As far as The Simpsons goes – and TV comedy as a whole for that matter – there are two absolute god-tier shit explanation gags. There’s Homer riding in Snake‘s convertible shouting “MAN THE AIR FEELS GOOD ON MY NECK” as he barrels towards a piano wire strung between two trees, and then eons above that is the completely holy “Aurora Borealis” joke.
The iconic joke is the punchline of the Hall of Fame-worthy ‘Skinner & the Superintendent‘ skit from season seven’s intensely memorable episode 22 Short Films About Springfield.
Any Simpsons fan worth their salt knows it inside and out: Seymour Skinner invites his perennial foil Superintendent Chalmers over for dinner and attempts to cover-up a burnt roast by passing off Krusty Burgers as his own “steamed hams.”
Thanks to the wonders of the internet, a whole mess of classic-era Simpsons writers have been utilising Twitter as of late to share excerpts from old scripts, and this time around it’s Bill Oakley‘s turn.
Oakley was the demented genius behind the short Skinner/Chalmers sketch, including that unreal Aurora Borealis gag, and posted the first draft of the whole thing to the Tweets earlier today.
It’s a tasty little Friday treat that’ll easily surpass any steamed ham you’re likely to encounter this evening.
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044048370614273
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044103307714560
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044180524851200
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044256341049344
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044359336349696
https://twitter.com/thatbilloakley/status/949044443482546176
Sometimes you absolutely nail it on the first draft, and it’s nice to know that this perfect little bit of TV was just about hammered home on the first try.
‘Course it’s also nice to know that they added in “Seymour, you are an odd fellow. But I must say, you steam a good ham” later on, because it’s a dead set cracker of a line.
A+ scene, top to bottom.
