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There's Something About Marrying |
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Previous Episode References[]
- "Homer's Phobia":
- A controversial Simpsons episode about homosexual issues (being tolerant of gay people/gay marriage being legalized)
- A Simpsons parent (Homer/Marge) is initially wary about someone in their family being gay.
- "Summer of 4 ft. 2": Marge is intolerant/ignorant of homosexuality (doesn't think boys can kiss other boys/is shocked to find that her sister, Patty, is gay).
- "Three Gays of the Condo": Julio appears
- "Much Apu About Nothing": Selma mentioning that she has been married and divorced several times.
- "A Star is Burns": Springfield does something to repair its damaged reputation (have a film festival after being named the most backwards city in America/legalize gay marriage after Howell Huser writes a negative review about the town).
Trivia[]
- Because of the controversy over gay marriage in the United States of America in the past, this episode was given a Parental Discretion Advised warning before the show, the first time for The Simpsons. The episode was also rated TV-14 for suggestive dialogue (D) and sexual situations (S) because of this. In Australia, this episode was rated an M and included a "parental advisory: adult themes" warning for the same reason above.
- At the end, Lisa points out that Homer's marriage business is now over, with Bart asking why. This is a reference to every harebrained scheme Homer had concocted in the past, only to have it end for one reason or another, whereas Bart's "Why?" points out that nothing really got Homer to put an end to his business even though nothing bad happened to make Homer end it, yet in the episode after he is back working at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.
- At the end of the episode the following characters are lined up at Homer's chapel: Captain McCallister (marrying a Dainty Lady figure), Comic Book Guy (marrying a life-sized cardboard cutout of Booberella), and Ralph Wiggum (marrying a tiger).
Cultural References[]
- The title is a reference to the 1998 film There's Something About Mary.
- The couch gag is a reference to the NHL hockey lockout of 2004, which shut down the entire 2004-05 NHL season.
- Veronica sings a couple lines of the Aerosmith song "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)".
- Blinky turns into the monster from the movie "Creature from the Black Lagoon".
- After Barney takes the beer, he says, "As the Roadrunner says to the coyote, meep, meep!".
- Howell Huser is a parody of long time public access host of "California's Gold", Huell Howser.
- Bart sees Huser as a perfect target because he literally just fell off a turnip truck.
- The song playing in the background as the gay couples celebrate their togetherness in Springfield is a parody of several Harry Belafonte songs, particularly "Jamaica Farewell" and his signature "Banana Boat Song". Although Belafonte is straight, his name is dropped in the line "I'm gonna marry my Harry in Springfield town."
- Homer's ceremony mentions gay marriage "in Massachusetts and Vermont, maybe Canada - stay out of Texas...", reflecting (somewhat) the legal status of same-sex marriage as of the episode's February 20, 2005 airdate.
- Massachusetts: same-sex marriage was legalized in May 2004 and at the time of airing, was the only state to do so.
- Vermont: while civil unions were recognized, same-sex marriage was not fully legalized until 2009.
- Canada: same-sex marriage had been legalized in 7 of 10 provinces and 1 of 3 territories. New Brunswick legalized it on June 23, and on July 21, 2005, the Civil Marriage Act established same-sex marriage nationwide.
- Texas: same-sex marriage was not legalized until the Supreme Court decision Obergefell v. Hodges established gay marriage nationwide in 2015.
- While making jokes about Patty's marriage, Homer references the 1955 Ed Wood film, Bride of the Monster, a b-movie featured in "Mystery Science Theater 3000.
- Patty calls Selma a "Twisted Sister". Twisted Sister is the name of a heavy metal band.
- The song "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Sera, Sera)", previously featured in "Bart's Comet" is used again during the montage of the signs that Patty is a lesbian.
- Marge discovering that Veronica is a man is a reference to Chris Hillard discovering that Mrs. Doubtfire is his father in disguise from Mrs. Doubtfire.
Goofs[]
- Marriage laws in the United States prior to the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision were chosen by states, not cities.
- Reverend Lovejoy is unable to cite the book in the Bible condemning homosexuality (allegedly Genesis, Leviticus and others), yet in "Homer the Heretic", he is able to cite a completely random Bible verse of Homer's choosing from memory (Matthew 21:17).
- A flashback reveals that Patty knew she was a lesbian as a teenager, yet in "Principal Charming", she enters a serious relationship with Seymour Skinner (though it's possible to retcon the failure of that relationship as being due to Patty's struggle with her sexuality, as opposed to the stated reason she gave Seymour).
- There are a few instances in this episode where the lip sync does not match what they are saying.
- There are a few cuts where the characters were seen in the same spot as the previous shot.
◄ Season 15 | Season 16 References/Trivia | Season 17 ► |
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Treehouse of Horror XV • All's Fair in Oven War • Sleeping with the Enemy • She Used to Be My Girl • Fat Man and Little Boy • Midnight Rx • Mommie Beerest • Homer and Ned's Hail Mary Pass • Pranksta Rap • There's Something About Marrying • On a Clear Day I Can't See My Sister • Goo Goo Gai Pan • Mobile Homer • The Seven-Beer Snitch • Future-Drama • Don't Fear the Roofer • The Heartbroke Kid • A Star is Torn • Thank God It's Doomsday • Home Away from Homer • The Father, the Son and the Holy Guest Star |