Anybody, who thinks the later episodes of the Simpsons were the best, just doesn't get the humor that the original episodes had. It had that Derivative DY equals 3R squared, DR over three or R squared, DR or RDRR feel to it. Don't you get it? It had that Hardy-har-har feel to it. This episode is a great example as it had very smart clever that makes you think, while having a good laugh. Very cleaver cultural references throughout the episode ranging from the EMCSQU building blocks, 1945 novel Brideshead Revisited, chess grandmaster Anatoly Karpov, Opera 'Carmen' to Jane Goodall's study of chimpanzees gag. The later episodes kinda dumb it down to the point, that's insulting to the audience. "Bart the Genius" is the second episode of The Simpsons' first season, which originally aired on the Fox network on January 14, 1990. It was also the first ever episode to use the opening sequence. Creator Matt Groening developed the lengthy sequence in order to cut down on the animation necessary for each episode, but devised the two gags as compensation for the repeated material each week such as the chalkboard gag, and the couch gag. These would become trademarks for the show. A lot was riding with this episode as animation for the show was expensive to produce. Without a huge audience watching this episode, the show could had tanked. It nearly happen, as the disastrous first choice for the season opening, episode 13 of the first season, 'Some Enchanted Evening' fell behind production schedule due to conflicts in animation between Klasky Csupo, the company animation studio that produced the 1989's earlier Simpsons shorts and producer James L. Brooks. Although it was the first episode produced, it aired as the season finale due to significant animation problems as James L. Brooks felt that the animation was pretty awful. That episode was supposed to meant as an introduction to the characters, but since it got push; the Christmas episode 'Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire' was then considered as a pilot/ first episode, rather than a special. The whole animation future of the series depended on how the animation turned out on this episode, 'The Bart the Genius'. While, the animation proved to be more acceptable, there were a few mistakes like badly drawn scenes and misused of colors. Examples: I notice were like a brown banana and the goo appear and disappear in the bathing scene. I can understand, the bath scene, but how on earth, did Korean animators not know what color; a banana is?! Backgrounds are blurred, blended color instead of a picture of sky with clouds. It's like someone messed with the hue. Lucky for us, the audience, James L. Brooks continue to produce the series, as he deem the episode as alright, with a few, easily fixable problems needed. In my opinion, the animation in the earlier episodes are pretty primitive. It makes the episodes look mediocre as hell, but at less, the writing was better than later seasons. At less, it's not a snooty movie directed by some Swedish meatball. In the episode, written by Jon Vitti, Bart (Voiced by Nancy Cartwright) cheats on an aptitude test and is declared a genius, so he is sent to a school for gifted children. Though he initially enjoys being treated as a genius, he begins to see the downside of his new life. This episode marks the first use of Bart's catchphrase "Eat my shorts' that became a universal catch phrase in the 1990s. There were a few good things about the episode. I love the dream design of Bart's visualization of the math problem. It does remind me of the art of Saul Steinberg. This episode also introduced the characters Martin Prince (Voiced by Russ Taylor) and Bart's teacher Edna Krabappel (Voiced by Marsha Wallace) that would be recurring characters in later episodes. There were a few emotional touching scenes that you rarely see in the newer episodes, like Homer Simpson (Voiced by Dan Castellaneta) playing catch with Bart. Some of the other faults of the episode besides the colors, could be the fact that Aptitudes tests don't measure IQ. They are used to determine the type of work you're best suited for. Second, a lot of viewers complaining that comic books were deem in the episode in a negative light, as unintelligent trash. Another would that it focus way too much on Bart, and little about the other characters, so not so great as a character-building episode. Overall: It was a pretty good episode, as it was funny and worth the time watching. So watch out, a Kwyjibo on the loose, so go brown bananas and watch this episode!
Review of Bart the Genius
