Homer the Smithers/References

== Trivia ==
*It is shown in this episode that Moe's Tavern number is 7648437, but the 7 must be used to contact an outside line. Thus, the real number should be: 648-4377.
*7648-4377 spells SMITHERS .
*The last four digits for Burns' office is 5246.
*This is one of the few episodes in which Burns remembers Homer's name.
*This is the second time Burns vows to get revenge on Homer but instead gets rewarded because he was too beneficial. The first time was in "Blood Feud".
*Smithers uses a Macintosh computer, which doesn't have a mouse.
*Homer would later be Burns' assistant while Smithers is on vacation in "Homer vs. Dignity".
*When telling Smithers he doesn't need to diaper him or burp him, Mr. Burns proceeds to belch in a similar manner to Barney Gumble.
*The vacation spot that Smithers goes to after Mr. Burns gives him time off is subtly implied to be a gay resort, due to the only occupants being men as well as Smithers claiming to Mr. Burns that the resort doesn't allow for any photos while calling him from what was obviously a gay nightclub.
*Despite demanding a dodo egg in this episode, in "There's No Disgrace Like Home" Mr. Burns used the expression "dead as the dodo".
== Cultural references ==
*Burns "telepathically" requesting that Smithers come back from his vacation early was similar to .
*The song playing in the background of the nightclub during Smithers' second call to Burns is Relax from the music video "Frankie Goes to Hollywood". It playing in what was implied to be a gay nightclub was a subtle reference to the infamous first cut that got banned in the United Kingdom due to the setting being a leather bar. A deleted scene also had one of the men that Smithers motorskiied directly referencing the song when telling Smithers to calm down shortly after the "shining" moment mentioned above.
== Goofs ==
*When Burns and Smithers are driving away, Burns is shown answering the phone. Later in the same episode, it shows that he never does that himself.
*When Burns sits back down after making his failed phone call to Smithers, his black eye disappears.
*If Burns were really 104 years old, he would have been born long after the dodo became extinct. Since Burns' age is never truly confirmed, it is impossible to say if he could remember the Dodo bird. 
*Lisa is eating spaghetti and meatballs with the rest of the family in the first scene of the third act. This is a few episodes after she had officially turned vegetarian in "Lisa the Vegetarian". Lisa's vegetarianism wasn't mentioned again until "Homer's Phobia", so it may not have been considered to be canonical yet. It's also possible that her meatballs are made of some kind of vegetarian meat substitute.
*When Smithers calls Homer, his phone is black, but in another scene it's blue.
*At the race track, Smithers is shown to be feeding beer to Mr. Burns by the teaspoon, but in "Dancin' Homer", Burns drinks an entire tub of beer without any assistance. it's possible that he became reliant on Smithers for drinking beer after the events of Dancin' Homer.
*Homer is shown attending the race track with his family in this episode. But didn't he get banned from all company outings back in Dancin' Homer? Maybe the ban was lifted, or this episode takes place before that time.
*In "Rosebud" Mr. Burns' teddy bear, Bobo looked old and moldy with one eye dangling after the Simpsons found it in a bag of ice, but in this episode, Bobo looked brand new and clean, but one eye was completely missing. Considering Burns' wealth and Smithers catering to his boss's every whim, Bobo probably got cleaned, restored, and repaired by professionals, and the eye being missing is probably a mistake on the cleaner's/restorer's end.