0052 - Imaginary Train Conductor (Patreon)

Happy New Year!

We are delving back into the mind of a Simpsons character, attempting to determine if these characters that are fictional within the reality of the show "count", even though I'm pretty sure every character we've covered thus far is fictional in the first place. My head hurts.

As Bart attempts to solves a maths problem involving trains, he visualises being on the train and gets stopped by this conductor, who asks for his ticket.

He reminds me a little of Ralph from The Honeymooners, though I don't think this is intentional.

I like early dream/fantasy sequences in the show, they are a good excuse to showcase some visual flair available only through the use of animation. I can't put my finger on if this scene is a specific reference to some visual style, but it reminds me of UPA cartoons of the 1950s, albeit through a Simpsons filter. Drawing Simpsons characters that don't look like Simpsons characters is going to be a fun challenge going forward!

This post is part of my "Every Simpsons Character Ever" series. For a list of my rules in this project, click here.