Mad About the Toy

Last updated

"Mad About the Toy"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.Season 30
Episode 11
Directed by Rob Oliver
Written by Michael Price
Production codeYABF03
Original air dateJanuary 6, 2019 (2019-01-06)
Guest appearances
Episode features
Chalkboard gag "My new year's resolution was to quit school"
Couch gag The Simpson family takes a break during a football game, with their friends cheering them on.
Episode chronology
← Previous
"'Tis the 30th Season"		Next →
"The Girl on the Bus"
The Simpsons (season 30)
List of episodes

"Mad About the Toy" is the eleventh episode of the thirtieth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons , and the 650th episode overall. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver and written by Michael Price. It aired in the United States on Fox on January 6, 2019.

Contents

The episode won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program. [1] [2] [3] It was the first episode to win the award for the series in over a decade, with the previous Simpsons winner, "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind," airing in 2007. [4]

Plot

Homer and Marge celebrate their anniversary, leaving the kids at home with Grampa. Marge points out that Grampa needs to be home in an hour, so she and Homer do all their activities as fast as possible. At home, Bart and Lisa are bored and ask Grampa if they can play a game. Bart finds some plastic army men toys in the basement, which causes Grampa to panic.

The family takes him to the VA, but the doctor is unable to find out what is wrong. Lisa notices that the molding of the soldier toys resembles Grampa, then asks if the company that used him for the photos of the plastic army men paid him. Grampa recalls that in 1947 he was paid to model for the original army men, including a promise of a royalty for each toy.

Grampa ends up on Channel 6 news and shortly after reaches national headlines on NBC. After the headlines, the toy company that used Grampa for their toys invites him to visit their headquarters in New York City. The chairman tells Grampa that he missed out on millions of dollars because he never signed his contract. Grampa remembers that he ran out of the shoot because the male photographer kissed him. The company then fired the photographer for being gay. Realizing that he may have ruined the photographer's life, Grampa vows to visit him to apologize.

Lisa discovers that the photographer, Philip Hefflin, now lives in Marfa, Texas. The drive is long and the family encounters the Marfa lights and Prada Marfa . [5] When they get to Philip's hometown, Grampa stumbles into a gallery filled with paintings of him in his army uniform. Philip greets Grampa, and thanks him for making him realize he was better off being true to himself. They enjoy time together before Grampa has to head back to Springfield.

In the backyard during the final scene, Bart, Milhouse, and Nelson are playing with the soldier toys. After Bart gets bored, he suggests melting them in the microwave, which the kids end up doing. A montage of Grampa and Philip is then shown.

Production

Executive producer Al Jean was thinking about why Grampa would hang a photo of Mona in his room. Writer Michael Price had an idea about Grampa being the model for the toy army men and having a relationship with the photographer. The relationship gave the producers a reason to remove the photo and hang a new one for the rest of the season. [6]

Bryan Batt was cast as photographer Philip Hefflin partly as a reference to his Mad Men character Sal Romano, who was fired for being gay. Jean wondered what happened to Sal and the producers gave Philip a positive fate. [6] Then New York City mayor Bill de Blasio appeared as himself. He was originally approached for another episode but was asked to be in this episode when Grampa visits New York. [7]

Cultural references

In flashbacks, Grampa recreates the V-J Day in Times Square kiss with a random woman while referring to the original kiss possibly being non-consensual. The people in the toy company office behave like characters from Mad Men . [6] The Simpson family encounters the Prada Marfa art installation. [8]

Reception

Viewing figures

"Mad About the Toy" scored a 0.9 rating with a 4 share and was watched by 2.33 million people, making it Fox's second highest rated show of the night, behind Family Guy . [9]

Critical response

Tony Sokol of Den of Geek gave the episode 3 out of 5 points ranking, stating "The Simpsons' 'Mad About the Toy' plays too far to the inside and tries to have it both ways. Like Grampa's stories it takes a very circuitous road, but goes nowhere, besides Texas and New York. Grampa gets the last word, but like many of his never-ending asides, it is too much rant but not enough rave. That's what they used to say back in his day before raves were raves and Molly was just what you called a girl who went out with a gangster." [10]

Dennis Perkins of The A.V. Club gave the episode B+ ranking, stating "It's a risk—not for addressing homosexuality, but for putting the story in the hands of Grampa, a supporting character used most often for the sort of quick-hit swipes at reactionary codgery mocking internet memes were invented for. But few characters on The Simpsons exist just as their initial stereotypes at this point, and there's a longer-than-most history of the show finding just the right touches of grudging humanity in the old coot to make 'Mad About The Toy' work." [11]

Texas State Representative Poncho Nevárez tweeted, "If you ever wondered how Marfa would look like in the world of the Simpsons. Here you go. Nice shot of the Presidio County Courthouse", along with screenshots of Marfa as rendered in the episode. [5]

Awards and nominations

On September 14, 2019, "Mad About the Toy" won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program at the 71st Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. It marked the eleventh win for The Simpsons in the category. [2] [1] It's the first time the show won that award in 11 years. The previous Simpsons winner, "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind," won the award back in 2008 for the 60th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grampa Simpson</span> Recurring character in The Simpsons

Abraham Jebediah "Abe" Simpson II, better known as Grampa Simpson, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He made his first appearance in the episode entitled "Grandpa and the Kids", a one-minute Simpsons short on The Tracey Ullman Show, before the debut of the television show in 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Morse</span> American actor (1931–2022)

Robert Alan Morse was an American actor. Morse started his career as a star on Broadway acting in musicals and plays before expanding into film and television. He earned numerous accolades including two Tony Awards, two Drama Desk Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

Marc Edward Wilmore was an American television writer, producer, actor, and comedian. He wrote and performed for shows such as In Living Color, The PJs, The Simpsons, and F Is for Family. Wilmore was a 10-time Primetime Emmy Award nominee. He was the younger brother of comedian Larry Wilmore.

"Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in 'The Curse of the Flying Hellfish'" is the twenty-second 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 April 28, 1996.

"The Old Man and the Key" is the thirteenth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired in the United States on the Fox network on March 10, 2002. In the episode, Grampa Simpson falls in love with Zelda, an old woman who has just moved into the senior home in which Grampa lives. However, Grampa is not the only one in the home who is infatuated with Zelda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Seemingly Never-Ending Story</span> 13th episode of the 17th season of The Simpsons

"The Seemingly Never-Ending Story" is the thirteenth episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 12, 2006. The episode won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program. At the 34th Annie Awards, episode writer Ian Maxtone-Graham won the award for "Best Writing in an Animated Television Production." The episode contains many levels of nested storytelling, much like the novel The NeverEnding Story by Michael Ende, which the title references.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 14 Season of television series

The fourteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons was originally broadcast on the Fox network in the United States between November 3, 2002, and May 18, 2003, and was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. The show runner for the fourteenth production season was Al Jean, who executive produced 21 of 22 episodes. The other episode, "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation", was run by Mike Scully. The season was the first to use digital ink-and-paint for most of its episodes, though four episodes were hold-overs from season 13's production run and used traditional ink-and-paint. A fifth season 13 holdover episode, which was the first episode of season 14, used digital ink-and paint like the rest of the season. The fourteenth season has met with mostly positive reviews and won two Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Animated Program, four Annie Awards and a Writers Guild of America Award. This season contains the show's 300th episode, "Barting Over".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind</span> 9th episode of the 19th season of The Simpsons

"Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind" is the ninth episode of the nineteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 16, 2007.

"Thursdays with Abie" is the ninth episode of the twenty-first season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. In this episode, Grampa meets a human interest journalist who writes and publishes Grampa's life stories, which makes Homer jealous. While giving his story of Mr. Burns to the newspaper, he finds out that the journalist plots to kill Grampa. Meanwhile, Bart is forced to care for a stuffed lamb as part of a class project and gives the lamb to Lisa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angry Dad: The Movie</span> 14th episode of the 22nd season of The Simpsons

"Angry Dad: The Movie" is the fourteenth episode of the twenty-second season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 20, 2011. In this episode, Bart wins many awards for his new short film based on his web cartoon series Angry Dad, which was first introduced in "I Am Furious (Yellow)", while Homer takes credit for the film during acceptance speeches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holidays of Future Passed</span> 9th episode of the 23rd season of The Simpsons

"Holidays of Future Passed" is the ninth episode of the twenty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 11, 2011. Most of the episode is set thirty years into the future, when Bart and Lisa take their children with them to Homer and Marge's house over Christmas, while a pregnant Maggie goes into labor. Bart has divorced his wife, Jenda, and is struggling to become a better father for his two boys, while Lisa has trouble connecting with her rebellious teenage daughter, Zia. The Simpsons creator Matt Groening made a minor uncredited cameo appearance as a sports commentator shouting "goal!" during a soccer game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treehouse of Horror XXIV</span> 2nd episode of the 25th season of The Simpsons

"Treehouse of Horror XXIV" is the second episode of the twenty-fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons and the 532nd episode of the series. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 6, 2013. The episode was written by Jeff Westbrook and directed by Rob Oliver.

"Halloween of Horror" is the fourth episode of the twenty-seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 578th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Mike B. Anderson and written by Carolyn Omine. It originally aired in the United States on Fox on October 18, 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barthood</span> 9th episode of the 27th season of The Simpsons

"Barthood" is the ninth episode of the twenty-seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 583rd episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver and written by Dan Greaney. It aired in the United States on Fox on December 13, 2015. The episode parodies the 2014 film Boyhood.

"Looking for Mr. Goodbart" is the twentieth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 616th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Mike Frank Polcino and written by Carolyn Omine. It aired in the United States on Fox on April 30, 2017, and the United Kingdom on Sky 1 on May 14, 2017.

"Gone Boy" is the ninth episode of the twenty-ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 627th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver and written by John Frink. It aired in the United States on Fox on December 10, 2017. The title is a spoof of the novel Gone Girl.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 30 Season of television series

The thirtieth season of the animated television series The Simpsons premiered on Fox in the United States on September 30, 2018, and ended on May 12, 2019. Al Jean returns as showrunner, a position he has held since the thirteenth season. Matt Selman also contributed as showrunner for the episodes "Heartbreak Hotel", "Krusty the Clown", "The Clown Stays in the Picture" and "Bart vs. Itchy & Scratchy". The series hit a milestone 650th episode on January 6, 2019 with the episode "Mad About the Toy", and the season also saw both the renewal of the series for two additional seasons on February 6, and the acquisition of the majority of 21st Century Fox's assets by Disney on March 20.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thanksgiving of Horror</span> 8th episode of the 31st season of The Simpsons

"Thanksgiving of Horror" is the eighth episode of the thirty-first season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 670th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 24, 2019. The episode was written by Dan Vebber, and was directed by Rob Oliver.

"Better Off Ned" is the 16th episode of the thirty-first season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 678th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 15, 2020. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver and was written by Joel H. Cohen and Jeff Westbrook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treehouse of Horror XXXIII</span> 6th episode of the 34th season of The Simpsons

"Treehouse of Horror XXXIII" is the sixth episode of the thirty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 734th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 30, 2022. The episode was directed by Rob Oliver, and written by Carolyn Omine, Ryan Koh and Matt Selman. This is the first Treehouse of Horror episode to not have an opening sequence, and instead just opens on a book of the episode before going straight into the first segment. This is also the first Treehouse of Horror since season 14's to feature a different writer for each segment. This is the first Treehouse of Horror to air closest to Halloween since 2011 without going into November.

References

  1. 1 2 Travers, Ben (September 15, 2019). "'The Simpsons' Wins Emmy for Best Animated Program". IndieWire . Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Haithman, Diane (September 15, 2019). "A 30th Anniversary Present for 'The Simpsons' With 11th Outstanding Animated Program Emmy Win". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  3. ↑ Zahed, Ramin (July 16, 2019). "Primetime Animation Emmy Nominations Are Announced". Animation Magazine . Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  4. 1 2 Gorman, Steve (September 13, 2008). ""The Simpson's" wins 10th best cartoon Emmy". Reuters.
  5. 1 2 Solomon, Dan (January 8, 2019). "Marfa Is Now Such a Stereotype They Can Mock It on 'The Simpsons'". TexasMonthly . Retrieved January 10, 2019.
  6. 1 2 3 Vineyard, Jennifer (August 7, 2019). "Emmy Contender: The Simpsons showrunner on Grampa getting woke and how Disney will impact the show". Syfy Wire . Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  7. ↑ Goodman, J. David (January 6, 2019). "Why De Blasio Loves 'The Simpsons' (and Where He'd Take Homer in New York City)" . The New York Times . Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  8. ↑ Satenstein, Liana (January 10, 2019). "Prada Makes an Unlikely Cameo on The Simpsons". Vogue . Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  9. ↑ Welch, Alex (January 8, 2019). "Golden Globes adjust up: Sunday final ratings". TV by the Numbers . Archived from the original on January 8, 2019. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
  10. ↑ Sokol, Tony (January 7, 2019). "The Simpsons Season 30 Episode 11 Review: Mad About the Toy". Den of Geek . Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  11. ↑ Perkins, Dennis (January 7, 2019). "The Simpsons finds the sweet spot as Grampa confronts an old wrong". The A.V. Club . Retrieved January 7, 2019.
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.