The latest episode of Fox’s indefatigable The Simpsons, “Luca$,” may be something of a critical clunker, but forget the goofy plot about Lisa dating a competitive eater-in-training, or Bart covering up a B-list character’s illicit activities. You’ll want to watch this video for the unexpected hat-tip to one of the most (unexpectedly) popular games ever made.
No, I don’t get all the Minecraft references either — I’ve only dabbled with the game. But I’d bet dollars to Lard Lad donuts my brother’s seven-year-old son would get all of them (and probably be able to offer scholarly annotations in the bargain). He spent most of our last get-together asking me nuanced gameplay questions. I pretended to understand, nodding in the right places, but I’m pretty sure he figured me out.
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On the other hand, I’m not sure how clever the couch gag is here. Is Minecraft‘s most visible contribution its blocky look? That seems to be the only conceit here: “Hey! Look! The Simpsons as LEGOs!” (Which, of course, is already a thing.) And Moe showing up as a creeper, because of course he would.
Here’s mister Minecraft himself, Markus “Notch” Persson, reacting to the spot:
And on how surreal it still feels when this sort of thing happens:
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