Editing Waylon Smithers (section)

==Development==
Mr. Smithers's relationship with Mr. Burns has long been a [[running gag]] on ''The Simpsons''. Smithers is an obedient and sycophantic assistant to Mr. Burns. There have often been strong hints about Smithers's true feelings for his boss, with one of the earliest references being in the season one episode "[[The Telltale Head]]".<ref name="ReissTTH"/> Smithers's sexual orientation has often come into question, with some fans claiming he is a "Burns-sexual" and only attracted to his boss, while others maintain that he is gay.{{sfn|Turner|2004|p=296}} During the [[Bill Oakley]]/[[Josh Weinstein]] era, they still tried to keep his sexuality unspoken and there was debate among the writers about his orientation. [[Al Jean]], who thinks of Smithers as being a "Burns-sexual",<ref name="JeanBF">{{cite video | people=Jean, Al|year=2002|title=The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode 'Blood Feud'| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> felt that had Mr. Burns been a woman, then Smithers would not be gay.<ref name="Oakley">{{cite video | people=Oakley, Bill|year=2005|title=The Simpsons season 7 DVD commentary for the episode 'Homer the Smithers'| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> [[David Silverman (animator)|David Silverman]], a former supervising director has said, "[Smithers] seems to be focused on one particular human, as opposed to anything beyond that. [Rather than being gay], he's sort of 'Burns-sexual'."<ref name="Burns-sexual">{{cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1565538/20070725/story.jhtml |title='Simpsons' Trivia, From Swearing Lisa To 'Burns-Sexual' Smithers |access-date=October 24, 2007 |date=July 26, 2007 |author=Carroll, Larry |publisher=[[MTV]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071220140402/http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1565538/20070725/story.jhtml |archive-date=December 20, 2007 }}</ref> In a 2006 study conducted by the [[Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation]], it was determined that nine of the 679 lead and supporting characters on scripted broadcast television were gay or [[lesbian]], but Smithers was not included. A list published in 2008 by the same organization included Smithers;<ref>{{cite news|first=Natalie|last=Finn|url=http://www.glaad.org/eye/ontv/2008/broadcast.php |title=LGBT Characters for 2008–2009 |access-date=November 6, 2008 |publisher=[[Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081008152204/http://www.glaad.org/eye/ontv/2008/broadcast.php |archive-date=October 8, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Patty and Selma Bouvier|Patty Bouvier]], [[Marge Simpson]]'s lesbian sister, was included on both lists.<ref>{{cite news|first=Natalie|last=Finn|url=http://www.eonline.com/news//article/index.jsp?uuid=fd0da574-316b-4300-80a7-8662f9a096b2&entry=index |title="Simpsons'" Smithers Part of Shrinking Minority? |access-date=August 22, 2006 |date=November 7, 2007 |website=[[E! News]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518233200/http://www.eonline.com/news/article/index.jsp?uuid=fd0da574-316b-4300-80a7-8662f9a096b2&entry=index |archive-date=May 18, 2007}}</ref>

[[File:SmithersDream.png|left|200px|thumb|Smithers dreams about Mr. Burns in "[[Marge Gets a Job]]". The censors had issues with the "lump in his bed", which was his knee.<ref name="Weinstein"/>]]
The debate is referenced in "[[The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular]]", when the episode host, [[Troy McClure]] is answering viewer questions, and one that is asked is "What is the real deal with Mr. Burns's assistant Smithers? You know what I'm talking about." A montage of various clips that shows Smithers's lust for Mr. Burns follows, and in the end, McClure says "as you can see, the real deal with Waylon Smithers is that he's Mr. Burns's assistant. He's in his early forties, is unmarried, and currently resides in Springfield. Thanks for writing!"<ref>{{cite episode |title=The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular|episode-link=The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular |series=The Simpsons |series-link=The Simpsons |credits=[[Jon Vitti|Vitti, Jon]]|network=Fox |airdate=December 3, 1995 |season=7 |number=10}}</ref>

Several of the allusions to Smithers's sexuality have turned into battles with the network censors. For example, in Smithers's fantasy of a naked Mr. Burns popping out of a birthday cake in "[[Rosebud (The Simpsons)|Rosebud]]", the censors had not wanted Mr. Burns to be naked. Another example is "[[Marge Gets a Job]]", which has a dream sequence where Smithers is sleeping and Burns flies through a window. The sequence shows Burns flying towards him and Smithers looking happy, but originally it went on for a few seconds longer. It had to be trimmed down due to scenes that showed "Mr. Burns land[ing] in a particular position on Smithers's anatomy".<ref name="Oakley2">{{cite video | people=Oakley, Bill|date=2005|title=The Simpsons season 7 DVD commentary for the episode 'The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular'| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref> There were also issues with "the lump in his bed", which the animators said had been drawn as his knee, but the censors had misinterpreted.<ref name="Weinstein">{{cite video | people=Weinstein, Josh|year=2005|title=The Simpsons season 7 DVD commentary for the episode 'The Simpsons 138th Episode Spectacular'| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

In the second season, the writers started to enjoy writing about Smithers and Burns' relationship, and the writers often pitched episodes with them as the focus, but many never came to fruition.<ref name="VittiSaD">{{cite video | people=Vitti, Jon|year=2002|title=The Simpsons season 2 DVD commentary for the episode 'Simpson and Delilah'| medium=DVD|publisher=20th Century Fox}}</ref>

Mostly in the early seasons, Smithers had a catchphrase, which comes from a recurring joke that Mr. Burns never remembers who [[Homer Simpson]] is. Smithers and Burns would watch Homer (usually over a security camera feed) and Burns would ask, "Who is that man?", to which Smithers would reply, "That's Homer Simpson, sir, one of your [drones, organ banks, carbon blobs, etc.] from sector 7G." Burns would invariably respond, "Simpson, eh?"{{sfn|Turner|2004|p=164}}

In September 2015, it was confirmed by Jean that Smithers would come out to Mr. Burns in a [[The Simpsons season 27|season 27]] episode.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Holpuch|first1=Amanda|title=The Simpsons' Smithers to finally come out as gay, producer reveals|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/sep/28/smithers-mr-burns-assistant-simpsons-gay|access-date=October 24, 2015|work=The Guardian|date=September 28, 2015}}</ref> Though in the end he never came out to Mr. Burns as his attempt was cut short. The episode, "[[The Burns Cage]]", was broadcast the following April and saw Smithers unsuccessfully try to move on from Burns.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/the-simpsons-handles-smithers-coming-out-with-surprisi-1798187626|title=The Simpsons handles Smithers's coming out with surprising subtlety|website=avclub.com|date=4 April 2016 |access-date=2016-04-04}}</ref> A writer for British progressive magazine the ''[[New Statesman]]'' felt that the episode was a [[retcon]], making a serious story about the character's homosexuality instead of the previous jokes and innuendo that were now considered homophobic.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Leszkiewicz|first1=Anna|title=The Smithers question: why do we keep retrofitting progressive narratives in pop culture?|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/tv-radio/2016/04/smithers-question-why-do-we-keep-retrofitting-progressive-narratives-pop|access-date=April 6, 2016|work=New Statesman|date=April 5, 2016}}</ref>