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The Simpsons: Homer's Paternity Coot
So let's get
it out of the way right off the bat -- Wiiliam H. Macy and "Smokin" Joe Frazier are not even in consideration
to be Homer's father in this episode, it's only Michael York. The other two are in the episode alright, but in other
funny cameos. The "mystery" of Homer's past has been done a couple of times, in a couple of different ways,
so this episode wasn't necessarily an "original" idea, but it was still pretty funny nonetheless. I think I
may have finally put my finger on what's been missing from the show the past couple of years, and why it's suddenly
funny again, but I'll get to that in the recap, for now -- On with the show!As with all Simpsons episodes, where we started, wasn't even close to where
we finished. Marge caused an accident on the new toll road that popped nearly half the town's tires. The blown tires
got added to Springfield's nationally panned tire fire, and the resulting fumes melted part of Mt. Springfield away. In
the subsequent thaw, they discovered a mailman had been frozen there, still with mail in his pouch, since the
1960's. All of the mail was delivered, and in typical Simpsons tradition, each letter could have made a difference in
the character's lives had they been delivered several decades earlier. Moe, could have played with other kids since
he's not actually allergic to pollen, you know, things like that. One such letter found it's way to the Simpson
household addressed to Mona Simpson. When they opened it, they unearthed a decades long secret: Mona had an affair, and
Abe might not be Homer's father! Dun dun dun!
Before Homer was conceived, Mona had an affair with a lifeguard
named Mason Fairbanks (Michael York). He sent her a letter trying to convince her to leave Abe, and also to say he knew
who the baby's real father was. Homer tracked him down and found that he was an extremely wealthy treasure hunter.
Jackpot! Just to be sure though, they took a DNA test and found that Mason is indeed Homer's biological father. The
family quickly abandoned Abe and latched on to Mason and his philanthropy. Homer even joined him on a treasure dive,
but when he had a near death experience underwater and his life flashed before his eyes, they were all memories of Abe.
When he came to, he pronounced his love of his "true" father, the man who raised him. Abe then admits to Homer
that he switched the DNA tests when he saw how happy the family was with Mason.
Funny episode, and one with a
lot of heart, too. That, I think, is the missing ingredient from the past couple of years that I was talking about
earlier. This season they've taken a very mature approach to a couple of interesting topics that have been glossed over
in the past. I think the episode with Lisa in the graveyard from earlier this year is one of the best episodes they've
ever done because it was extremely funny and poignant. They've taken a lot of liberties in the past with The Simpsons, and it seems like this year, they're trying to justify them all. I
say, keep up the excellent work.
Couch Gag of the Week: The family sits down and then someone comes in and
snaps a family portrait. They then show the picture with "2006" under it. They then cycle through the years
to come, showing how the family... progresses.
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