Wow, only ten minutes in and it’s already horrendous.
Another crappy flashback episode? And now they seem to have retconned Homer and Marge’s post-HS/pre-marriage romance to the early 90’s (or possibly late 80’s)? I know that in theory that has to fit…I mean, if Bart is still only ten, then he would have been born in 1997/1998…but still, one of the things The Simpsons always did was not CARE about that kind of thing.
If they cared about it, they wouldn’t do it.
The professor so far is spot on. Half of my professors were exactly like that. Luckily so was I so I got good grades.
Yeah, it’s one of the silliest ever, but I’m liking it.
I think that changing around their history in the flashback episodes to accomodate the kids’ failure to grow up is a running joke, but it’s particularly surreal now because the early seasons were late eighties-early nineties. Ah well.
I think it was a great episode.
Ha ha ha. I totally hear Comic Book Guy narrating the OP.
Simpsons flashback and flashforward episodes can be great (the prom episode, etc.)- this one is just wrong, on so many levels- to quote Skinner from a good episode, “now we’re into the dregs”. This was a hearty fuck you to those who have been fans from the start- the TV equivalent to Metal Machine Music.
With 400 episodes and characters that don’t age, continuity is impossible, but some things are sacred and you don’t fuck with them, and one of those is that Homer is of the 70’s, period. Continuity gaps should come with dealing with current events, not with the past. If this had been set in the 70’s, maybe early 80’s it would have been one thing- but for that you would need a writer over the age of 25. Does Matt Groening really need any more money that he feels the need to pander to the increased teen audience?
Quite possibly the worst episode ever, unless it was an elaborate inside joke slamming Family Guy for their endless references.
It was weird to see them re-do the castle scene where Bart was conceived, but for the most part I liked the episode. Maybe I’m just nostalgic for a decade ago, when the alternative musicians were the special hot guest stars on the Simpsons instead of the object of the parodies. 
ETA: --I take that back about the parodies. The first episode I remember watching with friends was “Homerpalooza,” and my favorite joke was “Making teenagers depressed is like shooting fish in a barrel.”–
Homer’s “Rape Me” parody was spot-on. I was a little surprised that they went from there into a spoof of a Bush song, since they came along a few years later and were an inferior band when they could have gone after Pearl Jam or any number of other acts… but that’s not important. As far as the continuity goes, the Simpsons can’t help contradicting itself because it’s been around so long. And the idea of Homer and Marge being about 38 and Marge getting pregnant right out of high school… well, it doesn’t make sense. They filled it with a pretty plausible story here (resolved a little too fast) with some good parodies of the early 90s, that crazy time when something called the Simpsons was sweeping the nation.
And we couldn’t imagine a President worse than Bill Clinton.
I just realized that I’m old. Just today, because of this episode, I realized that I am old.
The Simpsons is a much more enjoyable show if you disregard any sense of continuity and consider it a group of characters in a different adventure each week.
They’ve rewritten their past so many times that I don’t understanding getting that worked up over this one - and I don’t understand the idea of interpreting it as a deliberate insult to anybody.
The show started in 1989, and at that time he would have been born in the early or mid 1950s. I think of Homer as the guy who said “Rock achieved perfection in 1974. It’s a scientific fact!” But that’s not necessarily the original character.
I can agree with you there.
I think of Matt Selman as one of their younger writers, and he’s been with the show for 10 years. They had 25-year-olds when the show got started, maybe, but I doubt they have any today.
A hearty fuck-you to the fans? I think somebody is taking The Simpsons a little too personally.
I liked the episode a lot. But what do I know? I’m only 25, and I’m foolish and young enough to enjoy the 90s references.
Ha…as the flashback got underway I said to myself “Fuck You, Continuity!”, imagined almost the exact OP being written here, and then just sat back and enjoyed it.
Hmmph. Townies.
Octupus Beanie Baby: $9. That should have gone in Homer’s pile.
I was a fan when they were snippets on Tracy Ulman, and a fan of Groening when he drew rabbits. I am not insulted by this episode. I thought it was especially funny BECAUSE the Simpsons were on throughout the 90s and they act like it was before Bart was born. “Oh, Elaine. Will you ever meet someone who’s spongeworthy?” Ha ha ha.
“That '90s Show” KABF04
Writer and Lyricist: Matt Selman
Hategasm songs by Clay Duncan
I liked this episode. Even though it was filled with dumb '90s gags, the dumb '90s gags were funny (I liked Homer’s non-offensive Boyz II Men cover, “Sonic the Hedgehog says wait until marriage” and “Simpson Lazer Tag: Enjoy this fad while it lasts”). Yes, the episode violates the show’s continuity- but the show makes fun of that in the wraparound- which is a good self-parody of the played-out “telling a story” wraparound, which I don’t think has been actually done on the show for a while. (“Why did you just stop for two and a half minutes?”) The hyper-liberal professor was very funny (“Oh my goddess! The Patriots are deep into Redskin territory! This isn’t entertainment, it’s genocide!”), as was Homer’s creation of grunge music- including what it stands for (Guitar Rock Utiliziing Nihilistic Grunge Energy), and eventually achieving what every rock musicians yearns for- hating fame. “He who is tired of Weird Al is tired of life”- truer words were never spoken.
The “Margarine” video lists David Mirkin as a director. In reality, he was spending his '90s as the executive producer of some animated TV show. You know, that really popular one.
Did anyone else notice that the twin little girls looked different? They looked kind of like Roger from Family Guy. Their skin was an odd gray color and their upper lip area was more concave.
Am I imagining things?
Two minor points:
I wanted them to reveal at the end that the gas man was actually Professor August. And I was amused that they actually used Weird Al’s '90s look. Apparently he ditched the glasses and that haircut a whil eago and turned out to be a decent-looking dude. I got a laugh out of Lenny, Karl and Lou in both their RnB and grunge looks, too.
Sherri and Terri? They weren’t even in this episode- the kids at the laser tag hall were just generic children, and most of this episode took place at a college. And Roger is from American Dad.
Got to love the “Back to the Future” reference with “Cousin Marvin” calling about “The new sound you are looking for”
I should disclaimer, I am also someone that watched the show since the Tracy Ullman shorts.
It was fun, it was a self parody. I think it worked.
“He who is tired of Weird Al is tired of Life”, come on, that is a classic line.
Was the Castle larger?
Jim
Yes. You can’t insist on continuity in the Simpsons, especially since the show was on during the 90s. Why shouldn’t they parody the 90s? Or is that off-limits because of the continuity factor?
A foolish consistency . . . .
In any case, I won’t say it was a great episode, but it had its moment, like the grunge parody and the take on 90s fads and Homer dividing up his things with Marge.