The Simpsons 141-145

Two Bad Neighbors

This episode premiered on January 14th, 1996. The lead in show was Space: Above And Beyond and it was followed by Martin. It ran opposite the programs Lois And Clark, Cybill and Mad About You. 

There isn't a chalkboard gag in this episode, the couch gag is a trophy hunter comes in the living room. On the wall are the heads of Marge, Lisa, Maggie and Bart, Homer is a rug on the floor. 

Evergreen Terrace is holding a rummage sale, just then George Bush sr. moves into the house across the street from the Simpsons. He moved to Springfield because it has the lowest voter turnout in the nation and he figures he won't be bothered by politics. Rod and Todd warn Bush about Bart. Homer rushes to Krusty Burger to get the breakfast balls but gets stuck behind Bush who can't figure out what to order because they don't have stew on the menu. Just as Bush finishes his memoir Bart shows up and sets off his outboard motor shredding them, so Bush gives him a swat on the butt. Homer storms over to Bush's house and calls him a wimp. (He had been branded as a wimp by the press and was one of the reasons he lost the 92 election). In their first act of revenge Bart and Homer launch 200 bottle rockets at Bush's house. Bush retaliates with a banner that reads Two Bad Neighbors (the title of the episode) with poorly drawn figures on it, the neighbors are confused and wonder if he's talking about himself and Barbara. Homer puts up cardboard cutouts of George Jr. and Jeb (talk about two people I wish I never heard of), when Bush comes out Bart drops a rainbow wig full of glue on his head. He has to give a speech at the Elks Club with a cut down wig. To get revenge Bush does donuts on the Simpson's front lawn. Homer uses the storm drain to sneak over to Bush's house to release locust however George spots them and a fight breaks out in the drains. Bush plans to use his garrote wire in his CIA watch but Bart throws the box of locust on him. Just then Gorbachov shows up with a house warming gift. When Barbra forces Bush to apologize to Homer Gorbachov says (in Russian) "Well I guess we know who the boss is around here". The Bushs move out and then Gerald Ford moves in. Ford invites Homer over to watch a game while snacking on beer and nachos. As they walk across the street they both trip and say "D'oh"

Homer is watching TV, From the Brown Sands Of Public Beach Delaware it's the Grand Nationals Of Sand Castle Building...Preview. "Bikini Girls, Dune Buggies, Daredevil Surfers, all have been cleared out for painstaking sand preparation. "Everyone is a-buzz about the absence of Mark Rodkin. Oh, there he is."

Homer's snacks, Chippos (with a hippo on the bag), Tubbbs, Tubby Wads, Salt Doodles and Duff. 

Evergreen Terrace Rummage Sale. Saturday 10 AM "No parcheesi sets, please".

Evergreen Terrace is in Pressboard Estates. 

Apu is singing The Dream Police by Cheap Trick with the wrong lyrics. He drives a 77 Pontiac Trans Am, red. He's on a break from the Kwik-E-Mart while they fix the Squishee machine, which has flooded the store, Jimbo swims in and steals two 6 packs of Duff. 

Homer has an Ayatollah Assahola shirt. Marge wants to get rid of it but Homer says it works on any Ayatollah, Nakhbadeh, Zahedi, Razamara. Ayatollah Khomeini was the ruler of Iran from the revolution until his death in 1989.

Stuff in the Simpson's attic, A Be Sharps "Bigger Than Jesus" album (Homer's Barbershop Quartet). I Didn't Do It shirt (Bart Gets Famous), The Mary Worth phone (Lady Bouvier's Lover), Homer's Wheelie Shoes (Itchy And Scratchy Land), a case of Abe and Son Revitalizing Tonic (Grandpa Vs. Sexual Inadequacy). Lisa Lionheart dolls (Lisa Vs. Malibu Stacey), a painting of Ringo Starr (Brush With Greatness). Out on the law is Aztec head (Blood Feud) as part of the rummage sale along with the ship painting that hangs over the couch.

This episode introduced Disco Stu. It was a one time joke but the character comes back in future episodes. 

Mrs. Glick makes an appearance. She was first seen in the episode Three Men And A Comic Book.

Homer does a version of Big Spender from the musical Sweet Charity and Stayin' Alive by The Bee Gees

The Bushs first appeared on The Simpsons in the episode Mr. Lisa Goes To Washington.

Bush's jogging buddies, Lenny, Dr. Hibbirt and Reverend Lovejoy. SLH goes chasing after Millie (Bush's dog)

Bush's confusion over the drive thru menu is a spoof on when he was impressed by the grocery store scanner during the 1992 election, even though the scanners has been used since 1973. People saw Bush as out of touch with the common man.

Bart bugging Bush is a spin on the comic strip,  TV show and movie Dennis the Menace. In the episode Cape Feare Bart refers to himself as "this centuries Dennis The Menace".

When Bush's memoirs are shredded scraps goes by that says VP Quayle and Embarrassment. 

Grandpa claimed Grover Cleveland spanked him on two non consecutive occasions. This is a joke about Cleveland being elected in 1884 and 1892 but not in 1888.

Edmund Scientific Co. Locusts. (Edmund Scientific is a real company but they make specialty lenses for telescopes and microscopes)

During the fight Bush says he'll ruin Homer like a Japanese banquet. This is a reference to when he puked on Miyasawa, the prime minister of Japan in 1992. 

Gerald Ford tripping is a reference to the reputation the former President picked up about being clumsy. (I saw this with some teenagers who didn't get the joke)

It's not often I can say "I remember where I was when this happened" but I remember where I was when I watched this episode. The people I worked with would hold a post New Years party, we couldn't do anything before then because from November through Jan. 1st was our busy season, so when the madness died down we'd hold an outside of work get together, and for some reason everyone wanted to watch The Simpsons. They were also depressed because two of them were Cheeseheads and Dallas had just beat the Green Bay Packers.

Scenes From The Class Struggle In Springfield

This episode premiered on February 4th 1996. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the NFL Pro Bowl (NFC 20 AFC 13), Cybill and Mad About You.

This episode got it's name from the 1989 movie Scenes From The Class Struggle in Beverly Hills

There is no chalkboard gag, the couch gag is the living room is in Black Light while a stoner version of the theme song plays, when Homer clicks the lamp the room and song go back to normal.

The family is watching Bumblebee Man but Grandpa tries to change the channel and wrecks the tv. They head to the outlet mall in Ogdenville to find a bargain replacement. At the clothing store Lisa finds a Chanel suit for $90, marked down from $2800. Marge decides to buy it but wears it around the house since she doesn't have any place to go. While at the Kwik-E-Mart Marge runs into an old high school classmate Evelyne, who has been doing very well, she invites the family to the Country Club. Marge wants to fit in with the snobs but the rest of the family hated it. On their second visit Lisa discovers the stables and stops complaining while Homer starts playing golf. Marge tries to alter the suit so it doesn't look the same for another Club outing. Marge's friend tells her that the family will be sponsored for membership at the Saturday ball, and they look forward to her new outfit. When Homer is showing off his new golf skills in the restroom Burns sees him on the security camera and invites him to play a round. Lisa distracts Marge and she mangles her suit, she goes to her sisters for a dress but they are all awful. While playing Mr. Burns in a round of golf Homer discovers that Smithers is cheating for him (sounds like Trump's record). Homer threatens to tell everyone but they offer to sponsor Marge for membership in exchange for his silence. When Marge can't find a new dress she goes to the Chanel store and buys a new one for $3300, Lisa bugs her about the dress and she gets mad. Marge tells Homer that they have to walk to the club because their car is embarrassing and tells the family to behave themselves. Marge realizes how she's acting and decides that they don't fit in and they skip the Country Club dance. At the club everyone is waiting to welcome them as new members (Mr. Burns made a pickled fig cake) instead the family heads to Krusty Burger. 

Sharper Image has a tv shaped like a 50's diner, The Nature Company has one assembled by Hopi Indians. Marge says they can't afford to buy from a store that has a philosophy, I know that feeling.

Appliance Zone "Your Grey-markets Superstore!!! The store has cordless phones with antennas, boom boxes and large console computers in the window. The TVs on display, Magnetbox, Panaphonics, Sorny, Carnivale (Homer buys this one). 

Steppin' Out Fashion Mart "Browse Through Our Bra Barrel!

When Marge wants to go somewhere nice Homer suggests Spurlock's Cafeteria.

The Kwik-E-Mart once again has gas pumps out in front, these only appear when it's necessary for the storyline. The pumps are an old analog style that haven't been seen since the 70's.

When Marge complains about Homer wearing a short sleeved shirt with a tie Homer mentions that Detective Sipowicz does it. He was a character on NYPD Blue. Dennis Franz who played the character appeared in the episode Homer Bad Man and the America's Most Wanted special on Who Shot Mr. Burns. 

Springfield Glen Country Club "Proud Home Of The Tippling Gadabout (a drunken socialite). The clubs emblem is a goose with a golf club wrapped around its neck. 

The socialites order all their stuff "mail order". In the modern world they would get it via Grub Hub. 

Tom Kite (professional golfer) does a cameo voice in this episode, helping Homer with his game and then tells Homer to stay out of his locker and leave his clubs alone.

Homer reads The New Our Caddies Ourselves A book By and For Golfers. The title is based on the book Our Bodies Ourselves (which is not about golf)

Bart The Fink

This episode premiered on February 11th 1996. It ran in its usual time slot but was followed by a rerun of The Simpsons. It was opposite the regular programming except for the NBA All Star Game (East 129, West 118) on NBC. 

The title of the episode was taken from the 1991 movie Barton Fink although the plot line has nothing to do with the movie.

There isn't a chalkboard gag in this episode,  the couch gag is a repeat of the fax machine.

Great Aunt Hortence has passed away and the Simpsons will inherit her entire estate if they spend the night in a haunted house. The next day they all wake up well rested however all they get is $100 apiece. Bart wants to get the taco special, 100 tacos for $100 dollars, Lisa wants to give her money to PBS. Marge insists they put the money in the bank even though all the tellers are wearing ape masks for their promotion. Lisa gets the thrifty saver account, 2.3% compounded annually. Bart gets a checking account with the Crash of The Hindenburg checks (they work like a flip book showing the flaming disaster, Check Style No. 9 "Oh The Humanity!") Bart writes a check to Lisa for one cent, a million dollar check to Milhouse postdated to the year 10,000, A check to Jimbo Jones for $1.00 for Services Rendered. When Bart and Milhouse try to get Krusty's autograph he's in a hurry so Bart slips a check into his pocket for 25¢, Milhouse got his stomach signed. When Bart gets his bank statement the check has been stamped by the Cayman Islands Offshore Holding Corporation. Bart goes to the bank to complain, the teller looks at the stamp and calls the main office who then call Krusty's Cayman Island banker who accidentally tells them he can't give out information on the secret illegal offshore account. The FBI shows up and arrests Krusty for tax fraud. When the news reports on the arrest they have a photo of Krusty and Bart "Donated by Homer Simpson". The IRS says they are going to take 75% of Krusty's salary for 40 years, when he replies he doesn't plan to live that long they up it to 90%. The IRS cuts expenses on the show, they fire Mel and get rid of the props including pies. After the IRS sells off Krusty's stuff he takes off in his plane and crashes it into a mountain. Bart becomes depressed about Krusty's death so Homer tries to cheer him up by telling him he could die tomorrow. While walking down the street Bart sees someone drive by in a truck who looks just like Krusty but without the clown makeup. Marge says that Bart is just seeing him because he wants Krusty to be alive, and she went through the same thing when Lyndon Johnson died. Bart figures out that the guy he's been seeing must work at the docks. Bart asks the Sea Captain if he's seen Krusty using his image from a balloon, The Captain thinks it's Handsome Pete who dances for nickels. Bart spots a bad check on the Captain's register that has a signature of Rory B. Bellows that is similar to Krusty's so they are off to Slip 8, he had paid Handsome Pete $13.67 for Moving Expenses. They give Handsome Pete a quarter and the Captain is upset because he'll be dancing for hours. When they confront Bellows he tries to take off in his boat but is still tied to the dock. They know it's Krusty from his pacemaker scar and superfluous third nipple, and you can see his cow skull birth mark (first mentioned in the episode Kamp Krusty). The kids use reverse psychology. Krusty pays off his tax debt by blowing up Rory Bellows on his ship and collecting the insurance money. 

Law Firm Of Dewey Cheathem, Howe and Weissmann is a take on the classic Three Stooges gag.

Aunt Hortence wills the bulk of her estate to Ann Landers, a popular advice columnist in the day. She died in 2002 and now her advice column is run by a behind the scenes team.

The taco stand is in an old One Hour Photo Booth. Digital photography was on the rise in 1996 and the need to get film developed was fading fast. Comicbook Guy comes out with a 100 tacos for his Doctor Who marathon, at the time there had been 8 reincarnations of The Doctor. 

Bank signs: You'll go Ape over our car loans (picture of a crazed ape holding a car)

Bart's checking account number is 1221100449

Bart writes checks to Lisa for 1¢, the Kwik-E-Mart for 25¢, Jimbo Jones for 75¢ (His real name is Corky) and to Krusty.

The Cayman Island banker is based on Kasper Gutman, a 1940's actor who played classic villains, probably best known for The Maltese Falcon.

Kent Brockman says Krusty was arrested for "tax avoision" sparking an argument with his producer. This is the start of the show making up words that sound real.

The Internal Revenue Service presents "Hershel Krustofsky's Clown-Related Entertainment Show

When Krusty Burger is altered to IRS Burger: Trash cans "Gross Refuse, Net Refuse", Homer orders 4 Tax Burgers, one IRS-wich withhold the lettuce, 3 dependent size sodas and a fica-ccino. The counter guy tells him to fill out schedule B and he'll get his burgers in 6 to 8 weeks. Marge's gambling losses for 1995 was $700. (Marge became a gambling addict in the episode $pringfield)

Self Aware Joke: The sign on the city bus, "Are You Missing Mad About You right now? NBC--Must See TV Sundays at 8. Mad About You was running opposite The Simpsons at this time.

Krusty's house is called Schtickfair. This was a take on Mary Pickford's house Pickfair.

The IRS auctions off Krusty's priceless heirlooms. His family suitcase that came through Ellis Island sells to Thelma for 40¢. There is 32 cartons full of porn, Jasper bids 10¢ but gets outbid by someone on the phone in Japan who buys it for 12¢. Moe buys Krusty's bed for 50¢. Krusty's plane I'm-On-A-Rolla-Gay (a take on the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the bomb on Hiroshima.) Krusty remembers the time he and Dean Martin wrote a song while flying to Vegas, it turned out to be a ripoff of That's Amore. 

Celebrities at Krusty's funeral: Rainer Wolfcastle and his wife Maria, Lucius Sweet (a Don King knockoff), Kermit the Frog, John Swartzwelder (a writer for The Simpsons), Mayor Joe Quimby, Troy McClure and Bob Newhart (who did is own voice), The Bearded Lady, Luke Perry, Sideshow Raheem and Sideshow Mel, Mr. Teenie (the chimp) Tina Ballerina, Corporal Punishment. 

Krusty's middle name is Shmoikel. 

Troy McClure, you might know me from such show business funerals as Andre The Giant: We Hardly Knew Ye (died in 1993) and Shemp Howard, "Today We Mourn A Stooge" (dies in 1955) He invites the crowd to sit Shiva but warns them the 10 PM ceremony gets a little blue (show biz term for dirty)

Krusty's tombstone "See ya real soon kids!", The wreath says "Krusty-You can never be Replaced. Laf?? 369-3084 (This was the office number for Bill Okaley and yes people would call it.)

The Channel 6 report calls Krusty's plane crash, The Day The Local Laughter Died, this is a reference to The Day The Music Died from the song American Pie about Buddy Holly's plane crash and the years that followed. The post office offers two different Krusty stamps, one of him smiling and one of him dying in the plane crash. This is in reference to when the Post Office ran a poll in People Magazine to determine which image would be featured on the commemorative Elvis stamp in 1992, younger or older Elvis. (stamps were 32¢ in 1996)

This is the first episode where they mention Jasper by name (in Dr, Hibbert's office), although he's been a part of the show since Homer's Odyssey in Season One

The Sea Cap'n's Bait 'N' Barg'n B'n "C'mon 'N We're Op'n. This is a reference to Cap'n Crunch. The Sea Captain is on the phone and says "call me back Ishmael" This is a reference to the opening line in Moby Dick.

Lisa says they searched the docks from pier one to that Pier 1 by pier seventeen. This is a reference to the store, naturally.

Krusty mentions that he misses Shirley Jones and Marty Ingles's New Years Eve party. They were married from 1977 to 2015.

When Krusty swims for shore he leaves a streak of yellow paint that washes off his face, this is a reference to The Caine Mutiny when the captain drops a yellow marker and turns the ship away from a landing attack and the crew stars calling him Yellow Streak, meaning he's a coward.

In the episode Brother From The Same Planet the kids go to see an R rated movie, Barton Fink.

Lisa The Iconoclast

This episode premiered on February 18th, 1996. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programming.

There is no chalkboard gag in this episode and the couch gag is a repeat of The Brady Bunch.

The school kids watch a film about Jebediah Springfield. He founded Springfield in 1796, it's the towns Bicentennial. The people were seeking New Sodom. Kerney, who is using an electric razor remembers the 1976 Bicentennial, 20 years earlier. Lisa's class has to write an essay about Jebediah so she goes to the historical society. The parade committee selects Ned to be Town Crier but Homer busts in and loudly gets the part. Lisa finds a note in Jebediah's flute, he confesses to finding a tame buffalo that he shot and that he was originally Hans Sprungfeld, a pirate who attacked George Washington in 1781. Lisa shoves the note back in the flute. The only person who believes Lisa is Homer. They go back to the Historical Society to check out the confession, the curator claims it's a fraud. The curator bans Lisa, and her children, and her children's children, for three months. Homer uses his position at Town Crier to get people to listen to Lisa but Moe calls the town committee who then hold a meeting. When the sponsors find out who Springfield really was they storm out because they don't want to be associated with a pirate., the sponsors are Long John Silvers. The committee agrees to dig up his grave, Quimby says "can't we have one meeting that doesn't end with us digging up a corpse?" When they open the grave there is a cloud of dust and there is no silver tongue. Wiggum does a ventriloquist act with Springfield's skull. The committee takes away Homer's position as Town Crier. That night Lisa is visited by the ghost of Springfield and Washington. Washington threatens to make Janie President so Lisa promises to stick to her investigation. While staring off into space Lisa realizes that the confession is written on the missing piece of the bottom of a painting of George Washington. The curator confesses that he stole the silver tongue out of Springfield's coffin. The curator takes Lisa to the parade to tell the truth about Springfield but when she sees the people celebrating their town she decides to stick with the lie. Quimby plans to shoot her before she exposes the truth, later a bullet just misses her. Homer bursts into the parade and takes over the position of Town Crier and still marches. The episode ends with a folk song about Springfield. 

Rental Films Present A Watch & Learn Feature. Young Jebediah Springfield Starring Troy McClure. In the scene of Springfield taming the wild buffalo you can see the stage hands rocking the fake animal. When he gives his speech the boom mic accidentally swings down into the shot. "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man". This will be seen on the base of the statue in the town square for the first time. Mrs. Krabappal says she never heard the word "embiggens" until she moved to Springfield, Ms. Hoover replies  "It's a perfectly cromulent word." At the end of the film the letters going by say Young Jebediah Springfield Rental Films. 

Springfield Shopper headline "Parade to distract joyless citizens" Characters in the parade, Butter Churner, Typhoid Carrier, Apprentice, Town Crier. 

Springfield Historical Society: Where the dead come alive! (Metaphorically) Hollis Hurlbut is the curator of the Society, voiced by Donald Sutherland. The curator compares Springfield to Willam Dawes (rider warning of the British Invasion) or Samuel Otis (first Secretary of State). Jebediah items at the historical society, his pipe, hatchet and chamber pot. 

Betsy Ross is making the flag, she comments that she found the white stars but not the red hearts, yellow moons or green clovers. These are the marshmallows in Lucky Charms. 

Marge says her family first moved to the state they had a choice of living in Springfield or Stenchburg. 

Lisa's essay is entitled Jebediah Springfield: Super Fraud.

The curator compares the Jebediah confession to the Howard Hughes will (1976), the Hitler diaries (1983) or the Emancipation Retraction (what the Republicans want today).

The Copy Jalopy "We tried to make copying fun" Lisa orders 25 copies on Goldenrod, Saffron, Canary and Paella, the copy guy says "100 on yellow". 

Comic Book guy is making a copy of his script where computer threaten our liberty and says Homer had better not steal his idea, Homer makes a mental note to steal the idea. Of course the plot of the movie is pretty much the plot of 1/4th of all science fiction movies out there.

While digging up Springfield they snuff out the eternal flame on Adlai Stevenson's grave. He was the UN ambassador in 1961. His actual grave is in Bloomington Illinois.

The ghost of George Washington "we had quitters in the revolution too, we called them Kentuckians"

The painting that contains Springfield's confession is based on The Athenaeum Portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stewart. The original painting was never finished and the bottom of the canvass is still intact.

Lisa's decision to stick with the legend at the end is similar to the end of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance when the reporter says "When the legend becomes fact, print the legend".

One of the arguments is "where is Springfield located." Because the founding took place in 1796 this episode reduces the potential territory from the original 13 colonies east to the edge of the French territory and south to Georgia before Spain turned Florida over to the U.S.

Homer The Smithers

This episode premiered on February 25th 1996. The lead in show was a Goosebumps special and it was followed by Martin. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Murder, She Wrote and Mad About You.

There is no chalkboard gag and the couch gag is a repeat of the Shriner's cars.

The power plant is sponsoring employee night at the drag races. When it comes to the company's  race Burns misses it and orders them to go slower. While alone in the car a drunken Lenny comes up and talks to Burns while Smithers is away. Smithers has a meltdown over his failure to protect Burns and is ordered to go on a vacation. He decides to find the worst employee but when the computer keeps giving him 714 names he decides to just go with Homer. On day one Mr. Burns sets his office on fire. Homer attempts to make Burns breakfast but sets everything on fire including the corn flakes. After several days of abuse Homer punches Burns and knocks him out. Burns tries to call Smithers by dialing his name but calls Moe's instead. (Moe's number is 764-84377) Moe thinks it's a prank call and threatens him. Smithers has a Shining moment and plans to return as soon as possible. Burns makes his own coffee, and a huge mess, and then decides to drive himself home, poorly. The next day Burns has learned to do for himself from making coffee to running the paper shredder. When Smithers returns he finds that Burns is now self reliant and he gets fired. Smithers ends up working for Moe keeping Barney distracted when the beer shipment is unloaded. Homer helps Smithers come up with a plan to get him his job back, the plan is to have Burns talk to his mother but Homer accidentally hangs up on her. Homer pretends to be her but gets caught. Smithers and Homer gets into a fight, Burns hides on top of his polar bear but gets knocked out of the window and winds up in bed. Smithers has to take care of him. When Burns says he wants Smithers to "take care of Homer" Smithers replies that he already has, cut to the Simpson's living room where they are eating a fruit basket with a big Thank You card on it.

Springfield Dragway Nuclear Plant Employees Night.

The drag strip is dedicated the night to Lance Murdock who is in the hospital for cirrhosis of the liver

Drag racer sponsor Amalgamated Pornography vs Duff Beer. Fox entrainment vs. Kingpin Malt Liquor. Laramie Cigarettes vs. Cop Stopper Explosive Bullets. 

The clue in the Jr. Jumble is Fat Slob!

When Smithers types Incompetent into the power plant employee data base he gets 714 names, when he expands it to Lazy, Clumsy, Dim-witted, Monstrously ugly he still gets 714 names. 

Mr. Burns' mother had an affair with President Taft.

Burn's lunch, a single pillow of shredded wheat, steamed toast and a dodo egg.

Smithers goes to an all male resort. (I finally claimed it as proof that he was Gay, my coworker had no choice but to accept the truth.)

Burns is 104 in this episode. His mother is 122 so that means she was 18 when he was born.

Things Burns runs over on his way home, stop sign, fire hydrant, trash can, mail box, light pole. This is a continuity error since Burns drove in the episode Bart Gets Hit By A Car and even as recently as Scenes From The Class Struggle In Springfield.

When Burns answers the phone he says Ahoy-hoy. This is in reference to when people were trying to figure out what you should say when you answered the phone, Alexander Graham Bell suggested "ahoy" but the general consensus was to use "hello".

Smithers is seeing applying at AT&T but when they pull back it's NEAT & TIDY Piano Movers. He ends up getting a steel rod in his spine. He gets a job as the drag strip announcer but is fired because he questions repeating everything, everything, everything. 

When Smithers is feeding an injured Burns it is a take on the scene from the 1971 movie A Clockwork Orange.

We've reached episode 145 and are well under way in the year 1996. My life would take a big change that year but The Simpsons would remain consistent. However that was short lived as we're rapidly approaching the next era. 

 The Simpsons 136-140

Mother Simpson

This episode premiered on November 19th, 1995. The lead in show was Space: Above And Beyond and it was followed by Martin. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Cybill and Mad About You.

There isn't a chalkboard gag in this episode, the couch gag is the family is put on the couch by a bowling pin setter.

Burns shows up to dedicate the section of highway his corporation has sponsored to clean up. As soon as the photos are taken he ditches his vest and stick and leaves the actual cleanup to the employees. In order to get out of work Homer uses a dummy to fake his death. He plans to make the most of the day but just spends it laying in the hammock. Friends and neighbors show up to express their condolences and when the power company shows up to shut off the power Marge has it out with Homer. When he goes to the Hall of Records to fix the mess he finds out that they still have his mother listed as alive, he finally visits her grave and finds out that Walt Whitman is buried there. (He's actually buried in Camden New Jersey). When he goes to the other grave marked Simpson it turns out to be the one Patty and Selma bought for him. Homer falls in the grave just as his mother shows up. The gravedigger complains that nobody in the cemetery is dead, Moleman opens up the lid to his coffin and says "Now that you mention it". Homer brings his mother home causing shock. Bart says grandma owes him $22,000 in back presents. Both Lisa and Mona say they hate John Knowles and his book A Separate Peace. When the police roll by Mona runs in the house and Lisa becomes suspicious, Bart confirms that something is up when he shows Lisa the fake ID's he found in Mona's purse. When they threaten to call Grandpa she tells them the story. We flash back to when she sees Joe Namath's hair in the '69 Super Bowl and becomes a hippie. Mr. Burns runs a germ warfare lab at the college, Wiggum is the security guard. The radicals set off an antibiotic gas bomb that kills all the germs. When Burns shows up the hippies run him over, Mona stops to help him and has to flee. In the modern world Mona takes Homer to the post office to pick up the care packages she had been sending him, while there they are spotted by Burns. There is a banging at the door and they try to hide Mona, just as Abe busts in. The FBI visits Patty and Selma to find out whose grave Mona was visiting, they are using Homer's tombstone for a coffee table. Wiggum puts out an APB on Uosdwis R. Dewoh, he's reading the stone upside down, and he's talking into his wallet. Homer gets a mysterious phone call warning that the house is about to be raided. Burns show up in a tank to bash in the front door. It turns out when the hippies set off the antibiotic bomb it cleared up Wiggum's asthma and he was able to go to the police academy, he felt he owed her so he tipped her off. In the end Homer drives Mona to an abandon gas station where an old hippie picks her up and the episode closes with him looking at the stars. 

Glen Close does the voice of Mona Simpson. (In the episode Bart's Girlfriend they mention Sarah Plain And Tall, a character Glen Close had played in a TV movie)

This Highway Maintained By BurnsoDyne "The Profit People"

One of the workers finds a straight jacket from New Bedlam Asylum (the mental hospital was first seen in the episode Stark Raving Dad)

Springfield Shopper headline: Local Man Loses Pants, Life "Beaver Rescue Falls Short (with photos of four beavers)

Patty and Selma's headstone for Homer: Homer J. Simpson "We are richer for having lost him"

Springfield Hall of Records "Not the good kind of records, Historical records" (first seen in the episode Sideshow Bob Roberts)

Mona Simpson's Fake IDs: Mona Simpson Beaver Dam WI, Mona Stevens Sedalia Mo, Martha Stewart Nome AK, Penelope Olsen Loveland OH, Muddy Mae Suggins Dyersburge TN.

Mona reads Steal This Book by Abby Hoffman. 

Homer's bedtime song is the jingle from Fig Newtons. 

In a flashback Abe Simpson is watching the 1969 Super Bowl in which the Jets beat the Colts 16-7. Abe complains about Joe Namath's haircut, he prefers Johnny Unitas' flattop. (Unitas did a cameo in the episode Homie The Clown)

Germ Warfare Laboratory "When the H-Bomb isn't enough". Protestor signs out front: Make Love Not Germs, Pax Not Pox, Anthrax Isn't Groovy, Take The U.S. Out Of Pus. Disease in the lab: Smallpox, Diphtheria, Typhoid, Rocking Pneumonia, Boogie-Woogie Influenza. (a reference to the song by Huey "Piano" Smith and a big hit for Johnny Rivers)

When Mona sees Joe Namath she hears Sunshine Of Your Love by Cream. When the radicals set off their bomb in Burns' lab All Along The Watchtower by Jimmi Hendrix plays. Mona and Lisa play The Answer Is Blowing In The Wind. When Burns goes to smash in the Simpsons front door he pops in a tape of Flight  Of The Valkyries by Wagner (from Apocalypse Now) but it then cuts to Waterloo by ABBA because Smithers taped over it (both a dated reference with the cassette tape and another hint about Smithers sexuality)

The hippies use a Spiro Agnew alarm clock on their time bomb (he was Nixon's Vice President and had to resign in disgrace, Gerald Ford became the first VP appointed to the office according to the 25th Amendment)

In 1969 Kent Brockman is doing the news as Kenny Brockelstein. 

Jobs Mona had: Marketing Jerry Rubin's health shakes, proofreading Bobby Seale's cookbook, doing credit checks for Tom Hayden's Porsche dealership. (all members of the Chicago 7)

Burns is at the post office to send a letter via aero mail to the Prussian consulate in Siam. He hopes to catch the 4:30 Auto-Gyro. 

The detectives Burns talks to about Mona are Joe Friday (Jack Webb) and Bill Gannon (Harry Morgan who did his own voice) from the 60's tv series Dragnet. 

Burns has a Phrenology bust. 

When Mona mentions the Spirit of the 60's being alive in the kids they cut to Maggie covered in tattoos and dancing, this is a reference to Goldie Hawn and Laugh- In. Her main tattoo says "Ban The Bottle"

Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming

This episode premiered on November 26th, 1995. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programs. 

The title of this episode is from the 1977 movie Twilight's Last Gleaming which features a similar theme. 

The chalkboard gag is "Wedgies are unhealthy for children and other living things" and the couch gag is the family shows up as sea monkeys. 

Krusty has a food drive to collet stuff for his obstacle course. Homer wonders whatever happened to Sideshow Bob, the kids remind him of his crime streak (plot exposition). Bob accidentally destroys his Abbey model when the rest of the inmates are laughing at Krusty. The prisoners are sent to the Air Base to clean up for the air show, the Simpsons are very excited about going. Bob wants to get some sleep but his cellmate is watching TV. At the airbase Sideshow Bob runs off so Wiggum lists him as "beat to death". Homer sees a booth for beer with a sign that says Free Duff and he slams them down before the people walk away and he sees the rest of the sign that says Alcohol-Free Duff $6. He ends up owing $48, he fakes passing out and crawls off. At the display to Sit In A Real F-16 Fighter Milhouse pretends to shoot his mom, dad and Dr. Sally Wexler. He accidentally hits the eject button and crashes into a snack bar. Bob sneaks into Colonel Hapablap's private washroom and then pretends to be Private McGuckett to copy down what the colonel shouts. Grandpa gets his facts about the Wright Brothers plane all wrong because he learned his history from sugar packets. Imitating the colonel Bob convinces the guard at the restricted hangar to leave and then steals a 10 megaton nuclear bomb. The crowd is bored when Martin shows up with a parade of box kits. Sideshow Bob hacks into the air show screen and demand that they abolish TV or he'll set off his nuclear bomb. At a meeting with Quimby and the Air Force they decide to shut down TV. Krusty realizes he can stay on the air if he goes to the Emergency Broadcast tower in the Springfield flats in the badlands. Lisa starts to think about Bob's high tone voice and realizes he's hiding in the helium filled Duff blimp. Just as Lisa and Bart show up Bob pushes the detonation button, in the original run this is where the show cut to a commercial. There are a bunch of freeze frames of Springfield characters just as Bob's bomb goes off, however the bomb is from 1959 and mostly falls apart with a mini mushroom cloud. Bob decides to get his revenge on Bart and Lisa, Bart distracts him while Lisa types out a help on the Duff blimp zipper display. Bob kidnaps Bart but crashes a jet so he steals the Wright Brother's plane instead. Homer blows his tires on the base exit tire shredder. The jets are too fast for the old plane so they do a foot chase. Bob decides to crash the plane into the Emergency Broadcast building but it just bounces off since it's made of plywood and canvass. A tank runs over the plane and destroys it. After Bob says the ending of his crusade could have spewed from the powerbook of the laziest Hollywood hack (self aware joke) Grandpa shows up on a chopper and says he's going to Lollapalooza, just like in the show Bob's cellmate had been watching earlier. 

Bart's chalkboard punishment is paraphrasing the Vietnam protest poster "War is not healthy for children and other living things" by Lorraine Schneider.

R. Lee Ermey does the voice of Colonel Hapablap. At one point he shouts "What is your major malfunction Sideshow Bob?" This is a reference Full Metal Jacket. 

Krusty's obstacle course is based on the show Family Double Dare. 

When Sideshow Bob wrecks his model of Westminster in a bottle he says "My Dear Abby!" A reference to the newspaper advice columnist. He also mentions Edward the Confessor. 

Self Aware Joke, Rupert Murdock is in jail with Bob. Bob says he crusade comes to an end so formulaic that it could have spewed from the powerbook of the laziest Hollywood hack. 

U.S. Air Force Base "Not affiliated with U.S. Air (US Air was taken over by American Airlines in 2015)

The air show is on Saturday, November 25th. The day before this episode aired.

The show Bob's cellmate is watching features Vanessa Redgrave who is planing on hauling ass to Lollapalooza (the music festival started in 1991 and by 95 it had become a nationwide festival featuring the biggest musical acts of the decade)

Duff and the Air Force: 50 Years Of Flying High. 

The Air Force colonel shouts "Sweet Enola Gay", this is a reference to the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

The air show features The Wright Brothers Model "B" plane.

To gain entrance to the restricted hangar Bob claims McGuckett sprayed runway foam on Chuck Yeager's Acura. Chuck Yeager was the first person to break the sound barrier, Mach 1, and survive.

The Jumbotron at the air show is a Tyranno-Vision. 

The Colonel recites High Flight by John Gillespie Magee Jr., a requirement anytime anything has to do with airplanes. 

The air show plays Up Up And Away by The Fifth Dimension. 

Under the military base is an a abandon bomb shelter. 

The scene with Mayor Quimby in the underground command center is a spoof on Dr. Strangelove, complete with Professor Frink in a wheelchair. 

While search for Bob they find Grandpa Simpson in a porta-potty and he tells them the elevator only goes to the basement and someone made a mess down there. 

The colonel's search turn up a lot of porn magazines: American Breast Enthusiast, Granny Fanny and Cheek Week.

The representatives of Television are Kent Brockman, Bumblebee Man, Doctor Who (Tom Baker version) A grown up Steve Urkel and Krusty.

Events Kent Brockman mentions in his last broadcast, the collapse of the Soviet Union (1991), Premium Ice Cream Wars, Dogs with credit cards. He plans on writing a column in PC World magazine, "Getting The Most From Your Modem". This was the early years of the internet before online "Journalism" became a trend.

One of the Air Force people say "I'd rather take an order from Bill Clinton". He had been reelected the year before and was in his second term. 

At the Air Force base Hanger 18 has an alien with a probe, this is a reference to the 1980 movie of the same name and the hangar at Edwards AFB that was rumored to contain an alien ship.

The freeze frame on Simpsons characters just as Bob's bomb goes off is a reference to the 1964 movie Fail Safe. The zoom in on Maggie Simpson with the flower is a take on LBJ's 1964 campaign ad. 

The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular

This episode premiered on December 3rd 1995. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programs except for AFV on NBC

The title  came from the fact that it was the 138th episode in the series. 

The chalkboard gag is "I will only do this once a year" and there is a montage of couch gags from over the years.

Springfield Civic Auditorium. Tonight: Gala Spectacular, Tomorrow: Alternate Lifestyle Senior Prom (Would that joke fly in the modern world)

The show starts on a stage with a set of the Simpson living room and an audience. Troy McClure mentions  that the show is America's favorite non prehistoric cartoon family (Flintstones reference), then shows clips from The Tracey Ullman show. 

Troy McClure "you might know me from such Fox specials as Alien Nose Job and the five fabulous weeks of the Chevy Chase Show" (This was a reference to the short lived 1993 talk show starring Chevy Chase that was mercifully cancelled after 6 weeks)

"Twenty-Three percent New Footage, Not a significant source of U.S. RDA Original Entertainment."

 Matt Groening is seen as an old one eyed guy wearing a bolo tie and standing in front of the American flag saluting. James L. Brooks is seen as a fat cat surrounded by money and awards including his Oscar for Terms of Endearments. Sam Simon is seen as a Howard Hughes type hermit with a typewriter. 

Fake Groening comics: Damnation "Depart from me, ye cursed", Johnny Reb Comics, featuring a confederate stabbing a flag through a Yankee and True Murder Stores.

Answered Questions:

In the opening credits what does the cash register say when Maggie is scanned? "NRA4Ever "One of the right wing message inserted by Matt Groening"

I think Homer gets stupider every year. Yours, Professor Lawrence Pierce.  University of Chicago.  (McClure points out that this isn't a question)

Dr. Linus Irving, Sloan Institute "How does Matt Groening find the time to write and draw an entire episode every week? When they try to ask Matt he's slamming tequila and takes a shot at them. On the wall of his office is a poster for his book "Life In Hell" (I have an autographed copy.) They then run a list of the names of people who worked on the show.

The Hon. Henry Mwabwelumba Ambassador of the Ivory Coast "What is the real deal with Mr. Burns' assistant Smithers? You know what I'm talking about." The show gives a vague answer while running clips of the character

Which popular characters have died in the past year? The answer is "If you said Bleeding Gums Murphy and Dr. Marvin Monroe you are wrong, they were never popular." In the episode Who Shot Mr. Burns Part 2 they go to the Marvin Monroe Memorial Hospital.

Cut Out Classics:

In the episode Krusty gets Kancelled he offers to send viewers a copy of his book Sex (this is a spoof of Madonna's 1992 book of the same name), the FBI shows up and arrests him. The network executives tell Krusty he's being replaced by a hemorrhoid commercial he tries to play one of the sufferers or one of the after guys.

 In $pringfield: Homer is dealing Blackjack to James Bond and Blofeld with Jaws and OddJobs behind him. Homer forgets to take the jokers and the rules of stud poker out of the deck so the villains seize Bond.

In Mother Simpson: Homer gets an old care package from his mother, it's full of old candy which he eats including Space Food Sticks. These were the first "energy bars", they mostly went out of production in the 80's but were still sold at the NASA gift shop until 2014.

In Treehouse of Horror IV: The Devil and Homer Simpson, Homer's head is used as a bowling ball and cracks open to reveal a note that says "I.O.U One brain, Signed God". Bart offers to sell his soul for a Formula 1 race car, when the Devil shows up he says "I changed my mind" (The car is sponsored by Duff and Laramie Cigarettes) Marge shouts at him for tempting Satan.

In Homer and Apu: the family watches a Bollywood film and mock it.

In Burns Heir: When Homer tries to get Bart back from Burns they sick a robot Richard Simmons on him. The robot runs amok and when Smithers shoots it with a shotgun it reforms like the T-1000 in Terminator 2. However it overloads and explodes.

In Who Shot Mr. Burns II:  In order to keep the conclusion a secret the producers created multiple endings. The characters featured pointing a gun at Burns: Barney, Tito Puente, Moe, Apu, SLH. The fake ending features Burns accusing Smithers who then remembers doing the shooting. Burns cuts Smithers salary by 5% for trying to kill him.

Troy McClure says "Who knows what adventures they'll have between now and when the show becomes unprofitable?" 28 years later and....

The show ends with a series of character nude shots while Shake Your Booty by KC and the Sunshine Band plays.

Marge Be Not Proud. 

This episode premiered on December 17th 1995. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programs. 

The title of this episode came from the 1949 book Death Be Not Proud by John Gunther (about the death of his son) It was also a Made for TV movie in 1975.

The chalkboard gag is "I will stop talking about the 12 inch pianist" and the couch gag is there is a drain plug in the middle of the living room and when Homer pulls it out the family gets sucked down the hole.

The Simpsons are watching Krusty's Christmas special. Lisa points out that Krusty is Jewish and Bart says Christmas is the time when all religions come together to celebrate the birth of Jesus. They then see a commercial for the new video game Bonestorm. Bart sees a copy for 99¢ at the comic book store but that's the rental price. Milhouse has a copy but won't let Bart play, despite the two player option, he claims Bart cursed so Luann kicks him out. When a horrible kid has his mother buy the game the clerk forgets to lock the case, Jimbo and Nelson come along and talk about shoplifting so Bart considers stealing the game, he is visited by Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Sonic the Hedgehog who all tell him to steal it, and Lee Carvallo (from Lee Carvello's Putting Challenge) who tells him it won't improve his short game. He gets to the door but is nabbed by the security guard Brodka who shows him a video on shoplifting and leaves a message on the Simpson's answering machine. Brodka tells Bart if he comes back to the store he'll be spending Christmas in juvenile hall. Bart switches the answering machine tape with Allen Sherman singing Hello Mudda, Hello Fadda. Marge tells the family that they are getting their Christmas photos taken, at the Try-N-Save. Bart Imagines spending Christmas in Juvenile Hall where he gets soiled wig as a present. Bart tries to wear a disguise, a hat with ear flaps, sunglasses, a fake nose and chin putty, he hopes they'll just get the photo and leave but the family plans on spending the whole day at the store. The wall of the photo center is covered with pictures of the Flanders. Just as they take the photo the security guard nabs Bart. The security guard pops a tape into the TV, Bart jumps in front to try to stop Marge from seeing it but its projected on the wall of TVs behind him. Marge is really disappointed and that night she doesn't tuck Bart in. Marge things she's been mothering Bart too much so she starts to treat him as more of a grown up, by not waking him up or putting a marshmallow in his hot chocolate. Bart goes to visit Milhouse he finds that he's gotten bored with the video game and now is playing with a cup and ball. When they get into a fight over it Milhouse yells at his mother that Bart is smoking. Bart asks to hang out with Luanne so she has him help stuff Christmas cards in the envelopes. When Bart gets home the family is making snowmen, all that's left for him is the mush from under the car, meanwhile they go inside to watch TV. Bart goes back to the Try-N-Save and comes home with something tucked under his coat, Marge forces him to turn it over and it's a photo of him with a paid receipt. Marge gives him an early present, Lee Carvello's Putting Challenge, Now With Scoring Pencil! The episode ends with Bart playing the game but instead of putting he hits the ball with the Three Wood, the ball ends up in the parking lot. 

The chalkboard gag is the punchline to a dirty joke btw. 

A Krusty Kind Of Khristmas (KKK), brought to you by ILG "selling your bodies chemicals after you die" and Li'l Sweetheart Cupcakes (a spoof on Little Debbies) a subsidiary of ILG (a Soylent Green joke). Krusty's guests are Tom Landry, Xoxchitla (Krusty can't pronounce her name) and Tupac Shakur. Krusty referred to Landry as "private citizen" since he had been fired as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in 1989, Xoxchitla is a spoof on Xuxa (The sexy South American children's tv host), Tupac would die a year later.

Marge says video games cost up to $70.

The scene of Milhouse entering his name in the video game is a spin on the Maxell High Fidelity commercial. 

"In honor of the birth of our savior, Try-N-Save is open all day Christmas"

Video cartridges at the store: Electronic Biathlon, Canasta Master, Rescue, Angus Podgorny's Caper Toss (a Monty Python character), A Streetcar Named Death.

Troy McClure in Shoplifters Beware. "You may remember me from such public service videos as Designated Drivers-The Life Saving Nerds and Phony Tornado Alarms Reduce Readiness". He does the video to fulfill his plea bargain with Foot Locker of Beverly Hills.  "Oh Sheheqazaramesh, will you ever learn?"

Diploma on the security office wall: Try-N-Save Security School, Donald J Brodka

Juvenile Hall "Proud Home Of The Soap-Bar Beating"

Other kids in juvenile hall, Kerney, Jimbo, Dolf and Nelson. 

Bart calls the photographer Ansel Adams, best known for his Black And White landscape work. 

When yelling at Bart for shoplifting Homer says "why do you think I took you to all those Police Academy movies? For fun? Well I didn't hear anybody laughing" Homer mentioned the movies in the episode The Springfield Connection.

Marge uses Clown Part Marshmallows in the family's hot chocolate.

This was the last episode of 1995. Only 28 more years to go, so far. 

Team Homer

This episode premiered on January7th, 1996. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the regular programs except for Murder, She Wrote on CBS.

The chalkboard gag is "I am not certified to remove asbestos" and the couch gag is the family runs in and sits down and then the camera zooms in on the hole in the wall where a duplicate mouse family is also sitting down to watch TV.

At the comic book shop Bart buys a special edition of Mad Magazine that includes a t shirt iron ons. At Moe's business is so slow he decides to close up early, just as the Quimby family shows up for a drinking binge but since the place is closed the go away. Moe and Homer go to the bowling alley but it's league night so they can't get a lane. Apu is also complaining so they decide to create a team, with Otto but it's a $500 registration fee. At school Bart takes off his sweater to reveal an iron on t shirt that says Down With Homework, the kids all riot (when they turn over Mrs. Krabappal's desk it bursts into flames). Chalmers is doing an inspection and is going to give the school a 10 but he writes the zero first and then gets run over by the kids. Skinner talks about the time a private in Vietnam was wearing a shirt that said "Up with miniskirts", he didn't get the joke but because everyone was laughing they got captured by the Vietcong. Mr. Burns gets high on ether to have his nails filed and that's when Homer asks him for the bowling team entry fee. Burns thinks he's the Pillsbury Doughboy and gives him a check. Moleman asks for a new push broom but Burns thinks he's the Lucky Charms leprechaun and starts drilling into his head. Homer's team shows up at the bowling alley in t shirt with "Pin Pals" written on the back and is mocked by the other teams. When Otto bowls a 7-10 split the rest of the team starts cheering him on with a chant and he makes the split and wins the match. Because of the t shirt riot Skinner mandates a uniform policy. Mr. Burns is going through his register and finds the check he signed for Homer. Burns shows up at the alley and instead of firing Homer he says he wants to join the team. Otto gets kicked off the team and goes back to playing the claw machine. Chalmers comes back for another inspection and is happy with the zombie kids but a rainstorm causes the uniforms to run in multicolors and they riot again. Burns shows up at the alley with a bad knee and won't be able to bowl but Moe hits him with a tire iron and pops it back into place. (this is a take on the Nancy Kerrigan attack). The rest of the team is about to quit when Burns gives them bowling shirts with Pin Pals on the back with their images on top of bowling pins. The rest of the guys decide to keep him on the team even though they will lose. The game comes down to one pin and Burns is their last bowler. He misses on the first ball but actually hits the pins on the second one, just then Otto pulls out a screw on the claw machine causing it to crash into the floor and shaking the alley knocking over the pins. Burns takes the trophy and leaves. The team joins together to steal the trophy from Burns but Homer gets drug down by the dogs. 

Magazines as the comic book shop: Sick, Mad Magazine Special Edition, Cracked, Sniff, Poot, Punch and Bongo. (Cracked was a real magazine that ceased publication in 2007, Bongo is the name of the rabbit from Groening's strip Life In Hell)

The Mad Magazine Special Edition includes a strip on Spiro Agnew, Nixon's VP who had to resign. He was also spoofed in the episode Mother Simpson. Iron ons: Ban The Bath, Don't Trust Anyone Over 10, Sock It To Me (all based on 60's slogans)

The guy working at the bowling alley is Lunch Lady Doris' son. 

Krusty, Kent Brockman, Arnie Pie and Bumblebee Man are on the Channel 6 team, the Wastelanders. The name is a reference to when Newton Minow called TV a Vast Wasteland. Patty and Selma are on the DMV Regulation Kings. Ned and Maude Flanders, Reverend Lovejoy and his wife Helen make up the Holy Rollers. Springfield Police Framers are Wiggum, Lou, Eddy and Snake (who escapes). The Home-Wreckers have Princess Cashmere, Lurleen Lumpkin, Mindy Simmons and Jacques. The Stereotypes, Luigi the chef, Willie, Cleetus and the Sea Captain. (When the Pin Pals lose to them Apu says "They begged me to join their team")

The school uniform fashion show is to the tune of The Little Spanish Flea by the Tijuana Brass. The uniforms are Mr. Boy and Mr. Boy For Girls and only come in two sizes, extra small and extra large. 

Homer is talking on the phone and keeps says "sucked", when Marge gets mad at him he says "I gotta go, my damn wiener kids are listening"

One of the employees at the power plant is named Pops Freshenmeir. When Smithers does a computer search for the person who Burns would have mistaken for Poppin' Fresh the computer says Homer is a perfect match "Probability of error 1 in 44 billion"

Homer has a trophy case but the only thing on it is Don Ameche's Best Supporting Actor Oscar with his name crossed out and Homer's written in. (he won it in 1985 for the movie Cocoon)

And so I've reached episode 140 and the year 1996. Ever closer to the end, if they stop making episodes.

 The Simpsons 131-135

Home Sweet Homediddly-Dum-Doodly

This episode premiered on October 1st 1995. The lead in show was Space: Above And Beyond and it was followed by Too Something (a short lived sitcom that was renamed New York Daze just before it was cancelled). The show ran opposite Lois And Clark, Cybill and Mad About You.

The chalkboard gag is "No one wants to hear from my armpits" and the couch gag is a Brady Bunch grid with Lisa, Marge and Grandpa (sleeping) in the top row, Maggie, the couch and Bart in the second row and Snowball II, Homer and SLH in the bottom row. The whole family then runs in and sits on the couch, while Grandpa continues to sleep in the top corner.

Marge is the perfect wife and mother, this is a set up for the episode. Homer surprises her with a pass to a spa, he got them when he pretended he was going to buy a Bentley. The house is a mess and they leave Maggie with Grandpa in order to go to the spa. At class photo day Bart keeps scratching his head, it turns out Milhouse's parents bought a basket at Pier 1 and there was a monkey inside. Bart is mad that he got lice and nothing happened to Milhouse, except he's got some kind of plague. Willie burns Bart's clothes. Meanwhile the mean girls steal Lisa's shoes and throw them on the power line, and she bites her tongue when she gets hit by a ball. Skinner calls Child Services who goes to inspect the family home. They find the place a mess with Lisa's newspapers for her school project and Grandpa asleep on the couch. When the kids get home from school Lisa is wearing plastic bags on her feet and Bart is wearing an onion sack. Child Services seizes the kids and drops them off at the Flanders. Ned tells Bart he can do whatever he wants so they watch Itchy And Scratchy, big mistake. Homer tries to call the Flanders but the number has been blocked and the recording calls him a negligent monster. Marge and Homer go to court to get the kids back and the judge orders them to go to Family Skills class (The banner over the door reads "welcome unfit parents") Ned forces the kids to go to bed at 7 PM. On Saturday night the Flanders play Bible trivia and find out the Simpson kids were never baptized. Homer and Marge pass the parent class and rush home but find out Ned has gone to baptize them. When Homer is trying to figure out where they went he thinks like Ned "I'm a big four eyed weirdo" and realizes they are at the Springfield River. Maggie has to choose between the Flanders and their perfect world or Homer, Bart and Lisa who are standing in the mud, in the end she chooses Marge. When Homer wants the dirt on the Flanders the best Bart can come up with is that they have old paint cans in their garage, the family then mocks "old painty can Ned". 

Springfield Shopper headline in an old newspaper, "America Loves Ted Kennedy" "40 Trampled at Poco Concert". (This is a take on Poco, the band that was formed by the remaining members of Buffalo Springfield and the tragedy in Cleveland at The Who concert, kind of dark humor there)

The Flanders Press headlines: Playtime Is Fun. Bart's headline is Extra Extra! Todd Smells. Simpson Kids Miss Mom And Dad (left under the welcome mat at the Simpson house). 

Gift Certificate: Good for a three hour getaway at the Mingled Waters Heath Spa. Mingled Waters is a reference to Sufism, a branch of Islam.

Pier 1 was a chain of stores that specialized in wicker and copper, supposedly imported from far off places but mostly made in China. With the closing of malls the store suffered an economic setback and was bough out by a company that converts brick and mortar stores into on line shops. However the new company is currently in bankruptcy.

Skinner calls child services and when their van leaves their office the Springfield city shield pops up like the Batman 66 logo and we hear the theme song. 

When Marge and Homer are in the sauna they say they'd get frisky but a mafia don is there. We then hear the voice of Don Vittorio DiMaggio (first seen in the episode Homie The Clown)

Among the charges by Child Services is "toilet paper hung in improper overhand fashion". This is an injustice because everyone knows it should hang from the front, not along the wall in the back. 

Lisa says the Flanders house has a creepy Pat Boone vibe to it. For those too young to remember he was the clean cut all American boy in the 50's. He was so straight laced that he wouldn't kiss Shirley Jones in the movie April Love because a man is only suppose to kiss his wife. Later he got busted for selling fake pimple cream. 

The Itchy And Scratchy Show: Foster Pussycat Kill! Kill! (the title comes from the movie Faster Pussycat) A paranoid Scratchy finds an orphan in a basket on his porch. The baby turns out to be Itchy who breaks his milk bottle, stabs Scratchy and then steals his TV. 

The statues in front of the courthouse has a guy on a horse and the name Swartzwelder on the base. (this is one of the series animators)

Other series regulars at the family classes, Agnes Skinner (her and Seymor had a fight over the inflatable bath pillow, first an issue in episode The Springfield Connection), Cletus and Brandine 

Books on Ned's shelf: Aramaic Septuagint, Psalms, Children's Bible, Holy Bible, NASB, The Living Bible, St James, Todays Family Gnostic Bible, Hebrew National Bible (a play on the Kosher hot dogs), Samaritan Pentateuch, Song of Solomon (risqué), The Thump Resistant Bible (a play on the term Bible Thumper), Hebrew International, The Vulgate Of St. Jerome, The Word, Who Begat Whom, the Bible According To Hoyle (a play on the Hoyle book of card games), New King James.

This is the first episode where we find out Reverend Lovejoy is a model train enthusiast. First his train crashes when he's taking to Ned and then Homer drives through his new layout that's being unloaded off a truck. 

Ned has an emergency baptism kit with a Bible, chalice, life preserver and an air horn that plays The Hallelujah Chorus. 

Maggie says "Daddily-doodily" to Ned. 

When Maggie looks at Bart and Lisa in the back of the Flanders' car her head spins around in a take on The Exorcist.

Ned's bumper sticker "I (heart) your kids"

Ned says "Do you reject Satan and all his empty promises?", this is a quote from The Godfather. 

Bart Sells His Soul

This episode premiered on October 8th 1995. It ran in its usual time slot and opposite the MLB playoffs (Mariners 6 Yankees 5), Cybill and Mad About You.

The chalkboard gag is "I am not a lean mean spitting machine" and the couch gag is the family shows up in Shriner's parade cars and does a figure 8.

At church Bart passes out new hymns "In the garden of eden by I-Ron Butterfly", it's the long version and everybody holds up their candles during the song, plus a beach ball gets tossed around. Lovejoy suspects one of the kids and makes the Sunday school recite a pledge about going to hell, Bart has no problem with it but Milhouse cracks. While cleaning the pipe organ Bart claims there is no soul so he sells it to Milhouse for $5. The Hibberts show up at Moe's thinking it's family dining instead of a seedy bar. Moe considers turning the bar into a family restaurant. Meanwhile Bart wastes his $5 on a DinoSponges toy "Dampen Me For Dinosaur Terror!" He imagines it growing to full size and attacking Lisa but instead it barely swells and washed down the storm sewer grate. When Bart goes into the house the dog and cat growl at him, then the door at the Kwik-E-Mart won't open, he also can't fog up the glass on the ice cream freezer. Bart doesn't laugh at Itchy And Scratchy so Lisa says it's proof he no longer has a soul. He goes to get his soul back and finds that Milhouse is playing war with it, running it over with his toys. Milhouse offers to sell it back for $50. Bart has a dream that everyone is out playing with their souls, they all hop in boats to row to an island but Bart ends going around in a circle. At Moe's new family restaurant Todd orders the Million Dollar Fries. Moe wears the basket out of the kitchen but then asks Todd to take it off his head since it's hot. On Sunday when Lisa leads a prayer about souls Bart runs off but Milhouse went to his grandmother's apartment while their house is being fumigated. Moe freaks out and shouts "freaking" at a kid, everybody leaves, Rod says "oh my freaking ears". A street cleaner runs over Bart's bike but as he's looking back laughing he crashes into the subway. While Wiggum is trying to deal with a crazy guy on a street corner Bart tries to buy Ralph's soul but runs off when Wiggum turns on the flash light. Bart tracks down Milhouse but finds out he traded it to the Comic Book Guy for pogs. "Look, Alf is back in Pog form". Comic Book Guy sold Bart's soul to someone. Bart prays for the return of his soul and it shows up, Lisa had bought it. Bart dreams about his soul and they intentionally crash into Martin's boat. 

This was the second religious themed episode in a row. 

Bart's chalkboard punishment is a paraphrasing of the quote from John Candy in the movie Stripes,  "I'm a lean mean fighting machine"

In A Gadda Da Vida was originally titled In The Garden Of Eden. 

Where the Hibberts want to go to dinner: The Spaghetti Laboratory, Face Stuffers, Professor J.J. Cornucopia's Fantastic Foodmagorium and Great American Steakery, The Texas Cheesecake Depository (this is a spoof on the Book Depository where Lee Harvey Oswald shot Kennedy from) Dr. Hibbert has three kids.

Moe reads Your Gimmicky Restaurant by Bennigan and Fuddrecker. (both restaurant chains)

Homer's suggestions for Moe's restaurant name "Chairman Moe's Magic Wok", "Mad Man Moe's Pressure Cooker". Moe choose Uncle Moe's Family Feedbag. 

Moe buys a deep frier from the USS Missouri, C Deck Mess

The Itchy and Scratchy Show "Skinless in Seattle" (Sleepless In Seattle), Scratchy gets a love note telling him to meet at the Seattle Space Needle. Itchy reads a sign that says "Do Not Throw Pennies From The Tower" so he does, a 1989 Lincoln. He misses so he throws off all the souvenir towers and misses agin. The third time he cuts the top off the tower and it falls into Scratchy's eye. 

Moe's Today's Special

Ranchy Wingy-Things

Fiestaritos

Dog Track Style Hot Dogs

Moe has a sled, Rosebud, on the wall. This was the sled in Citizen Kane.

Comic Book Guy has a very rare Mary Worth where she advises a friend to commit suicide. If you know Mary Worth you'd get the joke. 

Lisa the Vegetarian

This episode premiered on October 15th 1995. It ran in its usual time slot. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Cybill and the MLB playoffs (Mariners 2 Indians 3, now the Cleveland Guardians)

The chalkboard gag is "The boys room is not a water park" and the couch gag is the primer painted family sits on the couch while robots paint them. 

The Simpsons go to Storytown Village "Fun for ages 1 to 7 1/2". Bart hops on the train but he's too tall and crashes into Paul Bunyan who falls apart and chops the head off a goose statue. Marge gets feed pellets from the machine but too many pour out and bury Maggie When all the animals rush over to eat she disappears, they find her in a llama. Lisa loves petting a sheep. When they get home Homer discovers Flanders his holding a family reunion and he wasn't invited. Homer deicides to throw a revenge bbq but accidentally invites Flanders. While eating lamb chops Lisa envisions the lamb from the petting zoo. At school Lisa has to dissect a worm but she refuses to do it. Miss Hoover pushes the Independent Though Alarm. It order to put an end to independent though Skinner removes all the colored chalk from the classrooms. Lisa starts to complain at Homer for serving meat at his BBQ. Skinner shows a film from the Meat Council about how cows go to Bovine University, the slaughter house. The film has a cow's butt being branded with The End. When Lisa offers gazpacho as an alternative to meat, everybody laughs and Barney shouts "go back to Russia" even though it comes from Spain.  Lisa gets mad and pushes Homer's roast pig grill with a riding lawn mower. It rolls through traffic, into the river where it plugs a dam and is shot across the sky. Burns says he'll donate a million dollars to a charity...when pigs fly just as Homer's pig flies across the window, but he doesn't make the donation. At breakfast Lisa insults Homer and then runs off. Lisa gives in and has a rotisserie hot dog from the Kwik-E-Mart but finds out they are tofu. Hidden behind a cooler door labeled "non-alcoholic beer" Apu has a staircase to the roof and his secret garden. Paul and Linda McCartney show up (they do their own voices). Paul says if you play Baby I'm Amazed backwards you'll hear a recipe for lentil soup. (this is a joke about playing Beatles songs backwards to hear Paul Is Dead). Lisa learns that she needs to be more tolerant. Paul asks Lisa if she'd like to hear a song, when she says Yes Apu starts singing Sgt. Pepper's but gets the lyrics wrong.  The show ends with Paul singing Baby I'm Amazed while the flying pig goes by. As the song plays the recipe for soup can be heard and concludes with Paul saying "Oh and by the way, I'm alive".

When Marge is listing off the other things she can make for dinner Lisa is imagining the animals they came from, when the get to hot dogs Lisa pictures a raccoon, a rat, a pigeon and an old boot. 

The Itchy And Scratchy Show "Esophagus Now (Apocalypse Now) Scratchy orders a steak at a restaurant, Itchy sneaks under the table and shaves Scratchy's stomach and puts it on a plate. Every time he takes a bite it pops back out. When he gets the bill for $100 his head explodes. 

Self aware joke, Bart says cartoons don't have messages, they are just random stories about people getting hurt, just then Homer bursts in and hits him with the door. 

Come to Homer's BBBQ, the extra B is for BYOBB. The last B was a printing error.

The Meat Council Presents: "Meat And You: Partners in Freedom" Number 3F03 in the "Resistance is Useless" series.

I'm Troy McClure, you might remember me from such educational films as "Two minus three equals Negative Fun" and "Firecrackers, The Silent Killer"

The pro meat "food chain" has all the animals with arrows pointing at a human. 

Homer does the "too much lighter fluid" gag but this time the grill doesn't explode, it lights normally. The gag was also done in Treehouse Of Horror I

Adult joke, when Homer offers Dr. Hibbert a hot dog he calls it a "hot beef injection"

Krusty Burger "Try are new Beef-Flavored Chicken"

Billboard Don't Eat Beef. Eat Deer. 

Kwik-E-Mart Premier Gourmet Hot Dogs 8/99¢

Apu has a t shirt that says "don't have a cow, man" 

The double feature showing at the Springfield Drive-In, I Spit On Your Grave and I Thumb Through Your Magazines.

Paul McCartney was the third Beatle to do a voice over on The Simpsons. He agreed to do so as long as Lisa became a vegetarian and remained so for the rest of the series, that was 28 years ago. 

This episode made me realize just how annoying a character Lisa is, she's always making demands on her family and throws a tantrum if they don't do as she says. She's also always insulting their intelligence. I've come to the conclusion that she's my least favorite character on the show. I mean seriously, because of her whining Homer almost died from blowfish poison. When he took her to the museum she complained that he wasn't smart enough. And lets not forget that after spending every Sunday with her, sure he was using her for gambling purposes, the one Sunday he made other plans she threw a major temper tantrum and gave away all the gifts he got her. Yep, once she tried to destroy his bbq I realized, I just do not like Lisa Simpson, and it's only going to get worse from here. Meanwhile....

Treehouse Of Horror VI (The Simpsons Halloween Special VI)

This episode premiered on October 29th, 1995. The lead in was The World Of James Bond (a special about the British spy to promote the upcoming movie Goldeneye), it was followed by a repeat of The Simpsons. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, The TV movie A Streetcar Named Desire (starring Alec Baldwin and Jessica Lang) and Mad About You.

The show opens with Krusty as The Headless Horseman. When he throws his own head at the screen it explodes into the episode's name. The couch gag is the family drops into the living room at the ends of ropes with their necks broke. Maggie is still sucking her pacifier.

This episode didn't contain the usual warning from Marge Simpson about the amount of violence and how parents shouldn't let small children watch. 

Attack Of The 50 Foot Eyesores

The title of this episode comes from the movie Attack Of The Fifty Foot Woman

Homer goes to Lard Lad donuts for a colossal donut but it turns out to be an ordinary donut. He steals the giant donut from the sign just as an ionic disturbance brings the mascot to life. When the Red Devil attacks the school bus Otto thinks he's having an acid flashback. A guy comes out of the Big And Tall shop so Wiggum shoots him thinking it's an advertising monster, but it was the captain of the high school basketball team. Wiggum clams the guy was turning monster. Bart pretends to be the Red Devil's conscience and gets him to destroy the school. Homer gets the Lard Lad to destroy Ned's house but gives the mascot back his donut however he goes on a rampage with it. Lard Lad was created by Van Brunt & Churchill Advertising in 1947 (This is the first time The Simpsons didn't use Tate and McMahon, a spin on Bewitched). The advertiser guy tells Lisa to ignore the monsters and writes a jingle for Paul Anka to sing (He did his own Voice over and singing in this episode). The advertising monsters all collapse except for Lard Lad, who is holding up a sign that says Now With Sprinkles to keep Homer's attention. Kang and Kodos are hitchhiking to Earth Capital when the giant donut rolls by. Even though he was killed earlier Kent is back with a news story on the destruction of Springfield, he warns people to beware of advertising, just as the show cuts to a commercial.

This is the first time we see the name Lard Lad Donuts

The Advertising Monsters: Zip Boys (Pep Boys), Pall Bunyan Vision Center, The Duff cowboy (Vegas Vic), Lard Lad Donuts (a combination of Randy's Donuts and Big Boy), Tan O'Shanter Tax Preparation, Aladdin's Magic Carpet and Linoleum, Red Devil Reality, Professor Peanut (Planters' Mr. Peanut)

Lard Lad Donuts, Home of the Colossal Donut Grand Opening. 

When Kent Brockman is killed by his own billboard image they cut to a Technical Difficulties: Please Stand By card with an image of a puppy that just pulled the plug. (get it?)

When the monster collapse they crash into the hospital, orphanage and the birthplace of Norman Vincent Peale (father of Positive Thinking)

When the donut rolls past King and Kodos they say "oh Shazbot". This was Mork from Ork's curse word in Mork and Mindy.

Nightmare On Evergreen Ter.

The title and plot of this episode comes from Nightmare On Elm Street.

Bart is having a dream playing with SLH (the background is much more colorful, almost Disney-like). Bart gets hit in the head and immediately grows a bump while cash register signs pop up saying No Sale. Just then Groundskeeper Willie shows up, and Bart wakes up, however he has scratches across his chest. All the kids at school have also had dreams about Willie. Martin finishes his test and falls asleep, he dreams about latin and Willie shows up to kill him. Marge tells the kids the story of Willie. During a school meeting the building is cold and despite the sign that says "Do Not Touch -Willie" Homer turns up the thermostat causing the heater to explode and sets Willie on fire. The PTA refuse to put him out until they finish discussing the cafeteria menu, he vows to get revenge from the grave. The kids try to stay awake but they watch the early morning market report, Bart decides to fall asleep and confront Willie in his dream. Willie shows up as a tractor so Bart disguises the sandbox as grass and Willie sinks into it. Willie returns at a giant bagpipe and Lisa comes to save him, because she fell asleep too. Maggie shows up and plugs Willie's pipe with her pacifier and he explodes. When the kids go outside Willie shows up on a bus and makes scary faces but the bus drives off with his gun. The episode ends with Willie chasing the bus as a Simpsons themed version of Wacky Sax plays. 

The PTA meets at the school on the 13th hour of the 13th day of the 13th month to discuss the school calendars that contain an extra month. Homer "Lousy Smarch weather"

Homer3 (cubed)

Patty and Selma are coming for a visit so the rest of the family tries to hide, Bart and Lisa take the coat closet so Homer has to find a new spot. When he hides behind the bookcase he finds a portal, "a zone like in that twilighty show." When Homer passes through the portal he finds himself in a 3-D world. A cone pokes Homer in the butt so he throws it and pokes a hole in the plane he's standing on, which starts to collapse. When asked to describe the place Homer asks if anyone saw the movie Tron, nobody did except Wiggum, who quickly changes his answer to "no". Wiggum shoots into the dimension but the bullets get sucked into the collapsing hole. Grandpa shows up in a scuba suit but Frink stops him. Bart gets fed up and jumps in with a rope tied to him. Homer is trapped on the other side of the collapsing plane so Bart tells him to jump, he of course doesn't make it and they pull Bart back. Homer winds up in the real world in Los Angeles. He heads into an erotic cake shop and a spacy version of the theme plays. 

This episode was based on the Twilight Zone episode Little Girl Lost.

In the coat closet you can see the bowling ball Homer gave Marge as a present in the episode Life On The Fast Lane.

There are a lot of math jokes in this episode but they are over my head, you can look them up on Wikipedia.

Characters that show up to help, Ned and his ladder Dr. Hibbert, Reverend Lovejoy (who tells Homer to go into the light) Professor Frink, Chief Wiggum. 

Professor Frink calls a cube a Frinkahedron.

King-Size Homer

This episode premiered on November 5th 1995. The lead in was Space: Above And Beyond and it was followed by Martin. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Cybill and Mad About You

The chalkboard gag is "Indian burns are not our cultural heritage" (boy, that joke didn't age well) and the couch gag is the family are wind up toys. 

Homer is hiding in the power plant restroom to try to get out of calisthenics, Smithers has to have the plant goons bash in the door and drag him out. Homer finds out Charlie is home on disability after getting injured on the job so he comes up with a (bad) plan. First he attempts to get hit in the head by a tool in a construction zone but when a guy is crushed by a wheelbarrow full of blocks he tries to think of something else. He then "spills" oil on the floor and accidentally slide into Mr. Burns's office. After reading up on disabilities Homer decides to try for Hyper-obesity since he's already over weight, he sets out to gain 61 pounds. Naturally Lisa is against it and tells Homer he should see a doctor, so he goes to Dr. Nick. Homer starts eating out of control and his first weigh in is 257 pounds. Second weigh in 296 pounds. Homer's fantasy of working at home includes his nuclear control panel in his back yard, a poster of him as Employee of the Month, a candy machine and Marge bringing him beer and lemonade. When Homer gets in bed and crushes down the mattress he finally confesses to Marge and she starts to tell him off about his health but he tricks her into saying she'd love him no matter what he looked like. Homer hits 299 pounds with 15 minuets to go before he has to go to work. He eats a Play-Dough donut but then finds his fat is resting on the towel bar, he's actually at 315 pounds. Burns sets Homer up with a computer at his house. Homer can't find the Any key to start his computer, he has an Esc, Crtl (catarl) and PgUp (pig up), he then tries to get a Tab soda, dated reference there. When he hits the key the main screen comes up and asks if he wants to check the core temperature so he types out "yes" and then asks if he wants to vent the core, he types "no" so it tells him "venting prevents explosion" so he types "yes" again. Marge tries to convince Homer to lose weight by pointing out that she isn't attracted to him anymore. Homer finds out that he only has to type the "Y" for yes and claims to have tripled his productivity. He finds his home job really boring and gets excited about the mail and then watches a soap opera while banging his keyboard with a broom. The kids come over to laugh at him. Homer puts a drinking bird figure on the keyboard to hit the Y key, he goes to the movies but the management won't let him in because he wouldn't fit in the seats so they offer him a garbage bag of popcorn to go away. Homer decides to become an example of a hard working obese person but when he gets home he finds the drinking bird fell over and the nuclear core is about to explode. At the plant when the tank is rumbling Lenny says "it's Homer's problem". Homer can't call the plant because his fingers are too fat for the keypad. When he blows out his tires and can't get a ride he steals an ice cream truck. Lisa is trying to explain that Homer isn't some food crazed maniac just has he drives by, scarfing a raspberry cone.  The manual switch is directly over the tank on a thin, collapsing, catwalk. Homer can't quite reach it and then realizes there's probably a second switch, just as the vent cap blows, however he falls in and gets stuck turning, as Mr. Burns puts it "a potential Chernobyl into a mere Three Mile Island".  Bart says he's amazed Homer big fat butt prevented the release of toxic gas, Marge shouts at him. Burns offers Homer anything so he asks to be thin again, after failing in an exercise program Burns decides to pay for liposuction. 

This episode didn't have a side story but focused on the main plot line. 

Among the boxes Homer uses to block the restroom door is Bathroom Tissue: Extra Coarse. I think this is the brand my college used.

Burns says "I want to see more Teddy Roosevelts and less Franklin Roosevelts". Ooooo, the jokes in this episode... Later Burns calls for 10 Iroquois Twists while counting down "Ten, Hi-yi-ya" yeah, aged poorly indeed. 

Hardhat Area, Falling Tool Zone, Careless Workers Above

They haven't done a Pamphlet for a while, this one is Am I Disabled? the cover has an image of a guy with a pipe stuck through his head. Disabilities listed, Carpal tunnel syndrome, Lumber Lung, Juggler's Despair, Achy-Breaky Pelvis, Hyper-obesity. 

Dr. Nick prescribes Assal Horizontology. I know how to do that. He has the Neglected Food Groups chart: Fats and Sweets, Whipped Group, Chocoatastic Group, Congealed Group, Empty Calorie Group.

Dr. Nick is a graduate of the Hollywood Upstairs Medical College. (I use to insult a know-it-all in a chat room by asking him if he went to Professor Bob's Second Floor School of Lawyrin'" No wonder I got banned from that site so often, but it did lead to my cool screen name since I had to create so many alternate accounts)

Foods Homer buys: Ham Ahoy (image of a pig in a sailor's hat on the label), Much Ado About Stuffing, AMNBF (?), TUBBB!, Cheezus H Rice (oh boy), Uncle Jim's Country Fillin' Just Squeeze and Swallow. Massive Weight Gain Powder.

When Lisa asks Marge why she didn't step in she replies that Homer's antics usually fizzle out when he finds something good on TV "but this season", and I had to agree, the fall of 1995 was not a watershed mark for the networks. 

Dated reference, Homer's home computer has a big monitor and two separate decks with CD drives. 

The power plant employee newsletter headline: Burns Survives Brush With Shut-In

Mall stores: Something Wicker This Way Comes, The Vast Waistband. 

Pop Culture Reference, at the obese clothing store they have mannequins of the Guinness Records fattest twins. When Homer buys a Mumuu he also buys the roadster type of hat Paul Prudhomme would wear. 

Artie Pie is giving the traffic report and a fire at a military testing lab has resulted in diseased monkeys roaming the expressway causing massive backups and requiring drivers to keep their windows rolled up. Homer laughs about not having to go to work.

Homer brags about being two minutes early for work, except for those Daylight Savings Days, "lousy farmers"

When Homer vents the gas we see it's underground pathway including a mole that has tunneled right above it and the skeleton of Itchy and Scratchy underneath it. When the gas is vented it comes out of a pipe disguised as a scarecrow and kills off a corn crop, the farmer says Paul Newman is going to have his legs broke. This is a reference to Newman's own pop corn. 

Simpsons mail: An urgent letter from Edward James Olmos, Lisa Simpson The Utne Reader and a free sample of fabric softener (Homer washes his hat to test it out)

Aztec Theater movie: Pauly Shore and Faye Dunaway in "Honk if you're Horny". 

Homer tries hitchhiking to the plant with a a sign that says "Give me ride or everybody dies"

Homer steals the Fudge Brother's Ice Cream truck. 

I've made it through 135 episodes. Not bad. However we're still in the Glory Days of the program and we'll see what happens when we move into the dreaded years, and years, and years of The Simpsons. 

 The Simpsons 126-130

The Springfield Connection.

This episode premiered on May 7th, 1995. The lead in show was World's Funniest Outtakes (a knockoff of America's Funniest Videos) and it was followed by The Critic. It ran opposite Will You Marry Me? (a reality show special featuring people's unusual marriage proposals), Murder, She Wrote and the movie Jurassic Park. (The Simpsons had done several spoofs of it over the years)

The title of the episode comes from the 1971 movie The French Connection.

The chalkboard gag is "I will not mock Mrs. Dumbface" and the couch gag is a repeat of the James Bond opening.

Homer and Marge go to the park to hear the Springfield Pop orchestra play the Theme To Star Wars. Homer comments that they are butchering the classics and John Williams must be rolling around in his grave. (John Williams is still alive) When they finish with Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Homer insists on leaving. On the way out Homer comes across Snake running a Three Card Monte game. When Marge exposes his scam Snake runs off with their money and she's the only one who tries to chase him down. She corners Snake but he pulls a knife so she bashes him with a trashcan lid. The cops arrest him but say he'll be back out on the streets in 12 hours. Marge realizes she's bored in her life and starts taking more risks. As she is checking out the magazine stand the police show up at their station and drag something inside, it turns out to be pizza. She decides to join the force but they all laugh at her, and then tell her "welcome aboard". Marge goes through the training course and has trouble climbing over the wall, instead of going through the door. At the shooting range Wiggum complains because Marge missed the baby and the blind man. Wiggum fails to see Marge drive the obstacle course because he's looking at a Magic Eye image, it's a pony. On Marge's first day she's sent to patrol Junkietown and Bumville. Apu tries to pay off Marge for protection but they both turn their backs on the money, Mr. Burns comes by and takes it and they both think the other picked up the cash. When Marge goes to the beauty salon everybody stops taking since she's a cop. Homer takes Marge's police tape and wraps it around Ned's house to make him think his family is dead. When Marge comes home she scares off Homer's poker buddies. She catches Homer parking across three handicapped spaces while buying beer for kids, she writes him a ticket so he starts to mock her, she ends up arresting him. When Homer is in jail he eats Hanz Moleman's last meal. An angry Homer draws a line down the center of the house "ala Lucy" however he draws himself into a corner. Herman comes over for poker night again but it turns out he's dealing knockoff jeans out of Homer's garage. When Homer catches them he gos to call the police. Herman tells him "not so fast" so he slowly walks towards the door. Marge shows up and arrests the smugglers, Herman takes Homer hostage in the treehouse. When he tries to escape by using the jeans to zip line they tear and he crashes into the ground. The cops say they can't hold Herman because the evidence disappeared, while they are putting on the counterfeit jeans. In frustration Marge quits the force. Meanwhile the rest of the card players are still sitting in the house. The show does a combination of Hill Street Blues and The Simpsons theme over the closing titles.  

Jebediah Springfield Park: Tonight 8:00 Medfly Spraying, 8:15 Springfield Pops, 8:30 Spraying: 2nd Pass. (In 1989 there was an infestation of medflies in California and it endangered the crops so the state did a spraying program. Citizens were warned to stay indoors when the planes were passing)

At the newsstand Marge looks at Sponge and Vacuum Magazine $3.95 US Preview of the '96 sponges. (1996 was 27 years ago)

Other magazines at the stand, Death Sports Magazines: Bear Baiter magazine $4.95 (guy on the cover is taunting a bear while wearing a steak costume), Rock Jumper #8 "The magazine for people who like to jump from rock to rock" $2.95 US,  Mosh Pitter No. 2 $3.95 US, Danger Liker "Minefields playground of the 90's (cover has people on pogo sticks in a minefield, one of them just blew up), Cliff Biker Magazine #9 $4.95 "The art of falling" (the cover photo is a guy and a bike falling down a cliff), Glass Eater #4 $4.95 US "Wine Bottles: Our ten favorite vintages".

Homer wears Marge's underwear, strictly as a comfort thing. (I wonder if this episode is banned in modern Florida)

When Lisa visits the police station they go by the drunk tank and Barney is in there. 

Marge is seen running the obstacle course with a sunset background, this is a take on the sunset scene from the movie Platoon. When she has trouble with the wall is a take on every training scene in pretty much every movie. The shooting practice is a take on the Dirty Harry movie Magnum Force. The obstical course driving scene is a spoof on Police Academy, the driving on two wheels down a narrow alley is from Diamonds Are Forever, jumping the unfinished bridge is from Speed. Wiggum fails to see her drive because he is looking at a Magic Eye image book, they were computer generated dot patterns that when you unfocused your eye you could see a 3-D image. They were popular in the 90's.

When Marge gets her uniform she has to wear a Hard Rock Cafe shirt. 

Wiggum giving out assignments is a spoof on Hill Street Blues.

Apu offering Marge a bribe is a spoof on Serpico and the 1986 movie The Big Easy. 

When Marge is called to Skinner's house it is a take on the tv show Cops. 

Lisa complains about the police just supporting the wealthy so Marge pulls out a McGriff the crime dog puppet. It's based on McGruff, a PSA character telling kids how to look out for crime.

Lenny has a nudie deck of cards, The Girls Of The Internet. In the modern world you don't need to buy cards, you can just Google them. The guys at Homer's poker game, Carl, Lenny, Barney, Herman and Moe. 

Homer "When Marge said she was going to the police academy I though it would be fun and exciting, you know, like that movie Spaceballs. But instead it's been painful and disturbing like that movie Police Academy"

Moe thinks the word Garage is fancy French talk, he calls it the Car Hole. 

When Homer lectures Herman on counterfeit jeans he says "what about the hard working designers like Calvin Klein, Gloria Vanderbilt or Antoine Bugle Boy?" (Designer jeans were the rage in the 90's but fell off due to the high price, Bugle Boy declared bankruptcy in 2001and stopped production in 2018)

When Marge chase Herman into the yard it's like the gun range course, Milhouse and Grandpa pushing Maggie come out, then a witch pops up over the fence and Marge shoots. It turns out to be Ned putting out his Halloween decorations. He thinks Marge is criticizing him for doing it early. considering this episode aired in May I'd say she was right.

Lemon Of Troy

This episode premiered on May 14th 1995. Its lead in program was a Simpsons rerun and it was followed by The Critic. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Murder, She Wrote and the made for TV movie Naomi & Wynonna: Love Can Build A Bridge. 

The title of the episode comes from the Iliad by Homer, Helen Of Troy.

The chalkboard gag is "The First Amendment does not cover burping" and the couch gag is a repeat of the Black And White cartoon.

Bart sees wet cement and rushes to write in it, passing a safe full of jewels that has just crashed open in front of him and Professor Frink offering him a ride on his flying motorcycle. Bart imagines the future where people are impressed by his ability to write in solid cement and then bring him back to life with a ray gun. He further impresses them with yoyo tricks. He gets caught by Marge who criticizes him for not having hometown pride. When Milhouse runs out of lemonade they head to the Springfield lemon tree, while there the kids from Shelbyville mock them. Grandpa tells the kids the story of how Shelbyville and Springfield were partners in their pioneer journey to the present location but split into two communities because Shelbyville wanted the right to marry his cousin. The next day, in the middle of class, Nelson runs in and says something happened and has everyone run off after him, they discover that the lemon tree was stolen. The Shelbyville kids boast about making lemonade so the Springfield kids start following them. The parents find out the kids have gone to Shelbyville so they set off in Ned's RV. Martin confronts a kid about his lemonade but the kid's older brother threatens Martin, Nelson is forced to step in and save Martin. Bart goes undercover to spy, he ends up going to the bluffs where they plan to spay Springfield Sucks, instead Bart writes "Springfield Rules Suckers!" and then he reveals himself, even though they don't know who he is. He tries to take off by spraying downward in hopes it will lift him off the ground like a jetpack but all he does is paint his shoes. He escapes by saying "Hey look! Someone's attractive cousin!" and jumps on a skateboard but get stuck in wet cement (irony) and has to run into the zoo. Bart runs through a door labeled Danger: Tiger Feeding Area that is wide open. Inside there are 12 doors with Roman numeral and a note that says "Caution: Exit through door 7 only. All other rooms contain man-eating tigers." He figures out which door to use by remembering Rocky VII: Adrians Revenge. Bart is about to give up when he spots a yellow lemon shaped rock, with a lemon behind it. The kids find the tree at the Shelbyville impound lot just as their fathers show up. Homer tries to climb over the fence of the impound lot but has to give up so he goes to take a shower in Neds RV. Bart comes up with a Trojan horse plan to have Ned's RV impounded with all them inside, Homer comments that nobody in history has ever done anything this clever. When Bart goes to open the impound lot gate he sets off the alarm and a dog tries to attack him. Ned can't start the RV because Homer is using the grill. The closing gate gouges holes in the side of the RV and tears off the rear bumper. Just when they think they have escaped they hit an arched sign that says "Welcome to Springfield" and the tree gets knocked off. Grandpa tells the story of the rescue of the lemon tree while an old guy in Shelbyville tells the story of the banishing of the haunted lemon tree and they all enjoy a glass of turnip juice. 

Marge asks what happened to town pride and Lisa replies that it's been going downhill since the lake caught on fire. This is a reference the Cuyahoga River which was so polluted it caught on fire in 1969, sparking the Environmental Movement and eventually Earth Day.

Shelbyville is named after Shelbyville Manhattan. 

Continuity error, in the episode Black Widower, Shelbyville is 34 miles away however in this episode the two towns directly border each other. 

Mrs. Krabappal is teaching a class on Roman numerals so kids will know when motion pictures are copyrighted. Later when Bart is trapped in the lion cage at the Shelbyville zoo he complains he doesn't know what door to go out of since they never taught it in school.

When Milhouse puts on his camouflage outfit he envisions disappearing into the background and all that can be seen is his smile and glasses. This is a take on the Cheshire Cat from the Disney version of Alice In Wonderland. 

The kids who go to Shelbyville to find the tree, Bart, Martin, Nelson, Martin, Todd, and Data the kid with glasses who looks like SNL's Pat. 

The Shelbyville Daily "Once a week every week"

Shelbyville has a statue of Shelbyville Manhattan with two women, probably his cousins. 

Martin demands to know where a kid got his lemons for his lemonade stand, the kid replies "It's Country Time Mix, there's never been anything close to a lemon in it." Country Time's ingredients label: Sugar, Fructose, Citric Acid, contains less than 2% of Maltodextrin, sodium acid pyrophosphate, Magnesium oxide, sodium citrate, ascorbic acid (vitamin c), natural flavor, artificial color, Yellow 5 Lake, soy lecithin, Tocopherol, (Preserves Freshness)

Martin has a Baron Von Costume's Deluxe Disguise Kit.

People in Shelbyville drink Fudd beer. 

The Shelbyville kids rub on tattoos, Kill, Destroy, Motor Cycle. 

In Shelbyville an Asian guy runs the local convenience store. The bar is Joe's and run by a Moe looking guy wearing a bandana. Shelbyville Elementary has a female groundskeeper who looks and talks like Willie.

Bart escapes the tigers by remembering Rocky VII: Adrian's Revenge. When this show broadcast there were five Rocky movies. They made one more, Rocky Balboa and three Creed movies. 

At the impound lot the Shelbyville kids are riding their bikes around the tree in a take on The Road Warrior.

Milhouse meets a kid in Shelbyville who is also named Milhouse and comments "so this is what it feels like when the dove's cry", a line from the Prince song of the same name. Considering Milhouse's mother comes from Shelbyville it might be Milhouse's cousin. 

When the parents ask about their missing kids the people of Shelbyville comment "this is why we beat you at football nearly half the time"

Who Shot Mr. Burns Part 1

A quick note, if you haven't watched The Simpsons and don't know the answer to Who Shot Burns, you might want to skip the next two because they are spoilers.

This episode premiered on May 21st, 1995. Its lead in show was Rudy Cody: The Coolest Magician On Earth and was followed by The Critic. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, 60 Minutes and seaQuest DSV.

The chalkboard gag is "This is not a clue...or is it?" and the couch gag is a repeat of the family repeatedly running past the couch cartoon style.

The school gerbil dies and Willie has to bury it in the basement, where he discovers oil. Chalmers shows up to chew out Skinner until a geologist tells them they struck oil and are sitting on top of the richest elementary school in the state. Homer gets upset that Burns can't remember his name. In the elevator Burns says hello to everyone by name except Homer, who is wearing his hardhat with his name on it plus a name tag. Homer sends Mr. Burns a box of candy with the family photo, Burns remembers his encounters with the family from Maggie finding Bobo to when he trained SLH to be a guard dog, however Homer's face is under a Sour Quince and gets tossed in the trash, so Mr. Burns sends a thank you note to the whole family but him. (note, Mr. Burns was just talking about stealing candy from a baby which was a major hint about the Who Shot Burns contest). When the school turns on the well pump they discover there is no pressure because Burns has slant drilled into the pocket. When Burns's well erupts it hits Bart's treehouse destroying the tree and injuring SLH. Due to the cost of building and tearing down the drill, plus the initial damage to the building the school eliminates the music department and maintenance, Willie is out of a job. Moe's gets shut down due to the toxic fumes coming off the oil pump. The pumping causes a sinkhole to form under the retirement home and it collapses. Burns feels that he conquered all his enemies except the sun so he plans to build a giant shield over the city. Mr. Smithers says the sundial will become useless (this was a clue). When Smithers points out how evil the plan is Burns fires him. Homer breaks into Burns office to spray paint his name on the wall but Burns still doesn't know who he is and Homer goes nuts. Grandpa has to move into the Simpson's house and brings his gun but Marge takes it to bury it, later we see the dug up box. The town holds a meeting about Burns but he shows up to tell them about his sun blocker. Everyone threatens him and most are packing weapons. Burns goes around a corner and gets into an argument with someone and then there is a shot, he comes stumbling out and falls on the sundial. Dr. Hibbert says "Well, I couldn't possibly solve this mystery, can you?" and points at the camera, however he was talking to Wiggum who says he'll give it a shot. To Be Continued.... The show closes with a combination of the Dragnet and Simpson closing credit theme. 

Willie is reading My Weekly Reader, based upon the publication Weekly Reader, a magazine aimed at kids. It ran from 1928 to 2012.

Mr. Bruns has an overnight package so it goes through a number of hands until it winds up at Homer's desk where he returns it to Mr. Burns. This is a spoof on the FedEx commercials featuring John Moschitta Jr., once holder of the Guinness Book Of World Records fastest talking human.

When Homer screws up the package delivery Mr. Burns tries to drop a weight on him but it turns out to be a 1000 grams which is equal to 2.2 pounds. Burns thought it sounded heavier. However dropping a 2 pound weight on someone would hurt.

Executive Spa: Physical Fitness For Better Tyranny

Burns Construction Co. "Building a better tomorrow......for him"

Springfield Shopper headline "Awful School Awful Rich"

Suggestions for the school's new money, Willie wants a crystal bucket for his slop water and a new filthy blanket for his shed. Lunch Lady Dorris is tired of the cafeteria staff complaining about the mice so she wants to hire a new staff, Lisa wants to hire Tito Puente to teach a jazz class (he did his own voice over), Ralph wants chocolate microscopes, Otto wants a double guitar, Skinner wants more rubber stamps, Burns show up dressed as Jimbo to ask that the school sign over the oil to the local energy concern, run by Burns of course. (This was 17 years before the  "How you doing fellow kids?" bit ran on 30 Rock) Bart wanted to resurrect the 3 Stooges.

Continuity error, in this episode Mr Burns is 104 years old however in the episode Simpson and Delilah he claims to be 84.

Mr. Burns says he owns the electric company, water works and a hotel on Baltic Ave. as part of his Monopoly, all spaces on the board game.

This episode aired 12 years before the movie There Will Be Blood that had a similar plot line. 

The patrons at Moe's and Mr Smithers both spend the afternoon watching Pardon my Zinger, a fictional tv show that comes on Comedy Central at 3:00 pm. (clue)

The show's cliffhanger was based on the classic "Who shot JR" from the series Dallas. Originally it was Who killed JR but Larry Hagman was offered a truckload of cash to come back so they changed the tag line. Also it was pretty easy to figure out that it was Kristin Shepard since it was announced that actress Mary Crosby was leaving the show. Oh, another spoiler alert there.

This was the last episode of Season 6. The season felt extra long and in fact ran for 25 episodes. The final one was both a cliffhanger and a contest, the person who could guess the name of the character who shot Burns would get a "guest appearance on the show", basically be drawn as an animated character. The story of the winner gets kind of muddy, the story is that nobody guessed the right character and they randomly picked a person, Fayla Gibson, who took the cash prize instead. There is a rumor that nobody was ever picked or they had a winning entry but couldn't contact the person. Nobody seems to have a clear answer as to what happened. Personally I don't believe that nobody guessed because I figured it out but it was an on line contest and at the time I didn't own a computer. 

The Simpsons Most Wanted

This live action special aired on September 17th 1995. It ran between the repeat of Who Shot Mr. Burns Part 1 and the premier of Part 2. It ran opposite AFV, 60 Minutes and Minor Adjustments (A short lived series about a child psychologist) Since this was a special it isn't counted as a Simpsons episode and isn't available on Disney Plus. Also there isn't a chalkboard or couch gag in it.

The special opens with Matt Walsh, host of America's Most Wanted, flying over Miami looking for the person who shot Mr. Burns, rumored to be fleeing to Cuba. There are a series of clips of the action scenes from previous episodes of The Simpsons. In the Most Wanted headquarters every desk has a box of donuts. This is basically a clip show and gives several hints about who shot Mr. Burns but there is nothing new in the program (except for the suggestion of paying attention to the number 3)

Guests on the show: LA police chief Daryl Gates, Dr Lydia Hansen (A fictional character played by Elizabeth Hayes), Jimmy Vaccaro (bookmaker for The Mirage hotel in Las Vegas), Dennis Franz (he did a guest appearance on Homer Badman), Courtney Thorne-Smith, Kevin Nealon (hints around about Smithers' sexuality), Chris Elliott (makes joke about Dallas), Andrew Shue (star of Melrose Place). 

Who Shot Mr. Burns Part 2

This episode premiered on September 17th 1995 (4 months after part 1). the lead in program was Springfields Most Wanted, (see above). It was followed by Partners, a short lived sitcom. It ran opposite Lois and Clark, Cybill (a sitcom staring Cybill Shepard) and Mad About You. Warner Brothers, in order to compete with Fox, had launched a new network, The WB, however I don't plan to list all the programs that came and went on the growing cable networks and plan to just stick to the big three. btw, the WB would be changed to the CW when the network combined with the UPN, a channel created by United and Paramount to compete with Fox.

The chalkboard gag is "I will not complain about the solution when I hear it" and the couch gag is the couch is pulled away and a mugshot background drops down while the family faces forward, a version of the Dragnet song plays. Homer is about 6', Marge is 5' but her hair is over 7', and the kids are all under three feet.

Smithers wakes up from a terrible hangover to find he's trashed his apartment. The police are investigating the crime and they ask two witnesses if they saw Smithers shoot Burns, it's Maggie and SLH (clue). While walking down the street Smithers finds a gun in his pocket, he flashes back on shooting at someone while he was drunk. The people go and tear down Mr. Burns' sun blocker and accidentally drop it on Shelbyville. Smithers goes to the confessional to admit he shot Burns, it turns out to be a sting operation run by Wiggum. Sideshow Mel figures out that Smithers didn't shoot Burns however the police release Dr. Colossus and tell him to stay away from Death Mountain. It turns out Smithers shot Jasper, the police go to the retirement home where they find out he was shot in his wooden leg. The suspects are eliminated one by one. After drinking warm cream Wiggum has a strange dream telling him to check out Burns' suit. Wiggum finds an eyelash and has to bribe the DNA tech with a carton of cigarettes to analyze it, it turns out to belong to one of the Simpsons. When Burns comes out of his coma he only says one thing "Homer Simpson" so the police go to arrest him. They find a gun covered in his fingerprints and the bullet matches the gun. When Wiggum crashes the police van Homer escapes. Homer's finger prints got on the gun when he was looking for his dropped ice cream. Smithers offers a $50,000 reward for the capture of Homer. When the police scanner announces that Homer is at the hospital the police and a mob head there but are stopped by Lisa. Burns recovers and tells the police that Homer didn't shoot him, but instead identifies Maggie as his shooter. He tried to steal her candy but dropped his gun into the car. The show ends with a mambo version of the Simpsons theme song. 

Mr. Smithers is drinking Vagrant's Choice Fortified Scotch "May cause ejection of stomach contents"

Smithers wakes up and finds Mr. Burns in his shower, this is a spoof on the Bobby Ewing returns from the dead on Dallas. It then turns into Speed Racer aka Speedway Squad "in color"

Kent Brockman says "dozens of people are gunned down in Springfield every day but none of them was important.

The Veterans Hospital, a falling down building that looks like a converted warehouse, Burns was pronounced dead but when he was transferred to Springfield General he was upgraded to "alive".

A guy in a muffler costume, from Autoland "Muffler Sale" shoves a sales pamphlet in Smithers' pocket while he is on the ground crying. 

Barney, Moe, Carl, Lenny, Larry, Otto, Snake, Bumblebee Man, Willie, Krusty and Skinner go to tear down Burns' sun blocker.

Bumblebee Man drives a KMEX tv truck. (This is a continuity error since he has been on Channel Ocho and Channel 6)

Cathedral Of The Downtown "Archbishop Carries Less Than $20"

When in the confessional Smithers says he's not a Catholic but did try to march in the St. Patrick's Day parade although they wouldn't let him, another hint about his sexuality and a reference to the Gay groups that were banned from the parade in NYC and Chicago. 

Self aware joke, when Smithers says Burns crossed the line from everyday villainy to cartoon villainy they cut to Dr. Colossus, a character made up for this episode. 

Dave Shutton, the Springfield Daily Shopper reporter makes an appearance by name. 

When asked about shooting Burns Smithers says he feels as low as Madonna missing Tailhook. This is a reference to Madonna's reputation in the 90's and the sex scandal that rocked the U.S. Navy in 1991.

Krusty is mad that Smithers stole his Madonna joke however he stole it from Friday's episode of Pardon My Zinger, this joke will be proof that Smithers didn't shoot Burns. 

Sideshow Mel's full name is Melvin Van Horn. 

To solve the case Wiggum reads Agatha Christie's Ten Trite Tales.

Nightclub: Chez Guevara Palacio de Dansa Cubana. The name is a take on Che Guevara, Castro's right hand man during the Cuban Revolution. 

Skinner planned on ambushing Burns but grabbed the wrong makeup and did up his face with eyeliner and lashes, he gets caught by Chalmers.

The Willie interrogation scene where he wears a kilt is a take on the Sharon Stone scene from the 1992 film Basic Instinct.

Dated reference, while hooked up to the lie detector Moe says he's going home to ogle the women in the Victoria's Secret catalog but it buzzes so he changes it to the Sears catalog. Victoria's Secret eliminated their mail catalog in 2017 and the Big Book Sears catalog ended in 1993 although they still send out specialty category catalogs. 

Wiggum's dream is a spoof on the 1990 TV series Twin Peaks. 

The police van crashing at the drive thru window is a spoof on the train crash scene and Homer disguised as a hospital worker to sneak in and see Burns are from the 1993 movie The Fugitive.

Dr. Nick shows up and is the only one who realizes Burns can only say Homer Simpson. 

Stuff under Homer's car seat, an 8-track of Pipin' Hot Bread, gum, pineapple shaped air freshener, Burns gun, lollypop.

Homer's file photo has him wearing a Haig in 88 t shirt. Alexander Haig was Nixon's Chief of Staff, NATO Commander, Reagan's Secretary of State (probably involved in the Iran/Contra scandal) and ran an unsuccessful Presidential campaign in 1988, he never got higher than 1% of the vote. He even backed Bob Dole in hopes of a VP spot but Bush sr. won the election and never forgave Haig for the negative campaigning.

The police are called to the Marvin Monroe Memorial Hospital. He is (was?) a long time character, the psychiatrist, from the series. 

Burns is in room 2F20. 

Wiggum says "no jury in the world's gonna convict a baby, well maybe Texas". That joke still makes sense today.

In the episode Itchy and Scratchy and Marge Maggie shoots a photo of Homer with a dart gun. Was this foreshadowing?

This was the first episode of the 7th season and the resolution of the two parter cliffhanger. To this day people argue about the episode from the conclusion to did anyone really win the contest. 

Radioactive Man (The Simpsons Episode)

This episode premiered on September 24th, 1995. The lead in show was Space: Above and Beyond (a short lived science fiction series) and was followed by Married With Children. It ran opposite the movies Lethal Weapon 3, Who's Daughter Is She? and The Unspoken Truth. The show also ran an hour later than usual because of a football game.

The chalkboard gag is "Bewitched does not promote satanism" and the couch gag is the family feeds out of the couch like a fax sheet, but falls underneath.

When Comic Book Guy tells Bart and Milhouse there is a planned Radioactive Man movie both their hats fly into the air, because the air conditioner sucked them off. When trying to find out who is going to star in the movie a nerd is hiding under the conference table in Hollywood when they choose Rainer Wolfcastle. The producers choose Springfield for their shooting location. When Skinner announces that Radio Man, Nelson shouts Radioactive Man stupid, Skinner corrects himself and then announces a student will be chosen to play Fallout Boy everyone's hat flies off, then Skinner announces they are going to fix the air conditioner. When Nelson is rejected for the part of Fallout Boy he laughs at his reflection in the mirror and realizes how painful it is. The producer spots Martin and realizes he's perfect for the part but since he didn't sign up they pass on him. Bart gives a perfect reading but he's too short. He tries to stretch himself by tying himself to the dog and cat but they don't do anything. When Bart fakes being taller they announce they found their new Fallout Boy, but point at Milhouse, who isn't happy with the sudden fame and his parents spending his future money. Homer rents out the house to the movie production and they start tearing holes in the wall. They are trying to get Wolfcastle to say the lines correctly but instead of "Up and Atom" he says "Up and At Them". Bart goes to wish Milhouse well, and mooch off his fame, but Milhouse explodes, turns out to be a dummy, and then he gets run over by an x-ray truck, turns out to be his stunt double, the Estonian Dwarf (first seen in the episode Burns' Heir as a Christmas Village elf and then as fake Lisa). When Milhouse asks if the x-ray machine is real they say they'll look into it and then we see his skull. The studio is painting horses to look like cows because real cows don't look like cows on film. Homer tries to out lazy the teamsters. The city charges the production a "not wearing puffy director's pants" tax. Milhouse becomes disillusioned with the movies while Bart enjoys the perks of his trailer. When they do the acid scene Milhouse doesn't show up and Wolfcastle gets hit with a wave that destroys the set. An editor tries to save the film but it's a mess so they fire him. The police send dogs after Milhouse but can't say if he'll survive. While searching for Milhouse Bart goes to Slot Car Heaven, the mostly abandon Spirograph Factor, where he talks to Dr. Spirograph. He finds Milhouse in the 6th corner of his four corner treehouse. The production sends in Mickey Rooney (he does his own voice work) to talk to Milhouse, they bugged Barts can phone. When Milhouse refuses Rooney tries to play the part himself. It doesn't matter because the production is bankrupt. The show ends with the production returning to a helpful Hollywood that offers them free access to the boutiques until they are back on their feet. The scene is nothing like the real Hollywood that could use a good scrub down. It end with Lean On Me by Bill Withers.

This episode was a spoof on both the 1960's TV version and the 1989 movie versions of Batman.

The first appearance of Radioactive Man comics was in the first regular season episode Bart The Genius. 

This is the first mention of the 1960's TV Radioactive Man, Dirk Richter.

Superhero comics at the Android Dungeon: Batboy, Birdguy (19 years before the movie Birdman), Mr. Smarty Pants!, Cat Girl, DogKid, Snake Kid, Batchick, Power Person, ManBoy, Tree Man, Nick, Mr Hop, The Human Bee, Lava Lady, Mister Amazing, Star Dog, Iguana Girl and Radiation Dude (a knockoff of Radioactive Man)

Comic Book Guy has the flying toasters screen saver on his computer. He goes to the web site alt-dot-nerd-dot-obsessive to find out information about the movie. 

Comic Book Guy's computer screen:

Internet Reply

>Hello-world

Segmentation Fault [core dumped]

>readnews

alt.binaries.pictures.erotica

rec.arts. startrek.fandom

rec.org.mensa

rec.games.corewar

alt.comic.radioactiveman

>need to know star rm pic

Among the nerds that reply to Comic Book Guy is Prince.

In the 60's version of Radioactive Man the worst villain is The Scout Master (a Paul Lynde voice) This is a reference to the Boy Scouts pedophile scandals.

Variety want ads: Lip Inject Claimants "Saline or Silly Putty", Wanted, Good, Better and Best Boys. Flim Springfield (the producer points out the misspelling)

Among the words that pop up on the screen during the 60's Radioactive Man fight are Bort, the name tag from the episode Itchy And Scratchy Land. 

Springfield Shopper headline: WHO WILL BE FALLOUT BOY? Who will be Fallout Boy? Milhouse Disappears! Movie On Hold. Variety headline: Milhouse Meltdown: Ankles Pic-Flick Sic. Springfield Shopper: Spinning Newspaper Injures Printer.

Springfield signs, Welcome Hollywood Money, at the Springfield Savings, There's No $ Like Show $, We (heart) Phonies, Welcome Film Bucks, Will fawn over Hollywood types!, taped over the name Springfield Hollywood Cafe, Special Mogul Burger, Mover & Shaker Shakes, Movie Money Welcome Here. At Springfield General Hospital Our Extra Patients Make Patient Extras. Sign on car rear bumper Welcome Movie Money. Le Pamper Hair Salon "Giant Horrible Toupees $1000/lb" (anyone told trump?), Springfield Hardware "Movie Screws $10, Snake with a sandwich board "Give Me A Million Dollars or I'll Bash You" Springfield Elementary Fallout Boy Auditions Here, well not here....inside. 

Homer quickly flips through the channels and the combined conversations say "Everybody is taking about Radioactive Man y'all"

Moe was one of the Little Rascals, his movie poster is for the film Laff and a Haff. He played Smelly and when he would look into an exhaust pipe he'd get a face full of soot. When Alfalfa steals his bit be beats the actor to death. This is a reference to the death of Carl Switzer who was shot during an argument. Moe says William Faulkner (best known for The Sound And The Fury) was a writer for the Our Gang comedies. 

Homer asks the director if he did Unnatural Discretion and then starts saying what a stinker of a movie it was. This is in reference to Indecent Proposal. To get rid of Homer they send him to the food truck. 

Krusty the Clown tries out for the part of Krispy The Clown, they offer him the part of Angry the Clown, Silly Sailor and Dr. Clowneous. 

The Silly Sailor scene is a spoof of the 1995 movie Waterworld. 

Poster on telephone pole: Milhouse! $8,000,000 Reward Dead Or Alive, with Dead crossed out. 

Slot Car Heaven 1/24th the size, 3/8 the fun. Otto and Comic Book Guy are racing slot cars (Otto's is the school bus which he crashes into a wall)

We are at 130 episodes and into Season 7. Only 27 seasons, or 28 depending on this fall, and a movie to go. I'm looking forward to the next 28 years of episodes.....