The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family is a book published by HarperCollins in 1997 that provides an episode-by-episode history of the first eight seasons of The Simpsons. It was edited by Ray Richmond and includes a foreword by series creator Matt Groening. As an in-joke, the guide made an actual appearance in the 2003 episode "Today I Am a Clown", where Lisa uses it to remind Homer that Santa's Little Helper was supposedly neutered in a previous episode (specifically, "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds").
Each full-length episode receives either a one- or two-page coverage, featuring a synopsis, credits, pictures, and memorable quotes, as well as the episode's blackboard joke. Obscure or hidden jokes are also brought to attention. The episodes are arranged in chronological order, and at the beginning of each season are two-page special features, such as a list and brief description of the Simpsons shorts, a list of times Homer has cried "D'oh!", and a list of Itchy and Scratchy's cartoons. On two pages there are short biographies of each of the five immediate members of the Simpson family, namely Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie. Short biographies of other Simpsons characters are also available as sidebars to each episode's page, starting with Santa's Little Helper for "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" and ending with Willem Dafoe's Commandant from "The Secret War of Lisa Simpson".
Read more about this topic: The Simpsons Forever!: A Complete Guide To Our Favorite Family ...Continued
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