The Simpsons - General Discussion

[blackwing]

The Homer segment was my favourite, I loved seeing all the different versions of Homer.  Disney Princess Homer (complete with song) and Super Mario Homer were the best.

[krankydoodle]

15 hours ago, nuraman00 said:

What pop culture references were the following images?

 

* Marge with the sowing needle and purple button-like eyes.

* Bart and Lisa conjoined, tied to a fire hydrant

* Ned with a knife, having beheaded Burns

* Marge and Homer holding hands, backs facing us, looking at something dead in the water.  Is that from Jaws?

I figured some of these out from the list of Treehouse episodes on Wikipedia.

1) Coraline

2) The Thing with Two Heads

3) Dexter

4) Dead Calm, I think

Agree with others who've said the end of the Toy Story segment was disturbing. The last segment was my favorite, but the ending seemed abrupt. Still a good time overall.

Edited November 2, 2020 by krankydoodle

[M. Darcy]

As someone who has watched since the beginning (prebeginning if you count Tracy Ullman), those end credits made me feel really old. 

[Galileo908]

2 hours ago, M. Darcy said:

As someone who has watched since the beginning (prebeginning if you count Tracy Ullman), those end credits made me feel really old. 

For me it was someone asking about who Snagglepuss was, and why Yogi Bear sounded like Art Carney.

10 hours ago, Snow Apple said:

The second story about Homer bored me. I didn't understand it.

It was more about the gimmick, and the segment was too short to really deal with it.

[nuraman00]

6 hours ago, krankydoodle said:

I figured some of these out from the list of Treehouse episodes on Wikipedia.

1) Coraline

2) The Thing with Two Heads

3) Dexter

4) Dead Calm, I think

Agree with others who've said the end of the Toy Story segment was disturbing. The last segment was my favorite, but the ending seemed abrupt. Still a good time overall.

Great post.  I didn't know that wiki had the actual parody references too.

[nuraman00]

On 11/1/2020 at 4:17 PM, nuraman00 said:

During the "I, Carumbus" episode, Homer exclaims that Bart's talent will make him rich.

 

There is then a moment of him with "f" through his eyes.

 

Is that supposed to be f for Francs, the French currency?

Correction from above, it should be Lisa's talent.

 

Here's the pic.

 

Thinking about it more, they're in Italy, right? 

 

Do does the f stand for Florins?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_coins_in_Italy

 

Edited November 3, 2020 by nuraman00

[DoctorAtomic]

Just watching the animation quality in the credits was fascinating. 

[Galileo908]

14 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

Just watching the animation quality in the credits was fascinating. 

Very odd that the clips went in backwards order, probably for the better for the show. It made me watch the whole way through.

Edited November 4, 2020 by Galileo908

[nuraman00]

On 11/2/2020 at 4:58 PM, Galileo908 said:

For me it was someone asking about who Snagglepuss was, and why Yogi Bear sounded like Art Carney.

Did you like Snagglepuss?

 

I didn't remember that he was on the Yogi Bear show.  That was one of those cartoons that I probably only saw each episode once.  Unlike other cartoons, where I saw episodes multiple times.  So relatively speaking, I don't remember as much about the Yogi Bear episodes.

 

Actually, I don't remember much about most cartoons I watched as a kid anymore.

 

The Simpsons are probably the only exception.  Their constant references to past episodes, make me check back on the full context of what happened in the past, so I re-live some of the past again.

[Spartan Girl]

You guys remember the episode where Michelle Obama (voiced by Angela Bassett) came to Springfield Elementary and she and Superintendent Chaumers had this classic exchange about Skinner?

”He’s our Joe Biden.”

”Understood.”

Even more funny now.

[Galileo908]

Season 32, ep 5: The 7 Beer Itch

Quote

When Marge and the kids take a seaside vacation, Homer is unwittingly tempted by a Femme Fatale.

Airs 11/8/20

[Galileo908]

Couch Gag: On the moon! And Homer floats away!

I liked that Lily threw a dart at a map...and it landed at a brochure for Springfield. Pure "FLIM SPRINGFIELD" energy.

I liked this spin on the "Homer gets tempted" plot: A Mary Sue of a woman that's irresistible to everyone, but can NOT attract Homer. Wow, they actually showed the contrast between Lily's lovely voice and Marge's...voice which has seen better days.

I also enjoyed the rest of the family's side trip to Martha's Vineyard (No Vineyards!). Yeah...it sucks.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Didn't really care for that episode.  For starters, it wasn't really that funny.  I'd call it mildly amusing at best.

[M. Darcy]

Olivia Coleman! Normally it takes me a while to figure out the voice but I recognized her immediately. 

[Phishbulb]

Especially since they sort of designed the character to look like her as well. It's always hard to make female characters on The Simpsons cute. 

[Galileo908]

Season 32, Episode 6: Podcast News

Quote

Grampa is accused of a crime; Kent Brockman questions his career.

Airs 11/15/20

Edited November 16, 2020 by Galileo908

[Galileo908]

Loved that Lisa wore her dress over her pajamas.

"Lisa seems really frazzled. Did the climate change again?" Like lots of white women today, Lisa and Marge are in to True Crime podcasts. This was definitely written by people who listened to a ton of these.

Remember Kent Brockman's family? The crew did! I liked all the podcasts his family was reading (Why am I not surprised there's one for Dr. Seuss with hundreds of episodes?). They also remembered all the stuff on Krusty's chest: the pacemaker scar, the superfluous third nipple, the cattle skull birthmark.

I also liked Yeardley Smith's cameo. The joke about where we might've heard her from was great.

I really liked this one. It was fun.

Aww, Alex Trebek tribute at the end.

Edited November 16, 2020 by Galileo908

[ottoDbusdriver]

1 hour ago, Galileo908 said:

Season 32, Episode 6: Podcast News

Airs 11/152/20

The 152nd of November ??  :)

Edited November 16, 2020 by ottoDbusdriver

[DoctorAtomic]

The callback to the shampoo drone was killing me. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Podcasts being listened to in the Brockman household:

-- Comedians Interviewing Comedians Without Jokes
-- The Sports Conspiracy Guys
-- You're Wearing That ?  A Mean Girl Podcast about Losers
-- The Chat in the Hat -- A Dr. Seuss podcast

Local Census resister Abe Simpson. Hah !

Articles referenced on the cover of Abe's TV guide with Vivienne on the cover:
-- Rumors of a Fourth channel
-- Is M*A*S*H sexist enough ?
-- Inside Norman Lear's Hat
-- Roots announces toy line

Evacu-Great colonoscopy prep

Superhero related items in CBG's basement:
-- Conflict of Enemies video game
-- Badgerine figurine
-- Vindicators: Crystal War poster

Reappearance of Krusty's superfluous nipple

Seen in the Springfield Police Dept. -- newspaper with the headline 'Cop Surrenders to Scarecrow', accompanied by a picture of Chief Wiggum surrendering to said scarecrow.

PodCast Quarterly articles listed on the cover:
-- 10 Hot Tips to Bring the Conversation Back to You
-- Garage or Basement -- The Debate Continues
-- An Oral History of "How I Got into Comedy" Oral Histories

Podcast Quarterly Top Podcasts, True Crime - Geriatric category:
1. Guilty Grampa
2. A.A.R.I.P
3. Get Under My Lawn
4. Only the Good Die Old
5. The Walker
6. Terror in a Comfy Chair
7. I'm Cold Cases

The episode code was Abe Simpson's police case file number: ZABF22

We even get a 'Shawshank Redemption' reference -- as Vivienne escaped to Zihuatanejo, the same town that Andy Dufresne and Red went to.

Caricatures seen on the wall of Streami's restaurant:
-- Sarah Koenig (host of the 'Serial' podcast)
-- Karen Kilgariff - Georgia Hardstark (co-hosts of the 'My Favorite Murder' podcast)
-- Dan Carlin (host of 3 podcasts)
-- Desus & Mero (host of the 'Bodega Boys' podcast)

Yeardley Smith appears as herself -- since she hosts the 'Small Town Dicks' podcast.

Vivienne was voiced by Morgan Fairchild -- whom I've seen naked.  Can't help but toss out a Jon Lovitz reference.  :)

Really liked the Alex Trebek tribute at the end of the credits.
 

[DoctorAtomic]

11 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Vivienne was voiced by Morgan Fairchild -- whom I've seen naked.  Can't help but toss out a Jon Lovitz reference.

Morgan Fairchild used to be my wife. 

I was only on the tail end of the show, but was MASH sexist? I know they called the nurse Hot Lips, but that's it.  

I'm not a huge podcast person, but there was enough that I got the jokes. Why was the hipster lady talking so awful though? I assumed they were sending someone up. Wow was it grating though. 

[nuraman00]

On 11/8/2020 at 5:31 PM, Galileo908 said:

Couch Gag: On the moon! And Homer floats away!

I liked that Lily threw a dart at a map...and it landed at a brochure for Springfield. Pure "FLIM SPRINGFIELD" energy.

I liked this spin on the "Homer gets tempted" plot: A Mary Sue of a woman that's irresistible to everyone, but can NOT attract Homer. Wow, they actually showed the contrast between Lily's lovely voice and Marge's...voice which has seen better days.

I also enjoyed the rest of the family's side trip to Martha's Vineyard (No Vineyards!). Yeah...it sucks.

After a string of good episodes, dating back to last season, this was the first bad episode in a while.

 

It wasn't that original.

 

And it reminded me too much of the "Colonel Homer" episode, even though Homer's reaction to each respective woman was a little different.

 

It just felt like they had already done something similar, and didn't have ways to keep it fresh.

[nuraman00]

The Abe Simpson episode was really good.

 

Are they ever going to do the full opening theme again?  Whose decision was it to eliminate so many parts of it, so often?  How can they take one of the main things the show is known for (all of the gags in the theme song), and either not show it some weeks, or super condense it to just the couch gag, other weeks?

 

I think it's been more than a year, since they had the full theme song, with the billboards in the clouds; chalkboard; Lisa's sax solo; and couch gag.

Edited November 22, 2020 by nuraman00

[Galileo908]

Season 32, ep 7: Three Dreams Denied

Quote

Bart becomes a voice-over actor; Comic Book Guy is humiliated at Comic-Con; Lisa is set up for a fall

Airs 11/22/20

[Galileo908]

Title: Turkey being chased by Chief Wiggum in a balloon!

Couch Gag: The Couch cooked this nice dinner and is PISSED that the family is late.

One advantage to being owned by Disney: They can use actual Marvel characters now! I'll admit, I like that better than the lazy spoof versions. Man, CBG's adventure at SDCC was hitting hard. Just living vicariously through him at a fake comic con just conjured memories. The booths! All the nerd fights! All those awful audience questions! I missed it this year. I loved seeing all the cosplayers. Noticed Kang & Kodos, Morbo, and Matt Groening himself walking by.

"It's like Burning Man for nerds! Also, Burning Man is Burning Man for nerds. Man, there's a lot of nerds."

Ha, Duff Tea.

Loved the voice over stuff. Good to hear Dan scrolling through his voices, like Doc Brown! Even though, yeah, it was Poochie all over again. They recast June Bellamy as Itchy?! Bart voiced a different gender. I see what they did there. At least he got the "and" credit, and a happy ending. I hope Homer managed to ask for money this time, too.

"Don't tell me I'm nominated for an Annie Award. Those things are worthless." Good to see award bashing make a come back. They haven't won one in forever.

I got sincerely mad that Blake was an ass and a phony. And he was never seen after the second act.

Loved the signs in the mall.

"Closed for Jazz Appreciation"
"Forever Chapter 11"
"Bed, Bath, and Bankruptcy."

Man, I really liked this one.

[DoctorAtomic]

I liked the shots they took at animation. 

One of the signs was 'pre complain about the next star wars'. 

Edited November 23, 2020 by DoctorAtomic

[M. Darcy]

3 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

I loved seeing all the cosplayers. Noticed Kang & Kodos, Morbo, and Matt Groening himself walking by.

 

I think I also saw Mulder and Scully.

Bart’s cartoon reminded me a bit of Disenchantment. 

[nuraman00]

The Kermit The Frog appearance was funny.

 

This was almost a great episode.  I didn't like the resolution to Lisa's subplot, having her play for free.

 

The Comic Book Guy, and Bart subplots, were great.

 

I would have rather either seen Lisa get revenge on the new guy, or have her get fooled again.

4 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

and Matt Groening himself walking by.

When was this?

[KWalkerInc]

I liked the Baby Yoda changing station at Comic Con.

[ottoDbusdriver]

4 hours ago, nuraman00 said:

....... and Matt Groening himself walking by.

When was this?

In the final CBG bit right after the executive producer credits but before the rest of the credits, when CGB was going on about Superman and why people confuse Superman with a bird, and the need to say it out loud.

I liked the future part when Lisa was admiring the pretzel, it was positioned right between her WNBA Rookie of the Year trophy and a Nobel Prize medal.

[DoctorAtomic]

I thought also saw Mulder and Scully in the Matt G segment at the end. They had some goody bags. 

[nuraman00]

11 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

In the final CBG bit right after the executive producer credits but before the rest of the credits, when CGB was going on about Superman and why people confuse Superman with a bird, and the need to say it out loud.

I liked the future part when Lisa was admiring the pretzel, it was positioned right between her WNBA Rookie of the Year trophy and a Nobel Prize medal.

Other than ice hockey, what other sports has Lisa played?

On 11/2/2020 at 6:57 PM, nuraman00 said:

Correction from above, it should be Lisa's talent.

 

Here's the pic.

 

Thinking about it more, they're in Italy, right? 

 

Do does the f stand for Florins?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_coins_in_Italy

 

Bump?

[nuraman00]

Thinking about it more, they could have done a lot more with the saxophone battle.

 

I was expecting a few references to the movie "Whiplash".

 

Also, they could have had a dueling exchanges of saxophone riffs from some famous songs.  The Simpsons is known for pop culture references.

 

Instead of just listing a few, like what Lisa did, we should have heard a few, in a comedic way.

12 hours ago, KWalkerInc said:

I liked the Baby Yoda changing station at Comic Con.

Agree.  

 

They could have had a bit where the babies excreted some goo substance from famous cartoons.  Maybe from Ghostbusters, or TMNT 2:  The secret of the ooze.  Or something.

 

The babies are at a changing station, so they could have constructed one more joke there.

[nuraman00]

17 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

In the final CBG bit right after the executive producer credits but before the rest of the credits, when CGB was going on about Superman and why people confuse Superman with a bird, and the need to say it out loud.

I liked the future part when Lisa was admiring the pretzel, it was positioned right between her WNBA Rookie of the Year trophy and a Nobel Prize medal.

Thanks for this.  I never knew what Matt Groeing looked like, so I just looked him up, and re-watched the scene.  I see him now.

 

9 hours ago, DoctorAtomic said:

I thought also saw Mulder and Scully in the Matt G segment at the end. They had some goody bags. 

 

Good catch.  When I was re-watching the scene, I saw them too now, right after Groeing.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Comics seen in CBG's store:
-- lots of Radioactive Man comics, including 'The Death of Radioactive Man', 'Radioactive Man vs. the Kansas City Royals', 'Radioactive Man vs. Libby, the first feminist Superhero', and Radioactive Man #1 - Created, A Hero
-- Everyman
-- Krusty
-- Fallout Boy
-- Bongo
-- Bloodzilla
-- BatChick
-- BiClops
-- SwatchMen
-- Dr. Shapiro vs. Plaque-Ula
-- Zebra Girl
-- Vindicators
-- Itchy and Veronica
-- Thung
-- Chupacabra
-- From Heck
-- World's Best Comics -- with Everyman and Radioactive Man (Not a Dream)
-- Tonton in Paris
-- The Formidable Mulk
-- ZoidZilla
-- Bird Guy
-- BatBoy
-- Cosmic Wars
-- Police Cops
-- Radiation Dude
-- The Sands of Space
-- Bible Stories
-- Vampire Dinosaur
-- Malibu Stacy
-- CatMan
-- Dash Dingo
-- Goys' Life
-- Itchy & Scratchy

Bonus: seen in Agnes Skinner's wagon 
       -- 'Mr. WeatherBee - First and Last Issue' comic
       -- 'Mama's Boy's Life magazine
       -- picture of Charlie Brown with the kite-eating tree
       -- picture of Cathy, saying 'Ack!'
       -- 1979 Canyonero model box
       -- 1967 Pontiac GTO model box
       -- stuffed rabbit from 'Life in Hell'
       
Estimated delivery date of Radioactive Man action figure on MeBay -- Between Friday May 29 and June 1
Date on Bart's check was 5/29, which is also May 29.

CBG's flash cards on the plane:
-- Spider-Man vs. Shelob: Who would Win ?
-- Does Superdog have Superfleas ?
-- Best Joker ... None of them ?

Seen at Comicalooza:
-- Auntie May's Pretzels - with Great Pretzels comes Great Mustard
-- Darth Vader cosplayer carrying a sign 'Will L.A.R.P. for Acne Medication'
-- 'Meet the Stars of Calvin and Hobbes and Shaw' sign
-- Trans-Clown-o-Morphs poster
-- Futurama poster
-- Keep George R. R. Martin Writing Words Today: 2
-- 'Only Chair in the Entire Center; sign
-- Costume Contact Lenses (Free Goat Eyes)
-- 'Meet Bruce Campbell' sign
-- 'Meet a Guy Who Met Bruce Campbell' sign
-- Lost Badges/Lost Kids/Lost Will to Live booths
-- Hall H - Line for Next Year's Comicalooza Starts Here
-- 'Celebrities Pretending to be Superheroes' sign
-- 'The Simpsons Movie - Box Office Winner' sign
-- there was even someone dressed as the Hypnotoad
-- 'Autographs from someone you've never heard of' booth

Cookie Castle cartoon had an outstanding cast (presented by Frosty Chocolate Sugar Clumps Cereal and the N.R.A.):
-- Meghan Markle
-- Leonardo DiCaprio
-- Sir Ian McKellen
-- Dame Judi Dench
-- Daniel Radcliffe
-- Idris Elba
-- Bill Murray
-- not sure who 'Phil Muhlstock' is

[nuraman00]

There was a Bed, Bath, and Bankruptcy store at the mall, near the end, when Lisa was there.

[Galileo908]

Season 32, Ep 8: The Road To Cincinnati

Quote

Odd couple Skinner and Chalmers embark on an 800-mile car ride to Cincinnati to attend an administrator's convention.

Airs 11/29/20

[Galileo908]

Well, this was a fun adventure. That Skinner & Chalmers fight in the B&B was a long time coming.

It was interesting hearing the regular cast in other roles. Julie Kavner was the Emotional Support Turkey, while Yeardley Smith was one of the Improv Shakespeare actors. Speaking of which, Improv Shakespeare seems (delightfully) awful.

EDIT: Noticed the blink and you miss it Steamed Hams cameo on the way to the cyclist bar.

Edited November 30, 2020 by Galileo908

[M. Darcy]

At least two WKRP shoutouts! A bit of the theme song played and then the same song that WKRP used played over the end credits. 

Edited November 30, 2020 by M. Darcy

[Galileo908]

I'm the one guy that takes all the brochures from rest stops. Usually of the local theme parks, but I can't get enough of them.

[ottoDbusdriver]

11 minutes ago, M. Darcy said:

At least two WKRP shoutouts! A bit of the theme song played and then the same song that WKRP used played over the end credits. 

Actually the end credits text was also done in the style of the WKRP end credits.

ETA: Agreed that the Skinner/Chalmers throwdown was a long time coming, but well worth the wait.

Edited November 30, 2020 by ottoDbusdriver

[opus]

12 minutes ago, Galileo908 said:

 Julie Kavner was the Emotional Support Turkey

 

11 minutes ago, M. Darcy said:

At least two WKRP shoutouts! A bit of the theme song played and then the same song that WKRP used played over the end credits. 

As God as my witness I thought emotional support turkeys could fly.

[DoctorAtomic]

I'll follow that comment so no one else has to. 

[Tachi Rocinante]

A fun episode that centered on background characters. How did Skinner get away with returning a damaged car?

Skyline "Chili" is nasty and should only be served in penitentiaries.

For a brief second, I though the Finch character was being voiced by Stephen A. Smith.

[Phishbulb]

I really, really liked this episode. Concentrating on one storyline with two characters we don't see a lot of was really fun. Matt Selman said on Twitter that they were trying to pay homage to classic "road trip" movies like Planes, Trains, and Automobiles with this ep, and I think they pulled it off very well. Lots of fun side adventures along the way, like the encounter at the "bike bar" and the fight in the B&B.

Sometimes when they try to do too many storylines in one episode, it kinda blends together into a mush and I have a hard time remembering the episode a day after I see it, but I think this is one I'll be rewatching a lot. 

[Galileo908]

12 hours ago, Tachi Rocinante said:

A fun episode that centered on background characters. How did Skinner get away with returning a damaged car?

I gotta wonder how he explained to Agnes that he crashed her car into a soybean silo.

[Lazlo]

It could have been funnier but it was genuinely refreshing to reduce the Simpsons themselves to tiny cameos (a first for for the series?)

[BooksRule]

I was watching an old episode the other day where Bart was trying to be good in order to impress Rev. Lovejoy's daughter, not realizing at first that's she as bad as he is.  For some reason, this quote gave me the giggles and I'm still quoting it in my head days later:

Lisa: 'She's a sweet, kind, Reverend's daughter, and you're the Devil's cabana boy.'

[nuraman00]

It's been a long time since there's been a Principal Skinner main storyline.  This was good.  I liked it.

[Galileo908]

Season 32, ep 9: Sorry Not Sorry

Quote

Lisa calls her teacher, Miss Hoover, a hack and refuses to apologize; Lisa learns Ms. Hoover's private pain.

Airs 12/6/20