Itchy & Scratchy: The Movie

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The Simpsons episode
"Itchy & Scratchy: The Movie"

Episode no.	65
Prod. code	9F03
Orig. Airdate	November 3, 1992
Show Runner(s)	Al Jean & Mike Reiss
Written by	John Swartzwelder
Directed by	Rich Moore
Chalkboard	"I will not bury the new kid"
Couch gag	The couch deflates.
DVD commentary by	Matt Groening Al Jean Mike Reiss Rich Moore
SNPP capsule
Season 4 September 24, 1992 – May 13, 1993
Kamp Krusty A Streetcar Named Marge Homer the Heretic Lisa the Beauty Queen Treehouse of Horror III Itchy & Scratchy: The Movie Marge Gets a Job New Kid on the Block Mr. Plow Lisa's First Word Homer's Triple Bypass Marge vs. the Monorail Selma's Choice Brother from the Same Planet I Love Lisa Duffless Last Exit to Springfield So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show The Front Whacking Day Marge in Chains Krusty Gets Kancelled
List of all Simpsons episodes...

"Itchy & Scratchy: The Movie" is the 6th episode of The Simpsons' fourth season. It first aired on 3 November 1992. As punishment for Bart's misbehavior, Homer bans him from seeing the new Itchy & Scratchy movie forever.

1 Synopsis
2 Cultural references
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

After a Parent Night at Bart's school, Mrs. Krabappel tells Marge how she should discipline Bart more. Homer does, and Bart, after not watching his sister Maggie when he was supposed to, cannot see the new Itchy & Scratchy movie. No matter what Bart does (trying to sneak out, pleading, behaving well), Homer refuses. Despite the fact that Homer feels bad that Bart really does want to see the movie, he believes that if he doesn't make at least some effort to discipline Bart now, he will never become something successful, like Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Bart doesn't see the movie until the future. In 2032, Bart is Chief Justice of the United States, and Homer takes him to the Itchy & Scratchy movie.

[edit] Cultural references

60 Minutes - Homer's threat of sending Grampa to the "crooked home we saw on 60 Minutes" (after he mumbles incoherently following Bart's prank) is a reference to the CBS newsmagazine and the investigative reports into nursing home abuse that aired on it.
Dr. No - The scene where Bart prepares to put Snowball II into the microwave, after melting a toy James Bond mini-figure, is a spoof of the first James Bond theatrical release.
Simpsons voiceover pseudonyms - Lisa's remark that Michael Jackson and Dustin Hoffman both provided voices for The Itchy & Scratchy Movie, yet were not credited, references previous episodes were the actors provided guest voices using pseudonyms - Hoffman in "Lisa's Substitute;" Jackson in "Stark Raving Dad" as Sam Etic and John Jay Smith respectively.
Soylent Green - Homer's comment, "Mmmmm ... solyent green" (in the flashforward scene where said item is a concession item) is a reference to the 1973 science fiction movie about the synthetic food product named in the title.
Star Trek - The endless succession of Star Trek movies and television shows is spoofed in the opening gag, "Star Trek XII: So Very Tired" (featuring a very elderly Enterprise crew).
Steamboat Willie - The 1928 "Itchy & Scratchy" short - where Scratchy is burned alive in the steamboat's furnace at the end of the film) is a spoof of the classic 1928 Disney short, which served as the debut for Mickey Mouse.
Where's the beef? - Homer's bumper sticker contained the mid-1980s Wendy's advertising slogan, which became a national catchphrase.
TV Guide - Homer recalls reading TV Guide to Lisa. "Eight o'clock, Happy Days. The Fonz (Henry Winkler), is worried he is losing his cool."
World War II cartoons - Itchy & Scratchy slaughter Adolf Hitler with help from FDR.
U.S. Supreme Court - Chief Justices mentioned in this episode are John Marshall, Charles Evans Hughes, Warren Burger and Earl Warren.
The Ohio Express - Homer is listening to "Yummy Yummy Yummy" instead of watching the moon landing.
Academy Awards - The Itchy & Scratchy Movie won nine Academy Awards.
Tennessee Williams - Lisa describes Bart as having "the demented melancholy of a Tennessee Williams heroine".
Mystery Science Theater 3000 - Homer and Bart are silhouetted against the movie screen in a similar fashion to the show's cast.
The Godfather - After Marge says that Earl Warren wasn't a stripper, Homer says "Now who's being naive?". This is similar to Michael Corleone's quote in The Godfather when he says "Now who's being naive, Kay?".

[edit] Trivia

The headlights of Homer's car turn dim when he honks.
In 2032, the "Do not sell to this boy" poster is still hanging there, though it isn't drawn very well.
Originally, the Itchy and Scratchy movie was supposed to be shown as the most violent, twisted cartoon ever, but the writers changed it to be just an ordinary episode of Itchy and Scratchy.
Bart is briefly seen reading a novelization of Itchy & Scratchy: The Movie by Norman Mailer.
When Lisa says, "You wouldn't believe all the celebrities who had cameos! Dustin Hoffman! Michael Jackson! Of course, they didn't use their real names, but you could tell it was them!", she is inadvertently referencing the actual appearances of Hoffman, under the fake name 'Sam Etic' in "Lisa's Substitute" and Jackson, under 'John Jay Smith' in "Stark Raving Dad".
When Homer calls Bart "the boy you love to hate", it may be a possible reference to rapper Ice Cube, who was popular at the time the episode originally aired and was known as "the nigga you love to hate".
This episode originally aired in North America on a Tuesday, rather than the usual Thursday, as part of a comedy lineup on Fox, while the other three major networks were broadcasting the presidential election results.