In New ‘Simpsons’ Episode, Marge Becomes the Face of a Ghost Kitchen Union

Marge in hot water. | The Simpsons

Simpsons writer Cesar Mazariegos explains why the show decided to tackle minimum wage, ghost kitchens, and the gig economy

“It kind of shakes my faith in billionaires,” Marge Simpsons admits to Lisa, three-beers deep after a grueling shift at Gimme Chow, a ghost kitchen and delivery app. In the latest episode of The Simpsons, “Night of the Living Wage,” Marge takes the job to pay off an unexpected medical bill (for someone else’s “emotional-support chicken”). There, she is subjected to frantic, dangerous working conditions for minimum wage, and is refused overtime pay, only to hear the app’s founder, billionaire Finn Bon Idee, insist he’s made his fortune because he works harder than anyone else at the company. It’s at that moment she decides to form a union.

It’s a story ripped from the headlines. The gig economy flouts labor laws by classifying workers as “contractors’’ and denying them benefits, or piling more work onto already taxed line cooks, so that millionaire and billionaire owners can reap maximum profits while saying they “disrupted” an industry. “Ghost kitchens put another barrier — a smartphone screen, in this case — between diners and the people making their food,” wrote Terrence Doyle for Eater in 2021, “hiding from view a workforce that was already next to invisible before anyone knew what a ghost kitchen was, one that has historically endured exploitation in the form of low wages, long hours, and various forms of abuse.”

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But workers in food service have been organizing in the face of dismal working conditions, whether it’s for better pay or guaranteed hourly rates. In “Night of the Living Wage,” Marge becomes the face of the union, while Homer, who has been relying on Gimme Chow for takeout dinner since Marge took a job, sides with the billionaires. Temporarily. Because he’s ignorant.

We spoke to Simpsons writer Cesar Mazariegos about The Simpsons’ long history of tackling social issues, cramming in background gags, and what he hopes viewers think about the next time they use DoorDash.

Eater: What made you think ghost kitchens and the gig economy were the right topics for an episode?

Cesar Mazariegos: My favorite Simpsons episodes were always the ones that said something — whether it was about homophobia, or gun control, or whatever — in this really funny, subversive way. [Showrunner Matt] Selman will ask us, “What are the things you’re upset about? What’s the thing that annoys you, or a thing you love?” And we try to find an episode in that.

A thing that was pissing me off was Prop 22. It sucks the way these commercials are so clearly lying to you, pretending like “Hey, we just want to make it so you can just get an Uber and not have to stress over taxes.” When it’s really all these companies coming together to basically screw us over and make it so that workers can’t unionize. It was just infuriating to know that they’d rather spend hundreds of millions of dollars than pay people what they’re worth.

At that time, we were still Zooming because of COVID, and we saw the rise of these ghost kitchens, and everyone’s ordering food. But there are all these articles of like, a couple thought they were getting pizza from a local place, but it was a Chuck E. Cheese. It’s literally fooling you into thinking it must be a real place. It’s just this degradation of labor or food or even the customer. So many cases of this are businesses saying, “We don’t think much of you, we think you’ll pay $68 for three hamburgers that aren’t even that good.”

It inspired me to write this episode. And then [I looked] back at the amazing episode “Last Exit to Springfield” [where Homer forms a union]. It was a home run that still resonates, and it’s one of the funniest Simpsons episodes ever. I thought it’s got to be good. It’s got to be funny. And it’s got to be a little real too, because so many people are going through it right now.

Aside from the issues, this episode is chock-full of jokes and sight gags. Do you have a favorite one?

There was a chyron that we completed a couple of days ago, but something we pitched a while ago, where it says, “Unions Bad For Gay Hook-ups?” There’s so many little things that I love in here.

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You also have a scene in the episode that’s clearly an homage to the really stressful takeout scene from The Bear. That scene has one of my favorite gags: Marge carrying to tub of mayonnaise branded “Mayo Edebiri.” What made you want to bring in The Bear and riff on that?

The Bear was just in the zeitgeist. It’s this incredible show, and that scene, I didn’t even notice it was a one-shot thing until after the fact. Usually, when you see a one-shot scene in a live action show, it’s with an action scene. But to do it with this stressful work, I think so many people can relate to that.

We were talking to [episode director] Chris Clements, and having him tell the sound designers that we want the noise in the kitchen, the panic, the musicians making it sound like a ticking clock with a hi-hat. The team that did the animation is incredible. They’re all IATSE, and their contracts are coming up and fingers crossed they’re not going to get lowballed. The studios have to realize that everybody else is still supporting each other.

Was there anything about the gig economy or ghost kitchens or Prop 22 that you wanted to get in there that ultimately didn’t work or didn’t make it?

Honestly, the cup runneth over a little bit. We were able to jab at the Jim Cramers of the world. We could go after this Amazon union-busting video, which is real, and get our little references to The Bear, and poke at tech douches. I totally get that we are a 20 and a half minute show. We can’t get it all in. I really wanted an ending for the union team, but it felt more important for Marge and Homer to repair their relationship. So instead we had this random, unexplained voiceover while food is falling from the sky, and I think our audience will find that funny and that will be enough.

There’s so much complicated stuff — the idea of unionizing and the NLRB and getting the cards back and the votes — that we have to clearly fast forward through. But all in all, I’m really happy with how it turned out.

Your average Simpsons viewer has probably used a third party food delivery service. Is there anything you hope that they walk away with after watching this episode?

I think just solidarity. One of the things that I really took away from the writers’ strike this summer was how the teachers union would be out there with us, how hotel workers were out there with us, and us with them, and UPS people wouldn’t cross our picket lines. And there were people who would just bring us doughnuts. My dad was a Teamster, but he never had to go on strike, I didn’t really get what it was about as a kid. But it was completely different to be an adult and see how everyone could come together like this.

Just the idea of being more aware, maybe tipping a little better because this is a raw deal for this driver. Or, why don’t I make sure this is an actual Mom and Pop place that needs my money? I think empathy is there for people, but it’s so easy to just take the phone out of our pockets and order anything, like Homer does. But that comes with the price of human misery sometimes. It’s just that awareness of being able to stand up for each other and fight for each other back each other up.

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