- Harsher in Hindsight:
- The ending gets even more depressing knowing that not only would Seymour's other major love interest, Edna, eventually marry Ned Flanders before passing away, but Patty has since come out of the closet, meaning they'll never get back together.
- The eventual revelation that Patty is gay offers another reading of what happened in this episode: while caring about Seymour personally, she recognized that theirs was a case of Incompatible Orientation and she couldn't return his feelings in the way he wanted, even if the relationship would have been socially acceptable and sated her loneliness a little.
- Heartwarming in Hindsight: With the above being said, Seymour would go on to be one of the small selection of guests at Patty and Veronica's wedding, showing that he's still happy for her.
- Hilarious in Hindsight:
- Moe calls for a "Homer Sexual".
- Homer analyzing potential dates for Selma a la The Terminator, one of the candidates happen to be his female co-worker ("Cons: Not a man"), but it was actually her twin sister Patty that came out of the closet 14 years later. Though his female co-worker is probably heterosexual.
- Values Resonance: While it's unintentional due to the writers not considering any LGBT angle at the time, the episode has gained some fans from those groups for two reasons; first, the later reveal that Patty is a lesbian resonates with queer people who've tried to convince themselves into straight relationships due to societal norms, only to find themselves unhappy. Second, Patty's portrayal here is seen by some as a decent portrayal of aromantic and/or asexual people note . Basically, it's a bit like how "Bart Gets an F" gained a following among people with learning difficulties.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/YMMV/TheSimpsonsS2E14PrincipalCharming
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