The Daughter Also Rises

"The Daughter Also Rises"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no. 499
Directed by Chuck Sheetz
Written by Rob LaZebnik
Showrunner(s) Al Jean
Production code PABF06
Original air date February 12, 2012
Chalkboard gag "I will not replace a candy heart with a frog's heart"
Couch gag Moe and a group of ancillary characters come in and congratulate the show for reaching 500 episodes, but Lisa (using a Simpsons guide book) tells Moe and the others that this is only the 499th episode.
Guest appearance(s) Michael Cera
Jamie Hyneman
Adam Savage

"The Daughter Also Rises" is the thirteenth episode of the twenty-third season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 12, 2012. The episode parodies the MythBusters program in that Bart and Milhouse are inspired by a show called MythCrackers to debunk some urban schoolyard legends. The hosts of MythBusters, Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, guest starred in the episode as themselves, while actor Michael Cera played Lisa's new love interest Nick. "The Daughter Also Rises" received a 2.0 Nielsen rating in the demographic for adults aged 18–49, and was viewed by around 4.26 million people. The reception from critics has been mixed to negative.

Plot

Lisa falls in love with Nick, an intellectual romantic obsessed with Ernest Hemingway, and starts a secret romance with him, in a plot vaguely parodying A Little Romance', where an elderly man (Grandpa Simpson in place of Laurence Olivier) takes two young lovers to a legendary romantic spot for a magical kiss. Meanwhile, Bart and Milhouse are inspired by the show MythCrackers to debunk some urban schoolyard legends.

Production

The hosts of MythBusters, Jamie Hyneman (left) and Adam Savage (right), guest starred in the episode.

The episode was written by Rob LaZebnik.[1] It parodies the Discovery Channel program MythBusters, in which hosts and special effects experts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman test the validity of different myths.[2] Both Savage and Hyneman guest starred in the episode as themselves, hosting the MythCrackers program that Bart and Milhouse watch.[3] Canadian actor Michael Cera guest starred in the episode as the voice of Nick.[3][4]

Franz von Suppé's overture Light Cavalry Overture is featured in the episode, and according to The Simpsons music editor Chris Ledesma, "I got to spend the afternoon editing and choosing just the right bars to use in the montage so the parts that [showrunner] Al Jean wants to hear are in the shots while also maintaining the right tempo and 'hitting' the right moments."[1]

"The Daughter Also Rises" revealed the origins of the Scottish character Groundskeeper Willie, which had previously been the matter of a debate between Glasgow and Aberdeen, with people of both cities claiming that they live in the hometown of Willie.[5] However, "The Daughter Also Rises" revealed that the character is actually from Kirkwall.[6]

Release

The episode originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 12, 2012.[2] It was watched by approximately 4.26 million people during this broadcast, and in the demographic for adults aged 18–49, it received a 2.0 Nielsen rating and a five percent share.[7] The rating was a seventeen percent decrease from the previous episode the aired two weeks earlier,[8] making this the lowest-rated episode so far of the season.[9] However, "The Daughter Also Rises" faced strong competition from the highly rated 54th Grammy Awards, which increased its rating by forty-one percent from last year's awards as a result of Whitney Houston's death on February 11.[8][9] The episode became the second highest-rated broadcast in Fox's Animation Domination lineup for the night in terms of both total viewers and adults aged 18–49, finishing higher than new episodes of Napoleon Dynamite, American Dad!, and The Cleveland Show, but lower than a new Family Guy episode.[7]

Since airing, the episode has received mixed to negative reviews from critics. Hayden Childs of The A.V. Club called the episode "mediocre" and "lackluster", criticizing the lack of humor. He also wrote that the "worst crime of the episode appears to be a case of the guest star wagging the dog, with the show working so hard to make Lisa’s love interest a Michael Cera type that they forgot to give Michael Cera much to do in the way of acting or comedy."[10]

References

  1. 1 2 Ledesma, Chris (2012-01-24). "Starting 'The Daughter Also Rises'". Simpsons Music 500. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  2. 1 2 Adams, Erik (2012-02-12). "Come fill a virtual seat for the Grammys, won't you?". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  3. 1 2 Anders, Charlie Jane (2012-02-06). "This Week's TV: The Best Pilot We've Seen in Years. Plus the Most Insane Syfy Movie Ever, Starring Mark Sheppard!". io9. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  4. ↑ Snierson, Dan (2011-06-02). "Michael Cera to guest on 'The Simpsons'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  5. ↑ "Civic war centres on Simpsons star". The Scotsman. 2009-05-23. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
  6. ↑ Stuart, Gavin (2012-02-02). "The Simpsons: Groundskeeper Willie's Scots roots revealed". STV. Retrieved 2012-08-12.
  7. 1 2 Gorman, Bill (2012-02-14). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Napoleon Dynamite,' 'American Dad' Adjusted Up; '60 Minutes' Adjusted Down + 'Grammy Awards' Finals". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  8. 1 2 Rubino, Lindsay (2012-02-13). "Primetime Ratings: 54th Grammy Awards Boosted By Whitney Houston Tributes". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  9. 1 2 Gorman, Bill (2012-02-13). "TV Ratings Sunday: Whitney Houston Memories Rocket 'Grammy Awards' Ratings, Pushes Competition To Lows". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved 2012-02-19.
  10. ↑ Childs, Hayden (2012-02-12). "'The Daughter Also Rises'". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2012-02-19.

External links

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