Haw-Haw Land
| "Haw-Haw Land" | |
|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 29 |
| Directed by | Bob Anderson |
| Written by | Tim Long Miranda Thompson |
| Original air date | January 7, 2018 |
"Haw-Haw Land" is the tenth episode of the twenty-ninth season of the animated television series The Simpsons, and the 628th episode of the series overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on January 7, 2018. The title and the opening musical number spoof La La Land.
Plot
On a rainy day, the Simpson family goes to a STEM conference, where Lisa Simpson meets Brendan Beiderbecke, a boy who is proficient in the piano, and falls in love with him.
Meanwhile, Bart Simpson does chemistry. He tries it out on his treehouse with Milhouse Van Houten where they turn the leaves of the tree into rock candy after Homer Simpson and Marge Simpson leave.
The bullies are overthrown by Brendan, including Lisa's ex-boyfriend Nelson Muntz who tries to impress her musically at Phineas Q. Butterfat's Ice Cream Parlor, starting a conflict in her heart.
Homer and Marge get worried over Bart, but he seems to be doing good for once, but an accident at school seems linked to him.
The family goes to a talent show, where Bart will put on a chemistry demonstration, while Nelson and Brendan perform. Nelson is booed all the way through while Brendan does well. However, he is disqualified for living in West Springfield and is going to be transferred to a school there. Lisa ends up alone, while Bart makes the school fill up with a chemistry reaction.
In the final scene at the talent show's after-party, Marge apologizes to the viewers stating that this episode was supposed to parody Moonlight, not La La Land. Homer states that nobody there has seen Moonlight. When Marge offers to show him that movie as they have the DVD, Homer states that he would rather see X-Men: Apocalypse which everyone in the background is interested in seeing.
Reception
Dennis Perkins of The A.V. Club gave this episode a C+, stating, "Pegging an episode of The Simpsons directly to a specific pop cultural target requires a whole lot more imagination to pull off than ‘Haw-Haw Land’ can muster. The title, bringing in Nelson’s catchphrase, is at the top of the cleverness heap here, seeing as how the school bully and one-time Lisa Simpson paramour forms one point in the episode’s La La Land love triangle. But if you’re going to do a parody of a lavish Hollywood musical love story (and, as the episode tag jokes, accidental momentary Oscar winner), you have to bring a lot more to the enterprise than is on display."[1]
Haw-Haw Land was watched by 6.95 million viewers with a 2.8 rating and a 9 share, making it Fox's highest-rated program of the night.[2]
References
- ^ Perkins, Dennis (January 7, 2018). "The Simpsons brings in Ed Sheeran to parody La La Land, forgets about Lisa". Avclub.com. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
- ^ Porter, Rick (January 9, 2018). "'Shark Tank' adjusts up, 'Simpsons,' 'Ghosted,' Golden Globes arrivals down: Sunday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
