Pin Gal

Last updated

"Pin Gal"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.Season 34
Episode 17
Directed by Chris Clements
Written by Jeff Westbrook
Production codeOABF10
Original air dateMarch 19, 2023 (2023-03-19)
Guest appearances
Episode features
Couch gag Dolls of the Simpson family are placed on the couch. A dog grabs the Homer doll with its mouth and chews it.
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Hostile Kirk Place"		Next →
"Fan-ily Feud"
The Simpsons (season 34)
List of episodes

"Pin Gal" is the seventeenth episode of the thirty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons , and the 745th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 19, 2023. The episode was directed by Chris Clements and written by Jeff Westbrook.

Contents

In this episode, Marge must win a bowling match to save the town's bowling alley but encounters someone from her past. Guest stars Albert Brooks and Fred Armisen reprise their previous roles. The episode received positive reviews.

Plot

Homer learns that Barney's Bowlarama is permanently closing. Homer and his bowling teammates attempt to convince the owner not to sell, but he has already sold it to Terrence, who likes the aesthetic. He plans to close the bowling alley and turn it into a place for hipsters. Homer asks for one week to show that the townspeople enjoy bowling. Terrence agrees, but Homer is unsuccessful. Later, Homer and Marge go bowling where he and Terrence see that Marge bowls well. Terrence offers to keep the bowling alley open if Marge can defeat a bowler of Terrence's choosing, and Marge accepts.

While practicing, Marge notices a photo of Jacques on the wall and begins to bowl poorly. Homer decides to bring Jacques to coach her. Jacques tells Marge that he would train her and not attempt to restart their previous romantic encounter. [lower-alpha 1] However, Jacques continues to tempt Marge. Grampa notices Jacques' and Marge's interactions.

Grampa shows Jacques' social media posts to Homer, which show Jacques' encounters with other female bowlers. Homer goes to Jacques' apartment, which is covered with photos of Marge. He and Jacques fight until Marge arrives and confesses her previous encounter. Homer forgives Marge, and they leave. At the bowling match, Terrence selects Jacques as Marge's opponent. Marge wins a close match, and Jacques is deported for an expired visa. Terrence agrees to keep the bowling alley open but only with one lane available in order to artificially create a lengthy waiting period.

Production

Albert Brooks reprised his role as Jacques. Brooks previously appeared in this role in the first season episode "Life on the Fast Lane." Brooks has guest starred as several different characters over the course of the series. [1] As usual, he was credited as "A. Brooks." Fred Armisen reprised his role as Terrence. Armisen first appeared in this role in the twenty-fourth season episode "The Day the Earth Stood Cool." [2]

Viewers noticed a continuity error because Marge previously told Homer about Jacques' interest in Marge in the sixth season episode "Another Simpsons Clip Show." [3] However, executive producer Al Jean stated that clip show episodes were non-canon. [4]

In addition, the cigarette machine in Moe's Tavern, which had appeared since the beginning of the series, was permanently removed. Jean stated that a replacement object would appear in future episodes. [5]

Reception

Viewing figures

The episode earned a 0.23 rating and was watched by 0.86 million viewers, which was the most watched show on Fox that night. [6]

Critical response

Tony Sokol of Den of Geek gave the episode 4.5 out of 5 stars. He thought the whole episode was "entertaining." He highlighted the background jokes featuring Hans Moleman and Fat Tony. He also praised the performance by Albert Brooks. [2]

John Schwarz of Bubbleblabber gave the episode an 8 out of 10. He highlighted the flashback scenes and the performances by Brooks and Armisen. He also thought that the impact of Jacques on Homer and Marge's relationship was not as effective after the many episodes featuring Homer and Marge being romantically tempted since Jacques first appeared. [7]

Notes

  1. ↑ As depicted in the 1990 episode "Life on the Fast Lane"

Related Research Articles

"Life on the Fast Lane", also known as "Jacques to Be Wild" in the UK, is the ninth episode of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 18, 1990. It was written by John Swartzwelder and directed by David Silverman. Albert Brooks guest starred as Jacques, a French bowling instructor, with him being credited as "A. Brooks".

"The War of the Simpsons" is the twentieth episode of the second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 2, 1991. In the episode, Homer gets drunk at a dinner party and embarrasses Marge, so she enrolls them in marriage counseling at a lakeside retreat with Reverend Lovejoy.

"Team Homer" is the twelfth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 7, 1996. In the episode, Homer starts a bowling team with Moe, Apu, and Otto. When Mr. Burns discovers the team was funded with his money, he insists on joining, but the team fears he will cost them the league championship. In the subplot, Bart's "Down with homework" T-shirt incites a school riot, so Principal Skinner implements a uniform dress code.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">In the Name of the Grandfather</span> 14th episode of the 20th season of The Simpsons

"In the Name of the Grandfather" is the fourteenth episode of the twentieth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on Sky1 on St. Patrick's Day, March 17, 2009 and aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 22, 2009. It was the first episode of the show to premiere in Europe before airing on Fox. In the episode, the Simpsons buy a new hot tub and spend so much time relaxing in it that they neglect Abraham "Grampa" Simpson. Homer decides to make it up to Grampa by helping him do one thing he wants to do. Grampa reminisces about O'Flanagan's pub in Ireland where he once had the best night of his life so the Simpsons travel there. Marge, Bart and Lisa visit various Irish landmarks while Homer and Grampa buy O'Flanagan's during a night of binge drinking and soon discover that pubs are no longer popular in Ireland.

"The Day the Earth Stood Cool" is the seventh episode of the twenty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by Matt Selman. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 9, 2012.

"Lisa with an 'S'" is the seventh episode of the twenty-seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 581st episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Bob Anderson and written by Stephanie Gillis. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 22, 2015. This marks the final episode to credit Sam Simon as executive producer until "Lisa the Veterinarian."

"Dad Behavior" is the eighth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 604th episode of the series overall. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 20, 2016. The plot revolves around Homer discovering an app that makes his life easier, and Grampa learning that he's about to become a father again. It was the first episode to be written by Ryan Koh, and was directed by Steven Dean Moore. Matt Leinart makes a guest appearance as himself.

"3 Scenes Plus a Tag from a Marriage" is the thirteenth episode of the twenty-ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 631st episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Matthew Nastuk and written by Tom Gammill and Max Pross. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 25, 2018. The title is a reference to the 1973 Swedish television miniseries Scenes from a Marriage.

"'Tis the 30th Season" is the tenth episode of the thirtieth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 649th episode overall. The episode was directed by Lance Kramer with a story by Jeff Westbrook and teleplay by John Frink and Joel H. Cohen. It aired in the United States on Fox on December 9, 2018.

"Woo-Hoo Dunnit?" is the twenty-second and penultimate episode of the thirtieth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 661st episode overall. The episode was directed by Steven Dean Moore and written by Brian Kelley. It aired in the United States on Fox on May 5, 2019.

"Yokel Hero" is the 14th episode of the thirty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 698th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 7, 2021. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver, and written by Jeff Martin & Samantha Martin.

"Podcast News" is the sixth episode of the thirty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 15, 2020. In the episode, Grampa Simpson is accused of murdering his girlfriend, and Kent Brockman creates a podcast about it. Brockman's podcast is able to convince the town that Grampa was guilty of the crime, including Grampa himself, who confesses to the police. However, after the discovery that Grampa's girlfriend is still alive, he is exonerated and set free.

"The Dad-Feelings Limited" is the 11th episode of the thirty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 695th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on January 3, 2021. The episode was directed by Chris Clements and written by Ryan Koh.

"Do Pizza Bots Dream of Electric Guitars" is the 15th episode of the thirty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 699th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 14, 2021. The episode was directed by Jennifer Moeller, and written by Michael Price. In this episode, Homer attempts to reunite an animatronic band from his youth, but TV and film producer J. J. Abrams gets ahold of them first. The episode was given positive reviews. The title of the episode is a play to the dystopian novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick.

"The Man from G.R.A.M.P.A." is the 21st and penultimate episode of the thirty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 705th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on May 16, 2021. The episode was directed by Mike Frank Polcino, and written by Carolyn Omine. In this episode, Homer meets a British secret agent.

"Bart's in Jail!" is the second episode of the thirty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 708th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 3, 2021. The episode was directed by Steven Dean Moore, and written by Nick Dahan.

"Mothers and Other Strangers" is the eighth episode of the thirty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 715th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 28, 2021. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver and written by Al Jean. This episode is a retcon of the events of Homer's mother Mona Simpson since "Mother Simpson", in which Homer reunites with Mona after believing she died when he was a child. Here, Homer has flashbacks to discovering his mother's whereabouts in Utah as a teenager and never fully reuniting with her as an adult.

"Meat Is Murder" is the 21st and penultimate episode of the 33rd season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 727th episode overall. Parodying Succession and The Founder, it aired in the United States on Fox on May 15, 2022. The episode was directed by Bob Anderson and written by Michael Price.

"The King of Nice" is the fourth episode of the thirty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 732nd episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 16, 2022. The episode was directed by Debbie Bruce Mahan and written by Jessica Conrad.

"Step Brother from the Same Planet" is the eighth episode of the thirty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 736th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 20, 2022. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by Dan Vebber.

References

  1. ↑ Chilton, Louis (March 19, 2023). "The Simpsons set to bring back notorious character – after 33 years". The Independent . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  2. 1 2 Sokol, Tony (March 19, 2023). "The Simpsons Bowls a Perfect Game Thanks to a Season 1 Guest Star". Den of Geek . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  3. ↑ Starkey, Adam (March 20, 2023). "'The Simpsons' viewers call out plot hole after return of season one character". NME . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  4. ↑ Chilton, Louis (March 20, 2023). "The Simpsons fans hail return of season one character – but complain about new plot hole". The Independent . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  5. ↑ Miller, Adam (March 20, 2023). "The Simpsons: Moe's Tavern cigarette machine removed after 33 years". Metro . Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  6. ↑ Salem, Mitch (March 21, 2023). "ShowBuzzDaily's Sunday 3.19.2023 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals Updated". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  7. ↑ Schwarz, John (March 20, 2023). "Review: The Simpsons "Pin Gal"". Bubbleblabber. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.