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The Simpsons season 2

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The Simpsons
Season 2
DVD cover featuring the Simpsons family with swapped heads
No. of episodes22
Release
Original networkFox
Original releaseOctober 11, 1990 (1990-10-11) –
July 11, 1991 (1991-07-11)
Season chronology
← Previous
Season 1
Next →
Season 3
List of episodes

The second season of the animated sitcom The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between October 11, 1990, and July 11, 1991, and contained 22 episodes, beginning with "Bart Gets an "F"". Another episode, "Blood Feud", aired during the summer after the official season finale. The executive producers for the second production season were Matt Groening, James L. Brooks, and Sam Simon, who had also been EPs for the previous season.[1] The DVD box set was released on August 6, 2002 in Region 1, July 8, 2002 in Region 2 and in September, 2002 in Region 4. The episode "Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment" won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (for Programming Less Than One Hour), and was also nominated in the "Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy Series or a Special" category.[2]

Development

"Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish" was the first episode produced for the season, but "Bart Gets an "F"" aired first because Bart was popular at the time and the producers had wanted to premiere with a Bart themed episode.[3] The second season featured a new opening sequence, which was shortened from its original length of roughly 90 seconds. The opening sequence for the first season showed Bart stealing a "Bus Stop" sign; whilst the new sequence featured him skateboarding past several characters who had been introduced during the previous season. Starting with this season, there were three versions of the opening: a full roughly 75-second version, a 45-second version and a 25-second version. This gave the show's editors more leeway.[4]

The season saw the introduction of several new recurring characters, including Mayor Quimby,[5] Kang and Kodos,[6] Maude Flanders,[7] Bill and Marty,[8] Dr. Hibbert,[9] Roger Meyers, Jr.,[10] Sideshow Mel,[10] Lionel Hutz,[11] Dr. Nick Riviera,[11] Blue Haired Lawyer,[11] Rainier Wolfcastle,[12] Troy McClure,[13] Groundskeeper Willie,[14] Hans Moleman,[15] Professor Frink[16] and Comic Book Guy.[17]

Reception

Ratings

Due to the show's success during its abbreviated first season, Fox decided to move The Simpsons from its Sunday night lineup. The move came as the still-fledgling network was adding two additional nights of programming to its lineup, one of which was Thursday.[18] Fox placed The Simpsons in the leadoff position of their lineup for their initial Thursday offerings, with the new sitcom Babes and a new Aaron Spelling-produced drama, Beverly Hills 90210, offering competition for the lineups fielded by the other networks including ratings champion NBC.

The Simpsons settled into the 8:00 PM position, which put it in direct competition with the five-time defending #1 show in all of television, The Cosby Show.[19] Many of the producers, including James L. Brooks, were against the move because The Simpsons had been in the top 10 while airing on Sunday and they felt the move would destroy its ratings.[20] All through the summer of 1990, several news outlets published stories about the supposed "Bill vs. Bart" rivalry.[20] At the time, NBC had 208 television stations, while Fox had only 133.[21]

"Bart Gets an "F"" was the first episode to air against The Cosby Show and averaged an 18.4 Nielsen rating and 29% of the audience. In the weeks ratings, it finished tied for eighth behind The Cosby Show which had an 18.5 rating. However, an estimated 33.6 million viewers watched the episode, making it the number one show in terms of actual viewers that week. At the time, it was the most watched episode in the history of Fox.[22] The next week, "Simpson and Delilah" had a 16.2 rating and 25% share while the Cosby Show managed to maintain its 18.5 rating. However, viewer-wise, The Simpsons won again with 29.9 million viewers.[23]

The next week, "Treehouse of Horror" fell in the ratings, finishing 24th.[24] Ratings wise, new episodes of The Cosby Show beat The Simpsons every time during the second season and The Simpsons eventually fell out of the top 10.[3]

"Three Men and a Comic Book" would boast the only victory over The Cosby Show, finishing 23rd in the weekly ratings while a rerun of Cosby finished 26th.[25] At the end of the season, Cosby averaged as the fifth highest rated show on television while The Simpsons was 38th.[18] It would not be until the third season episode "Homer at the Bat" that The Simpsons would beat The Cosby Show in the ratings.[26] The show remained in its Thursday timeslot until the sixth season.[19]

Reception

On aggregate review website Metacritic, a site which uses a weighted mean score, the season scored a 91⁄100 based on seven critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Episodes

See also: List of The Simpsons episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateProd.
code		U.S. viewers
(millions)
141"Bart Gets an "F""David SilvermanDavid M. SternOctober 11, 1990 (1990-10-11)7F0333.6[27]
152"Simpson and Delilah"Rich MooreJon VittiOctober 18, 1990 (1990-10-18)7F0229.9[28]
163"Treehouse of Horror"Wes Archer
Rich Moore
David Silverman		John Swartzwelder
Jay Kogen & Wallace Wolodarsky
Edgar Allan Poe & Sam Simon		October 25, 1990 (1990-10-25)7F0427.4[29]
174"Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish"Wes ArcherSam Simon & John SwartzwelderNovember 1, 1990 (1990-11-01)7F0126.1[30]
185"Dancin' Homer"Mark KirklandKen Levine & David IsaacsNovember 8, 1990 (1990-11-08)7F0526.1[31]
196"Dead Putting Society"Rich MooreJeff MartinNovember 15, 1990 (1990-11-15)7F0825.4[32]
207"Bart vs. Thanksgiving"David SilvermanGeorge MeyerNovember 22, 1990 (1990-11-22)7F0725.9[33]
218"Bart the Daredevil"Wesley Meyer ArcherJay Kogen & Wallace WolodarskyDecember 6, 1990 (1990-12-06)7F0626.2[34]
229"Itchy & Scratchy & Marge"Jim ReardonJohn SwartzwelderDecember 20, 1990 (1990-12-20)7F0922.2[35]
2310"Bart Gets Hit by a Car"Mark KirklandJohn SwartzwelderJanuary 10, 1991 (1991-01-10)7F1024.8[36]
2411"One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish"Wesley M. ArcherNell ScovellJanuary 24, 1991 (1991-01-24)7F1124.2[37]
2512"The Way We Was"David SilvermanAl Jean & Mike Reiss and Sam SimonJanuary 31, 1991 (1991-01-31)7F1226.8[38]
2613"Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment"Rich MooreSteve PepoonFebruary 7, 1991 (1991-02-07)7F1326.2[39]
2714"Principal Charming"Mark KirklandDavid M. SternFebruary 14, 1991 (1991-02-14)7F1523.9[40]
2815"Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?"W.M. "Bud" ArcherJeff MartinFebruary 21, 1991 (1991-02-21)7F1626.8[41]
2916"Bart's Dog Gets an "F""Jim ReardonJon VittiMarch 7, 1991 (1991-03-07)7F1423.9[42]
3017"Old Money"David SilvermanJay Kogen & Wallace WolodarskyMarch 28, 1991 (1991-03-28)7F1721.2[43]
3118"Brush with Greatness"Jim ReardonBrian K. RobertsApril 11, 1991 (1991-04-11)7F1820.6[44]
3219"Lisa's Substitute"Rich MooreJon VittiApril 25, 1991 (1991-04-25)7F1917.7[45]
3320"The War of the Simpsons"Mark KirklandJohn SwartzwelderMay 2, 1991 (1991-05-02)7F2019.7[46]
3421"Three Men and a Comic Book"Wes M. ArcherJeff MartinMay 9, 1991 (1991-05-09)7F2121[47]
3522"Blood Feud"David SilvermanGeorge MeyerJuly 11, 1991 (1991-07-11)7F2217.3[48]

DVD release

The DVD boxset for season two was released by 20th Century Fox in the United States and Canada on August 6, 2002, eleven years after it had completed broadcast on television. As well as every episode from the season, the DVD release features bonus material including commentaries for every episode.

The Complete Second Season
Set Details[49][50] Special Features[49][50][51]
  • 22 episodes
  • 4-disc set
  • 1.33:1 aspect ratio
  • AUDIO
    • English 5.1 Dolby Digital
    • English 2.0 Dolby Surround
    • French 2.0 Dolby Surround
  • SUBTITLES
    • English SDH
    • Spanish

[49]

  • Optional commentaries for all 22 episodes
  • An early interview with James L. Brooks and Matt Groening
  • Bart at the American Music Awards (with commentary)
  • The Simpsons presenting at the Emmy Awards
  • "Do the Bartman" music video (director's cut with commentary)
  • "Deep, Deep Trouble" music video (with commentary)
  • Featurette: "Creation of an Episode"
  • Foreign Language Clips
    • Two Cars on Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish
      • French 2.0 Dolby Surround
      • German 2.0 Dolby Surround
      • Hungarian 2.0 Dolby Surround
      • Portuguese 2.0 Dolby Surround
      • Spanish 2.0 Dolby Surround
  • 3 Butterfinger commercials
  • Gallery (Barbara Bush letters, animation, magazine covers)
  • Early sketches
Release Dates
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
August 6, 2002[51] July 8, 2002 July 24, 2002[52]

References

  1. ^ Richmond & Coffman 1997, p. 34.
  2. ^ Emmy Awards official site Archived February 15, 2009, at the Wayback Machine "The Simpsons" "1991–1991" emmys.org. Retrieved on August 31, 2007
  3. ^ a b Jean, Al (2002). The Simpson season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Bart Gets an "F"" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  4. ^ Silverman, David (2002). The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Bart Gets an F" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  5. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Bart Gets an F". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  6. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "The Simpsons Hallowe'en Special". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  7. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Dead Putting Society". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  8. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Bart vs. Thanksgiving". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  9. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Bart the Daredevil". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  10. ^ a b Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Itchy & Scratchy & Marge". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  11. ^ a b c Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Bart Gets Hit by a Car". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  12. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "The Way We Was". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  13. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  14. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Principal Charming". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
  15. ^ Richmond & Coffman 1997, p. 49.
  16. ^ Richmond & Coffman 1997, p. 52.
  17. ^ Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Three Men and a Comic Book". BBC. Retrieved 2007-08-31.
  18. ^ a b Daniel Cerone (1991-05-09). "'Simpsons' steals away Cosby viewers". Los Angeles Times. p. 4.
  19. ^ a b Reiss, Mike (2002). The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Bart Gets an F" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  20. ^ a b Groening, Matt (2002). The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode "Bart Gets an F" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  21. ^ Belcher, Walt (1990-10-18). "" The Simpsons ,' "Cosby' square off in second round". The Tampa Tribune. p. 6F.
  22. ^ Scott D. Pierce (1990-10-18). "Don't have a cow, man! More viewers watch 'The Simpsons' than 'Cosby'!". Deseret News. p. C5.
  23. ^ "Bart vs. Bill results in a split decision!". The Record. 1990-10-23. p. B8.
  24. ^ Hastings, Deborah (1990-11-01). "'Satanic Verses' author boon to 60 Minutes". Sun-Sentinel. p. 4E.
  25. ^ "Nielsen ratings". The Tampa Tribune. 1991-05-15. p. 4.
  26. ^ Jean, Al (2003). The Simpsons season 3 DVD commentary for the episode "Homer at the Bat" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  27. ^ Eugene Sloan (October 17, 1990). "NIELSENS; For CBS, baseball's a grounder". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  28. ^ Brian Donlon (October 24, 1990). "NIELSENS; CBS slides easily into first place". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  29. ^ Brian Donlon (October 31, 1990). "NIELSENS; CBS, no longer the long shot". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  30. ^ Brian Donlon (November 7, 1990). "NIELSENS; NBC wins with fewer viewers". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  31. ^ Brian Donlon (November 14, 1990). "NIELSENS; 'Cheers' sweeps up for NBC". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  32. ^ Brian Donlon (November 21, 1990). "NIELSENS; ABC pulls past CBS in sweeps". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  33. ^ Brian Donlon (November 28, 1990). "NIELSENS; ABC's 'It' confirms competitors' fears". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  34. ^ Brian Donlon (December 12, 1990). "NIELSENS; ABC wins a sub-par week". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  35. ^ Brian Donlon (December 28, 1990). "NIELSENS; Special help in ABC win". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  36. ^ Brian Donlon (January 16, 1991). "NIELSENS; NBC wins with season best". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  37. ^ Brian Donlon (January 30, 1991). "NIELSENS; ABC super-bowls over its rivals". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  38. ^ Brian Donlon (February 6, 1991). "NIELSENS; Where are the dominant series?". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  39. ^ Brian Donlon (February 13, 1991). "NIELSENS; A good Friday fuels ABC win". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  40. ^ Brian Donlon (February 20, 1991). "NIELSENS; CBS mines past and hits gold". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  41. ^ Brian Donlon (February 27, 1991). "NIELSENS; NBC has a week of ratings ups and downs". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  42. ^ Brian Donlon (March 13, 1991). "NIELSENS; 'Baby Talk' helps ABC toddle past CBS to 2nd". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  43. ^ Brian Donlon (April 3, 1991). "NIELSENS; Oscar wins big for ABC". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  44. ^ Brian Donlon (April 17, 1991). "CBS ends the year with a win". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  45. ^ Brian Donlon (May 1, 1991). "'Switched' sweeps the week". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  46. ^ Brian Donlon (May 8, 1991). "Sweeps lure straying viewers". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  47. ^ Brian Donlon (May 15, 1991). "Movies are NBC's ace". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  48. ^ Brian Donlon (July 17, 1991). "CBS has all-star rating". USA Today. p. 03.D.
  49. ^ a b c "Simpsons, The — The Complete 2nd Season". TV Shows on DVD.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-13. Retrieved 2008-03-14.
  50. ^ a b "The Simpsons Season 2 DVD". The Simpsons Shop. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-14.
  51. ^ a b Topel, Fred (June 13, 2002). "Eat Bart's Shorts Again ... Doh!". hive4media.com. Archived from the original on June 18, 2002. Retrieved September 14, 2019.
  52. ^ "Simpsons, The – Season 2". JB Hi-Fi. Retrieved 2012-08-04.
Bibliography
Wikiquote has quotations related to The Simpsons' season 2.


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