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In the Simpsons S28E3, titled The Town, Simpsons try to permanently move to Boston. Lisa gets really fond of Boston, as most of the town is made for intellectuals like her. Eventually the get back to Springfield, leaving Lisa frustrated by the decision. Marge makes a promise that someday they will get back to Boston, to which Lisa answers that she has never left it. She starts to hallucinate about Boston and her eyes turn into a red triangle (screen capture below).

Lisa Simpson, red triangle shaped eyes

So what does the red triangle shaped eyes mean? How's it connected to Boston?

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  • The reason it doesn't look exactly the same as the CITGO sign is for legal trademark infringement reasons, but it is very clearly an allusion to a Boston icon.
    – Ghoti and Chips
    Nov 3, 2016 at 20:57
  • @GhotiandChips I doubt that - it's close enough to the logo that it certainly wouldn't protect them if they actually used it in advertising, even down to the colors (which match up to the real citgo logo as used in print materials, even closer than the sign does) - the only difference I can see is the white outline between segments, which appears in some versions of the logo.
    – Random832
    Nov 4, 2016 at 5:56
  • @Random832 I wasn't talking out of my butt, it's why I even provided a useful link to a page that gave info on copyright and trademark infringement. "Also, simple symbols and common geometric shapes generally do not qualify for copyright protection. So if your logo is made solely of type, or a relatively simple graphic shape, the copyright analysis will not apply. - See more at: graphicartistsguild.org/tools_resources/…"
    – Ghoti and Chips
    Nov 4, 2016 at 7:29
  • @Random832 There is also the fact that parody provides some safety against legal prosecution, when it comes to using likenesses. For example, Fox was hit with a $250M lawsuit for using an actor's and character's likeness from Goodfellas, but it was dismissed, with the judge saying, "“Even if Mr. Sivero face was on this as long as it is parody you can’t win.”.
    – Ghoti and Chips
    Nov 4, 2016 at 7:35
  • @Random832 In this law.stackexchange question, the use of fictional brands by The Simpsons is called into question.
    – Ghoti and Chips
    Nov 4, 2016 at 8:00

2 Answers 2

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It's a reference to the CITGO sign

Nothing says “Boston’’ quite like the iconic CITGO sign.

The white sign, which today features a massive flashing red triangle, has loomed over 660 Beacon Street in Kenmore Square since 1940 when it was installed at a Cities Service divisional office.

The blinking beauty has only featured the recognizable CITGO trimark since 1965 when it got a facelift, however.

Since then, it has become closely tied to baseball, as it was seen in the background on Red Sox television broadcasts, and it has also stood above the Boston Marathon route.It has had music written about it, and it was the subject of a 1968 film that took honors at the Yale Film Festival.

It's an iconic, cultural staple of Boston, referred to as the blinking jewel in Boston's skyline, and can often be seen in a lot of Boston skyline photos.

enter image description here

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    Bonus trivia: it is so iconic that it is even given a nod in Fallout 4's post-apocalyptic interpretation of Boston city, where they couldn't use the actual logo (for legal trademark reasons), so they used their own fictional company, Mass Fusion, to place a similar looking sign, creeping up among the skyline.
    – Ghoti and Chips
    Nov 3, 2016 at 20:53
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Re Lisa Simpson & Zedd eyes The pyramids in her eyes and the act of standing in front of the fridge as part of the so called daydream of Boston is reminiscent of the reference to ZEDD eyes from a Black Mirror episode Look those episodes up The series deals with mind control methods and technology

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    Well...the point of answering a question on this site is to provide the OP with answers that are sourced. So, rather than suggesting that the OP look these episodes up (which is not an answer, btw), could you please provide the source for these claims? Thank you :)
    – steelersquirrel
    Jul 31, 2017 at 0:47
  • youtu.be/8QJ1pe3MAH8 The series I refer to is on Netflix. Black Mirror episode is on YouTube. At around 1:14:34 the scene I refer to begins thewrap.com/… Described from website: "In the episode, an Army outfits all its soldiers with special lenses that make them see their enemies as inhuman." The soldiers also see an altered reality, similar to Lisa Simpson's experience.
    – Irma Linda Sanchez
    Jul 31, 2017 at 4:13
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    Sure. I would just add it to your answer, then :)
    – steelersquirrel
    Jul 31, 2017 at 4:27

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