Liars and Saints

  The appearance before the parole board is an old chestnut. Recently, in "Sing Sing," Colman Domingo's protagonist showed character by describing the theater program he had developed behind bars. A white interlocutor then asked, "If you're such a good actor, how do I know you're not *performing* the illusion of penitence--right now?" "The Simpsons" does something different. A concerned board asks Sideshow Bob why he has "Die Bart, Die" tattooed on his chest. Bob explains that this is simply German; it means "The Bart, The." And an astute adjudicator says, "If he is fluent in German, then he CAN'T be evil...." Sideshow Bob is channeling De Niro's character from "Cape Fear" ... but, most notably, he is channeling Wile E. Coyote. He gets bashed by a speed bump; he gets hot coffee dumped on his head. He nearly suffocates in Homer's cigar smoke. Homer might *seem* idiotic, but he doesn't have ...

  "Cape Feare" is among the more famous "Simpsons" episodes. I had thought Kelsey Grammer won an Emmy for this half-hour, but I was wrong. Grammer did win for playing Sideshow Bob--but in a later season. A stranger comes to town. Bart begins receiving menacing letters, written in blood: "Die Bart Die," "I Will Kill You." (Homer admits to having written one of the letters; he is angry that his son has mocked him. Bart has tattooed "Wide Load" on Homer's butt cheeks.) When Bart realizes his real nemesis is Sideshow Bob, a homicidal maniac, the race is on. The humor comes from how un-subtle Bob is; for example, Bob drives through the streets of Springfield, shouting out the names of people he does *not* intend to kill, and Bart is conspicuously absent from the list. (Maybe we're mocking Scorsese here? One thing you think, when you watch Scorsese's "Cape Fear," is that Nick Nolte perhaps drags his heels a *bit* before ...