There's Something About Marrying
Positive reaction to the episode came from, among others, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and the gay-oriented website AfterEllen, with negative reception to the episode from, amongst others, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and the gay-oriented website LGBTQ Nation, who criticised the depiction of Veronica (a parody of trans pro golfer Mianne Bagger) as transphobic.
Bart and Milhouse torment a tourist named Howell Huser (a parody of television personality Huell Howser), who is then chased out of town by bullies Dolph, Jimbo, and Kearney.
In a meta-reference to the show's tendency to episodically return to status quo ante, Lisa notes that this is the end of Homer's wedding business.
"There's Something About Marrying" was written by co-executive producer J. Stewart Burns and directed by Nancy Kruse as part of the sixteenth season of The Simpsons.
[3] Executive producer Al Jean said they were interested in doing the episode because they could explore the various characters' different positions on gay marriage while remaining neutral.
[2] Matt Groening, the creator of The Simpsons, stated that the staff wanted to out Patty as gay because portraying her as a "love-starved spinster [...] seemed old" on the show.
For example, in the season thirteen episode "Jaws Wired Shut" she is part of the Springfield Gay Pride Parade's "stayin' in the closet" float, though only her voice was heard and she was not seen.
[9] According to the publication Zeek: A Jewish Journal of Thought and Culture and Value War: Public Opinion and the Politics of Gay Rights, it was the controversial lesbian outing of the main character (played by Ellen DeGeneres) in the sitcom Ellen in 1997 that paved the way for Patty's coming-out in this episode, as well as for many other gay characters on other television shows.
[10][11] In his book Queers in American Popular Culture, Jim Elledge noted that unlike many episodes of The Simpsons that go through a situation and then everything returns to normal during the ending, this one does not.
[12] The author also noted that it is possible the Simpsons staff chose Patty to come out as gay instead of a male character because lesbians were "traditionally considered more acceptable" on television.
Writing in an article about "There's Something About Marrying" for The New York Times, Sharon Waxman said that "as television's longest-running situation comedy, The Simpsons is no stranger to hot-button social, religious and political issues, mocking wardrobe malfunctions, Hollywood liberals and born-again Christians, among other targets.
"[14] On the episode's broadcast, Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation director Damon Romine criticised its depiction of Patty's fiancée 'Leslie Robin "Veronica" Swisher', a parody of trans pro golfer Mianne Bagger, as transphobic, stating that "the 'reveal' of Veronica reinforces a dangerous myth that transgender people are trying to deceive or trick us.
When Marge dramatically ripped away Veronica's choker to reveal a bulging Adam's apple, it seemed funny; but in real life, such revelations are often followed by terrible violence.
At San Diego Comic-Con in July 2004, Al Jean revealed: "We have a show where, to raise money, Springfield legalizes gay marriage.
However, as The Baltimore Sun writes, it would have been unlikely for Smithers to be the outed character because it would not have been a surprise to fans, and his love for his heterosexual boss would prevent him from marrying another person.
[8][18] The tabloid newspaper The Sun revealed already in September 2004 that the character who would come out was Patty,[19] though this was regarded as a rumor, and Jean would not confirm it.
"[8] Jean told The Advocate that he thought it was "an insane thing for someone to take bets on a result that can be determined by other people", referring to the Simpsons staff, "and could be changed by them at the last minute.
[9][23] The entertainment website MovieWeb predicted in October 2004 that the episode would become controversial when it aired because of the large children audience and "also because it comes at a time when many states are seeking to ban same-sex wedding ceremonies.
"[29] Before its original airing, Pinsky was interviewed about the episode on ABC's World News Tonight, CNN, BBC Radio, and more, as the author of a book on religion in The Simpsons.
[12] The buzz "There's Something About Marrying" had received attracted a lot of viewers to its broadcast,[31] and therefore the Fox network chose to air it during the ratings sweeps.
"[33] John Kenneth White, author of the book Barack Obama's America, similarly called "There's Something About Marrying" a cultural barrier breaker.
"[14] A researcher for the American Family Association, named Ed Vitagliano, claimed the presentation of same-sex marriage in the episode was "very one-sided".
[34][38] He said that this episode proved "Hollywood's blatant pro-homosexual bias" because despite The Simpsons being "generally kind of a wacky animated program" it was not neutral on the issue.
"[38] Mark Washburn of Knight Ridder wrote that at the time of the episode's broadcast, most Americans were accustomed to seeing homosexual characters on television.
[28] In response to the claims that this episode was supporting gay marriage, Al Jean replied that "we don't really take any positions for or against anything, we just like to examine all sides of an issue and I think that anyone who would get their political wisdom from a cartoon might be sadly mistaken.
In his book The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History, John Ortved responded to this, commenting that despite the controversies the episode was "in fact a long-winded and lame exploration of the topic.
"[41] AfterEllen.com's David Kennerley approved of the willingness of a "hit network TV show in prime time, watched by children and adults" to "serve up such a politically charged issue".
[16] Rick Garcia, an activist of the gay rights group Equality Illinois, said to the Chicago Tribune that the episode would likely affect society in a positive way because of the iconic status of the show which "shape[s] our attitudes".
"[16] Bill Gibron of PopMatters also thought the episode was funny, commenting that it "explored the often-cited 'slippery slope' of allowing matrimony to be defined outside the parameters of a man and a woman—with hilarious results.
When Marge dramatically ripped away Veronica's choker to reveal a bulging Adam's apple, it seemed funny; but in real life, such revelations are often followed by terrible violence.
