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Season 5 DVD guide

The Season 5 DVD, aside from the great episodes (it's my favourite Season), looks very well made. Great interactivity and special features.

DVD SEASON: 010203040506070809101112

 

Season 5 DVD box Season 5 DVD menu

The Season Five DVD case & menu design

Matt Groening says:

This - the Fifth Season Jumbo Special Edition Boxed Set of The Simpsons on Digital Versatile Disc (or "DVD") - may be the finest one yet. We've loaded this thing with all the time-wasting extras that fans demand, like interactive, multi-angle views of our crude animatics and storyboards; fully animated, never-before-seen, deleted-for-good-reason sequences; illustrated commentaries by directors that allow them to visually point out all sorts of sneaky details; and a number of downright shameless TV commercials. We also continue our proud Simpsons tradition of providing garrulous audio commentaries for each and every episode, including brief moments when we actually pay attention to what's happening on screen.

Season 5 (1993-94) contains many of our snappiest or most disturbing sequences. You'll get to see Grampa and Mr. Burns wooing Marge's mom, Homer eating potato chips in outer space, Lisa inventing the Lisa Lionheart doll, Bart getting an elephant, Marge going on the lam, and Maggie beginning her lifelong feud with the One-Eyebrowed Baby.

You also get Sideshow Bob explaining that his "Die, Bart, Die" tattoo is actually just German for "The, Bart, The." And The Romanes playing at Mr. Burns's birthday party. And a field trip to a cardboard-box factory. And Homer happily pulling a pig's tail until the pig viciously bites him. And the historic first appearance of Cletus, the Slack-Jawed Yokel.

And of course we've larded the whole season with healthy dollops of Bumblebee Man, Apu, Milhouse, Dr. Hibbert, Mrs. Krabappel, Principal Skinner, Kent Brockman, Rod and Todd Flanders, Itchy & Scratchy, Comic Book Guy, Moe, and Ralph Wiggum. Our guest stars include James Brown, George Harrison, Albert Brooks, David Crosby, Kathleen Turner, Kelsey Grammer, Werner Klemperer, Pamela Reed, Gerry Cooney, Sam Neill, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Goulet, James Taylor, James Woods, Michelle Pfeiffer, Buzz Aldrin, and former Simpsons writer/producer Conan O'Brien.

So sit back and enjoy this high-velocity season of classic Simpsons shows. On behalf of the hard-working writers, animators, musicians, producers, and actors, we thank you for your enthusiastic letters, drawings, and gifts, and remind you of our standard policy: No Refunds.

Your pal,
Matt Groening

 

Special Features

Note: episode commentaries are not listed here, but they are available for every episode.

Disc 1:

Disc 2:

Disc 3:

Disc 4:

 

Easter Eggs

1. On Disc 3, go to the Extras menu for Deep Space Homer. Highlight the "Play with commentary" and then press Right. An icon will appear on the right - a picture of Bart's ear (see left). Press Enter and you can listen to audio outtakes from James Taylor.
2. On Disc 4, go to the main Extras menu (press Left then Enter). Select "Art & Animation". Selecting "Animatic with commentary" plays part of the animatic for Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song, with commentary by Matt Groening, David Silverman, Bob Anderson, Mike Anderson and Lance Kramer. However, if you highlight the "Animatic" option on the menu instead, then press Left you will highlight the 100th Episode ribbon. Press Enter to play the animatic with a different commentary: this time by Matt Groening, David Silverman, Bob Anderson, Mike Anderson, Lance Kramer, Lance Wilder, Paul Weed and Wes Archer. This is also accessible using the audio button.
There are semi-secret animations in each of the main menus: if you highlight the "EXTRAS" option and press Up, you will highlight an object in the room (Left or Right will highlight a second object if there is one). Pressing Enter plays another animation or sound.

Disc 1: You can highlight the gramophone and the lever on the right: the gramophone plays some music, while the lever activates an alarm.
Disc 2: You can select the television to play the Itchy & Scratchy opening credits, or the casino sign to make it flash.
Disc 3: Highlighting the Lisa Lionheart doll on the counter and pressing Enter makes it play one of two Malibu Stacey phrases for some reason. The phrase are: "My name is Stacey, but you can call me [wolf whistle]" and "Thinking too much gives you wrinkles".
Disc 4: Selecting the geode on Mrs. Krabappel's desk makes it sparkle; Selecting the Marge plant makes it frown and murmur.

 

Animations

Each DVD has a different main menu: a scene containing items from the episodes on that particular disc. There are a total of six animations for each menu, in three pairs: a random one of the three will play each time you start the menu.

The episode menus themselves use original couch gags, like they did for the Season 3 DVD.

 

Special Features menu

On each disc there is a "Special Features" menu which houses some animation features; This can be reached by selecting the large button to the left of the screen on the main menu. The menu features Burn's train from the episode Burns' Heir, with Bart watching over it. Several characters come past on the train (the animations are in groups of two passes).

1. Itchy & Scratchy ride past on the train. The second time they come through, Itchy throws Scratchy onto the track, runs over him, and drags him behind the train.

2. Maggie passes on the train, waving a hat. Then Smithers passes, doing the same. I'm not entirely sure what the connection is here.

3. Homer rides the train carrying a glowing carbon rod; when he passes again there is no rod, but Homer is glowing all over.

4. Snake is on the front of the train, and Wiggum on the back, trying to catch him. When the train returns, Snake has tied Wiggum up.

5. Milhouse passes. The second time, he is covered in snow: this was referred to in Burns' Heir.

6. Captain McCallister comes past and says "Arr". When he passes again, he is fighting the squid (from Homer's Barbershop Quartet).

 

Language Selection menu

This menu features Bart spray painting various things on the school wall. A digruntled Groundskeeper Willy comes by after and washes it off. The phrases Bart spray paints are in several different laguages.

 

DISC 1: Homer's workstation


1. Mr. Burns, as a vampire, comes in and bites his neck, but doesn't like the taste and spits his blood out. The three other Be Sharps enter and sing which makes Mr. Burns melt.
2. Sir Oinks-A-Lot (Springfield A&M's mascot) runs in; the nerds follow and try to catch him - they miss but they manage to chase him out.

3. The gremlin enters and starts taking bits out of Homer's workstation; Bart runs in and tries to wake Homer - we see that Sideshow Bob is after him.
4. Flanders as the devil tries to feed half a donut to Homer, but the future vision of Mr. Burns (with his head in a jar) and Smithers (as a robotic dog) enter and scare him off.

5. A bunch of monkeys enter and roam around the office, then run off. This is the only one which isn't from an actual episode.
6. Homer falls off his stool - somehow this manages to wake him up, even though he's slept through everything else. He gets back on his stool and falls asleep again.

DISC 2: Bart's room


1. Homer appears at the window, guided by Colonel Klink. Mindy in the clam, held by Lenny and Carl as cherubs also appears. Homer screams and falls. Burns' monkeys fly past after.
2. Marge and Ruth fly past the window in the car, followed by Chief Wiggum, eating a donut.

3. The walking house from Homer The Vigilante walks past, after which Molloy reaches in for the TV. Bart frowns at him and he disappears.
4. A plane flies past the window with a banner saying "Visit Burns Casino".


5. Several characters appear at the window as if on the trampoline: Lisa, Otto, Wndell and Brad Goodman.
6. A tidal wave washes past the window, with Flanders and Todd in a boat floating past. Then Captain McCallister comes past, fighting a squid.

DISC 3: The Kwik-E-Mart

1. Homer in space gear floats in, tied to a rope. He leaves with a bag of potato chips.
2. Stampy the elephant comes thought the door with Bart in his mouth. Apu give him a bag of peanuts and he leaves.

3. Homer enters, wearing the oversize novelty hat. He staggers about and buys some expired ham then leaves.
4. Nelson, Jimbo and Kearney enter and steal as much as they can carry.

5. A wave enters the store, and the Flanders-es-es ride in on their boat, buy something, and ride out.
6. Apu pulls the string on the Lisa Lionheart doll, and it giggles like the Malibu Stacey doll did.

DISC 4: Mrs. Krabappel's classroom

1. Sideshow Mel tries to get the monkeys to play, but they don't play much at all.
2. The Simpson family enter...but wait, it's not them: it's the actors who played them in Burns' Heir, including Hans Moleman.

3. Superintendent Chalmers enters and Santa's Little Helper comes out of the vent, knocking him to the floor. Then Willie comes out and lands on him.
4. Lenny enters with tobacco and a metal pot; He spits in the pot and takes a bow.

5. Bart pokes his head up from behind Mrs. Krabappel's desk. Skinner enters and points at him. Then the French waiter staggers in, covered in mouse traps. They all run off.
6. Mr. Burns and Mrs. Bouvier come in and dance.

COUCH GAGS

Cape Feare
Treehouse of Horror IV
Homer the Vigilante
The family sit and the music stops. They look round nervously; Soon it starts again and they're happy.

 

Homer's Barbershop Quartet
Boy Scoutz N the Hood
There is no couch but the family crouch in the sitting position. Lisa is about to point this out, but Marge shushes her.

 

Marge on the Lam
Homer Loves Flanders
The Flanders' sit on the couch and pray.

 

Homer Goes to College
Bart Gets Famous
Homer pulls Maggie out from underneath him, but she crawls behind the couch.

 

Rosebud
Lisa Vs. Malibu Stacy
Lady Bouvier's Lover
The family bounce off the sofa into the air. Maggie then comes in and bounces twice.

 

$pringfield
Secrets of a Successful Marriage
The family descend from above dressed as angels. Bart appears on the couch as the devil and hits Lisa with his pitchfork.

 

The Boy Who Knew Too Much
It is a tight fit on the couch; Homer squeezes Maggie into the air, but she lands and squashes him again.

 

Bart Gets An Elephant
Drops of water are put on the couch and the family grow on it. Lisa dehydrates and she is given another drop.

 

Bart's Inner Child
Burns' Heir
The room tilts and the sofa slides out of view. Homer tries to crawl back up but doesn't make it.

 

The Last Temptation of Homer
Homer and Apu
They drop in by parachute. A can of Duff beer drop in separately and homer catches it.

 

Deep Space Homer
Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song
The family are dressed as astronauts and the couch takes off, leaving a fire in the room which is put out by a fireman.