When it comes to The Simpsons, we are able to observe the numerous instances in each episode when the show draws upon and references popular film, television, or art and literature (Gray, J., 2005. p.22-23). At the beginning of each episode, The Simpsons opens with a quick opening sequence which has been named as the ‘couch gag’, and this is a pivotal sequence when looking at intertextuality in The Simpsons.
As mentioned previously in this essay, 20th Century Fox has cross media ownership of many highly successful franchises, and the majority of them have had their shot at the couch gag in The Simpsons. One such example, is Avatar (2009) which was featured in a couch gag in season 22 episode 6 (Fandom.com., 2010.). This couch gag shows the Simpsons family as the alien race (the na’vi) from the 2009 film, along with this both the world and animals that are featured in Avatar (2009) are clearly seen throughout the couch gag of the episode.
However, there are some differences between each text, the first being that The Simpsons take a comedic approach when showing of Avatar (2009) in this different text, this is for the reason that Avatar (2009) has been placed in a sit com, so multiple jokes are made using things from the Avatar (2009) universe, such as Homer Simpson not being able to fit in the link unit due to his size. The second difference is that the animation style of The Simpsons does not change, which is consistent through other methods of intertextuality seen in The Simpsons. Jonathon Gray when looking at intertextuality in The Simpsons, states that Parody attaches itself to generic discourses and either playfully or scornfully attacks them (Gray, J., 2005. p. 43-44). In this instance, The Simpsons playfully references Avatar (2009).
More examples of other 20th Century Fox texts that have appear in the context of The Simpsons includes Titanic (1998) and X-Men (2000).
Though 20th Century Fox’s films and television shows were featured many times in the couch gag, there were intertextual references and parodies from other series and films that 20th Century Fox do not own. One example would be Game of Thrones (2011) made by HBO. The way The Simpsons parodied this text was by copying the opening sequence of Game of Thrones and added The Simpsons’ comedic twist and animation style, this being done in season 23, episode 15 (Fandom.com., 2012.).
This asks the question, ‘Does parodying in The Simpsons makes the show less enjoyable?’. Initially one might think that it would, due to fans of The Simpsons not being fans of Game of Thrones. However, looking back at a debate between Henry Jenkins and Matt Hills in the book Fans, Bloggers and Gamers: Essay on participatory culture (2006) Hills brings up the association of fandom with religious experience, in response Jenkins explains fans are nomadic and can share multiple texts, unlike the commitment of religion (Meyer, M. D. E., & Tucker, M. H. L. 2007. p.2). Therefore, this implies that fans of Game of Thrones can enjoy seeing their text in The Simpsons’ couch gag and The Simpsons fans can enjoy the parody in their main text, both texts respecting each other. This is one example of intertextuality working tremendously in The Simpsons and there are others that have worked just as well, comparatively The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012) couch gag reference in season 25 episode 3(2013), featuring The Simpsons family as the cast of the film.
Above all else, one of the best ways The Simpsons uses intertextuality, is by having guest animators and voice actors on the show. The most notable example of this, even getting famous beyond the fans of The Simpsons, is the appearance of Rick and Morty (2013) from the Adult Swim network. The way this was different from the usual couch gag of The Simpsons was the fact that the animation style of Rick and Morty was mixed in with the style of The Simpsons. The couch gag included the two texts interacting, with Rick and Flanders having a conversation between each other and Rick referencing season 7 Episode 13 (1996), where former president George Bush was the neighbour of Homer. This is the perfect example on why The Simpsons has mastered intertextuality, as we know Intertextuality is the generic name for interactions of text (Orr, M., 2003. p.170).
Another distinct difference is that the original voice actor who does the voices of the characters Rick and Morty also did the voices of his characters whilst in The Simpsons. This interaction was a true bringing together of texts where the complete characters and animation of Rick and Morty was put with the animation and characters of The Simpsons, confirming Jonathon Gray’s idea that The Simpsons is global television’s most prodigious and most well-known example of parody and intertextuality (Gray, J., 2005. p.5).
The Simpsons has also had multiple guest appearances of celebrities on the show. This includes people such as Steven Hawking in the episode ‘They saved Lisa’s brain’(1999), Lady Gaga in the episode ‘Lisa goes gaga’ (2012) and Stan Lee featured in the episode ‘I am furious (yellow)’ (2002). These cameos of celebrities can often be a pure representation of reality (Graham, A., 2000. p.172), for instance Lady Gaga made her appearance a year after her 2011 album Born This Way (2011), this could be a nod to the relevance of Lady Gaga at the time and The Simpsons uses intertextuality to make this apparent. A more recent example if the bring together of the late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live (2003) and The Simpsons. This was done by starting of as the normal live action late night show, then transitions into the animation of The Simpsons where Jimmy Kimmel (The host) and Homer Simpson walk around Springfield and interact. This celebrity appearance was unique, due to the episode starting out as live action, then going into the animation of The Simpsons. As well as this, it is also a representation of the popularity of Jimmy Kimmel in 2016. ‘Intertextuality is the culminating critical term for processes of cultural interconnectivity centred on a printed text.’ (Orr, M., 2003. p.170), this idea by Mary Orr offers a reason on why intertextuality in the form of celebrity cameos are big in The Simpsons.
The Simpsons 