"The Simpsons" At Long Last Leave (2012)

Director:

Matthew Nastuk

Writers:

Matt Groening (creator)
James L. Brooks (developer) ...
(more)

TV Series:

"The Simpsons" (1989)

Original Air Date:

19 February 2012 (Season 23, Episode 14)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family

Plot:

The entire town votes to kick the Simpsons out of Springfield, so they decide to move to "The Outlands." |

Plot Keywords:

Luddite | Hit With A Log | Fugitive Sex | Tar And Feathers | Off The Grid

Cast

Dan Castellaneta	...	Homer Simpson / Abraham Simpson (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Marge Simpson (voice)
Nancy Cartwright	...	Bart Simpson / Additional Voices (voice)
Yeardley Smith	...	Lisa Simpson (voice)
Hank Azaria	...	Moe Szyslak (voice)
Harry Shearer	...	Kent Brockman / Ned Flanders (voice)
Alison Krauss	...	Herself (voice)
Union Station	...	Themselves (voice)
Julian Assange	...	Himself (voice)
Kelsey Grammer	...	Sideshow Bob (voice)
Jackie Mason	...	(voice)
Chris Edgerly	...	(voice)
Pamela Hayden	...	Milhouse Van Houten (voice)
Tress MacNeille	...	Dolph (voice)

Directed by
Matthew Nastuk

Writing credits
Matt Groening		(creator)
James L. Brooks		(developer) &
Matt Groening		(developer) &
Sam Simon		(developer)
Michael Price		(written by)

Original Music by
Alf Clausen

Visual Effects by
Steven Fahey	....	visual effects artist

Animation Department
Desiree E. Craig	....	animation production associate
Rachel Greenberg	....	animation production assistant
Erika Isabel Vega	....	scene planner

Editorial Department
Larry Field	....	digital intermediate colorist
Paul Amadeus Kim	....	non-linear digital assistant
Kurtis Kunsak	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Alf Clausen	....	orchestrator
Scott Clausen	....	orchestrator
Dell Hake	....	conductor
Dell Hake	....	orchestrator
Chris Ledesma	....	music editor
Rick Riccio	....	music mixer

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Matt Groening		creator

Film Editing by
Tim Long

Art Department
Jeff 'Swampy' Marsh	....	storyboard artist (multiple episodes)
Chris Reccardi	....	storyboard artist (1992-1993)
Lance Wilder	....	design supervisor (1989-)

Sound Department
Alek Bromke	....	voiceover recording assistant
Colin Cooper	....	voiceover recordist
Colette Dahanne	....	adr mixer
Jesse Dodd	....	adr recordist (as Jesse K-D. Dodd)
Yuri Gorbachow	....	adr recordist (1991)
Louise Jaffe	....	sound mixer
Conner Moore	....	adr recordist
Roger Morris	....	adr mixer
John Rotondi	....	sound engineer: Y4
Eric Shemkovitz	....	adr recordist

Visual Effects by
Simon de Jong	....	visual effects
Adam Howard	....	digital compositor
Steven J. Scott	....	digital compositor

Camera and Electrical Department
Ron Eisenberg	....	still photographer

Animation Department
Julie Forte	....	animator
Erick Geisler	....	background color key (season 1)
Aimee Major	....	character layout artist (2004-2005)
Ted Mathot	....	character layout artist (1994-1995)
Nollan Obena	....	character layout artist
William Powloski	....	animator
Anthony Ho Wong	....	character layout artist

Casting Department
Jenifer Newman	....	casting assistant (1994-1995)

Editorial Department
Patrick Buchanan	....	color timer
Geoffrey Mark	....	post-production coordinator

Music Department
Frank Bennett	....	orchestrator
Brad Dechter	....	orchestrator
Jason Lloyd	....	scoring assistant
Don Nemitz	....	orchestrator
Gregory Prechel	....	orchestrator
John Rodd	....	orchestral scoring recordist
John Rotondi	....	scoring engineer: Y4
Tom Steel	....	scoring assistant
Damon Tedesco	....	scoring assistant

Other crew
Greg Camilleri	....	executive assistant to vice president of production
Michael Gerard	....	retakes
Lawrence Jonas	....	assistant to producer
Kian Kaul	....	assistant to writer
Ani Martirossians	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Gracie Films
• 20th Century Fox Television

Distributors

• Fox Network (2012) (USA) (TV)
• Viasat 6 (2012) (Hungary) (TV)

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Company:

Gracie Films

Trivia:

The famous chalk board and couch gag, paid tribute to The Simpsons reaching 500 episodes. Milhouse writes "Bart's earned a day off on the chalk board. Also, a montage of every couch gag leading up to the 500th episode. With Homer and Bart in tuxedos, strangling each other at the end.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the Simpsons are thrown out of Springfield, while riding in a car there is dialogue between Lisa and Homer. Lisa asks "Dad, where are we going? Do we have a plan?", while she is asking this question her necklace is white but right after that for a couple of seconds it is orange, just like the one Marge wears.

Quotes:

Homer Simpson:There's only one way out. I have to man up. Okay, manning up... Manning up... Manning...
[high-pitched whine]
Homer Simpson:Oh, girling down! Girling down!

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985)

Soundtrack:

The Simpsons Theme

500th

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.