YMMV / The Simpsons S 23 E 22 Lisa Goes Gaga

• Critical Backlash: As is often the case for Simpsons episodes that get popularly declared as the "worst ever", a backlash to the backlash tends to eventually form, stating that "Lisa Goes Gaga" is a mediocre episode brought down by an awkward celebrity guest spot rather than something truly offensive or unwatchable.
• Esoteric Happy Ending: Although the episode ends with Lisa learning the importance of being herself, it's implied that the kids will likely always remain cruel toward her, as it's mostly the adults of Springfield who are shown appreciating her performance with Lady Gaga. Bart also isn't shown apologizing to Lisa for exposing her as the Truth Teller, though he does appear remorseful at one point.
• One-Scene Wonder: This episode of all places marks the grand return of "Just Stamp the Ticket" Man for his first speaking role since Season 9's "Simpson Tide", bringing not just his usual snark but also greying hair in defiance of the series' usual Comic-Book Time.
• Strawman Has a Point: Lisa crosses the Despair Event Horizon when the other students find out that she wrote the positive messages ascribed to "Truth Teller," stating that her integrity was the only thing she had left. Homer tries to reassure her by saying "The problem's not that you were cheating, it's that you got caught." He's right: everything was going fine before that point and Lisa was getting a slight, much-needed boost in popularity because of the messages, showing how easily swayed the student body really is. There's no real reason for her to feel bad about a harmless deception that never would have bothered her if she hadn't been found out and shamed for it.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: The "Truth Teller" subplot could have been its own episode, but it was brought up for a few minutes and quickly forgotten.

---