What Irked Me About the Simpsons in Israel

April 9, 2010 - 4:27 PM by Brian Blum

The Simpsons came to Israel last week. Not the actors themselves or large foam rubber versions of the popular yellow characters dancing on ice; rather the show itself, which after over 20 years as the longest running sitcom on television, finally had an Israel-themed episode. I enjoyed most of it but there was an ongoing theme that got under my skin.

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In the episode, entitled ‘The Greatest Story Ever Dohed,” Ned Flanders is down to his last straw in terms of helping Homer see the light and become a good Christian. He offers the Simpson family a trip to the Holy Land.

The episode was typical Simpsons, which is to say, mostly amusing and not too deep. There were no serious jabs at the political situation and only a few mild caricatures of Israelis (the writers clearly didn’t want to make many waves).

Sacha Baron Cohen, of Borat, Bruno and Ali G. fame, voiced the part of Jacob, the abrupt Israeli tour guide who kept telling his flock to “shut your face.” While a bit over the top, who hasn’t met a gruff Israeli like that at some point during an extended visit to Israel? Maybe not on the tour circuit but perhaps at a government office?

There was also Yossi’s pint-sized cousin Dorit (voiced by singer Yael Naim) who employed the Israeli martial art of krav maga to subdue Bart – again, a little stereotyped but nothing to get up about.

So what irked me? The portrayal of Israel as a kind of Middle Eastern version of Fiddler on the Roof. There was the matza ball truck, followed by the Chosen People moving van (set to a klezmer music background), and the tour group stayed at the Wailing Waldorf (with, yes, a fiddler cleaning the gutters). Many of the Israelis depicted wore tallitot around their necks and black hats on their heads.

In a nod to “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan,” Homer marveled over local soft drinks with Eastern European names like “Lemon Lime Oy” and “Diet Briskit” (although the “Chickpea Fizz” was at least relevant to the local milieu).

Perhaps the funniest bit of the show is when Homer tries to order falafel over the phone “with pepperoni, sausage and extra cheese.” After a pause, he responds, “yes, I know what a falafel is.” I also chuckled when Krusty the Clown patronized the “Gaza Strip Club.”

Of course I exaggerate. I’m glad, after 20 years, the Simpson took the opportunity to make fun of our eminently parody-able state. Homer even tried to make peace. While suffering from Jerusalem Syndrome and proclaiming himself the messiah, he ascended the Temple Mount and declared that one thing Jews, Muslims and Christians have in is an abiding love for chicken.

Too bad most of the real players in the region seem to be devout vegetarians.

Tags: , • Category: Israeliness, Pop Culture, tv 

Comments

5 Comments on What Irked Me About the Simpsons in Israel

  1. David-Joe on Sat, Apr 10th 2010 3:50 AM

    2. Yes it should irk you but it is also informative. It is the way the world see Israel these days.

    It does not see the Jewish warrior and Israeli who stands up and does not give in but stands by principle and right.

    I have on this forum for some time complained and cajoled that Israel has lost itself, its self-esteem and is not the Israel of my youth [definitely] or that of even twenty years ago.

    Today Israel is seen as the diaspora Jew. Unsure of itself, somewhat afraid and helpless as Iran marches towards acquiring the ultimate weapon of death – nuclear weapon capability.

    Netahyahu is maybe beginniing to find his courage by standing up to a real anti-Israel American president. A president that looks at Muslims and their causes in a friendly way and towards the Jewish causes with suspicion and distrust, only measuring his antipathy because of the political firestorm any overt attitude would cause in influential circles in the United States body politik.

    Do you want the Simpson portrayal to change? Then Israel had better decide to become Israelis again and leave the athenian softie unsure diaspora view the world is seeing.

    Ask yourselves this question:
    If Iran attain nuclear capability, with its intention to continue the Holocaust, exactly what is the reason for Israel’s existence as a Jewish State where Jews can be protected and be safe and live as Jews in the Land of their ancestors, based on RIGHT and not as anywhere else, on sufferage.

    This is an existential question, which cannot be shied away from. It was always God’s intention for the Jews to be brave – why else woukld they have accepted his Laws when everyone else refused?

  2. David-Joe on Sat, Apr 10th 2010 3:56 AM

    3. [Too bad most of the real players in the region seem to be devout vegetarians.']

    Perhaps, but they are bloodTHIRSTY.

    The world will treat Israel as Israel denbds it.

    The most pathetic sights in TV are two individuals that are official “spokesman” for Israel: Mark Regev and Miri [forget the last name].

    They make me cringe with their timidity and mea culpa attitude on behalf of the “The Once Great State Of Israel”.

  3. What Irked Me About the Simpsons in Israel on Tue, Apr 13th 2010 5:16 PM

    4. [...] first shared my frustrations on the Israelity [...]

  4. The Man at the Pub on Thu, Jul 1st 2010 9:08 AM

    5. When The Simpsons came to Australia years ago, a lot of Aussies got irked by their portrayal of us. But it’s The Simpsons after all, and after playing on stereotypes and taking the mickey out of the USA for 20 years, I guess it’s only fair to do it to other countries every once in a while.

    How people from other nations view your society is always very different from the ‘reality’.

  5. Me on Wed, Aug 11th 2010 12:35 PM

    6. It’s funny, The Man, I remember being slightly annoyed at the Australian episode not because I found it offensive but because I wished their mocking was a bit more informed and therefore funnier for us. UK parodies of Australia can be much funnier because they know our culture better.

    However, I’ve since read that the Simpsons writers deliberately made the episode as absurd as possible and weren’t really trying to be accurate. I think in general, any episodes making fun of different cultures and countries deliberately go for the stereotypes and are not so much mocking the culture, but outsiders’ ideas of the culture. Then they just have fun with it and make their own surreal version of another culture ;).

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