The Simpsons: The Complete Thirteenth Season - Blu-ray Review

The Simpsons: The Complete Thirteenth Season isn't the show's finest hour, but it showcases a number of strong episodes and is still a worthy entry into the show's overall canon. The participation of the brilliant stand-up comic Dana Gould makes Season 13 more than a curiosity, but a must-watch for fans of the best American comedy. The Blu-ray release also restores the special features missing from the last HD Simpsons box, making this a must-buy for any fan of the series or of good comedy in general.

Even 13 years into its run, The Simpsons was still the holy grail of comedy; alongside Late Night with Conan O'Brien, writing for The Simpsons was maybe the best job a comedy writer could have. That's evidenced by the fact that the great Dana Gould -- one of the founders of the alternative comedy movement and one of the best stand-up comics working today -- worked as a writer and producer on the show for six seasons, from 2000-2006. The newly-released The Simpsons: The Complete Thirteenth Season on DVD and Blu-ray, covers one of the years in which Gould was with the show. While it isn't one of the best seasons in the show's history -- The Simpsons' Golden Age lasted from about Season Four to Season Ten -- it's still good, and Gould's unique comic voice can be felt in his episodes.

By Season 13, The Simpsons had become less about new, inspired comic brilliance and had become an institution. As such, it's a far more relaxed and, dare I say, "nice" season than the subversive genius of years past. Still, decent Simpsons is better than even the best episodes of many other animated sitcoms, and that shouldn't be taken for granted. As a comedy fan, it's important to respect the best comic institutions -- a classification that most certainly applies to The Simpsons.

The episodes contained on The Simpsons: The Complete Thirteenth Season are:

• "Treehouse of Horror XII"
• "The Parent Rap"
• "Homer the Moe"
• "A Hunka Hunka Burns in Love"
• "The Blunder Years"
• "She of Little Faith"
• "Brawl in the Family"
• "Sweet and Sour Marge"
• "Jaws Wired Shut"
• "Half-Decent Proposal"
• "The Bart Wants What it Wants"
• "The Latest Gun in the West"
• "The Old Man and the Key"
• "Tales from the Public Domain"
• "Blame it on Lisa"
• "Weekend at Burnsie's"
• "Gump Roast"
• "I Am Furious Yellow"
• "The Sweetest Apu"
• "Little Girl in the Big Ten"
• "The Frying Game"
• "Papa's Got a Brand New Badge"

The good news is that abundance of special features that have become commonplace on Simpsons box sets have been restored for the Season 13 Blu-ray release, after disappearing on the Season 20 set (the first season to be released in HD). That means you'll get commentary tracks from the shows' creative team, cast and even guest stars on every single episode, plus a number of fun featurettes, deleted scenes and more. For Simpsons fans, the supplemental section is heaven.

The episodes also look fantastic on HD Blu-ray. Though not presented in the same 1.78:1 aspect ratio as Season 20 (which was made in HD), the full-frame episodes boast bright colors, sharp line detail and no visible flaws or defects. I'm happy to see that Fox is going back and giving non-HD seasons the Blu-ray treatment.

Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.