Talking Simpsons - Talking Simpsons - Lisa's Pony

Episode Date: May 11, 2016

Lisa stops loving Homer, so he does the only thing he can: buy a pony and then get a new job at the Kwik-E Mart in this week’s podcast…

Ahoy, ahoy, everybody, and welcome to Talking Simpsons, the Lazer Time Podcast Network's chronological exploration of The Simpsons. I am your host, Bob Mackie. Who else is here today? Henry Gilbert. Christopher Wildfire Antistone. I'm Dave Rudden, and I want you to play with my ding-a-ling. Oh, maybe later.

Anyways, this... Num-num, good salt lick. Today we're going to be talking about Lisa's Pony, a great episode. It aired on November 7th, 1991. Chris, what happened on this mythical day in history? I'm Black Jericho! Not sure if you'd believe me, Geraldo and Bette Midler aired their dirty sex talk on radio. What?

The absent-minded professor Fred McMurray is dead at 82. Oh, man. For the first time in a month, 60 Minutes unseats Roseanne at the top of the TV ratings. Fred McMurray, great in double indemnity. Please see it. Double indemnity. Fucking great. Indemnity is a hard word to say.

No one knows what it means anymore. I've had three beers. He was also the shaggy dog, right? No, he was not. He's in the shaggy dog. Was Fred McM, he was not. He's in the shaggy dog. Was Fred McMurray the one in Pet Sematary? No. No, you get Fred Gwynn.

In a great movie, I just saw The Apartment with Jack Lemmon. Oh, really? He plays a philanderer. It's funny, like, Fred McMurray is known for Disney, like, wholesome Disney stuff. Follow Me Boys, one of my favorites. Double Indemnity is a story where he's an insurance agent that helps a woman kill her husband to get his money and to get her body okay so this episode i want to point out is directed by carlos baeza one of the more unsung directors on the simpsons he only worked for a few seasons but he's great i love how his episodes look and chris he was an animator on tummy trouble

what yes what is tummy trouble please the roger rabbit short that uh i believe it aired with honey i shrunk the kids okay i wasn't sure if it was the City Slickers one. No, no. Who Framed Roger Rabbit? No, there was no City Slickers one. Oh, I thought there was. Just Dick Tracy and... Oh, Cheetah. Great Panda Adventure. Yeah, one of those terrible,

terrible foreign... Not foreign films. But where white people travel to a foreign land film that Disney was doing a lot in the mid-90s. Oh, sorry. Tommy Trouble is great.

Please go watch that. It's one of the best. It might be the best Roger Rabbit short. Can you buy those shorts? They go watch that. It's one of the best. It might be the best Roger Rabbit short. Can you buy those shorts? They're on every DVD that you can buy. Cool. So this episode on every DVD.

Wow. Roger Rabbit DVD. Okay, thank you. On all the digitally versatile discs. Again, three beers. Apologies. Again, Carlos Baeza, he helped direct the beautiful Golden Slumber sequence we'll talk about later.

But this episode is about Lisa getting a pony. And where do we start with this episode? It starts with a parody of 2001. Do we have that? But there's not much to get at. It's all visual, yeah. But it's more like I said last episode was the perfect cartoon. And this is The Simpsons becoming the perfect Simpsons show.

A weird premise. You won't see this on a normal sitcom. It's animated well. It's funny from beginning to end. And I think there's a better 2001 parody in Homer the Heretic next season where I think it is the Von Lutz scene and everything. In the womb too. It's him in the womb. But this episode is written by

Al Jean and Mike Reese who were also overseeing the show at this point. And the inspiration from it is their extreme exhaustion from having to work so hard on the show. And neglecting their children too. At this time on the show. And neglecting their children, too. And neglecting their children. Wow.

At this time on the show, too, this was them. They're a couple years away from creating The Critic. And at least the opening is a very critic opening. Oh, opening with a parody? Yeah, opening with a parody to kill time. That's something else Gene and Reese always talk about on their things is they were always short. They always needed more time. They needed the Flanders bit at the end of the one episode.

If you haven't seen 2001 A Space Odyssey, you should. I agree. You also shouldn't feel bad because there is no way any of you saw this. The 2001 before this episode. 40 minutes of that movie is a screensaver, to be honest. But it's a beautiful screensaver. I love it. I love 2001.

The Simpsons' relationship with 2001 is kind of similar to its deal with Citizen Kane for me because I saw a million references to it, and then I finally saw the movie. Now, it was more obvious, the references to 2001, and my parents were like, oh, this is 2001. They always identified it. This one is an unmistakable parody. But I didn't see 2001 until 1995, and I only watched it because my dad bet me $5 I could not stay awake for the entire thing. And I did, but only because of that bet.

Because once Hal is dead and he is approaching nothingness, nothing fucking happens. What? It's 16 minutes of visual effects from the 1970s. It is the take your acid moment, I think. But I think 90 minutes of that film is such an amazing story. Oh, yeah. The fight, like them versus Hal on a spaceship is just great. So great. I love that.

But anyway. It's the 1970s. What else are you doing with your time? It opens with a 2001 parody, but really opens with a phone call. Dad, I'm calling about the school talent show. Don't worry, I know it's tonight. No, Dad, I broke my last saxophone reed and I need you to get me a new one. Uh, isn't this the kind of thing your mother's better at?

I called her, she's not home. I also tried Mr. Flanders, Aunt Patty, Aunt Selma, Dr. Hibbert, Reverend Lovejoy, and that nice man who caught the snake in our basement. Wow, and after them, out of all the people in the world, you chose me. That's not insincerity. That's just Homer becoming the greatest Homer ever. I wonder if there's a that man who caught the snake in our basement on Wikia, an entry for that guy.

I'm sure there is. Well, they don't have the baker from the last episode that was somehow like a cop or something. But they do have Aunt Bella from Stark Raving Dad. Though this is also a Gene and Reese thing, especially Gene, he loves Lisa Homer stories. He wrote, I believe they wrote Moaning Lisa, the first Lisa-centric

episode of the series. I think secretly they are the episodes most likely to win them Emmys too. They would freely admit that. An emotional story with Homer and Lisa, two characters that have nothing in common. I mean, it's most obvious in the episodes most likely to win them emmys too they would freely admit that like an emotional story with homer and lisa two characters that have nothing in common i mean it's most obvious in the one where they kill bleeding gums murphy oh yeah not a great episode i agree and they and they said flat out we wanted to win an emmy with that one the credits show it they they want they it was one of the rare teleplay credits so they could be they could be on the story credit meaning they'd win the emmy like they were thinking that far like oh

we'll totally win an Emmy for this. Double Emmys. Don't count your Emmys before they're handed to you at Kodak Theater. Wow. I just have a note, as Skinner is being so great, like perfect Skinner as well. I do want to say, Chris, that we see the very last of Skinner's initial character trait, mispronouncing things. I think it's the last time he says stormy leather instead of stormy weather. I have three Skinner clips in a row. Well, you're

in for a whale of a show tonight. I'd like to point out that the doors are now locked, so you parents can't sneak out of the show after your own child has performed. Oh, and let me caution the people in the first five rows, you will get wet. That feels like a Gallagher reference.

It is. I didn't bother to check, but is that the same crowd from the Christmas pageant? No, they're drawn much better. Some of them look bad. Well, there's still the point of they don't have a full character pack. They're like, well, we have to fill this out. Okay, here's a season one drawing of somebody. I wonder if JustSnapTheTicketGuy was in that audience.

Does he have a kid? Does he have a wife? I need to know. Speaking of season one characters, why is Bleeding Gums Murphy on the Judging Channel when they have a music teacher? And he's been introduced. Largo. But come on.

Wouldn't you want a published musician? I wonder if that really was Ron Taylor doing his voice. I didn't check the credits. Absolutely not. I didn't think so. We do see Lunch Lady Doris for the very first time again. Doris Grau. Doing a great job. She was. Doing a great job.

She was the waitress in Izzy's. She played the waitress in Izzy's Deli a couple episodes ago, but that was not Doris. Lunch Lady Doris. Yeah. And she was also a nurse, too. So I think Lunch Lady Doris is playing. I get two paychecks this way. That's right.

Thank God. More Skinner. My ding-a-ling. My ding-a-ling. I want you to play with my ding-a-ling. This act is over. Well, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to put this filth behind us. Let's all enjoy Lisa Simpson's rendition of Stormy Weather.

Weather. That's old skin. Homer has not shown up with a read yet. So, my ding-a-ling. Let's talk about this. I knew that whole song, and I've lost it all. Can we close with my ding-a-ling? I would love to. Because I knew that whole song and I've lost it all. Can we close with My Ding-a-ling? That'd be great. Because we sung it all. I wanted to

close with something else, but if you prefer it, Bob, it's all you. Either that or Golden Slumbers. It's only a personal thing. I'll get to it. But My Ding-a-ling is a Chuck Berry song. It's a real song. All about your dick. Well, the ding-a-ling he talks about is a bell gift given to him by

his mom. Very common gift. But lots of puns. It's full of puns. I can't even remember the song. We sung it at camp together. I believe in one part his ding-a-ling gets bit by a turtle while he's going through a swamp. He's like, I heard bells ring and that was the end of my ding-a-ling-a-ling. Now, the thing they talk about on the commentary is that that's a Chuck Berry song.

Chuck Berry songs are very hard to clear because Chuck Berry is a crazy person. now the thing they talk about on the commentary is that that's a chuck berry song chuck berry songs are very hard to clear because chuck berry is a crazy person and you have to find him in person and give him cash in person and he has to want to accept it like it's and you have to find him in between like him watching women shit on a glass table above his face so he's hanging out with danny thomas you have to find his cousin Marvin. Marvin Barry. Marvin Barry, who scouts everything for him. Yeah, Chuck Berry. Chuck Berry is famous for like... Was he a sex offender?

He filmed... He owned a restaurant, I believe it was, and he secretly filmed the women's bathroom. That sounds like him. He was famous for wanting to be farted on in bed.

He was the early R. Kelly for bathroom. Somebody's got to do it. It doesn't make you a bad person. It does not. I'll talk about that later. For the women who farted on him, we're over 18, so it's better than R. Kelly. But the thing is, he's...

You've got to get them pre-teen farts. Anyway, the thing is that he's almost impossible to get clearance for, and so the way they got it was they got the producer of Simpson Sings the Blues, who knew Chuck Berry, Buck Cherry in person. Buck Cherry in person. Is that guy's name actually meant to be a reference to Chuck Berry? Did I just blow your mind? Wow, I never thought. Oh my god.

The point. I love the cocaine. So yeah, that guy had to. The only reason my ding-a-ling is in there, because they were able to get a producer who knew Chuck Berry. Oh man, that's like their Herb Alpert connection. I know, it's nuts, man. Homer does not show upb Alpert connection. I know. It's nuts, man. Homer does not show up in time to give Lisa a read. It's a four and a half read.

I just want the four and a half read. I love all that stuff. It didn't sound good in clips. And again, King Toots is established to be next to Moe's, and it has always been next to Moe's ever since. Yeah, except for the movie. Oh, man, that's right. The movie The Church is next to it.

They needed a joke of The Church next to it. It's a great joke. It is a great joke. It's worth it. But when they remember to put it there, King Toots is there, that would come back in another Gene and Reese episode where Lisa gets her sax. I happen to be that moron.

So granted, Homer is a jerk for going to get beer before going to the music shop. And Marge predicts it. That's about right. Yeah, but also, Lisa should have known enough to tell him the exact type of reed to speed up the process. Well, not, did she say alto or soprano? She didn't say alto or soprano.

How can you forget buying a saxophone? Dave, for reference, it's more than any PlayStation you've ever bought. I know, but still. Oh, they're expensive. They're really expensive. Mr. B. Natural was shilling those things, and they were a lot of money. I forgot that there was the Alto or Soprano part, which is like, that's probably an important thing to note.

Alto or Tenor, sorry. You know what? They're so cheap. I was like, Homer, just buy two. Yeah. Just buy two. Buy both. I'm guessing he bought both.

But he didn't get there in time. Well, I do like the Doris Grouse says, that's a whole lot of nothing. I like that line too. And Homer saying, That'll do. It's not my fault. It's the reed. Oh, yes, of course.

It's the reed. Let's hear it for Lisa Simpson and her wacky sex. Such a dick. I love Patriot's Escort. And her wacky sex. Also, I liked how Homer said, me and my trenchant mouth. I thought that was a joke I missed.

I mean, it's just a thesaurus word. Very accurate and cutting, I think. Did I miss this thing where he's learning a word a day? I don't think so. No, we're not up to the vocabulary builder that he said instead of getting his weight loss mnemonic devices. But yeah, I also like that when Homer takes a gum off his shoe right before that, they do draw the gum on his shoe that's right yeah yeah baeza was smart enough to keep that in but yeah also homer like making a note to fill a hole in his shoe when i have very terrible shoes right now i don't know if you can see that real well on audio yeah are those uh they're bad are those uh

chuck taylors or not because they disintegrate like in the sun, I think. These are my ding-a-lings. Oh, wow. The job where you work at home, you'll never have to wear shoes again. Yeah, and it rarely rains here, so I never notice until like every four months. Like, why are my feet wet?

Oh, right. But this is, Lisa is like probably more pissed at Homer than she's ever been. Homer has to regain her affection. Who knows how. No wonder she hates me. Oh, I never even noticed she was alive homer

if you want to make up with lisa just spend some time with her reuse from the from the first episode episode one it's when he's banging his head on the racetrack rail yeah just picked up on that immediately this is the third time i think i think maybe stark raving dad could have been the next one or something like that. I also appreciated the continuity they would have later. I think it's the first time we've seen Homer in Lisa's baby era of his hairline.

Yeah. And it would be the same hairline when they flash forward to Lisa's first word, which I guess would be... This year's flashback is Bart being born. The next year's flashback is Lisa's birth.

It's coming up soon. I think I used this. My parents wouldn't help me get a car when I turned 16. And I just decided to stop speaking to them for about two months. Oh, wow. And everything got really bad. But I tried to use Lisa's tactics. And she didn't ask for a pony, mind you.

She just, they knew she wanted a pony. Homer, because Homer was afraid by hanging out with her he'd be too fruity. Spending time with Lisa, she'll forgive you. Marge, if I spend any more time doing these girl things, I'm going to, you know, go fruity. No, you were right the first time with that quick fix idea. Let's see. Quick fix, quick fix. I'll buy her that pony she's always bugging me for.

We can't afford to buy a pony. Marge, with today's gasoline prices, we can't afford not to buy a pony. Quick fix. I don't buy her that pony she's always bugging me for. We can't afford to buy a pony. Marge, with today's gasoline prices, we can't afford not to buy a pony. That's my line of the show. All of this is very close to my line of the show. I love Homer going, ha ha, you love me. That's my favorite part. And by the way, you assholes who claim to love The Simpsons, not Bob necessarily. We work together every day.

And usually you will come in the room. And I'm working at the The Simpsons. Not Bob, necessarily. We work together every day, and usually you will come in the room, and I'm working at the station we're recording at, and you'll ask me something, and I'll be like, I'm like, what? I'm like, it's not. And you never fucking get it. You see my thumb drives.

I know that joke. All my thumb drives are... I love this exchange. Orange, I've got to get her a pony. When I look in Lisa's eyes, I don't see love anymore. That's no reason to buy a pony. See? Even when you yell at me, I can see love in your eyes.

Stick to the subject. Ha ha, you love me. Let's be realistic. A pony is very expensive, and we have enough trouble paying bills as it is. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You sound like you're going to buy a pony. Promise me you won't. What was that? Was that a yes or a no?

Those aren't even words and snuff is marge's uh group against cartoon violence and itchy and scratchy and marge revelation which would come back i guess one last time as a punch sound effect in the radioactive man they love snuffing yeah i was great so. Should have called the show that. By the way, the price of gas in 1991 was 56 cents a gallon. So much. I'm weeping right now. We've all driven a car in the last five years.

I haven't driven one in eight years. The end of that scene, he said both those things and Marge is just frustrated. And then it's a classic, lights are out, homer both eyes open up giant shitting and grin i love the cartoon eyes and mouth they never do that this also feels very this episode feels very looking backward to season one one because like lisa and her pony is really more of a season one thing even in two she barely mentioned it's not like this will her pony obsession does come back

this isn't like the end of it but yeah i had a little sister i think they were stealing from merchandise because every character had their own like line that didn't really work too well and lisa's was a penny saved as a pony earned i would see that on like posters and merchandise like wow like they were they really had this pony idea for lisa really early and so i think it was just jean and reese being like smart of just saying, oh, she constantly mentions the pony. We can just do that. That could be an episode. I think it's a universally understood thing that a little girl would want, and super

expensive and unattainable. And also in the season one spirit, it was so weird that they did him blow-drying her face, the reference to the Bart the General, like with the same animation. It was just Lisa drawn over Bart. It was so weird. And That's the great thing about this episode. The animated, I don't know what, feats?

The camera spinning around Lisa playing the saxophone. Oh, yeah, that's Carlos Baeza. They go way out of the way to make this look like a really good television animated production. Because I think the comparisons to the Flintstones were at an all-time high. Oh, yeah, like, this is a radio play animated. Let's show you this is not the Flintstones when we can. Yeah. Do you have Homer going to

All Creatures Great and Cheap? I don't. Only because the salesman was not my Hank Azario Bronson person. It's like, merely take a left at the rendering plant. It has a joke that I'm not a fan of,

which they started kind of doing this early, where Homer is also the smelliest man ever. So I miss that. I miss mentioning that in the Treehouse episode because in last week's episode,

when they come upon Homer's body, the stench is overpowering. He's not dead. He just smells that bad. So that was the first ever Homer smells really bad thing. And I've heard them in interviews say, why do we do this?

He's already stupid and fat. Why do we also have to give him the runner of he's the smelliest person alive? He's got to be allowed to meet people before offending him he smells worse than a mall pet shop yeah apparently worse than a rendering plant yeah a pig fat and i think he's yeah exactly and there's there's an episode later where he's going to like uh i think i think it is the rendering plant where is that what you're talking about it's when they're next door that's right yeah you'll be surprised how soon you get used to the smell of melted hog fat. Then Homer looks in the window next door and the guy's working on it like,

what's that smell? It could be this rendering plan in this episode. I'd like to think so. Does anybody remember the equestrian dame's name? She is not named at all. She's actually a parody of Katharine Hepburn. It should have been Tracy Ullman. Yeah.

It should have just been the return of Winthrop, though. But the name of the establishment is the Grateful Gelding. Do we know what a gelding is, everybody? I now know. I didn't know as a kid. But yeah, it is a castrated male horse. Yeah, so the idea of a Grateful Gelding is kind of strange. A strange one.

Also, the Bronson voice guy would be running the pet store in Dufflis. He writes novels under the name of... He thinks of the ending first, then writes backwards. He said he's going to eat his kids in a minute here, kid. I'm buying a pony for my little girl, and I don't care what it costs. Very good. That stunning creature over there is half a million dollars.

Half a million dollars? He was sired by Seattle Slough, and his mother won the Kentucky Derby. Wow. His likeness graces a stamp in Tanzania. I'll take it. Mr. Simpson, do you have half a million dollars? Uh, sure.

Let me write you a check. Mr. Simpson, this check is dated January 1st, 2054. Is there a problem with that? Our ponies start at $5,000. Cash. Isn't there like a pound where you can pick up cheap ponies that ran away from home? I sincerely

hope not. That's only 38 years from now, Homer. 2054 doesn't feel that far away. Did you not see how good at haggling he is? It went from half a million dollars to five grand. Well, that is for the top thoroughbred. The Simpsons will be right back. How we use electricity can be smarter, cleaner and greener.

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Then you might like Bonus Time, Lazer Time's weekly bonus show exclusively on patreon.com slash Lazer Time. Here's a taste of what you've been missing. I was glad that I got sick after drinking with Wes. He had that whiskey, and I never drink whiskey. Every time I do, it's a bad time. So he's like, you know, just take a pull.

I'm like, a pull? How much is a pull? A finger. So I'm like, one gulp of it. That seems enough. True to form, I did get sick. I'm debating whether I should have done this, but I took the bus home,

and it was one of those things where I'm like fading in story. I'm debating whether I should have done this, but I took the bus home. And it was one of those things where I'm, like, fading in and out on the bus. God, you're one of those people. Yeah. I somehow luckily get my wits back right as the bus is pulling up to my street. I get out, and I think everything's fine. But about, like, five steps in, I'm like, oh, I'm going to be sick. Literally just spew, like, probably, probably like a water balloon's worth.

A small water balloon. What color? Pink. I got a little bit out, so I felt like maybe that's all I needed. But no, it was literally every half block. I would barf another. You're canceling, dreading your way through San Francisco. And I was so tempted to, like, the next morning just, like, retrace myself. But I was hungover, so I didn't.

Get bonus time laser times weekly full-length uncensored and ad-free patreon exclusive podcasts as well as weekly full-length movie commentaries wrestling and cartoon video commentaries physical rewards the first season of talking simpson and more at patreon.com slash laser time starting at just five bucks you'll help us live and we'll do our best to help you never be bored again. Homer needs money. I still don't get this joke. Need money. I do.

In terms of the things I saw my dad lose his mind over. I knew my dad loved The Simpsons as much as I did. It was this exchange when Homer goes to the plant to ask for money and Burns shows up. It's Burns. Burns shows up. I just love that at first. Again, it's the writer saying, why doesn't Burns just do it? Why would he take a loan from anybody? And Homer asks the same question.

I'd like to borrow $5,000. Hello. Simpsons. How can I help you? And Homer asked the same question. I'd like to borrow $5,000. Hello. Simpsony. How can I help you? Mr. Burns, you do this personally? No, it's a hobby. I'm not in this for any personal gain, heavens no. By the way, are you acquainted with our state's stringent usury law?

Yes. Usury? No, silly me. I must have just made up a word that doesn't exist. Now, what is the purpose of this loan? I want to buy a pony. Isn't that cute? Smithers, he's planning on joining the horse, he said.

That is it, isn't it? You're not planning to eat it. Eat it. Jesus. I do like his... Sorry, I must have made up a word that didn't exist. Usury is not a thing that comes up in court cases. I've never heard it ever in my life.

I booked it up for this. Usury is the practice of making unethical or immoral monetary loans that unfairly enrich the lender. My dad had to explain it to me. That's how the Jews were persecuted. They're usurers. That sounds like every credit card I've signed up for. Yeah, and we should point out this is in the days of unions. And if you had worked at a big company,

you probably had a credit union, and they would reward you for investing in the company by keeping your money within the company at a bank. I still have money in a Florida employee commerce bank in Florida.

It's like $200. Let's see what it looks like. Maybe it's got that Fry Futurama thing on it for 20 years. The way Burns is like his malevolent laughter and then just really like,

oh, Smithers was saying something funny. I didn't say anything funny. Shut up. His commitment to being an evil character through getting money. It's just. I just love like, shut up. It's just a running thing everyone says in The Simpsons. This is almost my favorite line of the show.

Bart asking like, Homer does get Lisa the pony. And we have the obligatory godfather joke in which she wakes up with the horse in the bed, which, like, Lisa would wake up with Homer putting a pony inside of the bed unless he drugged the pony or something. Yeah, but who cares? I agree. I mean, that scene is great. I've heard, Chris, you're a Disney

fan. I've heard that's them, that's Walt Disney they're making fun of. The man in Godfather who they put the horse oh that's what the producer who is the producer who liked getting with his young ladies and was mad that frank sinatra got with her instead and so he makes a film that frank sinatra can't have that i had heard that that was disney specifically they were wow i had no idea i just love this line it's great hey how come lisa a pony? Because she stopped loving me.

I don't love you either, so give me a moped. I know you love me, so you don't get squat. This episode, Homer has the uncanny ability to sense who loves him and who doesn't. That's how he gets over Marge, too. Yeah. Like, I don't think I could tell. Every day I wonder, like, this is the day my girlfriend leaves me. This is when it happens.

Well, with parents, did you ever have that feeling of like... It might be we're recording Simpsons podcasts at 8 o'clock on a Friday night. She packed her bags, but you were too busy recording a podcast to know. But the pony is named Princess. It goes by pretty fast if you didn't catch that. Yeah, you don't really hear it until the very end. The Catherine Hepburn lady is not named what the pony is in this episode. Love costs a lot of months.

$530 to store a pony, which, man, I think that's quite... It's more than to host a podcast on a website. Yeah, and the fact that it also includes writing lessons and language lessons. Seems like a steal to me. It's a lot less than Stampy would be. The Grateful Gelding has really got a racket going there. Because, one, they sell it to Homer for $5,000. They charge him for at least a month of stable fees.

And then Lisa gives it back. It is not implied they get the money back. I hate to cut to the end, but they just get a free horse back. They can just sell it again for $5,000. I just have to play this. Homer, just where were you planning to keep this horse? I've got it all figured out. By day, it'll roam free around the neighborhood, and

at night, it'll nestle snugly between the cars in our garage. Dad, no! That's illegal! That's for the courts to decide. Oh, that's a great line. I just wanted to mention, if I never had, it was a total recall moment. About 16 and 17, I went through a year in high school where I didn't speak.

And then when I did, it was in the Homer inflection of talking like this and then kind of like this. And everybody treated me very weirdly and I couldn't understand why because I thought I was speaking the funniest way I could. I don't know. I had not thought of that in a long time wow then the next act begins with another thing totally unrelated story but in case you're a new listener we all write about video games or used to so what did we think of the atari game they were playing in 1991 it's not quite he's playing asteroids it's not quite as savvy as their punch-out parody it's not parodying a specific game which i I was disappointed in, but I like Dan

Castellanos' what seems like improv, like, where's the hyperspace? I forgot this existed, because I didn't start taping The Simpsons on Sundays until, like, season three. Season three or four. Yeah, that was totally hacked out, because, yeah, it starts with the stronger joke, which is like,

oh, you have a gift for me? Oh, I thought it'd be money. I got down on the floor for this. That's a great line. But in 1991, at the stronger joke, which is like, oh, you have a gift for me? Oh, I thought it would be money. I got down on the floor for this. That's a great line. But in 1991, at the very least, don't draw an Atari controller. Like, nobody had been playing with that for a decade. Yeah. Well, for five years. I think maybe the Punch-Out Parody did have joysticks, though.

That was two years ago. They have had time to learn. But I did enjoy the sort of improv-y, Dr. Cat style between Nancy and Dan. We pointed out all cartoon shows got video game controllers wrong. And Henry pointed out an issue you can buy right now on Comixology, the Archie. Archie gets every controller in every era completely right. Oh, wow. The Archie comics. It's insane.

Well, the Archie, you know, it's underappreciated in archie comics but the artists and writers work hard to be right with the trends because they know the the savvy kids they want reading it will know if they're wrong about a fair there's an archie video game collection where all the stories revolve around video games and every era that it looks like an nes controller it looks like a playstation controller it looks like let's just say a third controller. I can't remember. It totally is worth five bucks just to see.

Yeah, I read the whole thing. They're like, oh, they wrote this one when the Pokemon craze was on. They wrote this one when Super Mario was on. They wrote this one when Pac-Man was on. And I remember being hypercritical of that as a little kid because video games were my world. The Simpsons now need money because of Princess. Dear, we're in serious trouble here. We're just going to have to cut down on luxuries.

Well, you know, we're always buying Maggie vaccinations for diseases she doesn't even have. Actually, I was thinking we could cut down on your beer. Nah, we're not going to be doing that. I'm afraid there's no choice but to give up the pony. First, you didn't want me to get the pony. Now you want me to take it back. Make up your mind. Homer. Marge, Lisa loves me to get the pony. Now you want me to take it back. Make up your mind. Homer.

Marge, Lisa loves me. The pony stays. All right. You got us into this. You get us out. Fine, I will. There's plenty of money out there for a guy who's willing to work for it. The Simpsons having a meeting about money problems is a very season three and four idea,

which I like because it does root them in some sense of reality. We are not infinite money cartoon characters. We can't just do whatever we want. I did like his follow-up line there. You don't have any jewelry you don't like anymore, do you? By season seven, Bart will say, can I have $700?

The strange vision, because I do remember my dad's very savvy with money and stuff and does all his own taxes, that I've never felt the need, and I was afraid watching this, am I going to have to spend a month on a calculator in the kitchen table figuring out expenses?

And now that I don't ever, like, wow, am I living an adult life wrong? I think there's software now. I did think, but I also thought when we're always spending money on these vaccinations Maggie doesn't use, I'm like, well, you know what when we're always spending money on these vaccinations Maggie doesn't use. I'm like, well, you know what?

I've been spending money on health insurance every month this year. You have a tax penalty. Yeah, I haven't been using it. The tax penalty is less than your premiums. I know it because I lived it. And then you just have to cross your fingers and hope you never get sick. Yeah, it'll never happen to me. And I love this storyline.

I keep confusing it. I kept expecting James Woods to show up. Oh, it's very much like Dog of Death, actually, where it's like, we gotta cut things from our lives. One scratch for cash, please. This is great. Liberty Bell. Two Liberty Bells? Come on, come on, come on!

Oh, yes! Woo-hoo! Three Liberty Bells! That'll be $10,000, Appu. Oh, congratulations, Mr. Homer. Thank you. If I could just see the ticket. Well, there it is.

You pleased to be removing your thumb? No. Yes, please, I must insist. No! No! You have to look at the ticket. No, you can't see too much. No!

No! Let go! You're ripping it! Cherry. Oh, Mr. Homer. No! No! Let go! You're ripping it! A cherry. Oh, Mr. Homer, what has reduced you to such cheap chickenery? Oh, I need money. Well, if you need money, you should have at least jammed a gun in my ribs. Or better yet, you could inquire about my help-wanted sign.

You're looking for help? Yes, we need someone for the demanding yet high-profile midnight to 8 a.m. shift. I'm your man. You're hired. Woo-hoo! I like Apu's a cherry. That would have been my favorite line, but it has more to do with the musical cue. Yeah.

A cherry. But, yeah, I love all this scene. Like, first Homer chanting, need money, before going in, just to make it clear he needs money. And then Dan's acting on pretending he won like homer and then the great dan and hank improv there they have to be together in the same room and i think this episode is the close the closest they've gotten to apu to this date like he'd most lines he'd ever had i'd say too and that's the first mr homer and when he says like when he says one of you would be working for me I love that line

I wish I would have captured it but this I did capture this because I just remember this before we ever started the show everyone there's a bunch of kids crowding around to watch Lisa

play with Princess and it's the most not it's the biggest one of the biggest animation gaffes the biggest animation gaffes of the third season this is season one Ralph.

He has Nelson's voice. This is Ralph Wiggum, by the way, the last kid to speak. He certainly tamed that horse. Yes, but what man can tame her? So, look, I do agree Nancy fucked up his voice, and that is the Nelson voice, but that is the character until he learned about Spyro Keats in the Bergstrom episode.

Ralph was his character. Very wriggly. It's just that his character model is so on model. And everything else is working right now. And hearing that voice come out of Ralph at this stage in The Simpsons is so awkward. It wasn't that long ago that the Chocolate Factory episode also kind of slightly off-model voice for him. I mean, chocolate's like barf. Yeah, it's like, hmm.

Yeah, it sounded more like Nelson there, too. That's true. This is a personal clip. I shouldn't even play it. It's Lisa playing to Princess in the stable. This next song is also about a girl and her pony. It's called Wildfire. So, Jesus. See, I feel like this is indulgent like any white people in the 80s my parents are very into james taylor oh and i had a little rideable with the horse on a stick thing

and my parents named it wildfire it was my favorite toy and it was named and like sooner later like you know what you're you know your toy its name, son? Wildfire put on a record, listen to this. And I grew up loving the song Wildfire because it was my favorite toy. So to me, I feel like the song is bigger than it is. People might not know this James Taylor song. I really don't. I never knew it was a James Taylor song until today. She'll be riding wildfire.

I thought it was a song Lisa, until right now, I thought it was a song Lisa made up. She's like, I made up this song called Wirefire. That is James Taylor, baby. So Homer is sleep deprived from working at the Quickie Mart, and we get a great only purely visual sequence set to Golden Slumbers by the Beatles, where he's driving in his car and it turns into a bed and he's lifted by angels and the moon is winking at him. It's like little Nemo. And I always think of this when I come home from a work trip

when I'm like, I'm so tired, I just want to get back into my bed. I imagine myself at home or just being carried away and the moon is like, yeah. I had a few instances like this during my college days because I went to a commuter college. And I had the brilliant idea one semester to stack it. So I basically had like one and a half days of of class so one day would literally be 12 hours of classes and sometimes i was sneaking up in there

but a lot of times i would not and i would also cram and do a lot of my work the night before pull an all-nighter not dave yes and then do 12 hours of like like college and then drive home. And there are times that I came close to pulling a homer in this instance. I have recurring nightmares about driving and being unable to open my eyes. Driving in fogs and poor driving terrifies me.

My commute was like, oh, I'm on these highways where I'm the only car for a mile. I've gotten tired i that has happened and i had car so shitty that the radio barely my big question is you just wrote up something about the simpsons arcade game yeah what that that came out february of 91 yeah it was before this episode aired but this is a level in the simpsons arcade game it is in a way clearly but it is it like it's black and white it takes place in the Simpsons arcade game. It is, in a way. Clearly. But it is. It's black and white.

It takes place in the clouds. It has the same sun and moon. Yeah. But we talked about the Simpsons didn't have a lot to go on, and we're sending perspective sketches. It could have been a pre-production sketch or something like that. I totally agree. I would believe that, yeah. But what I love about this scene, though, is there are no

jokes for 45 seconds. They let the beauty of the music and the animation carry the scene and then the joke comes at the end and it's worth it but it's like that still gives me goosebumps that song and the animation and Homer they trusted Carlos Baeza and his team to do it well but remember what I said about fuck you Flintstones so there's no dream

sequences in the Flintstones so the music in that scene is the Beatles song Golden Slumbers though it's not an instrumental it is but, so that's the thing. They talk about how they wanted that song. Like Gene and Reese, imagine like this scene works with Golden Slumbers.

They spent what they thought was a shitload of money on it. And when they got it they're like, this is a cover. Yes, like a Beatles cover just licensing song rights will cost you a shitload of money. A Beatles master will cost you half a million dollars. That's what Mad Men did a few years ago.

But there's a giant gap in between the world accord and a GARP when I'm 64. Yeah. Mad Men using a real Beatles song. That did not happen in any entertainment. entertainment i mean well so the difference too is that like the reason you'll hear a cover of you want a revolution in a nike ad which drove paul mccartney crazy is because they didn't have the song licensing rights yeah that was michael jackson and his company all right yeah but the master rights were owned by apple records and so they got to be a little choosier about they did who got it and the prices could be even higher but i mean they are beatle songs just like a led zeppelin song you almost never hear a like a led zeppelin song and stuff beatles even less i

think we're only going to start to hear that like within the next five years especially after the next one dies i'm saying paul you can't hear like five notes of stairway in wayne's world because of led zeppelin it sucks yeah but the joke is ruined and i hate it i think it is opening up more at least on the beatle side of things because five years ago, I cannot imagine that the Amazon music app has every Beatles album. You can just stream it. It doesn't matter how young you are. You have to remember when the Beatles came to iTunes

and the iTunes changed their marketing for a month. We have the Beatles. Does anybody want to discover the Beatles on iTunes is that even a thing those songs are all on YouTube no one really cares I remember going to Union Square in San Francisco and there were four billboards of just like the Beatles this band that broke up

40 years ago finally here well I also remember in 2008 it was a big deal in the late 2000s when they put out the reissue. They reissued all the albums. They're like, this is the re-release. This is it.

And it was, I think music writers were calling it the last CDs you will ever buy. These are them. Like, this is the end of CDs because the perfect Beatles CDs came out. During this is my favorite light dough from Homer as he goes to bed for one minute. I do like the table saw hitting his head though it looks very painful yes homie how long do you plan to do this i don't know how long do horses live 30 years yeah no no uh i like all the stuff in homer and his quickie mart outfit this is great that's the trainee quickie mart outfit that apu never wears

until he gets fired From the Quickie Mart In the James Ward episode Bart calls him Pink Hat I love Sorry when Bart calls him Pink Hat Though that's a change It's not pink

In the other scenes But I think they realized In the audio It's Pink Hat's like Well we gotta paint it pink For this scene But it's not pink In every other scene

I like when he's like Yes sir It is weird to think By this math That Princess is still alive Like Yeah We do see This is Dave's obsession, by the way.

Anytime we do a Monday Night Movie commentary via Patreon.com. The movie's more than 20 years old. It must be pointed out the dog is dead. The dog is dead. The cat is dead. We see a little taste of Apu's single life, which I think Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein would revisit in the 22 short films about Springfield, where he has a lot of sex. Which just celebrated its 20th anniversary. Oh, God, no help.

But yeah, the return of Princess Cashmere. They're like, well, who would be having casual sex with Apu? Princess Cashmere. Someone involved in a scandal. Al Jean and Reese mentioned that they didn't mean for it to sound like Apu orgasms before that scene started. He's like, come on, Apu, get in here. Like, whoa! Oh, he's destroying my story. started he's like he's like come on apu get in here like oh oh he's

destroying my story and he's like whoa that that could he mentioned he can screw her to climax yes yeah but here but we've i feel like we've been teasing this for several episodes we talked about the writers being former carson writers okay and this is the biggest slam on carson i just heard millie vanillie was arrested for impersonating a McNugget. Well, this is true. Well, it's still fun to be up late. It really is great because the joke is there is no joke. He's just saying

contemporary things that someone fed him. He loves the word McNugget. I think it's surprisingly mean for the Simpsons. That's a real person. I forgot how mean that was of Bart. The joke is, Bart knows it's not funny. As a 10-year-old. Yeah.

10-year-old. It's just like their jokes about the political singer a few episodes ago. Just them saying, we want to be clear. And then the characters just say, we want to be clear. We don't think he's funny either. But they make up a fake name for him. And they've been showing Johnny Carson in like every episode leading up to this. And he'll be a guest soon.

I guess he forgot about all of that. It'll be a year and a half. Johnny doesn't watch TV. Also, speaking of reusing animation, very lazily they reused the Lisa Mumps thing. I noticed that. Just to fill time of like, when are you going to stop loving me? They just repeat it. They reuse the animation from at the start of the episode

of him answering the phone and then of Lisa calling him on the phone asking for a teen boy magazine. Exactly. We not only see the mumps on Lisa's face, we see Homer wearing the assassins that are all torn up. Yeah, that's right.

So I was like, this is a really out of place scene in this episode. Clearly they were late. They could have cut to some other time he was on the phone at the power plant. That's weird. It's so insane. Again, kids, you'll never see this again. We'll never use animation cells.

It's really out of place, though, because we see Homer's shoes in the beginning. It's very important that he writes the note on his shoes, but in that scene he's wearing the assassins that are all tuned up. That's crazy. I did not do this at all. Post-Sin is a little helper, I think. They must have just been desperate to fill more time. You all ready for my line of the show?

I did like Bart's reaction to finding out he works at the Quickie Marts. I have all that there, but Lisa gets the line of the show for me. Oh, good. That's the joke. What's wrong with Dad? He's just exhausted. Lisa, do you know how much it costs to keep a pony? No.

Well, it's a lot. In fact, your father had to take a second job. The poor guy. Where's he working? The quickie mart. Lisa, I hope you realize that your father can't keep this up. You're going to make me give up Princess? Lisa, we can't make you give up that pony.

I can make her. Just give me five minutes alone with her. No, Bart. No one. I can make her. Just give me five minutes alone with her. No, Bart. No one's going to make her. This is something Lisa has to decide for herself. All the years I've lobbied to be treated like an adult have blown up in my face. That is a joke that me and my brother would make about our little sister. Like, just give us five minutes with her.

Five minutes alone with her. I think I have considered my... I'm not smart. The only way I had any foresight is I hated the idea of being adult. I hate the idea of being adult every day. Always have. And you all should too. I just always remember that episode we did of Laser Time with April Richardson.

She's obsessed with Saved by the Bell and we're the same age. And I watched that show, but I didn't want to get involved with high school cast systems. I didn't want to age any more beyond my NES and playing football with my friends. Doug Funny was as far as you wanted.

Yeah, yeah. I didn't, I never wanted that. Still don't. I was good at 12. Yeah. Adult dreams blowing up in your,

like being asked to make an adult decision always sucks. And I love Lisa being able to realize that. Catherine Hepburn gets a pretty good deal here. She just gives him back.

I do like her line, like, I can assure you my heart is breaking. She likes a little carrot after her oats. And she really likes it when you scratch her behind the ear. And if you're playing the radio, she likes contemporary adult in the morning and easy listening at night. Please take good care of my princess.

Although there is no change in my patrician facade i can assure you my heart is breaking father i'm having ever so much fun i think that's a terrible line read incredibly well oh zach she's great i i think it is worth mentioning the animation on the horse is very good like they're not photographing a horse like to draw an animal naturalistically in the Simpsons style cannot be easy. They studied the photography of Edward

Muybridge, which was basically the first study in animation. It was like a bet between rich people. I bet the horse's feet don't all touch the ground at the same time when it's galloping. They set up a bunch of cameras along the ground. The horse would run. They would all go off. That's essentially how animation was created. Holy shit. Yeah, I forget who won.

I believe all the feet are off the ground at the same time. Okay, yeah. So a bet between rich people made animation happen. Thank you, rich people. Finally, they're pulling their weight. You invented animation on accident. You know they're out there popping a cork. Yes. They finally think this. I do have a line in the show, Opu,

saying, the young man you replaced is rolling over in his grave. All. They finally thanked us. I do have a line in the show, Opu, saying, the young man you replaced is rolling over in his grave. All of that exchange is amazing. I called last episode the perfect cartoon, but I do think

this is the perfect Simpsons episode at this point. Opu is so lenient. He should have fired Homer a while ago. I think it's just

that working at the Quickie Mart is the least wanted job of anyone. I think it's just working at the quickie mart is the least wanted job of anyone I think I think it's the perfect episode I love how it culminates with Bart harassing Homer

at the job he now knows he has and Lisa shows up to say like well you're free of this burden but every a poo line involved with that

is awesome he slept he stole he was rude to the customers still there goes the best damned employee a convenience store ever had i really love uh the pink sky the pink light cast on everyone reminds me at the end of uh three men in a comic book when it's like a very very beautiful dawn when like the the weather's breaking and everyone's just in this beautiful lighting. Her riding the Homer horsey is just so cute. And again, Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein would borrow this release of The Vegetarian. Yeah.

How about a veggie ride? Actually, Bob, that episode was executive produced by Dave Merkin. It was one of the two Merkin took over for that season. Oh, really? Sorry, force of habit. I will fight you now. But I'm sure Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein... I did feel a little bit robbed that he said he was rude to

customers, and we never got to see a real scene where he was rude to a customer. It's just the implication that... He was drinking out of the squishy machine. There is no model convenience store employee, because no one has any expectations for them. No one survived long enough to be a model employee.

Well, it is always strange to see, like, somebody who seems like they could do better than a convenience store working in a convenience store. Like, what happened? Why are you here? It's called the convenience store

because it pedals and vices in more expensive products than you'd get at a regular grocery store. But you're here at two, so fuck you. Yeah, Flanders is buying his groceries there.

I've always thought that was weird about The Simpsons. That's a weird scene. He's overspending. But it's only to see more of Pooh, essentially. You don't want to make a cashier every time. Oh, but that scene was weird. So was Ned...

That's what I didn't get. Was Ned... Okay, Ned's counting out the pennies when he puts them down. Sure. So does that mean he is... Why is he laughing conspiratorially? Because it seems like he's giving him exact change. And Ned wouldn't... even at this point,

Ned is a goody-goody who would not steal from the store a short change of night. I think he is giving exact change. The joke is he thinks he's getting away with something. Like, I'm so clever and I'm so funny. But he's just letting Homer sleep while he does the goody-goody thing, which is the joke. I think it's supposed to be a scene where you see Homer is noticed and demeaned by his peers. It could be that too, yeah. That's supposed to be a scene where you see Homer is noticed and demeaned by his peers.

It could be that too, yeah. But I guess Ned is laughing at his next door neighbor is having such a bad time, I guess. But that seems a little mean to Peter. The rest of it is him being mocked by his family and just personal suffering. Yeah, because it is shameful to have a job at a Quickie Mart. That's the message here, people. You failed if you worked there. Yeah, at a Quickie Mart. That's the message here, people. You failed if you worked there. Yeah, the Quickie Mart, yeah. And the Simpsons will not own another pony until Saddlesore Galactica,

which is a terrible episode. Is that the one with the cake song in it? It's the one with the jockeys singing. Yeah, that is literally... I think there's like three times where I'm like, I am punching out and leaving the show. The commentary is great because Matt Groening has literally never seen that episode before. Wow.

And he is reacting as you would expect him to. Again, Frank Grimes was one of those episodes, too. I love the Frank Grimes episode. I've recanted. Now it's meta and it makes sense. But that episode in particular, I'll never watch the show again. That could be the end of the show for me. It could have been a great last episode.

Yeah, when Comic Book Guy just shows up to say, worst episode ever. That's them. That is one of those most clear middle fingers they ever gave to fans. Like, if you notice and care about this, fuck off. You're as bad as comic book fans.

We're phoning it in and we love it. Yeah. This will have no ending where the stakes will be do what they say or they'll eat your brains and then they're just going to

beat the shit out of a bunch of junkies. Save it for a couple years and just sit on it. We'll see you in 2019 for Telescope Galactica, maybe. I actually won't be alive. That episode sucks.

It's bad. Anyways, but Lisa's Pony was so good. Am I right, guys? Yeah. Great episode. This is the best episode of The Simpsons of the season. Again, schmaltzy ending. Last ten seconds.

They earn every second of it. Unlike other episodes, they really work for this. I still love the Krusty stuff more. Father Like Clown is still my favorite so far of the season. The Krusty, I mean, Krusty is so fucking fun. I love Krusty. It's just fun to listen to Krusty stuff more. Father Like Clown is still my favorite so far this season. The Krusty, I mean, Krusty is so fucking fun. I love Krusty. But just the cohesion of everything. The animation, the jokes, the pace of the jokes.

This could be our longest episode ever, by the way. Looking at the timeline. Let's get out of here. Yes, we've got to punch out ourselves. I've been Bob Mackie, your host. As always, you can find me on Twitter as Bob Servo I also write for USGamer and Something Awful and you can check out my classic gaming podcast Retronauts at USGamer.net

or Retronauts.com or just search for Retronauts in your podcast device everybody else Henry what do you do well I along with the other three scallywags here we work on many podcasts and written things on LasertimePodcast.com that includes the original pop culture exploration

at Lasertime. 302010, our exploration of 30 years ago, 20 years ago, and 10 years ago in the same week. It's a bit like the history lesson on this podcast, except bigger. And, of course, there's Cape Crisis, my comic book podcast. But if I had to tell you one thing that's worth plugging,

it's patreon.com slash lasertime. If you enjoy this this you know all the first season of talking simpsons is uh only accessible for five dollars a month at patreon.com slash laser time waiting for you as is our season two wrap up which has some seriously deep deep cuts of simpsons uh stuff that you've never heard of i'd never heard if you think we're nerdy here wait till you hear that episode because you're going to disown us as a simpsons stuff that you've never heard of, I'd never heard of. If you think we're nerdy here, wait till you hear that episode, because you're going to disown us. As a Simpsons fan, if you're listening to this and just discovered us, I feel like

you're doing yourself a disservice by not having that first season, because that's when you discover the first appearance of everybody, when everybody's voice and personality changes, when Lenny sounds like Mo. Watching the show fall into place, and I know a lot of people don't want to revisit that first season, and that's why we didn't make it available for everybody.

But it's a lot of fun. If you want it. It's worth it. It's totally worth it. Just watching those episodes again, I loved it. I just hope everybody does because we're all doing this together, going through the whole show together. I host She Podcast, a pro wrestling podcast. This is making me think I should do an episode about wrestlers who had second jobs.

There was the accountant wrestler, the garbage man wrestler, the race car driver wrestler. I think he's IRS. Is that the guy you mean? Yes. What a horrible era. What a horrible era, WWF. Oh, by the way, Simpsons. We played a bunch of Simpsons games. You can find those on youtube.com slash LazerTimeNetwork,

including when we thought Harry Shearer was at Quit the Simpsons. We still call the goodbye Harry Shearer scheme. Yeah, it still is. But it's a lot of fun. YouTube.com slash... That Simpsons game is the best and worst from 07. It is terrible. I agree. But filled with wonderful things.

And real animation. And we slowly go through it and we find an excuse because I really hate the game. It's a bad one. So we'll be back next week with the episode about Bart entering the soapbox races. We'll see you then, everybody. See you then. Wow. Infotainment.