The times when Springfield's favourite family had some snarky things to say.
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00:00 Whilst its best years are certainly behind it, The Simpsons rose to be one of the most
00:03 important television shows for many years due to the combination of great wit and emotional
00:08 depth. It wasn't just a silly cartoon, it often handled the important subjects of the
00:12 day. Typically, the Simpsons writing team has always been pretty even-handed with their
00:16 approach, using the subject to tell a story rather than pick a side, it was the duty of
00:20 the residents of Springfield to represent the different shades of grey.
00:24 That being said, sometimes the show feels pretty potently about things and it makes
00:28 sure we know about it. I'm Sci for What Culture dot com and these are 10 Simpsons
00:32 episodes probably made out of spite.
00:35 10. Brother's Little Helper
00:38 In this season 11 classic, Bart, ever the wild child, is placed onto an experimental
00:42 drug called Focusin. It proves fruitful at first, but it isn't long before Bart starts
00:47 wearing tinfoil and ranting about being spied on. The episode culminated in him swallowing
00:51 a handful of tablets and riding a tank through Springfield streets. The episode was written
00:55 by George Myers, who had found decent success writing part-time for the show, but was feeling
01:00 burnt out at the time. Struggling psychologically, Myers turned his pain into a memorable episode
01:04 that critiqued the rise in diagnosing children with attention deficit disorders. Myers hated
01:09 the first draft of the episode and was so ashamed of it that he turned it in under a
01:13 pseudonym. Producer Tim Long joked that the script was "moist with contempt".
01:17 Amongst the ongoing debate at the time, Myers had heard plenty of stories of children misdiagnosed
01:21 and placed onto drugs such as Ritalin and the damage it caused their psyche, when presumably
01:26 they just needed better schooling. When it released on DVD, Myers admitted in the episode's
01:30 commentary that, whilst he wasn't sure on his stance on the issue, he wrote Brother's
01:34 Little Helper out of concern for children being prescribed behavioural drugs so readily.
01:38 9. There's Something About Marrying
01:41 By 2005, The Simpsons was no stranger to talking about homosexuality, back in a time when it
01:46 wasn't quite as normal as it is today. This episode certainly continued the show's trend
01:50 of showing LGBT people in largely more positive lights.
01:54 Around this time, the subject of same-sex marriage was a hot-button subject in America
01:59 and the centre of a lot of debate as some states, such as Massachusetts, began to legalise
02:03 the process. And so, as with many great talking points of the day, The Simpsons used Springfield
02:08 to explore the issue.
02:09 There's Something About Marrying sees Springfield legalising same-sex marriage to cynically
02:13 increase its tourism income and, in the lead-up to the show, the network announced that a
02:17 key character would come out as gay. Whilst not necessarily anyone's favourite, Patti
02:21 was a long-standing part of the show's cast and a member of the Simpsons family. Her acceptance
02:25 by others was a large part of the episode's story.
02:29 Producer Al Jean said of There's Something About Marrying that "we don't take a position
02:32 as much as explore everybody's perspective". Whilst the episode tended to be apolitical,
02:37 it was definitely giving the message that those that demonised homosexuality were of
02:41 an outdated sort.
02:42 8. Itchy and Scratchy Land
02:45 During seasons 5 and 6 of The Simpsons, the show was led under showrunner David Merkin,
02:49 who immediately began to receive pushback from Fox. Specifically, the feedback was about
02:53 the show within the show, Itchy and Scratchy. Fox were concerned with the animated ultra-violence
02:58 and asked David Merkin to basically cut the two characters completely. In reaction, The
03:03 Simpsons writers went the other way entirely and crafted a season 6 episode that takes
03:07 the Simpsons family to Itchy and Scratchy Land. The story allowed them to write as much
03:11 animated brutality as they liked. Fox said that if such an episode were produced, then
03:15 they would remove the itchy and scratchy parts themselves, although it's fair to say that
03:18 wouldn't leave much of an episode. All the same, Merkin told his superiors that if that
03:22 were the case, then he would tell the media what they had done. Fox relented and the episode
03:26 aired in 1997.
03:28 Additionally, the episode serves as a parody of Disneyland by combining the seemingly perfect
03:33 majesty of the Mouse's Wonderland with the various dangers of both Michael Crichton's
03:37 Jurassic Park and Westworld books. In hindsight, there's some delicious irony to be had in
03:41 that The Simpsons is now owned by Disney and continues to be censored to appease the worldwide
03:45 Disney+ audience.
03:47 7. The Fool Monty / How Munched Is That Birdie In The Window
03:52 This one is not so much an episode written out of spite, but a reaction to one that impacted
03:56 another. The episode Fool Monty tells the story of an amnesiac Mr Burns being taken
04:00 in by the Simpsons. Then, for all the troubles he's caused, Burns is essentially used and
04:04 abused until Lisa takes him home and his memory returns. Whilst the episode does poke fun
04:09 at Vice President Dick Cheney and its side story, there was one particular moment that
04:12 caught the ire of the Republican Party.
04:15 At the start of the episode, a Fox News helicopter swings into frame, emblazoned with the phrase
04:19 "Not racist, but number one with racists". Conservative TV host Bill O'Reilly in particular
04:24 was upset with the show, crying foul that the Fox network was letting its cartoon characters
04:28 run wild and bite the hand that feeds. Happy to have stirred the pot, especially with such
04:33 a vocal and well-known political figure, the Simpsons poked back.
04:36 A helicopter was written into the following episode, How Munched Is That Birdie in the
04:40 Window, which reads "Fox News, unsuitable for viewers under 75". Al Jean said of the
04:45 reaction, "We're happy to have a little feud with Bill O'Reilly. That's a very
04:48 entertaining thing for us."
04:50 6. You Won't Believe What This Episode Is About, Act 3 Will Shock You
04:54 In March 2022, the Simpsons decided to take another swing at the rise of the so-called
04:59 "cancel culture" movement. What was particularly interesting about this decision is that it
05:03 came two and a half years after The Simpsons was embroiled in its biggest controversy surrounding
05:07 the character of Apu.
05:09 In the episode's plot, unfortunate accidents lead to Homer trapping Santa's little helper
05:13 in a car and not picking up the kids. The town proceeds to label him as a pariah. Instead
05:17 of reading a prepared apology, Homer essentially calls Springfield soft and accidentally pushes
05:22 Reverend Lovejoy out of a window. The family gets doxxed and Homer loses his job, but he
05:26 is eventually invited to the Institute, where those who have had their reputations ruined
05:30 on the internet can find repentance.
05:33 Clearly a critique on the public perception of the Simpsons during the era, the episode
05:36 takes a shot at clickbait and society's tendency to believe a headline rather than
05:40 read a story's context. It also toys with a current-day controversial figure by featuring
05:44 Theo, a podcaster with a pretty clear inspiration in Joe Rogan, who wants to delete news of
05:50 his misdeeds from the internet. Whilst the episode was decently well-received, it was
05:53 kind of a case of "The Simpsons already did it" with the episode "Homer Badman".
05:58 5. Homer Badman
06:00 After spending their day at a candy convention, Homer loses track of his stolen and incredibly
06:04 rare gummy based on the Venus de Milo statue. When he drops the kid's babysitter back
06:09 home, he finds the gummy stuck to her behind and reaches out to take it. The babysitter
06:13 misunderstands this act as sexual harassment and Homer becomes publicly disgraced.
06:18 Homer Badman at large is a criticism of television's growing need to turn tragedy into entertainment,
06:23 an issue which has only gotten bigger over time. In particular, the episode satirised
06:27 Hard Copy, an over-the-top news show that ran from 1989 to 1999 in the US and was guilty
06:33 of dramatising its stories. Hard Copy had a habit of not only presuming their targets
06:37 as guilty, but also cutting footage to support their arguments and even camping outside of
06:41 their houses. The show's parody version, Rock Bottom, does all of the above and also
06:45 contains a memorable made-for-TV retelling of events, starring actress Dennis Franz as
06:50 Homer. Homer Badman also parodies the OJ Simpson's chase footage, Late Show with David Letterman
06:55 and television talk shows in general by giving the real-life bear Gentle Ben his own show.
07:00 David Merkid would say in a DVD commentary that anyone could host a talk show because
07:04 all they needed is a microphone and an audience.
07:07 4. Lisa vs Malibu Stacy In the early 90s, Mattel released a new Barbie
07:12 doll called the Teen Talk Barbie, which would read 270 different phrases. They were the
07:16 kind of thing you'd expect if you've seen this episode that parodies the doll - low-hanging
07:21 fruit of feminine tropes about how great shopping is and, most controversially, how hard math
07:25 class is. Due to public reaction, Mattel said that future revisions of this doll would not
07:30 say this particular phrase. Always reacting to the real world, the Simpsons
07:34 used their already existing doll, Malibu Stacy, in exactly the same way - giving her a voice
07:38 that only said the most vapid thing shatters Lisa's illusions that she had of the character.
07:43 This prompts her to make a stand and make her own talking doll that empowers women.
07:46 Largely mocking the toy industry and Mattel, Bill Oakley, one of the writers for the episode,
07:51 even based Lisa's story on some of his own experiences. He went to several Barbie collecting
07:55 conventions and met superfans due to his wife's own interest in the toy line.
07:59 Despite Lisa's issues with the doll being founded in logic, the fact that the less intelligent
08:03 Malibu Stacy outsells hers is a Simpsons-style cynical look on how having fun often wins
08:09 over the importance of making a statement.
08:11 3. Panic on the Streets of Springfield In Season 15, the Simpsons family travel to
08:16 the UK for the episode, "The Regina Monologues" and encountered several British figures that
08:21 made voice cameos. One of those approached, Stephen Patrick Morrissey, turned down the
08:26 opportunity to be on the show.
08:28 Over 15 years later, the Simpsons finally hit back at Morrissey's disinterest, not
08:32 to mention his steadily more damaged public perception born from his controversial political
08:36 stances.
08:37 In Panic on the Streets of Springfield, Lisa is introduced to rock band The Snuffs, who
08:41 act as a parody of both The Smiths and The Cure. Inspired by the liberal, vegan frontman
08:46 Quillaby, Lisa begins to imagine his younger self to bring her solace. Eventually, this
08:50 imaginary friend convinces Lisa to steal Homer's credit card to go see the real him perform.
08:55 Lisa sees that in the current day, he has become an overweight, meat-eating, immigrant-hating
09:00 washer.
09:01 In a touching moment, imaginary Quillaby tells Lisa to remain true to her values before vanishing.
09:06 Morrissey struck out against the caricature, bemoaning that "in a world obsessed with
09:09 hate laws, there are none that protect me", yet again missing the point.
09:13 The Simpsons team said that Quillaby was actually inspired by several people, and that therefore
09:17 he couldn't sue, but it's plain to see who exactly the episode is mocking.
09:22 2. Two Bad Neighbours
09:24 Whilst The Simpsons had its fair share of controversies in its earlier years, very few
09:28 public figures had a feud with the show quite like George H.W. Bush did. During his presidency,
09:33 he famously said that he wished more families were "more like the Waltons and less like
09:38 the Simpsons". The show fired back in its own way the next week, with Bart saying that
09:42 "like the Waltons, we're also waiting for the end of the Depression".
09:45 Two years later, in which time Bill Clinton had replaced Bush in office, writer Bill Oakley's
09:49 idea to bring the feud to TV was put into production. Whilst many jokes would poke fun
09:54 at his politics, the concept was not one that was meant to attack Bush's agenda, so much
09:58 as satire his crotchetiness.
10:00 With George and his wife Barbara moving to Springfield, Bush essentially took the role
10:04 of Mr Wilson to Bart Dennis the Menace. Bart and Homer act exactly how Bush and his wife
10:09 would expect them to, childishly pranking their uptight new neighbours. It was one of
10:12 the first times that Simpsons got into the face of a politician to such a degree. Two
10:16 Bad Neighbours was a great success, although George HW Bush never did make any statement
10:21 about this parody of himself.
10:23 1. The Itchy and Scratchy and Poochy Show The 14th episode of season 8 of The Simpsons
10:29 saw the show overtake the Flintstones episode count to become the longest running animated
10:33 series on television. It was a perfectly timed affair, as in the lead up to the season, Fox
10:38 had expressed some concerns about the show's shelf life and longevity. A suggestion was
10:43 pitched to add a new main character to the show to shake up the formula, an idea that
10:47 the writers' room laughed off.
10:49 Parodying Fox's real life worries, The Itchy and Scratchy and Poochy Show sees the popularity
10:53 of Bart and Lisa's favourite cat and mouse duo waning. Much like Fox had suggested to
10:58 the Simpsons writers, the fictional heads behind Itchy and Scratchy proposed the idea
11:02 of adding a new character to freshen things up.
11:04 Naturally, Poochy's over-the-top persona and position as the shiny new thing is poorly
11:09 received and kids just want the thing they loved back.
11:12 The episode morphed Fox's request into one of the show's best outings. Many jokes from
11:16 it are still remembered fondly today, taking aim at the fickleness and sometimes obsessive
11:21 nature of television viewers. And hey, Fox can't say the writers didn't do as they
11:25 asked. The episode also features an unexplained older son of the Simpsons family, Roy, played
11:30 totally straight for extra laughs as the main story unfolds around them.
11:34 And that's the list. Let us know what you thought of this video down in the comments
11:37 below and let us know of any other Simpsons episodes that you can think of that were either
11:41 made to rile someone up or made in a reaction to something out of spite. Make sure you like
11:45 this video, subscribe, hit the notification bell and share it with your friends. I've
11:50 been Scythe for What Culture and have a good week.