Groundbreaking cannabis comedy duo Cheech & Chong made a long overdue animated appearance on The Simpsons this past Sunday, in an episode entitled “A Midsummer’s Nice Dream,” a Shakespearian nod to the pair’s 1981 filmNice Dreams. ThoughThe Simpsons are long past their glory days, this episode was funnier than the usual offerings from the series of late – once again, pot humor saves the day!
Source
The premise of this episode had Cheech & Chong bringing their reunion tour back to their “hometown” of Springfield. The comical “origin” had C&C back in the past as a pair of TV weathermen, but when the Springfield Police burned some pot “seized from the Buddy Rich orchestra,” the smoke wafted into the TV studio and immediately transformed them from meteorologists into stoner comedians as a blazed Chong asks: “And what is ‘rain,’ man? It’s like we’re in the apartment under God and his fat sister overflowed the tub.”
When Bart says he hasn’t heard of Cheech & Chong, Homer declares he has failed as a parent because his son doesn’t appreciate “stoner comedy.” Later, when the “homegrown heroes” C&C return to Springfield for a live show, during a version of the classic “Dave” skit from their 1971 debut album Cheech & Chong,Homer and other characters started yelling the classic reoccurring punch line of “Dave’s not here, man!” The chanting convinces Tommy Chong that the act has grown stale and he quits and storms offstage.
Surprisingly it’s Marge who convinces Homer to help Cheech finish the “Dave” bit. At first the beer-swilling Homer hesitates with a knowing line: “I can’t do reefer comedy – I’m drunk! Two different animals!” But eventually Homer takes the stage, does the “Dave” routine, and is an instant hit.
Cheech hires Homer to join him on the “Cheech and Chunk” tour, but Homer is disappointed to learn that the van they’re touring in isn’t made of weed, hash, shrooms or even lysergic acid diethylamide. Cheech tells him the van is just made of “van.” Much less funny were Chong’s attempts to find a new Cheech among the other residents of Springfield and his subsequent “Teech and Chong” pairing with Principal Skinner – even a blazing sativa couldn’t make those scenes humorous.
The best visual scene of the episode came when Homer imagines a “reward” that Cheech promises him, triggering a ultra-colorful stoner ‘70’s flashback that was a parody of a 1974 animated short film based on the Cheech & Chong song “Basketball Jones featuring Tyrone Shoelaces.” That funky tune plays in the background as Homer struts his stuff in floppy pimp hat and far-out striped pants truckin’ in an urban setting with Cheech, smoking giants doobies and turning Police Chief Wiggum into a real pig.
The episode even contained a HIGH TIMES reference – when “Cheech & Chunk” play their final concert, the sign outside displays an “endorsement” that reads: “2 and ½ Bongs – HIGH TIMES Magazine”
Even the closing credits offered some chuckles with Cheech & Chong & Homer (in voiceover) doing a variation of “Dave” in which Homer blows the bit by actually opening the door to let Dave in.
Though there have been hundreds of reefer references over the years on The Simpsons, this is the first episode dedicated primarily to pot since 2002’s funnier “Weekend at Burnsie’s” that centered on Homer being a medical marijuana patient. With no end in sight for The Simpsons, another marijuana episode is likely lurking around the corner; here’s hoping Homer opens a dispensary with Marge baking the medicated brownies.
No comments:
Post a Comment