Review: The Simpsons “The Wayz We Were”

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Evergreen Terrace is overrun with traffic, and Moe has a fateful choice to make.

Our Take:

There’s nothing more terrifying than getting stuck in traffic for hours. Okay, some things are scarier than traffic, but still. This week’s episode of The Simpsons puts its attention on another common scenario, as well as Moe running into a special someone.

The episode starts with a couch gag, which I haven’t seen recently in quite a while. The couch gag features Maggie playing with a toy castle until she burns it in the fireplace. We then cut to Evergreen Terrace being overrun by a traffic jam, disrupting the Simpson family and their neighbors. Homer then gets help from Professor Fink to make Evergreen Terrace “disappear” on the Wayz website so that the neighbors won’t have to worry about traffic ever again. The subplot follows Moe’s internal crisis as he reunites with Maya, a woman from his past. After getting back together with Maya, Moe struggles to confess his love to her because he fears that she’ll leave him like his other girlfriends.

One of the things I liked about this episode was that they brought back the couch gag that was absent in the first three episodes of season 33. The joke features an animation style and character designs that resemble the Hulu animated series Crossing Swords. Not only was it gleefully humorous, but it was also appropriate since Crossing Swords is releasing its second season in December.

Another element I enjoyed the most was Moe himself. We get to see Moe reunite with his former girlfriend after being separated for a long time. But, more importantly, we see him going through the toughest challenge of his life: confessing his love to her. This scenario respectively showcased some character development in Moe as he struggles to face his fear of being rejected. Episodes like this show that The Simpsons is more than just a series of sitcom-like situations with pop culture references. It’s also about the characters and the challenges they face in life.

The only flaw I had with this episode was the traffic jam plot. The writers had something going with this one when Homer is hailed as a hero but wants to be left alone. However, they never went anywhere else after that. It only serves as a starting point for Moe’s storyline. The only upside to this was its jokes. Moe running into traffic signs and the identify windows were my top favorites, especially the latter. Those windows are essential to make sure we aren’t robots, but they are also time-consuming to get through. The episode amusingly reminds us that by having Homer and Lisa solving back-to-back identify windows.

Overall, “The Wayz We Were” wasn’t as annoying as being stuck in an actual traffic jam. It is a funny and heartfelt episode that puts Moe’s character growth in the spotlight. It would’ve been better off without the “Homer solving the traffic jam” scenario as it didn’t make much of an impact, in my opinion. Other than that, it’s an enjoyable storyline that kicks off Moe’s future with Maya.