The Last Temptation of Krust

"The Last Temptation of Krust" is the fifteenth episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 22, 1998. It was written by Donick Cary and directed by Mike B. Anderson. Comedian Jay Leno makes a guest appearance.^[2] In the episode, Bart convinces Krusty the Clown to appear at a comedy festival organized by Jay Leno, but Krusty's old material does not go over well with the audience and he receives bad reviews. He briefly retires from comedy but returns with a new, better-received gimmick. He soon returns to his old ways, selling out to a motor-vehicle company.

The production team's decision to write an episode about stand-up comedy was influenced by comedy festivals. The writing staff initially had trouble getting Krusty's offensive bad jokes through network censors, but convinced them this was simply a way to emphasize his old and dated comedic material. The "Canyonero" sequence was modeled after Ford commercials and was given its own segment at the end of the episode because the production staff liked it so much.

The episode was highlighted by

Plot

Krusty the Clown is persuaded by Bart Simpson to appear at a comedy festival organized by Jay Leno. Krusty's outdated and offensive material fails to impress the audience when compared with the trendier comedians also appearing. Discouraged by a negative review of his act, Krusty goes on a bender and passes out on Ned Flanders' lawn. While recovering in Bart's memorabilia-covered room, Krusty realizes that he should have spent more time honing his act rather than selling out, and he enlists Bart and Leno's aid. However, his attempts at observational humor fall flat with the Simpson family. Krusty holds a press conference to announce his retirement and in short order launches into a bitter tirade against modern-day comedians. The audience finds Krusty's rant hysterically funny and he subsequently announces his return to comedy.

Krusty is inspired to return to doing low-key events, where he structures a new image for himself as a

In the DVD commentary for The Simpsons'  ninth season, writer Donick Cary stated that the inspiration for the idea of an episode about stand-up comedy came out of comedy festivals at the time.^[3] Executive producer Mike Scully said that the writers had difficulty getting Krusty's offensive bad jokes through the network censors. The stereotypical jokes were allowed because the writers convinced the network censors that viewers would understand it was simply emphasizing Krusty's dated comedic material.^[4]

Mike B. Anderson stated that at least three different acts of material were written and animated for Krusty's comeback stand-up appearance at Moe's Tavern. It was not until the editing process that the material used was decided upon. The episode was still being animated three weeks before it was due to air and the production process moved frantically shortly before completion.^[5] The Canyonero sequence was originally planned to be displayed during the closing credits. The production team liked the scene so much that they did not want it to be obscured by the credits and gave it its own segment at the end of the episode.^[4]

Cultural references

The episode title is a reference to the controversial novel (and later

Two years later, Ford released the Super Duty-based Ford Excursion, the largest and heaviest SUV ever until the electric GMC Hummer SUV and pickup.

Chris Turner wrote positively of the Canyonero spoof piece in Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Defined a Generation, calling it "a brilliant parody of an SUV ad".^[10]

In an article in the journal Environmental Politics, Steve Vanderheiden commented that the Canyonero reflected an "anti-SUV" stance by The Simpsons.^[12] Vanderheiden wrote: "Even the popular animated television series 'The Simpsons' joined the anti-SUV fray in 1998, featuring a mammoth vehicle called the 'Canyonero' (marketed with the jingle: 'Twelve yards long, two lanes wide/Sixty-five tons of American pride!'), which promised to help the family transcend its mundane station-wagon existence but instead brought only misery."^[12]

The term "Canyonero" has since been used in the news media to refer critically to large trucks and SUVs.^{[13][14][15][16][17]}

In an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about SUV owners, Vicki Haddock wrote "SUV owners have become something of a punch line, succinctly captured in a "Simpsons" parody touting the apocryphal Canyonero".^[18]

In a 2006 article, Seth Jayson of

Joshua Dowling of The Sun-Herald described the philosophy of the Ford F-250 as "The Canyonero comes to life".^[21]

Reception

In its original broadcast, "The Last Temptation of Krust" finished 21st in ratings for the week of February 16–23, 1998, with a

Nielsen rating of 9.7, equivalent to approximately 9.5 million viewing households. It was the fourth highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, following The X-Files, The World's Scariest Police Chases, and King of the Hill.^[22]

In 2006, USA Today highlighted the episode in a review of The Simpsons ninth season.^[23]

In his review of the season nine DVD, Joseph Szadkowski of The Washington Times noted: "Among the 22-minute gems found in the set, I most enjoyed ... [Krusty's] work with Jay Leno."^[24]

Mark Evans of the

Evening Herald wrote: "'The Last Temptation of Krust' is a winner for its title alone as Krusty the clown becomes a satiric 'alternative' comedian but then sells out by advertising the Canyonero SUV road hazard."^[25]

Alan Sepinwall wrote positively of the episode in The Star-Ledger, citing the Canyonero sequence as "the real reason to watch" the episode and that "It's an oversize vehicle that will create oversized laughs."^[6]

Some sources mistakenly refer to this episode as "The Last Temptation of Krusty".^{[7][26][27][28]}

In the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood characterized the episode as "a good twist on the never-ending Krusty story" and suggested that while "Jay Leno turns in a nice cameo [...] the show is stolen by the advert for the Canyonero".^[1] The authors also praised Krusty's "ponytail and black sweater" look.^[1]

In the DVD audio commentary for "The Last Temptation of Krust", Leno said that he believed the essence of comedy clubs was depicted very well in the episode and referred to Krusty's remodeled appearance as "[George] Carlin post-Vegas act".^[29] He also appreciated Krusty's poke at Leno's use of news headlines on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and said that he could not figure out whether parts of the episode were making fun of him or complimenting him.^[29]

William Irwin's

The Simpsons and Philosophy: The D'oh! of Homer references a scene from the episode as an example of Marge's passive resistance, her moral influence on Lisa, and her value as a role model for her children.^[27]

See also

• List of products in The Simpsons

References

Bibliography

• OCLC 670978714
  .

Further reading

• Dobson, Hugo (February 2006). "Mister Sparkle Meets the Yakuza: Depictions of Japan in The Simpsons". The Journal of Popular Culture. 39 (1): 44–68.
  doi:10.1111/j.1540-5931.2006.00203.x
  .
• Gray, Jonathan (August 2005). "Television Teaching: Parody, The Simpsons and Media Literacy Education". Critical Studies in Media Communication. 22 (3): 223–238.
  S2CID 144462611
  .

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to "The Last Temptation of Krust".

• "The Last Temptation of Krust episode capsule". The Simpsons Archive.
• "The Last Temptation of Krust" at
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