Since Homer Officially Stopped Abusing Bart, Here’s 47 Minutes of Every ‘Simpsons’ Strangling Gag
After three and a half decades of casual comedic domestic abuse, Homer Simpson has officially stopped strangling his trouble-making son in a rare moment of conscientious progress from a paunchy patriarch not known for being forward-thinking. It’s enough to get you all choked up.
In the recent Simpsons episode “McMansion & Wife,” Homer made the rare meta joke after his new neighbor complimented his strong hand shake, quipping to his wife, “See, Marge? Strangling the boy has paid off! Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.” This semi-official retirement of the antiquated abuse joke came after a multiple-season absence of the iconic image of Homer holding Bart in the air by his neck and brutally throttling the boy whose outstretched tongue and tortured gasps for air were, at one point, peak family comedy.
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Two weeks after the airing of “McMansion & Wife,” national news took note of the seismic shift in Simpsons family dynamics, and fans who haven’t been keeping up with The Simpsons’ middling 34th season have expressed mixed emotions about the ending of one of the show’s original running gags. Thankfully, like everything Simpsons-related, the best recourse is to rewatch golden age moments — plus a few post-prime ones, too. Last year, classic sitcom compilation YouTuber The Nostalgia Guy compiled every single clip of Homer strangling Bart from Seasons 1-32 (plus the movie and a couple crossovers) for our viewing pleasure. It's like a CPS clip show episode.
Perhaps, with the problematic disciplinary technique out of Homer's parenting repertoire, we will finally hear which word is cut off the end of the catchphrase, “Why you little…” — but don’t hold your breath on that one.
