The Question Of What Homer Actually Does At His Job In The ‘Simpsons’ Remains
The Simpsons’ iconic opening credit sequence is a fun way to establish the tone of the show, giving viewers a glimpse of what each member of the titular family is up to on a typical weekday, plus a peek at the agonizing existential hell of their far-future lives in that one episode.
As Danny Elfman’s jazzy theme music plays, we see Marge and Maggie shopping at a grocery store, Bart and Lisa are wrapping up their school day at Springfield Elementary, and Homer is busy at work at Mr. Burns’ nuclear plant – wait, what?
We see Homer pick up a glowing inanimate carbon rod with a set of specialized tongs shortly before the whistle sounds. At that point, he whips off his safety mask and puts down the tongs, sending the rod flying into the air and landing on the back of his radiation suit.
This article not your thing? Try these...
Presumably this is one of the reasons why the nuclear energy industry isn’t super-thrilled about the show.
A fan on social media recently questioned whether or not Homer ever actually did something like this on the show itself.
After all, for the vast majority of the series, Homer has spent his workdays dozing and snacking in Sector 7G. Not doing… whatever it was that he’s doing in the opening.
In response to the post, a number of fans pointed out that Homer had a different job at the plant when the show first began. But at the very end of Season One’s third episode, “Homer’s Odyssey,” Mr. Burns promotes the recently-fired Homer to safety inspector, purely in order to quell his protests against the plant.
Prior to this turn of events, Homer’s job seemingly involved monitoring equipment and driving around the plant in a little red car.
To be fair, Homer’s current job does occasionally require him to perform tasks that don’t involve sitting in front of a T-437 Safety Console. Like when Homer earned the position of “head bee guy” during a government inspection.
But it does seem odd that Homer is so hands-on in the opening, even in newer versions that aired long after he got the promotion.
Then again, it could be the work of yet another wizard.