Episode 17 - Old Money
5 July 2010
Synopsis: Grandpa meets a new woman Beatrice at his retirement home and falls for her. He resents Homer deeply when he drags Grandpa away from Bea's birthday to go to a safari park. When Grandpa returns home he finds Bea has passed away and left him $106,000. He considers many possibilities of how to spend it but settles on making his own retirement home a nice place to live.
The Good: Another sentiment heavy episode which pays off really well. The writers aren't afraid to portray old age with all its potential downsides. Abe and Beatrice flirt despite hacking coughs and many pills they need to take. Abe is dismissed by the nurses, patronised by his family and seen as nothing but a target once he has some money. But in the end he finds dignity in sharing his money with those he lives with. It's a really nice ending giving a little hope to his otherwise bleak world.
Along the way there were a few fun lines. Particularly when Abe asks the residents of Springfield to suggest worthy causes for the money. True to his character Mr Burns begs for the money much to Abe's consternation. "I dread the day when $100,000 isn't worth grovelling for" is Burns' sincere justification. Then Dr Marvin Monroe wants to bring up a child from birth to age thirty in a self contained chamber where he will be randomly shocked and given ice baths. Monroe's hypothesis is amusingly that "the subject will be socially maladjusted and will harbour a deep resentment towards me!"
As usual at this stage of The Simpsons development, the focus of all twenty two minutes is on Grandpa. There is a real satisfaction to that and it makes the conclusion so much more emotionally resonant because we have really got to know him and those he lives with. It also allows the writers to throw in unusual references like Grandpa quoting the poem "If" (by Rudyard Kipling) while trying to double his money at the casino.
The Bad: I suppose there is something generic about Grandpa's desire to help everyone. It doesn't flow from anything particular to do with his life experience which might have added another dimension to the story.
Best Joke: At Bea's funeral we see several old men struggling with her heavy casket. "I can tell she really cared for me" comments Abe "she didn't make me a pallbearer."
The Bottom Line: Again not the funniest episode ever. But a thorough, entertaining and enjoyable examination of one character's life and situation. Through the mire of very real satire the writers manage to give some hope, which is a noble goal for a comedy.
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