The Simpsons – Secrets & Lies – Brian Manton

9 panel grid

1.

Security cam angle of Bart sitting in Homer’s control room at the power plant. He is typing on Homer’s computer.

Bart:  D-O-N-U-T-S

2.

Medium shot of Bart, looking determined and vengeful.

We can see the door is closed behind him.

Computer (OP, jagged):  “Password Accepted”

3.

Cropped view of the screen - an email compose window.

To: [email protected]

Cc: [email protected]

Subject: You Suck!

4.

Same shot as p2.

Medium shot of Bart, laughing to himself.

We can see the door is closed behind him.

Computer (OP, jagged):  “Message Sent”

Bart:  Mwahahahaaa!

5.

Large panel. We can see a list of Homer’s emails. The layout is like gmail format where we see: sender name - subject in bold - and a snippet of message content. The first message is highlighted as new.

Computer (jagged):  “You have one new message.”

UNREAD: Lenny & Carl - Secret Plan - Meet us at the tire fire at midnight. Bring the you-know-what...

Marge - Hi Homie, I’m emailing you - did you get it?

Lisa - Act of Futility - This is a reminder to come to my recital on Tuesday.

UNREAD: All Staff Distributor - URGENT: Safety Precaution - Immediate action required...

El Barto - El Barto - El Barto.

Canteen - Stop it - Just stop it.

Flanders - Hididdleeho Neighborino - Isaiah 43:25-26 "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions...

Bart (OP):  Secret plan, eh?

6.

Same shot as p2/4.  Homer is coming through the door in the bkg. His eyes are blocked by the lid of the open donut box he is carrying.  Bart looks over his shoulder, startled.

The Simpsons - Dim Light, Small City - Niel Jacoby

Panel 1: Homer is walking down the street, despondent after losing his job yet again.

Homer: OH, I CAN'T TELL MARGE I GOT FIRED FROM THE PLANT, SHE'LL BE SO MAD.

Panel 2: Homer is walking past a sign on one of the buildings that says WRITERS WANTED, INQUIRE WITHIN.

Homer: I GOTTA FIND ANOTHER JOB!

Panel 3: Homer is doubling back to look at the sign, and in this panel we can see the name on the building: 21ST CENTURY FOX - SPRINGFIELD BRANCH.

Homer: HEY, I CAN WRITE! I THINK.

Panel 4: Homer is inside an office at 21st Century Fox Entertainment, and an executive is talking to him.

Exec: I'M SURE YOU CAME IN HERE WITH BIG DREAMS OF BEING A HOLLYWOOD BIG SHOT, BUT THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS HERE.
(LINK)
TELL ME, HOMER, HOW DO YOU THINK WE WRITE AN EPISODE OF THE STANFORDS?

Panel 5: Homer is thinking.

Homer: WELL, IF I HAD TO GUESS, I'D SAY THERE'S A BIG SLOT MACHINE, WITH CELEBRITIES AND CURRENT EVENTS FOR EACH PLOTLINE, AND YOU SPIN IT AND WRITE AN EPISODE AROUND THE RESULTS!

Panel 6: The exec is nervous, and is contacting security.

Executive(hushed): UH, SECURITY? LOCK ALL THE DOORS AND EXITS, HE KNOWS OUR SECRET.

Executive: SO, UH, HOW'D YOU LIKE A JOB WRITING FOR US?

Homer: I'D LOVE IT!

The Simpsons - Radioactive Man Begins - J.D. Coughlan

Panel 1: A young child, 9 or 10, lying on the floor of a cave, having just fallen. The cave is lit only by some barrels marked with the "radioactive" symbol, giving off a faint glow. The child shields his eyes.

CAPTION: "What do you fear?"

Panel 2: A man, the now-adult Claude Kane from the first panel, stands shirtless in a dojo, surrounded by men in radiation-proof suits, preparing to attack. Kane wields two glowing green rods.

CAPTION: "If you devote yourself to an ideal..."

Panel 3: Close up of Kane's hand as he puts on his glove. Note that his entire costume should be "Nolanised."

CAPTION: "If you make yourself more than just a man..."

Panel 4: Close up of Kane snapping together his utility belt.

CAPTION: "...you become something else entirely..."

Panel 5: Large. We see Kane in his full Radioactive Man suit for the first time. He looks bold, but broody.

CAPTION: (Large) "A RADIOACTIVE MAN!"

Panel 6: Slim but wide panel. Radioactive Man's silhouette stands atop a building, lit by the "Radioactive signal" in the sky behind him.

CAPTION: Coming this summer: RADIOACTIVE MAN BEGINS.

END OF PAGE

The Simpsons – Family Matters – Shaun Richens.

PAGE ONE – 7 PANELS.

1.1

EXT. The First Church of Springfield. It is a bright, crisp and clear morning.

The sign outside the church reads:

Today:

Wedding.

Sunday:

Salvation Salsa Lessons. Learn to Jive like Jesus.

REVEREND LOVEJOY: (From inside the church)

We are gathered here today.

1.2

Cut to inside the church, an aged Reverend lovejoy stands at the pulpit. His hair is greying and his face is wrinkled. He looks happy though.

REVEREND LOVEJOY:

To join these two young lovebirds in holy matrimony.

1.3

Close up on the bride, an older very beautiful LISA SIMPSON. She wears an elegant and classy wedding dress, she smiles warmly at her future husband (who is off panel.)

NO COPY

1.4

Cut to a two shot of HOMER and MARGE SIMPSON. They sit in the front row of the church; they are dressed up in all their finniest for their daughter’s big day. Homers stubble is greying and he wears small reading classes, bar a few wrinkles and the blue tint of her hair having faded slightly Marge is still a vision of beauty.

Older versions of MOE, DOCTOR HIBERT, BARNEY, APU and NED FLANDERS can be seen in the seats behind.

A tear rolls down Homers cheek from under his glasses.

MARGE:

Are you crying Homey?

1.5

Cut to close up on Homer who is quickly wiping the tear away.

HOMER:

Uhh no.

1.6

Repeat of the two shot from 1.4. Homer is now crying even more, Marge has linked her arm into his and nuzzles her head into her dear husbands shoulder.

HOMER:

She looks just as beautiful as you did on our wedding day.

HOMER:

I’m so glad she got your looks.

MARGE:

Oh homey still the sweet talker.

1.7

A page wide panel, a beautifully framed photo sits on the mantle piece in the Simpsons living room.

The photo shows old couple Homer and Marge, they stand either side of the grown up Lisa in her wedding dress. A grown up BART stands next to his mother, his arm around her pulling her close. He wears a very nice suit, which he fills out well, now sporting a belly very similar to his fathers. A teenage MAGGIE stands next to Homer. She wears a very elegant bridesmaid dress, but with big black doc martin boots, this is punk rock teen Maggie.

The sun is shining in the photo and the whole family smile enjoying the moment.

NO COPY.

The Simpsons - PSA - R.A. Wonsowski

Panel 1 - Ext. Springfield Power Plant.  Our p.o.v. is on the ground, looking up at MR. BURNS and SMITHERS in the office balcony; MR. BURNS is addressing his employees.  We are standing behind HOMER, LENNY, and CARL.

MR. BURNS:  ...and so, to avoid Obamacare altogether, all full-time employees are hereby fired...

HOMER:  D'oh!!

LENNY:  You suck, Burns!

CARL:  (to nearby coworkers) ...without the courtesy of a reach-around...

Panel 2 - same as Panel 1.

MR. BURNS:  ...to be RE-hired to work TWO part-time shifts, beginning today...

HOMER:  D'oh!!

LENNY:  You suck, Burns!

CARL:  (to CARL) ...wait, what?

OFF-PANEL:  Has this happened to you?

Panel 3:  same as above, but the crowd has turned to see, now foreground, TROY MCCLURE enter from the side.

TROY:  Hi, I'm Troy McClure.  You might remember me from such comedies as "Hot High School Ramadan" and the third season of the Simpsons. 

TROY:  And scenes like the one we see here are becoming even stupider, thanks to Obamacare.

Panel 4 - same as Panel 3, except TROY has been joined by charming waif, TIMMY.

TIMMY:  Gee, Mr. McClure, how did the Affordable Health Care Act become such a debacle?

TROY:  Well, Timmy, the complete hash of misunderstandings are the fault of one man at the White House...

Panel 5 - a smiling TROY MCCLURE holds up an 8 by 10 glossy of Press Secretary JAY CARNEY.

TROY:  ...professional shill and presidential apologist, Jay Carney.

TROY:  That's C-A-R-N-E-Y, the most punchable face in America!

Panel 6 - LENNY and CARL are holding down Press Secretary JAY CARNEY, now sporting a black eye and missing a tooth, while HOMER punches him in the stomach.  TIMMY shakes grinning TROY's hand.

CARL:  (smiling) Say, this is fun!

TIMMY: Gee, Mr. McClure, thanks!

TROY:  No problem, Timmy.  Now, go kill that messenger!

CAPTION:  Paid for by Canadian Health Services and the British Medical Tourism Board.

The Simpsons - A Retort - Grant McLaughlin

1 – Homer stands on top of a high building (since I can't really think of any high buildings in Springfield, maybe it's one of the big stacks at the Nuclear Power Plant?). He has a hand cover his eyes and is in the process of stepping off the building to kill himself. Frame this to give an idea that Homer is high up and the fall will not do him good.

HOMER: Goodbye, cruel w--

VOICE (off-panel): Homer, wait!

2 – Switch to an over the shoulder shot looking toward Homer. He stops, looking up in awe and surprise, as the figure whose shoulder we're looking over is none other than Superman (please note that in this and subsequent panels, we should not be able to see below Superman's belt unless noted otherwise).

HOMER (big letters to show his surprise – maybe do it up as the Superman logo) (1): Superman?!

HOMER (regular size letters) (2): What are you doing here?

3 – Superman floats awkwardly in front of Homer, scratching the back of his head in that embarrassed way people do.

SUPERMAN (1): I would have been here sooner, but this town is almost impossible to find.

SUPERMAN (2): ...

SUPERMAN (3): Uh, I mean, I'm here to help! What's wrong?

4 – Focus on Homer as he bares his soul to Superman.

HOMER (1): I don't know. Instead of really living my life, lately it feels like I've only been going through the motions.

HOMER (2): I'm starting to wonder if my kids will ever grow up.

HOMER (3): And it feels like I disappoint Marge on a weekly basis.

HOMER (4): It's as if everything has been stuck on repeat for God knows how long.

5 – Superman looks at Homer with patience and understanding.

SUPERMAN (1): I understand. We all live through hills and valleys.

SUPERMAN (2): And while the hills can be so high they feel like mountaintops, the valleys can be so low it feels like there's no bottom to hit.

SUPERMAN (3): But lows – no matter how low – don't mean that highs never happened or even that they'll never come back.

6 – Superman puts a hand on Homer's shoulder in a reassuring manner. Superman smiles a small smile of hope, which Homer is starting to feel as well.

SUPERMAN (1): Everyone feels that way sometimes, but it's never as bad as it seems.

SUPERMAN (2): Trust me.

7 – Homer and Superman hug. It's heartfelt as all get out.

HOMER: Thanks, Superman.

8 – Pseudo-repeat of panel 7. Homer continues the hug, but his question to Superman causes Superman to open his eyes in awkward surprise.

HOMER (1): ...

HOMER (2): What's up with your pants?

9 – Focus on Superman. Full body shot that reveals he's actually in his New 52 getup and not the classic Superman Underwear On The Outside look that you might expect (or hope for). Superman looks awkward again.

SUPERMAN: Let's just say you're not the only one going through a low right now...

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I was thinking of something else originally, but I felt the need to provide some sort of defense to The Simpsons in light of Ben's script.  While I haven't watched the show on a regular basis in quite some time, dead after Season 8 seems a little too strong for my blood.  But to each their own.

The Simpsons - Next Time - Ben Rosenthal

1.  The Simpson family sits on its couch looking at each other awkwardly.

CAPTION
Next time on The Simpsons!


2.  Homer is asking a question, confused.

HOMER
Um, why are we just sitting here?

LISA
Because we have done everything.  Ever.  There is nothing left for us to do.


3.  Close up of Homer, scratching his head.

HOMER
Then why are we still here?


4.  A close up of Lisa.

LISA
Because for some reason we still make money.  Mountains and mountains of money.

5.  A close up of Marge, sobbing.

MARGE
Why won't they just let us die.


6.  Same as Panel 1, but Marge is sobbing in her hands.

CAPTION
That's next time on The Simpsons.

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The Simpsons ended for me after 8 seasons.  Everything after does not exist.  That is all.

The Simpsons – Revenge of the Treehouse of Horror! – MK Stangeland Jr.

(7 Panels)

PANEL 1: MARGE, LISA, BART, and MAGGIE are at the kitchen table, with BART and LISA at the table, MAGGIE in her high-chair, and MARGE standing over them.

MARGE: So do you kids have any plans for Halloween eve? Maybe telling ghost stories in the tree house?

BART: Aw Mom, telling tree house ghost stories is so 1990s.

PANEL 2: Exterior, outside the kitchen. The Simpsons backyard treehouse should be visible.

LISA: (From Inside) These days we all tell ghost stories over social media. Like Twitter.

PANEL 3: Center view on the TREEHOUSE. It looks saddened.

PANEL 4: Same as PANEL 3, but the TREEHOUSE has shifted from sad to angry.

PANEL 5: The tree with the TREEHOUSE in it picks itself out of the ground, its trunk splitting far enough down to basically form two legs and its branches forming something resembling arms – the TREEHOUSE should effectively form its face/head. The entirety of it all should effectively form a TREEHOUSE MONSTER.

TREEHOUSE MONSTER: RAWR!

SFX: GrrrrRMMMP!

SFX: grRIPP!

SFX: rumblrumbl

PANEL 6: Interior of the kitchen. The TREEHOUSE MONSTER rips the kitchen wall off towards outside.

TREEHOUSE MONSTER (1): RAAAAH!

TREEHOUSE MONSTER (2): Abandon me, will you!?

MARGE: Eeek!

BART & LISA: AAAAH! Treehouse of Horror!

PANEL 7: TREEHOUSE MONSTER tries to squeeze its way into the kitchen. BART, LISA, and MARGE rush out of the kitchen, with MARGE carrying MAGGIE.

TREEHOUSE MONSTER: I’ll show you a treehouse of horror!

MARGE, BART, & LISA: AAAAAA!

(END PAGE)

Why The Simpsons?

What do you say about a juggernaut like The Simpsons that hasn’t been said already?

You can’t, really. In my home country of the US, at least, they’re practically ingrained into the popular culture, and you probably wouldn’t have too much difficulty finding someone who could at least recognize the faces of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie around most the rest of the modernly civilized world.

While it can be argued whether the shows currently quality means it should have gone off the air years ago, it would be more difficult to argue against the impact they’ve made during the process of becoming one of the longest-running TV shows ever, from creating words and phrases that have become entrenched in the English lexicon to the great many moments across their 500+ (AND COUNTING!) episodes that still resonate years (or even decades![!!!]) later.

The real reason why it’s The Simpsons, though?

Because with their yearly Treehouse of Horror episodes, it seemed like a reasonably segwayed follow up to last weeks Halloween-inspired Arkham Asylum pick.