The Simpsons episode “Bart the Bad Guy” featured a lot of Marvel Easter eggs and references. The Avengers franchise couldn’t be left out of a series that has been referencing pretty much everything for 30 years. Now that Marvel Studios and Fox belong to Disney’s mass media conglomerate, it’s no surprise The Simpsons made an episode like “Bart The Bad Guy”, which is inspired by the MCU, and created a chapter where they deal with spoiler-culture conflict and Disney’s dominance as an entertainment giant.
The episode begins with Springfield’s residents watching the final scene of The Vindicators’ latest film: Crystal War; but they must wait a year to see the continuation, Crystal War 2: Resurgence. A month before the second film’s release, Bart sees the film and discovers he can use his knowledge to blackmail Springfield’s residents and get whatever he wants, turning into a new supervillain: Spoiler Boy.
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Marble Studios executives want to stop Bart from spoiling the film, ruining the premiere and causing an economic collapse. They do this by subjecting Bart to a virtual reality experience, where he enters the Marble Cinematic Universe and discovers superheroes are indeed real and he makes one last good choice, to help The Vindicators defeat Chinnos. Along the way, The Simpsons drops a number of Marvel and Avengers-related Easter eggs.
The Avengers Easter Eggs in the Episode
Marvel references are clear from the very beginning, with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame as the main focus of The Simpsons episode. Almost all the characters are a parody of The Avengers’ characters, and parts of the episode are Avengers’ movies scenes.
Marvel characters
The Vindicators are inspired in The Avengers and it’s impossible not to notice the similarity between their logos, as well as similarities between the heroes:
- Magnesium Man - Inspired by Iron Man. Even this character’s lines are reminiscent of Tony Stark’s jokes before each battle.
- Airshot - Inspired by Hawkeye. He uses an air gun as his weapon and doesn’t have any superpowers, he’s just “super good at air,” like Bart says when he meets this character’s actor. Besides, his suit is just like Hawkeye’s in Avengers Endgame.
- Black Voodoo - The similarity between this character and Black Panther is obvious. His superpower is Voodoo magic, based on African spiritual beliefs. At the same time, his name seems to be a nod to Black Widow, especially when in the episode they talk about Black Voodoo’s fate.
- Chinnos - Chinnos is clearly Thanos. The characters look almost the same, the only difference is that Chinnos has a lot of chins. Also, he is voiced by Kevin Feige, who has been Marvel Studios’ president since 2007 and was Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame‘s producer, among other Marvel films.
- Mixed characters: The female Vindicators superhero, whose name isn’t revealed, resembles Gamora with Groot’s powers. Meanwhile, the whale appears to be a mixture of Drax and Hulk.
Infinity War References
Crystal War is a clear reference to Infinity War. Besides the similarity between characters, the plot of the film is the same and the ending is too. The final battle featuring The Vindicators against Chinnos takes place on a location similar to Thanos’ home. We see Magnesium Man, Airshot, Black Voodoo, and the other two team members fighting Chinnos, who reveals his plan: To use the Doomsday App to kill everyone and create a Utopia. A reference to Thanos’ plan with the Infinity Stones, but also a nod to DC Comics’ supervillain Doomsday.
Chinnos activates the Doomsday App and turns everyone into crystals, similar to what occurs in Infinity War‘s ending in Wakanda, when Thanos snaps his fingers and turns half the universe’s population into dust. In Crystal War’s final scene, we can also see the goodbye between the female character and the whale, a scene that touches Springfield’s citizens and that cannot fail to remind viewers of Wanda and Vision.
Another reference is the spoiler that Bart shows Comic Book Guy. The scene reveals a villain fighting Airshot in the jungle, who gets killed by Airshot’s deadly breath. This sequence is pretty much like Captain America’s fight with Corvus Glaive in the Wakanda jungle, except here it’s Vision who kills the enemy by stabbing him in the back. Even the sound effects in both scenes are similar. Finally, a brief but important reference is when Bart says “I’m running out of time. This is the endgame!” when Airshot tells him that his blackmailing reign will end when Crystal War 2 is released. This recalls the moment Doctor Strange tells Iron Man, “We’re in the Endgame now”.
Endgame References
At the end of Crystal War, a message appears on the screen “Eleven Months Later” and begins the next scene in the school’s auditorium where the children are watching a YouTuber. At the end of this scene another message immediately appears: “Five Minutes Later“, mocking Avengers: Endgame‘s five-year time jump. At the end of The Simpsons episode, when Bart is in virtual reality, he helps The Vindicator defeat Chinnos. This fight scene between The Vindicators and Chinnos is inspired by the final battle of The Avengers against Thanos, when he travels from his alternate reality to retrieve the Infinity Stones.
Russo Brothers Appear In The Simpsons
“Bart the Bad Guy” revolves around spoiler culture, so the Russo brothers being in charge of stopping Bart from spoiling the film is no accident. Remember that the Russo brothers, who directed both Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, released a statement to the fans on Twitter, asking them not to spoil Avengers: Endgame after watching it. The executives are not only inspired by the Russo brothers in The Simpsons, but also voiced by them too.
Other Hidden References You Might Have Missed
In The Simpsons‘ “Bart the Bad Guy”, there are also references to DC Comics, Dr. Who, Watchmen, Batman, Justice League and so much more, but Marvel references are the episode’s central focus. In the episode we see smaller details evoking other Marvel characters, like when Bart is offered superpowers and there’s a version of Bart with Hulk, Wolverine, and Ghost Rider’s powers in Thanos’ smartphone.
Then, in The Simpsons‘ post-credits scene (itself a big Marvel nod), Bart gives back everything he has stolen, while celebrating that he is a superhero and good person, similar to A Christmas Carol. When he walks by the comics store window, we see one comic that looks like a wink to Captain America, “Everyman”.
