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"'A Fish Called Selma'" is the nineteenth episode of ''The Simpsons''' seventh season, which originally aired on March 24, 1996.^[2] It was written by Jack Barth and was directed by Mark Kirkland. Phil Hartman guest starred as Troy McClure and Fat Tony, and Jeff Goldblum guest starred as MacArthur Parker.

Contents

Plot

Cultural references

Reception

References

External links

Plot

Washed-up actor Troy McClure gets pulled for driving his DeLorean DMC-12 without wearing his corrective lenses. When Troy goes to the DMV to get his license changed so that he will not be required to wear glasses anymore, he offers to take Selma Bouvier to dinner if she will let him pass the eye test. She eagerly agrees.
After dinner at the "Pimento Grove" photographers notice Troy leaving with a human woman (rumors about a romantic abnormality concerning fish essentially destroyed Troy's career). The next day, Troy's agent (played by Jeff Goldblum) calls and says that he can get work again if he continues seeing human women. Troy continues dating Selma to help his career. On his agent's advice, Troy asks Selma to marry him. She, once again, eagerly agrees.
The night before the wedding, a drunk Troy tells a drunk Homer the reason for his marriage. After the wedding, Homer tells Marge offhand. Marge and Patty try to explain it to Selma, who accuses them of coming down with "the green-eyed gazungas." She confronts Troy who eagerly admits that their marriage is a sham to help his career. Troy explains to Selma that even though their marriage is a sham, she has benefited and Selma initially accepts the situation. Troy's agent thinks he can get Troy the part of McBain's sidekick in the next McBain movie, but most parts go to actors with families.
Troy and Selma try to conceive, but neither can get aroused. Selma decides that bringing a child into a loveless family is wrong and leaves Troy, with the words "I'll always remember you Troy, but not from your films." Troy turns down the role of McBain's sidekick to direct and star in his own film, a rather odd piece titled "The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel."

Cultural references

★ The opening sequence features a parody of ''The Muppets''.

★ The scene with Selma and Troy smoking is a reference to ''Now, Voyager''.

★ The "Dr. Zaius" song from the ''Planet of the Apes'' musical is a parody of "Rock Me Amadeus" by Falco.

★ The two "doctor jokes" in the Dr. Zaius song are based on Henny Youngman one-liners. (e.g. "What's wrong with me?" "I think you're crazy" "I want a second opinion" "You're also lazy!")

★ The episode's title is a reference to the film ''A Fish Called Wanda''.

★ Jeff Goldblum's character, MacArthur Parker, is a reference to the song "MacArthur Park."

★ In the wedding scene, Homer's brain is heard "singing" Gary Glitter's song "Rock and Roll".

Reception

''Entertainment Weekly'' placed the episode eighth on their top 25 ''The Simpsons'' episode list.^[3] IGN.com named the episode the best of the seventh season, stating that it seemed the "obvious pick". They also called the ''Planet of the Apes'' musical the best moment of the episode and "maybe even the whole show".^[4] Associated Content named the ''Planet of the Apes'' musical the ninth best musical number in ''The Simpsons'' history.^[5] Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, the authors of the book ''I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide'', were pleased that "Troy McClure gets a starring role at last."

References

1. A Fish Called Selma Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian
2. , , Ray, Richmond, Harper Collins Publishers, 1997, ISBN 0-00063-8898-1
3. The Family Dynamic
4. The Simpsons: 17 Seasons, 17 Episodes Goldman, Eric; Dan Iverson, Brian Zoromski
5. Top Eleven Simpsons Musical Numbers Sexton, Timothy

External links

★ "A Fish Called Selma" at The Simpsons.com

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★ "A Fish Called Selma" at TV.com

★ "A Fish Called Selma" at the Internet Movie Database