Release and Reception
In order to boost ratings, two earlier broadcast episodes (including Treehouse of Horror XI) were shown before the episode. In its original American broadcast on May 20, 2001, "Simpsons Tall Tales" received a 7.6 rating, according to Nielsen Media Research, translating to approximately 7.8 million viewers. The episode finished in 33rd place in the ratings for the week of May 14-20, 2001. On August 18, 2009, the episode was released as part of a DVD set called The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season. Mike Scully, Ian Maxtone-Graham, John Frink, Don Payne, Carolyn Omine, Matt Selman, Tom Gammill, Max Pross, Bob Anderson and Joel H. Cohen participated in the audio commentary for the episode.
Since its home video release, "Simpsons Tall Tales" received mixed reviews from critics. In his review of The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season, Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie Guide disliked the episode. He argued that the episode is similar to the season 10 episode "Simpsons Bible Stories", in that they both "feel a little heavy on cutesy and low on comedic inspiration." Although he found some parts of the episode amusing, he summarized it as overall being lackluster. DVD Talk's Casey Burchby described "Simpsons Tall Tales" as the season's worst episode. As with most other trilogy episodes, "Simpsons Tall Tales" "did not work" for Burchby, who found that the gags were either boring or too far between. He also argued that "Simpsons Tall Tales" and trilogy episodes in general are an excuse for the series' writers to not have to come up with new stories for the characters. "It's understandable that after eleven years, a show might have trouble continuing to come up with original material for the same five characters, but the anthology episodes come across as rather transparent attempts to avoid that challenge", he wrote. On the other hand, DVD Verdict's Mac MacEntire argued that "Simpsons Tall Tales" is one of the season's best episodes. He wrote that the episode is "filled with great gags", including the hobo's sponge bath and Bart and Nelson's discussion about "backtacks" and "tackbacks".
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