{{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}} {{Infobox Simpsons episode | image = | caption = | season = 12 | episode = 5 | director = [[Neil Affleck]] | writer = [[Rob LaZebnik]] | production = CABF04 | airdate = {{Start date|2000|11|26}} | guests = * [[Leeza Gibbons]] as herself | blackboard = "I was not the [[Fifth Beatle|Sixth Beatle]]" | couch_gag = [[Marge Simpson|Marge]], [[Bart Simpson|Bart]], [[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] and [[Maggie Simpson|Maggie]] successfully do skateboard tricks off a ramp and onto the couch but [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] falls off the ramp and is hit on the head by his skateboard. | commentary = [[Matt Groening]]<br>[[Mike Scully]]<br>[[Ian Maxtone-Graham]]<br>[[Rob LaZebnik]]<br>[[Carolyn Omine]]<br>[[Matt Selman]]<br>[[Don Payne (writer)|Don Payne]]<br>[[Max Pross]] | prev = [[Lisa the Tree Hugger]] | next = [[The Computer Wore Menace Shoes]] }} "'''Homer vs. Dignity'''" is the fifth episode of the [[The Simpsons season 12|twelfth season]] of the American [[animated television series]] ''[[The Simpsons]]''. It first aired on the [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox network]] in the United States on November 26, 2000. In the episode, [[Mr. Burns]] hires a cash-strapped [[Homer Simpson|Homer]] as his "prank monkey", paying him to play pranks on others and humiliate himself in public.
The episode was written by [[Rob LaZebnik]] in his last writing credit for over eight years, until [[The Simpsons season 20|season 20]]'s "[[Father Knows Worst]]". The episode features cultural references to ''[[The Magic Christian (film)|The Magic Christian]]'' and ''[[The Birds (film)|The Birds]]''.
The episode received generally negative reviews from television critics who took issue with its writing. The scene where Homer gets implicitly [[Rape|raped]] by a panda was universally panned by critics and fans, being cited as an instance where the series [[Jumping the shark|jumped the shark]]. It is considered to be one of the worst episodes of the entire series.
==Plot== The Simpsons go out to dinner to celebrate [[Bart Simpson|Bart]] getting his first test "A" grade; however, [[Homer Simpson|Homer]]'s credit card is rejected due to insufficient funds, and the family are made to sing for customers to work off their bill. After Homer reveals that he sold the back seats of his car for gasoline money, he and [[Marge Simpson|Marge]] seek advice from financial planner [[Lindsay Naegle]]. Naegle explains to them that, due to poor money management on Homer's part, the family have multiple mortgages and will need to declare bankruptcy several times.
Meanwhile, [[Mr. Burns]] is looking to amuse himself while his assistant, [[Waylon Smithers|Smithers]], is in [[New Mexico]] performing in a Malibu Stacy musical that he wrote. When Homer asks if he can have a raise, Burns offers him cash in exchange for throwing pudding at [[Lenny Leonard|Lenny]]. He agrees to it, and a highly amused Burns decides to makes Homer his personal "prank monkey". Burns pays Homer to perform embarrassing and cruel tasks, such as pretending to be a baby who "made a boom boom" at the sports stadium restroom, eating a mint condition ''[[The Amazing Spider-Man]]'' #1 in front of [[Comic Book Guy]], and later masquerading as the Springfield Zoo's new female [[Giant panda|panda]], Sim-Sim. However, the panda prank goes awry when Homer is electrocuted by animal handlers and sexually assaulted by the zoo's male panda, Ping-Ping.
[[Lisa Simpson|Lisa]] discovers what Homer has been doing and convinces him his dignity is more important than money. After he quits the "prank monkey" job, she suggests using the leftover money to help needy children, so he buys and then donates the entire selection of kid's toys at [[Mr. Costington]]'s department store. Costington, impressed by Homer's generosity, invites him to play [[Santa Claus]] in the store's [[Thanksgiving Day]] parade, which Burns sees as an opportunity for one more prank. During the parade, Burns offers Homer one million dollars to throw buckets of fish guts into the crowd, but Homer refuses and instead leaves the float to reunite with his family; Burns assumes the role of Santa and carries out the prank himself, causing the audience to be attacked by seagulls. As the Simpsons watch the chaos from the sidelines, Homer thanks Lisa for helping him regain his dignity.
==Production== [[File:Leeza Gibbons.jpg|thumb|200 px|right|[[Leeza Gibbons]] guest starred as herself.]] The episode was written by [[Rob LaZebnik]] and directed by [[Neil Affleck]], the last episode that he directed. It is LaZebnik's first full written script with the first script being "G-G-Ghost D-D-Dad" from "[[Treehouse of Horror XI]]" and draws its plot from the British film ''[[The Magic Christian (film)|The Magic Christian]]'', itself an adaptation of [[Terry Southern]]'s [[The Magic Christian (novel)|novel of the same name]].<ref name="Do the Bartman">{{cite video | people=LaZebnik, Rob|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. Dignity"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> There was originally a sub-plot with [[Waylon Smithers|Smithers]]' musical.<ref name="Selman">{{cite video | people=Selman, Matt|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. Dignity"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> LaZebnik brought some friends and his wife to the table read and during the third act was repeatedly ended and went badly making [[Larry Doyle (writer)|Larry Doyle]] laugh hysterically.<ref name="Do the Bartman"/> There was another prank where [[Mr. Burns]] put a lottery ticket into a grave and everybody went digging for the lottery ticket.<ref name="Do the Bartman"/> The episode includes a character named Rusty the Clown, a reference to [[Rusty Nails]], the inspiration for [[Krusty the Clown]].<ref name="Bongo">{{cite video | people=Groening, Matt|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. Dignity"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>
There was originally going to be a running gag where [[Lenny and Carl#Lenny Leonard|Lenny]] keeps getting hit with random objects.<ref name="D'oh">{{cite video | people=Scully, Mike|date=2009|title=The Simpsons The Complete Twelfth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. Dignity"| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> There were many endings to the original script. One ending was Homer throwing pig's blood into the crowd and 50 years later showing Homer telling a group of children that this was the reason why Thanksgiving was renamed Bloodsfest.<ref name="Do the Bartman"/> They were also going to be hit by blood and laugh.<ref name="Bongo"/> There was also another ending with gravy, but then changed to fish guts.<ref name="D'oh"/> The full version of the song "Sold Separately" was later released on ''The Simpsons''{{'}} soundtrack album, ''[[The Simpsons: Testify]]''.<ref>{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|title=Testify Review|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/r1186750|website=[[AllMusic]]|accessdate=30 August 2010|archive-date=August 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818223651/https://www.allmusic.com/album/testify-mw0000482835|url-status=live}}</ref> "Homer vs. Dignity" was included on The Simpsons Christmas 2 DVD along with "[[Dude, Where's My Ranch?]]", "[[Skinner's Sense of Snow]]", and {{"-}}[['Tis the Fifteenth Season]]".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.amazon.com/Simpsons-Christmas-2-Dan-Castellaneta/dp/B0002PYS60/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1273535014&sr=8-1|title = The Simpsons - Christmas 2|website = [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]]|access-date=November 3, 2024}}</ref>
==Reception== The episode has received negative reviews from critics. Cindy White of ''[[IGN]]'' said that while the episode is universally panned, mostly due to the scene where Homer is implicitly [[rape]]d by a panda at the zoo, and the intentional recycling of other ''Simpsons'' episode premises (such as [[Thirty Minutes over Tokyo|the Simpsons having financial trouble]], [[Homer the Smithers|Mr. Burns hiring Homer to be his assistant while Smithers is on vacation]], [[Mr. Plow|someone dressing up as a baby]], [[Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire|Homer dressing up as Santa Claus]], and [[Bart Sells His Soul|Lisa worrying over someone selling their soul]]), it has funny [[throwaway joke]]s and [[sight gag]]s to make up for it.<ref>{{cite web|last=White|first=Cindy|title=The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season DVD Review|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/08/18/the-simpsons-the-complete-twelfth-season-dvd-review|website=[[IGN]]|date=2022-01-24|accessdate=30 August 2010|archive-date=January 4, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220104083447/https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/08/18/the-simpsons-the-complete-twelfth-season-dvd-review|url-status=live}}</ref>
In September 2009, Colin Jacobson of ''DVD Movie Guide'' gave the episode a negative review, saying "Bad sign number one: when a series [[self-plagiarism|plagiarizes itself]]. That occurs here when Mr. Burns states 'There’s a ''new'' Mexico?', a line that was a lot funnier...[[Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood|back in season five]]. Bad sign number two: a scene in which Homer gets raped by a panda. A couple of the pranks provide minor amusement, but overall, this is a weak episode."<ref>{{cite web|last=Jacobsson|first=Colin|title=The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season (2000)|url=http://www.dvdmg.com/simpsonsseasontwelve.shtml|date=2009-09-02|website=DVD Movie Guide|accessdate=30 August 2010|archive-date=November 3, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103131030/http://www.dvdmg.com/simpsonsseasontwelve.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref> Judge Mac McEntire of ''[[DVD Verdict]]'' said the episode's best moment was with Homer and the panda.<ref>{{cite web|last=Mcentire |first=Mac |title=The Simpsons: The Complete Twelfth Season |url=http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/simpsons12.php |date=2009-09-09 |website=[[DVD Verdict]] |accessdate=30 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111103131117/http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/simpsons12.php |archivedate=3 November 2011}}</ref> [[Mike Scully]] believes that the episode's negative reception was due to critics and audiences being unfamiliar with ''The Magic Christian''.<ref name="D'oh"/>
In January 2012, Johnny Dee of ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote that many fans regard the panda rape scene as "a low in the show's history" and suggested the phrase "raped by a panda" should replace "[[jumped the shark]]" to imply that a popular series has declined in quality and is beyond recovery.<ref name=Dee>{{cite news|last=Dee|first=Johnny|title=The Simpsons at 500: What Are Your Favourite Episodes?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2012/jan/13/simpsons-500-favourite-episodes?newsfeed=true|accessdate=2012-01-14|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=2012-01-13}}</ref>
== Cultural references == *The chalkboard gag reads "I was not the Sixth Beatle", a reference to the "[[Fifth Beatle]]". **The chalkboard on ''The Simpsons: Christmas 2'' DVD reads "I will not surprise the incontinent". This is the chalkboard gag from the season 12 episode, "[[Insane Clown Poppy]]". *The episode's plot is similar to the film ''[[The Magic Christian (film)|The Magic Christian]]'': **The main character, Sir Guy Grand, is an eccentric billionaire who bribes people to carry out his whims, similar to Mr. Burns' hiring Homer to be his "prank monkey". **Grand also plays his pranks to shock people, mocking what they consider to be important, similar to the prank that Burns and Homer play on [[Comic Book Guy]]. *In celebration of Bart's "A" on an astronomy quiz, the waitstaff at The Singing Sirloin sing "Happy First A", a parody of "[[Happy Birthday to You|Happy Birthday]]". *When the Simpsons are pressed into service as a [[Mariachi]] band to pay for their meal at The Singing Sirloin, they are heard playing: **"[[La Bamba (song)|La Bamba]]": Best known for its covers by [[Ritchie Valens]] in 1958 and [[Los Lobos]] in 1987. **"Spanish Eyes": Originally an instrumental titled "[[Moon Over Naples]]", it was re-titled to "Spanish Eyes" when lyrics were added. *Singing Sirloin employee [[Mary Kay]] seems to be a reference to the [[Mary Kay]] company, judging by her pink makeup and all-pink outfit. *When [[Smithers]] asks [[Mr. Burns]] for time off to produce his [[Malibu Stacy]] musical, Burns laughs and sarcastically asks, "Why not write a musical about the common cat? Or the King of Siam?", referencing the musicals ''[[Cats (musical)|Cats]]'' and ''[[The King and I]]'', respectively. *Just before Homer and Mr. Burns prank him, Comic Book Guy is eating pink marshmallow [[Peeps]]. *''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'': When Homer says he'd like to buy a mint condition ''Spider-Man #1'' comic, Comic Book Guy sarcastically replies that he'd like an hour on the holodeck with [[Seven of Nine]]. *During the Panda-Monium!, Mr. Burns has Homer (costumed as female panda) dance the [[Lindy Hop]], a dance which was very popular during the late 1930s and early 1940s. *One of the Thanksgiving parade balloons is of Rusty the Clown, a reference to [[Rusty Nails]]: **Rusty Nails was a popular TV clown in the 1960s in Portland, Oregon, where ''Simpsons'' creator [[Matt Groening]] grew up. **[[Krusty the Clown]] is loosely based on Rusty Nails. *Other balloons seen in the parade include: **A balloon that closely resembles El Chapulín Colorado, the main character of [[El Chapulín Colorado|the TV series of the same name]], on whom [[Bumblebee Man]] is based. **[[Funky Winkerbean]], the title character from the comic strip. **[[The Noid]], who was an advertising mascot for [[Domino's Pizza]] in the 1980s. *The figure on the parade float "saluting the Native Americans" bears a strong resemblance to [[Chief Wahoo]], the [[Cleveland Indians]]' logo. *When the gulls attack the townspeople (who are covered in the fish guts Burns has thrown on them), it is similar to a scene from [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s ''[[The Birds (film)|The Birds]]''.
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Wikiquote|The_Simpsons/Season_12#Homer_vs._Dignity|"Homer vs. Dignity"}} {{Portal|The Simpsons}} * {{Snpp capsule|CABF04}} * {{IMDb episode|id=0763031}}
{{The Simpsons episodes|12}}
[[Category:The Simpsons season 12 episodes]] [[Category:2000 American television episodes]] [[Category:Black comedy television episodes]] [[Category:Television episodes about rape]] [[Category:Thanksgiving television episodes]] [[Category:Television episodes written by Rob LaZebnik]]