Rosebud (The Simpsons)

Last updated

"Rosebud"
The Simpsons episode
Rosebud.gif
Promotional image for the episode, depicting Homer with the Ramones
Episode no.Season 5
Episode 4
Directed by Wes Archer
Written by John Swartzwelder
Production code1F01
Original air dateOctober 21, 1993 (1993-10-21)
Guest appearance
Episode features
Couch gag The family finds identical copies of themselves sitting on the couch. [1]
Commentary Matt Groening
David Mirkin
Wes Archer
David Silverman
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Homer Goes to College"		Next →
"Treehouse of Horror IV"
The Simpsons season 5
List of episodes

"Rosebud" is the fourth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons . It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 21, 1993. In the episode, Mr. Burns misses his childhood teddy bear Bobo on the eve of his birthday. After flashbacks reveal Bobo's journey through history, the bear ends up in the hands of Maggie Simpson. Burns does everything in his power to get Bobo back.

Contents

"Rosebud" was directed by Wes Archer and written by John Swartzwelder. It was the first episode to be executive-produced by David Mirkin, who was the show runner for the fifth and sixth seasons of the show. Supervising director David Silverman describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct. The Ramones (Joey Ramone, Johnny Ramone, C. J. Ramone and Marky Ramone) guest-star in the episode as themselves. The episode is largely a parody of the 1941 film Citizen Kane and the title references Charles Foster Kane's dying word "Rosebud". The episode contains references to The Wizard of Oz , Planet of the Apes , George Burns, Charles Lindbergh, The Rolling Stones and Adolf Hitler.

Since airing, “Rosebud" has received universal acclaim from fans and television critics. In 2003, Entertainment Weekly placed the episode in second place on their list of the 25 best episodes of The Simpsons. [2]

Plot

Mr. Burns dreams about his early childhood, when he lived with his family and cherished his teddy bear Bobo, which he dropped in the snow when he left home to live with a "twisted, loveless billionaire". Bobo was found by Charles Lindbergh, then by Adolf Hitler, then by ice cutters in the North Pole. Burns becomes so obsessed with finding Bobo that he cannot enjoy the elaborate birthday celebration Smithers has arranged for him. After The Ramones perform a disdainful rendition of "Happy Birthday To You", Homer Simpson performs a loutish, derisive stand-up routine. Burns becomes infuriated and has his security guards break up the party. Bart buys a bag of ice to heal a head injury Homer received at the party. Bart finds Bobo in the bag and gives him to Maggie to play with.

When Homer realizes Maggie is playing with Bobo, he negotiates a deal with Burns to exchange Bobo for "a million dollars and three Hawaiian Islands". However, Maggie refuses to give up Bobo, and Homer calls off the deal. Burns is outraged and promises vengeance unless he gets Bobo back. After several failed attempts to steal the bear, Burns subjects Homer to harsh work at the nuclear power plant. Additionally, Burns explains through a television broadcast that he is cutting off Springfield's beer supply and hijacking its television channels as a way of extorting Homer.

Wanting their beer and TV back, an angry mob of townspeople soon attempt to take Bobo themselves, but are coaxed into giving Bobo back to Maggie when they see her sad face. Homer tells Burns that Bobo belongs to Maggie now, and she refuses to give up Bobo even after Burns attempts to directly take him from her. Seeing how distraught Burns is, Maggie lets him have Bobo. He is overcome with joy and promises to be nice to everyone; however, since Smithers is unable to get Burns's statement in writing, it is implied Burns will soon forget it. Homer is disappointed that the Simpson family did not get a reward even though Burns got Bobo back. He asks Marge: "Is this a happy ending or a sad ending?" She replies: "It's an ending. That's enough."

Holding Bobo as he sleeps, Burns dreams of the future. In the year 1,000,000 AD, the Earth is a wasteland ruled by intelligent apes who unearth Bobo. Burns — with his head in a jar attached to a cybernetic body — snatches Bobo from an ape and vows to never again leave the bear behind, running off into the sunset with Smithers, whose head is attached to a robotic dog's body.

Production

"Rosebud" was written by John Swartzwelder and was the first episode to be executive produced and run by David Mirkin. Mirkin enjoyed working on the episode so much that he spent "an enormous amount of time on post production" experimenting with various elements of the episode. [3] Originally, the backstory for Bobo included several much darker scenes, including one where the bear was involved in the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The scenes were cut because the writers felt it was in bad taste. [3] The ending of the episode was originally longer, but two segments were cut. The first saw Washington D.C. destroyed by invading Canadian troops, who found Bobo. The second featured the entire planet being overrun by giant redwoods and spotted owls. [4]

David Silverman describes the episode as "one of the more challenging ones" to direct. [4] Guest stars the Ramones were "gigantic obsessive Simpsons fans" and their characters were designed by Wes Archer. [5] Marky Ramone later called their appearance "a career highlight". [6]

Cultural references

Much of the episode is a parody of the Orson Welles film Citizen Kane Orson Welles 1937.jpg
Much of the episode is a parody of the Orson Welles film Citizen Kane

The episode is largely a parody of Orson Welles Citizen Kane (1941). The title is a reference to Charles Foster Kane's dying word, "Rosebud". The teddy bear Bobo is a substitute for Rosebud in this episode; the young Burns discards it in the snow when offered a new life of riches and power. [1] The scene where he drops a snow globe while whispering the name of his lost toy parodies Kane's death scene at the start of the film. [7] The scene where Smithers is imagining Mr. Burns who is singing "Happy Birthday song" is a parody of Marilyn Monroe who sang the song to John Kennedy. The guards outside Burns's manor have the same chant as the Wicked Witch of the West's guards in The Wizard of Oz (1939). [7] After the Ramones' performance, Burns orders Smithers to "have The Rolling Stones killed". Smithers reminds Burns of his possessions: "King Arthur's Excalibur, the only existing nude photo of Mark Twain, that rare first draft of the Constitution with the word 'suckers' in it..."

Burns and Smithers' attempt to steal Bobo from the Simpsons mirrors Mission: Impossible , and their sitcom is similar to The Honeymooners . [1] Both Mr. Burns and Homer make references to the cancellation of the TV series The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo . [7] Mr. Burns' brother is revealed to be comedian George Burns, [1] and both Charles Lindbergh and Adolf Hitler were once in possession of Bobo. [7] The last scene where Mr. Burns's robotic body runs off with Bobo is a reference to the film Planet of the Apes . [1]

Reception

In its original American broadcast, "Rosebud" finished 33rd in the ratings for the week of October 18–24, 1993. It acquired a Nielsen rating of 11.9. [8] The episode was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week after Married... with Children . [8]

In 2003, Entertainment Weekly 's placed "Rosebud" second on their top 25 The Simpsons episode list, writing that "It begins with 'Citizen Kane,' ends somewhere near the 'Planet of the Apes,' and in between, manages to find time to include Hitler, the Ramones, and 64 slices of American cheese. But despite being one of The Simpsons' most spectacularly overstuffed episodes, 'Rosebud' has plenty of heart". [9] In 2007, Vanity Fair named it the best episode of the show, calling it, "A perfect episode. Mr. Burns's lamentations for his childhood bear, Bobo, lead to a show-long parody of Citizen Kane. At once a satire and a tribute, the episode manages to both humanize Mr. Burns and delve deep into Homer's love for his oft-forgotten second daughter, Maggie." [10] In 2019, Time ranked the episode tenth in its list of 10 best Simpsons episodes picked by Simpsons experts. [11] In his book Planet Simpson , author Chris Turner listed "Rosebud" as one of his five favorite episodes of The Simpsons, calling the episode "genius". He added that the Ramones gave "possibly the finest guest musical performances ever." [12]

David Silverman and Matt Groening describe the sequence where Homer eats 64 slices of American cheese as "one of the most hilarious segments ever done". [4] [13] When The Simpsons began streaming on Disney+ in 2019, former Simpsons writer and executive producer Bill Oakley named this one of the best classic Simpsons episodes to watch on the service. [14]

The episode's reference to Citizen Kane was named the 14th greatest film reference in the history of the show by Total Film 's Nathan Ditum. [15] IGN ranked The Ramones's performance as the fifteenth best guest appearance in the show's history. [16]

Nathan Rabin writes, "As Marge notes, 'Rosebud' has a weirdly ambiguous ending. A horrible man gets what he wants and instead of $1 million and a big chunk of Hawaii, the Simpsons end up with nothing but the satisfaction of doing the right thing... 'Rosebud' is as much an homage to Citizen Kane as a spoof. The more you know about Citizen Kane the more you get out of it, even if a lot of the most brilliant scenes and gags aren’t Citizen Kane-based... As the first episode of Mirkin’s term as showrunner, 'Rosebud' established an almost impossibly high standard the rest of the season remarkably maintained." [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maggie Simpson</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Margaret Lenny "Maggie" Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the youngest member of the Simpson family. She first appeared on television in the Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Maggie was created and designed by cartoonist Matt Groening while he was waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. She received her first name from Groening's youngest sister. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for three years, the Simpson family was given their own series on the Fox Broadcasting Company which debuted December 17, 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waylon Smithers</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Waylon Joseph Smithers Jr., usually referred to by the names Mr. Smithers, or simply Smithers, is a recurring character in the animated sitcom The Simpsons, voiced by Harry Shearer. His first appearance was in the episode of "Homer's Odyssey", although his voice could be heard in the series premiere "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". He is the consummate executive and personal assistant of Springfield Nuclear Power Plant's owner Mr. Burns, and is usually treated unfairly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mr. Burns</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Charles Montgomery Plantagenet Schicklgruber "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns or C. Montgomery Burns, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced initially by Christopher Collins and since by Harry Shearer. He is the mostly evil, devious, greedy, and wealthy owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and, by extension, Homer Simpson's boss. He is assisted at almost all times by Smithers, his loyal and sycophantic aide, adviser, confidant, and secret admirer. He is between 81 and 120 years old, though sometimes it's implied he's much older.

"There's No Disgrace Like Home" is the fourth episode of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 28, 1990. In the episode, Homer is ashamed of his family's behavior at a catastrophic company picnic and enrolls them in therapy. The therapist, Dr. Marvin Monroe, struggles to solve their problems − culminating in a shock therapy-based showdown between the family members − before eventually giving up and refunding their money.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treehouse of Horror IV</span> 5th episode of the 5th season of The Simpsons

"Treehouse of Horror IV" is the fifth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons and the fourth episode in the Treehouse of Horror series of Halloween specials. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 28, 1993, and features three short stories called "The Devil and Homer Simpson", "Terror at 5+1⁄2 Feet", and "Bart Simpson's Dracula".

"Treehouse of Horror III" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 29, 1992. The third annual Treehouse of Horror episode, it features segments in which Homer buys Bart an evil talking doll, Homer is a giant ape which is captured by Mr. Burns in a parody of the 1933 version of King Kong, and Bart and Lisa inadvertently cause zombies to attack Springfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treehouse of Horror V</span> 6th episode of the 6th season of The Simpsons

"Treehouse of Horror V" is the sixth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the fifth entry in the Treehouse of Horror series. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 30, 1994, and features three short stories: "The Shinning", "Time and Punishment", and "Nightmare Cafeteria".

"The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular" is the tenth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 3, 1995. As the title suggests, it is the 138th episode and the third clip show episode of The Simpsons, after "So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show" and "Another Simpsons Clip Show".

"Lady Bouvier's Lover" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 12, 1994. In the episode, Abe Simpson falls in love with Marge's mother, Jacqueline Bouvier, and they start dating. However, on a night out in town, she is charmed by Mr. Burns. Abe is brokenhearted when he learns that Jacqueline is going to marry Mr. Burns.

"$pringfield ", simply known as "$pringfield", is the tenth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 91st episode overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 16, 1993. In the episode, Springfield legalizes gambling to revitalize its economy. Mr. Burns opens a casino where Homer is hired as a blackjack dealer. Marge develops a gambling addiction, Bart opens a casino in his tree house, and Burns' appearance and mental state deteriorate à la Howard Hughes.

"And Maggie Makes Three" is the thirteenth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 22, 1995. In the episode, Homer recounts the story of Maggie's birth when Bart and Lisa ask why there are no photos of her in the family album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deep Space Homer</span> 15th episode of the 5th season of The Simpsons

"Deep Space Homer" is the fifteenth episode of the fifth season of American animated television series The Simpsons, which was first broadcast on Fox in the United States on February 24, 1994. In the episode, NASA selects Homer Simpson to participate in a spaceflight to spark public interest in space exploration and boost low ratings of the launches. Once in space, his incompetence destroys the navigation system on board the Space Shuttle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homie the Clown</span> 15th episode of the 6th season of The Simpsons

"Homie the Clown" is the fifteenth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 12, 1995. In the episode, Homer becomes a Krusty the Clown impersonator, but is mistaken for the real Krusty by the Springfield Mafia. Joe Mantegna returned as Fat Tony, while Dick Cavett and Johnny Unitas guest starred as themselves.

"A Streetcar Named Marge" is the second episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 1, 1992. In the episode, Marge wins the role of Blanche DuBois in a community theatre musical version of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire. Homer offers little support for his wife's acting pursuits, and Marge begins to see parallels between him and Stanley Kowalski, the play's boorish lead male character. The episode contains a subplot in which Maggie Simpson attempts to retrieve her pacifier from a strict daycare owner.

"Two Dozen and One Greyhounds" is the twentieth episode of the sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on April 9, 1995. The episode was written by Mike Scully and directed by Bob Anderson. Frank Welker guest stars as Santa's Little Helper and various other dogs. In the episode, Santa's Little Helper has puppies with a dog that he met at the greyhound racetrack.

"Burns' Heir" is the eighteenth episode of the fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on April 14, 1994. In the episode, Mr. Burns has a near-death experience that prompts him to find an heir to inherit his wealth after he dies. He chooses Bart as his heir because he admires the "creature of pure malevolence". Marge convinces Bart to spend time with his benefactor, who allows his heir the money and freedom to do whatever he pleases. Soon Bart leaves his family to live with Burns instead.

Media is a recurring theme of satire on The Simpsons. The show is known for its satire of American popular culture and especially television culture, but has since its inception covered all types of media such as animation, journalism, commercials, comic books, movies, internet, and music. The series centers on a family and their life in a typical American town but the town of Springfield acts as a complete universe. The town features a vast array of media channels—from kids' television programming to local news, which enables the producers to make jokes about themselves and the entertainment industry.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 4, 1994, and May 21, 1995, and consists of 25 episodes. The Simpsons is an animated series about a working class family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional city of Springfield, and lampoons American culture, society, television and many aspects of the human condition.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 5 Season of television series

The fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 30, 1993, and May 19, 1994. The showrunner for the fifth production season was David Mirkin who executive produced 20 episodes. Al Jean and Mike Reiss executive produced the remaining two, which were both hold overs that were produced for the previous season. The season contains some of the series' most acclaimed and popular episodes, including "Cape Feare", "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy", "Homer Goes to College", "Deep Space Homer", and "Rosebud". It also includes the 100th episode, "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song". The season was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards and won an Annie Award for Best Animated Television Program as well as an Environmental Media Award and a Genesis Award. The DVD box set was released in Region 1 on December 21, 2004, Region 2 on March 21, 2005, and Region 4 on March 23, 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Who Shot Mr. Burns?</span> Two-part episode of The Simpsons

"Who Shot Mr. Burns?" is a two-part episode of the American animated television series The Simpsons.Part One is the twenty-fifth and final episode of the sixth season and originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 21, 1995, while Part Two is the season premiere of the seventh season and aired on September 17, 1995.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Rosebud". BBC. Retrieved April 12, 2008.
  2. ↑ "The Family Dynamic". Entertainment Weekly . January 31, 2003. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014.
  3. 1 2 Mirkin, David. (2004). DVD Commentary for "Rosebud", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  4. 1 2 3 Silverman, David. (2004). DVD Commentary for "Rosebud", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  5. ↑ Archer, Wes. (2004). DVD Commentary for "Rosebud", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  6. ↑ Smallwood, Sue (November 12, 1993). "They've done it their way \ Can't accuse the ramones of being slaves to fashion". The Virginian-Pilot .
  7. 1 2 3 4 Richmond & Coffman 1997, p. 120.
  8. 1 2 "Blue Jays boost CBS to first-place finish". St. Paul Pioneer Press . October 28, 1993.
  9. ↑ "The best Simpsons episodes, Nos. 1-5". Entertainment Weekly . January 29, 2003. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  10. ↑ John Orvted (July 5, 2007). "Springfield's Best". Vanity Fair . Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  11. ↑ Raisa Bruner (December 10, 2019). "We Asked Experts for 10 of Their Most Memorable Simpsons Episodes of All Time". Time . Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  12. ↑ Turner 2004, p. 70.
  13. ↑ Groening, Matt. (2004). DVD Commentary for "Rosebud", in The Simpsons: The Complete Fifth Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  14. ↑ Katz, Mathew (November 11, 2019). "The best classic Simpsons episodes on Disney+". Digital Trends .
  15. ↑ Ditum, Nathan (June 6, 2009). "The 50 Greatest Simpsons Movie References". Total Film . GamesRadar. Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  16. ↑ Goldman, Eric; Iverson, Dan; Zoromski, Brian (January 4, 2010). "Top 25 Simpsons Guest Appearances". IGN . Retrieved January 16, 2022.
  17. ↑ Rabin, Nathan (December 9, 2012). "The Simpsons (Classic): "Rosebud"". The A.V. Club.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.