Alex RoccoThe Simpsons: Season 2

Came as advertised, I'm happy

"Welcome to Season Two of The Simpsons on DVD - twenty-two jam-packed episodes of malicious cartoon frivolity that helped make 1990 and 1991 such entertaining and annoying years. This is when full-blown Simpsons Mania hit America, and millions of thoughtful young people across the land were either wearing or selling bootleg Bart Simpson T-shirts.Many of the episodes from this season remain among my all time favs. I'm particularly fond of Bart's pride in getting a grade of D-minus at the end of "Bart Gets an F"; the debut of the ever-slobbering Kang and Kodos in the first annual Treehouse of Horror episode; Homer almost making it across Springfield Gorge on Bart's skateboard; Mr.Burns taking a reluctant bite of Blinky, the three-eyed fish; Maggie bonking Homer with a mallet after watching an Itchy & Scratchy cartoon; Bart going to Hell in "Bart Gets Hit by a Car"; and the flashback scene in "The Way We Was", when Homer catches his first glimpse of Marge in high school (she was hot).So put on a ratty old Simpsons t-shirt, grab a bowlful of heavily-salted snacks, and sink into the couch for a marathon of Simpsons classics. Enjoy!Episodes include:Disc One"Bart Gets an F" 7F03"Simpson and Delilah" 7F02"Treehouse of Horror" 7F04"Two Cars In Every Garage And Three Eyes On Every Fish" 7F01"Dancin' Homer" 7F05"Dead Putting Society" 7F08Disc Two"Bart vs. Thanksgiving" 7F07"Bart the Daredevil" 7F06"Itchy & Scratchy & Marge" 7F09"Bart Gets Hit By a Car" 7F10"One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish" 7F11"The Way We Was" 7F12Disc Three"Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment" 7F13"Principal Charming" 7F15"Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?" 7F16"Bart's Dog Gets an F" 7F14"Old Money" 7F17"Brush With Greatness" 7F18Disc Four"Lisa's Substitute" 7F19"The War of The Simpsons" 7F20"Three Men and a Comic Book" 7F21"Blood Feud" 7F22Guest stars include Harry Fierstein, James Earl Jones, Tony Bennett, Tom Poston, Alex Rocco, Phil Hartman, Larry King, George Takei, Sab Shimono, Jon Lovitz, Danny DeVito, Tracey Ullman, Audrey Meadows, Ringo Starr, Dustin Hoffman(Sam Etic), Cloris Leachman, and Daniel Stern.

COOL! (Name the character and episode of that hysterical line.) Plenty has been said about the technical aspects of this DVD set, both good and bad. Personally I find the color and focus suspect. But all hardcore Simpsons fanatics should let these limitations slide because you may not be seeing the forest for the trees. Here we have the full second season of the Simpsons, and this was the season when the show really took off. Of course during the first season the Simpsons, and especially Bart, became a cultural phenomenon. But the show itself was still developing, with the animators and voice actors still ironing out the kinks of the classic Simpsons style. In this second season, not only are the animation and voices solidified, but you can see the writing and characterizations getting better with each passing episode. Bart was moving into a more complex and subversive brand of hell-raising, the true depths of Lisa's strange intelligence were coming to the fore, and Homer most of all was becoming deeper and more quotable. Also notice that this season was when Homer started to surpass Bart as the true star of the series. The second season gave us great classic episodes like "Oh Brother Where Art Thou" (first appearance of Unky Herb), and the politically subversive "Itchy & Scratchy & Marge." A surprising amount of emotional power, which would later become standard for the show, is revealed in "Bart Gets an F" where Bart shows true vulnerability, and "Lisa's Substitute" in which we start to plumb the depths of Lisa's character.Some editing seems to have taken place with these episodes, showing that we are watching post-syndication versions. The most blatant example is the deletion of a scene from "Bart the Daredevil" - that being the second time Homer falls down Springfield Gorge. This may be anathema to superfanatics. The DVD extras still contain a few throwaways but are generally better than the first season package. Included are the two videos from the "Simpsons Sing the Blues" album, which are reminders of what a huge cultural phenomenon the Simpsons were back at the beginning of the 90's. The best bonus offering is an interview with Matt Groening in which he describes the inspirations for the characters and the philosophy behind the show.