town has a block party every time Malcolm's family goes out of town. I would have liked to have seen some more originality. How many times before have we watched the Simpson family adapt to a new way of life? You'll find that this episode and The Simpsons Movie have a lot in common. What way is that to mark the occasion of reaching 500 episodes? With all that said, it still is a fantastic achievement. I don't think the core of the show is too tired to reach 600 episodes; I think that the writers have settled for what's easy too often since the turn of the millennium.
Here's to many more episodes, and here's to hoping they're better than this one.