Simpsons Fans Agree That This Movie Parody Is Top Tier

There is no shortage of hilarious jokes and memorable moments in the Emmy-winning animated comedy series "The Simpsons." The show has been known to pull off some truly side-splitting narratives, and throughout the years, several episodes have featured some next-level parodies as well. 

In 2022, the show made a lot of noise with its raunchy homage to the provocative period series "Bridgerton," but satirizing motion pictures is where "The Simpsons" truly shines. For examples of this side-splitting practice, look to episodes like "Barthood" from Season 27, where Bart's life is chronicled in a similar fashion as the movie "Boyhood" by Richard Linklater. They also mocked the story from the "Lord of the Flies" in Season 9, Episode 24 ("Das Bus"), where Bart (Nancy Cartwright), Lisa (Yeardley Smith), and other kids from Springfield Elementary School are stranded on an island after a bus crash. In addition, the show has spoofed several horror classics like "The Shining" and "Bram Stoker's Dracula" to great effect in some of the best of the "Treehouse of Horror" specials they regularly release.

While these are all solid contenders for the title of best "Simpsons" movie parody of all time, some fans believe one thus far unmentioned candidate eclipses all the rest as the undisputed champion.

Some fans think the "Pulp Fiction" parody in Season 7, Episode 21 ("22 Short Films About Springfield") is one the best the show has ever pulled off. In the entry, Chief Clancy Wiggum (Hank Azaria) and his officers have a similar conversation to the one between Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta) about Big Macs in France. The part where Butch Coolidge (Bruce Willis) hits Marcellus Wallace (Ving Rhames) with his car is played out between Snake (Azaria) and Chief Wiggum, and they eventually end up in the Military Antique store owned by Herman Hermann (Harry Shearer), who ties them up and waits for Zed.

When asked by u/Unlikely-Fun-2220 in the r/TheSimpsons community on Reddit about the show's movie parodies, many fans responded that their favorite was the homage to the Quentin Tarantino film. Several users mentioned their favorite quotes, like u/Astarttes400000, who showed love for the donut song Chief Wiggum sings, and u/samsquanch2000, who posted Herman's line from the actual film, "Looks like the spider caught himself a coupla flies." Meanwhile, u/Emergency_Ad2487 simply said, "One of their best episodes."

Those fans aren't alone in their love for "22 Short Films About Springfield." Entertainment Weekly put the installment at No. 14 on their 2003 "The Simpsons" episode ranking, and wrote, "If that's not enough, it wedges in a priceless 'Pulp Fiction' parody, replete with a nuanced discussion of the difference between Krusty Burger and McDonald's."