Compared to anything else available out there, I'd give this set 4 stars. But in comparison to all the upcoming seasons of the Simpsons, I can only give it 4 (unless I could give the others six or seven!).The animation is so crude compared to what we see on this show today. The voices are weird. And the plots are a bit cruder, the characters still rough-edged. The show hadn't quite figured out how to make Homer a loveable lug or Bart a loveable scamp. You can almost see why some parents objected to this show...it was a bit rough.
But it sure had one thing going for it right from the start...it was REALLY, REALLY funny.
If you haven't seen the Simpsons before, I won't try to talk you into them with this review. But I will say you've missed something special!
If you know (and love) The Simpsons, you don't need my convincing. But you might want to know if this set is worth the cost. I say, absolutely. Having the episodes so pristine is great. And there is commentary from all the major creators for each episode. Normally, these "director's commentaries" on DVD's are not all they're cracked up to be, but particularly in this first year of the show, we really get the idea of how the Simpson's evolved. James Brooks, Matt Groening and others tell us in great detail how the show developed, and some of the stuff is very subtle and would probably have gone unnoticed. It's great to watch an episode, then go right back and listen to the commentary. Very revealing!
I highly recommend this excellent set.
