Bart the Genius

For the second episode, we are given a study of how Bart fits into his school. After faking an test, he is determined to be a genius and sent off to a school of gifted kids. He gets a place free of rules, but it's elitist and exclusionary.

The other gifted kids know he's faking and his former friends hate him.

Another large source of the plot is how Homer and Bart interact; something that prevails all throughout Season 1.

In this case, Homer starts to give preferential treatment and it's funny to see.

As the earlier Simpsons maintain a moral bent nearly every episode, it has a strong lesson of appreciating where you belong, even if it doesn't make you the most happy. I liked this better than the first episode because it more properly represented what the Simpsons are about and felt better paced.

A pretty strong showing here.

Bart the Genius continues Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire's good work introducing the cast while providing more laughs than the opening episode.

For most episodes in the early seasons Bart was the star of the show and this is the clearest indication. There is no discernible B story, instead we only see the family react to the unexpected news that Bart is a gifted child.

The episode opens with a real slice of Americana as the family sit down to play scrabble. It doesn't take long for this illusion to be shattered however and for The Simpsons to show how different it is to other comedies available at the time.

Homer and Marge agonise over what words to play before choosing 'he' and 'do'. When Lisa plays 'id' nobody believes her until she rescues the dusty dictionary from under the couch to prove it.

We only had a brief glimpse into Springfield Elementary in the first episode, Bart the Genius dives into Bart's school life in a lot more detail. Martin is absolutely insufferable on debut, much more abrasive than he will later be which means we feel no sympathy when Bart takes his place.

Bart and Homer have never been closer than they are in this episode and it seems set up for a touching finale. As the sentimental music starts and Bart comes clean about his deception you can almost hear Homer's response before he says anything, 'It's ok son, we love you for who you are. Always be yourself.' Instead Homer shouts and chases Bart through the house forcing him to lock himself in his room.

From the get go The Simpsons was determined to show it wasn't your typical family sitcom. The fact they were able to do this with so much heart was truly a work of genius.

Definitely a step up from the first episode. This time we get an in depth look at Bart and his education troubles. It's done cleverly.

We start to get an idea that there is more going on here than simple laughs. This is a character that we are made to Genuinely feel For. They show us a show that has a lot of heart behind the jokes. That has heartfelt messages and stories to tell.

The animation is still crude and there are funny things like Milhouse's hair being black that seem strange to us now.

We are introduced to Martin Prince and he is incredibly obnoxious at this stage of the show. I don't remember disliking him that much.

Lisa is shown to be more onboard with homer and bart's childish shenanigans at this stage - I think she'll evolve to be more like the disapproving Marge.

Homer is shown to have a lot in common with Bart. He loves him but he isn't equipped to know how to show that love. A very relatable concept.

This episode really does a great job of setting up Bart as a character and showing different sides of his personality. The loveable hoodlum or the brat with a heart of gold.

Bart cheats on his IQ test.

This is a strong episode that makes the most out of a generally humorous situation.

The comedy flows well as Bart is royally humiliated for an instance of dishonesty. Jokes relating to intelligence and lack of it all land nicely.

It also works well as an early episode that introduces various aspects of the characters to the audience. There is no doubt where the brains of the family lie after watching it.

To me this is more of a pilot then Simpsons Roasting on a open fire. The Pictures above the couch are different many characters have different attitudes Martin is built up as Bart's foil and nemesis Homer is overly proud of Bart being a genius where as he wouldn't care less later on. This Episode is one of the reasons for the theory that Bart Or the family are secretly intelligent. Bart is alienated by his friends Even Milhouse. One of the things I have to mention is the opening theme that is noticeably Different it's cut out in Syndicated airing but you can tell it's not like the traditional theme.It has a Different feel I suggest watching just to see how far the show has change since 1990.