Five Perfectly Crafted Sitcom Fart Jokes
Fart jokes are generally regarded as the lowest kind of humor. But every now and then, someone will put a great deal of care into one, thus pulling off something that’s equal parts highbrow and lowbrow — kind of like a Michelin-star chef taking on the humble hot dog.
Here are five such finely crafted fart jokes from the sitcom world…
Marge Simpson in ‘The Simpsons’
In “Beyond Blunderdome,” a car saleswoman approaches the Simpsons family in the dealer lot and asks, “Thinking of saying goodbye to gas?” “You betcha!” Bart exclaims, before letting out a Homer-like belch. Marge corrects him, only to involuntarily fart and have to correct herself instead. “Well, that shut me up,” she mutters.
Eric Cartman in ‘South Park’
The Season Seven premiere of South Park echoes the show’s pilot by having Cartman get another anal probe. This time, though, the fate of the world hangs in the balance — the satellite in Cartman’s ass must be activated in order to save it. Fully aware of the power he possesses, Cartman says the only person he’ll allow to put their finger in his ass to activate the satellite is Kyle. When Kyle reaches in to do so, Cartman proceeds to fart over and over again.
Joey Tribbiani in ‘Friends’
This is a great fart joke without an actual fart. In “The One With the Lesbian Wedding,” Joey divulges one of the tricks to delivering a great soap-opera performance, or what he refers to as “smell-the-fart acting.” “You got so many lines to learn so fast, that sometimes you need a minute to remember your next one,” he explains. “So while you’re thinking of it, you take this big pause where you look all intense,” just like when you first get a whiff of a noxious fart.
Charlie Kelly in ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’
In “The Gang Gets Held Hostage,” Frank is stuck in the ventilation system of Paddy’s Pub looking for his will, which is where Charlie says he’s stashed it. To find it, Frank is trying to make sense of Charlie’s map. But Charlie reveals to Mac that the map is a decoy and that the real map is tattooed on his butt. He proceeds to pull down his pants and instruct Mac to look really close before letting Mac have it right in the face.
Stimpson J. Cat in ‘The Ren & Stimpy Show’
Ren & Stimpy isn’t exactly a sitcom, but it does feature the most intricate, well-thought-out, somehow-heartwarming fart joke ever. In the Christmas episode “Son of Stimpy,” Stimpy is watching television when he lets out the first fart of his life. He is startled by the noise and the smell so he runs to tell Ren about it. Soon after, though, he begins to wonder where his fart went. In short order, Stimpy convinces himself that his fart was his son, Stinky, and he grows deeply depressed awaiting his return. Even Ren tempting him with a mistletoe does nothing.
Eventually, it’s revealed that Stinky is a sentient being, lost out on the streets longing for the warm home that was Stimpy’s butt. In time, Stinky returns home, but only to announce to his father that he’s a man now, and that he’s getting married. He then introduces Stimpy to his fiancée, a rotting fish carcass named Cora.
It’s a tale as old as time.