Ah, the perils of technology! Due to unforeseen circumstances involving winter weather, a sensitive satellite dish, and my blind reliance on TiVo, I missed tonight's new Simpsons episode and two-thirds of the new King Of The Hill. I'm gonna scrap together what I can based on the 10 or so minutes of KOTH that I saw and give a run-down of American Dad (which I caught at a friend's house), but I'm going to ask all of you to pick up my slack down there in the comments section. How was The Simpsons? Did Homer do something ridiculous? Did Marge forgive him? Were there clumsy pop-culture references? Or was it good this week? Do tell.
By the time I caught up to KOTH, Hank and Dale were deep in the throes of basket-weaving drama. Huh? Yes. Thankfully, I read this episode's synopsis before it aired, so I was sorta expecting it, but–really? Basket-weaving? The lead-up to it makes enough sense (something about Dale needing to find a new way to support his family and he and Hank heading out on a "vocation vacation"), but I don't understand why Hank would ever let himself get sucked into such a thing. Or where Dale's sudden passion for baskets came from. And what happened to that poor man's hand?? I take it this was all explained during the part I missed, but when isolated from the plot at large, it all seems quite strange. Again, help me out here commenters!
Meanwhile, the rest of the Rainy Street contingent was apparently making an Internet video for some reason. I wish I had seen how that began, as I can't imagine how anything involving Peggy and Kahn working together could not be hilarious; but again, I didn't really understand the context. Too bad, as most of what I saw tonight I liked, including a classic Dale freak-out (in which he pummeled Hank with wicker baskets and set imaginary beetles aflame) and some nice Peggy bravado ("Four hits! I think we're viral!"). It seemed that there was some classic KOTH-type humor going on, but within an unusual context.
But as far as odd contexts go, basket-weaving aint got nothing on heavenly court hearings and a threat on God's life, which is what we were treated to in American Dad tonight. I've said before that I prefer American Dad when it plays with more absurd situations, rather than falling back on its done-to-death aren't-conservatives-silly routine. As this episode shows, the Smith clan is capable of pushing just as many buttons–and more successfully–by twisting something as well-worn as a Christmas episode into a pile of crass ridiculousness.
While the elements knitting together this week's story were familiar–Stan's selfishness nearly ruins Christmas, but an angel trying to get its wings helps him redeem himself–it wasn't exactly a heart-warmer. After a Christmas-obsessed Stan dies trying to cut down a Christmas tree to replace the non-perfect one his family decorated, he's trapped in limbo, where he has to fight in court for a second chance at life–a futile endeavor, as heaven has video surveillance of Stan's lifetime of assholery. So he takes his wannabe-angel lawyer hostage and crashes Jesus Christ's birthday party so he can force God at gunpoint to return him to life. Sure, it's not exactly "That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown," but it had a hell of a lot more giggles than Linus reciting Bible passages.