I really dislike how people & even the creators have forgotten that Barney is Homer's best friend. He's been there from the start and mostly, always had Homer's back every since! And remember when Grandpa said he had to pay Lenny & Carl to be Homer's friends, but not Barney. Barney should be Homer's forever bestman, that would be a better character choice than a back n forth alcoholic
Sober barny: thanks for makeing this video about me I really enjoyed it Drunk barny: *burp* Ok now time for my message... sorry I missed the upload... again... but this as always was an amazing video you never stop makeing quality content :)
It's pretty sad seeing Barney's life like this. He has shown to have promising potential, then his close friend Homer, which the writers seem to forget in favor of Lenny and Carl, introduce him beer that led him to becoming an alcoholic. And when he actually try to become permanently sober, the writers didn't no what to do with him so they had him relapse back into alcoholism.
I wish they'd bring him back. He was supposed to be Homer's best friend, but now he's a background character. I think an interesting way to bring him back, would be to make him be Ned's new best friend, causing Homer to have to admit how crappy of a friend he had been.
I agree with the fact that barney should be his best friend they have been for years and before Homer took the flaming Moe Lenny and Carl said horrible things befor he would forget
Can you create a timeline for Chris from Family Guy? Or please could you do another timeline for Iron Man or at least Black Panther of Marvel Universe?
The biggest shame, to me, is that Barney's friendship with Homer has been reduced to just an acquaintance relationship from them happening to visit the same bar. Homer's bar pals have lately only been Lenny, Carl and Moe. And Lenny & Carl already were his work pals. Barney went from being the Barney Rubble to Homer's Fred Flintstone to being a childhood friend, to being a drinking pal, to being an acquaintance who hang's around at the same bar for drunk jokes. And since Homer's own alcoholism has grown a bigger part of his character, Barney isn't even that necessary for drunk jokes nowadays.
It's like what happens often in the real world. A long term substance user cleans up and suddenly, they drift away from their friends. Aka, the people they did substances with.
They sobered him up but did nothing with him despite the potential we’d previously seen from him , then got him drunk again and instead of using that to help his and homer’s friendship re-ignite yep they side out him in the background. So sober Barney doesn’t do anything interesting or excel at anything like he should have and drunk / drinking Barney doesn’t have fun with or have a friendship particularly with Homer. All the jokes about him being drunk aren’t even that funny now cus since they have him depth and have made him more isolated we know he isn’t even having a good time and knows he’s ruined his life , cartoon yes , still sad to see though and doesn’t give a good message about society or encourage addicts to clean up.
@@mod4it87 They want to be able to drink with Barney. They don't want to babysit him when he drinks. It's the same reason Lenny and Carl are better friends with each other than with Homer. It's not up to everyone else to prop up your sobriety and if the only reason you're getting sober is for someone else, you're not sober--you're trading one abuse for another.
I feel bad for Barney, knowing it was Homer who ruined his life, but I like how as the years went on, they made Barney more than just a punching bag for cheap laughs. He even went sober for all of that one season. The burp never gets old, though. LOL
Homer may have been the one that introduced it to him but he wasn’t the one to ruin his life. Considering the social aspects of drinking especially in the time period in which they grew up and the fact that he has a classic addictive personality disorder. Meaning he would’ve picked up the habit regardless of Homer eventually as a social coping mechanism.
I've long wondered, what's the origin of that iconic burp? It was one of the first sound clips I downloaded when I gained internet (well, CompuServe) access in 1996.
When I was younger, I used to root for Barney to relapse. Now that I’m older, I wish he would have stayed sober. The Simpsons, as of late, seem to really free a lot of side characters from the singular joke that defines them. (Smithers, Comic Book Guy, now Moe…) I really hope that Barney gets another chance at sobriety.
Same! I am loving the trend of them taking these otherwise one dimensional characters and really expanding on them. The recent episode where Martin talks about his parents’ expectations and experiences with medication was so good. Shows he’s more than just the nerdy smart kid
I root (beer) for him to schapps the addiction and how i wine that he gets no attention there should been an episode where he won a Guinness record for most alcohol drunk he was a bud to homer none the weiser
@@resto4life nah it’s definitely Barney. He was a top high school student on his way to an Ivy League school, but he was pressured into one drink and his whole life was ruined.
Had the show had a much shorter reign, I could have seen them doing a more fleshed out sobriety arc for Barney. Where he becomes a productive member of society by the show's end... if the show ended in fifteen seasons or less.
I've always felt bad for the life Barney live. Homer really ruined Barney life, he was a bright high school student and was collage bound, but was all ruined for him the moment Homer pressure him into taking that first drink and from that moment, his future when down the drain.
Although, if he had gone to college, who knows if he would’ve just become a drunk regardless. All the college partying would’ve probably led him to the same path.
Don't forget Smithers, when he was depressed from a broken heart, commits suicide by jumping into a cooling plant and dies at aged 50, it's possible he may have had bipolar disorder at the time.
While Barney's burp is the most iconic part of his character, I always liked that it was not inheritently a bad thing, like when he tried to incorporate it into his musical style. I liked that he was aware of how it made him look in public, and really wanted to change when people went too far with their judgements and show them that he's is a smart and thoughtful guy.
I'm actually curious what would of happen if Barney was The Simpsons neighbor. I still think may they should do a season where Barney is kicked out of his apartment and lives with The Simpsons. I mean Barney and Marge could have a few episodes together as they are both talented artists.
I love Barney he's underrated character my favourite moment was when he was in astronaut training with Homer. Where he drinks the champagne and steals the jet pack. What's your favorite moment Lydia?
You know, the older I get the more I feel like the ages of characters in The Simpson's should have been spread out more. Barney as a character always seems younger than Homer, much like Dr. Hibbert and Principal Skinner seem older. Barney would've made way more sense as the artist behind Sadgasm than Homer. I mean, at this point even Homer being in the B-Sharps, while funny, doesn't seem to fit his character anymore. Modern Homer would find that style of music to be very lame. At this point, Barney needs new material to work with. Should he get sober? Maybe not yet. It's such a big part of his character. But should he become a safer drunk? Absolutely. I've got four pitches for new Barney Gumble storylines. Maybe they would be just the kick in the pants needed to turn his character around. Or maybe it's too late. You decide. 1. Barney hits Mole Man with a car one night after drinking. Once again hitting rock bottom, he decides to regain his license. This doesn't mean that he gets sober, only that he learns when to stop. In his quest to drive again, he and Otto, who has also lost his license, become good friends. The episode ends with Barney, not Otto, being a school bus driver. Otto is okay with it though, as that means that he can focus his efforts somewhere else. Barney now gets to interact with the younger Simpsons more, which could lead to new stories. 2. Ned decides to save Barney after a drunken bender leaves Barney on Ned's lawn. Barney at first resists, but over time learns to like Ned's clean living and maybe even embrace faith for the first time. A radical change to be sure, but it could lead to a lot of growth for the character. The episode ends with Barney telling Homer no when offered a beer. And Homer, seeing how much Barney has been through, is okay with losing his drinking buddy and gaining a real friend again. 3. Barney realizes that Homer is his only real friend (which if the previous two episodes also happened doesn't retcon his friendship with Otto, just puts distance between them as Otto is still an addict, just not to beer). Homer and the other Simpsons go on vacation in the A plot. Part of the episode would find him shopping around for friends as Ned is too busy due to all of his work at the Leftatorium and the church. This story finds him and Comic Book Guy start to hang out and eventually start to write a comic. It's essentially the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby dynamic with Comic Book Guy as Lee and Barney as Kirby. It ends with them being friends but Barney realizing that business and friends don't mix. His passion for art, though, remains. 4. Following up on the comic book episode, this final episode will deal with Lisa helping Barney navigate the complicated world of fine art. Barney embraces his inner artist, but finds that his art has more passion behind it when he drinks. His new stuff is fine, but work he made when he was a sloppy drunk sells for seriously good money. He even pays back Moe in full. Realising that the only way to meet the demands of his patrons is to drink again, he tries to make another great artwork while drinking. Then stoned after hanging out with Otto. Then full after hanging out with Comic Book Guy. Only when Ned reaches out and helps him get back on the wagon does Barney make something he's proud of. It doesn't sell, not at all. That said, Ned hangs the artwork up in his home after paying $100 for it. And only because it made Barney happy to sell the final painting.
I really appreciate this video and although he’s a cartoon character as you say he has depth and I think it’s sad they (the writers/even the characters ) gave up on him. I wish they did something with him other than the helicopter thing when he sobered up as we see he had so much potential. He was Harvard bound, was a great singer, smashed it as the plow king ,kicked arse physically and mentally as a nearly to be astronaut, made an awesome but tragic and self aware film and often challenged the expectations of those that hadn’t seen his potential. He was also amazing in fights aside Frazier 🤣😂. When he sobered up in wine and do.. whatever it’s called he was surprised by how his friends saw him which conflicted with his film and even his b sharp tear and aside helicopter flying they didn’t make the most of the fact he always had unlocked potential and great ability he even showcases his modern dance and tap dancing skills in the Simpsons tide .They should have gave him a job like a lawyer or even had him make new friends as the aa meeting , maybe date the woman running it , anything haha they keep him a loser whether drunk or sober now and he doesn’t even really appear in Homer’s flashbacks anymore. in a recent episode all the barflies sobered up and were successful in different ways but Barney is merely sober and working at some store holding the sign that points to it and is delighted he’s accepted by his proud mum. That’s such an insult to what us people that grew up with the old character that had all these great ability’s and strengths. Even not entirely sober Barney before could shine as the plow king or in the b sharps he’s just always a loser now. He could be competent, smart, heroic, edgy and heartfelt before. Remember when he saved Maggie / little boy Bart from the tiger / poney. He was a man that could rise on occasion and the space training probably proved that best till his tragic but hilarious relapse. The earliest we see of Barney though is in ‘Lisa’s saxophone’ when in a flashback he says to Homer ‘let’s never drink again’ after they collide as young drunk kids into a tree on toy cars or something. But yeah maybe the nasa guys should train him up again and he could meet a woman there he deserves something. I don’t think he had to become boring I just think the writers were really unimaginative with what they’ve done with him sober or drunk for about 20 years and that friendship with Homer is less and less prominent.
I have an addictive personality and work with addicts as a counsellor by the way so I find Barney fascinating and loved him when I started watching the Simpsons when I was about 8. I think the funny and the tragic with him was great until they deconstructed him and faded him into the background. The fact he’s up at sunrise for NASA training is actually very realistic as he would be struggling to sleep without booze and would then switch that addiction to exercising or be more likely to get off booze in an environment away from it and his friends and with a new motive ie space travel. The old jokes of him being smashed back in the day were often fckin great too like Homer being arrested for drink driving but Barney being allowed to drive his car home which he does but not before knocking into Wiggum , and his argument with boggs in moes lord Palmerston!!!
One of the things they discourage the MOST at AA is romantic involvement with any other member who is considered "graduated" once you *yourself* have graduated, and you both are sure you won't be doing anything that would enable the other one. It's a *very* strict tenet.
@@OGimouse1 it was merely a suggestion, plus this is Springfield, apu gives dodgy shrimp to people that have already been ill with food poisoning, and the police , bad cops bad cops , moe’s is full of rats and out of date pickled eggs , Hans moleman dies and resurrects I could go on . I’m just saying they wasted Barney.
The high school clip is basicly the time travel car tree house of horror segment. Just without bart And marge And Homer never going to the prom And marge ending up With artie ziff
I remember they took that episode off the air for a while after 9/11, the one where Barney ditches Homer's car in New York City in between the two World Trade Towers.
I always thought the episode Take My Life Please where Homer looked into the Pizza Sauce whereby he saw an alternate timeline of his life if he won the post of class president would have been far better suited to be an episode with Barney in the starring role with Barney witnessing his life where he was teatotal
11:48 "The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson" is probably my favorite episode. The part where Homer forced his car to move despite it having a boot on the tire made me laugh 'til it hurt. 😂
With his helicopter licence you could have Barney be part of the Channel 6 News replacing Arnie Pie or use it to give him some purpose or you know give him something more to do. I really feel for Barney tbh cause him being drunk is the joke and call me a snowflake if you want but i never found that to be funny so when he sobered up i was all for it especially cause it could give him new purpose but nope
fun fact the scene where Barney has his first beer is a reference to the US sitcom Taxi where the character Jim played by Christopher Lloyd has his first beer and then went nuts Taxi was produced by James L. Brooks who later went onto produce the Simpsons.
I watched like 10 videos being all bitter that she beat me to it..... But she's just too good, so I LIKEd and SUBSCRIBEd and stopped eating lemons. Great videos even better voice. You're pro!
A true example of that old saying " you are the company you keep" and you've definitely got to be careful who you call a friend. People in the pit will do anything to take you with them. Ironically, I have a friend who's called me Barney Gumble on occasions where I've belched over the Phone.
In Homer's defense, he did not expect Barney to develop an alcohol dependency from a single beer. Had Homer not shared that six-pack, it was only a matter of time before Barney ruined his own life and dropped out from drinking.
Lydia can you cover the new mothers day episode? It takes place where Homer never met Mona as an adult, but can't have been set before then as Santa's Little Helper's mum has already been adopted by the Simpsons
Ya know I absolutely love this channel but when I first got the notification for this video, my mind was immediately like “oh cool the real Jim’s posted a new Simpsons histories.” Then I realized that it was the Simpsons theory and then I realized that the real Jim’s already posted a video about Barney
Hi, I'm Sammy Scythe. You may remember me from such posts as this one and various others not on this channel. I wanted to say that i love your work on the Simpsons Theory. It's the most complete guide to the series I've ever come across. I'm not sure if this is the right place, but might I request a timeline of Troy McLure? I already know the sad history behind the character, but I can't think of anyone else better suited to bring him back into the light and offer something touching to the man behind the voice. Keep up the amazing work, and stay tuned for more posts!
You have achieved the highest honor of any youtube creator: A sponsorship from RAID: Shadow Legends While this is a joke, I do love this channel, keep it up! :D
In my head canon Barney is secretly gay. He's shown an attraction to Homer in the past, and he didn't seem to mind being married to Otto. Would be interesting if they paired a cleaned up, sober version of Barney up with Smithers.
I think Barney is more openly bi. He’s definitely attracted to women but yeah he doesn’t mind skinner touching him in the air raid shelter , had a weird picture of Homer in drag and got Moe a valentines card.
Love this comment, cuz when I got into the show earlier this year, I started pairing up Barney and Smithers for a lark because they were both my favourite characters... but the more I did it the more it started to line up. They're both kind of pathetic and need to let go of unhealthy habits. Barney shows some bisexual tendencies, and they're both single. It would work so well! And it's not just my own bias!
Look at the beer pouring at the left side of Homer's shirt which is his right side at 14:02 I can't help it. It just looks kind of off. Like how come it's not spreading out more like a funnel instead of just going straight down and then splashing out. It's weird because I typically don't notice these kind of things, but all of a sudden when watching this video I did. I mean it looks like it's disappearing on top of his collar.
