The Simpsons - The Complete Fourth Season (DVD)

One of the most popular and long running television series of all time has released their fourth season onto DVD and the with the first three seasons behind us the fourth is finally where we get a look at the cartoon as we now recognize it. The animation has been stepped up and the humor is approaching the next level and Fox is aiming to impress the hardcore Simpsons fan to the fullest.

There isn't any real reason to go in depth about what you will be able to see as far as the episodes are concerned here but here is a quick breakdown of season four. The kids head to Kamp Krusty, Marge takes up acting, Homer skips church, Lisa goes to a beauty pageant, Krusty dolls go crazy, Marge gets a job, Bart falls in love, Homer has a heart attack, Homer is arrested for a DUI, snakes get whacked and Marge goes to jail. A lot happens but Simpsons fans know all about that, what we need to discuss are the extras.

First off every episode has a commentary by writers, producers and directors leaving no stone unturned. Now, I am not a huge fan of commentaries on TV DVDs due to the fact that they are usually boring and told by people you don't want to hear from, however here on the Simpsons DVDs you get some live banter with a charismatic group that are able to talk about more than you normally get from TV shows thanks to the fact it is animated. These commentaries also carry over on to the special featurettes which take you behind the scenes of the whole deal.

You will get a peek at storyboards, animatics and more as you are guided through the creation of an animated series and you will also get a peek at some deleted scenes inside and see how the shows come together as bits and pieces are cut and merged together. The commentaries also include the use of a teleprompter, just in case you can't see what exactly they are talking about.

On top of all the animation explanations and storyboard action you also get some great featurettes the best of which is right on disc one in a feature called "Bush vs. Simpson" where James L. Brooks guides you through a little ordeal the show creators had with the Bush family starting with Barbara Bush. The featurette shows off two letters sent between the two and then a little more of the scuffle as it made its way right into the show, you are going to love it!

Overall the fourth season of the Simpsons is the stepping stone to bigger and better things, while this isn't the best season of them all any Simpson fan is sure to enjoy it. Plus the release of this season just means we are getting that much closer to the prime of the Simpsons series. We can't wait!