A meme is something that spreads rapidly, becoming well known, usually around the Internet. The Simpsons has spawned a couple of memes over the years. An idiom is something that originated from something like a TV show, book, movie etc. But has became commonly used.
Memes[]
"That's a paddlin'"[]
"That's a paddlin'" was a quote used by Jasper Beardly in the episode "The PTA Disbands". The quote has achieved meme status, being used by numerous Simpsons fans on the Internet.
Dead Bart[]
Dead Bart is a story on Creepypasta that has become well known over the Internet. Many fans have been led to believe that it is real, although it is not.
"The goggles do nothing!"[]
Originating from the quote by Rainier Wolfcastle "My eyes! The goggles do nothing!" from the episode "Radioactive Man", the quote has been shortened to simply "the goggles do nothing". It is now a popular catchphrase used for conveying the horror of having seen something unwanted.
"Milhouse is Not a Meme"[]
The phrase "Milhouse is Not a Meme" a paradoxical statement and a well-known debate on 4chan about what makes an Internet meme and what doesn’t, using The Simpsons character Milhouse Van Houten as an example. Since the birth of the debate on 4chan in 2005, the phrase has been typically used to initiate a chain post of recursive nature. Due to its recurrence over time, “Milhouse is not a meme” is often referred to as a forced meme.
Steamed Hams[]
Originally from Skinner's story from the episode "22 Short Films About Springfield", this meme features Seymour Skinner, Gary Chalmers, and the "steamed hams" Skinner bought. Since 2015, this meme has gained big popularity, and has many characteristics, including Skinner's weird expressions (most notably the one he makes at the end of his story and the one he makes right after he says "Oh, no, I said steamed hams".), the phrase "Aurora Borealis", Gary Chalmers, and the actual steamed hams. These characteristics had been used by many Simpsons fans, including in photoshopped edits of Simpsons scenes, non-photoshop memes, etc.
Marge Krumping[]
Originally from the episode "Little Orphan Millie", this meme features a funny screen cap of Marge Simpson while krumping to make Bart better. Since 2016, this screen cap has gained big popularity, being used in Photoshopped photos of other Simpsons scenes, non-Simpsons photos, and in Photoshopped gifs.
Sour mouth[]
There are two separate memes featuring tarty-expressions from different characters. Since 2016, these memes have gained popularity, being used by Simpsons fans on many other characters from the show.
The first is originally from "Homer Badman". When Homer and Marge attend a candy convention, Homer sneakily eats an extremely sour candy invented by Professor Frink known as 77X42. He is later shown with his eyes wide open and his mouth tightly closed.
The second is originally from "Lemon of Troy". This meme features Shelby's Father after he bites into a lemon from a stolen lemon tree. This results in his eyes becoming watery while his mouth also sours up.
"I'm in Danger"[]
Originally from "The Simpsons Guy". this meme features Ralph Wiggum. while Homer Simpson and Peter Griffin where figthing on the Springfield Elementary School Bus ralph wiggum say "I'm in danger" before flying out the window. the meme became very popular. it was as a meme when discussing dangerous stuff.
"Just Give 'Em One of These"[]
Originally from the episode "Secrets of a Successful Marriage", this meme features Moe Szyslak teaching his "Funk Dancing for Self-Defense" class, accompanied by his dancing. Since the summer of 2016, this meme has gained huge popularity on YouTube, being used in remix videos of him dancing to several songs, and also as a screen cap of Moe's first dance being used in photoshopped photos.
Lisa Simpson's Presentation[]
Originally from "Bye Bye Nerdie", Lisa gives a presentation on smart people getting bullied, starting with a slideshow on a projection screen, and followed by an explanation on why this happens. After the slideshow is shut off, the screen can be seen getting rolled back up. A single frame of the blank projection screen is frequently used for text memes, with a meme generator also available online.
"Say the line, Bart!"[]
Originally from "Bart Gets Famous", Bart becomes famous for saying "I didn't do it." after an accident on The Krusty the Clown Show. Even in his own classroom, everyone looks at Bart while Milhouse reminds him to say the line; Bart does so (albeit despondently), and everyone cheers. A 3-panel meme generally replaces "I didn't do it." with a new and unrelated line.
"Pathetic."[]
Based on a school scene from "Bart the Genius" in which Bart spray paints a picture of Skinner saying "I AM A WEINER" on a brick wall in front of his friends, until Skinner and Martin catch them (with the latter pointing out that "wiener" is misspelled); the meme depicts Skinner saying "Pathetic." despite not actually using the word in the original scene.
Skinny/stapled Homer[]
In "Husbands and Knives", Homer looks for ways to lose weight and become more attractive to Marge, and he resorts to stomach staples and plastic surgery. The meme originates from a later scene of Homer inviting Marge into the bedroom to look at his new body. Homer looks good on the front, but from the back, the viewer can clearly see all the loose skin that he's trying to hide.
Homer under the stars[]
At the end of "Mother Simpson", after Homer and his mother Mona give a heartfelt goodbye, Homer remains at his car, staring into the sky until night. The shot of Homer staring into the night is frequently used for more serious posts (though it is sometimes played for laughs), generally with a translucent image of any person or fictional character floating in the sky.
64 slices of American cheese[]
Originally from "Rosebud", Mr. Burns sneaks into the Simpson house with Smithers in the middle of the night to retrieve his teddy bear named Bobo. They sneak into the kitchen using suction cups, but unfortunately for them, Homer walks in with the idea to eat 64 slices of American cheese in one sitting. He eats them all at the table until morning, when Marge comes by and asks "Have you been up all night eating cheese?", to which he responds "I think I'm blind." The meme sometimes swaps out cheese with pop culture, and Homer doesn't necessarily say that he's gone blind.
Marge wants a cup of coffee[]
Originally from "Bart vs. Australia", Marge tries to order a cup of coffee at an Australian bar, but the bartender hears it as beer. Marge tries to correct him, but he still insists on serving a beer. Even when Marge begins spelling C-O-F-F-E-E, the bartender starts spelling B-E-E-R. In memes, Marge and the bartender are talking about other subjects, but they continue to oppose each other.
The real Seymour Skinner[]
Possibly the most controversial moment in series history (and later written off as non-canon), a scene from "The Principal and the Pauper" has still managed to gain meme status. When soon-to-be known as "Armin Tamzarian" and the real Seymour Skinner meet again in the Springfield Elementary School auditorium, Tamzarian breaks the news that he is in fact an imposter, and the other man is the real Skinner. When used as a meme, Tamzarian and Skinner are both replaced with other people or objects.
"It's gone. I know."[]
Originally from "Lisa the Vegetarian", the moment begins with Lisa riding a mower and clearing out a pig meant for Homer's barbecue. As Homer and Bart try to chase it down, the pig ends up dirty after passing through some bushes, slimy after falling into a river, and finally airborne after it gets shot into the air from a hydroelectric dam suction. Homer insists it's still good all three times, but then Bart tells him that "It's gone", and Homer knows very well. The entire moment is considered a meme, though a frame of Homer and Bart accepting that it's gone is sometimes shared on social media to lament whenever a perfect post abruptly vanishes from the feed.
Graggle Simpson hoax[]
Around May 2022, a surge of Mandela Effect-styled memes began rising regarding an alleged sixth Simpson that was apparently removed from every episode of the series, named Graggle, also argued to instead have the name of Gumbly and nicknamed as "Weird Matt" after Matt Groening (as the hoax character had been based on a self-insert of himself). Internet users have edited various episode clips and screenshots to include the character and even share memories of the character that often just tend to be regular scenes from the series with the character shoehorned in. Contrary to popular belief, no such character had ever existed on the show and is merely a fan-creation.
Idioms[]
Cheese-eating surrender monkeys[]
Originally said by Willie in the episode "'Round Springfield", this phrase has been used in other media, most notably by Jonah Goldberg after France's opposition to the invasion of Iraq.
"Cromulent"[]
"Cromulent", originally said by Lisa in the episode "Lisa the Iconoclast" entered the Webster's Dictionary.
"Kwyjibo"[]
Kwyjibo, a made-up word used by Bart in "Bart the Genius", has been used as one of the names of the Melissa Computer Virus, along with "Simpsons" and "Kwejeebo".
"I, for one, welcome our new insect overlords"[]
Used by Kent Brockman in "Deep Space Homer", the phrase has now become used to express submission mockingly. It was also used in New Scientist magazine.
Meh[]
While not originating from The Simpsons, meh has been thought to be popularized by the show.
D'oh[]
D'oh has been added into the Oxford English Dictionary. It is commonly used by people both over the Internet and in real life.
External links[]
- Idiom at Wikipedia
- Internet meme at Wikipedia