0353 - Lionel Hutz
Added 2024-07-18 08:00:01 +0000 UTCIt feels pretty set in stone that Miguel Sanchez here is one of the all time great Simpsons characters. I'd probably put him in my personal top ten, alongside classics like Man and Old Lady.
He smashes into this episode like a wrecking ball and is an instant classic - it's easy to see why they kept bringing him back, and by all accounts Phil Hartman was a joy to work with (we'll save the Hartman love for one of his lesser known characters.) The sad part is that we have seen all the Lionel Hutz we will ever see - and most of you already know it all, back to front, so there's not much more to be said about him.
Hutz is the secret sauce in a lot of episodes - in the show's numerous court scenes, his wacky incompetence is what leads to some of the best jokes. But it's worth noting that in this first appearance he's not portrayed as a bad lawyer, just a slimy one. He loses the case, but until Marge's devastating honesty, it looks like he has a good chance of winning!
Even in his next appearance as the Simpsons defence - in season 3's "Bart The Murderer" - he is somewhat effective - or perhaps, not ineffective - as the case is not almost lost because of his direct actions.
But by the time he represents Marge in season 4's "Marge Gets A Job", he's in full on buffoon mode:
It is after this point that he shifts from morally corrupt to incompetent oaf - these are the two main modes for any position of power of authority in The Simpsons, and Lionel does both.
Hutz's final appearance is in season 9's "Realty Bites", in which they play with giving Hutz a life and career outside of lawyering:
He fits naturally into this new role as a realtor, one can't help but wonder what other adventures he could have embarked on had he been able to continue. The versatility of this character was just being opened up before it was tragically cut short.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in this project, click here.
