The Simpsons (TV Series) Wild Barts Can't Be Broken (1999) User Reviews

Full of Hilarity,

[lesleyharris30 · 9/10 · 21 June 2016]

Wild Barts Can't Be Broken is a brilliant Simpsons episode with a well written plot and plenty of funny moments. I found the curfew scenario to be a great set up for hilarity, as we see Bart, Lisa and friends go against the new system by hacking the radio, revealing secrets about their parents to all of Springfield, some of these secrets had me in stitches, such as Homer practicing medicine without a license. I did feel it was lacking in heart, with all the conflict between children and adults, we were hoping for resolution in the end, but it finishes as negatively as it began. The song was the highlight for me, catchy and upbeat as the children and adults sing about their annoyance for one another, it sums up the theme of the entire episode perfectly. Wild Bart Can't Be Broken is a very enjoyable Simpsons.

After an early curfew is put in place for the children of Springfield, they begin to rebel against it.

One of my favorites

[spongebobisgoated · 9/10 · 14 August 2021]

Episode is hilarious some people say this episode makes the Springfield characters unlike able but I don't agree with that.

Secrets and Lies

[safenoe · 8/10 · 21 December 2022]

It's the older generation versus the young in this pre-millenium episode of The Simpsons which is lots of fun as the adults blame the kids of Springfield for the alleged crime spree.

For me the first 10 years of The Simpsons is the golden era for sure, and this episode kind of falls on the outer of the era, but still it's enjoyable and the ending was a bit of a twist in a way that will satisfy the senior citizens.

The secrets being revealed was absolutely hilarious for sure, and there was a certain revenge element to this.

Wild Barts Can't Be Broken can hold its had up high for sure quite really.

One of the best of the series

[Cypher_Angel · 10/10 · 26 February 2010]

Well, it seems there is only one other review for this ep, and I pretty much disagree with it completely. So here goes (my first review).

Season 10 was pretty much the peak of the show for me. Already there were a few episodes that presaged its slipping (D'oh-in In the Wind is one of my least favorites from seasons 4-10). But this one is not only one of my favorites of the Simpsons, but favorite episodes of anything.

The setup: Homer, the ultimate fair-weather fan of the Isotopes, only cares about the team when they make it to the championship (according to the DVD commentary, the same could be said for many modern-day Red Sox fans). In celebration, he and the barflies get smashed and wreck the school. The damage gets blamed on the kids, and Wiggim sets up a curfew. The kids set up a radio to broadcast the adults' secrets as revenge.

The jokes were hilarious. "Homer's Night Out" where he tries to recall what he got into the previous night, done as a silent film. The Children of the Damned-ish movie they see at the drive-in. The kids reacting to prime-time television, aka Bart about to smash the TV with a bowling ball. The secrets they reveal on the radio. The ending song, a great parody of "Kids" from Bye Bye Birdy. And the denouement. Truly a great ep.

Hilarity and Horror Parody in "Wild Barts Can't Be Broken"

[santifersan · 8/10 · 7 September 2023]

"Wild Barts Can't Be Broken" is a very funny episode, with a continuous stream of humorous moments. It's also commendable for its parody of horror movie trailers, and they use a well-executed horror musical arrangement for it, successfully recreating the eerie atmosphere of the movie they're parodying. This was one of the strong points of the golden era of the series, which gradually faded, the ability to parody a film while simulating its atmosphere.

The funniest jokes range from the voice that finishes the ad for "the bloodening" to Otto holding the boombox like they do in a movie.

However, despite being a very hilarious and well-crafted episode in these aspects, it still remains a weak episode within the golden era of the series and isn't one to watch many times.

Funny enough but

[rideoutashley · 5/10 · 10 March 2020]

While there's plenty of jokes I enjoyed I have 1 gripe with this episode; it's ending. At the beginning it was Homer who triggers the events of the episode by vandalizing the school. So why not have it end by "oh turns out it wasn't the work of rowdy kids but rowdy drunks." The curfew is caused by a false accusation that's completely forgotten about in the third act.

Painfully juvenile

[gizmomogwai · 2/10 · 27 January 2009]

I know this review will inevitably be rated "not useful" by this episode's fans (I know there are some), but here goes. The plot of this episode: Homer and his friends get drunk and trash the elementary school, and the police blame Springfield's children and enforce a curfew. When the kids violate curfew to see a movie, they're caught and punished. In revenge, the kids go on the radio and tell the shameful secrets of their parents.

This episode starts reasonably well but then goes downhill starting with the drunk driving scene. That was socially irresponsible and arguably makes Homer too unlikeable. Then this episode finds its theme- it's the struggle between kids and adults, with the message apparently being that adults are oppressive and kids can fight back. This might appeal to kids with a rebellious streak, but I'm not sure why anyone else would be interested in that. The Simpsons is, after all, supposed to be an adult cartoon, even when it's about a kid with a rebellious streak (Bart). That's part of the show's genius and it's lost here. But it's not just the plot that's aiming to appeal to kids- there's the juvenile jokes that seem to be intended primarily for younger viewers. At one point the kids accuse the adults of "scratching their big butts"; there's the kids in the horror movie pointing out that village person may have defecated in his pants; then Nelson moons Skinner through a window; then there's Nelson spray painting over Wiggum's butt; then there's Nelson (again!) using the phrase "like your farts don't stink." Arguably, the plot doesn't really work, since the adults would know who's responsible for the radio show. It all builds up to a song that's more embarrassing than anything. Again, I think it was aiming to appeal mostly to children. Otherwise, this isn't a particularly funny episode. It's not completely without laughs, though.

ONE OF DISRESPECTFUL EPISODES!

[oscarsunden-40006 · 2/10 · 11 April 2024]

I say it was a disrespectful choise by Cheif Clancy Wiggium to tell kids's parents especially Bart's & Lisa's parents like Homer and Marge to give every Springfield children a curfew in the evenings. Best of all, Cheif Clancy Wiggium cannot give every Springfield kids a freakin' curfew in the evenings for no reason. And kids, they can actually have fun in any evening they want instead of sadly staying home and just get bored every time if it would be something fun for them in any evening, they can actually have fun for real in any-freakin'-evening and even Cheif Clancy Wiggium he actually needs to have some respect for every children than only his son Ralph.