Hey, what's up everybody? Welcome back to the mmm doughnuts podcast. I'm your host,
Justin. I'm so glad that you're listening again. Thanks so much for tuning in one more
time. A lot of you are listening on Samsung podcast and it's really given me a deeper,
greater appreciation for non iPhone phones. So thank you so much. Thank you for watching
now my fifth episode. I did a little bit of a spoofy episode that I changed to like a
it's an exclusive now. So if you want to subscribe to Apple podcasts and listen to it there,
it was like just my first one. It was it was bad. It was an hour long and it was it was
more than an hour long. It was bad. And then I did a little bit of a short one on that
brand new short, I guess a little musical with Bob sideshow Bob from last week. So I
hope you enjoyed that. But so so here we are. We're now we're on episode four of season
one. We're getting through this. And it's this episode is called There's No Disgrace
Like Home. I've got trivia. I've got episode recaps. So let's get into it. Shall we? Alright,
so last episode Homer's Odyssey was a deep and and dark but still very poignant episode.
And I hope that you had an opportunity to give it some thought and same same questions
on this one to give this episode some thought. Let me know what you think. Hit me up on Twitter
or x.com. I still think it's weird to say that. But anyway, I'm on x at mmm donuts 742.
You can also email me at chartanpants at gmail.com. So let's do this. Shall we? Alright, let's
get into it. So this episode, season one episode four, There's No Disgrace Like Home, originally
aired January 28 1990. There are no guest stars. We've already talked about that. Before
there there's not like an actual, like celebrity guest star yet. But some some notable ones
coming soon like Tom Jones. And if you know who Tom Jones is, you probably need an ibuprofen
because your back hurts like mine. So yeah, this episode is pretty interesting in a lot
of ways. We talked a little bit in last episode about Mr. Burns, and how he had he had tell
tale signs of a little bit of integrity. And and then in this episode, it fixes that. And
it kind of sets the stage for his deplorable lack of integrity as the nuclear plant owner.
And so it was just, you know, that's why last episode was so interesting in many ways. But
this one's back on track with the character that we know as Mr. Burns. It's it's got some
telltale signs of being one of the earliest shows of the season. Like we've talked about
the they kind of they were released out of order. But you can definitely tell this is
one of the earlier ones. A lot of the characters just act differently and they look differently.
Like all right, so we'll talk about this in in greater detail. Hopefully you watched the
episode. You did your homework. But you see at the picnic, Lisa, Lisa's a brat. I mean,
you see it at home too. And she's fighting with Bart. But Lisa's a brat. She's like playing
in the fountain and then pretends she's not. Marge is drunk. And Homer is concerned that
his family is going to make him look bad. Homer being concerned about something like
that is in and of itself just crazy. But also Homer's the voice of reason. He comes home
and the whole family sitting on the couch, eating TV dinners and watching TV. And he's
the one who turned it off. So yeah, very, very different. But like I said, this evolves
into what we know. So we're going to we're going to walk through each of the episodes
and see how they got there. This is the first episode that Mr. Burns says release the hounds.
He says a little differently. He says the hounds will be released in 10 minutes, but
still release the hounds, something we're used to from him. I'd also mark the first
appearance of Eddie and Lou, who are the the two police officers who are always together.
Although Lou, who we know as an African-American Simpsonite, is yellow in this episode. But
then gets that change and moving on. This is the first episode where we see itchy and
scratchy. So lots of firsts, just like the other episodes that we've seen so far. And
we'll we'll get into it. So here's here's how the episode begins. The two gags are jock
board gag is Bart is writing I will not burp in class. And the couch gag is the family
runs in they sit on the couch and then Homer is squeezed off and then lands down on the
floor with a thud. So those are the gags. And we get into the episode. So it starts
off at home and family's fighting and you know, but there's they're getting ready for
the for a company picnic. And they decided to bring wonderful gelatin desserts. Dan can't
cast out a mallet cast Al and that is his voice very interesting in this early homers.
Really glad that it evolved into the Homer we know because these are hard to watch. And
so anyway, they're getting ready to company picnic and Homer is worried that that his
family will be well behaved. And he like snipes at Marge a lot in this episode to mark stop
it. It's just so so weird. I'm reminded that first of all, there was a reason that I avoided
these these seasons over the years, but also I see the downside to avoiding them. And and
what I've missed out on because I've seen every other all the other episodes, at least
the first, you know, 10 seasons, many, many times, but not these first two seasons. So
anyway, well, I hope you enjoyed them. Still a great episode. Homer is determined to improve
his family's image after they leave the picnic. And he decides Homer Simpson Homer J. Simpson
decides he's going to pawn the TV to pay for family therapy with Dr. Marvin Runroe. And
Marge is crying as it's happening. So just again, very weird family dynamics. I mean,
Marge gets like completely blackout drunk almost at the party too. So that was that
was interesting. The therapy session doesn't go well, but I strongly recommend watching
the therapy session multiple times, because it is freaking funny. And we'll talk about
that more later, too. But the therapy therapy was great. Like those foam bats were great,
especially when when they figure out how to take off the phone. And I can still hear the
sound of that rod hitting Dr. Monroe's shin when Bart wax and it's it's pretty awesome.
Great sound. And then the shock therapy. Oh, my gosh. What is what a scene. I loved it.
I've always loved cartoon violence, but this one in particular. Great scene. So anyway,
yeah, it doesn't go well. Dr. Monroe struggles to control them, the Simpsons, their chaotic
interactions with each other. And the the shock therapy was a desperate attempt to instill
order. But ultimately, he he gives up and he refunds their money and admits defeat.
And then you remember from the commercial, it said family bliss or I'll double your money
back. So they made money on the deal. So the Simpsons leave no better behaved than before,
but with a renewed appreciation for each other's quirks, in my opinion, plus 500 bucks instead
of 250, which, of course, they go and spend on a on a better TV, which is identical to
their other one. But, you know, whatever. So there's some there's some particular highlights
in this episode about the Simpsons dysfunctional, yet loving family dynamic. And that we see
throughout the series. They're very dysfunctional, but very loving. That never actually goes
away. It's a little more prominent in the first couple of seasons, but there's always
still that that instilled love in the family dynamic. But it it satires this is satire
satirizes satirizes. It makes fun of the idea of the perfect family, which I thought was
great, too, because there isn't one like that perfect family at the beginning that drives
up into the into heaven with halos on their other heads. I don't know about you. And I
was a kid. I didn't want to go in that car. I wanted to go back in the Simpsons car with
all the devil kids. I just looked more entertaining for me. Truth be told, still does. But it
also features some early characterizations that would later be refined, such as Lisa
being portrayed as more mischievous than Bart and and Marge having a drinking problem. So
still very interesting episode. So now let's let's kind of get into the analysis and the
discussion. Here's the thing. I'll have future podcasts where somebody else hears with me
and we can go back and forth and that'll be great. But the discussion I'm really looking
for is with you. So like that's why I've set up that, you know, I've got my email address,
set up the Twitter so that we can have like a discussion. You make fun of me or whatever
you want. That's fine. But if you actually want to have a philosophical discussion about
these episodes, hit me up. I will love I geek out about this kind of stuff. But I want it
to be an open dialogue. So for example, if you were to analyze the disastrous picnic scenes
like Bart versus the swans or Lisa in the fountain or Marge drunk, what do you get from
that? What are your thoughts on it? Are they just like mine? You know, I'm really glad
the characters redeveloped in a better way. Or do you gather something else from that
picnic? Let's talk about Dr. Marvin Monroe. Is he a quack? Or is he a genius? I mean,
ultimately, when it comes to the Simpsons family dynamic, he failed. But is he a quack
or is he a genius? I mean, it seems to be working with other families. What about his
therapy methods? Like his the family feuds, or, you know, like drawing the pictures at
the beginning to see, you know, what, where everybody would define where the problem where
the troubles coming from or the those the sticks, the whacking rods. And then eventually
the shock therapy. It's that part. I mean, it's obviously satire, that kind of thing,
I promise you, as somebody who grew up in the 90s, that wasn't like a generally practiced
method of family therapy, I promise. So it was, you know, that's that was the humor in
it. So another question is, how do you think this episode portrays therapy and mental health?
And so from two different angles, first of all, take a step back in time, 34 years, it
was 1990. How do you think it was portrayed then? I'll tell you growing up, I just thought
it was funny. I didn't really think much more of it. But therapy wasn't really it wasn't
really as open and accepted as it is now in my opinion. And now, as someone who goes to
therapy, and I recommend it for everyone, by the way, I wish I wish it was different
back then. You know, I think the the perception of therapy has definitely changed a lot since
this episode aired. And I do wish that it was it was better received back then. And
it wasn't such a stigma to get therapy. I know I wouldn't have waited so long to seek
some therapeutic advice. And I hope that right now in today's day, you're open to that. I
mean, it's it's readily available online. Now it's there's lots of places you can go
to get to get help. I promise you, having actual meaningful conversations with people
is incredibly therapeutic. Even if you're not diving into like what your real issues
are, just having an engaging conversation is terrific. It really is. And I very much,
I highly recommend it. But I want to know what you think. Do you think the perception
of therapy has changed since the episode aired? Is your answer yes, because it has or is it
no, because you're wrong. So like, you know, still tell me your opinion. What about the
humor derived from those unethical therapy practices? How do you feel about the humor?
So like this, we get into territory that you know, maybe some people can find offensive.
I personally I'll probably share this more than once. I personally feel like being offended
is something controllable. It's in a lot of ways, it's a choice. That's my opinion. And
you can choose to stick with and let those feelings that somebody put on you, control
you and dictate how you're going to react or you can accept that you can't control what
they did or said and focus on things that bring you joy. You know, so my thought is,
I thought it was funny then and I think it's funny now. And I certainly hope that nobody
would be offended by these by this satirical mocking of therapy practices because it's
meant to be funny. But also it's, you know, brought the family together and it still showed
some unity, which was great. So, you know, let me know what you think. I'm genuinely
curious. How do you think in terms of the lasting impact of this episode, how do you
think this episode holds up today? I obviously I want to hear as many people that are on
my side of this to continue it. I'm never going to be tired of the debate that the animation
was just awful. So please feel free to share that. But more importantly, the other aspects
of the episode, how do you think they hold up today? You know, the morals that they were
trying to instill and teach in that time, do you think it held up? Do you think kids
right now in this generation can watch this and gain something from it? Or do you think
maybe, you know, the kids these days are far too desensitized more so than we were in the
90s and it's only ever going to be perceived as entertainment and that's it because it's
got no deeper meaning or value? Huh? Yeah. Pretty smart sometimes. Do you think that
it contributed to any ongoing Simpsons themes or character development? I keep sharing my
opinion about character development, but I want to hear about yours. Did you see anything
in this episode? Like, for example, the way that Lisa or Marge behaved, do you think that
the writers had that when they saw the portrayal, that's when they decided, you know, we're
going to go a different direction. They didn't like it. Or maybe it was how it was received
by popular culture at the time. And speaking of popular culture, how do you think this
episode has influenced the depictions of family or therapy in pop culture? These are deep,
meaningful conversations that I give a lot of thought to and I hope you take a minute
and tweet about it and just share what you think because your opinion matters, even if
it's wrong and it might be, but it still matters. Okay, let's get into some obscure trivia and
goofs, if you will. So, okay, it's actually, it's not, they're all goofs. There's not really
obscure trivia that I go into in this one. But when Marge gets drunk at the picnic and
she falls over, at the end of that really awful impromptu song that all the women were
singing together, she says, homie, did you try the punch? And her lips don't move in
succession with that phrase. And that happens a lot. I mean, at least once in every episode.
I was complaining about Chief Wiggum in the last episode. But there's, so that's an animation
foible. And the next one is when Homer enters the pawn shop. First of all, there's, okay,
so there is obscure trivia. There's a funny little joke in that that I think was intentional
by the writers. When Homer walks into the pawn shop, first of all, the TV that he's
carrying is purple. You can very clearly see that. The pawn shop owner or worker calls
him by name. Okay, I think that's very telling and very intentional. It's not because it's
a really small town and everybody knows everybody, okay. He knows Homer at the pawn shop. Okay,
that should tell us something. And that's funny. But when he enters the store, the TV
is clearly now blue. So yeah, another another foible there. And on the way backing up a
little driving back home from the picnic, after you see the family, like floating up
into heaven, and you know, Homer gets out of his little daydream. Where's Maggie? And
don't tell me that you know, you can't see her because her car seat. No, shut up. You
can always see Maggie. They it's they always make us that you can see Maggie. She's not
there. Lazy writing, or lazy animating. Yeah. The other one we already covered, it's when
Lou and and lose buddy Eddie, sorry, I forgot his name for a minute when Lou is yellow.
But you know, very soon after becomes you know, the African American character they
become so another foible there. And it gets along those same lines. Smithers is now yellow,
but his hair is blue. And then eventually will turn gray, as we know. So I don't know
some of those are foibles, just bad animating and others are just like, well, we haven't
decided yet, if this person is going to be this look or whatever. So there's that. All
right. I've got a fun fact for you. This is an appearance of this episode in another thing.
Okay. So in the 1990 film Die Hard Two, okay, same year that the episodes came out. This
episode makes a cameo appearance in Die Hard Two. The it's the scene from the clinic, Dr.
Monroe's clinic when they're shocking each other. And it appears on Holly McClain's flight,
which is, which is funny. And then there's a there's a funny reference to it, the that
I'm not going to repeat because you should go do your homework and watch that movie.
But it's ironic. And it's funny what the captain says about it. So anyway, enjoy that. I hope
you like it. So I'd love some more engagement from you. So when I when I ask questions like
this here towards the end, I want to know about your family quirks. All right. So the
Simpsons as we know, they've all got some weird quirks, right? If you're comfortable
sharing, hop on Twitter, hit me at 8 at the MMM donuts 742. And let me know some of your
family quirks. Right? Is your family crazy? Are they really intelligent? Are they really
observant? Are they abusive? Maybe don't share if they're abusive. Let's not do that. Are
they obnoxious? And they just don't know it. They have quirks that just drive you crazy
or? Yeah, let me know. And thanks very much for listening to this episode. We'll get over
the answers to the trivia questions. And and then we'll we'll talk a little bit about the
next episode. So the trivia. Did you get them right? Yes or no? Here are the questions.
Oh, my gosh, I never did the trivia questions. Oh, I'm not going to rerecord. So in this
episode of the donuts podcast, I have decided to do the trivia questions and answers all
at the very end of the show. Ah, see, that was intentional. This is as written. So trivia
question number one, on the fence surrounding Burns's manner, Burns manner, Burns's manner,
probably burns. What does the the visible sign say? There's one sign that's like not
quite visible. But there's one in full view. What does it say? Hey, we're back. It says
poachers will be shot. Think about that. Okay. Next, what was the advice Homer's mom gave
him? He's sitting at the bar with Mo and Barney and some other drunks. And Homer shares advice.
He says, my mom told me something. What was the advice that she gave him? Her advice was
Homer, you're a big disappointment. That's good. That's a good line. All right. Last
question is what is the phone number for Dr. Marvin Monroe's Family Therapy Clinic? And
that is, you guessed it, 1-800-555-HUGS. Good job. I know you got them all because I know
you did the homework. So well done. Well done. Okay, next episode is Bart the General. This
is another good one and another bad one at the same time. It's, you know, it's hard to
watch, but still it's got some some good stuff on there. So I'm looking forward to it. So
please tune in every Wednesday, 10am Eastern. I will have these scheduled to go out. So
thanks so much again for listening. Please do your homework for next episode. Watch Bart
the General and see if you can get the trivia, which I'll totally do correctly every episode.
I'm probably going to forget that again. So thanks again. I really appreciate it. Find
me on Twitter at mmmdoughnuts742 or email me at shardandpants at gmail.com. Thanks everybody.
Miss Hoover, I glued my head to my shoulder.