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Difference between revisions of "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular"

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{{episode
+
{{Icons||FE}}
|image=138thSpectacular.JPG
+
{{Tab}}
|productionCode=3F31
+
{{EpisodePrevNext|Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming|Marge Be Not Proud}}
|originalAirdate=December 3, 1995
+
{{Clip Show Episode}}
|blackboardText=I will only do this once a year.
+
{{Noncanon Episode|reason=The episode is from the point of view of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' being a real show.}}
|couchGag=A montage of various couch gags.
+
{{Episode
|specialGuestVoices=
+
|image= 138th Episode Spectacular (Simpsons Now and Then).png
|Episode Number=138
+
|number= 138
|Written By=[[Jon Vitti]] (credited as [[Penny Wise]]
+
|season=7
|Directed By=[[David Silverman]] as [[Pound Foolish]]
+
|snumber=10
 +
|prodcode= 3F31
 +
|airdate= December 3, [[1995]]
 +
|blackboard= "I will only do this once a year"
 +
|couchgag= A montage of various couch gags.
 +
|guests= [[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]] and [[Lionel Hutz]]<br>[[Buzz Aldrin]] as {{Ch|Buzz Aldrin|himself}}<br>[[Glenn Close]] as [[Mona Simpson]]
 +
|showrunner1= Bill Oakley
 +
|showrunner2= Josh Weinstein
 +
|writer= [[Jon Vitti]]
 +
|director= [[David Silverman]]
 +
|DVD features=yes
 
}}
 
}}
 +
 +
"'''The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular'''" is the tenth episode of [[season 7]] of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' and the one-hundred and thirty-eighth episode overall. It originally aired on December 3, [[1995]]. The episode was written by [[Jon Vitti]] and directed by [[David Silverman]]. It guest stars [[Phil Hartman]] as [[Troy McClure]] and [[Lionel Hutz]], [[Buzz Aldrin]] as {{Ch|Buzz Aldrin|himself}} and [[Glenn Close]] as [[Mona Simpson]], with Aldrin and Close only appearing in clips.
 +
 +
== Synopsis ==
 +
{{Desc|[[Troy McClure]] hosts "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular", where we take a look at the show's history answer viewer questions, and take a look at some never before seen deleted scenes.}}
  
 
== Plot ==
 
== Plot ==
In honor of the 138th episode of "The Simpsons", [[Troy McClure]] hosts a TV special looking back at the history of the show. This first act is composed of various Tracy Ullmen shorts. Troy also has a "talk" with the "real" [[Matt Groening]].
+
At the [[Springfield Civic Auditorium]], [[Troy McClure]] hosts "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" to honor America's favorite non-prehistoric family. He tells the viewers about how the show was created when {{Ch|Matt Groening}} teamed up with award-winning producers {{Ch|James L. Brooks}} and {{Ch|Sam Simon}} to make the show. McClure then shows the original short, "[[Good Night]]". After that short is finished, scenes from "[[The Perfect Crime]]", "[[Space Patrol]]", "[[World War III]]" and "[[Bathtime]]" are also shown.
 +
 
 +
The first commercial break then happens, asking the audience what the cash register says when [[Maggie]] is scanned in the [[opening sequence]]. After the break, the answer is revealed to be "NRA4EVER", one of the many radical right-wing messages inserted into the show. After the break, McClure answers viewer questions. The first one, from Professor Lawrence Pierce, simply states "I think Homer gets stupider every year.". Troy points out that it's not a question, but then goes on to show clips of Homer's stupidity from various episodes.
 +
 
 +
The next viewer question, from Dr. Linus Irvin, asks how Matt Groening can write and animate an entire episode every week. The crew go to Groening to ask him just that question. However, Groening yells at them to get out of his office and shoots at the crew. Troy then tells the viewers that, according to Groening's lawyers, what he meant to say was that he couldn't possibly do it alone. A list of people who work on ''The Simpsons'' then scrolls down the screen. The final question is from Ambassador Henry Mwabwetumba of the [[Ivory Coast]], who asks "What is the real deal with Mr. Burns' assistant, [[Smithers]]". Several scenes of Smithers romanticizing [[Mr. Burns]] are then shown off. Troy summarizes the clips by saying that the "real deal" with Waylon Smithers is that he's Mr. Burns' assistant, he's in his early 40s, is unmarried, and currently resides in [[Springfield]].
 +
 
 +
The next commercial break asks what popular ''Simpsons'' characters had died in the past year. After the break, the announcer says that if you answered [[Marvin Monroe]] and [[Bleeding Gums Murphy]] that you were wrong, as those characters were never popular. The next segment of the show has Troy McClure showing off deleted scenes from episodes. The first scenes are from "[[Krusty Gets Kancelled]]" and has Krusty trying to get people to watch his show by offering free copies of his book, ''[[Sex]]'', and being told that his show is being replaced by a hemorrhoids infomercial. The next scenes are from "[[$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)]]" where Homer is the dealer for a poker game involving [[James Bont]], [[Ernst Stavro Blofeld]], [[Jaws]], and [[Oddjob]]. The scenes after that are from "[[Mother Simpson]]", where Homer retrieves the care packages that were sent to him by [[Mona Simpson|his mother]], and proceeds to eat everything from them. The next scenes are from "[[Treehouse of Horror IV]]", where [[Lionel Hutz]] tells Marge that if they don't win the court case in 30 minutes, the pizza is free. Bart also says that he would sell his soul for a racing car, causing [[Flanders the Devil]] to appear, before Bart changes his mind, The next scene is from "[[Homer and Apu]]", where [[Apu]] and the Simpsons watch an Indian movie. Finally, a deleted scene from "[[Burns' Heir]]" featuring the [[Robotic Richard Simmons]] is shown off.
 +
 
 +
The next part of the special looks at "[[Who Shot Mr. Burns?]]" and the different outcomes for the end that were written and animated. A montage of different characters shooting Burns is shown off, followed by the alternate ending where it is revealed that Smithers shot Burns. Mr. Burns then gives Smithers a five percent pay cut for shooting him. Troy McClure then ends the special by showing what everyone came to see, a montage of hardcore nudity.
 +
 
 +
== Production ==
 +
The episode happened because the network forced them to have clip shows.<ref name="Oakley">{{Com|Oakley, Bill|The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular|Seventh|(2005).|link=Bill Oakley}}</ref> The idea of this clip show was to just be up front with the viewers that this was a clip show.<ref name="Vitti">{{Com|Vitti, Jon|The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular|Seventh|(2005).|link=Jon Vitti}}</ref> The producers also wanted to use footage that hadn't been seen, or hadn't been seen in a while. This is why deleted scenes and ''[[The Simpsons shorts]]'' were used in the clip show as opposed to already seen episodes.<ref name="Weinstein">{{Com|Weinstein, Josh|The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular|Seventh|(2005).|link=Josh Weinstein}}</ref>
  
Next, Troy answers some viewer mail. One person asks whats the deal with Smithers and someone else asks if Homer is getting dumber each season.
+
The image of {{Ch|Sam Simon}} was drawn by [[Sam Simon]] himself who didn't like the original joke about him.<ref name="Oakley"/> The original joke was that it said "no photo available".<ref name="Vitti"/> The crude drawings of [[Grampa]] and [[Krusty]] were a satirical jab at the early drawings of the Simpsons characters. Director [[David Silverman]] got defensive over the joke, saying that they didn't have a lot of time to do the drawings back then.<ref name="Oakley"/>
  
The final act is made up of a deleted scenes reel.  The alternate ending to [[Who Shot Mr. Burns]] is also shown, which reveals Smithers is the shooter.
+
The jokes about [[Matt Groening]] being right-wing and inserting right-wing messages into every episode were made as a subversion to the beliefs of the staff because most of the show's staff are very left-wing.<ref name="Oakley"/>
  
== Characters ==
+
== Reception ==
 +
Erik Adams of ''{{W|The A.V. Club}}'' calls the episode "a relic of a bygone era" since deleted scenes are available on the DVD boxsets. He ends his review by saying that "The staff deserves kudos for taking such an undesirable assignment so seriously; they get further props for not papering over the really embarrassing stuff."<ref>[https://www.avclub.com/the-simpsons-the-simpsons-138th-episode-spectacular-1798180102 The A.V. Club - "The Simpsons: "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular""]</ref>
  
* [[Troy McClure]]
+
In the DVD commentary for the episode, showrunner [[Bill Oakley]] calls the episode "the best clip show" of ''The Simpsons'' because it had more original and interesting material than the others.<ref name="Oakley"/>
* [[Homer Simpson]]
 
* [[Marge Simpson]]
 
* [[Bart Simpson]]
 
* [[Lisa Simpson]]
 
* [[Maggie Simpson]]
 
* [[Barney Gumble]]
 
* [[Apu Nahasapeemapetilon]]
 
* [[Mr. Burns]]
 
* [[Santa's Little Helper]]
 
* [[Itchy and Scratchy]]
 
* [[Adolf Hitler]]
 
* [[Grampa Simpson]]
 
* [[Herman]]
 
* [[Jasper Beardley]]
 
* [[Jacqueline Bouvier]]
 
* [[Krusty the Clown]]
 
* [[Princess Kashmir]]
 
* [[Patty and Selma Bouvier]]
 
* [[Mrs. Krabappel]]
 
* [[Miss Hoover]]
 
* [[Seymour Skinner]]
 
* [[Milhouse Van Houten]]
 
* [[Martin Prince]]
 
* [[Nelson]]
 
* [[Ned Flanders]]
 
* [[Maude Flanders]]
 
* [[Chief Wiggum]]
 
* [[Eddie]]
 
* [[Lou]]
 
* [[Moe Szyslak]]
 
* [[Kent Brockman]]
 
* [[Otto Mann]]
 
* [[Dr. Hibbert]]
 
* [[Matt Groening]]
 
* [[James L. Brooks]]
 
* [[Sam Simon]]
 
* [[Race Banyon]]
 
* [[wikipedia: Buzz Aldrin|Buzz Aldrin]]
 
* [[Bleeding Gums Murphy]]
 
* [[Dr. Marvin Monroe]]
 
* [[Dave Shutton]]
 
* [[Rich Texan]]
 
* [[James Bond]]
 
* [[Mona Simpson]]
 
* [[Lionel Hutz]]
 
* [[wikipedia: Tito Puente|Tito Puente]]
 
* [[Carl Carlson]]
 
* [[Lenny Leonard]]
 
* [[Sideshow Mel]]
 
* [[Groundskeeper Willie]]
 
* [[Rev. Lovejoy]]
 
* [[Snake]]
 
* [[Ashley Grant]]
 
  
== Trivia ==
+
As of July [[2022]], the episode has a 7.4 rating on {{W|IMDb}}.<ref>[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0701261/ IMDb - "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular"]</ref>
*The deleted "Robot Richard Simmons" scene was taken out of [[Burns' Heir]] because it didn't receive any laughs from the crew. However, when it was shown to fans, it received a huge amount of laughs.
 
*The alternate ending for "Who Shot Mr. Burns" was made to fool the staff and animators so they wouldn't find out who really shot him.
 
*This episode featured the short [[World War III]] but the fourth act was cut out for time.
 
*In the above picture of Troy McClure on the Simpson's staircase, a picture of the Simpsons as they appeared on The Tracey Ullman Show can be seen.
 
  
 +
== References ==
 +
{{Reflist}}
  
{{Season 7}}
+
{{Images|ep=yes}}
 +
{{season 7}}
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular, The}}
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular, The}}
[[Category:Season 7]]
+
 
[[Category:Episodes]]
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[[Category:1995]]
[[Category:Clip Show]]
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[[Category:Clip shows]]
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[[Category:Non-canon episodes]]
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[[Category:12-rated episodes]]
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[[Category:Episodes written by Jon Vitti]]
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[[Category:Episodes directed by David Silverman]]
 +
 
 +
[[sv:The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular]]

Latest revision as of 11:23, April 14, 2024

Season 7 Episode
137 "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming"
138
"The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular"
"Marge Be Not Proud" 139
Clip show.png This episode is a Clip Show.
It features clips from previous episodes.
Donut Homer.png This episode is considered non-canon and the events featured do not relate to the series and therefore may not have actually happened/existed.

The reason behind this decision is: The episode is from the point of view of The Simpsons being a real show..

If you dispute this, please bring it up on the episode's talk page.

"The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular"
138th Episode Spectacular (Simpsons Now and Then).png
Episode Information
Episode number: 138
Season number: S7 E10
Production code: 3F31
Original airdate: December 3, 1995
Chalkboard gag: "I will only do this once a year"
Couch gag: A montage of various couch gags.
Guest star(s): Phil Hartman as Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz
Buzz Aldrin as himself
Glenn Close as Mona Simpson
Showrunners: Bill Oakley
Josh Weinstein
Written by: Jon Vitti
Directed by: David Silverman
DVD features


"The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" is the tenth episode of season 7 of The Simpsons and the one-hundred and thirty-eighth episode overall. It originally aired on December 3, 1995. The episode was written by Jon Vitti and directed by David Silverman. It guest stars Phil Hartman as Troy McClure and Lionel Hutz, Buzz Aldrin as himself and Glenn Close as Mona Simpson, with Aldrin and Close only appearing in clips.

Synopsis[edit]

"Troy McClure hosts "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular", where we take a look at the show's history answer viewer questions, and take a look at some never before seen deleted scenes."


Plot[edit]

At the Springfield Civic Auditorium, Troy McClure hosts "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" to honor America's favorite non-prehistoric family. He tells the viewers about how the show was created when Matt Groening teamed up with award-winning producers James L. Brooks and Sam Simon to make the show. McClure then shows the original short, "Good Night". After that short is finished, scenes from "The Perfect Crime", "Space Patrol", "World War III" and "Bathtime" are also shown.

The first commercial break then happens, asking the audience what the cash register says when Maggie is scanned in the opening sequence. After the break, the answer is revealed to be "NRA4EVER", one of the many radical right-wing messages inserted into the show. After the break, McClure answers viewer questions. The first one, from Professor Lawrence Pierce, simply states "I think Homer gets stupider every year.". Troy points out that it's not a question, but then goes on to show clips of Homer's stupidity from various episodes.

The next viewer question, from Dr. Linus Irvin, asks how Matt Groening can write and animate an entire episode every week. The crew go to Groening to ask him just that question. However, Groening yells at them to get out of his office and shoots at the crew. Troy then tells the viewers that, according to Groening's lawyers, what he meant to say was that he couldn't possibly do it alone. A list of people who work on The Simpsons then scrolls down the screen. The final question is from Ambassador Henry Mwabwetumba of the Ivory Coast, who asks "What is the real deal with Mr. Burns' assistant, Smithers". Several scenes of Smithers romanticizing Mr. Burns are then shown off. Troy summarizes the clips by saying that the "real deal" with Waylon Smithers is that he's Mr. Burns' assistant, he's in his early 40s, is unmarried, and currently resides in Springfield.

The next commercial break asks what popular Simpsons characters had died in the past year. After the break, the announcer says that if you answered Marvin Monroe and Bleeding Gums Murphy that you were wrong, as those characters were never popular. The next segment of the show has Troy McClure showing off deleted scenes from episodes. The first scenes are from "Krusty Gets Kancelled" and has Krusty trying to get people to watch his show by offering free copies of his book, Sex, and being told that his show is being replaced by a hemorrhoids infomercial. The next scenes are from "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)" where Homer is the dealer for a poker game involving James Bont, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, Jaws, and Oddjob. The scenes after that are from "Mother Simpson", where Homer retrieves the care packages that were sent to him by his mother, and proceeds to eat everything from them. The next scenes are from "Treehouse of Horror IV", where Lionel Hutz tells Marge that if they don't win the court case in 30 minutes, the pizza is free. Bart also says that he would sell his soul for a racing car, causing Flanders the Devil to appear, before Bart changes his mind, The next scene is from "Homer and Apu", where Apu and the Simpsons watch an Indian movie. Finally, a deleted scene from "Burns' Heir" featuring the Robotic Richard Simmons is shown off.

The next part of the special looks at "Who Shot Mr. Burns?" and the different outcomes for the end that were written and animated. A montage of different characters shooting Burns is shown off, followed by the alternate ending where it is revealed that Smithers shot Burns. Mr. Burns then gives Smithers a five percent pay cut for shooting him. Troy McClure then ends the special by showing what everyone came to see, a montage of hardcore nudity.

Production[edit]

The episode happened because the network forced them to have clip shows.[1] The idea of this clip show was to just be up front with the viewers that this was a clip show.[2] The producers also wanted to use footage that hadn't been seen, or hadn't been seen in a while. This is why deleted scenes and The Simpsons shorts were used in the clip show as opposed to already seen episodes.[3]

The image of Sam Simon was drawn by Sam Simon himself who didn't like the original joke about him.[1] The original joke was that it said "no photo available".[2] The crude drawings of Grampa and Krusty were a satirical jab at the early drawings of the Simpsons characters. Director David Silverman got defensive over the joke, saying that they didn't have a lot of time to do the drawings back then.[1]

The jokes about Matt Groening being right-wing and inserting right-wing messages into every episode were made as a subversion to the beliefs of the staff because most of the show's staff are very left-wing.[1]

Reception[edit]

Erik Adams of The A.V. Club calls the episode "a relic of a bygone era" since deleted scenes are available on the DVD boxsets. He ends his review by saying that "The staff deserves kudos for taking such an undesirable assignment so seriously; they get further props for not papering over the really embarrassing stuff."[4]

In the DVD commentary for the episode, showrunner Bill Oakley calls the episode "the best clip show" of The Simpsons because it had more original and interesting material than the others.[1]

As of July 2022, the episode has a 7.4 rating on IMDb.[5]

References[edit]


The Saga of Carl - title screen.png Wikisimpsons has a collection of images related to "The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular".
Season 7 Episodes
Who Shot Mr. Burns? (Part Two) Radioactive Man Home Sweet Homediddly-Dum-Doodily Bart Sells His Soul Lisa the Vegetarian Treehouse of Horror VI King-Size Homer Mother Simpson Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular Marge Be Not Proud Team Homer Two Bad Neighbors Scenes from the Class Struggle in Springfield Bart the Fink Lisa the Iconoclast Homer the Smithers The Day the Violence Died A Fish Called Selma Bart on the Road 22 Short Films About Springfield Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in "The Curse of the Flying Hellfish" Much Apu About Nothing Homerpalooza Summer of 4 Ft. 2