History YMMV / TheSimpsonsS2E9ItchyAndScratchyAndMarge

** In the opening, as Marge prepares her pork chops she loudly proclaims the secret ingredient is care, before whispering about adding MSG. At the time, it was a controversial additive, but tests done since have proven that health concerns previously linked to it were almost always psychosomatic, meaning she wouldn't be so quiet about it these days.

** The episode is a parody of the moral panic the series received upon its premiere (as well as the infamous Terry Rakolta boycott of ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' over sexual content in the show, which did lead to one episode getting banned from airing on TV for many years) with Marge forming a [[MoralGuardians concerned parents group]]. While the focus of attention shifted to [[AnimatedShockComedy other cartoons]] and [[MurderSimulators video games]] soon after, these kinds of campaigns lost steam by the later years of the decade.

* {{Applicability}}: Because the episode focused more on the idea of consequences than how forms of media should be censored for the greater good, the theme of the episode has applied to more than just TV violence. The lesson format has evolved to include internet content and video game content due to those platforms facing similar criticisms from the public. Keep in mind, this episode was released in 1990, whereas the concept of age rating in video games was made in 1994 through the creation of the [=ESRB=], The Entertainment Software Rating Board.

** The episode is a parody of the moral panic the series received upon its premiere (as well as the infamous Terry Rakolta boycott of ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' over sexual content in the show, which did lead to one episode getting banned from airing on TV for many years). While the focus of attention shifted to other cartoons soon after, these kinds of campaigns lost steam by the later years of the decade.

* NarmCharm: The [[EarlyInstallMentWeirdness bizarre voices Itchy and Scratchy have here]] arguably add to the StylisticSuck aspect of the morally correct retool, giving it an additional layer of UncannyValley.

** If there is a relatively clear Aesop in the episode, is that if you are going to show something to someone, better make sure the person can handle it, and parents should take responsibility for what they expose their children to. Maggie, being a baby, imitates the violence on Itchy and Scratchy because she does not know better. Bart and Lisa, for their part, can watch the show and enjoy it without emulating the worst aspects of it. But instead of simply forbidding her to watch it (which should be relatively easy, given she is a baby), Marge starts a media campaign against the creators of Itchy & Scratchy.

** If there is a relatively clear Aesop in the episode, is that if you are going to show something to someone, better make sure the person can handle it, and parents should take responsibility for what they expose their children to. Maggie, being a baby, imitates the violence on Itchy and Scratchy because she does not know better. Bart and Lisa, for their part, can watch the show and enjoy it without emulating the worst aspects of it. But instead of simply forbidding her to watch it (which should be relatively easy, given she is a baby), Marge takes it against the creators of Itchy & Scratchy.

** The events of the episode are very similar to the Apu controversy in 2017, which was based on how Apu is seen as a stereotype of people from India. This led to an argument on what can be classed as offensive: if Apu is removed for being racially insensitive, then other characters based on ethnic stereotypes (like Groundskeeper Willie or Luigi the pizza chef) can be considered offensive as well and face the same treatment. Fittingly, the moral of the episode isn't based on free speech, but rather on how actions, no matter how well-meaning they are, will always have consequences that can lead to a snowball effect.

* FranchiseOriginalSin: This was the first episode to be entirely dedicated to the writers using the show to try and push their personal viewpoints on a topic (in this case, {{Moral Guardian}}s and TV censorship). The main difference, however, is this episode handled it a lot more tactfully, showing that [[BothSidesHaveAPoint both sides have valid points]], in that entertainers shouldn't be forced to dumb down their works because some might find it offensive, but at the same time certain things shouldn't be included in things ''explicitly'' intended for certain demographics. Later episodes wouldn't have nearly as much tact, usually making whoever the writers disagreed with a one-note StrawCharacter and near outright proclaiming anyone who tried to see their point of view is clearly an idiot. This episode was also the only one in a long string of episodes that weren't trying to push a message of any kind, while later seasons would become infamous for having long strings of episodes that were little more than [[AuthorTract the writer's mouth pieces]].

** In 2023, [[https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/voices-would-you-show-this-pornographic-statue-to-your-kids/ar-AA192fjO?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=77c72edea9c54bcb93e0a406233bb55a&ei=9 A small group of Parents]] [[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/michelangelo-school-principal-fired-david-statue-b2307088.html did protest]] against a school lesson that featured an image of Creator/MichelangeloBuonarroti's classic statue ''Art/{{David}}'', eventually causing the school's principal to resign.

** [[https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/voices-would-you-show-this-pornographic-statue-to-your-kids/ar-AA192fjO?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=77c72edea9c54bcb93e0a406233bb55a&ei=9 A small group of Parents]] [[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/michelangelo-school-principal-fired-david-statue-b2307088.html did protest]] against a school lesson that featured an image of Creator/MichelangeloBuonarroti's classic statue ''Art/{{David}}'', eventually causing the school's principal to resign.

** In the same venue of this, when the show is altered and becomes boring, all the children's start undertaking new hobbies, which are shown in a far more positive light. But this could have been achieved had their parents been a bit more strict about them watching cartoons unrestrictedly, or being in front of the TV all the time. So, instead of taking it with others or simply not caring, parents should take responsibility and ensure children's have a balanced life, without the need to censor anything.

* AnimationAgeGhetto: Brought up InUniverse during the debate on cartoon violence. No definitive stance on the matter wins out, however.

* ValuesDissonance: With Bart and Lisa. Marge bans them from watching the show (they engage in LoopholeAbuse by watching it at their friends' houses) and *forces* them to participate in her protest rallies. In 1990, this was seen as that, because she is their mother, she had every right to control what they can and can't watch on TV and to "try and guide their moral growth". 30 years later, parents forcing their own views and beliefs onto their children is seen more and more as the acts of AbusiveParents who do not recognize their children as people with autonomy and dignity, rather than their parents' pets, property or playthings.

* ValuesDissonance: With Bart and Lisa. Marge bans them from watching the show (they engage in LoopholeAbuse by watching it at their friends' houses) and *forces* them to participate in her protest rallies. In 1990, this was seen as that, because she is their mother, she had every right to control what they can and can't watch on TV and to "try and guide their moral growth". 30 years later, when parents forcing their own views and beliefs on their children is seen more and more as the acts of AbusiveParents who do not recognize their children as people with autonomy and dignity, rather than their parents' pets, property or playthings.

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Was Itchy and Scratchy sitting on a porch drinking lemonade ''really'' the only non-violent material the InUniverse writers could come up with? Or were they engaging in MaliciousCompliance, deliberately writing the most boring dreck they could think of as a form of WriterRevolt, knowing that kids would probably tune out anyway?

** In the opening as Marge prepares her pork chops she loudly proclaims the secret ingredient is care, before whispering about adding MSG. At the time it was a controversial additive but tests done since have proven that health concerns previously linked to it were almost always psychosomatic meaning she wouldn't be so quiet about it these days.

* UnintentionalPeriodPiece: The episode is a parody of the moral panic the series received upon its premiere (as well as the infamous Terry Rakolta boycott of ''Series/MarriedWithChildren'' over sexual content in the show, which did lead to one episode getting banned from airing on TV for many years). While the focus of attention shifted to other cartoons soon after, these kinds of campaigns lost steam by the later years of the decade.