YOLO/References

Cultural references

 * The episode title is a reference to the term "", an acronym for "you only live once". The word is mentioned several times in the episode as is the number plate on Kirk Van Houten's car.
 * The couch gag is a parody of the movie .
 * The alien that Homer fights is a from Star Trek. The fight scene is from the episode "" and the fight scene between Captain Kirk and the Gorn is often thought as one of the worst fight scenes ever in television.
 * The "You Only Live Twice" parody song is a parody of the song "" from the James Bond movie of the same name.
 * The tallest building in Springfield is the (a.k.a. Burj Dubai), which is the tallest building in the world, that actually is located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
 * Homer mentions, the voice of Rocky the flying Squirrel, was his childhood hero growing up.

Trivia

 * It's revealed Kent Brockman wears a toupee.
 * Edna Krabappel made a speaking appearance voiced by the late Marcia Wallace in this episode. This is because her parts were recorded before her death.
 * Marge mentions that Homer is comfortable living in the same house for twenty years but it's established in Lisa's First Word that the family moved into their current house only eight years prior.
 * When Principal Skinner looks through the children's essays, Lewis' essay doesn't have his last name on it.

Goofs

 * The is located in Barcelona, not the middle of a forest.
 * One of Homer's childhood dreams was to ride on the back of a fire truck; however, he was a member of Springfield's volunteer fire department in "Crook and Ladder", so he should have achieved this one.
 * Though he could have meant for fun, since in "Crook and Ladder" he used the fire truck for work.
 * When Lisa has Springfield Elementary's students sign the honor code, Nelson and Milhouse are present in the classroom even though they're in the fourth grade and Lisa and Ralph are in the second grade.
 * Ralph's essay is between essays from the forth graders.

Continuity

 * The scene where Homer falls down the tallest building in Springfield twice is very similar to Homer falling down Springfield Gorge twice in "Bart the Daredevil".