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| {{For|the titular character|Homer Simpson}} | |||
| {{Infobox Simpsons episode | {{Infobox Simpsons episode | ||
| ⚫ | | image = | ||
| | episode_name = Hungry, Hungry Homer | |||
| | caption = | |||
| | image = ] | |||
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| season = 12 | ||
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| episode = 15 | ||
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| director = ] | ||
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| writer = ] | ||
| | production = CABF09 | |||
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| airdate = {{Start date|2001|03|04}} | ||
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| guests = * ] as Howard K. Duff VIII | ||
| | blackboard = "'']'' was not a sleazy piece of crap" | |||
| | couch_gag = The family act as ] students, and ] uses a karate move when he uses the remote. | |||
| | couch_gag = The Simpsons are black belts in ]. They use their hands to chop up the couch while ] does an elaborate flip and switches on the TV with his remote. | |||
| | guest_star = ] as Howard K. Duff VIII | |||
| | commentary = ]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>Ben Rosenthal | |||
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| ⚫ | | next = ] | ||
| }} | }} | ||
| "'''Hungry, Hungry Homer'''" is the fifteenth episode of the ] of the American television series '']''. It first aired on the ] in the United States on March 4, 2001. In the episode, ] becomes a Good Samaritan after discovering the simple joys of helping people in need – which is put to the test when he goes on a hunger strike after the owner of the Springfield Isotopes baseball team attempts to discredit him when Homer stumbles on his plot to discreetly move the team to ]. | |||
| The episode was written by ] and directed by ], and guest starred ] as Howard K. Duff VIII. | |||
| "'''Hungry, Hungry Homer'''" is the fifteenth episode of the ] of '']''. It aired on ], ]. | |||
| Since airing, it has received generally mixed reviews from television critics. The episode inspired the naming of the ] minor-league baseball team, which began play in 2003. | |||
| ==Synopsis== | |||
| {{spoiler}} | |||
| ==Plot== | |||
| The Simpson family visits ], a theme park which is completely made of blocks. ] is ripped off when her ] kit has a missing Blocko piece. In response, Homer "sticks up for the little guy", and he gets Lisa her piece she needs. He also stands up for the little guy by helping ] get a girlfriend for an upcoming school dance and helps ] get two free hair streaks. When he tries to help ] by getting him a refund on his tickets for the Springfield Isotopes, Homer encounters the Isotopes' owner Howard K. ] VIII. The owner refuses to give Homer a refund but in his haste to leave, Homer discovers evidence that the Isotopes are moving to ]. Duff insists that they are not moving and he has ] drug Homer to cover up the truth. | |||
| The Simpson family visits Blockoland, a theme park similar to ] which is completely made of blocks. When ] finds a piece missing from an ] kit she has bought, Homer persuades the gift shop clerk to give it to her. Energized by the idea of "standing up for the little guy", ] talks a girl ] likes into going to a school dance with him, gets a beauty salon owner to put free highlights in ]'s hair, and finds a way for the salon to cut its expenses. He next tries to get ] a refund on his season tickets for the Springfield Isotopes baseball team (previously introduced in the season 2 episode "]"), after they continue to lose games repeatedly since being taken over by ]. At the Isotopes' ballpark, Homer encounters team owner Howard K. ] VIII, who refuses to grant a refund. As he leaves, Homer goes through the wrong door and discovers a room filled with merchandise for the "] ]" and realizes that Howard is planning to move the team. Howard denies the idea, then has ] drug Homer and dump him at the Simpsons' house to cover up the truth. | |||
| Homer |
Homer attempts to warn the media of Howard's plan, but by the time he can lead reporters to the ballpark, Howard has removed all evidence of it. Homer is denounced a liar by the media and Howard embarrasses him further by showing footage of him with his pants on fire on television. In retaliation, Homer stages a ], chaining himself to a pole in the parking lot and refusing to leave or eat until Howard admits the truth. After Homer begins to attract public attention, the team secretly moves him into the ballpark one night and dubs him "Hungry, Hungry Homer" as a publicity stunt. They claim publicly that Homer will not eat until the Isotopes win the pennant, covering up his real message. As his health declines and he begins rapidly losing weight, he nearly gives in while seeing fans eat at the ballpark. However, a visit by the ghost of ] (who assumes the appearance of ], since Homer does not know what Chavez looks like) inspires him to stand his ground. | ||
| Thinking that Homer has gone insane and that his popularity is waning, Howard unchains him and offers him a hot dog in a public ceremony during an Isotopes game. As Homer is about to eat it, he realizes that it is loaded with Southwestern-style toppings and angrily denounces Howard. Inspecting their own hot dogs, the fans discover their wrappers marked with the "Albuquerque Isotopes" team name and realize that Homer was right from the start. The crowd boos Howard, and Duffman turns against him and throws him bodily off the field. Homer earns a round of cheers from the crowd and ends his hunger strike, eagerly devouring the food they throw to him. Watching the scenes on television, the mayor of Albuquerque abandons his plan to steal the Isotopes from Springfield and decides to turn his attention to purchasing the ], with the intent of forcing them to play baseball instead of football, declaring, "They'll play what I tell 'em to play, for I am the Mayor of Albuquerque!" | |||
| Meanwhile, the mayor of Albuquerque decides to abandon his plan to steal the Isotopes and instead plans to purchase the ]. | |||
| == |
==Production== | ||
| The episode was written by ] and directed by ].<ref name="D'oh">{{cite video | people=Scully, Mike|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> The episode was originally pitched by ], possibly from his daughter, although it is not certain.<ref name="Homer">{{cite video | people=Selman, Matt|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> The origin of the episode is that Mike Scully in ] pitched an episode where Homer gets a motorcycle; however, the town passes a helmet law that requires riders to wear a helmet, leading Homer to go on a hunger strike in protest.<ref>Simpsons Season 12 DVD, Commentary "Hungry, Hungry Homer".</ref> The writers shelved the idea of Homer having a motorcycle (though it would be used for the ] episode "]"), but held on to Homer having a hunger strike until Al Jean pitched this episode.<ref name="D'oh"/> Another inspiration was that a team was moving to another city.<ref name="Pizza">{{cite video | people=Payne, Don|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> ] ad libbed the lyrics to Homer's "Dancing Away My Hunger Pains" song.<ref name="Homer"/> The ending scene with the mayor announcing his plans to take over the Dallas Cowboys has been edited from all U.S. syndicated reruns, but has been seen on overseas syndicated reruns and the season 12 DVD set.<ref name="Homer"/> The scene is also featured on Disney Plus. | |||
| *Duffman's first name (of this actor anyway) is Sid. | |||
| *The hair salon is called Hairy Shearers, after ''The Simpsons'' voice actor and former ] castmember ]. | |||
| *Although purely fictional at the time, the ] became a real baseball team in ] as a minor league affiliate of the ]. The name was likely inspired by this episode (although ] does have a connection with ]) and was selected by fans. | |||
| *On Subsequent arings of this episode, the ending with the mayor of Albuquerque choosing another city for his baseball team was cut in syndication, so the episode ends with Homer celebrating in the stadium. | |||
| ==Cultural references== | ==Cultural references== | ||
| The title of the episode is a reference to the Hasbro tabletop game ]. | |||
| *Duffman's moment of doubt and decision to lift Howard K. Duff VIII over his head and throw him over fence recalls ]'s victory over ] during the climactic moments of '']''. Duffman also says "Duffman has a bad feeling about this", similar to "I have a (very) bad feeling about this", which was said in every '']'' film. | |||
| *Blockoland is a parody of ]. | |||
| *The ghost of ] visits Homer during his hunger strike, but takes the appearance of ], because Homer doesn't know what Chavez looks like. | |||
| *The scene where Bart sees Homer lying on top of the red dog house is a direct reference to ] and ]. Bart even utters Charlie Brown's signature line "Good Grief". | |||
| Duffman turning against Howard K. Duff and throwing him over a fence is a reference to ] turning on ] in the film '']'' (1983).<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nohomers.net/content/info/articles/11.shtml |title=I Bent My Wookiee! Celebrating the Star Wars/Simpsons Connection |access-date=2022-01-24 |date=2007-07-24 |first=Scott |last=Chernoff |publisher=] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724223022/http://starwars.com/community/news/media/f20070724/index.html?page=3 |archive-date=July 24, 2011 }}</ref> | |||
| ==Quotes== | |||
| *'''Bart:''' Ow, this hurts. Why'd I buy this stupid ] shirt?<br/>'''Marge:''' Don't you mean Blocko shirt?<br/>'''Bart:''' Oh right, "Blocko." | |||
| *'''Homer:''' I don't mind being called a liar when I'm lying, or about to lie, or just finished lying, '''BUT NOT WHEN I'M TELLING THE TRUTH'''!! | |||
| *'''Homer:''' ''(singing and dancing in a poor man's way)'' I'm dancing away my hunger pangs/Moving my feet so my stomach won't hurt/I'm kinda like ]/But not in a ] way... | |||
| *'''Homer:''' ''(when the strike is over)'' The truth never tasted so good. | |||
| *'''Homer:''' ''(ice cream cone falls on Homer's head while he's on strike)'' Nice try, God! | |||
| *'''Homer:''' Me so hungy. | |||
| *'''Homer:''' ''(after watching blockoland commercial)'' Alright kids... who wants to go... to... Blockoland?<br/>'''Bart and Lisa:''' ].<br/>'''Homer:''' But the commercial gave me the impression that...<br/>'''Bart:''' We said meh.<br/>'''Lisa:''' M-E-H. Meh. | |||
| *'''Homer (undercover in Bart's classroom):''' Come on, why won't you go out with Bart? <br/> '''Sherri:''' He's a smelly, ugly dork! <br/> '''Homer:''' Please. Ugly is such a smelly word. Who would you rather go out with. <br/> '''Sherri:''' Tommy. ''(points to an extremely handsome boy with his own sunbeam)'' <br/> '''Homer:''' Well, duh! He's breathtaking! But Bart has inner-beauty, like you find in a ]. <br/> ''(we then see Bart eating a cracker like a rodent)'' <br/> '''Homer:''' And face it. You're no prize either. You wear braces, you dress like a kid, and you're not getting an younger. Take what you can get. <br/> '''Mrs. Krabappel:''' He's right. Grab something and don't let go. <br/> '''Sherri:''' Well, Bart's not so bad. | |||
| *'''Homer:''' Who are you?<br/>'''Ghost of ]:''' I am the spirit of César Chávez.<br/> '''Homer:''' Then why do you look like ]?<br/> '''Ghost of César Chávez:''' Because you don't know what César Chávez looks like. | |||
| *'''Albuquerque Mayor:''' See how much Dallas wants for the ]..<br>'''Assistant:''' That's a football team, sir.<br>'''Albuquerque Mayor:''' They'll play what I tell them to play...for I am the mayor of Albuquerque.. | |||
| *'''Hairdresser:''' Yes, may I help you?<br/>'''Homer:''' Nice place you got here. Oh, look, a hairnet. It would be a shame if it was hurled to the ground. '''' Oh, how clumsy of me. '''' Oops.<br/>'''Hairdresser:''' Why are you doing these things?<br/> '''Homer:''' Either you honor my wife's coupon, or a lot more lids will be unscrewed.<br/>'''Hairdresser:''' I cannot streak that much hair. Think of the costs -- I'd be ruined.<br/>'''Homer:''' Oh, really? '''' Boy, you weren't kidding. Your profit margins are razor-thin.<br/>'''Hairdresser:''' You see? This is what I'm --<br/>'''Homer:''' Wait a minute. Four hundred a month for loafer lightener?<br/>'''Hairdresser:''' But we must have it -- it is the lifeblood of the industry.<br/>''''<br/>'''Homer:''' You get the same results with a mincing gel.<br/>'''Hairdresser:''' But of course! I will save thousands. Thank you. | |||
| *''(Homer's absence at the dinner table has lead to a considerable increase in the children's waistlines)'' <br/> '''Marge:''' There's still more meatloaf.<br/>'''Bart:''' Oh, it's impossible.<br/>'''Marge:''' Come on, come on, we all have to pitch in and eat your father's share.<br/>'''Lisa:''' Why don't you just cook less?<br/>'''Marge:''' I don't do things that way, Lisa. | |||
| *'''Duff:''' It's such a beautiful day. Where are the crowds?<br/>'''Duffman:''' Duffman is thrusting in the direction of the problem. ''''<br/>'''Duff:''' '''' People seem to be drawn to that kook. Maybe we can exploit it.<br/>'''Duffman:''' He's too dangerous, sir. He knows about Albuquerque. Duffman is a cautious cat.<br/>'''Duff:''' No, listen. Fans love wackos. Remember that busty woman who ran out on the field and farted at the ballplayers? I think we found our newest attraction.<br/>'''Duffman:''' Duffman has a bad feeling about this. <br/> '''Duff:''' Can it, Sid.<br/>'''Duffman:''' '''' Why don't you can it, Howard? | |||
| *'''Marge:''' It's been a whole week. Why are you letting my husband die? What does it have to do with baseball?<br/>'''Exec 1:''' Death is a part of baseball.<br/>'''Exec 2:''' Oh, yeah, the main part.<br/>'''Duff:''' Guys ... '''' We won't let any harm come to your husband, Mrs. Simpson. He'll be fine.<br/>'''Marge:''' He's not moving. ''''<br/>'''Duff:''' He's probably resting from all the moving he did before you got here. He'll start moving in a second; I'm sure of it. '''' Turn on the sprinklers. '''' You see there? He's fine.<br/>'''Exec 2:''' Ooh, look at him go. | |||
| After being drugged, Homer wakes up lying on top of a dog house, similar to the way ] lies on his dog house in the '']'' comic strip. (Bart even says "Good Grief!" in another reference to the strip.) Later, when Homer returns to the Duff Stadium and finds the private room empty, a man plays "wah-wah" on a muted trumpet, again a reference to ''Peanuts''. | |||
| ⚫ | ==External links== |
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| ⚫ | *{{ |
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| ⚫ | *{{ |
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| When tied to the flagpole, Lisa gives Homer a book to read called ''My Core Beliefs'' by ]. Homer flips through it and says "Man, he really hates ]." This is in reference to the named actors' characters on the TV show '']'', in which Farrell's character BJ Hunnicutt replaced Rogers' character Trapper John McIntyre. | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| ==Reception== | |||
| In its original American broadcast, "Hungry, Hungry Homer" was viewed by an estimated 10.0156 million households and received a 9.8 rating/15 share ] making it into the top twenty.<ref>{{cite web|first=Rick|last= DeMott |url=https://www.awn.com/news/us-primetime-tv-ratings-week-february-26-march-4-2001|title=U.S. Primetime TV Ratings For The Week Of February 26 – March 4, 2001|website=]|date=March 6, 2001|access-date=January 24, 2022}}</ref> | |||
| Colin Jacobson of ''DVD Movie Guide'' gave the episode a mixed review writing "Though it has something of a rehashed feel – an impression that we’ve seen this episode before – 'Hungry' still manages to be fairly effective. Chock full of laughs? No, but the show has its moments. Or maybe I just like it because it's the origin of the word 'hungy', which I used for many years. I forgot I stole it from this episode!"<ref name="dvdmg">{{cite web|url=http://www.dvdmg.com/simpsonsseasontwelve.shtml|title=The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season (2000)|access-date=January 24, 2022|first=Colin|last=Jacobson|website=DVD Movie Guide|date=September 2, 2009|archive-date=November 3, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103131030/http://www.dvdmg.com/simpsonsseasontwelve.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| Judge Mac McEntire of ''DVD Verdict'' said of the episode that the best moment was pretty much any scene with ].<ref name="dvdverdict.com">{{cite web|first=Mac|last=McEntire|date=September 9, 2009|url=http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/simpsons12.php |title=DVD Verdict Review - the Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season |access-date=2010-08-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103131117/http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/simpsons12.php |archive-date=2011-11-03}}</ref> | |||
| ===Legacy=== | |||
| This episode inspired the name of the real-life ] minor-league baseball team, which came to Albuquerque in 2003 after being known as the ].<ref>{{cite news|title=Doh! Go Isotopes!| work = ]| publisher = ]| page = C8| date = 13 May 2003}}<!--|access-date=11 June 2007--></ref><ref name=simpsonscreateteam>{{cite web |last=Keyser |first=Hannah |title=How the Albuquerque Isotopes Got Their Name |url=https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/55464/how-albuquerque-isotopes-got-their-name |website=] |access-date=January 24, 2022 |date=March 7, 2014 |archive-date=January 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220125091113/https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/55464/how-albuquerque-isotopes-got-their-name |url-status=live }}</ref> A few days after the episode aired, '']'' journalist Leanne Potts acknowledged how then Mayor ] was making similar efforts to move the Canadian baseball team to Albuquerque with a $28 million stadium offer, even stating "it seemed the "Simpsons" writers were commenting on politics in Albuquerque" and that the episode "wasn't a case of cartoons imitating life, but of life imitating cartoons."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.abqjournal.com/quirky/isotopes03-06-01.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816195148/https://www.abqjournal.com/quirky/isotopes03-06-01.htm |archive-date=2021-08-16 |title=Homer Hits Home in Albuquerque|work=]|first=Leanne|last=Potts|date=March 6, 2001|access-date=November 3, 2024}}</ref> In tribute to the episode, statues of Homer, Marge, Bart and Lisa were placed in the Albuquerque Isotopes stadium.<ref name=simpsonscreateteam /> | |||
| This episode has also been credited for popularizing the word "]", which later entered the '']''.<ref>{{cite web|date=November 17, 2008|url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gizEbtOYkof1zKbnOxI961sG1Tlw|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100511191432/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gizEbtOYkof1zKbnOxI961sG1Tlw|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 11, 2010|title='Meh': new word for indifference enters English dictionary|agency=]|access-date=November 3, 2024}}</ref><ref name=bg/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/mar/05/newmedia.broadcasting|title=Meh — the word that's sweeping the internet|access-date=2007-10-14|date=2007-03-05|work=]|last=Hann|first=Michael|location=London|archive-date=October 12, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012235636/http://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/mar/05/newmedia.broadcasting|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=f216bac2-8f0b-4202-a1ae-8f7ed4de2bd7|title=Canadian politics: The definition of 'meh'|access-date=2008-11-21|date=2008-11-18|publisher=]|work=]|last=Boswell|first= Randy|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206011004/http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=f216bac2-8f0b-4202-a1ae-8f7ed4de2bd7|archive-date=2008-12-06}}</ref><ref name=benm>{{Cite news|last=Macintyre|first=Ben|author-link=Ben Macintyre|title=Last word: Any word that embiggens the vocabulary is cromulent with me|newspaper=]|date=2007-08-11|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article2234263.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706043344/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article2234263.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 6, 2008 | location=London}}</ref> The word is an interjection expressing boredom or indifference, and an adjective describing something boring or mediocre.<ref name=benm/> The word, which has its root in ],<ref name=bg/> is expressly spelled out in the episode: | |||
| :Homer: Kids, how would you like to go to ... Blockoland! | |||
| :Bart and Lisa: Meh. | |||
| :Homer: But the TV gave me the impression that -- | |||
| :Bart: We said, "Meh!" | |||
| :Lisa: M-e-h, meh. | |||
| The word had been used on several previous occasions on the show, the first such usage being in the ] episode "]" in 1994. In that episode, Lisa is given the town's voting record for the mayoral election; in response to her question that she "thought this was a secret ballot," the official responds "meh".<ref name=bg>{{cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2012/02/26/the-meh-generation/lmLccPoBMpwvPycxr2vqhJ/story.html|title=The 'meh' generation|last=Zimmer|first= Ben|date=2012-02-26|work=]|access-date=2022-01-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709211244/http://articles.boston.com/2012-02-26/ideas/31094294_1_collins-english-dictionary-mitt-romney-presidential-race/2|archive-date=2012-07-09}}</ref> ], the writer of "Hungry, Hungry Homer" has stated that he "originally heard the word from an advertising writer named Howie Krakow back in 1970 or 1971 who insisted it was the funniest word in the world."<ref name=bg/> | |||
| Homer's line "...I gave the guy directions, even though I didn't know the way. Because that's the kind of guy I am this week." is paraphrased by ] in his band ]'s 2005 single "]".<ref>{{cite web|first=Mike|last=Rampton|date=March 2, 2019|url=https://www.kerrang.com/features/taking-a-deeper-look-at-fall-out-boys-sugar-were-goin-down-video/|title=A deep dive into Fall Out Boy's Sugar, We're Goin Down video|work=]|access-date=November 3, 2024|archive-date=August 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816195148/https://www.kerrang.com/features/taking-a-deeper-look-at-fall-out-boys-sugar-were-goin-down-video/|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| ==References== | |||
| {{Reflist}} | |||
| ⚫ | ==External links== | ||
| {{Wikiquote|The_Simpsons/Season_12#Hungry.2C_Hungry_Homer|"Hungry, Hungry Homer"}} | |||
| {{Portal|The Simpsons}} | |||
| ⚫ | *{{Snpp capsule|CABF09}} | ||
| ⚫ | *{{IMDb episode|id=0701130}} | ||
| *'Meh': new word for indifference enters English dictionary () | |||
| {{The Simpsons episodes|12}} | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
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Latest revision as of 01:54, 19 December 2024
For the titular character, see Homer Simpson. 15th episode of the 12th season of The Simpsons
| "Hungry, Hungry Homer" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |||
| Episode no. | Season 12 Episode 15 | ||
| Directed by | Nancy Kruse | ||
| Written by | John Swartzwelder | ||
| Production code | CABF09 | ||
| Original air date | March 4, 2001 (2001-03-04) | ||
| Guest appearance | |||
| |||
| Episode features | |||
| Chalkboard gag | "Temptation Island was not a sleazy piece of crap" | ||
| Couch gag | The Simpsons are black belts in karate. They use their hands to chop up the couch while Homer does an elaborate flip and switches on the TV with his remote. | ||
| Commentary | Mike Scully Ian Maxtone-Graham John Frink Don Payne Matt Selman Max Pross Phil Rosenthal Ben Rosenthal | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
| |||
| The Simpsons season 12 | |||
| List of episodes | |||
"Hungry, Hungry Homer" is the fifteenth episode of the twelfth season of the American television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 4, 2001. In the episode, Homer becomes a Good Samaritan after discovering the simple joys of helping people in need – which is put to the test when he goes on a hunger strike after the owner of the Springfield Isotopes baseball team attempts to discredit him when Homer stumbles on his plot to discreetly move the team to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The episode was written by John Swartzwelder and directed by Nancy Kruse, and guest starred Stacy Keach as Howard K. Duff VIII.
Since airing, it has received generally mixed reviews from television critics. The episode inspired the naming of the Albuquerque Isotopes minor-league baseball team, which began play in 2003.
Plot
The Simpson family visits Blockoland, a theme park similar to Legoland which is completely made of blocks. When Lisa finds a piece missing from an Eiffel Tower kit she has bought, Homer persuades the gift shop clerk to give it to her. Energized by the idea of "standing up for the little guy", Homer talks a girl Bart likes into going to a school dance with him, gets a beauty salon owner to put free highlights in Marge's hair, and finds a way for the salon to cut its expenses. He next tries to get Lenny a refund on his season tickets for the Springfield Isotopes baseball team (previously introduced in the season 2 episode "Dancin' Homer"), after they continue to lose games repeatedly since being taken over by Duff Beer. At the Isotopes' ballpark, Homer encounters team owner Howard K. Duff VIII, who refuses to grant a refund. As he leaves, Homer goes through the wrong door and discovers a room filled with merchandise for the "Albuquerque Isotopes" and realizes that Howard is planning to move the team. Howard denies the idea, then has Duffman drug Homer and dump him at the Simpsons' house to cover up the truth.
Homer attempts to warn the media of Howard's plan, but by the time he can lead reporters to the ballpark, Howard has removed all evidence of it. Homer is denounced a liar by the media and Howard embarrasses him further by showing footage of him with his pants on fire on television. In retaliation, Homer stages a hunger strike, chaining himself to a pole in the parking lot and refusing to leave or eat until Howard admits the truth. After Homer begins to attract public attention, the team secretly moves him into the ballpark one night and dubs him "Hungry, Hungry Homer" as a publicity stunt. They claim publicly that Homer will not eat until the Isotopes win the pennant, covering up his real message. As his health declines and he begins rapidly losing weight, he nearly gives in while seeing fans eat at the ballpark. However, a visit by the ghost of Cesar Chavez (who assumes the appearance of Cesar Romero, since Homer does not know what Chavez looks like) inspires him to stand his ground.
Thinking that Homer has gone insane and that his popularity is waning, Howard unchains him and offers him a hot dog in a public ceremony during an Isotopes game. As Homer is about to eat it, he realizes that it is loaded with Southwestern-style toppings and angrily denounces Howard. Inspecting their own hot dogs, the fans discover their wrappers marked with the "Albuquerque Isotopes" team name and realize that Homer was right from the start. The crowd boos Howard, and Duffman turns against him and throws him bodily off the field. Homer earns a round of cheers from the crowd and ends his hunger strike, eagerly devouring the food they throw to him. Watching the scenes on television, the mayor of Albuquerque abandons his plan to steal the Isotopes from Springfield and decides to turn his attention to purchasing the Dallas Cowboys, with the intent of forcing them to play baseball instead of football, declaring, "They'll play what I tell 'em to play, for I am the Mayor of Albuquerque!"
Production
The episode was written by John Swartzwelder and directed by Nancy Kruse. The episode was originally pitched by Al Jean, possibly from his daughter, although it is not certain. The origin of the episode is that Mike Scully in season 8 pitched an episode where Homer gets a motorcycle; however, the town passes a helmet law that requires riders to wear a helmet, leading Homer to go on a hunger strike in protest. The writers shelved the idea of Homer having a motorcycle (though it would be used for the season 11 episode "Take My Wife, Sleaze"), but held on to Homer having a hunger strike until Al Jean pitched this episode. Another inspiration was that a team was moving to another city. Dan Castellaneta ad libbed the lyrics to Homer's "Dancing Away My Hunger Pains" song. The ending scene with the mayor announcing his plans to take over the Dallas Cowboys has been edited from all U.S. syndicated reruns, but has been seen on overseas syndicated reruns and the season 12 DVD set. The scene is also featured on Disney Plus.
Cultural references
The title of the episode is a reference to the Hasbro tabletop game Hungry Hungry Hippos.
Duffman turning against Howard K. Duff and throwing him over a fence is a reference to Darth Vader turning on Emperor Palpatine in the film Return of the Jedi (1983).
After being drugged, Homer wakes up lying on top of a dog house, similar to the way Snoopy lies on his dog house in the Peanuts comic strip. (Bart even says "Good Grief!" in another reference to the strip.) Later, when Homer returns to the Duff Stadium and finds the private room empty, a man plays "wah-wah" on a muted trumpet, again a reference to Peanuts.
When tied to the flagpole, Lisa gives Homer a book to read called My Core Beliefs by Mike Farrell. Homer flips through it and says "Man, he really hates Wayne Rogers." This is in reference to the named actors' characters on the TV show M*A*S*H, in which Farrell's character BJ Hunnicutt replaced Rogers' character Trapper John McIntyre.
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Hungry, Hungry Homer" was viewed by an estimated 10.0156 million households and received a 9.8 rating/15 share Nielsen Rating making it into the top twenty.
Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie Guide gave the episode a mixed review writing "Though it has something of a rehashed feel – an impression that we’ve seen this episode before – 'Hungry' still manages to be fairly effective. Chock full of laughs? No, but the show has its moments. Or maybe I just like it because it's the origin of the word 'hungy', which I used for many years. I forgot I stole it from this episode!"
Judge Mac McEntire of DVD Verdict said of the episode that the best moment was pretty much any scene with Duffman.
Legacy
This episode inspired the name of the real-life Albuquerque Isotopes minor-league baseball team, which came to Albuquerque in 2003 after being known as the Calgary Cannons. A few days after the episode aired, Albuquerque Journal journalist Leanne Potts acknowledged how then Mayor Jim Baca was making similar efforts to move the Canadian baseball team to Albuquerque with a $28 million stadium offer, even stating "it seemed the "Simpsons" writers were commenting on politics in Albuquerque" and that the episode "wasn't a case of cartoons imitating life, but of life imitating cartoons." In tribute to the episode, statues of Homer, Marge, Bart and Lisa were placed in the Albuquerque Isotopes stadium.
This episode has also been credited for popularizing the word "meh", which later entered the Collins English Dictionary. The word is an interjection expressing boredom or indifference, and an adjective describing something boring or mediocre. The word, which has its root in Yiddish, is expressly spelled out in the episode:
- Homer: Kids, how would you like to go to ... Blockoland!
- Bart and Lisa: Meh.
- Homer: But the TV gave me the impression that --
- Bart: We said, "Meh!"
- Lisa: M-e-h, meh.
The word had been used on several previous occasions on the show, the first such usage being in the season six episode "Sideshow Bob Roberts" in 1994. In that episode, Lisa is given the town's voting record for the mayoral election; in response to her question that she "thought this was a secret ballot," the official responds "meh". John Swartzwelder, the writer of "Hungry, Hungry Homer" has stated that he "originally heard the word from an advertising writer named Howie Krakow back in 1970 or 1971 who insisted it was the funniest word in the world."
Homer's line "...I gave the guy directions, even though I didn't know the way. Because that's the kind of guy I am this week." is paraphrased by Patrick Stump in his band Fall Out Boy's 2005 single "Sugar, We're Goin' Down".
References
- ^ Scully, Mike (2009). The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Selman, Matt (2009). The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- Simpsons Season 12 DVD, Commentary "Hungry, Hungry Homer".
- Payne, Don (2009). The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Hungry, Hungry Homer" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
- Chernoff, Scott (July 24, 2007). "I Bent My Wookiee! Celebrating the Star Wars/Simpsons Connection". Lucasfilm. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
- DeMott, Rick (March 6, 2001). "U.S. Primetime TV Ratings For The Week Of February 26 – March 4, 2001". Animation World Network. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
- Jacobson, Colin (September 2, 2009). "The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season (2000)". DVD Movie Guide. Archived from the original on November 3, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
- McEntire, Mac (September 9, 2009). "DVD Verdict Review - the Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season". Archived from the original on November 3, 2011. Retrieved August 30, 2010.
- "Doh! Go Isotopes!". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Hearst Corporation. May 13, 2003. p. C8.
- ^ Keyser, Hannah (March 7, 2014). "How the Albuquerque Isotopes Got Their Name". Mental Floss. Archived from the original on January 25, 2022. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
- Potts, Leanne (March 6, 2001). "Homer Hits Home in Albuquerque". Albuquerque Journal. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
- "'Meh': new word for indifference enters English dictionary". Agence France-Presse. November 17, 2008. Archived from the original on May 11, 2010. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
- ^ Zimmer, Ben (February 26, 2012). "The 'meh' generation". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
- Hann, Michael (March 5, 2007). "Meh — the word that's sweeping the internet". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on October 12, 2013. Retrieved October 14, 2007.
- Boswell, Randy (November 18, 2008). "Canadian politics: The definition of 'meh'". Vancouver Sun. Canwest News Service. Archived from the original on December 6, 2008. Retrieved November 21, 2008.
- ^ Macintyre, Ben (August 11, 2007). "Last word: Any word that embiggens the vocabulary is cromulent with me". The Times. London. Archived from the original on July 6, 2008.
- Rampton, Mike (March 2, 2019). "A deep dive into Fall Out Boy's Sugar, We're Goin Down video". Kerrang!. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
External links
- "Hungry, Hungry Homer episode capsule". The Simpsons Archive.
- "Hungry, Hungry Homer" at IMDb
- 'Meh': new word for indifference enters English dictionary ()
