Long-time Simpsons writer explains some jokes fans never understood

If you’re asking us, when you’re talking about people who grew up in the nineties, there are two kinds of them: those who love The Simpsons and those who weren’t allowed to watch it. It seems kind of absurd given the s**t we see on television now, but when it first came out, some thought it was pretty risqué. Of course, those who actually watched it know that wasn’t really the case.

Yeah, nah, what The Simpsons offered, though, was a metric s**t-tonne of gags that resulted in it becoming one of the most beloved cultural touchstones of a generation. But, with so many gags and so many trivia shows, there’s always been some disagreement about the inspiration for some of the quips.

So, for years, there have been Simpsons jokes/lines people misunderstood or misheard, like The Great Hank-Scorpio-"Yes Once"-Goodbye-To-A-Shoe Debate and "Carhole".

What have you misunderstood or never got?

List them in this thread & I or other Simpsons folk'll try to answer. pic.twitter.com/O7T82SsQX4

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 21, 2020

Fortunately, long-time Simpsons writer, Josh Weinstein, has taken to Twitter to answer any questions fans had about these jokes.

Me, after answering questions in this thread for 12 hours straight. BUT I kinda love it 'cause it's fascinating to see what people have misunderstood or didn't know for years AND it's actually kinda edifying to break down these jokes.

So keep 'em coming! pic.twitter.com/K2vmHUUZbm

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 22, 2020

To us it was obvious that by Homer saying "Yes, once" that Homer was referring to a previous instance where he saw a man say goodbye to a shoe but apparently a number of fans thought he was referring to having just seen Hank Scorpio throw his shoes (a case of overthinking a joke)

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 21, 2020

“So, for years, there have been Simpsons jokes/lines people misunderstood or misheard, like The Great Hank-Scorpio-“Yes Once”-Goodbye-To-A-Shoe Debate and “Carhole”,” he said at the start of the thread. “What have you misunderstood or never got? List them in this thread & I or other Simpsons folk’ll try to answer.”

No, ha, I was there & co-running the show for that line. She's saying "We're always the ones who solve those problems."

I love Lester & Eliza as Bizarroworld Simpsons! pic.twitter.com/RqeCzIMWw7

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 21, 2020

Naturally, fans were all over it. Of course, we’re not going sit here and explain how someone explains jokes. That’d be mental. But, give the thread a read for answers to questions like:

The librarian does not want to deal with Homer's bullshit. So he went to do something else until, hopefully, Homer has left the library. pic.twitter.com/o0y0jKUyag

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 25, 2020

“”Don’t worry, Joey. We’ll make it to California someday.” What does this mean? Is it a reference to something?”

“Was the no fire exit joke just about Homer not figuring out why he didn’t fit in at this bar or was it also a reference to his talents as a safety officer?”

“I’ve always wondered about the scene in “In Marge We Trust” where Homer calls Japan from the library. The librarian watches him dial for a few seconds and then runs off – where did he go?”

It's just a delightfully nerdy description & very sweet that Lisa has a crush on a guy like this. To me, it's the comedy of getting something just right, something the Simpsons excels at (and Matt Groening kinda perfected before in his "Life in Hell" comics.)

— Josh Weinstein (@Joshstrangehill) December 24, 2020

Final thought: Deadset, we seriously love that we live in a world where people can interact with their favourite creators in such a simple but meaningful way. Yeah, nah, this is mintox. Give it a read.

Just in case you missed it, here’s one of Ozzy’s latest commentary videos…Ozzy Man Reviews: Extreme Sports

H/T: TWITTER.