his microphone he improvised and said "Shut the fuck up, Marge." This was later included in the deleted scenes on The Simpsons – The Complete Twelfth Season DVD release. In the TV broadcast version, Daltrey says "Get out of the way, Marge". Cultural references The episode title is a play on the name of Charles Dickens' novel, A Tale of Two Cities. When Homer stands up in the press conference it is a reference to Norman Rockwell's painting Freedom of Speech. When it is suggested that Homer be the mayor of New Springfield, he imagines himself in the opening sequence of The Rifleman, instead as the Mayor. The scene in which Homer and Marge take a picture is a staff in-joke about "Trash of the Titans" when the voice director told Bono to smile. The episode also features several references to the Who, including "Magic Bus" and Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy. Moe's comment "That fat, dumb, and bald guy sure plays a mean hardball" is a reference to a Who song, "Pinball Wizard". The wall itself is a reference to the Berlin Wall, with "New Springfield" representing East Berlin. The two telephone area codes used in the episode are actual area codes in the North American Numbering Plan. 636 is assigned to phone numbers in the western suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri, while 939 is primarily used by mobile phones in Puerto Rico. Reception Colin Jacobson of the DVD Movie Guide gave the episode a positive review saying "Maybe it’s the low expectations that accompany 21st century Simpsons episodes, but “Tale” works for me. It takes a simple premise and turns in a good number of strong comedic bits. Hey, and a mention of “golden showers” keeps the Season 12 perverted sexual practices streak going!", although he criticized the animation of the Who other than Daltrey, saying that "That’s particularly odd in the case of Pete, as he’d gone awfully bald and gray by 2000." Jennifer Malkowski of the DVD Verdict said the greatest moment was a tie between "Sacred bond" and "Who huddle." Nancy Basile of About.com gave the episode a 5 writing "Finally! I loved this episode because, flashy guest stars aside, it got back to the heart and soul of the show." In 2007, Simon Crerar of The Times listed the Who's performance as one of the thirty-three funniest cameos in the history of the show.