Talking Simpsons - Talking Simpsons - Dancin' Homer

Episode Date: November 11, 2015

In a first for the series, Homer gets a new job. Bob, Chris, Henry, and Dave soak in the novelty of that, plus a ton of great baseball observations as this episode takes us all the way to Capital City…

Ahoy, ahoy, everybody, and welcome to Talking Simpsons, where we've all been to 4th Street and D. I am your host for this, Bob Mackie, and who else is here today? Oh, thank you very much. That has not been played on the show since we launched the second season. And it's an injustice, I say. It really is. So who is talking right now? I am Chris Anteese.

And who else is here? Henry Gilbert. Hi. And who else? Dave Rudden. And this is the Lazer Time Podcast Network's chronological exploration of The Simpsons and today's episode is Dancin' Homer, which aired on November 8th, 1990. And Chris

is going to tell us what happened on this mystical day in history 25 years ago. Oh my god! Oh boy, Bobby. This week in Simpsons history, Eve Arden passes away, Daryl Strawberry signs a five-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Rocky Horror Picture Show

is released for the first time ever on VHS with a low, low price of $89.95. Oh, that's a steal. That's one of those rental-only prices, I think. No, no. When they say Disney Home Video, that's different from Disney video rental. And videos for rent would cost up to $100.

Yeah, it was crazy. You got to buy for $90? Yeah. If you remember, there was a huge marketing campaign for the Rocky Horror Picture Show finally coming. Because it was that situation. In the 80s, it was impossible to find it. You couldn't watch it on your own. It's not big enough to be on home video like Bambi.

But it also has a following, so maybe if everybody paid $80 for it, we could have it. Don't tell gamers that, they'll shit their pants. It's kind of like Kickstarter, but with overpriced media that will deteriorate and become useless. Kids, this was back in 1990 when media was worth money. So Dave, you booed that Daryl Strawberry went to the LA Dodgers because he was a myth in the late 80s, and you know

that because you're a baseball fan so you must have really enjoyed yeah this episode is a very weird confluence of like my love for baseball hearing that that was when i was kind of at an impasse for when i was a mets fan because daryl strawberry and doc gooden were my two favorite mets players and they both went to different teams and Why went to the Braves, didn't he? No, he went to the Yankees or somewhere else before that. But anyway, like – The Detroit Wildcats. Yeah.

I had to think, like, should I root for these new teams they're on or should I root for the Mets? And I'm like, I like the Mets. I'm going to root for the Mets. And, you know, we're watching this. We just watched this episode. And to put a little bit of a timestamp on this episode, it's in the middle of the World Series where the Mets are playing the Royals.

Right now they're down by two. By the time you hear this, the Mets will have lost. Oh, no. I still believe. To this day, the only baseball players I know are the ones from the next season's episode, Homer at the Bat. So what's Steve Sachs up to these days?

He's still in prison. Oh, he's in prison? No, that's from the episode. Oh, right, right. Is Ken Griffey Jr. still lost in another dimension? No, Ken Griffey Jr. had the... That was Ozzie Smith. Ozzie Smith was in in another dimension? No, Ken Griffey Jr. had the head with the head.

Ozzie Smith was in the other dimension. I had all their basketball cards. Ozzie Smith, Daryl Strawberry, Don Mattingly, Steve Sachs, Mike Socha.

Mike Socha. So once again, we do This Week in Simpsons History because it shows you how much America has changed and back then baseball was interesting.

Oh, yeah. I did not notice until World Series that Dave has always worn this. I've worn this for an entire month, and it's... It just says NY on it,

and it's orange. Yeah, well, it's usually blue, but because we live in San Francisco, and I kind of want to blend in and not have people call out my not rooting for the Giants, that's why I wear an orange hat. Oh, right.

But anyway... What is this episode about, B.A.P.? This episode is about Homer. I think it's his first Homer Gets a New Job episode, really. I had listed that. This is's his first Homer Gets a New Job episode, really. I had listed that. This is the beginning of Homer Gets a New Job. I mean, he was... He didn't have a job, but when he became the safety

evangelist, that was... It was a new thing he was doing, but it wasn't... He got a promotion in the same place with the same bosses. But this is a completely new job. It's a sports mascot job, and Homer eventually rises to fame as a non-costume mascot. Just a weird

drunk guy dancing around spelling things out with his body. And yeah, like Dave, I kid you on the baseball stuff. I did love that the first, what, third of the episode is just baseball jokes. For sure. There's like no plot. It's just like a bunch of jokes about baseball.

Yeah, I have an intro here with Homer in in it so homer what happened at capital city oh barney come on homer we're dying of curiosity look there's only one thing worse than being a loser it's being one of those guys who sits in a bar telling the story of how he became a loser and i never want that to happen to me please hom, Homer. Yeah, come on, Homer. Well, okay. Also, it's a framing device. This is the first flashback episode. Structurally, it's a weird thing.

Dave, you listen. Sorry, Bob, you listen to the commentaries, I'm guessing, on this. The whole framing device aspect of this episode was done after the fact. If you watch the animation, it's clearly from a later episode where mouths are being recycled, movements are being recycled. It's not very natural. It's real bad. It is really bad. I mean, knowing what we know now the animation, it's clearly from a later episode where mouths are being recycled, movements are being recycled. It's not very natural. It's real bad. It is really bad.

I mean, like, knowing what we know now about animation, it's easy to point out, like, oh, clearly this is ADR work or clearly this is recycled animation. But this was done after the fact. And I think, what was the last episode to be rewritten as a flashback? Wasn't there another one in the first season maybe? I don't remember. I mean, there was Telltale Head. Telltale Head. Yeah, that was another one.

Yeah, that's right. You were just clever it, at least. No, Mike Reese mentions it on the commentary that he thinks it was a James L. Brooks move. And it's something they did in old Dick Van Dyke episodes. They're like, we don't know if this story's interesting enough, so let's have the character tell it

from the point back. And it makes, it gives it an amazing bookend, and I don't know, it makes it... It gives it something of a happy ending. I guess when they're just like, oh, Homer got fired, let's all hug him. When that's the ending, it's like, yeah, it's something of a happy ending and what we talk about they're just like oh homer got fired let's all hug him when that's the ending it's like yeah bob's a member of the no homer society or whatever i have the tattoo and everything on a slicker part of my body that's part of what people hate about modern simpsons is homer getting new jobs yeah i mean it is i mean they've made fun of it within the show itself around season nine or ten like this is a common stock plot for homer but this is the first time that he

left his job and there even had to be, like, built-in, like, narrative buttresses. Like, it's okay for him to leave because of these reasons. I think that's why we find this episode acceptable is because, well, this is from later on in the episode,

but you can see the Simpsons, like, coping with the idea of leaving Springfield and it's the only time they do that because I don't think you can do that again. Oh, here, let's hear it. You only move twice. I'd be lying if I didn't think you can do that again. Here, let's hear it. You only lose twice. I'd be lying if I didn't say that this scares me a little.

But we all have a calling, a reason the Almighty put us on this earth. And yours might be to dance on dugouts. You mean? Let's do it, Homer. Yeah, let's blow this pump stand and never look back. Whatever doesn't kill me can only make me stronger. It's not that simple. I've got to convince my supervisor to give me a

leave of absence sure what would you like four years five years i like that echo he's only in there just for that one joke yeah it's like it's like a six second only time we've ever seen him but i do like this they have a prolonged sequence of the simpsons saying goodbye to springfield which we're really skipping ahead here though yeah this is like second act that is so okay so back to the beginning the entire first act is just homer is going to accompany baseball night the plan is is is paying for this to to pay for nuclear plant employees spouses and no more than three children night at the nuclear uh sorry the springfield uh stadium which is the first appearance of the isotopes yes which um believe it or not like 10 years later the albuquerque's minor league team would rename itself to the isotopes

based on the fan poll. Because there was an episode in maybe season 13 or 14, it's called Hungry Hungry Homer, where he finds out Springfield's team is moving to Albuquerque. It's a giant conspiracy, and he stages a hunger strike because of it. And because of that, Albuquerque's team actually renamed themselves to the isotopes based on the fan poll. So Albuquerque's minor actually renamed themselves to the Isotopes based on a fan poll. So Albuquerque's minor league team is now the Isotopes.

Stacey Keech would play the owner of the Isotopes fan. Very different character than the Antoine Tex dude in this. So on the commentary, this episode was written by Ken Levine. Not Ken Levine, the name creator. Ken Levine. And he plays one of the announcers. You hear a lot of him. He was a minor league announcer for the Syracuse Chiefs.

And actually, Antoine Tex is named after the owner of the Syracuse Chiefs. I love minor league baseball teams. It seems like everybody just chopped city and team name in half and put them in a hat. No, that's what I... It's the Detroit Mets. I don't know if you guys have ever been to a minor league baseball game. They're fun. They're fun because they've got to work harder for your attention.

It's very much represented in this episode. A lot of the tropes of it, like cheap beer. $2.50. They paid $2.50. Two 72-ounce tubs of beer. Those beer tubs, they're like KFC chicken buckets filled with beer. And here's Marge's warning to Homer. I hope you'll space out the tubs this year, Homer.

What are you getting at? Well, last year you got a little rambunctious and mooned the poor umpire. Marge, this ticket doesn't just give me a seat. It also gives me the right, no, the duty to make a complete ass of myself. There's a great scene that opens this episode where it's cut for syndication, I know, because I watched it again, like, wow, what is this this scene it's auto driving everyone to the game out running the cops like it's the first thing you see is like yeah we made it we're here all right that i love that joke as a kid i but yeah i didn't realize why auto would be driving adults to a destination

but i guess he does that he's got he's got one job up until auto's episode episodes were very auto heavy but i think they they gave away all of auto's jokes in that one episode about him I guess he does that at night. He's got one job. Up until Otto's episode, episodes were very Otto heavy, but I think they gave away all of Otto's jokes in that one episode about him. The Otto show. I think we talk about it in the commentary. They're like, we loved Otto, and now we hate him after doing this episode. That episode killed him. It didn't work with Burns.

This is the second straight episode where the Simpsons are having a lot of interaction with Mr. Burns. Yes, but we talked about that, right? The Burns, the two cars in every garage and three eyes on every fish. Yeah. That was done before. Because originally I thought this was the joke that established Burns never recognizing Homer. Ah. Ah, well, if it isn't the simps.

Uh, it's Simpsons, sir. Oh, yes. Homer and Marge Simpson. Oh, and these must be Bart, Lisa, and Expecting. The card needs to be updated, sir. That's such a mystery science reaction to me. It's kind of a callback to No Disgrace Like Home, where he's reading index cards and talking to people

as they walk into this event that he's holding. But as a nerd, and I'm going to mention this constantly as we keep recording, is that I started taping every episode of The Simpsons and watching them every day at two cars in every garage and three cars in every fish. And so, like, this was right after the biggest Burns episode ever. Like, how could you... Who swore to

get Homer. Right. And immediately doesn't recognize him. Immediately resets. That is true, yeah. And I thought that was really funny as a kid. I immediately caught on to the idea that, like... And I think they acknowledged something like that later in the season that Burns will never recognize Homer. I feel like it is a retcon because like, in order to keep these Burns stories going,

we have to acknowledge that Burns cannot recognize Homer. Yeah. In any way. The owner of the company can't, shouldn't in reality hang out with, spend so much time around one family. And that's also the plot. I mean that they make fun of it so well in the,

who shot Mr. Burns two parter. Yeah. Right. Burns just lists it when he sees a photo of the family and it's simply like, Oh yeah, I mean, they make fun of it so well in the Who Shot Mr. Burns two-parter. Yeah, right. Burns just lists, when he sees a photo of the family, the Simpsons are like, oh, yeah, that's Marge. I tried to marry her mom, and that's the baby who had my bear Bobo, remember? And he's just listing all of them. There's my former guard dog. Even the dog, right, yeah.

Even the dog. Okay, the minor league stuff, I wanted to say, I definitely, I didn't go to a minor league game until after I saw this, because when I lived, I lived in Atlanta, and I actually did get to go to a couple Braves games, their major league. I've been to one. But a minor league game, I was always thinking about, like, oh yeah, washed up major leaguers.

Like, just the idea of, like, hey, these losers. Bart mentions that. Well, I have that, again, these were episodes, every line is very important to me. So I had as my tentative line of the show, because I loved it so much. Again, we can debate this. That is a joke.

I love this line so very much. You know, boy, some of the players you see tonight may make it to the big leagues one day. What? Aren't we going to see any washed up major leaguers? Sure, we get a nice mix here. Yeah, that is true.

That's great. And also, clearly Nancy Cartwright doing two reads kind of incorrectly. Yeah. Aren't we going to wash up majors? I feel like they chose the wrong reads for this. I don't know. I don't mean to harp on that kind of stuff. It's been 25 years.

I mess up audio on a daily basis. Also, I thought thought when so when burn sits next to homer homer's talking very loudly about not wanting to sit next to birds like yeah it's right there homer and also that i also wrote that wouldn't a 72 ounce beer kill burn it should it should i remember the there was like a later season eight episode where there was a similar baseball night for the people and lenny gets drunk and he's like his beer smelled of beer and pretzel bread yeah yeah like he was clearly terrified of uh the prospect of alcohol 72 ounces of beer he has it probably 144 ounces of beer because he gets him he gets a second drink with

homer and i love i love this clip of him getting drunk and jeering with homer that is great it's the one time they actually connect the hitters off his rocker kissing betty crocker good one sir oh well i used to rile the late great connie mack with that one at old shy park little baby batter can't control his bladder crude but uh i like it okay what do you say we freshen up our little drinky pools don't mind if I do. Did anybody else look up Connie Mack? I know he's a real baseball player. I know Burns has ties to the Ken Burns baseball era of baseball. I know he was Joe Jackson. He talked about him, too.

Connie Mack is, to this day, the longest-serving manager of a baseball team. He's a player, partial owner. He played his last game in 1896. So I did not get that at the time, but this is another thing establishing Burns as a vampire. Yeah. There's a lot of old-timey Burns baseball stuff in Homer at the Bat again next season.

He jeered a guy almost 100 years ago from when this came out. He also talks about Satchel Paige, who was one of the first black major leaguers. Yeah. I'm surprised he remembered he was dead. I feel like two years later, Burns would just remember. He'd be like, get Satchel Paige was one of the first black major leaguers. Yeah. I'm surprised he remembered he was dead. I feel like two years later, Burns would just remember. He was like, get Satchel Paige. He's still alive.

Actually, yeah, that's the exact joke from the softball episode, which is just like Burns tries to get this team, and Smithers has to point out they're all dead. And so, you know, Homer gets hammered and sees that the team needs his support and jumps out and just starts dancing.

This does seem like an old-timey thingamajig. It does. I don't know anyone who would be entertained by this at this point in time. It does suck. I'm a Capital City

audience member, but we'll get to that later. Well, oh, I did also love such a great observation. I don't think Bleeding Gums Murphy is a great singer,

nor would be hired for that, but it was a very good observational joke of the person who over-sings the National Anthem because they're like, I can't just plain old sing the National Anthem. I have to do it. I have to put my stamp on this. The only reason I ever watched

the second episode of The Osbournes, because I just saw it once, and Kelly Osbourne made fun of Mariah Carey's Christmas album with Jingle As a kid I noticed at the second viewing that you can see the clock and the clock says

the National Anthem took 26 minutes It's a very Whitney Houston style performance I think The voice didn't match. No, it's not Ron Taylor. I like how Lisa is very attentive during the entire thing. She appreciates this. Yes, yes, at least it cares.

But everyone else is falling asleep. Yeah, that's some nice continuity in the show. Speaking of mix-ups, I have to mention, as a baseball fan, the announcers say, we look to snap the longest losing streak in pro baseball, but multiple times in this episode it's mentioned that the Isotopes are a minor league team and that Homer is graduating to the capital city. No, it's not professional baseball.

It's minor league baseball. That's a real goof. But the AAA, that makes you a professional. I don't know. Like, if someone had the most home runs in a minor league season, no one would say he has the professional baseball record. They'd say he has the minor league record. That's true. Yeah, like would say he has the professional baseball record. They'd say he has the minor league record. That's true.

Yeah, like Barry Bonds has the professional baseball record. Also, on a nerdy continuity level, when you're on the Jumbotron, you're not mic'd. Like, people can't hear you. It's silent. Thanks, everybody. At least that wasn't Kiss Cam. But Homer does his dancing Homer thing,

and this is the first appearance ever of one of my favorite characters on the simpsons the unnamed rich texan but i can't take all the credit the batter did his part too excuse me you sir a dancing fella i'm antoine tex o'hara i own the isotopes would you be interested in becoming our official mascot me a mascot for a bush league team i should have slept on it or at least stared blankly for a while perhaps if i'd been unable to think of a nickname all our lives might have been spared get on the bus dancing homer you shut up i'm trying to think of a name yeah the later texas business man would not be fired. I mean, he would be firing guns and saying, ooh. Passing ivory checks.

Here's another thing I never noticed. While dancing, Homer is working for the isotopes. I never noticed this. Forgive me if you did. That Homer misspelled Springfield? Yes. More than once in this episode. I never noticed that.

I missed that. Well, you can barely make it out even in the clip. Actually, I only noticed that because I just love this line. Swung on and missed strike three. Topes lose. Topes lose. Topes lose. I'm just, why they had Ken Levine. Yeah, the creator of Bioshock.

He sounds so accurate. It's because it is his job, but it is... How we use electricity can be smarter, cleaner, and greener. At Electric Ireland, we can help guide you there. You're looking up. You see, our new Net Zero

hub has all you need to know about smart meter plans ev tariffs solar panels and much more making your usage clearer your trips greener your home cozier and your world brighter find our net zero hub at electricireland.ie yeah that's a baseball announcer yes yeah you hear anything so I only noticed that misspelling when I had the captions on on the DVD. Yeah, I never noticed it before. It's hard to tell with Homer's proportions. They start zooming even faster at that point.

Yeah, like later in the hotel room when they're in Capital City spoilers, but he does it again. He misspells Capital City too. Because Homer, even though the Topes lose at that very evening, he learns that he's being invited to Capital City, the big leagues. You wanted to see me, Tex?

Homer, now we both knew when you began doing this, you weren't going to be here forever. Oh, oh, oh, I get it. You can't fire the players, so you fire the mascot. You make me sick. Homer, I'm not firing you. I just got the word. You've been called up to Capital City.

Me? In the majors? That's right. Wait a minute. Capital City has a mascot. The greatest mascot there is, the Capital City Goofball. Yeah, but he's getting on in years, and he needs someone to fill in for a couple innings a night.

Could be a big opportunity for you. I'll say. Why don't you talk it over with your family because they might say no so oh also there's the thing worth noting in here that they mentioned on the commentary this was the first episode directed by mark kirkland that's right yeah i believe still has the record of most episodes directed like he never left and he's still on the show yeah he's still doing it today really Really? Like the 27 season run?

Yeah, and this was his first. And they mentioned too on the commentary, I gotta say on the commentary, Groening is being a real priss about everything. I don't like those lines above their eyebrows. We got rid of that. You told us to do that. The eyeball. I would have taken it back.

I don't like the curved things over Homer's ears. They should be pointy. Wes Archer started doing curves like, this is the kind of, you've talked about it a million times, Bob, but that's the kind of like things that were artistic stamps that got just like gotten rid of eventually, erased by Graney. To make everything more uninteresting and uniform. Pretty much, yeah. But by the way, I love the design of Dancing Homer and I had to buy him.

I have Dancing Homer's right there in the room. Oh, wow. I forgot about way, I love the design of Dancing Homer and I had to buy him. I have Dancing Homer's right there in the room. Oh, wow. I forgot about that. Here, you can listen to him right now. I'm holding him in my hand. Sitting in a cracker box, which is in a novelty rum jar. What the hell is wrong with my apartment?

He's like a Matryoshka doll. I'll take him home. I should have left him here. But I thought it'd be a funny prop if we used him like three times. And we did. And I guess he served his purpose. So the Simpsons go to Capital City, which I only getting now is like a very very like super high level joke

about like a famous place that is also very nondescript yeah because they're naming like these landmarks that don't really exist indeed yeah and like different restaurants and bridges yeah it's kind of a like melange of like manhattan and chicago and la yeah to keep it even then they're like we don't want to say what state the simpsons are but hands up be honest who thought this is an actual city my mom my parents explained to me immediately when the show was on i was like oh capital city what's that they're like it's a joke it's the capital city i know i probably did but i don't remember i definitely did like i thought it was a real place that you could visit but then i'm looking at it now and like the animation is so rough. It looks like they're going to the worst area of town,

and they travel to the city at midnight. I think it is also a joke about the Simpsons' low expectations and low standards, where it's like, oh, this one corner is really important, but nothing is happening on it. I remember when I first went to New York, I get in the cab, and we finally arrive in the city, and I am gawking out the window at the size.

The buildings, I've never seen this before. I was exactly like that. And I've always, I've been in love with New York ever since. You've capered like a stupid clown when you look at those things. This is Tony Bennett, correct? Yes. And he's there. I'd be March identifies him.

Good to see you. Good to see you. Yeah, that was a song. The Capital City song was written by Jeff Martin who wrote every good song in the first eight seasons. And was this like the first real explicit song in the show? Original song?

The Bleeding of Murphy song was original? Oh yeah. The Moaning Lisa one. That is an original song. I sound 70. I feel like it's the first one that broke reality though. Because it's like, sorry, Tony Bennett's gonna be here. And you can say hi to him. Singing about the city but you can count him in the street that's

the kind of that's the kind of crap we make i've made fun of of recent of the last decade or so of the simpsons to say like lady gaga how'd you get here that's the same type of joke it is but it was a little more risque back then where it's like we're gonna break reality but i think it's the first like non-diegetic song we're like we're not sitting here listening to a song that someone is singing we're in the song yeah and we're like part of this this kind of musical event that's happening yeah that's another thing they complain about in the commentary is that they're like it doesn't even look like tony bennett that looks like victim oh he does a smile at the end that i find so charming that no other character ever does he's on the screen for like five seconds. Five seconds, yeah. And I watched...

Still alive, once again, Tony Bennett, who was playing an old person almost 30 years ago. Is he like 80 now? Yeah, he's in his 80s. He was elderly in this episode. He looks really old. You can talk to him.

He was in an interview on Colbert years ago, a few years ago, saying like, oh yeah, I supported the Civil rights movement in the 60s. My grandfather just died, so I can assure you with 100% accuracy, Tony Bennett put an album out last year. He loves Tony Bennett. He was just on 30 Rock

in the last season of 30 Rock. He was in it in pretty much the same capacity he is in this episode. Is he the first Simpsons guest star to give a bad vocal performance? His song is good, but good to see you. Good to see you. It's like the weird inflection. It's probably the best reading they can get from him.

Good to see you. Like, the normal way you say good to see you. Not good to see you. I do, I don't know, I love the heart of this episode. I love Homer going and taking on a bigger task role that I think he's not capable of. I love, this is again stupid fucking runner up for line of the show but

it's a vote. That's the joke. Don't forget to cheer for me. I'll see you after the game when you're a big star. Art was strangely quiet. Later he explained he was confused by feelings of respect for me. But the

Homer eventually meets the capital city goofball, which is like, for some reason... Played by Tom Poston. Tom Poston. Do you have your musical sting for this, Chris? Oh, no. I haven't used this in so long. Well, he's dead.

Death stalks you at every turn. There it is! Death! So we haven't used that in a while, but that is our death jingle for a dead cast member or a dead character. First one of this season. First one of this season.

The death jingle. I think so. But he died in 2007. The joke behind this is Tom Poston is a very dry, very mundane kind of character actor, but he's playing this guy in an insane costume. He only has one scene in this entire episode where he's just talking to Homer about the mascot life, I guess.

Yes, it is also one of my favorite lines because, of course, I didn't get it as a kid and I love it now. The fifth inning will be yours. Everyone is settled in.

I had a couple of beers. The game is official. It's a pretty important inning. Wow, the fifth. It's also the inning I wish I had a zipper on the front of this thing if you know what I mean. Here's the strike, Mr. Goofball. Hey, call fifth. It's also the inning I wish I had a zipper on the front of this thing, if you know what I mean. Here's the right, Mr. Goofball. Hey,

call me plain old Goof. So, what exactly do you have planned for us? Well, I get up, I dance, I spell out the name of the city all to the tune of Baby Elephant Walk. Ah, Mancini, the mascot's best friend. Love that line. That's my line. I think it's great just because it's also like, it is important to do

but I love characters overthinking a very simple job. The fifth inning, that's when the game's official. What? I also liked the little continuity thing they did there. There's a photo in the locker room of Homer with Princess Cashmere. It had spread to Capital City and somebody put it up in the locker room. My line of the show is something that was

only funny in 1990. It's Marge saying, a Simpson on a t-shirt. I never thought I'd see the day. I wish I could say I had that, but I do!

Oh! That music. The woman who plays it is great. A Simpson on a t-shirt. I never thought I'd see the day. We'll see a couple of inside jokes like that. Yeah, like I think the underachiever and proud of it

from Bart gets an F. And in Bart vs. Thanksgiving, there's something that is acknowledging the fame of the Simpsons on the show. I think that's the most direct they've been about a joke. We're so popular, we're on a t-shirt. I'll hold up Bart vs. Until next time. Meanwhile, Laz we're on a t-shirt. I'll hold up Bard versus, until next time.

Meanwhile, Lazer Time has a t-shirt. We might not actually. I mean. We did. We did. Obviously, I think what the Monkeyspaw episode is their most obvious joke about how overexposed they became. Yeah.

This is really getting out of hand. Getting out of hand. So this episode ends, I think. Well, like Homer's reception as Danson Homer in Capital City. Right, it doesn't play to the big leagues, I guess. Just to set up my clip. I was graceful. I was witty.

Brother, I was something. But they didn't care. It was so quiet you could hear each individual smartass remark. This guy doesn't make me want to cheer. Gee, I really pity him, making a fool of himself in front of so many people. These cornball antics may play in the sticks, but this is Capital City.

The only applause I got was for dragging my carcass out of there. I love that, and that's one of my favorite vocal inflections of anything. This is Capital City. An aristocrat. Well, the guy who says that is a guy in a t-shirt with like a single tooth like they make fun of that on the commentary he's the arch hillbilly it makes sense because like this isn't being filmed this is homer's story right that is what he's hearing people say he doesn't really know i see i feel like there could have been more to i like i find

this set this conclusion unsatisfying a bit because it's like he didn't homer didn't do anything wrong no like he just was not prepared for this level of entertainment and no one else told him like, you have to step it up. You got to put on a costume. You got to do this. You got to do that. He just had one chance. It's the goofball's fault for telling him like, yeah, that'll work.

Yeah. I feel like the goofball undercut him and was setting him up to fail. I think the goofball probably did his thing long enough that he was accepted as classic in an institution, but was just as lame when it premiered. By the way, you're a mascot. The best you can do is be lame. Well, what about the famous San Diego Chicken? Oh, that guy.

Don't know him. I only care about the Toronto Raptors and the inflatable outfit that falls down on the courts in YouTube videos. There probably is instances of secondary mascots, but none are coming to mind. But what they do have a lot of baseball stadiums is they'll have the mascot, like in the case of the Mets, Mr. Met, but then he can't come out every inning. So sometimes they'll just, it's the t-shirt crew. They're going to shoot t-shirts at you. We did. Which that happens in the latest episode.

Killmaw Flanders, right? We did the college Florida State baseball games. There was just one drunk dude who sort of did have the ability to capture attention within the stands of the stadium. Yeah. And had a name that I forget. The Mets actually have a guy named Cowbell Man who just walks through this one, like the middle section, like from one end to all the other and like slams a cowbell. People love him. I remember at Braves games, they did have, at least when I was a kid, they had more than one mascot.

The puckering moron. I mean at Braves games, they did have, at least when I was a kid, they had more than one mascot. The puckering moron. I mean, I'm sure one was some level of racist against Native Americans. Chief, score him up. And then probably the other was some sort of puppet character, I think, or Muppet-y person. Oh, another bit I did love was that Homer is told to go to the office, and he just doesn't put on clothes. He just did his athletic supporter. For God he just doesn't put on clothes that was so risque too of having homer's like but i mean it's not his first bare butt it's not sexually arousing to most people i would think but still yeah i think it was his first bare butt yeah it might have been so the episodes end with like another unsatisfying bit of adr i just like

i don't know what this episode was supposed to be before this kind of editing process happened where it's Homer in the bar again talking about how like the fact that his family forgave him didn't really make him feel better but the fact that he can tell

a story to his drunk friends is what makes him feel better. Yes. But I want to know what the episode was like before this process happened. I guess it just ended with the Marge

telling the kids, hey, Homer feels bad now. Let's all hug him. You did it, Dad. You know what my theory is? It was supposed to end the way that five other episodes in this and last season,

which is Homer in bed with Marge. Oh, I failed. That's right. It's like, it's okay. I love you, Homer. You gotta stop doing that. It's starting to really get repetitive. I think we're using the same animation every time. That's an excellent point. Maybe one time it can be the bar giving him the...

And it makes sense from a sports perspective. Well, here, I have the clip. I do love the ending. Okay. We're soccer. Hey, you guys are hanging out my every word. I've become the center of attention. Yeah, it's riveting.

Cut it again, Homer. Okay. I wonder why stories of degradation and humiliation make you more popular i don't know they just do by the way richard zakai is in there for no reason he is he shows up in the background with like a giant mustache i like it because one he's he went from being a failed center of attention to being the center of attention again it does fit like thematically like he finds success through failure and also as somebody like all i do is record podcasts later type podcast.com but like i am in a constant search for anecdotes and stories and homer in my opinion got the best thing out of this he could have gotten which is a story that's true yeah

nowadays he would have a podcast he would he would i would tweet about i have to make it a point to go do different things all the time so I have different things to say on podcasts. I think Homer was a bit reckless. He should have gone... They sold their house. They sold all their stuff. Then they just leave town when he should have just gone like, this is a one-night tryout

and if it succeeds, we'll hire you. Instead they're like, yeah, move to Capital City one night up. They didn't sell their stuff because they stayed in the hotel. Patty and Selma, they get the handoff when they leave, right? They were having a yard sale. Oh, that's true. For sure.

And I did like the bit with Lisa saying to all her friends that they're not friends. That was my, again, triple runner-up line of the show. That's the joke. I can't help but feel that if we had gotten to know each other better my leaving would actually have meant something yeah that they all agree with her and yes that is if i ever left my hometown before 25 that's the goodbye i would have had to do like the show acknowledges lisa has no friends yes it's been an entire season we've not seen her

where they went but like janie a few times so it's about right. And Gore Vidal is still a few seasons away. We got a bunch of lines of the show and I'm proud of this one. Yeah so this was Dancing Homer everybody and Dance in. Dance in. Sorry. I didn't hear an apostrophe in there. I'll correct myself next time so

Dance in Homer. And thanks for joining us. I am Bob Servo on Twitter. Also listen to my podcast. It's really inex Homer. And thanks for joining us. I am Bob Servo on Twitter. Also listen to my podcast. Wow, Bob. Thank you. It's really inexcusable for me not to play that every time we do the show. It's about damn time. And I also host Retronauts, which is a classic gaming podcast that you should listen to because

it's great. Lovely. Recently, you guys celebrated the launch of the NES, I believe. We did. The 30th anniversary, actually. So that just happened. So please listen to any episode you want. I'm sure you can find a good place to jump in at.

Who else? And that's on Patreon just like Lazer Time right yeah this show is brought to you by I don't mean it as a sponsor but it's brought to you

by Patreon.com slash Lazer Time we put this as a crowdfunding initiative for people to launch and they did and if you haven't paid for it

the reason you're hearing is because other people did and the first season is available exclusively there because they made it happen 13 episodes are waiting for you at patreon.com slash laser time and including other shows

commentaries weekly movie commentaries fun stuff but you know laser time podcast.com for free and check out the show laser time we just finally got done with a bunch of Halloween episodes I don't know what's in store for us soon probably shame songs but we definitely could use your help right

now because we're trying to bring a buddy of ours on board Brett Elston that's open that is our new I don't know what's in store for us soon. Probably shame songs. But we definitely could use your help right now because we're trying to bring a buddy of ours on board, Brett Elston. Wow, that's open. That is our new... That's right. I don't know where the tier is at at this recording, but that's our next goal is to bring our buddy Brett. I want Brett on the laser time ship

or whatever you want to call it. We're going to bring new shit in tow. Yes. So thanks for joining us, everybody. We'll see you next week with a brand new episode of Talking Simpsons. Until then, we'll see you next week with a brand new episode talking simpsons until then we'll see you later once you get a whiff of it you'll never want to roam capital city my home sweet swinging home