Fans Say ‘The Simpsons’ Predicted the Titanic Submarine Incident — Because Of Course It Did
The story of the lost Titanic tour submersible has dominated the news this week, and many Twitter users are reacting to the life-threatening and potentially tragic situation in the traditional manner — by talking about how The Simpsons did it first.
Of all the instances in which Matt Groening appeared to be a time-traveler, this one feels like a loose fit, but that hasn’t stopped Simpsons fans from derailing Twitter’s predictable mass of macabre joke threads about the missing OceanGate submarine and its five passengers, whose reported 96-hour oxygen supply was supposed to run out this morning. The claim revolves around a canon-threatening Simpsons episode in Season 17 titled “Homer’s Paternity Coot,” in which Homer tracks down an old boyfriend of his mother Mona who claims to be Homer's biological father, much to Abe’s chagrin.
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After a DNA test confirms the lineage (which is then retconned at the end of the episode to correct the canon), Homer and his wealthy, sweater-wearing new dad Mason Fairbanks go on an underwater treasure hunt in twin submersibles. Predictably, the plan goes awry, and Homer finds himself stuck at the bottom of the ocean with his oxygen supply dwindling. While the Simpsons episode may share some similarities with the Titanic story, Homer’s sub storyline is also nearly identical to every TV episode about a submarine ever made.
Many points have been raised in the responses to the viral thread that contradict the all-too-eager narrative of “Simpsons did it” — namely, the Simpsons episode had absolutely nothing to do with the Titanic. Homer and his not-father explore a sunken shipwreck that looks much more like a generic 17th century sailboat than the so-called “Unsinkable Ship.” It’s also drearily predictable that any cartoon that does the “explore a sunken shipwreck” bit will inevitably pull the “running out of oxygen” card. But none of that's stopping the Simpsons fans from declaring their minds blown.
I can’t imagine what it must feel like for an internet Simpsons fan when they drive by a Dunkin’ Donuts. Do they say that The Simpsons predicted sprinkles too?
