Das Bus/References

Cultural references

 * The title is a play on the film . However, since Bus is of male, "Der Bus" would be correct German.
 * Most of the episode about being on the island is a spoof of the classic novel ', although in the end of the story the boys are rescued by, who themselves are in the middle of a war. This ending is however true to the 1990 film version of ', which made numerous changes to the original story.
 * When the kids are squabbling in the classroom, Principal Skinner restores order by banging his shoe on the desk. Skinner's actions are similar to Soviet dictator at the UN allegedly banging his shoe on a table.
 * When the rest of the children (led by Nelson) are chasing Bart, Lisa, and Milhouse and have smeared charcoal ash on their faces; Ralph Wiggum's face resembles of.
 * In : Jumping the Shark several of the characters are also stuck on an island because of a bus crash.
 * In the scene where Bart defends Lisa from Nelson, it is similar to a scene in the episode,"Bart The General", where Bart defends Lisa from bullies.
 * Milhouse swings across the chasm on a vine but refuses to throw it back to Lisa and Bart, similar to the behavior of Satipo towards in the opening scene of .

Trivia

 * The fishermen were voiced by Asian voice actors. Originally the producers wanted the lines to be done in Mandarin. However, the voice actors convinced the Simpsons producers that Cantonese would be a better fit, as that language is spoken more often by Chinese fishermen and sailors, as many of them live in the coastal regions of China, where Cantonese is most commonly spoken.

Goofs

 * Trinidad and Tobago is one country, but is represented by two people: Sherri and Terri.

Deleted scene

 * Homer buys several anti-stress items found in workplaces. He uses them all and becomes stressed as a result. The scene was cut due to it taking up too much time in the episode.