The end plots Troy McClure references haven't all happened. However, Selma marrying multiple people has happened in the show as she married Fat Tony and Abraham Simpson, and Homer seeing a tiny alien named Ozmodiar did come true in a scene when he ruined the power plant in "HOMR".
Lisa appears in Chief Wiggum P.I because Yeardley Smith, despite having the flu after recording all of her lines in "In Marge We Trust", has a cameo in this episode, like the previous episode, and speaks only one line in the entire episode. It is announced she is replaced in The Simpsons Family Smile Time Variety Hour, which is a likely spoof of the 1977 spin off The Brady Bunch Variety Hour. Eve Plumb refused to participate in this spinoff (she didn't want to appear in all of the planned episodes), so she was replaced by another girl playing Jan Brady.
Homer is the only family member to appear in all three stories.
When Kent Brockman is announcing the debut of The Simpsons Smile Time Variety Hour a clock is behind him reading 8:20, which during the episode's debut, was the approximate time that segment was aired for households that went by Pacific Standard Time and Eastern Standard Time.
The audience wouldn't know who The Yes Guy is since he wasn't introduced until two seasons later in "Mayored to the Mob".
The sound that comes out of The Sea Captains Pipe in the episode sounds like Stepney the Bluebell Engine's whistle from Thomas the Tank Engine.
Cultural References[]
Magnum P.I. - The title of Chief Wiggum's skit is a reference to the famous TV show.
My Mother the Car - The "Love Matic Grandpa", where Moe's Love Tester is possessed by the spirit of Grandpa, is a spoof of this Jerry Van Dyke show, where a man buys an antique car to learn that his deceased mother is communicating to him through the car.
The Smothers Brothers Show - Not to be confused with their better known variety show, the animated opening credits of this sitcom (in which Tommy Smothers dies and becomes Dick's guardian angel) are parodied as the "Love Matic Grandpa" opening credits.
2001: A Space Odyssey- When Grampa/Love Machine was beaten in the bathroom, he sings 'Daisy' while in pain. This is a reference to HAL 9000 singing 'Daisy' right before his higher thinking was deactivated.
Sonny and Cher - One of the segments of Homer and Marge talking during the Variety Hour segment has an orange and black picture of them, directly parodying artwork of Sonny and Cher from their show.
Whip It - The song Smithers is singing and dancing is a reference to the 1980 song by Devo.
Wiggum's incomplete arm
Goofs[]
When Chief Wiggum is talking to Ralph, his arm is briefly put too high up so that the space between his arm and Ralph's blanket can be seen. This makes it clear than Wiggum's arm isn't fully drawn.
When Wiggum kisses Ralph goodnight, his lips never actually touch Ralph's forehead.
An unfinished kiss
The chef with a red button
One of the white buttons on the lobster chef's shirt briefly turns red.
The monster costume missing its top teeth
One of the Mardi Gras monster costumes (actually the Simpsons in disguise) briefly loses its teeth randomly.
A splotch of white on Barney's shirt
During the first scene at Moe's Tavern, a random splotch of white appears on Barney's shirt.
Also, part of Barney's sleeve repeatedly appears and disappears.
A piece of Moe's blazer is white
When he's talking to his date in the bathroom, part of the back of Moe's blue blazer briefly turns white.
In the opening song to the Simpsons' variety show, one of the white stars on Marge's outfit briefly turns red, and one of the blue stars on Maggie's outfit also turns red.
The space between Lisa and Maggie is brown
In the beaver skit, an area of empty space between Lisa and Maggie briefly turns brown.
