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Homer's Triple Bypass
Marge vs. the Monorail
Selma's Choice

Trivia[]

  • Leonard Nimoy wasn't originally supposed to appear in this episode as the grand marshal for the monorail's maiden voyage. George Takei (Sulu from the original Star Trek series) was originally picked to appear on the show, but Takei didn't want to appear in something that mocked public transportation (as Takei was on California's Board of Public Transportation at the time and was an advocate of it). William Shatner (Captain Kirk from the original Star Trek series) was also considered, but the idea was scrapped as Shatner already turned down an appearance on a previous Simpsons episode.
  • As the solar eclipse is shown a few bars of the main theme from Star Trek The Motion Picture (and The Next Generation) are heard, as Nimoy himself narrates.
  • The monorail is a drivable vehicle in The Simpsons: Hit & Run. It can be found on top of the monorail station as the secret hidden car for Level 2.
  • This was the first episode to be broadcast in 1993.
  • This episode was nominated on a Twitter poll as the best Simpsons episode at 55%, with "Last Exit to Springfield" acting as the runner-up.
  • The episode would later be used as for a meme poking fun at the show banning "Stark Raving Dad". In the meme, Marge is told "Go away, there ain't no Michael Jackson episode and there never was!", then slamming the window roller shut to show a depiction of Leon Kompowski, spoofing Marge being shooed away from the "Monorail Cafe".
  • In the park scene where Mr. Burns and Smithers were trying to dump the barrels in the tree, there is a tree (before Burns and Smithers appear) with a heart with arrow carved on the tree along with name initials "M.B." and "H.S.". This is very likely left by Marge (née Bouvier) and Homer Simpson before they got married.

Cultural References[]

  • The episode's opening scene is a parody of the opening of The Flintstones, complete with the same music, to which Homer sings his own lyrics.
  • The main premise of a con man getting a town excited about something he sells but hardly knows anything about is borrowed from the musical "The Music Man".
  • Lanley's appearance and the musical number at the end of the town hall meeting is a nod to some of the songs in The Music Man as well.
  • A "reverse reference" occurred in 2002 when Seattle residents opposed to a proposed monorail project held a protest event called "Coming Out With Marge Simpson". The event organizers planned to show the episode as part of the protest but were ordered not to by Fox due to copyright laws.
  • The scene where Mr. Burns (as Mr. Snrub) and Smithers escape the town hall via a grappling hook is a reference to the 1989 movie Batman. Homer would later mistake Sebastian Cobb, the North Haverbrook contractor, for Batman.
  • Whilst studying for the monorail conductor exam, the study book is entitled MCAT (Monorail Conductor Aptitude Test), which is a reference to the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) taken by many medical students. 
  • The song similar to Axel F can be heard in this episode when Mr. Burns and Smithers take the toxic waste drum to dispose of it. Former Fox Broadcasting Company head Barry Diller was head of Paramount Pictures when the studio made the film.
  • When Homer was reading the newspaper, he was reading an Andy Capp comic strip and had referred Andy Capp as "a wife beating drunk". Andy Capp is a British comic strip created by cartoonist, Reg Smythe for the British newspapers, the Daily Mirror and the Sunday Mirror.
    • In the comic, Andy Capp is an unemployed working-class figure from Hartlepool in County Durham in the Northeast of England whose activities includes getting drunk at his local pub. While in the comic, Andy Capp does often get into fights with his wife over his drinking and being unemployed, Andy never beat his wife, instead, his wife, Flo often beats Andy, usually with a rolling pin. The comic had been adapted in a stage play, a computer game, and a six-episode TV series, starring James Bolam as the titular character, and Paula Tilbrook as Andy Capp's wife, Flo.

Future Episode References[]

  • The chalkboard gag for this episode is "I will not eat things for money". Bart later does do this in the episode "Diggs" when he is trying to pay Homer back.
  • When Bart proudly states that he wants to be like Homer when he grows up, Homer even suggests that Bart should change his name to Homer, Jr. or HoJu for short. In "Labor Pains", Homer helps a woman give birth and names the baby Homer Jr. AKA HoJu.

Goofs[]

Nolegs

The man on the bottom left has transparent legs

  • Snake is shown burgling homes but is also among the crowd singing the monorail song. 
  • Krusty's infant son is shown to have the same pale skin and green hair that he has, even though "Homer's Triple Bypass" revealed that Krusty's pale skin is from a heart operation (and episodes prior to that have shown that Krusty's pale skin is clown make-up that can easily be wiped off).
  • Doctor Hibbert was among the passengers on the monorail on the first ride, but he is seen with a pair of conjoined twins in his office soon after. 
  • Nomouthgramp

    Grandpa without a mouth

    When the Springfield residents cheer for "Grandpa's" idea, Grandpa Simpson's mouth briefly disappears.
  • After the monorail car is accidentally dropped on the house, a man in the background has legs that aren't colored in.
    Maudearms

    Maude (second from left on bottom) with arms the color of her waistcoat

  • When Maggie is reaching for the possum in the monorail, her pacifier, Marge's pearls and tongue change color.
  • After the monorail song ends, when Homer says "Mono--", Maude's sleeves change from pink to the same color as her waistcoat. Also, before looking at Homer, Lou and Eddie's arms are miscolored blue instead of brown and yellow respectively.
  • Lewis' lookalike, a fourth-grade student, can be seen in Ms. Hoover's class during Lyle Lanley's visit to Springfield Elementary.
  • Shadover

    The tree's shadow layered over the tree

    When Springfield's Oldest Tree falls onto the Birthplace of Jebediah Springfield, the tree's shadow is layered incorrectly over the tree as it hits the cabin instead of under the tree.


Season 3 Season 4 References/Trivia Season 5
Kamp KrustyA Streetcar Named MargeHomer the HereticLisa the Beauty QueenTreehouse of Horror IIIItchy & Scratchy: The MovieMarge Gets a JobNew Kid on the BlockMr. PlowLisa's First WordHomer's Triple BypassMarge vs. the MonorailSelma's ChoiceBrother from the Same PlanetI Love LisaDufflessLast Exit to SpringfieldSo It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip ShowThe FrontWhacking DayMarge in ChainsKrusty Gets Kancelled
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