“Come on Marge, I’m not the ONLY selfish person—YOU have to get your hair done at SUPER Cuts. I guess Regular Cuts just isn’t good enough for you!” – Homer

The Simpsons is currently airing its 24th season, but 200 episodes ago, back in November 2003, the series was just starting its 15th season. This DVD set brings together all 22 episodes of Season 15, starting with the annual Halloween Treehouse of Horror episode. I really enjoy these 3-story episodes that kick off each season, and this is one of the better ones the series has done.

Rewatching the fifteenth season of The Simpsons after such a long time, most of the episodes were still fresh to me, and I thoroughly enjoyed them. There were few of the references in the episodes that felt a bit dated (such as Joe Millionare), but overall, the season felt timeless and just as applicable today. Though it can be a bit odd at times since a lot has happened in the show over the past 9 years—for example, in “My Big Fat Geek Wedding” we see Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel at the alter but in the current season we have “Nedna”.

The Simpsons is smartly written and works on many levels. While every episode includes many pop culture references, sight gags and jokes, we also get really good stories. Some of these stories are done in homage to other popular works. “The President Wore Pearls” is a music-filled version of Evita in which Lisa becomes Student Body President only to discover that the administration is using her as their own puppet. The new lyrics set to the same music of Evita works great, and the parallels between the story in the musical and Lisa’s political career are very well written. And in “Catch ‘Em If You Can”, the kids try to track down Marge and Homer, who have sneaked off to have a romantic vacation alone. The cross-country hunt plays out like Catch Me If You Can, and uses some really fun animation and music to pay homage to that film.

There are so many fun stories in the fifteenth season, some of these include the singles taking over Springfield, Homer dressing up as robot to fight in a robot battle league, Marge writing a romance novel, Milhouse moving away causing Bart and Lisa to become BFFs, Lisa getting jealous of Maggie being called the genius of the family, the return of Artie Ziff, the return of Homer’s mom (voiced by Glenn Close), Homer and Marge going to rehab, Edna’s and Skinner’s bachelor parties, Homer and Marge recalling how they first met at summer camp, Homer as the Pie Man, and Bart accidentally mooning the flag.

While the main stories are entertaining, sometimes with The Simpsons, it is the little moments that I treasure and enjoy the most. In “I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot”, there is a really fun callback to the fact that Principal Skinner is really Armin Tanzarian (as we discovered in episode 902 “The Principal and the Pauper”), and in “Fraudcast News” we see a nerd jumping from Geezer Rock yelling “I can’t believe they cancelled Futurama.”

This season features an amazing array of guest stars, including Jerry Lewis, Jennifer Garner, Oscar De La Hoya, Glenn Close, Michael Moore, PM Tony Blair, Jane Leeves, Evan Marriott, J.K. Rowling, Charles Napier, Jackie Mason, Mr. T, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Tom Pynchon, Tom Clancy, Simon Cowell, Jon Lovitz, Brave Combo, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jane Kaczmarek, Nichelle Nichols, Matt Groening, and Sir Ian McKellen.

The fifteenth season of The Simpsons was just as enjoyable for me now as it was 9 years ago when I first watched it on TV. I highly recommend pickup up this set as it provides hours of laughs of a series that really holds up well on multiple viewings.

What’s Included on the DVD:

Episodes:

• All 22 episodes of Season 15 (484 min)
  (Originally aired Nov 2, 2003-May 23, 2004)
  
  “Treehouse of Horror XIV”, “My Mother the Carjacker”, “The President Wore Pearls”, “The Regina Monologues”, “The Fat and the Furriest”, “Today I am a Clown”, “‘Tis the Fifteenth Season”, “Marge vs. Singles, Seniors, Childless Couples and Teens, and Gays”, “I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot”, “Diatribe of a Mad Housewife”, “Margical History Tour”, “Milhouse Doesn’t Live Here Anymore”, “Smart & Smarter”, “The Ziff Who Came to Dinner”, “Co-Dependent’s Day”, “Wandering Juvie”, “My Big Fat Geek Wedding”, “Catch ‘Em If You Can”, “Simple Simpson”, “The Way We Weren’t”, “Bart-Mangled Banner”, “Fraudcast News”
• Full Frame 1.33:1
• Audio: English DD 5.1, French DD 2.0 Surround, Spanish DD 2.0 Surround
• English SDH, Spanish subtitles

Extras:

• All Aboard With Matt (1:48)
  Matt Groening gives an overview of what viewers can expect to find on the DVD set.
• Audio Commentary on All Episodes
  The commentaries are primarily provided by the shows’s creators, executive producers and writers, with an occasional cast member participating. I listened to a sample of these commentaries and found them interesting, but I wish there was a little more cast participation as that is what makes the Futurama audio commentaries so much fun. However, it is wonderful that they continue to take the time to record commentaries for every episode of the season, and it’s such a great gesture to fans of the series.
• Sketch Gallery I – Treehouse of Horror XIV (1:18)
  Slideshow of character sketches from episode 1 of the season, set to a big band version of The Simpsons theme.
• The Unusual Ones (17:12)
  David Silverman, Mike Anderson, Mark Kirkland and Steve Moore talk over clips of some of the unusual animation used on the series in the first 15 seasons. These are scenes that were inspired by or pay homage to famous works of art or other animation styles.
• Living in the Moment (1:50)
  Video of a scrapbook of some of The Simpsons big moments over the past year—such as the fan marathon watching competition, 500th episode celebration, Hollywood Walk of Fame, New York Fashion Week and more. This seems a bit out of place—like it should have been on the season 23 or 24 set.
• Deleted Scenes (9:55)
  Deleted scenes from the season’s episode, with optional commentary by executive producer Al Jean. Many of the scenes are in black and white.
• Animation Showcase – The Wandering Juvie (7:20)
  Use the angle button to switch between Storyboards and Animatic to compare with the final version (which is shown in a PIP window) of a scene from episode 16 of the season.
• Special Language Feature – My Big Fat Geek Wedding (21:58)
  Use the audio button to switch between Portugese, German, Ukranian, and Italian audio tracks for the entire episode 17 of the season.
• The Commercials (1:04)
  Two television ads featuring The Simpsons: Ritz Bits “Smart Trade” and Mastercard.
• Sketch Gallery II – The Way We Weren’t (2:22)
  Slideshow of character sketches from episode 20 of the season, set to some jazz music.

* The Blu-ray release also includes bonus episodes “The Otto Show” (Season 3), “Das Bus” (Season 9) and “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge” (Season 11).
 

Final Thoughts:

Season 15 of The Simpsons was not aired in HD or in widescreen, and so this release contains the original 4:3 ratio. The picture looks great—very crisp and clear. The show looks just as good as when it originally aired (if not a bit better), and the audio track captures all of the performances and sounds perfectly—no complaints.

As for the Bonus features, I think it’s great that they have provided audio commentaries for every episode, and I also enjoyed the deleted scenes. However, most of the other extras aren’t really anything special and aren’t something you will revisit more than once.

In it’s fifteenth season, The Simpsons continues to provide a highly rewatchable series that gives laughs and enjoyment every time. It is easy to recommend this DVD set!