Some Enchanted Evening (13 May 1990)

Homer and Marge enjoy a night out on the town. Meanwhile, at home, the kids deal with a diabolical babysitter.

Directors:

David Silverman, Kent Butterworth

Writers:

Matt Groening (created by), James L. Brooks (developed by),

Stars:

Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Dan Castellaneta	...	Homer Simpson / Barney Gumble / Arnie Pie (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Marge Simpson (voice)
Nancy Cartwright	...	Bart Simpson (voice)
Yeardley Smith	...	Lisa Simpson (voice)
Harry Shearer	...	Dr. Marvin Monroe (voice)
Penny Marshall	...	Ms. Botz (voice)
Hank Azaria	...	Moe Szyslak (voice)
Chris Latta	...	Moe / 'America's Most Armed and Dangerous' Host (voice) (as Christopher Collins)
June Foray	...	Rubber Baby Buggy Bumper Babysitting Service Receptionist / Happy Little Elf (voice)
Paul Willson	...	Florist (voice)

Storyline

Marge and Homer want to have a second honeymoon at a hotel but,due to Bart's naughtiness,have trouble in finding a baby-sitter,until the stern-looking Ms. Botz arrives. In fact, she is the notorious Baby-Sitter Bandit who robs houses in her charge but the kids manage to overpower her - though an uncomprehending Homer releases her again,and she escapes,leaving the news channel to label him a local boob.

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Plot Keywords:

babysitter | bound and gagged | pilot episode aired last | police | surrealism | 

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French Albanian

Release Date:

13 May 1990 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television, Gracie Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite being shown as the final episode of the 1st season, this was actually the first episode of the series to be made, as shown by the production code. The reason it was shown last was because the episode first came back ruined, so was sent back to Korea to be redone.

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Goofs

Traffic reporter Arnie Pie appears as KBBL's traffic reporter "Bill" Pie - perhaps a brother with an identical voice?

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Quotes

Homer Simpson: They all look so tasty, but I think I'll eat that one right there.
Maitre D': Why don't you pick one that's a little more frisky, sir?
Homer Simpson: Why?
Maitre D': Well, when you choose one that's floating upside down, it somewhat defeats the purpose of selecting a live lobster.

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Connections

Featured in The Simpsons: Hurricane Neddy (1996)

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Soundtracks

"Patricia"
Music by Perez Prado

User Reviews

Season 1: Rough around the edges but the core is there from the start

There is a later episode of The Simpson where Troy McClure shows clips from the original short cartoons from which this show came and he forces a laugh in response to a clip that is really way below the standard the show had reached by the time that clip show came around. I mention that because to a certain extent that is how I felt watching the very first season again, because this really is its first steps and it is still far from being the fully fleshed out, hilarious and clever show that it would soon become.

It is still good for what it is though and it isn't that it doesn't know what it is doing, just that it is taking its first steps as a show. The weekly plots are good but they tend to focus on one strand rather than several, as a result they seem more straightforward and perhaps a little slower than I expected. They tend to have good messages and be delivered in a way that avoids the usual sitcom sentiment, but they are still pretty direct in terms of what they are doing. The animation shows a big difference as well of course – although everything has stepped up from the original shorts, it still looks pretty rough and the characters and their voices are all not quite where they need to be (which is easy to say retrospectively I know). The supporting character base has a few in there but again the show hasn't had time to really bring anyone on and there are only a few characters that have more than a small amount to do in support.

It is still funny though and pretty smart with it, though it should be read that I dismiss it but just that the heights it went onto make it harder to look back on its humble beginnings and see them as anything else. I look forward to seeing the rough edges being taken off in the next few seasons and the whole thing being brought up to the shine I know it will achieve.