Watching Simpsons

Kelsey Grammar, beyond the late, great Phil Hartman has the distinction as one of the guest hosts that always returns and gives audiences a great episode. That’s partly because Sideshow Bob is a great, wonderful character. So, in terms of ‘coming to Springfield,” this sort of blog entry is a little different than the ones done for Hugh Laurie or America Ferrera. I’d like to see Sideshow Bob return to Springfield and do something different than try to murder Bart. It would be a welcome change of pace, because, frankly, the whole “Revenge” angle is recently hit it’s limit. After Bob’s most recent appearance, one where his whole family tries to kill Bart and ends up in Jail, there doesn’t seem to be any variations on that storyline left. So, here’s what I imagine could be new territory for Sideshow Bob: give him a new vendetta. To do that, he should be pitted against one of the least developed minor characters on the show, Sideshow Mel.

He is a fascinating character. Think about it. Sideshow Mel is always one of the vocal leaders, when it comes to mass crowd, but there is an intellectual component to the character. In one of the episodes past, The Simpsons go to Shelbyville, and discover that the despised rival town has a theater district. One of the show billboards, interestingly enough, advertises Sideshow Mel staring in “Equus” – that controversial play that Daniel Radcliffe, of Harry Potter fame, turned heads with. Mel usually has quirky little references to this. So, here is my idea for a show pitting Bob against Mel

Bob is released, once again, from prison due to a technicality. This time, he bottles up his rage against Bart, but he realizes that he needs a job. So, he tries to get Krusty to fire Mel and rehire him; at this point, we could also throw in a diabolical scheme, ala Halloween 3, to brainwash children via television. (If need be, for sake of continuity, this is where a nod to the “Kill Bart!” theme can come in). Mel doesn’t go down without a fight, however. Plus, Bart and Lisa, can assist Mel as needed.

The Simpsons, Sideshow Bob, Kelsey Grammar, Sideshow Mel, Equus

Ugly Betty, while certainly well written and well cast, would be absolutely nothing America Ferrera. After all, she plays the title role, the central character. Sure, there is a universe at play, with the New York fashion world, but Betty is also the emotional center of the show. Basically, there are a ton of side stories and subplots, but it’s Betty’s drive to “do what’s right” and “be a good person” that drives the show. In a way, that makes it even funnier, because the professional world she lives in is so catty and image driven. Most everybody is concerned with image, appearance, and surface, making a lot of the fashionistas rather shallow. It gives Betty a good sense of conflict.

So, if America Ferrera where to guest host on The Simpsons, what would her appearance be like? There could be a couple of angles. First, since Ugly Betty is an adaptation of a Spanish language program, she could have a story revolving around the guy in the bumble bee outfit, who seems to be Springfield’s sole representative, when it comes to Spanish language television. Basically, intriguing concept, but not necessarily funny.

One thing, however, comes to mind. She could reprise her role as Betty, and come on the show based on that. So, the question now shifts away from America Ferrera to her character, Betty Suarez. What would she do in Springfield?

Unfortunately, the resulting episode has already been done. Still, here goes anyway. Betty is fired from Mode, and so, trying to get over her latest romantic failure, decides to relocate to Springfield. Since Smithers has come down with a disease, Betty gets a job as Mr. Burn’s executive assistant. She does an efficient job, Mr. Burns falls in love with her, and Mr. Smithers gets jealous, thinking Mr. Burns wants to replace him. Before any of that can happy, Betty becomes conflicted by Mr. Burns’ inherent evil nature and decides to quit.

Again, not the best of possible episodes. Mr. Smithers has been replaced before – one time, by Homer.

The Simpsons, Ugly Betty, America Ferrera

Basically, I’d like to create an ongoing series on this blog, on which I think up an actor or actress and argue why it would be great to see them on The Simpsons. This isn’t fan fiction, although it is going to be a bit of wishful thinking on my part. Of course, there will be a number of suggested storylines for the prospective guest star.

First up, this time around, is Hugh Laurie, noted comedic actor from BBC shows like “A Little Bit of Fry and Laurie” as well as “Wooster and Jeeves.” Laurie will likely get a second entry later based on that part of his resume, but at the present, it would make more sense if he did a guest spot based on his widely successful turn as Dr. Gregory House. Most viewers in America know him as that cranky doctor, the one that shoots cadavers to test his theories, can’t get along with his patients, and his a prescription drug problem.

So, it’s in that fashion Hugh Laurie should first visit Springfield. Naturally, this episode would call for some sort of epidemic of a hilarious nature, but it really should not be something gas related – this is The Simpsons, after all, not South Park. Lets say everybody in town starts hallucinating. “Dr. House” is passing through Springfield because somebody duped him into thinking that there was a prestigious medical conference in town. At any rate, he sees everybody tripping out, and he gets to his diagnostics. He is alone, however, and so that means his entourage and team are back at Princeton-Plainsboro. That means he has to enlist the assistance of Doctor Hibbard, and Doctor Nick Rivera, both of whom irritate House to no end. Dr. Hibbard can handle the usual ethical complaints, and Dr. Nick can end up offering the most inane, useless advice ala “lets give everybody boob jobs!” And, despite Dr. Hibbard and Dr. Nick’s uselessness, Gregory House saves the day, but in the process, he makes everyone in Springfield so mad, they chase him out of town in classic Springfield mob fashion, led by Sideshow Mel.

The Simpsons, House, Hugh Laurie