# The Simpsons 19th season premiere (spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 23, 2007, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239 "2007-09-23T23:59:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/21 "2007-09-24T16:15:29Z")
Nobody has mentioned “Spider Pig” in the couch gag. In fact that whole begining sequence was different. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/22 "2007-09-24T16:19:30Z")
[QUOTE=woodstockbirdybird] I have to say, I thought the episode was weak as hell. I was looking forward to Stephen Colbert’s character, but he did nothing for me. The only time I laughed was when Homer taxied the plane into the water. Disappointing as hell. Maybe next week’s will be better. [/QUOTE] Overall, I wasn’t a big fan of the episode. I like clue-less, un self aware, blissfully ignorant Homer. I didn’t like this Homer at all. Although, I liked his interactions with the Texan, and the Chicago stuff was good. The makeover to Ferris and Cameron was funny. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/23 "2007-09-24T16:24:25Z")
The opening was great, most of the episode was great, but did they have to recycle the old plot devices of someone hiding the fact that he doesn’t have a job from his family, AND Homer getting his job back from Burns yet again? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/24 "2007-09-24T16:31:37Z")
[QUOTE=control-z] The opening was great, most of the episode was great, but did they have to recycle the old plot devices of someone hiding the fact that he doesn’t have a job from his family, AND Homer getting his job back from Burns yet again? [/QUOTE] Homer doesn’t seem to actually _quit_ very often, although he does take a lot of other jobs. I don’t remember a lot of pretending-to-be-employed stories - which did you have in mind? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/25 "2007-09-24T16:52:19Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] Homer doesn’t seem to actually _quit_ very often, although he does take a lot of other jobs. [/QUOTE] One of my favorite Homer lines of all time is the one where Marge says, “Well, at least you can go get your old job back.” Homer: “Not the way _I_ quit!” ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/26 "2007-09-24T17:04:55Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] Homer doesn’t seem to actually _quit_ very often, although he does take a lot of other jobs. I don’t remember a lot of pretending-to-be-employed stories - which did you have in mind? [/QUOTE] Homer quits a lot IMO. Took a job at the bowling alley, became a tomacco farmer, went to astronaut school, went to work for Hank Scorpio, etc. And he always gets his job back. In the early episodes he had to beg Burns for his job back, now either he doesn’t have to beg any more or they just don’t bother showing it. As far as hiding his unemployment, I don’t mean The Simpsons used that device a lot (if any), I just mean it’s been done to death in other shows/movies. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/27 "2007-09-24T17:23:25Z")
[QUOTE=control-z] Homer quits a lot IMO. Took a job at the bowling alley, became a tomacco farmer, went to astronaut school, went to work for Hank Scorpio, etc. And he always gets his job back. In the early episodes he had to beg Burns for his job back, now either he doesn’t have to beg any more or they just don’t bother showing it. [/QUOTE] That’s what I was saying - he takes a lot of other jobs, but it seems like he blows off work more often than actually resigning. Since a chicken can do his job, it doesn’t seem like anybody minds much. Somewhere he has an exchange with Marge that goes “And how will this affect your employment at the power plant?” “Negatively, I assume.” ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/28 "2007-09-24T17:27:15Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] That’s what I was saying - he takes a lot of other jobs, but it seems like he blows off work more often than actually resigning. Since a chicken can do his job, it doesn’t seem like anybody minds much. Somewhere he has an exchange with Marge that goes “And how will this affect your employment at the power plant?” “Negatively, I assume.” [/QUOTE] And in the one where Maude dies, Bart asks him if he even has a job anymore. Homer says, “I think it’s pretty obvious that I don’t.” ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/29 "2007-09-24T17:40:28Z")
Did he even quit this time? I thought Smithers just put the phone on voicemail. How would they check the messages, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/30 "2007-09-24T17:40:45Z")
[QUOTE=Zoggie] And in the one where Maude dies, Bart asks him if he even has a job anymore. Homer says, “I think it’s pretty obvious that I don’t.” [/QUOTE] I think my favorite joke of this type was when Homer becomes a trucker. Homer asks Bart “Don’t you have school?” and Bart answers “Don’t you have work?” The power plant was really one of their best settings, it’s a shame they don’t use it too much these days. I’m sure they could come up with some new work-related plots- maybe they could do one about a company softball team! ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/31 "2007-09-24T17:53:27Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] I think my favorite joke of this type was when Homer becomes a trucker. Homer asks Bart “Don’t you have school?” and Bart answers “Don’t you have work?” The power plant was really one of their best settings, it’s a shame they don’t use it too much these days. I’m sure they could come up with some new work-related plots- maybe they could do one about a company softball team! [/QUOTE] We’re talking softball From main to sandiego We’re talking softball Manning Lee and Ken Sego Ken Griffy’s grotesquely swollen jaw Steve Sax and his run-in with the law We’re talking Homer, Ozzie and the Straw Still one my my top 10 Simpsons shows. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/32 "2007-09-24T17:59:49Z")
We’re talking softball From Maine to San Diego We’re talking softball Mattingly and Canseco Ken Griffey’s grotesquely swollen jaw Steve Sax and his run-in with the law We’re talking Homer, Ozzie and the Straw Fixed that for you. Donnie Baseball needs his name spelled right, even Yankees haters love him, so he deserves it. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/33 "2007-09-24T18:17:22Z")
“I’ve had a lot of jobs in my life: boxer, mascot, astronaut, baby proofer, imitation Krusty, truck driver, hippie, plow driver, food critic, conceptual artist, grease salesman, carny, mayor, grifter, body guard for the mayor, country western manager, garbage commissioner, mountain climber, farmer, inventor, Smithers, Poochie, celebrity assistant, power plant worker, fortune cookie writer, beer baron, Kwik-E-Mart clerk, homophobe, and missionary, but protecting people, that gives me the best feeling of all.” ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/34 "2007-09-24T18:57:54Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] That’s what I was saying - he takes a lot of other jobs, but it seems like he blows off work more often than actually resigning. Since a chicken can do his job, it doesn’t seem like anybody minds much. [/QUOTE] Heck, a brick stood in for him, once. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/35 "2007-09-24T19:06:29Z")
I don’t want to spoil the circle jerk 🙂 , but I thought the episode was pretty shitty with zero intelligent/witty jokes. When the episode writer has [this](http://imdb.com/name/nm0169505/) as his resume, though, what do you expect? And a cameo by Lionel Richie- are they serious? It’s bad enough when they have pointless current celebrity cameos, but Lionel Richie? What’s next- Bull from Night Court? Didn’t Simpsons writers used to need a background in quality comedy writing- Evan Almighty is what passes these days? Jesus. ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/36 "2007-09-24T20:26:57Z")
Wait…so that wasn’t one of the Coen brothers? Well, that explains how underwhelmed I was. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/37 "2007-09-24T20:27:06Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] I don’t want to spoil the circle jerk 🙂 , but I thought the episode was pretty shitty with zero intelligent/witty jokes. When the episode writer has [this](http://imdb.com/name/nm0169505/) as his resume, though, what do you expect? [/QUOTE] He worked on _Toy Story_ at least… ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/38 "2007-09-24T20:42:23Z")
Extremely weak for me. Only one laugh (Semper Fudge). I don’t recall a time in recent memory in which I watched both The Simpsons and Family Guy and Family Guy was funnier. Family Guy blew it away. ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_in\_second\_hand\_clothing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9d8465/32.png) [@wolf\_in\_second\_hand\_clothing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_in_second_hand_clothing)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/39 "2007-09-24T20:42:53Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] When the episode writer has [this](http://imdb.com/name/nm0169505/) as his resume, though, what do you expect? [/QUOTE] “Untitled Larry the Cable Guy Animated Project”? Urge to kill rising… ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2007, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239/40 "2007-09-24T22:50:16Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] When the episode writer has [this](http://imdb.com/name/nm0169505/) as his resume, though, what do you expect? [/QUOTE] A quick IMDb and Wikipedia look show me that you are confusing two different people. Joel Cohen, born in California, is the writer you are blaming for this episode. Joel H. Cohen, born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, is the true writer of this episode, and has only written _Simpsons_ episodes as well as consulted on the movie. (The IMDb listing crediting no-H. Cohen with consulting on the movie is in error). To make matters worse, both Cohens are represented by the same agency, according to the WGA’s website. (There can only be one person with a certain name as a member of the WGA, hence the use of the initial “H” to differentiate Joel Cohen from Joel H. Cohen.) This has been another installment of _Know Your Simpsons Writers_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-simpsons-19th-season-premiere-spoilers/420239.md?page=3)