Customer Reviews

The Simpsons - The Complete Eighth Season (Collectible Maggie Head Pack)

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Well, as we all know, this is just another perfect season from the galaxy's greatest show. Complete with audio commentary, deleted scenes, an introduction from Matt Groening, and pretty much all the other features you can find on the last couple of seasons. I currently own every season available, and this is just as great.

You get plenty of hilarious and witty 1-liners, items from old episodes that you won't catch the first time you see them (see Homer's Phobia), Mr. Burns' son, a different Lisa, and many other things. I've worn the bottoms off the episodes You Only Move Twice, Burns Baby Burns, Bart After Dark, The Springfield Files, Mountain Of Madness, Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala (ANNOYED GRUNT) cious, Homer's Phobia, The Canine Mutiny, and Homer's Enemy. Of course, ALL of the episodes rule (though I feel some of them are kind of pointless)! This is a must of you're a Simpsons fan, especially if you're a purist like me.

"So settle back, hit 'play all', and watch contentedly as several hours of your life dance by in vivid, almost schorching colors." - Matt Groening.

The eighth season of the Simpsons displayed that creator Matt Groening and co. had not slowed down in terms of creativity and pop culture skewering. In this season, there is hilarity apelnty: Homer's new boss at the new Power Plant turns out to be a mega super villain ("You Only Move Twice"), and faces off against the Mike Tyson-spoofing champ ("The Homer They Fall"), Mr. Burns discovers his long lost teddy bear Bobo ("Burns, Baby Burns"), Bart gets a job at the local Burlesque House ("Bart After Dark"), Lisa gets a crush on bully Nelson ("Lisa's Date With Density"), Flanders suffers a breakdown ("Hurricane Neddy"), and Homer meets his inadvertant nemesis Frank Grimes ("Homer's Enemy"). Standouts of the season are the instant classics "El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer (AKA: The Mysterious Voyage of Homer)" in which Homer questions his life with Marge and searches for his true soulmate in this episode which is made all the better by a superb guest voice from Johnny Cash, and "The Springfield Files" where Homer believes that an alien is lurking in the woods of Springfield, which prompts a visit from FBI Agents Mulder and Scully (voiced by X-Files stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson). The "Treehouse of Horror" episode this season was a standout as well, as Bart learns of his evil twin brother, Lisa creates miniature life, and the presidential race between Bill Clinton and Bob Dole gets interupted by Kang and Kodos. All in all, season eight of the Simpsons is yet another superbly done collection of animated comedy with guest voices aplenty (including Willem Dafoe, John Waters, and Rodney Dangerfield), and like the previous seasons before it, managed to be hilarious without being vulgar, and more than memorable as well.

The eighth season of the Simpsons is the last season that is great from top to bottom. Sure there are lots of great shows in later seasons, but there isn't a weak show in this entire year. Critics (and the show's writers) have pondered about why the show is not as good now as then, and I think the answer is that the writers have had to go further and further afield to come up with new things for the Simpsons to do. Some of the most recent shows are simply weird. What makes the eighth season so compelling is that it's just at the start of this branching-out process: there are some "weird" shows, but they don't stray too far off the beaten path in terms of pop-culture references, characterisations, etc. Thus, many more of the background characters are brought to the fore: we see here for the first time the burgeoning romance between Mrs. Krabappel and Principal Skinner, the divorce of the van Houtens, learn about Flander's parents ("lousy beatnicks!"), and meet the woman who is the voice of Itchy and Scratchy (and, incidentally, the Roadrunner). Most importantly for the evolution of the show, we have "The Simpsons Spinoff Showcase," a segment of which shows the Simpsons as a real family that plays The Simpsons family on TV, but who also have other interests (such as singing and dancing).

Of course, in this box set there are numerous little extras. The menus have a number of humourous little vignettes, but they are easily skippable to prevent frustration with menu navigation. Every episode has a commentary (as usual) but more of the guest stars and actors appear here. The best guest commentators turn out to be Dan Thomas, the voice of Rex Banner (although the commentary does become a bit of a love-in for SCTV), and John Waters, the voice of John "the Gay Man." Without giving an exhaustive list of episodes (which can be found elsewhere), it's difficult to cull the season down to the best episodes. But I'll give it a try; my favourites are:

You Only Move Twice: "For once in my life I'm good at my job! My team is way ahead of the weather machine and germ warfare divisions." Homer gets a job as a mid-level manager at a nuclear power plant in Cypress Creek. It turns out that it's run by a James Bond-esque supervillian intent on seizing the East Coast. My second-favourite all-time Simpsons episode (after "Last Exit to Springfield").

Bart After Dark: "I was only in there to ask directions about how to get out of there." In recovering a wayward model airplane, Bart accidently breaks a gargoyle on "the creepy house." When Homer orders Bart to work off the debt, Bart discovers the creepy house is actually a Burlesque house.

The Springfield Files: "This is the worst case we've ever investigated." A rare true "crossover" episode. Mulder and Scully from the X-Files are called in to investigate Homer's supposed sighting of an alien.

Supercalifragilisticexpiala(annoyed grunt)cious: "If you cut every corner it is really not so bad/ Everybody does it, even Mom and Dad/ If nobody sees it then nobody gets mad" Marge hires a nanny. An extended parody of (you guessed it!) Mary Poppins.

Brother From Another Series: "Hydrological and hydrodynamical engineer? Talk about running the gamut." Side Show Bob's brother (appropriately played by David Hyde Pierce) gives Bob a job and for once Bob tries to keep to the straight and narrow.

Homer vs. the 18th Ammendment. "Here's to alcohol: the cause of, and solution to, all life's problems." The temperance movement (led by Helen Lovejoy and Maude Flanders) dicovers the prohibition law in Springfield is still on the books. Chief Wiggum is fired and replaced by Rex Banner (complete with fedora and tommy guns), while Homer becomes the city's lead bootlegger.

The Simpson's Spinoff Showcase: "New Orleans is not really a party town, chief." Troy McClure introduces us to three potential Simpsons spinoffs: Chief Wiggum and Principal Skinner as P.I.s in New Orleans, Moe in a supernatural sitcom with a haunted love tester, and a musical variety show like the Smothers Brothers or Carol Burnett show.

I have all of the Simpsons DVD's that are available to buy currently, and one is better than the next! I love every one of them!

this is a great season it has a lot of great people and i think i will get into the simpsons more.

A wonderful seller, very speedy with the shipping and product was better then he said it was..Great DVDs..I would transact with seller again and again.

I WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR SHIPPING IT TO ME I HAD A GREAT TIME WATCHING THE DVD EVEN THOUGH SOME SHOWS ARE ON TV I THINK WATCHING THE DVD IS MORE FUUNY I HOPE OTHERS SHOULD WATCH THE DVD AGAIN THANK YOU FOR THE DVD

The price was great and the dvd were in great condition.
I couldnt be happier.
I placed the order and my stuff arrived in no time.
Great seller.

One of the best seasons ever of this great TV series.
The packaging is great, and collectible.

How to describe a cultural phenomenon like the Simpsons?

The show speaks for itself and its 18 seasons' worth of success with tons of jokes, satirical moments and good storytelling. This review concerns the DVD for the 8th Season.

To put it simply, this is the best DVD ever produced for a season of any television show. The effort put into this product is unbelievable.

The package in the shape of Maggie's head is beautiful and easy to handle. Despite complaints from many people over the lack of consistency with previous sets and their inability to handle these head packages, I've been completely satisfied with them.

As for the discs themselves, they keep the menu system used in the 3 previous seasons. They're easy to navigate and are a visual delight for any fan.

I was able to uncover some easter eggs within these menus and unlocked a few extra deleted scenes from certain episodes. This is why I love the DVD format. There's always a new surprise programmed into these amazing discs.

The episodes themselves are the same ones I had the pleasure to watch nearly 10 years ago. They've aged well. The stories represent some of the most creative and inspiring moments in the series.

Alf Clausen's music is amazingly phenomenal and fits every single scene, especially in episodes like Hurricane Neddy and Mountain of Madness (two of my all-time favorite episodes simply because of the way the music helps to tell the story).

By this season, the animation has hit its stride and will continue to be like this for the remainder of the series. And it looks brilliant on DVD. The colors are vibrant, the sharpness is amazing. The picture looks crystal clear, with the exception of some minor scenes in a few episodes. It's nearly perfect.

I have to applaud the sound mixing on this DVD. The 5.1 Dolby Digital surround sound brings a whole new experience for episodes that are so old. I recall Homer speaking through the rear speakers when he was off-screen. There was great use of gunfire sound in The Secret War of Lisa Simpson. Explosions really rocked the subwoofer and cars crossed the living room.

The sound isn't motion picture quality, but it's a real surprise for a cartoon TV series that's not even action-oriented.

As for the extras, that's what makes the DVD set so worth it. There are about 20 minutes worth of deleted scenes (not counting the easter eggs) with optional commentary from the producers.

And the DVD commentaries are the number one reason I buy the Simpsons DVDs. Matt Groening is a delight to listen every time. He always puts up a show, trying to make the viewer's listening experience as entertaining as it can be.

Executive producer Josh Weinstein is another terrific presence in these commentaries. He's a guy I can identify with. He views the Simpsons a lot like the way I view it. It's really sad that this was his last season as a show runner and head writer. I'll miss his presence and Bill Oakley's as well.

Yeardley Smith sounds like the sweetest person that I could ever hope to meet. The person behind Lisa's voice has an enormous passion and attachment to Lisa's character. She's the one voiceover actress who really voices her opinion in these commentaries and is always eager to ask questions that a fan like myself would normally ask. She seems to really enjoy the show and be a part of it. I'm glad I get to hear her input in these commentaries. I hope I get to hear many more of them on future DVD sets.

The writers and directors really add a lot of depth and content to these commentaries as well. People like Ian Maxtone-Graham, Dan Greaney, Donick Cary, Mark Kirkland and Steven Dean Moore really make these commentaries lively.

George Meyer, Ken Keeler and David X Cohen are favorites of mine. They always make me laugh.

The animation showcases are a whole side show worth viewing. Seeing Matt Groening alongside directors Susie Dietter, Mike B Anderson and Bob Anderson attempting to draw the characters on the screen always makes me laugh. I loved the way the directors taught Matt how to better draw the Simpsons during this session.

I was impressed that some guest stars appeared in these commentaries. I'm a huge fan of John Waters and Dave Thomas. It was an added bonus to have them participating.

In short, this a gem of a DVD. The episodes are some of the best in the series and the extras more than live up to the material. This was the best investment I've made in a DVD purchase.