I swear I don't plan out these oddly themed weeks. We had "Patti and Selma week", "Happy Little Elves week" and now..."Father and son at dog racetrack week".
A couple more fun season one hallmarks here - blue hair (later phased out of non-main characters significantly) and strange single-line facial hair (which does occur later, but rarely.)
As he appears in the episode, we do...
2021-12-09 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
This kid is a one line wonder, I feel like we need a klaxon for these guys.
It's a funny little gag, in which he and <Thursday's character redacted for spoiler reasons> share a tradition of going to the track every Christmas. I feel in later seasons these two would be replaced by a more familiar character delivering a variation of the same joke, but it's season one baby! No rules in...
2021-12-06 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Thanks to all you lovely Patreon folks for making November our most successful month yet! I think people are eager for the Steamed Hams print, which I am grateful for! Those will be sent out this weekend, so please check your addresses are correct and your cards haven't been declined!
December's print will be another Simpsons-adjacent painting I did, that 2021-12-02 14:57:59 +0000 UTC View Post
I actually missed on my first watch that this guy's name is "Moldy". Adjust your spreadsheets accordingly.
Another reason that the Happy Little Elves fell by the wayside is that they are presented largely as a Lisa interest, and as the show ages, Lisa becomes less interested in child-like things, which is a shame. It's hard to imagine Lisa the eco-warrior or Lisa the intellectual being in...
2021-12-02 09:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
It’s all over, all done for another year. Take down the Moe decorations, put the Moe tree away until next year.
I‘ve done October of Treehouse of Horror, then Moevember…but what’s next? Well I’m thrilled to announce that in December my daily drawing challenge will be…nothing. Gimme a break please.
(Don’t worry friends, there will still be lots of fun stuff next monthâ€...
2021-11-30 08:15:54 +0000 UTC View Post
The Happy Little Elves are first mentioned in a Tracey Ullman short, but it is in an apparent Christmas special that they are given a voice.
The Happy Little Elves are a concept that are forgotten relatively quickly in the Simpsons timeline. Itchy and Scratchy prevailed for many years, but these guys are swept aside, probably because there's not much to be done with them beyond pointing o...
2021-11-29 09:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
A full week of nobodies! Oh boy. None of the characters featured this week even appear to have comic book appearances, they are truly unique little weirdos.
First thing I noticed on my rewatch was her being voiced by Nancy Cartwright. After so many years of her Bart voice, it has become really jarring to hear Nancy's voice - not too different from Bart's - coming out of another character....
2021-11-25 09:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Alfie does not get a single line, but he is referred to by name (by Homer, no less!), so I thought I'd give him a minor chance to shine. I thought this would be Alfie's big moment, his 15 minutes of fame, but it seems he has an entry on our old friend the Simpsons Wiki, so I am not the first person to give him a spar...
2021-11-23 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Final week of this absolute nonsense!
Here we have: Old-Timey-Moe, Moe-leficent, Moe-my, Picass-Moe, Xen-Moe-morph, Grouch-Moe Marx, Ani-Moe and E-Moe.
PHEW! Happy Moevember everyone. Xxxxxx
2021-11-23 07:14:35 +0000 UTC View Post
Am I being sexist for calling her "Girl Sitting On Santa's Lap" when the boy was just "Kid Sitting On Santa's Lap"? Hmm. I'm not gonna lie to you, dear Patrons, I don't put a lot of thought into their names when they don't have one. By the time I've drawn them, I've moved on mentally, as is evidenced by the way the title of the episode curves up dramatically in this image.
To make up for ...
2021-11-22 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
THIS is the nonsense we live for in this journey.
Lewis - a character we have already established does not matter - has a lookalike in his school. This is one of my favourite useless pieces of trivia about the show, and it will go unappreciated by 99.9% of viewers, who probably don't even know who Le...
2021-11-19 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
I think there were bigger plans for characters like Lewis. Early on Bart has a consistent little bunch of friends, including Lewis here, but as Bartmania calms down after the first year or two they kind of fade away as the show focuses elsewhere. Heck by season 9's "Das Bus even Bart calls him by the wrong name for a gag.
As a result of being such a minor character, he has had many voices...
2021-11-18 09:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
Now we're getting into some weird stuff. I love it.
In order: Astr-Moe-naut, Super Mari-Moe, Marilyn Mon-Moe, Vampire Moe, Superher-Moe, Birthday Moe, Hans Moeman and Ventril-Moe-Quist Dummy.
I think my brain shorted out while I typed some of those.
Come back next week for the thrilling conclusion!
2021-11-15 10:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
A rare character who, as far as I can tell, doesn't have any other appearance! And of course he doesn't, look at him, he's a wee FREAK.
Those teeth would never fly in a latter Simpsons character design.
This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my ru...
2021-11-15 09:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Writing characters like these over 30 years is an interesting experiment. As I've indicated in other work, people tend to evolve over time, but these characters are frozen in one place for eternity. So I find it interesting which elements from their initial conception stick, and which fall to the wayside.
Early in the show's lifespan - "Principal Charming" - we are told that Patty "...
2021-11-11 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Moe Moe Moe! How do you like it, how do you like it?
SO this time around we have Moe-bi-Wan Kenobi, Ninja Moe, Baby Moe, Meow-Meow-Moe, Michaelangel-Moe, Cowboy Moe and Zombie Moe.
This is going well! The official Simpsons Twitter account liked the initial Moevember tweet:
So I must b...
2021-11-08 10:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
For years, I thought of Selma and her twin sister (I'll reveal her name on Thursday) as one unit. I think this is by design, they operate as a joined obstacle for Homer, the typical in-laws to get in the way of out hero's happiness. Rumour has it that they were at least partially based on Sam Simon's in-laws, which does not paint them in a flattering light.
But over time, out of necessity...
2021-11-08 09:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Look, I know I said I was cutting back on Simpsons prints. I KNOW.
But this piece did really well.
SO if you are a £10 Patron for the month of November you'll get this A5 print - "An Unforgettable Luncheon" - sent out to you! At that time of year, localised entirely in you...
2021-11-06 10:19:25 +0000 UTC View Post
If that name is confusing to you, then prepare to have your mind BLOWN.
The guy who teaches Homer how to be a Santa:
is also the guy who hypnotises the power plant softball team into being good players in the season 3 episode "Homer At The Bat".
2021-11-04 09:01:00 +0000 UTC
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Yesssss a week of nobodies, these are my favourite.
It's funny having to name these guys. I'm not familiar with the thriving industry of mall Santas, I don't know the structure, but this is the guy who interviews Homer for the position.
I had so much fun doing a daily drawing challenge in October, I thought I’d keep the train rolling! Plus, Moevember was too good a pun to pass up on.
So, a different Moe for every day in November. To start, we have: Moe, Captain Moe, Skele-Moe, Farmer Moe, Old Moe, Moe-zo the Clown and Moe-bot.
Hope you enjoy because I have 23 more to Moe! I mean go!
2021-11-01 08:39:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Have a great Spooktober if you get up to anything! Thanks as ever for your support, ghosts and ghouls.
Come back tomorrow to find out what I'll be posting every day in November...!
2021-10-31 08:59:53 +0000 UTC View Post
Is Barney the most tragic character in the show? Obviously Springfield is full of tragedy, this is where a lot of the comedy comes from, but when I think too hard about Barney's role in the show it just seems especially sad.
Barney is shown to have been an honour student in his younger years, he has an incredible singing voice, and even qualifies to become an astronaut, but any potential ...
2021-10-28 08:01:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Recently I did a bunch of head sketches for the launch of Eye on Springfield - buyers could request a sketch of any Simpsons character inside. I got a wide variety of requests, people were very imaginative and specific with what they wanted, which I loved!
But the most common request...
2021-10-25 08:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
And we reach the end of this TERRIFYING month! Thank GOODNESS.
I had to end with Kang and Kodos, there was no other way. Think I hit all the other major touchstones, at least of the first few seasons. It’s been fun examining these redesigns of existing characters, often ahead of their slot in the main count!
I may do another daily drawing challenge in November, we’ll see! I...
2021-10-22 08:43:31 +0000 UTC View Post
Gun to your head: can you tell me which one is Rod and which one is Todd?
I drew Todd here a couple of weeks ago, and as I sat down to write this I thought to myself "Todd...he's the older one...right?"
*BUZZER* WRONG
Todd is the younger one, Rod is the older one, although even this is a contentious issue, as even the writers of the show appear to have difficulty telling them...
2021-10-21 08:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post
For every ying there is a yang. Balance must be maintained, even in the fictional universe of The Simpsons. For every tattoo artist...there is a tattoo removal guy.
When I drew this I missed that he has a degree on the wall confirming his name as Irving Zitofsky, which I guess is a pun.
2021-10-18 08:00:04 +0000 UTC
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These are going well! Loving doing them, even if I am INCREDIBLY SCARED ALL THE TIME. It’s nice to revisit these segments well ahead of schedule.
One more batch to go! Hope you guys are enjoying them, especially the bonus exclusive ones! Xxxx
2021-10-15 07:38:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Arguably one of the most important Simpsons characters in existence! Mr Burns is seen as the default villain of the show, filling a specific antagonistic role that is often necessary for storytelling. Additionally, I believe him to be a template for many rich characters to follow. Think about billionaire characters that existed before him - Scrooge McDuck, Batman, Richie Rich - often the hero o...
2021-10-14 08:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post
The Simpsons wiki claims that this guy is Mervin Monroe, brother of Dr Marvin Monroe, but I am not sure what the source is on this - I'm guessing a comic book, but I'm erring on the side of caution and not committing to this here. It also claims his beard is a tattoo, which, if true, rules.
This guy wil...
2021-10-11 08:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post