Colonel Homer

{{Infobox Simpsons episode| | episode_name = Colonel Homer | image = | image_caption = Lurleen Lumpkin tries to seduce Homer, whose attire is a reference to the attire of Elvis Presley's manager Colonel Tom Parker. Her mobile home was given a confined design to make the scene more intimate and romantic. | episode_no = 55 | prod_code = 8F19 | airdate = March 26, 1992 Show runner Mike Reiss was originally skeptical about the episode, as he did not think Homer could get a new job when he already had a full-time job at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. Reiss eventually gave in, but in future episodes the writers tried to develop the explanation that he got fired from the plant and then rehired at the end. Groening said that during the episode production, he received comments from the production team that Homer was acting like a "jerk" in it, but Groening's explanation was that Homer's behavior was due to his desire to make Lurleen a star and he was oblivious to her attempts to seduce him until the end. The idea of Homer annoying the people at the movie theater was based on an experience Groening had with a friend of his when he was younger. They were sitting by themselves in a movie theater and two "annoying" women sat down right in front of them. Groening's friend told the women to move and they did. One of the women then turned to Groening and his friend and said, "Now are you satisfied?", to which Groening's friend replied: "I won't be satisfied until I see you burn in hell." D'Angelo wrote two songs for the episode: "Your Wife Don't Understand You" (which Lurleen sings at the Beer 'N' Brawl where Homer hears her for the first time) and "I Bagged a Homer". D'Angelo wrote both songs in an hour and presented them to Groening at the episode's table read. Tom Nawrocki of Rolling Stone rated the songs D'Angelo wrote as two of the best songs in the history of the show.

Animation

says it is hard to design real people with a "Simpson look", especially women.|alt=A man with glasses and a red shirt is sitting in front of a microphone.]] The episode marks the debut appearance of Lurleen on The Simpsons. She was created by one of the show's character designers, John Rice. Kirkland thought the first design Rice drew of Lurleen was too "bland" and "plain", so they decided to model her after D'Angelo and add "every kind of pretty girl cliché" into the design. Rice and Kirkland then sent the character to Groening, who sent back a note saying "wow".

Bart's voice actor, Nancy Cartwright, wrote in her autobiography My Life as a 10-Year-Old Boy that the episode's script gives the audience a "visual and aural feast". She said the background designers "must have gone on another field trip for this one" because they captured the look of a typical musical recording studio. The recording studio in the episode, where Lurleen records her new songs with the Simpson family, features two rooms, one for the artist and one for the engineer, with a pane of glass between them. Cartwright said the designers added their own "special touch" by putting a few cracks on the walls, designing a slightly dilapidated ceiling, and by making it look as if the soundproofing on the walls is falling off. The property designers went on a field trip to Sun Studio to receive inspiration for the props in the recording studio, such as the "in session" red light, the mixing board, the musical instruments, and the volume-unit meters that indicates how loud the artist is singing.

The Beer 'N' Brawl redneck bar is based on the bar in the film Urban Cowboy. The Beer 'N' Brawl sells Laramie High Tar cigarettes, a reference to the American cigarette brand Laramie. The country comedy show that Lurleen appears on, Ya-Hoo!, is based on the country television series Hee Haw, which ran from 1969 to 1992 on the American television network CBS.

Reception

Ratings and critical reviews

In its original broadcast, "Colonel Homer" finished twenty-second in the ratings for the week of March 23–29, 1992, with a Nielsen rating of 14.8, equivalent to approximately 16.63 million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on the Fox network that week. Since airing, the episode has received mostly positive reviews from television critics. Nate Meyers of Digitally Obsessed gave the episode a 5/5 rating and called it "another great" episode that chronicles the love between Homer and Marge, showing the "ups and downs" of their marriage. He said Lurleen's songs are "filled with clever observations", but it is Homer's befuddlement that makes it a "classic" episode. Meyers added, however, that country music fans might "take offense at Matt Groening's script, which hams up every stereotype imaginable". DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson said that after the "great" previous episode "Dog of Death", "one might expect some drop-off with 'Colonel Homer', but virtually none occurs. It offers another classic episode that benefits from a memorable guest voice performance from D’Angelo. Homer’s moment in the sun creates a fun plot and the program nicely lampoons the country music business." The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, said the episode is a "good example of The Simpsons fixing itself on a target (in this case, country and western music) and extracting every possible gag. Lurleen's songs are all marvelous."

Hock Guan Teh of DVD Town said he enjoyed the episode, and although it does not contain the "usual amount" of The Simpsons humor, the "rich character development itself makes this episode worth multiple viewings. However, anyone allergic to country music should give this one a pass!" Bill Gibron of DVD Verdict thought the episode featured "one of the best" parodies the Simpsons writers have ever conceived, the parody of the country television series Hee-Haw called Ya-Hoo!: "While one must give multiple kudos to Beverly D'Angelo for writing and performing her own witty hillbilly ditties, it's the twisted cornpone [television series Ya-Hoo!], with such stars as Big Shirtless Ron and Cappy Mae, that really propels this installment into comic heaven. Homer's sheepish response to Lurlene's advances shows just what a decent, family loving man he is." A reviewer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram called the episode "heartwarming", and commented that The Simpsons "once again shows that at the heart of this crazy family there is an abiding love." Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club said "it's a pretty impossible question for a die-hard fan, but if I were forced at gunpoint to name my favorite episode ever, 'Colonel Homer' would probably be the first to leap to mind, if only for the pure joy that is 'Bagged Me a Homer'."

Lurleen's legacy

Lurleen has made several cameo appearances on the show after this episode. She appears for her second time in the season four episode "Marge vs. the Monorail", voiced by Doris Grau, as she is briefly interviewed by Kent Brockman during the monorail's maiden voyage party. When he asks her what she has been doing lately, she responds that since Homer left her, her personal and professional life have gone downhill. She looks dirty and scuffed up, and talks with a harsh, croaky, gravelly voice, rather than the soft, Southern voice she had when she was first introduced. She made her second full-time appearance in the season nineteen episode "Papa Don't Leech", in which the Simpsons family takes Lurleen into their home after she becomes a fugitive from the Springfield authorities for not paying her taxes.

Compared to "Colonel Homer", Lurleen's comeback episode "Papa Don't Leech" received rather negative reviews from television critics. Richard Keller of TV Squad expressed dislike for the episode, stating that he hopes the show will reconsider the next time they decide to give a "solo opportunity" to a supporting character "many people don't remember". Robert Canning of IGN said, "there were too few laugh-out-loud moments in this lackluster episode. Overall, it was nice to see Lurleen again, but she'd probably get more laughs in future cameos than in carrying an entire episode."

Merchandise

"Colonel Homer" originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 26, 1992. Other episodes included in the set were "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish", "Homer Alone", and "Simpson and Delilah". The episode was later included on The Simpsons season three DVD set that was released on August 26, 2003. Matt Groening, Mark Kirkland, cast member Dan Castellaneta, and show runners Al Jean and Mike Reiss participated in the DVD's audio commentary of the episode. "Colonel Homer" was again included in the 2005 DVD release of the Last Temptation Of Homer set. An action figure set based on the episode was released exclusively to Toys "R" Us stores in March 2002. The set, featuring Homer in his white suit and Lurleen with her guitar, is part of the World of Springfield series of The Simpsons action figures created by Playmate Toys. Lurleen's songs "Your Wife Don't Understand You" and "Bagged Me a Homer" appeared on the Simpsons compilation album Songs in the Key of Springfield, that was released on March 18, 1997.

References

External links

"Colonel Homer" at The Simpsons.com

"Colonel Homer" at TV.com

Category:The Simpsons (season 3) episodes Category:1992 television episodes