Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington
"Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" | ||
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Couch gag The family sits down and Homer pulls Santa's Little Helper from under him. | | |
Commentary | Matt Groening Al Jean Mike Reiss Julie Kavner Wes Archer David Silverman | |
"Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" is the second episode of the third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 26, 1991. In the episode, Lisa wins a patriotic essay contest about the United States. She and her family attend the contest finals in Washington, D.C., where she is dismayed after watching a congressman accept a bribe. Lisa loses the contest when she pens a scathing screed condemning the government system, but the corrupt congressman is jailed and removed from office, restoring her faith in government.
The episode was written by
The episode acquired a
Plot
Homer sees an ad for a children's essay contest in the Reading Digest magazine. Lisa submits an essay on the contest's topic – "what makes America great" – after visiting Springfield Forest and seeing a bald eagle land nearby. The Simpsons travel to Washington, D.C. after Lisa's essay, "The Roots of Democracy", earns her a spot in the national finals there.
While
Lisa's essay elicits a hostile reaction from the judges and the audience. When word of her speech quickly spreads through the capital, Congressman Arnold is arrested, removed from office and sent to prison, where he becomes a born-again Christian. Lisa's essay fails to win the contest, but her faith in government is restored and the contest winner commends her courage and honesty.
Production
The episode was written by
Cultural references
The title and plot of the episode are parodies of the 1939 film
In addition to the Lincoln Memorial, other Washington, D.C. landmarks visited include the
The episode makes references to several real-life persons. The piano-playing satirist who annoys Bart is a reference to
Themes and analysis
"Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" has been labeled as a satire on American politics. Michael Bitzer, in an edited book by Joseph Foy and Stanley Schultz entitled Homer Simpson Goes to Washington, said this episode "espouses the virtues, vices, and varieties of American political culture, public opinion, and ultimately the American Dream".[22] Bitzer also wrote that The Simpsons, through "skillful" use of satire, demonstrates with this episode "insights into the underlying political culture and public opinion of the United States' governing system (and, more broadly, society at large)".[22] In his book Gilligan Unbound: Pop Culture in the Age of Globalization, Paul Arthur Cantor said he was amazed by how far the episode was "willing to take its corrosive satire of national politics".[23] He said it "attacks the federal government at its foundation, the patriotic myths upon which its legitimacy lies. It makes fun of the very process by which patriotism is inculcated in the nation's youth, the hokey contests that lead children to outdo each other in progovernment effusions."[23] When the corrupt congressman is arrested, Lisa proclaims "The system works!" Benedict Anderson wrote in the book The Spectre of Comparisons that series creator Matt Groening "assumes that his tickled audience is confident that the system barely works [...] So why does he need to show a patriot at all, especially one who is a deluded little female block-head? Probably because he, too, wishes to be seen as giving America another chance. Mr. Lisa guarantees his good intentions."[9]
Günter Beck, a lecturer for the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) at the Haifa Center for German and European Studies at the University of Haifa in Israel, compared Lisa's role in the episode to the nineteenth-century American poet and philosopher Henry David Thoreau. He writes that Lisa stands up against the public's indifference towards the political system that Thoreau criticized, and comments that the emphasis should be "on the brave moral decision to stand up for principles and against the broad public. By this courageous act, 'to do what is right', an individual could save the well-being of the whole community. And indeed, Lisa's bravery is the impulse for the state's representatives to carry out their democratic obligations, so she can gladly notice 'The system works!' — her trust in democracy and its institutions is restored. Thoreau on the other hand, had no lasting trust in the system but only in the people themselves and in the individual's capacity to realize development and democracy."[24]
Reception
Broadcast and rereleases
"Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 26, 1991.
Critical reviews
Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, praised the episode for being one of the best Lisa-centric episodes, and called Lisa's talk with Thomas Jefferson and her nightmare vision of politicians as pigs "especially worthy of note".[28] Nate Meyers of Digitally Obsessed gave the episode a 4.5 rating and said it is one of the best episodes featuring Lisa, "complete with poignant observations about politics".[29] He particularly enjoyed the appearance of Barbara Bush at the White House.[29]
The Austin American-Statesman's Steven Stein said this was the first episode of The Simpsons he saw. Even though he did not understand half the pop culture references, by the end of the episode he was a "Simpsons convert".[17] He thought there was "something exotic about an issue as serious as political corruption being dealt with in a cartoon and being interrupted by jokes about beer and, yes, doughnuts".[17] The episode was praised for its political satire. Bill Gibron of DVD Verdict called the episode a "biting political satire in the guise of a children's oratory contest [which] signifies that this season of the series will be all over the map, both emotionally and logically".[30] Gibron added: "Everything, from the Reader's Digest rants to the formulaic speeches of the youths, has a resounding ring of truth. And once the story moves to Washington D.C, our nation's capital is in for a royal reaming as well."[30]
Bryce Wilson of Cinema Blend said the episode solidified the series' politically satirical voice as it "bitch slapped the Bush administration" that would later badmouth The Simpsons.[31] DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson, however, gave the episode a more negative review, stating that it "has its moments but never seems like one of the series' better programs. Part of that stems from its somewhat icky ending. The show exhibits a tone that feels more appropriate to a less biting and cynical series. It starts well with Homer's obsession with Reading Digest. After that, the show seems more erratic, and it remains pretty average overall."[32]
Nathan Rabin writes that "It’s a testament to the respect The Simpsons has for its audience’s intelligence and frame of reference that it includes dead-on parodies of Reader’s Digest and Mark Russell in the same episode...Like James Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Lisa learns that Washington, D.C., is a lovely town with a rich, honorable history that’s also a seething cesspool of corruption after stumbling upon rank corruption in her midst. Like Capra, 'Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington' is able to ultimately play it both ways: It’s cynical and sincere, idealistic and jaded, filled with affection for our country’s virtues and constitution but filled with contempt for flag-waving, jingoism and empty bromides about our nation’s glory... 'Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington' ultimately delivers a viciously sarcastic happy ending. In order for the system to work, everyone becomes a saint. A Senator stops what he’s doing to deal with a matter of utmost urgency, a little girl losing her faith in the American system... It’s a happy ending in air quotes, a tribute to the American can-do spirit so ridiculously over-the-top that it’s impossible to take seriously. The show can’t deliver a happy ending without sneering just a little bit."[33]
Response from the timber industry
According to
David Reinhard of The Oregonian commented on the criticism: "Hollywood sharpsters can always make a group from the great American hinterland look ridiculous when it zeroes in on one show, particularly if that show is a cartoon. And the Oregon Lands Coalition's protest was a bit of an overreaction. But the environmental sloganeering of The Simpsons as well as Groening's cartoon commentary are symptomatic of a Hollywood and a popular culture that are hostile to the concerns and values of most Americans."[35] After the episode aired, media researchers Robert Lichter and Linda S. Lichter found in a study of prime-time television that when shows dealt with business themes, 89 percent portrayed businessmen as swindlers or liars.[35]
The same day Groening released his second statement, The Simpsons publicist Antonia Coffman was invited by Wayne Giesy, sales manager of Hull-Oakes Lumber Co. in Bellfountain, Oregon, to visit Oregon and see "responsible timber management".[1] Giesy said they wanted to show the producers "how we log, how we manufacture, what goods we produce for everyone and how we replant for future generations. What most timber companies are interested in is a balanced program."[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Durbin, Kathie (October 15, 1991). "Loggers Get Bad Vibes From Lisa". The Oregonian. p. D01.
- ^ Groening, Matt (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ "George Meyer". The Believer. September 2004. Retrieved July 30, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Jean, Al (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Reiss, Mike (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Archer, Wes (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Silverman, David (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Kavner, Julie (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-85984-184-6.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-313-07615-2.
- The Courier Mail. p. M02.
- ^ Ross, Curtis (July 27, 2007). "'The Simpsons' Goes To The Movies". The Tampa Tribune. p. 27.
- ISBN 0-7486-1935-6.
- ISBN 978-0-226-74188-8.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7864-3536-4.
- ISBN 0-8126-9433-3.
- ^ a b c Stein, Steven (July 27, 2007). "Springfield on big screen? That's okely-dokely by me". Austin American-Statesman. p. A16.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-17-012206-1.
- ^ OL 433519M..
- ^ George, Jason (December 7, 2005). "The Simpsons go to college - Columbia offering a course that even noted school-phobe Bart would like". Chicago Tribune. p. 3.
- ^ a b Brooks, James L. (2004). "Bush vs. Simpsons", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fourth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8131-2512-1.
- ^ ISBN 0-7425-0779-3.
- ISSN 1787-4637. Retrieved July 19, 2009.
- Long Beach Press-Telegram. Associated Press. October 2, 1991. p. D5.
- Daily Herald. p. 7.
- ^ "The Simpsons - The Complete 3rd Season". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved November 30, 2008.
- ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington". BBC. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
- ^ a b Meyers, Nate (June 23, 2004). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season". Digitally Obsessed. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
- ^ a b Gibron, Bill (February 23, 2005). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season". DVD Verdict. Archived from the original on June 29, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
- ^ Wilson, Bryce (June 18, 2004). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season - DVD". Cinema Blend. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
- ^ Jacobson, Colin (December 21, 2004). "The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season (1993)". DVD Movie Guide. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
- ^ Rabin, Nathan. "The Simpsons (Classic): "Mr. Lisa Goes to Washington"". The A.V. Club.
- ^ a b c d e f Ferguson, Rodney (February 2, 1992). "Opus, Doonesbury and Friends Ruffle Some Feathers". The Plain Dealer. p. 16A.
- ^ a b c Reinhard, David (October 25, 1991). "I've Got A 'Brooklyn Bridge' To Sell You". The Oregonian. p. C08.