A Fish Called Selma

"A Fish Called Selma" is the nineteenth episode of The Simpsons' seventh season and originally aired on March 24, 1996.^[2] It was written by Jack Barth and was directed by Mark Kirkland.^[2] Phil Hartman guest starred as Troy McClure, and Jeff Goldblum guest starred as MacArthur Parker.^[2]

1 Plot
2 Intertextual references
3 Reception
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Plot

Washed-up actor Troy McClure gets pulled over for driving his DeLorean DMC-12 without wearing his corrective lenses. When Troy goes to the DMV to get his license changed so that he will not be required to wear glasses anymore, he offers to take Selma Bouvier to dinner if she will let him pass the eye test. She eagerly agrees.

After dinner at the "Pimento Grove" photographers notice Troy leaving with a human woman (rumors about a romantic abnormality concerning fish essentially destroyed Troy's career). The next day, Troy's agent MacArthur Parker calls and says that he can get work again if he continues seeing human women. Troy continues dating Selma to help his career. On his agent's advice, Troy asks Selma to marry him. She, once again, eagerly agrees.

The night before the wedding, a drunk Troy tells a drunk Homer the reason for his marriage. After the wedding, Homer tells Marge offhand. Marge and Patty try to explain it to Selma, who accuses them of coming down with "the green-eyed gazungas." She confronts Troy who shamelessly admits that their marriage is a sham to help his career. Troy explains to Selma that even though their marriage is a sham, she has benefited and Selma initially accepts the situation. Troy's agent thinks he can get Troy the part of McBain's sidekick in the next McBain movie, but most parts go to actors with families.

Troy and Selma try to conceive, but neither can get aroused. Selma decides that bringing a child into a loveless family is wrong and leaves Troy, with the words "I'll always remember you Troy, but not from your films." Troy turns down the role of McBain's sidekick to direct and star in his own film, a rather odd piece titled "The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel."

[edit] Intertextual references

The opening sequence features a parody of The Muppets.^[1]
The scene with Selma and Troy smoking is a reference to Now, Voyager.^[1]
The "Dr. Zaius" song from the Planet of the Apes musical is a parody of "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco.^[1]
The episode's title is a reference to the film A Fish Called Wanda.^[1]
Jeff Goldblum's character, MacArthur Parker, is a reference to the song "MacArthur Park."
In the wedding scene, Homer's brain is heard "singing" Gary Glitter's song "Rock and Roll".
When Troy and Selma are on their first date in Pimento Groove, pictures of celebrities are seen hanging on the wall. Pictures include Springfield's own famous people like Krusty the Clown and Rainier Wolfcastle, but also former The Simpsons guest stars, including Tito Puente, Sting and James Woods.
"The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel" appears to be a reference to the 1965 film Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines.
The house that Troy McClure lives in is an obvious reference to the Chemosphere house in California, currently owned by German publisher Benedikt Taschen.

[edit] Reception

Entertainment Weekly placed the episode eighth on their top 25 The Simpsons episodes list.^[3] IGN.com named the episode the best of the seventh season, stating that it seemed the "obvious pick". They also called the Planet of the Apes musical the best moment of the episode and "maybe even the whole show".^[4] Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, the authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, were pleased that "Troy McClure gets a starring role at last."^[1] Empire called the episode McClure's "finest hour" and the "high point" of the show's "long-standing love affair with The Planet of the Apes". They praised the lyrics parodying "Rock Me Amadeus".^[5]

The "Planet of the Apes" musical was even included in the documentary Behind the Planet of the Apes, as an example of the impact of the films on US popular culture.

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). A Fish Called Selma. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-05-09.
^ ^a ^b ^c Richmond, Ray; Antonia Coffman (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family. Harper Collins Publishers, p. 200. ISBN 0-00-638898-1.
^ The Family Dynamic. Entertainment Weekly (2003-01-29). Retrieved on 2007-05-09.
^ Goldman, Eric; Dan Iverson, Brian Zoromski (2006-09-08). The Simpsons: 17 Seasons, 17 Episodes. IGN. Retrieved on 2007-05-09.
^ Colin Kennedy. "The Ten Best Movie Gags In The Simpsons", Empire, September 2004, pp. 76-7