Updated: 14 May 2012 7:34 am
Posted: 21 May 2007 2:05 pm
Right from the start, you could tell this was a different kind of Simpsons. Instead of the angelic chorus singing the title, we were treated to the ticking clock and Kiefer Sutherland's "previously on" intro. If you were like us, this was when you moved to the edge of your seat. "Behold! Our new state-of-the-art weapon in the global war against misbehavior!" declared Principal Skinner as we were immediately immersed into the world of Springfield Elementary's CTU: "Counter Truancy Unit." The freeze frames showing names and descriptions of all the players were great. We especially liked Milhouse, Martin and Database being classified as "dork, dink and dingus."
The "previously on" segment was used masterfully and set up everything we needed to know. Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney were missing and presumed up to no good. Homer needed to dispose of his rancid, fowl smelling yogurt. Troublemaker Bart was being held captive in detention. And Marge had only 27 minutes to make a cake for the school's bake sale. Throughout the episode, a la 24 of course, split screens would keep us up to date with each storyline. They mocked this device well by giving us some great bits within the frames, including a great background bit with Mrs. Lovejoy and Martin being able to close his split screen.
The "terrorist" plot of the episode was tight, with the bullies planning to detonate a powerful stink bomb at the bake sale fundraiser, but what really grabbed us was how fast and funny the episode was. There were plenty of choice moments, from Apu's description of the yogurt's stench ("If a dead fish and a homeless person had a baby, and the baby puked, and a dog ate the puke..." ), to Jack Bauer overreacting to Bart's prank phone call, but the most enjoyable part of "24 Minutes," by far, was Martin. As Jimbo's CTU mole, Martin gave us the episode's most memorable scene. After betraying his friends and his school, Martin couldn't live with the guilt and he was going to take it out on himself. The setup for this "suicide" was fantastic-- the music, the lighting, the way he laid out his sash, the twitching legs-- but then to see it was a self-inflicted wedgie… we were floored.
Adding to the enjoyment of this episode was how each Springfield resident remained in character while being used for the parody. The nerds helmed the computers at CTU headquarters. The bullies were the terrorists. Marge baked. If anything didn't quite fit, it was Homer and Milhouse riding in the Dumpster for much of the episode. But even that surreal plotline gave us some great laughs, including "acting natural" as they passed Chief Wiggum and the Dumpster parallel parking.
This was simply a stellar, hilarious episode with an incredible pace that never let up-- by far the best of the season. Funny, smart and surprisingly fresh for a show that's been doing it for… well, heck, we all know how many episodes. This was just one of two great episodes that closed out season 18 and left us anticipating the Springfield gang's theatrical debut.
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