Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire

I purchased the "Simpsons" first and second season box sets a couple years ago, and what I was most astonished at is the shift in animation (more so than the humor itself) - the Simpsons look more like the Berenstain Bears than the familiar yellow cartoon characters we've grown accustomed to over the years.

The animation is rough, edgy and the transitions are awkward - there are no quick cuts punctuated by clips from the "Simpsons" theme song (which is what they use today to often transition scenes) - all of this isn't instantly noticeable, but after seeing older episodes a couple times I started to realize what was subconsciously making it feel like an entirely different television show.

Still, they had to start somewhere, and for what it is this is a very good pilot for the TV show.

It takes place at Christmas time (obviously). Mr. Burns announces that there will be no Christmas bonuses this year, meaning less spending money. Bart goes to the mall and gets a tattoo, and when Marge has it removed, it costs them all of their Christmas stash.

Homer takes advice from Barney and dresses up as Santa Claus at the mall, then bets on a dog at a local race track with the poor amount of money he's earned, but things continue to spiral downhill and Homer is left feeling like a failure - until, of course, everything is wrapped up quite nicely (without spoiling it).

Compared to episodes from Seasons 4 & 5 this is a rather flat and poorly animated "Simpsons" fare. However, when you take into account that this was the pilot and the start of everything, you know they had to start somewhere and, all considered, this was a good place to begin.

The Simpsons is one of the best, if not the best animated television series to exist. This episode, "The Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" is a great pilot. Since this is the pilot, the animation is a little rough and the voices are not as coherent, but would you expect on such a cheap budget? This episode is pretty funny, but not hilarious. However, this episode features heartwarming, earnest moments from the Simpson family.

This first episode is set at Christmas time. Homer does not receive his Christmas bonus this year, so he thinks he will ruin Christmas because Marge had to use her money to remove Bart's tattoo. But he gets a job as Santa thinking this will help his family out. But will it? Overall, this is a great start to a long-running series.

This is one of the heartwarming episodes you will encounter in this series. I rate this episode 9/10.

I've never seen the show before, so this this be my first time going through it. This is a decent enough pilot, but I've only heard the show gets better after the first season. The second episode, Bart the Genous, is much better and I hope the show is more like that than this, but this is still good enough. The voice acting is pretty good, the animation still sort of sketchy right now, as is to be expected. It gives us a good insight into what the characters will be like, and overall I very much look forward to watching the show and seeing all the reasons why it's so acclaimed and considered so highly (well, the first 10 seasons or so). Recommended.

I remember hearing about this special back in the third grade, "The Simpsons was the best cartoon, and you just had to see it!" Unfortunately, we didn't get Fox in my little Idaho town. Finally, when we did get Fox, I started my weekly ritual of visiting the Simpsons every Thursday and then on Sundays.

This is a solid Christmas special. It's a more heartfelt episode compared to the episodes produced today. Homer wasn't nearly as much of a buffoon as he is today, and this episode isn't as hysterical as future episodes, but what it may lack in some comedy, it makes up in story and character development. While Bart was quite the troublemaker, he still cared deeply for his father and his family. Plus, the family singing of Rudolph played in the credits was great!

This was our first meeting with the Simpsons, and it would continue to be a great relationship.

The most interesting thing for any contemporary Simpsons fans to notice in this first episode is how much everything has changed over the years.

The early Simpsons shows were created on a much smaller budget, necessitating a smaller, less experienced, and in some ways, less skilled team. As a result, the animation style here is much rougher. There are far fewer people doing voices. The voice work isn't nearly as smooth as it would become. The personalities of the characters hadn't settled into norms. There aren't as many layers of jokes zipping frantically by.

The feel, overall, isn't that removed from, say, a Beavis and Butthead episode. Not that that's a bad thing. I happen to love Beavis and Butthead, too. It's just a much rougher style than we've come to expect from The Simpsons.

Aside from all of that, though, this is a charming Christmas episode, almost a Simpsons version of A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965). Like that famous work, an elementary school pageant is featured prominently, there are problems procuring a Christmas tree, and the "true meaning of Christmas", aside from commercialism, is explored, although here it is done so unwillingly, and there are no religious-tinged speeches to accompany the proceedings--The Simpsons is known for its irreverence, after all. But at its heart, while humorously introducing us to the main characters, this really is a sweet Christmas story and worth watching for that purpose, which is what I plan to save future viewings for.