As cliched as it sounds, the great thing about The Simpsons is that it often subverts your expectations. The show constantly seems to lead the audience towards an obvious moral only to steer away at the last minute. In an animated show that was aimed at a younger audience, Bart's studying would have earned him an A. In There's No Disgrace Like Home, the family's therapy session would have been a success. And in this episode, Homer would learn that confidence leads to success, and that his hair wasn't really necessary. In fact, Karl's parting words indicate this exact sentiment. He tells Homer, "It was never the hair, it was you". However, it quickly becomes clear that the people of Springfield only care about appearances. Even when Homer gives a dazzling speech, it is not nearly impressive as a haired Homer muttering something about tartar sauce. So while we don't get the moral we were expecting, we get one that is just as fulfilling. Like many of the episodes so far, the moral of Simpson and Delilah is that it is ok to be a Simpson. They are clearly flawed, but that doesn't make them bad. As Marge says, "you are so beautiful to me".
The highlight of this episode for me was without a doubt Karl. Karl is a rare character in The Simpsons universe because he is so genuinely selfless. Almost every character in Springfield is self interested in some way, but Karl only cares about helping Homer. The scene where he gives Homer the umbrella is very touching. He is one of the more mysterious guest stars on the show. He shows up with little fanfare, helps Homer to the best of his ability, and then leaves never to be seen again. He almost seems like Homer's guardian angel. The guest stars early on have all been amazing. I am interested in seeing what season begins using guest stars as a crutch and their appearances are more obnoxious than entertaining.
The other interesting bit of characterization that we got in this episode was with Smithers. Other than perhaps Martin, Smithers is the first regular character outside of the family to actually get some depth. On the surface, we know that Smithers is an obnoxious suck up, but in this episode we see that he is mean and vengeful as well. He's almost the anti-Karl - everything he does in this episode he does for his own personal gain. It's a somewhat interesting choice; Burns is already so evil I am surprised that there isn't a higher-up at the powerplant who is fighting for the little guy. I think this is one of the reasons why the writers end up making Burns somewhat more sympathetic, which is a welcome change. We even see a little bit of that come through at the end of the episode when Burns sympathizes with Homer's hair loss.
Springfield characters:
I didn't notice any new ones - it might be a first for the series.
Other things I liked:
I love how shallow everyone in Springfield is. Even Patty and Selma completely reverse their opinion of Homer after seeing him with a full head of hair. Having a shallow, fickle population fits in well with what we've seen already; we've already seen the town form a pitchfork-wielding mob against a 10 year old boy. I've heard lots of comparisons between the town of Pawnee from Parks and Rec and Springfield, and I think it's pretty good. Both towns are towns of extremes; they either love or hate something. Pawnee has Little Sebastian and Springfield has hair.
These two episodes in season 2 just seem so much happier than season 1. Both episodes have had wonderful montages of characters being happy. Just like with the snow day scene from the last episode, I had a huge smile on my face when Homer ran around town celebrating his hair. I especially love his encounter with the other Dimoxinil user.
I always known the capital of North Dakota is Bismark thanks to this episode. Definitely not Hitler.
There were a couple of quick jokes that could fly by you. My favorite was Dimoxinil promising a free brochure after sending five dollars.
This episode is fairly beloved by the community, and I think it holds up pretty well. There's something just so infectious about Karl, he really makes you smile. The ending is also fantastic. I love seeing Marge repair Homer's confidence by just singing to him - I can't wait until the first flashback episode where we get to see more of them as a couple.
8/10
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