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Much of the humor from the animated series '''[[The Simpsons (animation)|The Simpsons]]''' comes from the characters failing to recognize their own stupidity, being clueless when others harshly criticize them and so forth.▼
▲Much of the humor from the animated series '''[[The Simpsons]]''' comes from the characters failing to recognize their own stupidity, being clueless when others harshly criticize them and so forth.
* Homer hijacks a blimp and falsely tells a baseball player that his wife loves him in order to help him win a game. Sadly the plane crashes, and the baseball player thinks his wife is dead. Homer has to come up with an excuse.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Homer to say that the baseball player's wife told him to say the message since she apparently has either a fear of heights or work she has to do.<br />'''Instead:''' Homer, being the lovable idiot jerkass he is, tells the baseball player that his wife is pooping.
* In another episode, Maggie is proven to be the solution to world peace, provided she lives in a monastery.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Marge to do the mature thing and allow her child to stay there, since a monastery isn't that bad of a place to be. Plus, small price to pay for world peace, right?<br />'''Besides:''' Nobody said that Marge (and the rest of the family by extension) couldn't live in the monastery as well, if she wanted to be with Maggie, right?<br />'''Instead:''' Marge goes all "She's mine and no one else's" and keeps her. No explanation beyond [[Hypocritical Humor|"God would never ask anyone to give up their child for the good of the world."]] [[Lampshade Hanging|is given]]. This is fairly annoying since she learns that her children have to leave their nest in almost every episode about her. A MAJOR [[Flanderization]] of her [[Mama Bear]] attitude to be sure.<br />'''Bonus Points:''' Marge clearly has never actually read the Bible or else she would have seen not only the story of Jesus (the one that makes her humor hypocritical), but the story of Abraham, who God asks to sacrifice his son pretty much just to prove he loves God (granted, it all ended up to be a [[Secret Test of Character]], but still).<br />'''However:''' Marge ''actually'' says "God would never ask a mother to give up her child for the good of the world. ...Again," so she clearly ''had'' read the Bible and acknowledged it.
* Homer just made a bet against Lisa, his ''own daughter'', in a crossword puzzle tournament. Homer ended up winning the bet, gaining a huge loads of money.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' That Homer kept the whole thing hidden (like keep most of the winnings in a bank or something) so no one would suspect a thing.<br />'''Instead:''' He bought and showed off a lot of new expensive things that made it clear to everyone that something's up. This allowed Lisa to get Homer to confess that he bet against her, then Lisa ended up disowning Homer as her father.
* Lisa convinced Burns to recycle, and in result, she caused the environment to go to hell in a way. To counteract this, or to make her shut up, he offers her 10 percent of the profits (which was $12 '''MILLION'''; the entire profit was $120 million).<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Lisa to accept the money and use it for environmental purposes, donating, hell using all of her part of the money to undo the damage. Or at least accept it. It's 10 percent of $120 million, that is $12 million, money that her family will never make.<br />'''Instead:''' [[Honor Before Reason|She tore up the check.]] Even her mother was disappointed with Lisa's decision.
* She has another one of these at the end of said episode. Homer is in the hospital after the understandable shock of seeing her daughter refuse so much money and they'd gone to visit him. Homer either from shock or stupidity think Lisa only gave up $12,000.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Lisa to allow Homer's mistake seeing as he was in such a state from seeing her give up what he thought was 12 grand.<br />'''Instead:''' She corrects Homer and tells him 10 of 120 million isn't 12,000 but 12 '''Million'''. The episode ends with
* In one of [[The Simpsons]] annual Halloween episodes, Homer decides on a whim to sell his soul for a donut, however just as he's down to the last piece, it's revealed that he keeps his soul if he doesn't finish the whole thing.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Homer (Or really, any member of the Simpson family) to throw the donut away, preventing the devil from taking his soul.<br />'''Instead:''' They keep the donut piece in the fridge; when Homer goes to the kitchen at night for food, the predictable happens.
* The Season 8 episode "Lisa's Date with Density" saw Homer engage in tele-panhandling using an autodialer. Several examples of stupidity abound:<br />'''First''': One of the Springfield residents that
* In the opening gag to the Season 4 episode "Homer's Triple Bypass," a parody of ''[[
* In "Missionary: Impossible," when Homer goes overseas to engage in a missionary trip, Bart has taken over the position of "man of the house" and takes over his father's job at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. Mr. Burns storms into Homer's workstation to reprimand him for years of poor performance.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Mr. Burns – even with his advanced age and declined mental acuity – to recognize that whom he is about to scold is not Homer, given that Burns and Bart have encountered each other numerous times.<br />'''Instead:''' Mr. Burns yells at "Homer" anyway, even as Bart tries to explain that he is not Homer.
* In "Cape Feare," Sideshow Bob, serving a prison sentence for armed robbery, is up for parole. '''Quick background''': Three years earlier, a gunman, dressed as Krusty the Clown, robs the Kwik-E-Mart. Krusty is identified as the suspect, is arrested, a motive of having to pay gambling debts established, tried, and convicted. Sideshow Bob takes over Krusty's afternoon program and turns it into an educational program the kids can't relate to; Bart, convinced that Krusty is innocent, sets out to prove his idol's innocence and with help from Lisa eventually -- using clues they had been given earlier in the show -- exposes Bob as the culprit. Bob admits that he, while dressed as Krusty, robbed the Kwik-E-Mart, this in response to years of frustration of being a comic foil for slapstick. Since going to prison, Bob (a fan of high culture, the arts and any non-pop culture form of entertainment) has vowed bloody revenge on Bart.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' With numerous witnesses having testified against him and overwhelming evidence that he sent threatening letters to Bart (including several written in his own blood), the parole board to quickly and decisively deny Bob parole.<br />'''Instead:''' Bob is paroled.<br />Later in the episode, the Simpsons have been placed in the Witness Protection Program. Still, Bob is able to stalk the family and eventually tracks down Bart on the Simpsons' boat and corners him.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' For Bob to just simply kill Bart and complete his revenge.<br />'''Instead:''' Bob arrogantly asks Bart if he has any last requests, giving Bart the opening he needs. Bart requests that Bob
* In "Marge Simpson in Screaming Yellow Honkers," Superintendent Chalmers and Principal Skinner, in an act for the Springfield Elementary School talent show, are about to perform [[Who's on First?]].<br />'''You'd Expect:''' The act to be performed properly, as it had obviously been rehearsed.<br />'''Instead:''' Skinner botches the joke by explaining that it's not a question that Chalmers is asking, "but rather a player with the unlikely name of 'Who' is on first."
* Early in the series' run, a popular recurring gag was "Prank Calls to Moe," where Bart would call Moe's Tavern and ask the hapless Moe for someone that, when yelled out, was a double entendré.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' Moe to quickly if not immediately catch on – since he knows Bart and thus recognizes his voice – and have the police arrest him.<br />'''Instead:''' 1. Moe never seems to realize that it is Bart who is calling. 2. Moe falls for the joke every time (e.g., "Do I have a B.O. Problem?"). Once someone responds or the bar laughs uproariously, Moe – rather than ending the call and immediately calling the cops – threatens the culprit with severe harm.<br />'''But''': Several times, Moe did let on that he knew what he was dealing with. In "New Kid on the Block," an angry Moe came to the Simpsons house looking for Bart, but instead, Bart tells him that Jimbo had placed the calls. Moe threatens Jimbo, who begs for mercy. (Moe shows some).<br />'''And Once''': Bart calls Moe's when Homer is
* "Hurricane Neddy" saw Ned's character and faith in God tested when his house is destroyed in a hurricane. The townspeople rally behind the Flanders family and rebuild his house, but their workmanship --
* “The Joy of Sect” Homer is placed in the ‘Circle of Judgment’, being subjected to degrading comments in the effort to destroy his self-esteem in order for him to be brainwashed. <br /> '''You’d Expect''': Homer being a [[Jerkass]] would be protective of his image and violent about it. It almost happens when Moe tells Homer about his body odor. <br /> '''Instead''': Homer knowledge the comments, calling them a ‘smart group’. He even smells his own armpit to confirm Moe’s complaint. <br /> '''[[Truth in Television]]''': Considering Homer’s low intelligence, he’s less likely to be brainwash due to the difficulty until…
* In “Homer VS the Eighteenth Amendment”, Marge and Lisa finds out what Homer and Bart had been doing for the last couple of days, which was smuggling alcohol despite the recently enforced prohibition in Springfield. Homer shows Marge that he’s been making extra money as a result of this. Lisa has a [[Screw the Money, I Have Rules]] route all over it. <br />'''You’d expect''': Marge to agree with Lisa, which would mean handing Homer and Bart over to the newly powerful police force despite knowing the end result. <br /> '''Instead''': Marge is pleased with the men on the idea and the ingenuity to pull it off since she thought it was clever to revolt against a ridiculous law over what people can drink. Lisa protests the decision, only to order to her room by everyone including Bart.
* In “The Good, the Sad and the Drugly”, Lisa is doing a school project on what Springfield could become in the next 50 years. She ends up with a [[Bad Future| bleak future]], which mostly put in details about an apocalyptic consequence. <br /> '''You’d Expect''': Lisa to just research other viewpoints for counterargument since predicting future is really difficult, after all. This would’ve to lead to the conclusion that while everyone is entitled to their own opinions, you have to realize that they’re just suppositions and explaining it would be difficult to uphold. As a result, Lisa would’ve used this opportunity to suggest one of her own [[Green Aesop]]s that would change the future for the better. <br /> '''Instead''': Lisa buys into it, leading her to become depressive.
* In the Firth '''''Treehouse of Horrors''''' segment, '''Nightmare Cafeteria''', Bart and Lisa discovered many children being sent to detention are actually being cannibalized. They go to Marge at that moment. <br /> '''You’d Expect''': Marge to take the matter seriously and confront the school, along with Homer. <br /> '''Instead''': She tells them to defend themselves. <br /> '''You also Except''': Bart and Lisa to recruit Homer. <br /> '''Instead''': They didn’t so.
* In “The Wreck of the Relationship”, Homer and Bart are sleeping while a group of men ‘kidnaps’, {{spoiler| really, Marge signed them to a treatment ship after their relationship goes out of hand all over broccoli}}. The sack over Homer comes off as he wakes up. <br /> '''You’d Expect''': Home to believe he’s being kidnapped and fight off the men. <br /> '''Instead''': Homer just tells the men to put the sack back so he can get some sleep.
* In “Bart the Mother”, Bart goes over Nelson’s house to test out the BB gun he got despite a warning from Marge. When Lisa lies about Bart’s whereabouts, Homer decides to check. <br /> '''You’d Except''': Homer or Marge to simply just call Millhouse by the use of a telephone since even Homer knows Millhouse’s number. <br /> '''Instead''': Homer yells out the window and asks who was Nelson, knowing Marge was standing nearby. <br /> That’s not all <br /> '''You’d also Except''': Marge punishing Lisa for lying by making for do chores or put some restrictions for awhile. <br /> '''Instead''': Marge tells Homer to discipline Lisa and leaves. Homer just [[Unishment| give her money and to the Kwik-E-Mart for him and get something for herself]].
* In “Steal This Episode”, Homer learns, from Bart, how to pirate films and decides to share the trade. <br /> '''You’d Expect''': Homer to find a location that is only known to a few, or come up with some cover. <br /> '''Instead''': He chooses the Simpsons’ backyard and names the place Cinema Pirate-Diso. [[Sarcasm Mode| Way a go Homer, you could’ve made the location and operation anymore more obvious]].
* In "Homer the Vigilante", a group of men with Homer are in at his house with shotguns. Marge questions Homer on the matter. <br /> '''You'd Expect''': The men to put the guns on safety at least. <br /> '''Instead''': Each guy randomly fires rounds by mistake. <br /> '''You'd also Expect''': None of the guys to give one to Bart. <br />'''Instead''': He has one, anyways.
* In "Marge Be Not Proud", after Bart is busted for shoplifting and a recording of the message is left, the tape is switched out. Homer sees there was a message on the answering machine, only to have the song "''Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp)''". <br /> '''You'd Expect''': Homer quickly figures out that something is up and question Bart. <br />'''Instead''': Homer simply listens to the songs and then asks Marge if Lisa was in Camp Granada.
* In the movie, Homer looks out the bedroom window to see a mob coming towards the Simpsons' household, thanks to Homer's illegal dumping got the city in a lockdown. <br /> '''You'd Expect''': Homer to keep quiet, maybe shut down all the lights to house to keep the location a secret since the mob was heading in the wrong direction. <br /> '''Instead''': Homer rudely taunts the mob for not knowing their house is. Of course, this gives the location away.
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