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Show:		3.0
Picture:		9.0
Sound:		7.0
Extras:		1.0
Score:		4.0

Director(s):	Mark Kirkland • Steven Dean Moore
Writer(s):	James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Sam Simon
Starring:	Dan Castellaneta • Hank Azaria • Harry Shearer • Julie Kavner • Nancy Cartwright • Yeardley Smith
Genre:	Animation • Comedy
Website:	http://thesimpsons.com/index.html
Release Date:	January 12, 2010

List Price:	Blu-ray - $36.99
Amazon:

Mike Scully, The Simpsons’ show runner from seasons nine through twelve, said something in 2007 that has made me regret the show’s consistent decline in quality even more.

“Lower your quality standards. Once you’ve done that you can go on forever.”

That became the formula for propelling The Simpsons through countless seasons that many devoted fans might say should never have happened. So, here we are at season twenty. If you’ve been avidly tracking Simpsons season releases you’ll know this one was releases out of order, as the next should have been season 13. So what gives? The twentieth anniversary. Did you watch the Morgan Spurlock-led special? Good, because it’s not on this set. No, my dear readers, what we have here is a set supposedly released to celebrate the event plastered on its cover, but which fails to do so with any material on the actual discs.

Is there anything notable about this twentieth season release? One thing: the mid-season conversion to HD.

Have you ever heard anyone doubt that a 2D cartoon could benefit from HD? Show them this (or any of the Futurama movies). As of February 15, 2009, The Simpsons shifted to high definition to keep up with the times (at least in appearance). The change was easily visible for two reasons. For starters the opening sequence changed and began to include longer and longer couch gag sequences. However, the most important change is in the show’s traditional dynamic. The Simpsons, despite being a cartoon, started as anything but. It may have featured very sketchy character designs in its opening days, but it was socially intelligent and culturally apt. As the years went on, the animators fine-tuned the appearance of America’s favorite yellow family and the characters acquired a set look that carried it through 19 and a half seasons. There was never too much character detail, but it worked because the character-driven stories (at least in the first 10 seasons) helped you look past the simplistic designs. As the show’s quality decreased in an effort to prolong its legacy (assuming you trust Mr. Scully), more detail was given to the characters, the voices changed a little, and the entire village of Springfield received a touch-up.

Decrease the quality in storytelling, increase the quality in visual appearance. True, it’s partially due to a growing demand for shows to look their best on high-definition televisions, but it’s also a factor of laziness in the series’ legacy. Damn you Mike Scully. There’s not a single well conceived episode in season twenty. Not one. Most of the season’s stories feel like rehashes of better episodes from the past, redone with a different character set and worse jokes. To make matters worse, this season has a record setting number of flashback and imagine-if episodes. How many times can we transplant the Simpson family into a classic story or different time period? Too many.

I’ve purchased numerous seasons of The Simpsons based on the episode list on the back of the box. It wouldn’t work with this set. The episode list is still there, but, like the writing of the episodes themselves, not a single title is indicative or reminiscent of greatness. The laughter is dead, but it died many seasons ago. Any comedy remaining, like the few chuckles elicited by the episode guest starring Anne Hathaway as the girl who almost gets Bart to renounce his evil ways, floats like an iceberg in the middle of the Caribbean Sea. You’re amazed it’s there at all, but you know it won’t last.

As stated earlier, the series switched to HD midway through the season, and to the credit of this Blu-ray set, those episodes look fantastic. It may feel like Fox substituted cosmetic quality for writing quality, but at least they got what they paid for. The colors are richer; the details are unsurpassed by past seasons. If all you want from a classic cartoon series is enriched animation, then this is the set for you. But if you expect more from The Simpsons DVD releases, avoid this like the plague.

Blu-ray Bonus Features

If you’ve ever bought a season of The Simpsons on DVD (this is the first on Blu-ray), then you know what the standard features of a set should include. Usually there are a few storyboards, a featurette about the remarkably loyal cast, and, of course, audio commentary by Matt Groening on each and every episode. Not this time. Not even the commentaries. The one extra on here isn’t even complete, it’s a sneak peak at the Morgan Spurlock special. This is awful.

Alongside cast regulars Hank Azaria, Dan Castellaneta, Yeardley Smith, Julie Kavner, and Harry Shearer, season guest voices include Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Anne Hathaway, Denis Leary, Joe Montana, Maurice LaMarche, Will Shortz, Mark Cuban, Marv Albert, Emily Blunt, Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova, Kelsey Grammer (a depressingly short cameo as Sideshow Bob), Ellen Page, and Jodie Foster.