Well, that was a rather disappointing episode. I don't mind when The Simpsons takes on a serious environmental issue, but this is a sitcom and it's still supposed to be funny. Sadly, The Simpsons Season 26 Episode 5 was pretty low on the humor. 

The storyline wasn't the problem as the issue of fracking is an interesting and relevant topic. However, its probably a subject more suited to drama as The Simpsons failed to add much comedy to it. That's not to say I didn't laugh at all, but the jokes simply didn't have me bursting at the seams or bring tears to my eyes. 

Watch The Simpsons Season 26 Episode 5 Online

Jane Fonda stopped by Springfield this week to lend her voice to Assembly Woman Maxine Lombard. It seemed like the show was really trying to emphasize that opposites attract by drawing parallels between her affair with Mr. Burns and Homer and Marge's relationship. I wasn't buying it though. Marge and Homer have a relationship that's built on much more than just passion which is all we see shared between Burns and Maxine. 

At least Maxine held her ground against Burns on the fracking issue and put a stop to his operation. It was basically women against men this week as Homer joined Mr. Burns and Marge and Lisa fought against them. How many times did Marge repeat "Our water was on fire" during this episode? That could have made a dangerous drinking game. 

She makes a good point though and finally gets through to Homer in the end. The two of them make up, prompting Mr. Burns and Maxine to give it another go as well. That ending scene of them in bed on their tablets was almost painful to watch. I personally did not find that funny at all. 

Tonight's episode was certainly not the greatest installment of The Simpsons, and I would go as far as to say it was the worst episode of the season so far. It got a couple of chuckles out of me when Homer had to "trap door" himself and got hit by the wrecking ball. That at least was a nice throw back to the movie. 

What did you guys think of tonight's episode? Was the subject line too serious? Did you find the jokes lacking as I did? Let me know in the comments and don't forget you can watch The Simpsons online any time or visit The Simpsons quotes page. 

Stacy Glanzman was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in March, 2019.