After eight years, the citizens of Springfield, especially the Simpson family, still have so much to do. Money-making schemes, aliens, possible divorces, bootlegging, countless injuries, a couple of surprising romances, and, of course, Sideshow Bob all make this year an eventful one. Eventful and always funny.

CRITIQUE

The world of animation on television has always been inherently more adult-oriented than the same medium has been in theaters, and as one of the longest-running shows on television, The Simpsons is very much a pioneer of that tradition. Though various other primetime animated series have appeared as well, to varying levels of success in ratings and reviews, this series has always been the groundbreaker in content and tone. The Simpsons is at its typically high stride during its eighth season, with all the beloved characters and sometimes surprising plotting providing the satirical humor audiences expect and some impressive animation as well.

Clever writing abounds in The Simpsons and the fact that 8 seasons have allowed for some poking fun at the path some long-running series can take, as in the episode that posits three ridiculous-on-purpose spin-off ideas or in “The Itchy and Scratchy and Poochie Show” when a new character is added to the beloved cartoon-within-the-cartoon to boost ratings. By lampooning this, The Simpsons shows that it is too wise to fall into the same trap. And why should they? The entertainment that steadily pours out of Springfield needs no changes. The hilarious moments the show is built on are character-specific and culturally astute. (A song in the Mary Poppins-rip off episode even references each of the Simpson clan’s characteristics.) Some unpredictable story points keep the plotting fresh, such as the appearance of Mr. Burns’ son and the unexpected rehabilitation of Sideshow Bob (but he still goes back to jail). The writers also seem to have fun venturing into new pairings, like Lisa with Mr. Burns or Bart and Lisa with Smithers.

There are some other aspects of the show that merit mentioning, especially the voice work. The lead actors of course are now so completely ingrained with these characters that popular culture now has a place for them, but the guest actors include Kelsey Grammar’s continued perfection as Sideshow Bob and his Frasier costar David Hyde Pierce as, of course, Sideshow Bob’s brother Cecil. (Sophistication in The Simpsons? Yep.) Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny show up, as do Rodney Dangerfield and Willem Dafoe. They all impress. Also, the animation, reliably good, seems to expand itself here, getting the characters into other places (and clothes) than it seemed to in other seasons. Still going strong today, The Simpsons had an eighth season full of the comedy everyone knows and loves. The film version of the series due next summer will undoubtedly feature more of the same.

THE VIDEO

As usual for television shows on disc, the full screen format is what you get here. This preserves the original television presentation of the animation.

THE AUDIO

Dolby Digital surround for the English track is included here, and there are also Spanish and French stereo tracks. Only English and Spanish have subtitles, though.

THE EXTRAS

Audio Commentaries: On every episode, very rare for any t.v. show on disc, there is a commentary track from people involved in the episode. Creator Groening appears on almost every one, while episode directors, animators, and actors join him. The information they give is nice, like the comments on script changes which show that animation can be just as fluid a process as live-action film. They also like to praise the animators who aren’t present and to mention deleted scenes (which viewers can now see on these discs). Sometimes I wonder if they say too much, as during the commentary on “Mountain of Madness” the writer of the episode is described as a weird recluse.

There is also a commentary from the animators featuring Groening, Mike Anderson, Bob Anderson, and Susie Dietter on one episode from each disc. These tracks can be found under the heading “A Bit from the Animators.” The commentators have color-coded pens to actually mark the image on screen to go along with their discussion. Fans will love these features.

“The Simpsons House”: Less than four minutes about the life-size replica of the Simpsons house makes up this featurette. The planning and building of the house, which is in Las Vegas, is detailed and it is fairly interesting. I like learning that the house is actually around 10 feet narrower in real life and how the color scheme was modified a bit to appear more cartoonish.

Multi-Angle Showcases: On a few of the episodes, viewers have the option to see the animation in various stages-- storyboards and animatics. The angle button on the DVD remote allows for switching between each view.

Deleted Scenes: A lot of the episodes include additional scenes and they are almost always as funny as the rest of the shows. Particularly look for the one in “Brother from Another Series” as the money falls down from the top of the dam. Fans will have fun watching them all, though, and when the feature is turned on, all the viewer has to do is press enter when the scissor symbol appears onscreen and the scene will play.

Original Sketches: These are brief slideshows of some of the sketches the animators made at the beginning of creating some episodes. There is no sound accompanying them, but animation junkies will enjoy this. I like the arrows on the sketches that indicate how the camera will move.

Promo Spots: Creator Groening gives an introduction to the season by voicing over some clips and letting viewers know what they can look forward to. There are also two promos from FOX featuring Groening drawing Bart and Homer in moments on the camera lens-- its neat how his initials appear in the drawing of Homer.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The number and quality of the extra features would almost be enough to buy The Simpsons: The Complete 8th Season, but the series itself is excellent on its own. The humor, character-based and tongue-in-cheek, is as effective as ever and the voice work is still stellar. Fans will want to buy, no question, but even a casual Simpsons viewer probably will feel the money is well-spent and will buy, not rent. Even the menus are great on this 4-disc set.