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| Its like watching a bunch of bootleg Homer's together. |
Lisa becomes frustrated over a puzzle featured on the back of a box, more so because everyone else has figured it out. Further, she forgets her locker combination as well as her agriculture project, so she's having a pretty bad couple of days, intellectually. Grampa catches wind of Lisa's dilemma and doesn't think much of it as he presumes that she's beginning to undergo the effects of the "Simpson" gene, a defective gene that kicks in at about age 8 that turns all otherwise intelligent Simpsons into dopes. It's happened to Grampa, Homer and Bart, and now the devastated Lisa is next.
In a subplot, old man Jasper freezes himself inside a fridge at the Kwik-E-Mart, with Apu not realizing the scheme until its too late. Jasper wishes to see the future (and to have his pants changed depending on the trends of the time), and is still alive within. Though Apu is initially dismayed over what's happened, he eventually turns the Kwik-E-Mart into a profitable freakshow, with Jasper the main attraction. However, despite Apu's attempts otherwise, Jasper is able to thaw, his plan a technical success, and walks off to discover the 'future'. Needing a new revenue stream, Apu turns the freak show into a Nude-E-Mart.
Meanwhile, Lisa realizes that there's no escaping her genes, and tries to accept the fact that she'll become 'a Simpson', but finds it too terrible to bear. Instead, Lisa decides to use one final night to 'feed' her brain with culture. That same night, she's able to get on TV for an 'editorial' as she lets off some steam. At this point, the Simpson family understands what's going on with Lisa (especially as Grampa also lets them know about the Simpson gene). Homer scoffs at the notion, and spends the night making calls.
The next morning, Lisa wakes up to find Homer, Bart, and every Simpson in the tri-city area. Homer attempts to prove there's no such thing as the Simpson gene, but every Simpson he talks to is, in one way or another, a failure. Lisa's hopes quickly fade, but Marge points out that Homer hasn't talked to a female Simpson yet. Turns out, the few that are there have all become successful in their lines of high quality work. One Simpson, a doctor, reveals that the Simpson gene is in fact real, but is on the Y-chromosome so it only affects male Simpsons. Lisa is rejuvenated by the news, thanks Homer for cheering her up (and Bart is mostly unfazed by learning he's going to be a massive failure), and a short time later is able to figure out that puzzle she got stuck on earlier.
Quick Review
This episode, despite being in the latter half of Season 9, is the last episode to be run by Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein, who ran the show for Seasons 7 and 8. Its all Mike Scully from here on.
The episode itself was good, not among the best of the season, but it holds it own. The Jasper subplot was wonderful but brief, and the main plot has its moments but nothing too spectacular.
Final Score: 8.7
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