# Comic Book Guy has a name!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2005, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758 "2005-02-07T04:12:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kspharm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ebca7d/32.png) [@kspharm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kspharm)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/1 "2005-02-07T04:12:30Z")
The Simpsons episode that just aired following the Super Bowl contained a jaw-dropping moment. Comic Book Guy, it was revealed, is named Jeff Albertson ("but most of my friends call me ‘Comic Book Guy’). Is this official Simpson’s canon, or is this considered a parody/spoof episode that doesn’t count? ---
**Author:** ![cheddarsnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cheddarsnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cheddarsnax)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/2 "2005-02-07T04:16:27Z")
At this point, who cares? ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/3 "2005-02-07T04:18:25Z")
Jeff, son of Albert? Is there a reference here I’m missing? ---
**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/4 "2005-02-07T04:21:27Z")
> [@cheddarsnax](#): > > At this point, who cares? On the first reply! Is that a new record? ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/5 "2005-02-07T04:23:49Z")
That was the fastest I’ve ever turned off a Simpsons, by far. ---
**Author:** ![kspharm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ebca7d/32.png) [@kspharm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kspharm)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/6 "2005-02-07T04:32:27Z")
Agreed, this was a bad episode. But still, this is on par with Maude dying or finding out that they were from Missouri (or Kentucky). I kind of wish they had never revealed his name…he will always be Comic Book Guy to me! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/7 "2005-02-07T04:49:00Z")
Yeah, it was a pretty weak episode. _Dancin’ Homer Redux_, with more celebrity guest voices. Meh. There were some funny bits with Flanders’ biblical epics, though. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/8 "2005-02-07T05:08:52Z")
I thought this was a pretty good episode, although I would have liked Ned’s halftime show to be funnier, and the painting gag would have been funnier if Charles Schulz hadn’t done something like it 40 years or so earlier. But I _loved_ Homer’s run-in with a famous Italian. I’m not really a good comment guy, so I’ll do what I do best- throw out some quotes I liked. Homer (upon noticing a dilapidated sign reading “Sp ingf eld P rk: Fe l the Prid !:”) Oh, the prid is gone! Announcer: Welcome to _Jock Center_. Tonight: the Clipper and the stripper, a Jones that’s Chipper, and did Joe Torre shoot Flipper? Jon Facenda-style announcer: The Super Bowl half-time show: from its humble origins in Super Bowl I (shot of single tuba player) to the marriage of Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man in Super Bowl XVI. Ned: I’m like Michael Moore, except I’m skinny, my jeans are washed, and God loves me. Announcer: And so, ladies and gentlemen, we have come to the start of Super Bowl X-X-X-I-X. This brand new, 300 million-dollar stadium was completed just one short week ago. And it’s scheduled for demolition early next month. America’s priorities are a joke! Announcer: And that’s the gun! We head into halftime with a thrilling score of 55 to 6. But don’t stop watching- in the second half, points count double! And now, the eagerly-awaited Super Bowl Halftime Show, sponsored by the new Ford pickups, Citibank, and Moe’s Tavern. (cut to Moe and two men in a skybox) Man in Brown Suit: How could you afford _this_? Moe: I hustled a lotta pool. Hey, you wanna play? I oughta warn ya, I ain’t that good. Man in Brown Suit (confidently): All right. (to himself) Sucker. (Moe hits him with a pool cue) Moe: Who’s the sucker _now_, huh? Homer: But then a shadow of wickedness fell across the land, as represented by this cloud of white pesticide. Homer: I thought America was hungry for meaning! I should have just sent a crocodile into space like I originally planned. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/9 "2005-02-07T06:35:08Z")
The geriatric sex drug, Jammitin, was funny. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/10 "2005-02-07T07:21:42Z")
> [@kspharm](#): > > Is this official Simpson’s canon, or is this considered a parody/spoof episode that doesn’t count? No reason it wouldn’t count. > [@kspharm](#): > > But still, this is on par with Maude dying or finding out that they were from Missouri (or Kentucky). I kind of wish they had never revealed his name…he will always be Comic Book Guy to me! 🙂 Eh, it’s nowhere near that bad. The Maude thing was done because of problems with the actress and they tried to play it for ratings. This They just kind of tossed it out there without any fuss, I liked that. Not a great episode, but it had a couple of funny lines. The Jock Center stuff and the Michael Moore joke were the highlight for me. ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/11 "2005-02-07T08:00:45Z")
His real name is Jumpy McShark. ---
**Author:** ![Harborwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Harborwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harborwolf)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/12 "2005-02-07T13:37:05Z")
I think they just reached to far with this one. They went for poor sportsmanship/end zone dances, halftime shows, and the passion of the christ. They wound up with a really uneven show that ended abruptly. The only good part were the guests. They made me laugh. Other than that, meh. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/13 "2005-02-07T13:41:47Z")
The hit on exactly the type of subjects that made the Simpsons great. Unfortunately, the avoided any iota of humor. I mean, the Passion of the Christ parody was good in principle, but never really did anything other than parallel the film. At the very least, Itchy and Scratchy should have been involved. Giving the Comic Book Guy a name smacks of desperation. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/14 "2005-02-07T14:06:56Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Giving the Comic Book Guy a name smacks of desperation. Desperation for what? They didn’t play it up in the ads (unlike Super Bowl Show and the numerous athletes). They just did it because why the hell not? Not that it matters much, but Yao Ming’s delivery of “Shut up kid, I’ve got a good thing going here” kinda gave the lie to Lisa’s comment that he speaks “excellent” English. I thought Michelle Kwan got the best lines. “Wrath of Kwan?” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/15 "2005-02-07T15:33:31Z")
Sort of like: “We can’t think of anything funny this episode, so let’s give Comic Book Guy a name.” It was funnier that he didn’t have a name. But they couldn’t think of anything else to keep the fans happy, so they fed them this. Giving him a name was like asking Harpo Marx to speak. What’s next? Mexican Bee Guy? ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/16 "2005-02-07T15:45:35Z")
He’s not “Mexican Bee Guy,” he’s “Bumblebee Man.” He’s not even Mexican, if you go by the ep where Bart becomes Krusty’s assistant and then the “I didn’t do it” boy. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/17 "2005-02-07T16:02:58Z")
Actually, this episode had a semi-reference to the “death of Maude” episode: as you’ll recall, that episode revealed (via Homer’s video of him in the shower) that Ned Flanders has an enormous unit. Last night, did y’all get a load of the size of the fig leaf on Ned as Adam? Colossal! And it had to be, to cover up his baby’s-arm-sized appendage. ---
**Author:** ![vibrotronica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/18 "2005-02-07T16:17:05Z")
There were some good gags, but in the end, they tried to do too much. They should have stuck with either the A plot (Dancin’ Homer Redux) or the B plot (_Passion of the Christ_ parody). But compared to _American Dad_, this was frikken genuis! ---
**Author:** ![av8rmike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@av8rmike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/av8rmike)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/19 "2005-02-07T18:47:30Z")
Wasn’t a character supposed to come out of the closet in this episode? Or is that the sweeps week stunt? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758/20 "2005-02-07T19:35:33Z")
> [@kspharm](#): > > Agreed, this was a bad episode. But still, this is on par with Maude dying or finding out that they were from Missouri (or Kentucky). I kind of wish they had never revealed his name…he will always be Comic Book Guy to me! 🙂 They never said the Simpsons live in Kentucky. That was a “Behind the Music” parody episode, portraying the Simpsons as actors in a show. The “show” was filmed in Kentucky, not set in Kentucky. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/comic-book-guy-has-a-name/288758.md?page=2)