"The Principal and the Pauper" is the second episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, ...

''. It first aired on the

Fox network The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations ...

in the United States on September 28, 1997. In the episode, Seymour Skinner begins to celebrate his twentieth anniversary as principal of

Springfield Elementary School Springfield is the primary fictional setting of the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'' and related media. It is an average-sized, fictional city within an indeterminate state in the United States. The fictional city's geography, surroundi ...

, when a man arrives claiming that Skinner has assumed his identity. Principal Skinner admits that his real name is Armin Tamzarian, and that he had thought the true Seymour Skinner, a friend from the Army, had died in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. Armin leaves Springfield, but is later persuaded to return as principal. "The Principal and the Pauper" was written by Ken Keeler and directed by

Steven Dean Moore Steven Dean Moore is an American animation director. His credits include 65 episodes of the animated television series ''The Simpsons'' and several episodes of the Nickelodeon series ''Rugrats'' (1991–2004). Moore was also one of four sequence ...

. It guest-starred

Martin Sheen Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. He first became known for his roles in the films ''The Subject Was Roses'' (1968) and ''Badlands'' (1973), and later achieved wid ...

as the real Seymour Skinner. Although it aired during the show's ninth season, it was a holdover from season eight. Since its initial airing, the episode received largely negative reviews from longtime fans and critics, often regarded as one of the most controversial episodes of the entire series. Many fans and critics reacted negatively to the revelation that Principal Skinner, a recurring character since the first season who had undergone much character development, was an impostor. The episode has been criticized by series creator

Matt Groening Matthew Abram Groening ( ; born February 15, 1954) is an American cartoonist, writer, producer, and animator. He is the creator of the comic strip ''Life in Hell'' (1977–2012) and the television series ''The Simpsons'' (1989–present), ''Fut ...

, and by Skinner's voice actor

Harry Shearer Harry Julius Shearer (born December 23, 1943) is an American actor, comedian, writer, musician, radio host, director and producer. Born in Los Angeles, California, Shearer began his career as a child actor. From 1969 to 1976, Shearer was a member ...

Plot

On the eve of his 20th anniversary as school principal, Seymour Skinner is lured by his mother to

for a surprise party. The celebration goes well until a strange man arrives, claiming to be the real Seymour Skinner. Principal Skinner admits that he is an impostor, and that his real name is Armin Tamzarian. Armin then tells the story of the events that led him to steal Seymour Skinner's identity. Armin was once a troubled young man from

Capital City A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city that physically encompasses t ...

who enlisted in the Army in order to avoid a jail sentence for petty crimes (although merely apologizing to his victims was also an option). There, he met and befriended the real Sergeant Seymour Skinner, who became his mentor and helped him find meaning in his troubled life. Seymour told Armin that his dream was to become an elementary school principal in Springfield after the war. Later, Seymour was declared missing and presumed dead. Armin took the news of the apparent death to Seymour's mother, Agnes. Upon meeting him, however, Agnes mistook him for her son, and Armin could not bear to deliver the message. He instead allowed Agnes to call him Seymour, and took over Seymour's life. Meanwhile, the real Seymour Skinner spent five years in a POW camp, then worked in a Chinese

sweatshop A sweatshop or sweat factory is a crowded workplace with very poor, socially unacceptable or illegal working conditions. Some illegal working conditions include poor ventilation, little to no breaks, inadequate work space, insufficient lighting, o ...

for two decades until it was shut down by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

. After these revelations, the people of Springfield begin to distrust Armin, who decides that there is no longer any place for him in Springfield and leaves for Capital City, sadly breaking up with Edna Krabappel in the process. Having planned to resume his old persona as a no-good street thug, Armin still maintains his demeanour as Skinner. The real Skinner is then offered the chance to realize his dream and take over as school principal. He takes the job, but finds himself isolated by the townspeople, who realize they prefer Armin to him. With the real Skinner refusing to take up Armin's old hobbies and leading a more independent life away from home, Agnes realizes she misses having Armin as a son. The Simpson family heads to Capital City with Edna and Agnes to find Armin at his apartment. After Agnes orders Armin to return home, expressing that he is more of a real son to her than the real Skinner is,

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

persuades Mayor Quimby and all the other citizens to allow Armin to resume his assumed identity as Principal Skinner. The real Skinner is unhappy about this and refuses to give up his job and his dignity just because the people of Springfield prefer Armin to him. In response, the townspeople banish the real Skinner from town by tying him to a chair on a

flatcar A flatcar (US) (also flat car, or flatbed) is a piece of rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck mounted on a pair of trucks (US) or bogies (UK), one at each end containing four or six wheels. Occasionally, flat cars designed to carry ...

of a

freight Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including tran ...

train (literally running him out of town on a rail). Judge Snyder declares that Armin will again be referred to as Seymour Skinner, that he will return to his job as school principal, and that no one shall ever again refer to Skinner or the fallout from his visit, under penalty of torture.

Production

"The Principal and the Pauper" was the last episode of ''The Simpsons'' written by Ken Keeler, who also pitched the original idea for the episode. Many fans believe the episode is based on the story of

Martin Guerre Martin Guerre, a French peasant of the 16th century, was at the centre of a famous case of imposture. Several years after Martin Guerre had left his wife, child and village, a man claiming to be him appeared. He lived with Guerre's wife and so ...

or the 1993 film '' Sommersby''.Keeler, Ken. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox, 4:25–5:00. According to

animation director An animation director is either the director in charge of all aspects of the animation process during the production of an animated film or television, and animated segment for a live action film or television show, or the animator in charge of co ...

Steve Moore, one of the working titles for the episode was "Skinnersby".Moore, Steven Dean. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox, 5:18–5:31. However, Keeler has said he was inspired by the Tichborne Case of nineteenth-century England. The episode's official title is a reference to the book ''

The Prince and the Pauper ''The Prince and the Pauper'' is a novel by American author Mark Twain. It was first published in 1881 in Canada, before its 1882 publication in the United States. The novel represents Twain's first attempt at historical fiction. Set in 1547 ...

'' by

Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has pr ...

. Producers Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein were excited about the episode because Principal Skinner was one of their favorite characters. The pair had already written the season five episode " Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song", which was an in-depth study of the character. Oakley said he and Weinstein "spent a month immersed in the mind of Seymour Skinner" to prepare that episode, and from that point forward, took every opportunity to "tinker with kinner'spersonality and his backstory and his homelife".Oakley, Bill. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox, 15:33–15:50. Describing the real Seymour Skinner, Keeler remarked, "It would have been easy to make him a really horrible, nasty, dislikeable guy, but we didn't do that. We made him just not quite right, not quite Skinner, and a little bit off." Bill Oakley said the idea behind the character was that he "just lacked pizzazz". The producers selected

to voice the character because they admired his performance in ''

Apocalypse Now ''Apocalypse Now'' is a 1979 American epic war film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The screenplay, co-written by Coppola, John Milius and Michael Herr, is loosely based on the 1899 novella '' Heart of Darkness'' by Joseph ...

'' and felt his voice would be appropriate for a Vietnam veteran.Weinstein, Josh. (2006). Commentary for "The Principal and the Pauper", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox, 13:29–13:54. Keeler borrowed the name Armin Tamzarian from a claims adjuster who had assisted him after a car accident when he moved to Los Angeles. However, the real Armen Tamzarian (now a California Superior Court Judge) was unaware his name was being used until after the episode aired. Keeler said he later received a "curtly phrased" letter from Tamzarian, who wanted to know why his name appeared in the episode. Keeler feared he would face legal troubles, but afterwards, Tamzarian explained that he was simply curious and did not intend to scare anyone.

Reception

"The Principal and the Pauper" finished 41st in the United States in the ratings for the week of September 22–28, 1997, with a

Nielsen rating Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...

of 9.2. Retrieved on April 20, 2008. The episode was the second highest rated show on the

that week, following ''

King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It aired its original non-syndicated run from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, and centers on the Hills, an Am ...

''. The Fox network's ratings average for the week was 6.4. The revelation that Principal Skinner was an impostor and the self-referential

deus ex machina ''Deus ex machina'' ( , ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; English "god out of the machine") is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function ...

reset button In electronics and technology, a reset button is a button that can reset a device. On video game consoles, the reset button restarts the game, forfeiting the player's unsaved progress. On personal computers,On IBM mainframes reset neither c ...

ending were negatively received by many fans and critics, with many seeing this episode responsible for the series as a whole jumping the shark. Skinner had been a recurring character since the first season and, after years of development, his backstory had suddenly been changed. Bill Oakley considers "The Principal and the Pauper" the most controversial episode from his tenure as executive producer. In his 2004 book ''

Planet Simpson ''Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Documented an Era and Defined a Generation'', also abbreviated to ''Planet Simpson: How a Cartoon Masterpiece Defined a Generation'', is a non-fiction book about ''The Simpsons'', written by Chris Turner ...

'', Chris Turner describes "The Principal and the Pauper" as the "broadcast that marked heabrupt plunge" from ''The Simpsons''' "Golden Age", which he says began in the middle of the show's third season. He calls the episode " ne ofthe weakest episodes in ''Simpsons'' history", and adds, "A blatant, continuity-scrambling plot twist of this sort might've been forgivable if the result had been as funny or sharply satirical as the classics of the Golden Age, but alas it's emphatically not." Turner notes that the episode "still sports a couple of virtuoso gags", but says that such moments are limited. In July 2007, in an article in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'', Ian Jones argues that the "show became stupid" in 1997, pointing to "The Principal and the Pauper" as the bellwether. "Come again? A major character in a long-running series gets unmasked as a fraud? It was cheap, idle storytelling", he remarks. In a February 2006 article in ''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to '' The Jersey Journal'' of Jersey City, ''The Times'' of Trenton and the '' Staten Island Advance'', all of ...

'',

Alan Sepinwall Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He ...

and Matt Zoller Seitz cite the episode when asserting that the quality of ''The Simpsons'' "gets much spottier" in season nine. Alan Sepinwall observes in another ''Star-Ledger'' article, " he episodewas so implausible that even the characters were disavowing it by the end of the episode." Jon Hein, who coined the term " jumping the shark" to refer to negative changes in television series, writes in ''Jump the Shark: TV Edition'', "We finally spotted a fin at the start of the ninth season when Principal Skinner's true identity was revealed as Armin Tamzarian." James Greene of ''

Nerve.com ''Nerve'' or Nerve.com, was an American online magazine dedicated to sexual topics, relationships and culture. Founded by Rufus Griscom and Genevieve Field, Nerve published articles and photography on its website and several books, in partnership ...

'' put the episode fifth on his list "Ten Times The Simpsons Jumped the Shark", calling it a "nonsensical meta-comedy" and arguing that it "seemed to betray the reality of the show itself". In 2022, on the 25th anniversary of the episode airing, ''Fatherly'' looked back negatively at the episode, described the plot twist as the moment the show stopped being perfect, saying: "It wasn’t funny, it was just mean, and the ending of the episode inadvertently made you complicit in its viciousness. Ultimately, the citizens of Springfield decide to force things back to normal by tying the real Skinner to a departing train and legally declaring that Tamzarian’s theft of an entire life is fine. And, well, yeah we as the viewers wanted things to go back to normal once the episode was over, but…this was just heartless." Other figures associated with ''The Simpsons'' have publicly criticized the episode. In an April 2001 interview,

, the voice of Principal Skinner, recalled that after reading the script, he told the writers, "That's ''so'' wrong. You're taking something that an audience has built eight years or nine years of investment in and just tossed it in the trash can for no good reason, for a story we've done before with other characters. It's so arbitrary and gratuitous, and it's disrespectful to the audience." In a December 2006 interview, Shearer added, "Now, he writersrefuse to talk about it. They realize it was a horrible mistake. They never mention it. It's like they're punishing he audiencefor paying attention." In the introduction to the ninth season DVD boxset, series creator

describes "The Principal and the Pauper" as "one of isleast favorite episodes".Groening, Matt. (2006). "A Riff From Matt Groening", in ''The Simpsons: The Complete Ninth Season'' VD 20th Century Fox, 0:36–0:40. He also called the episode "a mistake" in an interview with ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

''. In contrast, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, the authors of ''I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide'', praised the episode, calling it "one of the series' all-time best episodes, mainly because it shows us a human side, not just of Principal Skinner, but of his hectorish Mom as well." They add that "Martin Sheen steals the show ... in a brief but important slice of Simpsons history." ''

Total Film ''Total Film'' is a British film magazine published 13 times a year (published monthly and a summer issue is added every year since issue 91, 2004, which is published between July and August issue) by Future Publishing. The magazine was launched ...

''s Nathan Ditum named Martin Sheen's performance in the episode the 20th best guest appearance on ''The Simpsons''. Ken Keeler, Bill Oakley, and Josh Weinstein all defend the episode in its DVD commentary. Keeler asserts, "I am very, very proud of the job I did on this episode. This is the best episode of television I feel I ever wrote." He describes the episode as a commentary on "people who like things just the way they are", and remarks, "It never seems to have occurred to anyone that this episode is about the people who hate it." However, Keeler says that some of the dialogue was changed from his original draft, making this point less obvious. Oakley and Weinstein explain that they wanted to push the boundaries of the series while working as show-runners, and advise viewers to treat "The Principal and the Pauper" as an "experiment". They surmise that the negative reception was partly due to the fact that it was not immediately apparent to viewers that this was such an episode (as opposed to, for example, "

The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase "The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase" is the twenty-fourth and penultimate episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 11, 1997. The episo ...

"). They also describe the ending of the episode as an attempt to reset the continuity and allow fans to consider the episode as non-canonical, divorced from the larger series. Later episodes of ''The Simpsons'' contain references to "The Principal and the Pauper". A clip from the episode was used in season eleven's "

Behind the Laughter "Behind the Laughter" is the twenty-second and final episode of the eleventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 21, 2000. In the episode, a parody of t ...

" as an example of the show's increasingly "gimmicky and nonsensical plots". In the season fifteen episode " I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot", Lisa addresses Principal Skinner as "Principal ''Tamzarian''" when Skinner chides her for naming her new cat

Snowball II A snowball is a spherical object made from snow, usually created by scooping snow with the hands, and pressing the snow together to compact it into a ball. Snowballs are often used in games such as snowball fights. A snowball may also be a lar ...

, after a cat that had died earlier in the episode." I, (Annoyed Grunt)-Bot". Greaney, Dan; Grazier, Allen; MacMullan, Lauren. ''The Simpsons''. Fox. January 11, 2008. No. 09, season 15.

References

;Bibliography *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Principal and the Pauper, The The Simpsons (season 9) episodes 1997 American television episodes Identity theft in popular culture Television episodes written by Ken Keeler Television episodes about Vietnam War Television episodes about prisoners of war