Every Simpsons Ever: “The Call of the Simpsons”

Episode 7: “The Call of the Simpsons”

While it starts as a “Keeping up with the Flanderses”-style parable, Episode 7 quickly escalates into an absurd, surreal camping experience.

It all begins with Bart mowing the front lawn. His push-mower is old and tough to haul throughout the yard.  So when he sees neighbor Rod Flanders (in his debut!) atop a big beautiful ride-on mower, it’s hard not to get jealous. This one-upsmanship is further one-upped when Ned Flanders pulls up outside in a brand-new RV. And the thing is just pimped out with all the most state-of-the-art travel home technology. Homer, having grown impatient with his neighbor’s good fortune, vows to buy an even bigger RV of his own, with better options and cooler features.

And with that, the Simpsons family makes their way down to Bob’s RV Roundup. Here, Cowboy Bob, voiced by Albert Brooks, shows them the Ultimate Behemoth, the only RV bigger and better than Ned’s.   With his family waiting patiently outside, Homer gets put through the ringer by Cowboy Bob, who promises it’s only the computer who is upset with the family’s financial standing. So, with their bad credit fully exposed, the Simpsons are forced to drive off in an old, used, dilapidated clunker.

“When you’re an experienced woodsman like me, you get a feel for these things. It becomes natural, like a third sense.” – Homer Simpson

But this is where the episode kinda goes off the cliff (quite literally, really). The family sets out in their new, crappy RV. Believing it to be an all-terrain vehicle, Homer drives it off-road, where they immediately start experiencing problems. Finally, Homer is able to bring the RV to a screeching halt at the edge of a giant cliff, where it immediately plummets to a fiery doom. The Simpsons, safe but stranded, then set out on wacky, cartoon-trope camp adventures.

And I think this is what strikes me as uninteresting about this episode.  Whereas “Moaning Lisa” showed depth and heart rare for a cartoon, episode 7 quickly falls back on physics-defying gags that are all-too typical for some cartoons. Rather than double down on the previous episode’s emotional weight, the writers chose to use this episode as a pallet-cleanser. And it feels disingenuous. To have really captured Lisa’s youthful angst just one episode ago, and then to have her return to being happy-go-lucky smacks as untruthful.

Regardless, there are some genuinely funny moments here. Albert Brooks’ Cowboy Bob is hilarious. And so is Maggie being raised by bears. And while it may not soar to new emotional heights, this episode is a lighthearted example of the Simpsons working together to overcome a conflict.

FIRSTS

• Rod Flanders
• Cowboy Bob

GAGS

• Chalkboard: “I will not draw naked ladies in class.”
• Couch: The couch gag here is that there is no couch gag. The family members take their seats normally and everything proceeds without incident.  I’d wondered how quickly the writers would use the “non-gag” gag. Episode 7. That was quick…