Imagine scanning all 31 seasons of The Simpsons to make a supercut of all its LGBTQ+ references. That's exactly what journalist Drew Mackie nd screenwriter Glen Lakin did. The resulting video, Smithers & Beyond!, is over two hours long! Mackie, with screenwriter Glen Lakin, host the popular Gayest Episode Ever podcast, which looks at gay culture in classic TV sitcoms.
In a longer analysis of the supercut project, Drew writes:
Did I learn anything from this?
Well, had I picked King of the Hill or Seinfeld or whatever, I would have been done a lot sooner.
I did learn that LGBT jokes on The Simpsons fall into the following categories:
— a reference to LGBT culture or homosexuality in general
— implying that a character is LGBT
— a minor character, usually anonymous, is styled to appear to be gay and offer up a line with stereotypical gay voice. (I say "gay" because there really isn't much of lesbian, bi or trans characters that do this. It's just gay men.)
That might seem like a "no duh," but it was interesting to see the difference between Homer being shocked by looking at a Robert Mapplethorpe book and Milhouse unknowingly saying or doing something that marks him as effeminate.
… I'm a 38-year-old gay man who has watched The Simpsons basically his entire life. It's done more to affect me, my sense of humor and my understanding of culture and the larger world than actual real-life people I have known, which is kind of nuts to think about. If you are like me and have also thought about how The Simpsons has shaped you — as a person in general or as a queer person in particular — don't hesitate to hit me up online. I really, really, really enjoy talking about The Simpsons.
screengrab via Gayest Episode Ever
