There's Something About Marrying - Reception

Reception

"There's Something About Marrying" featured the first appearance of an animated same-sex marriage on network television. Television columnist Ray Richmond wrote that the episode was a cultural milestone for The Simpsons and that the "issue was mainstream to some degree, but now that deigned it worthy of the show it is interwoven into the popular culture. The Simpsons bestowed upon something a pop culture status it never had before, simply by being ripe for a joke." John Kenneth White, author of the book Barack Obama's America, similarly called "There's Something About Marrying" a cultural barrier breaker.

The episode, dealing with "one of the most divisive issues in American society" according to The New York Times, became a subject of controversy after its broadcast. The authors of The Marriage and Family Experience called it "one of the more controversial episodes of a frequently controversial cartoon." Several conservative groups and American Christian conservatives thought it was promoting same-sex marriage. Parents Television Council president L. Brent Bozell III criticized "There's Something About Marrying" for bringing up the issue. Even though he had not seen the episode himself, he commented that "at a time when the public mood is overwhelmingly against gay marriage, any show that promotes gay marriage is deliberately bucking the public mood." A researcher for the American Family Association, named Ed Vitagliano, claimed the presentation of same-sex marriage in the episode was "very one-sided". He said that this episode proved "Hollywood's blatant pro-homosexual bias" because despite The Simpsons being "generally kind of a wacky animated program" it was not neutral on the issue. Bozell also worried about the influence the episode would have on children, despite the parental discretion advisory at the beginning, commenting: "You've got a show watched by millions of children. Do children need to have gay marriage thrust in their faces as an issue? Why can't we just entertain them?" Similarly, Vitagliano said that many children watch the The Simpsons and Hollywood "will pull out all the stops to promote same-sex marriage — and children will be influenced by it."

Mark Washburn of Knight Ridder wrote that at the time of the episode's broadcast, most Americans were accustomed to seeing homosexual characters on television. He said this is why Patty's coming-out did not become as controversial as the episode's examination of the same-sex marriage issue, which was more sensitive in the country then. The controversy became so big that local news programs in certain cities aired segments about it. In response to the claims that this episode was supporting gay marriage, Al Jean replied that "we don't really take any positions for or against anything, we just like to examine all sides of an issue and I think that anyone who would get their political wisdom from a cartoon might be sadly mistaken." Likewise, Mark Pinsky writes in The Gospel According to The Simpsons that once the episode ended, it was hard to tell what stance on same-sex marriage the writers had and that "both sides of the controversy had their say, voiced by various Simpsons characters". Jean has also cited the episode in defense to critics who say The Simpsons has lost its relevance and edginess in later years. In his book The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History, John Ortved responded to this, commenting that despite the controversies the episode was "in fact a long-winded and lame exploration of the topic."

"There's Something About Marrying" was met with positive reception as well, particularly from gay rights groups. The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) was welcoming of the episode, calling it "a ray of light". GLAAD executive director Joan Garry enjoyed seeing Marge's transformation, from having ambivalent feelings for her sister to then supporting her. He commented that "when Marge learns that Patty's about to marry someone who isn't really a lesbian, she comes to realize that what her sister really deserves is to be in love with and married to a person who's right for her. If millions of Simpsons viewers came away from last night's episode with that little bit of moral truth, it was time well spent." AfterEllen.com's David Kennerley approved of the willingness of a "hit network TV show in prime time, watched by children and adults" to "serve up such a politically charged issue". Rick Garcia, an activist of the gay rights group Equality Illinois, said to the Chicago Tribune that the episode would likely affect society in a positive way because of the iconic status of the show which "shape our attitudes". Unlike many of the conservative groups, Kennerley noted that "in the show’s tradition of equal-opportunity lampooning, the message is not all pro-gay. Irksome lesbian stereotypes abound, and Nelson the bully suggests they 'legalize gay funerals.' And naturally, Reverend Lovejoy shutters his church to the same-sex sinners." According to Simpsons writer Mike Reiss, the episode also had supporters among conservative groups. He told Encore magazine that "gay people came out very much in favor of it and were happy with the episode, but arch conservatives and right-wing Christians loved the episode, too, because they seemed to think we were making fun of gay people. We really had it both ways."

Kennerley further wrote that "based on this episode, The Simpsons is in top form. It still reigns as the funniest, brashest, fastest-paced half-hour you’ll see on television." Bill Gibron of PopMatters also thought the episode was funny, commenting that it "explored the often-cited 'slippery slope' of allowing matrimony to be defined outside the parameters of a man and a woman—with hilarious results." In regards to the revelation that Patty was gay, The A.V. Club wrote that it "wasn't particularly earth-shattering" but that Marge's initial reaction provided a good twist to the episode. J. Stewart Burns received a Writers Guild of America Award nomination in the animation category for his work on "There's Something About Marrying", although he lost the award to another Simpsons writer.