Simpsons Did It!: “The Very Hungry Caterpillars”

You know how I was saying that this show this season, with the long lead-in given it’s animated, had somehow managed to make some episodes that felt like they were relevant to current events despite how long it takes to make an episode? Well, this one doesn’t pull that off since it seems to be based off early COVID lock-downs.

Yes, Springfield has been invaded by, well, caterpillars.  Red ones that turn whole swaths of stuff outdoors red.  Are they dangerous?  No, they’re mostly kinda gross.  Anyway, everyone is ordered to stay home, and the Simpsons all cope in different ways, especially when Homer accidentally logs out of their Netflix-ish account and forgot the password.  And this comes after Marge fretted how Maggie won’t eat anything without ranch dressing.

Ranch?  For a baby?  How…odd.

Anyway, Maggie soon runs out.

Meanwhile, Lisa is panicking from bad news overdoses.

Homer tries to get supplies from Ned Flanders, but Ned’s apparent prepper attitude makes him tell Homer “no” for the first time ever, and the small drop of ranch Homer brings home is eaten rather quickly.

Bart, doing online learning, realizes he can spy on Principal Skinner when his old nemesis forgets to turn his webcamera off, sees how Skinner’s hip cousin Peter (guest voice Rob Lowe) is getting along great with Agnes, to the point where Agnes is going to give Peter the Skinner Family Quilt, made by generations of Skinner women disappointed in their sons.

And Marge finally decides the thing to do with Maggie is just break into Ned’s house and steal the ranch dressing he has a giant squirt bottle.

Can the Simpsons survive lockdown?

Uh, yeah.

Lisa realizes she shouldn’t be afraid.

Homer and Marge get caught by Ned, but the three come to an understanding because, c’mon, Ned Flanders wouldn’t normally be trying to drown anybody in ranch dressing.

And Bart, well, he and all the classmates he told about being able to spy on the Skinner house learn Seymour was counting on inheriting that quilt, his childhood security blanket.  Taking that away from Seymour is a step too far. When a call from Nelson doesn’t fool Peter long enough, they do manage to get Seymour and Agnes to see Peter’s scheming to sell the quilt while calling Agnes awful names.  He’s tossed out into the caterpillars.

Oh, but then lockdown ends after five days when the caterpillars form coccoons.

A lockdown that starts right back up again when everyone is swarmed by butterflies.

Huh.  Looked more like moths to me.

But hey, a five day lockdown?  That sounds rather nice compared to, well, the real thing.