We're in week three of discussing this one scene.
If I were smrt (I mean smart) I would have covered all these jerks in the same week, but it's too late to declare a theme week now.
Wait.
Is it too late to declare a theme week now?
HOLD ON LET ME START OVER
Welco...
2025-03-24 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Another day, another boardroom bore. This guys gets most prominence in this particular scene, blaming a "gypsy curse" and reveals the name of the company's new car model.
And is also in the later scene that we mentioned on Monday.
I'm not going to sugar-coat it: this scene is not the treasure t...
2025-03-20 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
We're still in Herb's boardroom for a bit, and today our eye focuses on the fella on the right, who blames the company's recent shortcomings on "mushy-headed one-worlders in Washington."
We know that he went to Harvard, and that his roots extend to when the Anglos met the Saxons (hey! That's more origin than we get for most of these guys!) He also seen in a scene later where he tells Homer lat...
2025-03-17 09:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Get used to this boardroom of Powell Motors executives, we're gonna see a few of them:
This woman blames their poor performance on unfair trade practices, and explains to Herb who Persephone was. She does not appear again after this.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in this project, 2025-03-13 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
I have a real treat for you all today. This gentleman encounters Homer in a restroom and is star struck by his resemblance to Herb.
It's a small appearance, but I'm still amazed by this: I was able to secure an interview with this character! Not Dan Castellaneta, who voices him, but I interviewed the actual character who had a minor scene in this episode! Are you confused? Don't be, it's very ...
2025-03-10 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Part of this episode includes the family Simpson driving across the country to meet Herb, and a few simple gags and scenes emerge from this road trip. Homer's encounter with this cop is one of them.
It's a minor appearance, but it establishes how important Herb is in this area. He's not just rich, he's "cops don't bother you" rich. It also hints how alike Homer and Herb appear - Abe must have ...
2025-03-06 09:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
This was the single most popular entry from Moe-dern Art last year, in terms of social media reach (the most important metric in art, we can all agree.) I think people responded to the absurdity of this juxtaposition, the grittiness of Frank Miller with the silliness of The Simpsons, leading to Frank Moe-ller. I'm glad I did this one, and I'm glad you wonderful people chose it as your March print.
If you'd like this A5 print delivered directly to you, please be a £10 or higher member f...
2025-03-04 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Herb first appears on screen during Homer's phone call with him, shrouded in mystery.
It is then a full three minutes before he is revealed to the gag of "he looks a bit like Homer."
The rest of the episode is Herb's story, about how he falls from his wonderful life after learning he is a Simps...
2025-03-03 09:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post
We're doing phonebook mascots now?!?
For the thousands of youths reading this: "phone directories" were big books containing the phone numbers of everyone in the area sorted alphabetically by name, so it would be easy to find and contact them.
"Phone numbers" were a series of digits that one could enter into a phone to reach an individual via audio communication, rather than DMing or sex...
2025-02-28 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
A man not above bending rules and taking bribes.
I was gonna be a little stinker and say that we can't 100% confirm he is Dr Hibbert's brother, but he does specify that he's searching for his long lost twin brother, so unless there happens to be another identical third man, it is most likely that this is Dr Hibbert's brother. This also most likely means he is Bleeding Gums Murphy...
2025-02-27 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
A minor inclusion, but an important one:
He tells Homer where the Shelbyville orphanage has moved to, furthering the plot. Without him, who knows if Homer would have been able to find out more information about his half-brother!
Despite this vital piece of connective tissue, none of my research celebrates this character! Where are the thinkpieces about him, the Funko pops, the saucy fana...
2025-02-24 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The first appearance of Homer's mother is not as iconic as you would hope.
I've chosen to draw her in the style most people will remember her, from season 7's "Mother Simpson", but she has another brief appearance before that, in season 6's "Grandpa vs Sexual Inadequacy":
Her face is obscured h...
2025-02-20 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
This lady gives Homer to his mother (spoiler: we'll meet her tomorrow.) I presume she retrieved him from the stork or something.
There is little else to be said about this nurse, but she briefly interacted with Homer Simpson, one of the most recognisable figures in pop culture.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in this project, 2025-02-19 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The first and only appearance in the show of Herb Powell's biological mother, who works at the carnival.
If you're hurling your glass of wine (I assume you drink a glass of wine while you read these) at the screen bellowing about how she is unnamed, you're right! But we do have a non-canon confirmation (a nonfirmation) of it in The Simpsons Uncensored Family Album:
2025-02-17 09:00:02 +0000 UTC
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The idea of Abe going to the carnival to "check out skirts", or having any kind of libido at all, makes me uncomfortable.
Look at his creepy wee face. Shudder. Happy Valentine's Day, celebrate it by thinking about this middle-aged married man looking at young girls and eventually cheating on his soon...
2025-02-14 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
This is a proto-Squeaky Voiced Teen, sort of, and I think we'll be seeing a few of them before the character is truly established.
He represents the sort of qualities that Squeaky Voiced Teen will eventually feature, such as acne, service-level employment and a breaking (but not actually that squeaky) voice. There's no doubt in my mind that if Squeaky Voiced Teen existed at this point he would...
2025-02-13 09:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
McBabe (unnamed in the actual episode) shows up at the end of McBain for a couple of lines and a smooch. I assume she has been a presence throughout the actual movie and this isn't her first time in the movie. That would be weird.
She does not ever appear in the show again, but nine years later she does get a trading card, featuring all the trivia you would ever need about her (including the a...
2025-02-10 09:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post
I thought I'd cover the rest of Mendoza's shady criminal cabal - they laugh and scream but no one is singled out for a distinct line, so they naturally get relegated to bonus status. On revisiting them I noticed something surprising!
If some of these faces seem familiar, it's because they last appeared in "Two Cars In Every Garage And Three Eyes On Every Fish" as part of Mr Burns' campaign tea...
2025-02-07 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
As before, yes yes, this is an actor, not an actual gangster. He does a fine job before his big violent death scene.
He disappears into the role so well that we never see him again after he is shot.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in th...
2025-02-06 09:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
By popular vote, the second print of the year will be a return to Moe-dern Art! "Edvard Moe-nch" was designed as a big crowd pleaser piece, based on a recognisable artwork (the poster to Home Alone), so I'm glad to see people liked it. I'm proud of it!
If you'd like this A5 print delivered directly to you, please be a £10 or higher member for this month! Make sure your address is available there and they'll be sent out at the start of February. Thank you for your support!
If you ...
2025-02-04 09:00:08 +0000 UTC View Post
We heard Mendoza mentioned the first time we caught a glimpse of the McBain movie, but now we get to see him in all his villainous glory.
And, of course, his demise.
2025-02-03 09:00:01 +0000 UTC
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One of the fun things about this season is seeing how comfortable the writers are quickly becoming exploring stories outside the main titular family. We had a Burns story in "Two Cars In Every Garage and Three Eyes On Every Fish", with only a small Homer/Marge conflict to tie back to the main characters. And with this episode, there isn't even a b-plot related to the Simpson five. We're offered a bit more depth into Patty and Selma's characters, where prior to this point they'd just been mean...
2025-01-31 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Is that Selma? Ring-a-ding-ding!
If you need a refresher and aren't watching along minute by minute like a madman, this is the outfit Selma wears for her date with Barney. There's not much more to it than that, but we are needlessly meticulous in our documentation.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in this project, 2025-01-30 09:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
As is often the case with these episodes, we end with a insignificant speaking character (no offense, jewellery salesman).
This makes sense I suppose - if they were at all important, these characters would have been introduced earlier in the plot!
I probably would not have even remembered there specifically was a scene where Skinner buys a ring - it doesn't really have a memorable joke ...
2025-01-29 09:00:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Finally drawing one of the "proper" Space Mutants, having only covered this one from the Tracey Ullman shorts before. Now, the creature makes a roaring noise before eating this Australian couple, qualifying them for inclusion.
2025-01-27 09:00:01 +0000 UTC
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The other star(?) of Space Mutants V: A Land Down Under. You can tell he's Australian by his hat.
Skinner describes Space Mutant V: A Land Down Under as the worst film he's ever seen, I wonder how much of a movie buff he is. When he finds himself in a direct reference to "Psycho" or "Apocalypse Now" or whatever, does he appreciate how close it is to existing movies?
2025-01-24 09:00:01 +0000 UTC
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This Australian actress can be seen in Space Mutants V: A Land Down Under. She's a real Margot Robbie of her time.
We last caught a glimpse of a Space Mutants film back in season 1's "The Telltale Head" - there they were watching Space Mutants 4, which featured a scene near identical to this one (except less Australian).
2025-01-22 09:00:01 +0000 UTC
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The other half of this couple gets no line, not even in yawn form.
I'm afraid I exhausted all my material on these guys yesterday. I mean, did you read that post? A whole dissection of how much the "yawn 'n' reach" is used in The Simpsons universe? Ridiculous. Whoever wrote that should be fired.
To make up for the absurdity of this mundanity, I will cover three speaking characters this w...
2025-01-21 09:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
This gent uses the ol' "yawn 'n' reach" to get cosy with his date.
Skinner attempts to replicate this, but to no avail.
It is consistent with Skinner's characterisation that he would not have known to do a move so common that it has 2025-01-20 09:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Our old friend Jimmy Pearson (remember him? From yesterday?) is chatting this young lady up, ignoring their customers for the most part.
The Sit-N-Rotate (later renamed the Sip 'N' Spin Lounge) will make two appearances in season 11 ("Guess Who's Coming To Criticize Dinner?" and "Treehouse of Horror X"), and one more in season 29 ("Left Behind"):
2025-01-17 09:00:04 +0000 UTC
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