It’s funny…really. We have been complaining for a while that the event updates seem to be based on just smidgens of actual Simpsons’ episodes. We get whole segments of weird beasts, or giant recreations of a building, for something that only appears in about 5 seconds of the actual episode “on which it is based.”
Not so with this Outland-based episode. But, I am going to whine…as there something from this episode that would have been REALLY cool…and is not offered in the event. But, we’ll get to that later…
“At Long Last Leave” is the fourteenth episode of The Simpsons’ twenty-third season, (S23E14) and the 500th episode overall of the series.
And it starts with a “Couch Gag” that actually shows a few frames of every couch gag from the previous 499 episodes. Pretty cool…
What isn’t cool, is how the town treats the Simpsons…
As way of a BRIEF Synopsis…
The town secretly colludes to expel the Simpsons from Springfield. The list of reasons is long…and let’s be hones about it…justified. The Simpsons are forced to leave town, to seek a home elsewhere.
We also see the origin of the “Simpsons Go to Hell Float” which isn’t offered in this update as a retread…even though it should have been…as it is from the same episode. Oh…EA…your ways confuse me…but I digress.
The Simpsons pack and head out on the open highway, and during a “pee break” by the side of barren road, “Mountain Man” confronts them for stopping.
Conversation ensues, where they reveal that they are in fact wayward travelers looking for a new start, and Mountain man deems to take them to “Outland,” the post-appocolyptic, off the grid, city in the dessert… Where we see a TON of the items from this event, over several panoramic views of “Outland.”
From here the story gets murky, in that while the kids and Homer blossom and prosper in the environment of “chaos and anarchy,” Marge misses her friends and their house. But we see loads of snippets of everyone in their “Outland gear” as well as a funny “couch bit” where the Simpsons are Watching Fox.
There is also a hilariously weird segment featuring the REAL Julian Assange…(not forgetting that this was Before he became an international cyber-criminal on the lamb).
But Marge misses home, and Homer tries to sneak her back into Springfield for a visit, where they are caught…but reveal that they like their new home better, because it isn’t judgmental.
Where the Simpsons slide one by the censors with this bit of dialogue between Quimby and Wiggums.
Homer: We’ve found a new place that we love, a place that may not have indoor plumbing, but it’s got something we treasure more. Non-jerks!
Quimby: Maybe he’s right– we are jerks.
Wiggum: You want I should spray some of my Jerk Off on you?
Qimby: Uh it’s okay.
Unfortunately, for Outland, all of the townspeople, and apparently half of Shelbyville, come to live in Outland, bringing with them, all of the “creature comforts” of civilization…like electricity, telecommunications, and the Internet.
Maggie and Bart catch Carl trying to sneak into their town…
Moe soon arrives and sets up shop…
Civilized folks soon overrun their Utopia…
The final scene, is Skinner, wandering a virtually empty Springfield Street, alone…when Bart swoops in on his Outland version of a Gyro-copter, and says, “Aw Come On, Man…we wouldn’t leave you behind!” Throws him a rope…and then proceeds to fly him into countless Springfield landmarks, exclaiming, “oops…sorry…my mistake.”
I would pay BIG donuts for a flying gyro-copter that actually has Skinner dangling from it, and bumping into the Cooling Towers of the Nuke Plane. EA missed the mark on this one…
Here are a handful of items that you will get from this episode…
Mountain Man
Ruffians We get them…but they are from a different episode of the Simpsons. Right Gino?
Outland Simpsons House with Outlands Maggie
Outlands Sign
Truck Shack
Outlands Factory
Grub Shack
Outlands Gate
Outlands Water Tower
and a ton of peripheral decorations, including the House Frame
There are going to be tons more in Act III…so make room for them.
I was not really into the Outlands/Bart Royale event, until I re-watched the episode. It is loaded with great humor, some amazingly fun animation and a very Utopian/Dystopian theme that almost makes one want to go back to basics. And let’s face it…if the world continues on its present course, we may all get the chance to do so!
BONUS from the Episode… the final credit music, as well as some of the soundtrack music was performed by Alison Kraus and Union Station.
These guys are amazing musicians…with Jerry Douglas, the world’s greatest dobro player added in, this band is hard to beat for raw, sheer talent, with acoustic instruments.
And finally….there is a funny screen shot at the end… which reminds me of something I’d like to post here…
GET OUT MORE…Out down your padular devices… have some fun doing something other than tapping once in a while…right?
Have YOU seen this episode? What do you think about it? Are you going to build an Outlands section in YOUR Springfield?? Let us know!
I rewatched this episode shortly before this event started….which is why I have liked this event from the start. I have been getting all the premium items I want to make sure I will have a nice little Outland design in the bottom corner of my town.
So far I have gained @ 18% extra bonus and I should have another 16% new bonus on top of that with other premium items I want to buy before the even is over.
Before this event, I didn’t remember this episode because it has been a long time that I watched it and now it realise that this was a great episode. I remember getting Moe’s Cavern during the Time Travelling Toaster event and thinking that an Outlands update would be a good event. I think that this is a cool event but my main disappointment is that there is not enough free characters so far having 1 (Pyro) as a prize and 6 (Erik, Sam, Larry, Hans Mechman, Mountain Man & Wendell) costing donuts and real cash which is not a very good ratio of premium/freemium characters. Outside of this I still do like the prizes, premium and crafting items available because they do work well in designs together in an event area or just placed any else in Springfield. I can’t wait for the show off post. 😀
*ratio of premium/freemium characters in this update.
Great post Patric—great to have some context on the episode and how it all ties in. But now I find myself wanting more run down shacks & trailers to house all my ruffians & outcasts.
Me 2.
Thank you for this post! I have to say this event was just “OK” for me but now, after reading your post, it’s taken on a whole new feel and love!
Wow. I thought most of this came from the biker gang episode with John Goodman. It has been a decade since I have seen that episode, though.
Patric,
you nailed it here. The event is creative and fun. A combination of things that COULD really impact people’s springfields.
But will they do anything about it? It’s pretty clear that the designing aspect is wide open here and a long time player could literally pull hundreds of old items out and do something new with them. Yes, my Springfield elementary is now the scene of a battle where lisa defends duff brewery to honor act 1 as tanks go through. Herman has dragon teeth around his military shop. And his neighbor Otto (Herman has a thing for buses?) is stoking up the hyper train headed across the wastes.
I found that slaghold nestles really well into Springfield gorge and if you put the popsicle stick skyscraper behind that it’s literally seamless. Looks like the tallest building in the game. I also made it look like Dr. Monroe sits up there psychoanalyzing. I used that advantage of creating height with those items to start making the badlands as a backdrop, so it looks more like the view in the picture. Waiting for some item releases….
Act 2 has its own area, and I pulled all kinds of existing buildings out of my Springfield like the penitentiary, courthouse, burns mansion (act 3) and added them to the juevenile correction building as they all have the same scaling. Making that all into a battleground among the junk base was interesting. Making it look like it’s in the backcountry woods and having mountain man outside the gates shooting stop signs….finishing touches. The redwood tree helps and if you position the junk base just right it mates pretty well with the tree.
I’m sure after act 3 I will have ripped more parts out of my Springfield. What a great way to free space. And I even found a use for tetanus terminal as all of its parts look like outlands fodder to me.
All in all it’s a 200+ tile area I’m working on.
Thanks for the good read, before I started the event too deeply I also watched the episodes it related to even the old Nelson vs Bart and hell fish one. Glad to see you tie it into the shows
OK…I think I want to be your neighbor! I really want to see your Springfield!
You sound like the kind of TSTO player I like…those who put loads of time and effort into designing…not just “getting.”
Drop me a line @ tstopatric@gmail.com
Sounds amazing! I’m keeping the Act 1 stuff separate, made a nice little spot for it in my kids land area. I made a nice open space for the Outlands that i’m slowly filling stuff in as I get it. Can’t wait to get it all together
Wow, thanks for posting this Patric! You just made this event much more interesting; & I’m sure many others feel the same way after reading. All the screens were great too 😎 RachelS
Thanks, Rachel. These are surprisingly a lot of work…and never know if people actually read them or not!
Thanks for giving the craft-able house frame some context. This info made the event more interesting. Now I’ll probably go back and watch the episode again.
It’s worth a “re-watch.” Good stuff…and some great lines.
ruffians, Sludge Bootsie and Mumbles, are from Homer Goes to Prep School in the scene with the Ice Bishop of Beverly Hills
https://i.imgur.com/DHT8ztm.png
I corrected it in the next WDTCF post… Nice to know you’re still pay you attention.
np Patric still kicking won’t back down 😀
I remember this episode. As with most of the episodes I thought it was brilliant. But I thought of something today that kinda goes with this events theme that I wish they’d put in the game, it’s the cruise ship from the episode “A totally fun thing Bart will never do again.” Bart doesn’t want his vacation to end and he single handedly turned that ship into a post apocalyptic setting.