The Simpsons - General Discussion

[Kaboom 2.0]

"Burns University (no refunds) will grab you by the pants and fling you into the job of your dreams" made me both LOL and literally cringe at the same time. And omg LOVED Homer's "as American's it's our duty to either stop evil billionaires or elect them to the highest office" was just perfect, perfect!

I will never tire of sexual predator Lindsay Nagel popping up anywhere and everywhere there's money to be made. Drunk Lisa made me sad but did love her giving Homer all of the inspirational teacher movies, and his notes on each were typical Homer. And more Neil de Grasse Tyson and Robert McKee please! 

Smithers' continued Mr. Burns fantasies continue to get more and more disturbing. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Stan Lee: "There's nothing to short that I can't cameo."

Homer -- Professor X
Maggie -- Wolverine
Bart -- Angel
Lisa -- Storm
Marge -- Mystique.   Grrrrrr.

Sign at the intramural softball game -- "Softball Today ! - Twisted Ankles Tomorrow"

Lenny: "Those Indian Point Nuclear jerks they think they are so great because their fallout radius includes Manhattan."
Indian Point Nuclear guy: "How many Mets games can you postpone ? Fuggedaboutit."

Male Yale administrator: "It's always wonderful when a successful"
Female Yale Administrator: "and childless"
Male Yale administrator: "alumnus returns."
Monty: "It's delightful how you take turns sniffing after my money."
Male Yale administrator: "Now here's a group that was established in 1909."
Monty: "Ffft, I hate modern music."

Monty: "Ahahahah, the Whiffenpoofs.  I'll buy you a new library if you have them killed."
Male Yale administrator: "So many have tried to kill them."
Female Yale Administrator: "But other smug jackasses in white gloves would just take their place."
The Whiffenpoofs: "We can't be stopped."

Male Yale administrator: "How about funding a chair in the non-narrative cinema of self-identified pansexuals."
Monty: "What ? What ? What ? What ? What ?"
Female Yale Administrator: "We also need to hire more deans to decide what Hallowe'en costumes are appropriate."
Male Yale administrator: "8 deans should do it."
Monty: "Is this still a coven of capitalism where evil money can acquire a patina of virtue ?"
Male Yale administrator: "Yes. That's in our charter."
Female Yale Administrator: "But with an issue as hetero-patriarchal as nuclear power we'll have to hire multicultural empathizers, buid a new safe space, "
Teddy the Squash guy: "Not so fast.  We insist on a chair of anti-nuclear studies and a nuclear-neutral curriculum pathway"
Male Yale administrator: "Absolutely Teddy. We run all decisions past the squash team."
Teddy: "Also the fencing team, the water polo team and Fancy Dan the mascot."
Monty: "Release me you hound.    What's happened to this place ?"

Monty: "This was the home of ruthless media disruptor Samuel F. B. Morse. Who's his successor .... this fellow ?"
Teddy: "Fellow ?  That word is cis-gender and normative, ok. You're worse than Hitler."
Monty: "Too late for flattery.  I'm not giving this school a dime."

I love it that the devil is a Yale alumnus.  

Homer: "What you doing Mr. B. ?"
Monty: "I never want to see the word 'Yale' again. We're changing all our locks to Schlage."

That is some subtle locksmith humor there.

And one of the jobs from that Burns University TV commercial was ... TV recapper.    Hah !

Bart: "What are you teaching dad ?"
Homer: "I'm giving lectures on what I do at work."
Bart: "Well, what do you do at work ?"
Homer: "Well I ..... you know, the button stuff."

Bart: "But what are you actually going to say to them ?"
Homer: "I'll start with the life cycle of the atom. Baby atom is called a neutron. When it turns professional it becomes a proton, and if it runs for office it's an electron."

Wiggum: "Any of you homies want to sell Schedule 1 narcotics to a fellow teenager ?"
Jeremy: "You're a teenager ? What year were you born ?"
Wiggum: "Hey you're not the cop around here, I am."
Lou -- groans and shakes his head
Wiggum: "Oh yeah, my cover."

Moe: "Hey, what's the matter Professor ?"
Lenny: "He doesn't know what to teach his class."
Carl: "Homer's just not cut out to be a pedagogue."
Moe: "Easy. You just got a register, stay away from playgrounds. Oh, you said pedagogue."

Patch Adams Minus Mork = This Guy

Homer: "Carpe Diem"
Andre: "Carpe Diem. Just, what does that mean by the way ?"
Homer: "Fish for a dime, my friend. Fish for a dime."

Monthy: "How much are we charging for hugs Smithers ?"
Smithers: "Five dollars.  But, uh, I'll give you one for free."
Monty: "Quiet."

Student: "Great lecture Professor S. I finally understand how gamma rays turn Bruce Banner into the Hulk."
Homer: "Always remember the equation -- gamma equals green."
Bart: "Man, I wish you were my father dad."

Suzie Ormond: "Marge, listen to me. You can't fix stupid. You have to kill him for the insurance."
Robert McKee: "I've always said these tags are pointless. Good night."

Edited April 3, 2017 by ottoDbusdriver

[MadyGirl1987]

With the TV recapper in the commercial I loved what she was writing on the computer about The Crown(love that show)...

"Spoiler Alert: Elizabeth becomes Queen (My Theory-All a dream.)"

I was also surprised to see Jason Alexander in the credits as the guy who ran the schools (forgot his name). Definitely didn't catch that when watching. I like it though; the celebrity guests work best when it's not called out, IMO.

Edited April 3, 2017 by MadyGirl1987

[M. Darcy]

Quote

I was also surprised to see Jason Alexander in the credits as the guy who ran the schools. Definitely didn't catch that when watching.

I knew I knew the voice but couldn't place it.  Which is really bad of me since I just watched the documentary about Merrily We Roll Along which had a lot of Jason in it.

[M. Darcy]

Since I'm looking up information on my dental plan, of course going through my mind right now is "dental plan/Lisa needs braces" over and over.

[ottoDbusdriver]

8 hours ago, M. Darcy said:

Since I'm looking up information on my dental plan, of course going through my mind right now is "dental plan/Lisa needs braces" over and over.

Speaking of that, maybe you were also subliminally influenced by this

https://www.joe.co.uk/entertainment/how-long-can-you-watch-a-loop-of-dental-plan-lisa-needs-braces-for-without-losing-it-121166

[Twilight Man]

On ‎2‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 8:32 PM, Galileo908 said:

Couch Gag: Homer had to go through Robot Chicken, the California Raisins & South Park to get the sailboat painting back! That was great.

 

On ‎2‎/‎21‎/‎2017 at 9:51 AM, xander874 said:

I did love all the callbacks to other episodes and I loved the Robot Chicken stuff in the opening. ...... I guess the bumpers were just to fill time because they seemed pointless.

He could have gone over to you-know-who's cartoon and accused him of stealing the painting. After getting into another fight with him, you-know-who would have said "Look, I may have stolen a lot of jokes from you and your show, but I didn't take your crappy painting."  That would have used up enough time so we would not have needed the bumpers at the end.

On ‎2‎/‎20‎/‎2017 at 0:50 PM, ottoDbusdriver said:

Items on the Krusty Combos menu:

• McKLT

Ah Yes, McDLT.  "Keep the hot side hot, keep the cool side cool." 

You then are supposed to bend the styrofoam container so that the top half flips over onto the bottom half of the burger (which I could never pull off).

McDonald's eventually stopped using Styrofoam containers for ALL of their burgers (They had Styrofoam containers for Big Macs, Quarter Pounders, Filet O' Fish, (You may want to stop clicking on these links, Lisa) McMuffins, McRibs, you name it) because people naturally complained that the stryofoam would be in landfills forever.  They renamed the McDLT the "Big N' Tasty" (I'm not sure if they still sell that or not).

Anyway, why am I not surprised that Krusty probably STILL uses Styrofoam containers.

"Hey Hey!! I paid good money for these Styrofoam containers.  I'm going to use every last one of these.  The hell with the environment."

[Kel Varnsen]

I was at a local thrift store on the weekend, and in the glassware section I saw a comemorative glass for the 1982 world's fair, in Knoxville, Tennessee. I almost bought it. I totally would have if there was a picture of the Sunsphere on it.

[VCRTracking]

[Galileo908]

Quote

Bart gets in trouble on Grandparents' Day at school and is forced to hang out with Skinner's mother as punishment; a new game takes over the town of Springfield.

Edited April 30, 2017 by Galileo908

[Galileo908]

Intro: The first Simpsons episode! Well, the Maggie part. Now in HD!

Couch Gag: A spoof of the Big Bang Theory theme. How relevant.

Chalkboard: I Wrote One And I'm Already Tired (ha!)

It's only been 21 years since the last Grandparents' Day. But I liked how that tied into the whole plot.

I actually liked the spoof of Pokemon Go. Homer (and then everyone else) dancing on Grimey's grave was great. Other graves I noticed Bleeding Gums, Johnny Looselips, and Clinton/Kodos Election Joke. I wish they spent more time on the bit with Maggie seeing the Not Pokemon around her.  And The Simpsons has finally gone on long enough to spoof the intro to the Pokemon anime, very well I might add. Oh god. I'm old.

Also liked seeing who was playing Pokemon Go: CHUM, The Very Tall Man, Maya, Duffman, CBG & Kumiko (of course), and Ham.

Bart's plot with the grandmas was both sweet and hilarious. The one with the voice box just cracked me up. And OF COURSE the Grandmas call Bart on a landline. 

"You know that boy is a ne'er do well and possibly a scofflaw." I love Lame Skinner. And then he got cockblocked by Milhouse. That's definitely a new low.

This was a really good one!

Edited May 1, 2017 by Galileo908

[Spartan Girl]

The Pokemon Go spoof was GOLD. They even spoofed the theme song!

Flanders: I'll be darned if that little critter doesn't look like your god.

Apu: And I'll be darned if that drunken wino doesn't look like YOUR god! ??????

[ottoDbusdriver]

1 hour ago, Galileo908 said:

I actually liked the spoof of Pokemon Go. Homer (and then everyone else) dancing on Grimey's grave was great. Other graves I noticed Bleeding Gums, Johnny Looselips, and Clinton/Kodos Election Joke. I wish they spent more time on the bit with Maggie seeing the Not Pokemon around her.  And The Simpsons has finally gone on long enough to spoof the intro to the Pokemon anime, very well I might add. Oh god. I'm old.

Also seen in the cemetery were tombstones for:
-- Hyman Krustofsky (My son hasn't visited once)
-- Edna Krabappel (Hah !)
-- Big Band Stu
-- Kevin Curran (a former Simpson writer who passed away in 2016)
-- Maude Flanders (Beloved Wiferino)
-- Clinton/Kaine 2016 (I'm with her)

[Galileo908]

I'm still sad they actually killed off Ms. Krabappel.

[VCRTracking]

I always like it when they tie two separate plots together in the 3rd act.

[Galileo908]

Carolyn Omine has been live tweeting the episode tonight, and some good behind the scenes tidbits:

-A-plot originally pitched as a Harold & Maude-type story
-B-story was originally about geocaching...then Pokemon Go came out. Personally, I think it was for the better.
-The idea for Bart being a paid "grandson" was pitched by Al Jean, and the whole "old lady escort" bit was influenced by Gustave from Grand Budapest Hotel & Max Bialystock. 
-Working title was "The Grandson Experience."
-Phoebe's design was influenced by Jane Goodall
-John Swartzwelder is a fan of AbFab and French & Saunders. "He is not easily impressed." I can believe that.
-Matt Groening didn't want the grandmas to be wacky. "So no rapping." Again, for the better.

Edited May 1, 2017 by Galileo908

[xander874]

Pokemon was a little past my time, but I really enjoyed this episode. I enjoy when the characters for the most part are not being total jerks. And even though Bart was being a conman, he wasn't doing it out of malice and actually gave the ladies some joy.

The graves were a fun, if sad, callback to some beloved characters.

[M. Darcy]

I can't believe I didn't recognize Jennifer Saunders's voice.  I knew I knew it but couldn't figure it out. 

[AnnieBeez]

14 hours ago, M. Darcy said:

I can't believe I didn't recognize Jennifer Saunders's voice.  I knew I knew it but couldn't figure it out. 

Same. I guess I haven't heard her non-Edina "sweetie darling" voice much.

[M. Darcy]

Quote

Same. I guess I haven't heard her non-Edina "sweetie darling" voice much.

That is true.  We know Edina more than Jennifer. 

[Galileo908]

On 5/3/2017 at 8:12 AM, xander874 said:

I enjoy when the characters for the most part are not being total jerks. And even though Bart was being a conman, he wasn't doing it out of malice and actually gave the ladies some joy.

It's why Phoebe calling Bart "a cold customer" came off as so odd. Sure, he was essentially taking advantage of these old ladies for stuff, but it wasn't out of malice. I think it was because Bart just juggled so many of those ladies at once and didn't really care about them, just for the stuff.

[honeywest]

Homer: "How dare you torture my children with Mozart!"

Sideshow Bob: "You know Mozart?"

Homer: "I call all music Mozart!"

[Galileo908]

Quote

Moe helps Homer and Marge with their marriage; Nigel tries to break them apart after making a bet with Mr. Burns.

[Galileo908]

Couch Gag: Chia Pet family!

"Fun fact: the people who sang that song are all dead." It's been over 25 years, I wouldn't be shocked.

Oh goody, another "Homer & Marge's marriage is in trouble" plot. Haven't seen one of these in a while. But this one was actually nice, and sad.

AND a "Moe's bar gets remodeled" plot, too? And by a British guy, too? Sideshow Bob AND Itchy showed up to Moho House, while Krusty and Ranier Wolfcastle were denied. It was fun to see, but odd that Moe of all people was the one passing that judgment. Loved seeing Barney's giant novel. No surprise Barney would never physically leave Moe's.

"Wait till Midge hears about this!" I liked Homer finally asking Moe who Midge is, and Moe not exactly knowing why he calls her that. What I didn't like was the callback to Moe's talking bar rag. And that Ned has two dead wives.

"I can't work for a man I'm not in love with!" I've really been liking how many plots Smithers has had this season.

So that's two weeks in a row that the Gracie Films logo was spoofed, this time in Homer's flipbook.

You know...Lisa had zero lines this week, and I don't think Maggie was in the episode at all.

[Spartan Girl]

The only thing I have positive to say about Marge in this episode is her finally telling Moe to stop calling her Midge.

I feel like I'm the only person that ever calls her out on being such a whiny bitch-twit. She always has a problem no matter what Homer does, even when he does try. She's pretty much a full-blown harridan at this point, so I feel no empathy for her whatsoever.

[Galileo908]

Yeah, at this point the only other guy who COULD be remotely interested in Marge is Moe. And this is FAR from the first time Moe told Homer to treat Marge better. FXX ran a marathon of those episodes just earlier today.

[ottoDbusdriver]

I was surprised that the intro was so abbreviated.

This episode was basically a variation on the movie 'Trading Places', where two old geezers place a wager on an employee.  At least the wager was more than $1.

 

[Spartan Girl]

46 minutes ago, Galileo908 said:

Yeah, at this point the only other guy who COULD be remotely interested in Marge is Moe. And this is FAR from the first time Moe told Homer to treat Marge better. FXX ran a marathon of those episodes just earlier today.

Which says a lot about Moe in general. Marge has the appeal of Olive Oyl and for the life of me, I never understood what Popeye and Bluto ever saw in her either.

My, this is cathartic :)

Edited May 8, 2017 by Spartan Girl

[Galileo908]

Just now, Spartan Girl said:

Which says a lot about Moe in general. Marge has the appeal of Olive Oyl and for the life of me, I never understood what Popeye and Bluto ever saw in her either.

Olive came from a rich family.

[TVSpectator]

23 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Which says a lot about Moe in general. Marge has the appeal of Olive Oyl and for the life of me, I never understood what Popeye and Bluto ever saw in her either.

My, this is cathartic :)

 

 

 

Yeah, me too. Throughout the series is was always hinting that Marge is/was really hot but I just can't understand what is her appeal? I mean people after people either try to hit on Marge or they come up to Homer and say things like, "how did she end up with you?" Does anyone remember the time that she was taught to bowl by that French bowling teacher and he fell for her?

Overall, the main plot was typical, "oh, no Marge's and Homer's relationship is in trouble" but for some reason, I was actually invested in it. Maybe it was because I WAS  a bit convinced that they were actually going to have Moe and Marge hook up but in the last minute they didn't and instead Moe saves their marriage. I mean sure it was a given that this would've happened but for some reason, I was a bit convinced that they were going to allow Moe and Marge to finally hook up. 

I also liked Homer's booklet that he made for Marge and also that it had a Gracie logo at the end of it. 

As with the Burns and Nigel's plot, yeah I was also a bit confused when Burns thought that he had hallucinated it all. Even though Nigel just went to the bathroom and I also like the little-ended tag where Smithers has his contact redone and lists all of the things that Burns can't do to him anymore. That poor tiger will never know what Smithers taste like ever but he will be mummified with Burns when Burns dies. 

Edited May 9, 2017 by TVSpectator

[JyDanzig]

I thought this episode was great.  I'm shocked, I would not have expected that from the episode blurb!  Somehow combining these two done-to-death plots (Moe's new bar, Homer & Marge's marriage is tested) made them both feel fresh again.  Visually it was great, loved that whole rainy-luxury-high-rise vibe.  An impressive outing, probably my favorite all season.

Edited May 8, 2017 by JyDanzig

[jbrecken]

Homer's flip-book reminded me of the Futurama episode with Fry's Holophonor recital.

[M. Darcy]

The Simpsons came in handy at trivia last night.  They asked about a reclusive author that wrote The Crying of Lot 49...and I knew it from his Simpsons appearance.  

And, they asked what TV founding father said "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man".  I really wanted to answer Hans Sprungfeld but thought better of it.  

[ottoDbusdriver]

Description:

Quote

When Homer's court case determines that a dog's life is more valuable than a human's is, the status of man's best friend rises in Springfield. When the dogs recognize their new position of power, they assert their dominance over the humans.

Preview:
http://www.fox.com/watch/946282051922/7684601088

Edited May 21, 2017 by ottoDbusdriver

[TVSpectator]

So this is the season finale airing tonight?

[ottoDbusdriver]

3 hours ago, TVSpectator said:

So this is the season finale airing tonight?

Yep

[TVSpectator]

11 minutes ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Yep

That is good to hear. Last week I tuned in at 8 PM but I noticed that the Miss. America pageant was on and I was like, "oh, WTH?!".

[Galileo908]

Couch gag: The family on top of Everest/The Murderhorn. Heh, this was shown out of order.

Intro: Ralph: I'm a return!

Billboard: Tire Fire Barbecue

Try our car-broiled steak!

Chalkboard: Thank You for 28 Years...Taylor Swift

Heh, people loving dogs was more than Gil makes perfect sense for Springfield Court. And then dogs become the dominant species in Springfield. Yeah. I think we saw every (living) dog that's been shown in this series so far, like Laddie and that dog Flanders has.

So, this was pretty much like the dolphin story from THOH, except less bloody. I do like that the natural counter to a pack of dogs was the Crazy Cat Lady. And Marge became the alpha the same way Linda Belcher saved her town from turkeys: established a pecking order. And again, not as satisfying as that other story.

This was a weird episode. That's it for this season, see you all in the fall.

[Spartan Girl]

Favorite part of the night: Homer using Snowball II to drag SLH through the dog door just to say "look what the cat dragged in" with Bart and Lisa agreeing that it was totally worth it.

Runner up goes to Homer naming all the breeds of dogs surrounding him, then trying to use the dachshund as a weapon.

MARGE saved the day? MARGE?!

[Galileo908]

25 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

MARGE saved the day? MARGE?!

And Gil AND Crazy Cat Lady ended up doing nothing. There was zero foreshadowing to that at all.

[Phishbulb]

13 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

Chalkboard: Thank You for 28 Years...Taylor Swift

Taylor was born on Dec. 13th, 1989 and "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" originally aired on December 17th. So yeah, weird!

[Kaboom 2.0]

Homer using the Dachshund as a weapon gave me the biggest laugh and I'm still not sure why. My heart is almost as tiny and black as Mr. Burns' is at this point but when he was reunited with his hounds I may have melted just a bit. I heart my doggies too even though I don't release them on anyone. :-D

So that was the season finale. Meh.

[AnnieBeez]

Not crazy about Marge kicking the dog. Otherwise, I agree with "meh."

[Canada]

I think I slept through most of the episodes this season, including this one.  Someone needs to put this show out of its misery.

[ganesh]

On 5/21/2017 at 6:35 PM, Spartan Girl said:

Favorite part of the night: Homer using Snowball II to drag SLH through the dog door just to say "look what the cat dragged in" with Bart and Lisa agreeing that it was totally worth it.

That was a great joke. 

My own dog basically barked through the entire episode, so it made it more fun. 

I was fine with it until the resolution was Marge kicking the dog to establish dominance. They torpedoed their own premise to start with the jury siding for Homer not hitting the dog, but then resort to Marge kicking the dog at the end. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

The Simpsons writers take a shot at Trump and his issues with former FBI Director Comey -- of course AG Sessions is hiding under the covers.
 

Edited May 27, 2017 by ottoDbusdriver

[JTMacc99]

Homer, why did you bring me to a gay steel mill?

[bettername2come]

I've heard "Dirty Deeds" on the radio several times in the last few weeks, and having heard The Simpsons version before hearing the real version, I keep getting "Kindly deeds done for free" stuck in my head.

[Brandi Maxxxx]

I think Trump may have been influenced by this:

[Lugal]

Lisa: Wow, Mom, you're like Christopher Columbus.  You discovered something millions of people already knew about.