El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Homer (5 Jan. 1997)

Marge's fears that Homer will embarrass her at the annual Springfield Chili Cook-Off again, are reaffirmed when after tasting various bland samples of chili, he comes across a specialty ... See full summary »

Director:

Jim Reardon

Writers:

Matt Groening (creator), James L. Brooks (developer),

Stars:

Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright

Cast

Episode credited cast:
Dan Castellaneta	...	Homer Simpson / Mayor Quimby / Barney / Krusty / Bumblebee Man (voice)
Julie Kavner	...	Marge Simpson (voice)
Nancy Cartwright	...	Bart Simpson / Nelson Muntz / Todd Flanders / Ralph Wiggum / Kearney / Others (voice)
Yeardley Smith	...	Lisa Simpson (voice)
Hank Azaria	...	Moe Szyslak / Chief Wiggum / Furniture Salesman / Carl / The Sea Captain (voice)
Harry Shearer	...	Reverend Lovejoy / Otto / Ned Flanders / Smithers / Dr. Hibbert / Jasper / Kent Brockman / Talking dog / Sailor (voice)
Maggie Roswell	...	Helen Lovejoy (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Johnny Cash	...	Coyote (voice)

Storyline

Marge's fears that Homer will embarrass her at the annual Springfield Chili Cook-Off again, are reaffirmed when after tasting various bland samples of chili, he comes across a specialty made by Chief Wiggum laced with hallucinogenic Guatemalan peppers. The chili sends him on a psychedelic journey where he meets an imaginary Coyote spirit guide(voiced by country music legend Johnny Cash), who urges him to find his soul mate, causing him to doubt that he should've ever married Marge in the first place.

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Plot Keywords:

chili | reference to the cheshire cat | 2d animation | character name in episode title

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy | Family

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 January 1997 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television, Gracie Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The title, El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Homer, translates into The Mysterious Trip (or Voyage, or Journey) of Our Homer.

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Quotes

Chief Wiggum: I want to hallucinate, too!

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Connections

Referenced in The Simpsons: Hit & Run (2003)

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Soundtracks

"Short Shorts"
by Bob Gaudio, Bill Cranston, Thomas Austin, and Bill Dalton
Performed by the Royal Teens

User Reviews

A cartoon that takes us on a surreal journey

The Mysterious Voyage of Homer is a highlight of season 8 for its surreal animation taking us on a strange journey when Homer eats insanity peppers and finds himself lost in a fantastic land. The things he sees and encounters are mysterious, strange and abstract, but the show still has humour in depicting this hallucination- for example, when Homer kicks the tortoise and in an ironic "mop the floor" joke. Homer then meets his spirit guide, a talking coyote who tells Homer to find his soul mate. The coyote is ideally cast- he's voiced by Johnny Cash who has a great voice. It works for a wise and mysterious character.

Once awake, Homer begins to doubt that Marge is his soul mate and goes looking for someone else who can understand him. This material captures the essence of loneliness. The humour is found when his friends all describe their relations with Homer, with none of them claiming to be Homer's soul mate. Additionally, we get a good joke out of Homer asking his memory for "new information." In the end Homer almost destroys a ship that he hopes will bring him friends, which is slightly disturbing, but he and Marge save the ship and the two decide they really are soul mates. This isn't a shocking conclusion, but getting there was an interesting ride.