S01EP03 Homer's Odyssey

Homer's Odyssey
Air Date: Jan 21, 1990
Production Episode: 7G03
Written by: Jay Kogen and Wallace Wolodarsky
Directed by: Wesley Archer

And now we come to Homer's big debut episode. One thing to note is that many episodes were being written at once. This is evident in characters such as Martin showing up in the previous episode, yet being absent in this one. Wendell, Sherri, and Terri, who have speaking lines in this episode, did not appear in "Bart the Genius". Oddly enough, the regulars at Moe's are all there once more, suggesting they were part of the original design. Bart's classmates are mostly the same as well. It appears Milhouse, Richard (the kid with the open, collared shirt), Lewis, and the generic classroom characters were initially planned out, with Nelson, Martin, Sherri & Terri, and Wendell being added by the writers as the episodes were created. This results in inconsistency in the first few episodes, which were being written simultaneously by different writers.

Other notable first appearances include Otto, black Smithers, Sherri & Terri's dad, the Winfields, Chief Wiggum, Jasper, and of course Mr. Burns.

• Otto: Essentially what we all know and love.

•  Sherri & Terri's dad: In this episode, he is Homer's supervisor, who fires Homer after he drives a cart into a steam pipe. Oddly enough, he is black, due to the animators making random characters different colors to have a more diverse cast. When he reappeared in Season 3, he assumed his current appearance. He had one other appearance in season 7, before becoming a recurring crowd character in season 22. 

• Black Smithers: Initially one of the randomly chosen black characters, Groening decided to change him to white due to his subservient and sychophantic mannerisms, for obvious reasons. Aside from his skin tone, he is extremely close to his current character, although his trait of being in the closet hasn't yet appeared. We also see the two nameless goons that often accompany him.

• Chief Wiggum: The first appearance of Springfield's illustrious police force. His voice hasn't quite reached the nasally pitch of later seasons, but it's still there.

• Jasper: Nothing much of note other than appearing in the background of the sparse town hall scene.

• The Winfields: You might not recognize their name, but you'll know the characters. They're the two old people that live near or next to the Simpsons who sit on the porch and comment on their antics. The first neighbors introduced, even before Ned Flanders, they move to Florida in season four when the now long forgotten Ruth Powers moves in next door. In this episode, however, they live behind and to the left of the Simpson's house.

• Mr. Burns: What else is there to say other than "It's Mr. Burns!". He's evil, delights in torturing others, and keeps Homer close for some strange reason. His office is much brighter and busier than it is now. The TVs are missing, but the bear statue is there. The balcony window looks much different as well, with a mosaic around it. This is another example of the overly busy backgrounds in the first season that were later dropped as too distracting.

As for locations, we see the tire yard for the first time, already intended to be a recurring land mark according to the commentary. We also see a lot of the nuclear plant's interior, with only a few minor differences aside from Burn's office. The Simpsons house is still randomly laid out, but the yard is intact. We see the back gate and alley way that is behind the house most of the time, often replaced with another set of lots and a street. The bridge is seen for the first time, often shown in later seasons as the only way out of town.

The town hall and mayor are seen, much different than their later counterparts. The mayor is a random individual with no distinguishing characteristics, and the town hall resembles the South Park hall rather than the ornate town hall we see today. The seats are simple folding chairs, with three rows of about ten chairs each, mostly empty. We see Jasper, the Simpsons, and three random characters in the scene. Also absent is the Jebidiah Springfield statue that should be out front and across the street.

The plot of this episode involves Homer being fired from his job at the power plant. It is here we learn his original job title, "Technical Supervisor". Astoundingly, Homer was in a position of authority at first. He attempts to commit suicide, but changes his mind after rushing to save his family from a speeding car. Inspired, he decides to become a champion of safety, demanding a stop sign at that intersection. Eventually, he sets his sights on the nuclear plant. At this point we see a character introducing Homer that looks and sounds a lot like Ned Flanders, but black. We also see the indication of Springfield's tendency towards angry mobs, as Homer should really be the last person anyone is rallying behind.

Homer is pulled into Burns' office for a private meeting. He is offered the job of safety inspector if he stops his protest. After some back and forth, he agrees and announces it to the crowd. Interestingly, we see him do the same dance from "Dancing Homer" before falling into the crowd below.

Speaking of crowds, in the commentary, the baffling grotesque faces we see in early crowd scenes is explained. Initially, they wanted characters to look weird and unrealistic. However, it was decided shortly thereafter to make background characters look more realistic than the Simpsons, for much of the same reasons they dropped the busy backgrounds. This is why almost every recurring character has normal hair, while Bart, Lisa, and Maggie have some sort of baffling skin colored hair spikes.

Going back to the star of this episode, Homer is a much different character. He's dedicated to his family, he feels remorse at not being able to provide for them, and when contemplating suicide, oils the back gate before leaving. His drinking habits are also much more subdued. He wants a beer, but it's played the same as wanting any other small luxury item, and not the way it is in later seasons. He is not an alcoholic at this point in the series, just a normal guy that goes to the bar after work. His obsession with safety initiatives, however, comes up again and again. Safety Salamander and his baby proofing business being two instances. As we all know, this character trait eventually mostly got moved over to Marge, and expanded to any sort of initiative.

Interestingly, aside from "Some Enchanted Evening", Marge's name is never mentioned in early episodes. According to the commentary, she didn't even have a name at first. The writers referred to her as "Juliet" or simply "Mom". As shown in the script for "Some Enchanted Evening" and the voicework for that episode, Matt Groening knew her name. He simply never mentioned it to the other writers, as backed up by an exchange in the commentary. Once again, up until episode 9, "Life in the Fast Lane", Marge is simply a background character, existing only to fill a slot in the family. Clearly, Matt Groening had a character in mind, as seen in "Some Enchanted Evening", but other writers failed to explore her initially, choosing to focus on Homer and Bart.