Encyclopedia Bartannica: A Simpsons Pop Culture Podcast

To celebrate our podcast's 1 year anniversary we have a great episode with not 1 but 2 amazing guests. Jay Katsir and Ariel Dumas are the former head writers for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They are both lifelong Simpsons freaks and we talk about their love of the show while reviewing Season 5 Episode 8 "Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood". We discuss the final week of The Late Show, ancient maritime...

Today we're reviewing Season 6 Episode 1 of The Simpsons "Bart of Darkness". This is the one where Bart breaks his leg and descends into Rear Window-esque paranoia.  We're joined by Australian comedian and actor Ben Russell. He discusses the joys of having a pool growing up, breaking his wrist, and we all reminisce about our time doing comedy in Chicago.  You can follow Ben at imbenrussell on Inst...

We're reviewing Episode 21 of Season 2 of the Simpsons, "Three Men and a Comic Book"; Bart raises money to buy a comic, then eventually splits the cost with Martin and Milhouse.  Our guest is artist David Cooper. David is currently on a mission to draw every Simpsons character ever. We discuss his work, why the Simpsons succeeds as a satire of other sitcoms, and how a Humphrey Bogart movie complet...

We're discussing a classic episode with a true Simpsons fanatic, Mads Horwath (New Yorker, Guardian). They tell an insane story about tricking their classmates into a Simpsons-related prank, we discuss the weird feeling of visiting other peoples' homes and why the stakes are so high in this episode- it threatens the very nature of the Simpsons' being!  We are reviewing Season 7 Episode 3 Home Swee...

We've got a very special episode with a special guest- Eli's fiancée, Devin Leary (THIRST TRAP, The Quiz Show with Julia and Devin).  We are discussing Season 8 Episode 7 of the Simpsons "Lisa's Date with Density", where Lisa gets a crush on Nelson Muntz! We talk about the good girl/bad boy trope, our own experiences dating the wrong person, and Harrison watches Rebel Without a Clue.  You can foll...

Today we're reviewing a very sweet Simpsons episode, and we have a very sweet guest to boot. We're discussing Season 9 Episode 24 "Lost our Lisa" with guest Megan Nolan (Acts of Desperation, Ordinary Human Failings).  We discuss her 2 novels and how she created such a compelling characters. We also talk about the father-daughter relationship at the heart of the episode, and what traits we'd want t...

Today we're covering one of the best Simpsons episodes of all time, Season 4 Episode 12 "Marge Vs the Monorail" and we have one of the best people in the whole world as a guest, Mike Finn.  Mike, Harrison and Eli used to do improv as Cool Jacket and have been friends for over a decade. We talk about what Mike does (and doesn't) want his kids watching (including KPop Demon Hunters), watching The Si...

This week we have one of Harrison's oldest friends, Matt Crowe, on the show! Harrison and Matt have been friends for over 20 years and during that time they've shared over roughly 1,000 Simpsons memes, quotes and clips with each other. It only made sense to have him on the pod to discuss this great episode.  Today we're discussing Season 6 Episode 18 A Star is Burns- this is is the one where Jay S...

Today we're talking about the classic Simpsons' episode from Season 4, Episode 14 and we've got our first ever RETURNING GUEST Clayton Margeson!! The 3 of us discuss why this is the best Simpsons episode we've reviewed so far: "I Love You, Pepsi", Krusty's terrible SNL appearance, and Tom, the perfect Big Brother, full of barely contained rage.  We also talk about why the "Who's Afraid of Virginia...

Today we're reviewing The Simpsons Season 8 Episode 16, "Brother From Another Series": David Hyde Pierce guest stars as Sideshow Bob's brother, Cecil.  We've got a great guest- Rob Grabowski (Hitch*Cocktails, Clued In)! We discuss if Frasier is a show for boys, if Sideshow Bob is really reformed, and why Cecil bombs his Krusty audition.  Follow Rob at robgrabo on Instagram and Threads.  You can fo...

In honor of Valentine's Day, we are re-sharing this classic episode, now with a new intro with Eli!    --- Love is in the air this week as we discuss The Simpsons Season 4 Episode 15, I Love Lisa- after receiving a Valentine from Lisa (out of pity), Ralph Wiggum starts courting her, much to her dismay.  My guest today is Nicole Vespa (Redacted, Voila), an actor and improvisor in Chicago. We talk a...

Today marks a new chapter in Bartannica history- Eli Mandel has joined the show! And we have a great episode to kick off this new era: today we're talking about the classic Simpsons episode from Season 2, Episode 5 Dancin' Homer, written by Ken Levine and David Isaacs and directed by Mark Kirkland. This the episode where Homer becomes the official mascot for the Springfield Isotopes. We're talking...

“When you see one of these kitschy places like TGI Fridays, are they expecting you to be like “Whoa! There’s signs! Crocodiles don’t wear sunglasses!”? But Marge is exactly the type of person those are targeted for.”   Wow what an episode we have for you today! Not only is our guest super funny, not only is he one of my best friends, he’s also the new CO-HOST of the show! Welcome to the show Eli C...

"This extraordinary situation of a car, free time and $600 is enough for Martin, Nelson and Bart and Millhouse to kind of come together."   Today we’re talking Tennessee with a real Tennessianen-ite, Thomas Kelly!   We’re reviewing the classic Simpsons episode from Season 7 Episode 20 “Bart on the Road”- Bart, Milhouse, Nelson and Martin rent a car and road trip to Knoxville, TN for the 1982 World...

"I think the poor guys just going through changes."   Happy New Year!  Today we're discussing The Simpsons Season 6 Episode 10 Grandpa vs. Sexual Inadequacy from 1994. It's the one where Homer and Grandpa sell their own aphrodisiac in a traveling medicine show.  I'm joined by my new friend Sunset Appleton- we talk about how we've been watching The Simpsons for longer than we can remember (literall...

"Does love outweigh everything else? I guess it has to, if you’re a sitcom.”   Happy Holidays!  Today we’re discussing The Simpsons Season 14 Episode 17 Three Gays of the Condo: when Marge and Homer have a big fight, Homer moves out of the house and into an apartment in Springfield’s gay neighborhood, with sexy results! It guest stars Scott Thompson and Weird Al.  My guest is Jamie Brew (Clickhole...

“It’s asking you to think both too much and not enough.”    To celebrate the show's 6 month anniversary we've got a great new episode for you. Today we're discussing the format-breaking episode from The Simpsons Season 11 Episode 22 Behind the Laughter. It's a parody of VH1's Behind the Music, where the Simpsons star in a TV show about their life. But they aren't actors, they're just playing thems...

“Maybe they’re not good or bad parents. Maybe they’re just parents.”    Today we’re talking about The Simpsons Season 4 Episode 6’s Itchy and Scratchy: The Movie. After messing up 1 too many times, Bart is banned from seeing the Itchy and Scratchy movie forever.  I’m joined by an old friend and new mom, Jodi Fabbri. Jodi is our 1st guest who doesn’t like The Simpsons! I loved hearing about her exp...

“WE’VE BEEN GOING TO THE SAME PARTY FOR 30 YEARS AND IN NO WAY IS THAT PATHETIC.” Hi Everybody and welcome to Gamehendge! This week I'm joined by musician, comedian, and certified Phish Fan Steve Plock (The Curls, Tobacco City, Jessica Risker) to chat about all things Phish. We talk about Steve's Phish journey (he's seen them 88 times!!) and why people love to hate on jam bands. We review The Simp...

Today we're discussing The Simpsons Season 15, Episode 8, Marge Vs Singles, Seniors, Childless Couples and Teens, and Gays: After a baby concert becomes a disaster, Lindsay Naegle rallies the town to favor childless adults, but Marge fights back with a voter initiative.  I'm joined by Greg Iwinski, a 2x Emmy-winning TV writer who has worked on The Late Show, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and...

It's another presidential-themed episode as we discuss The Simpsons Season 7 Episode 13, Two Bad Neighbors- Ex-President George HW Bush moves to Springfield, much to Homer's dismay. I'm joined today by Jamison Webb; actor, comedian and fellow prez-head. We talk about his appearance on Curb Your Enthusiasm, Bush's best one-liners, and why he's a mix of Flanders and Smithers (spoiler: the man's a wi...

Love is in the air this week as we discuss The Simpsons Season 4 Episode 15, I Love Lisa- after receiving a Valentine from Lisa (out of pity), Ralph Wiggum starts courting her, much to her dismay.  My guest today is Nicole Vespa (Redacted, Voila), an actor and improvisor in Chicago. We talk about parents giving bad advice, unrequited school crushes, and the bizarre death of President Zachary Taylo...

Happy Labor Day (week)! God bless the unions and power to workers around the world. To celebrate, we’re discussing The Simpsons Season 4 Episode 17, Last Exit to Springfield- Homer fights for a worker dental plan, Burns shuts off the city’s power, and Lenny listens to Classical Gas. It’s one of the few pro-union stories you could find on tv in the 90’s, and it still holds up! My guest today is my...

Ever see a podcast say goodbye to summer? You have now!  To commemorate the end of summer, we’re reviewing The Simpsons “Summer of 4ft 2” from Season 7 with guest Alison Lynch (@alisonlunch, @bloomdropla). We discuss her new flower business, Bloomdrop, the power of reinventing yourself, and sibling rivalries. We also dive into the MANY amazing jokes in this episode; "It's a bird thing", Milhouse a...

Snakes, why’d it have to be snakes? Because we’re talking about  The Simpsons “Whacking Day”, that’s why! We’re joined by LA writer, actor and comedian Sophie Delaney to review this Season 4, Episode 20 classic. We talk about playing “Mission Impossible” as kids, if the bass guitar is the funniest instrument of all time, and a REALLY weird Josh Groban song about farts.  Follow Sophie @sophiewalter...