SIMPSONS GET NEW OPENING

The episode, "MoneyBART," opens with an extended "couch gag" -- the opening sequence in which the Simpson family takes its place on their sofa -- created by British street artist Banksy. The artist's dark vision gives viewers a horrifying look at how he imagines the hit show and its lucrative merchandise are made: sweatshop conditions for its animators; unsafe conditions for producers of its apparel; boxes sealed with the tongue of a disembodied dolphin head; the center holes popped out of its DVDs with the horn of a shackled, emaciated unicorn. It's supposed to be shocking but kinda stupid to me. Hey let's make something out of nothing here.

-AL