Thoughts: A humorous episode. They seem to be getting back into the old style, with irony (the last line), funny product names (Ragin 'Roids), funny lines ("Aren't any of these hetero?") and sheer lunacy (the Tetris gag).
Cultural references:
Tetris Homer appears to have learned a thing or two from this popular video game (see below)
"The Twilight Zone" -Trapped mailman plans to relax by reading a Twilight Zone magazine. The Twilight Zone magazine did exist, however, it is now defunct. -His fate similar to that suffered by Burgess Meredith (who, not suprisingly, did very little quacking) in a classic episode
Fidel Castro Everyone's favorite Cuban leader (well, Cuba's favorite Cuban leader) seen on a roller coaster in the intro to "Eye on Springfield")
Disney theme parks Thug is wearing a hat of Goofy (or perhaps Goophee the Mandog?*) similar to those sold at Disneyworlds and -lands across the world
Comments and Observations
I'll take funny-looking L-like piece to block
Homer appears to be just one of the many worldwide captivated by that simple yet challenging game, Tetris. Invented by Russian computer student Alexey Pajitnov in 1985, the game involves manuvering a never-ending onslaught of blocks (each made up of four pieces) so that they may form lines, making the pile a little less lighter. Once the pile hits the top of the screen, it's game over. Wait a minute, why am I describing Tetris to you? It's arguably the most popular video game in the world! Pajitnov says he thinks the game helped ease U.S.-Soviet relations; although it may not be entirely true, the game's success helped cast the so-called "Evil Empire" in a new light.
Perhaps one of the greatest adventures of Tetris was the long and hard battle Nintendo fought to bring it to America. After fighting with rival companies and going through a lot of red tape (pun intended), Nintendo was able to bring Tetris to their new Game Boy system in 1989. As it came with the Game Boy, this version of Tetris is most well-known, with its accompaniment of catchy Russian folk tunes (one of which orchestrated Homer's hallucination in this episode). Sadly, Pajitnov never saw a penny on any of these at first, as the Soviet Union's government collected all the profits. After the crumble of communism, Pajitnov teamed up with an American businessman named Henk Rogers to found the Tetris Company, which now controls all rights to the game.
For more on the long Tetris trail, you can read chapters 13 and 14 of David Sheff's book "Game Over."
*A character called Goophee the Mandog is mentioned along with Rickey Rouse and Monald Muck as costumed characters roaming around Diz-Nee-Land in the book "The Simpsons' Guide to Springfield."