Them, Robot/References
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Cultural references
- The title is a clear reference to I, Robot.
- Other I, Robot references:
- When Smithers raises the curtain on the robots, they are in formation as when Det. Spooner is searching through them in the movie.
- Until Homer tampers with their programming, the robots appear to be operating according to Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics.
- The robots' eyes turn red when they abandon the Three Laws, similar to the robots in the I, Robot having red lights on their chests when they've been taken over by the central artificial intelligence.
- Mr. Burns is seen reading a copy of Bossypants, Tina Fey's real-life autobiography.
- Apps on Mr. Burns' MyPad:
- The music clip playing when Mr. Burns announces "the future masters of the human race" is from Mussorgsky's "Night on Bald Mountain" featuring the demon Chernabog.
- When Homer takes one of the robots on a fishing trip:
- The robot says that he is not a Transformer and cannot transform into an outboard motor.
- Homer says he is granting the robot's wish to be a real boy, a reference to Pinocchio.
- The robots smash through the glass room and surround Mr. Burns and Homer in similar fashion to the Cybermen in the Doctor Who episode "Rise of the Cybermen".
- It is also similar to a scene near the end of the I, Robot movie, where Det. Spooner and Dr. Calvin are in a glass-walled building and the robots smash in and surround them.
- The robots vaguely resemble the robot ASIMO. They are also said to be able to climb stairs with great difficulty, which could again be a reference to ASIMO.
- Mr. Burns says that he "didn't say Monty Says", which is a reference to the game "Simon says".
- Mr. Burns says "you are so not the heartless automatons I was looking for", a reference to Obi-Wan Kenobi's line "These aren't the droids you're looking for" from the Star Wars movie Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.
- The robots saying "Eliminate!" is a reference to the Daleks in Doctor Who saying "Exterminate!".
- The robot who saves Homer's life by pushing him out of the path of an oncoming truck (and being himself hit as a result) is like the self-sacrificing robot in The Twilight Zone episode, "I Sing the Body Electric".
- When Smithers is throwing books at the robots he says "to servos with love," a parody of the movie title To Sir with Love"
- Smithers throws the books Merv and Death in Venice.
- Brent Spiner, who guest voiced the robots, played the android Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
- The song that plays over the closing credits is "Robot Parade" by They Might Be Giants.
- The jersey on one robot says "Nomad J25". "Nomad" was the name of the robotic space probe in the "The Changeling", an episode of Star Trek: The Original Series.
- On the baseball diamond when Milhouse mentions "Rudy," he is referring to Rudy Ruettiger.
- The usages of prime directive could be a reference to 'Star Trek' where the prime directive is often a key point
Trivia
- Gil is crushed by the wall, though things like that are more likely to happen to Hans Moleman.
- Mr. Burns states that his real age has 4 digits.
- Mr. Burns knows that the young of a kangaroo is called a "joey."
- Although Mr. Burns has a MyPad, he writes with a quill pen and inkwell.
- When all the stores are closing, even Springfield Town Hall has a "going out of business" sign hanging above it.
Continuity
- Characters from past episodes appearing in odd-numbered years during the Couch gag include the following:
- After passing his physical, Lenny licks a frog that looks just like the ones Homer found when he went to Microatia. ("Missionary: Impossible")
- Bart tells Homer that he has to host one of his Pre-Teen Braves meetings. ("The Bart of War")
Goofs
- Homer leaves Mr. Burns' office, then a few seconds later, Burns turns around to the CCTV monitor and sees Homer in Sector 7-G putting his stuff back on his desk. This would be impossible - unless Homer's sector was only a few seconds away from Burns' office, which it isn't.
- Lisa says the robots can only run 3mph, though later in the episode, they run about as fast as the hounds.
