Homer's Odyssey/References

== Cultural References ==
*The title refers to the Greek epic poem Odýsseia, more commonly understood as Odyssey, or The Odyssey which is traditionally ascribed to a figure called Homer who is believed to have compiled the epic into its current format. 
*The power plant doors that open up in different forms is an homage to the opening sequence in the 1960s TV show Get Smart.
*Bart is forced to sing "John Henry Was a Steel Drivin' Man" because he was being too loud on the bus.
== Trivia ==
*The video which the Springfield Elementary students were watching about nuclear energy bore some resemblance to Mr. DNA video which tourists in the 1993 film Jurassic Park watched about how InGen brought Dinosaurs back to life. Coincidentally, this episode also aired the same year the Jurassic Park book was released.
*This episode marked the first time Russi Taylor provided the speaking voice of Sherri and Terri, who were previously seen in the first regular Simpsons episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire", though they had brown hair and were only heard singing with the other kids in the school choir. It was also revealed that their father, who fired Homer, was supervisor of the Springfield Nuclear Plant's technical supervisors. Homer being rehired as safety inspector likely put him in a different department and out of Mr. Mackleberry's authority.
*Ironically, the way Homer stole Bart's piggy bank in order to obtain beer money as Bart was sleeping bears resemblance to the opening part of the April 1990 anti-drug cartoon special Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue, where the protagonist Michael stole his sister Corey's piggy bank. However, the main difference in that show was that Michael was a drug addict who stole the piggy bank to buy marijuana. Michael also was a beer drinker, in this case directly stealing it from the refrigerator where his father kept it.
**Despite growing in popularity, The Simpsons were still too new a show to have been considered for Cartoon All-Stars to the Rescue, though Russi Taylor (best know for her voicing Martin Prince, Terri, and Sherri) appeared on the special as her Muppet Babies character Baby Gonzo and Ducktales characters Huey, Dewey, and Louie.
*On a newspaper about Homer and the signs, see there is an article titled "Sign ahead Sign".
*This is the last episode production-wise where the backgrounds are constantly made of a gradient. Solid-colored backgrounds were used for the rest of the show beginning in the next episode. However, the last episode to feature them airing-wise is the Some Enchanted Evening episode that aired at the very end of Season 1 (which is the very 1st episode produced for the whole entire show), as that episode was delayed and aired out of order due to animation problems. 
*One sign that Homer gets installed is "Please Drive Friendly". This may have been reference to a gas tank on the New Jersey turnpike which was painted with "Drive Safely".
*This is the first episode that primarily focuses on Homer.
*Bart mentions wanting a tattoo once again after "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire."
*In the Season 1 DVD commentary, it is found out that the "J" in Homer's full name was inserted by the writers as a tribute to Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose from The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show.
*The first time we see Mr. Burns' office, it was rather differently arranged and smaller compared to later episodes.
*On their way to the power plant, they pass the toxic waste dump, the tire yard (which is not on fire as of yet), the state prison, and the elementary school.
*The atom mascot's name is "Smilin' Joe Fission" who sweeps leftover nuclear waste under the rug where "no one will find it for a billion years."
*Bart's report card includes an F in Social Studies, an F in Math, a D in Physical Education, a U in Science, a U in Reading, and a U in writing.
*Homer pens his suicide note on "Things I Gotta Do Today" stationery.
*The three-eyed fish, Blinky, swims near the nuclear plant in a pond.
*A sign at the plant reads, "Our Safety Record: [7] Days Since Last Accident."
*El Barto is signed on the steps of city hall and Chief Wiggum (in his debut appearance) talks about the graffiti problem in Springfield. He then passes around an artist sketch of the culprit who looks like an older and tougher Bart Simpson.
*In the rally against the power plant, Homer's opening line is "Thank you. Unlike most of you, I am not a nut."
*The crank call name that Bart gives to Moe's Tavern, I.P. Freely, is reused during Kent Brockman's report on Homer's fight with Tom in "Brother from the Same Planet" (though the ones responsible in that episode were implied to be drunken fraternity boys wanting to pull a prank, as it was stated that this same fight involved a giant lizard a la "Godzilla".
*This is the first episode to have Homer's name in the title.
*This is the first episode to feature a prank phone call to Moe's Tavern.
*Springfield's anti-nuclear group are called "People against People for Nuclear Energy".
*The episode is implied to take place in November, as one of the places that rejects Homer for work has a sign up which reads "November is safety month".
*The Springfield Shopper headlines in the episode were: "Simpson Says Safe!", "Dozens Cheer Homer Simpson", "Homer Simpson Strikes Again!", "Watch Out, Here Comes Homer" and "Enough Already, Homer Simpson!"
*Although Mr. Burns and Smithers first appear in the series premiere, this episode was technically their debut appearance, due to the episodes airing out of order as a result of the original first episode of the series being delayed due to huge mistakes in the animation that required it to be redrawn.
* When the camera moves across to Marge and the kids when Homer delivers his speech at the power plant, there is a man standing on the left of the screen who looks like one of the Happy Little Elves but with yellow skin.
*This is the first episode to have Homer and Marge talk in bed.
*Homer attempts committing suicide again in later episodes: "Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder", "Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind", "No Loan Again, Naturally" and "Homer Scissorhands".
== Goofs ==
*While the kids are entering the plant, Sherri and Terri's legs don't move while they walk.
*Just after Mr. Smithers says "...so that we have the energy to from your favorite video game to yummy cotton candy machines," all the children start clapping but the sound of clapping starts before they start.
*After Bart's prank call with Moe, you can see Bart and Lisa laughing. However, the telephone's wire does not connect to the receiver.
*As Sherri and Terri are walking along talking to Bart, one of the twins' bodies disappears and her head seems to be floating in midair.
*Otto's skull tattoo has no nostrils.
* Sherri and Terri are white, but their father is black. In later episodes, he was changed to a yellow character.
*After Homer vows to make a stop sign between D Street and 12th Street, and the other Simpsons at the meeting cheer for him, the color of his suit changes from dark blue to black.
*Springfield does not have a city council in later episodes.
*Smithers’ skin is black in this episode. Smithers was mistakenly animated with the wrong color and was made darker than most characters by Gyorgyi Peluce, the color stylist. In a 2014 interview, the show's creator Matt Groening claimed that the character was always meant to be yellow, but animators painted him the wrong color and, because they were low on funds, they could not afford a retake.https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2838753/Smithers-black-mistake-Simpsons-creator-Matt-Groening-reveals-Burns-assistant-started-different-color-reason-making-characters-yellow.html In "The Seemingly Never-Ending Story", Mr. Burns mentions that Smithers is off getting a spray-on tan.
*The 'Sign Ahead' sign looks completely different from when it is shown briefly and when it is in the newspaper.
**Just before the camera flashes at the third sign, the Sign Ahead has a diamond shape and the Speed Limit is 25 MPH, but after the camera flashes, the Sign Ahead has a square shape and the speed limit is now 55 MPH.
*At the very end of the episode, when Homer is being carried off by the crowd, you can see that the crowd carrying Homer, the people are small, so you'll have to look closely, but right before the credits, Marge's necklace changes from red to white, back to red and then finishes with white all in one shot.
*When Homer walks to the intersection, the rope is tied around his body, but when he tells his family the intersection is dangerous, the rope is not tied around his body, but when he said he won’t rest till the intersection gets a stop sign, the rope is tied to Homer’s body again.
*Lisa's neck is unusually long when the Simpson family first encounter Homer during his suicide attempt at the bridge.
*After Homer saves the family from being hit by a car and Marge and the kids tell him they love him and not to kill himself, Maggie's eyes turn yellow for one frame.
*During the initial scene of Homer in the park surrounded by all the signs he helped put up, the two strands of hair on top of his head are missing.
*During the view from Mr. Burns' office of Homer's nuclear safety rally, one of the protest signs reads "NO NUKS" instead of "NO NUKES".
==References==
fr:Un atome de bon sens/Références
Category:Trivia
Category:Goofs