Stupid sexy Flanders... Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most cleverly surprising and surprisingly clever gags in “The Simpsons.” Spoiler alert: There will be shocking twists!
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00:00 "Hey, you okay, Grimy?"
00:01 "I'm better than okay.
00:02 I'm Homer Simpson!"
00:03 "You wish!"
00:05 Welcome to WatchMojo!
00:07 And today we're counting down our picks for the most cleverly surprising
00:11 and surprisingly clever gags in The Simpsons.
00:14 Spoiler alert, there will be shocking twists.
00:18 (Clip)
00:32 When she does go bonkers, however, it is in truly spectacular fashion.
00:37 In this episode, Homer buys a Canyon Aero, but quickly gives it to Marge when he finds
00:43 out it's supposedly a model for women.
00:45 "Where's your keys?
00:46 I'm taking your car to work."
00:47 "You cashed in your 401k to buy that stupid Canyon Aero.
00:51 Why can't you drive it?"
00:53 What follows is a mild housewife turning into a road rage monster as Marge beeps her way
00:58 through traffic.
00:59 "Hi, the gas pedal, Grandma.
01:01 It's right there, next to the brake.
01:03 Oh, for God's sake, go back to New Jersey."
01:07 Marge's Canyon Aero rage was so refreshingly unexpected, it even returned in the video
01:12 game, The Simpsons Hit and Run.
01:15 Marge against the machine, Marge.
01:17 Not in it.
01:18 "Get out of the way!"
01:20 (Clip)
01:31 When Homer gets a movie made about him.
01:34 Homer's crimes and misdemeanors rarely get the attention of the authorities.
01:38 But in this episode, at least one gets the Hollywood treatment.
01:42 "Men, set your guns on kill.
01:44 We're going after Homer Simpson."
01:46 When Homer starts pirating movies, he gets caught by the FBI, only to have his charges
01:51 dismissed by Hollywood executives with an eye of opportunity.
01:54 "These people hate my dad.
01:56 How can they want to make a movie about him?"
01:58 "Hollywood may be run by big corporations trying to squash people, but they make movies
02:03 about people standing up to big corporations trying to squash them and winning."
02:07 Homer's story is made into a film with Homer as the protagonist.
02:11 Homer, a hero?
02:13 It's less likely than you think.
02:15 "But then when time seemed darkest, she was there.
02:18 She gave me the strength and courage to fight for what I believe in."
02:21 "On behalf of Hollywood, we're dropping all charges."
02:26 There have been plot twists less shocking than this development.
02:29 A clever homage to a 1971 anti-capitalist book, this gag definitely needs more love.
02:36 Number 8.
02:37 Flanders punches Homer.
02:39 Honestly, we're surprised it even took him this long.
02:42 Flanders, one of the mildest and Christian of the Simpsons' neighbors, is mostly cheerfully
02:48 oblivious to Homer's obvious dislike for him.
02:51 "Hello, police.
02:52 I'd like to report a buzz kill in progress."
02:55 "There's no emergency here.
02:56 And please charge us for the false report."
02:58 But when Homer and Ned's parents get stoned, well, that is one cross line too many.
03:04 Flanders finally decking it to Homer is as satisfying as it is shocking.
03:08 [Laughter]
03:16 Homer's response?
03:17 "I didn't know you were left-handed."
03:19 The show's penchant for disarmingly clever and well-set-up gags is definitely its forte.
03:24 "I can't believe you struck my husband."
03:27 "Marge, I've been wracked with guilt and pain."
03:30 "My mustache fell out.
03:31 This is a clip-on."
03:33 "Sorry, Homer."
03:34 And of course, even the most mild-tempered of characters have their limits.
03:39 Number 7.
03:40 Martin Prince's Unexpected Home Life
03:43 You gotta do what you gotta do.
03:45 It's hard to be a student in elementary school at, well, any era.
03:49 It's even harder when you're an undercover agent and the only one in the division who can pass as ten.
03:55 "Till the morrow, chums."
03:58 It turns out our princely Martin Prince is actually Reggie, a beer-guzzling middle-aged man
04:03 with a wife and kids.
04:05 Reggie's time-consuming job makes him leave poor Doreen with the kids for hours at a time.
04:10 "Why don't you quit?"
04:12 "Always with the quitting this one.
04:14 I can't do that, Doreen!
04:17 The police department needs someone inside the school!"
04:21 What more does she want from him?
04:23 Fortunately, or unfortunately, this sequence was a product of anti-capitalist hackers.
04:29 It's a twist within a twist.
04:31 And typically Simpsons.
04:33 "I'm doing good, aren't I?"
04:35 "You are, Reg.
04:36 You're a great role model for your kids."
04:39 Number 6.
04:40 Homer Strangles His Father
04:42 The cycle of abuse is real, most of the time.
04:46 In this episode, we learn that Homer's violent tendency in strangling Bart has an origin story.
04:52 "Wait, hold on a moment.
04:53 You were strangling your son?"
04:55 "Yeah, strangling.
04:56 I mean, it's not the only tool in my parenting toolbox, but it's the sharpest."
05:01 Unsurprisingly, it begins in a flashback to Homer's childhood,
05:05 with Abe Simpson reprimanding his son for his poor grades.
05:09 "Look at these grades!
05:10 They're a disgrace!
05:11 No TV for a week!"
05:13 But just when we expect a "why you little" from the geezer,
05:17 it is Homer who strangles his father.
05:19 Perhaps this twist is not the most psychologically true to life,
05:23 but it is something way better.
05:25 Hilarious!
05:26 "So, are those butter cookies for everybody, or…?"
05:30 "Um, why don't we stop there for today?"
05:33 Subverting expectations is the golden rule of comedy,
05:36 and The Simpsons has it down to a fine science.
05:40 Number 5.
05:41 Rick and Morty Couch Gag
05:43 The couch gag never wears us out with its infinite variety, does it?
05:47 For a lot of fans, some couch gags are better than whole episodes,
05:51 and even whole seasons of the show.
05:53 "Oh my God, Morty, what did you do?
05:54 You killed The Simpsons, Morty!"
05:56 "No, no, I didn't mean to!"
05:59 But sometimes the show begins with a couch gag so intricate it must be studied.
06:04 In this science-focused episode,
06:06 the couch gag cleverly showcases Rick and Morty's comic hijinks
06:10 as they try to save and clone the splattered Simpsons family.
06:13 "I want you to take that vial of Simpsons goo and this picture to this address.
06:16 They'll make us new Simpsons. You understand me, Morty?"
06:18 "Me? What are you gonna do?"
06:20 "Morty, I gotta clean this place up before somebody comes snooping around.
06:23 You know how many characters there are in The Simpsons, Morty?"
06:25 This too-many gag with both an A and B plot ends with a meta quip by Bartz.
06:31 "No more guest animators, man!"
06:34 It's an unexpected but refreshing change.
06:37 Number 4. Maggie Shoots Mr. Burns
06:40 It was a case that captured the imaginations of an entire nation,
06:43 at least at the water cooler.
06:45 Who shot Mr. Burns?
06:47 "Well, I couldn't possibly solve this mystery. Can you?"
06:54 "Yeah, I'll give it a shot. I mean, you know, it's my job, right?"
06:57 It's clever homage to a similar Dallas whodunit,
07:00 red herrings and genuinely shocking twists
07:03 make this two-parter one of the best and most memorable episodes.
07:07 In true Simpsons fashion, the shooter was the least expected
07:11 and most outrageously hilarious choice possible.
07:14 "The one who shot me was..."
07:16 "Ahh! Ahh! Ahh! M-Maggie Simpson!"
07:21 While Mr. Burns tries to steal candy from this baby,
07:24 his gun falls into Maggie's tiny hands and discharges.
07:28 Lesson learned. Babies can be dangerous.
07:31 "Officer, arrest the baby!"
07:33 "Ha! Yeah, right, pops. No jury in the world's gonna convict a baby.
07:38 Hmm, maybe Texas."
07:40 The Simpsons refuses to do the expected to glorious comic results.
07:46 Number 3. Bart Prank Calls Jack Bauer
07:49 Bart's punny prank calls to Moe and others are among the show's cheekiest gags.
07:54 Just ask Hugh Jass.
07:55 "I'm Hugh Jass."
07:57 "Telephone."
07:58 "Hello, this is Hugh Jass."
07:59 "Uh, hi."
08:01 "Who's this?"
08:01 "Bart Simpson."
08:02 "What can I do for you, Bart?"
08:04 "Uh, look, I'll level with you, mister.
08:05 This is a crank call that sort of backfired and I'd like to bail out right now."
08:09 "All right. Better luck next time."
08:10 But Bart's pranks backfiring on him as a comic excellence all of its own.
08:15 When he accidentally calls Jack Bauer and says he is "a meta duty,"
08:19 it isn't long before Bauer seeks payback for the annoyance.
08:22 "I'm Jack Bauer. Who the hell are you?"
08:24 "Me? Uh, I'm a meta duty."
08:28 "Chloe, find out all you can about I made a duty.
08:31 Does anyone there know I made a duty?"
08:33 He has Bart arrested for his prank at the end of the episode,
08:36 deploying a whole SWAT team.
08:38 A spoof of the popular show 24,
08:41 this acclaimed episode shows that even Bart's most harmless pranks can have consequences.
08:47 "I pulled every single field agent off all other cases to track you down and bring you to justice.
08:51 It was a tough decision, but I think I made the right call."
08:55 [Gunshots]
08:58 [Gasp]
08:59 "It's okay. That was Shelbyville."
09:00 Number 2.
09:01 Homer becomes smart.
09:03 Homer's too-dumb-to-function antics have been a staple of his character for decades.
09:08 So, of course, the Simpsons would develop an appropriately hilarious origin story for it.
09:12 "Man, is he dumb. Where do they get these subjects?
09:16 He's a little too well-fed to be a wino.
09:18 Hey, what's that?"
09:19 It turns out that Homer stuck a crayon up his nose in his younger years,
09:23 accidentally lodging it in his cranium.
09:25 When the crayon is removed, Homer's IQ and personality changes overnight.
09:29 "Who's up for a trip to the library tomorrow?
09:32 Notice I no longer say 'libary' or 'tomorry'."
09:36 "I'd love to go to the library with you."
09:38 "It's a date."
09:40 Seeing a smart Homer veers on the uncanny valley.
09:43 Of course, this smarter version doesn't last long.
09:46 Soon, Moe operates on Homer again, this time pushing the crayon back into his brain.
09:50 "Dad, how could you? We were connecting in such a meaningful way."
09:55 "We were what what and a what what."
09:56 But it is certainly a refreshing change from the doing dolts we know and love.
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10:15 Number 1. The Death of Frank Grimes
10:20 Honestly, we're surprised Homer only incurred one notable enemy through all his time on the show.
10:25 "I'm not your buddy, Simpson. I don't like you. In fact, I hate you.
10:28 Stay the hell away from me. Because from now on, we're enemies."
10:33 "Okay. Do I have to do anything?"
10:37 Homer's lack of intelligence, violent tendencies and increasingly outrageous adventures that never face consequences is par for the course for a cartoon character.
10:47 But living in a world where Homer Simpson exists is enough to make anyone mad.
10:51 "I'm saying you're what's wrong with America, Simpson.
10:55 You coast through life, you do as little as possible and you leech off decent, hard-working people.
11:00 Like me.
11:01 If you lived in any other country in the world, you'd have starved to death long ago."
11:07 "He's got you there, Dad."
11:08 Frank Grimes is the latest victim of Homer's plot armor in this famous meta-episode.
11:13 Increasingly enraged by Homer's breezing through life, mocking Homer's cartoonish immunity from consequence, Grimes gets electrocuted and suddenly dies.
11:22 "Frank Grimes, or Grimy as he liked to be called, taught us that a man can triumph over adversity."
11:31 At times shocking, dark and blackly hilarious, the show shows it's not afraid to poke fun at its own absurdity.
11:38 Which surprising gag had you sprawled out on the sundial with your fingers pointing to W and S?
11:45 Let us know in the comments below!
11:47 "With your last ounce of strength, you pointed to W and S.
11:52 Or, from your point of view, M and S. Maggie Simpson."
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12:05 [Music]