Al and Peg Bundy Meet a Gay Couple
Added 2021-03-03 08:34:14 +0000 UTC“The Dance Show” (October 21, 1990)
Given the reputation of Married… With Children, you might be surprised to know that it’s treatment of a same-sex married couple is actually pretty progressive. But yeah, in spite of his many hang-ups, Al Bundy seems pretty nonplussed by the prospect of two guys being married, even if the part that impresses him most is dedicated food preparation. We’ll take what we can get, and this fifth-season episode is firing on all cylinders.
Listen to Smart Mouth’s episode with Nicole Georges, all about the history of tabouleh.
Listen to the new episode of Singing Mountain, Drew’s video game music podcast.
Watch Matt Baume’s Culture Cruise video on this Married… With Children episode, which we cite several times in this episode.
Listen to the What a Cartoon episode on TailSpin, which talks about Sally Struthers in addition to many other things.
Read the Vulture piece on the “lost roles” of Married… With Children.
Watch the Television Academy video in which Michael Moye talks about 227.
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Watch Drew’s video compilation of every LGBT joke ever on the history of The Simpsons.
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This episode’s outro track is “Girl Dream” by Connie Hyland, which is actually not available on any streaming service but maybe just listen to it on YouTube?
Comments
How is this episode not called "Al meets a Homer-sexual?" Not that it's necessarily reflected in his work, but Michael Moye was brought into TV by Norman Lear directly who sponsored a playwriting contest that Moye won. You can find clips of him talking about it on YouTube and Lear has told the story on his podcast as well.
Robyn Pavlakovich
2021-03-09 11:32:42 +0000 UTCI believe the FOX real estate sitcom that you guys refer to is "Open House" which only aired for a season, though it was a revamping of "Duet." It certainly had an interesting cast. Who would have thought back then that last-billed actress Ellen DeGeneres would one day be ubiquitous superstar Ellen DeGeneres? I think "Married With Children" is perfection in its early years, but it became unrecognizable by the early 90s. I usually peg the last David Garrison season as the last "good" one, but evidently they continued to produce some solid episodes into the 90s, as this one is definitely funny and very much keeping to the early formula. I hadn't realized how many lines that I remembered after all these years came from this episode-- including one I use all the time: "Feed me or feed me to something. I just want to be part of the food chain."
VeeAaaRrr
2021-03-08 12:50:40 +0000 UTCWhat great research re. Mr. Moye— talk about unsung heroes of 80s sitcoms!
VeeAaaRrr
2021-03-05 17:02:23 +0000 UTCAs someone who's watched a lot of Futurama and almost no MWC, these episodes are interesting, sonically. The bit at the end about whether the gay couple in this episode is too perfect reminded me of reading the scriptbook to Wet Hot American Summer and seeing David Wain mention they made Ben/McKinley a perfect flawless couple because that seemed subversive and funny to him in 2001, especially in contrast to the nightmarish love lives of the rest of the cast, but that it's probably not anymore. I do like that the next two installments managed to make them funny for reasons besides their existence. I know you guys are fans of Steven Universe so you might already know this tidbit, but Rebecca Sugar's mentioned that Ruby/Sapphire HAD to be a perfect couple, because they didn't want the executives to find anything to object to besides the very presence of gayness. Entirely speculative on my part, but I do wonder if the angel gays on other shows you've talked about stem from writers fearing executive objections as much as audience ones.
Seth Aaron Hershman has they she pronouns
2021-03-04 03:28:22 +0000 UTCWait on which subject?
Drew Mackie
2021-03-04 02:23:37 +0000 UTCThis episode triggered a bunch of memories and sent me down the rabbit hole digging into this show. I thought this take by Ed O’Neill was... interesting: https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=922&v=JQXsoZn9_RE&feature=emb_title
nkwiw
2021-03-03 23:13:39 +0000 UTC
