I don't really like Herman. I kinda think he is a big creep. But I find him to be an interesting character for the show, someone who exists in a space where no one else belongs. He isn't like Dr. Marvin Monroe, where he just falls off the face of the earth completely. But he isn't like Mr. Largo, who is used very very sparingly, but still pops up from time to time. Herman is like this relic character that the writers decided they didn't want to use, but still refuse to discard him completely. He kinda hangs around in the background, as this reminder to the early days. He's a character everyone knows, but have participated in such a tiny percentage of episodes. ...And I kinda prefer him this way. Please, no Herman-centric episode in Season 30, I'm not asking for that. :p

And they replaced Herman's role with...oh, let's say...Moe.

I actually really liked Herman because of his seriousness, Snake, Moe, and Sideshow Bob are 'threatening,' but at the end of the day they still joke around, Herman, Herman will just shoot you, no laugh track. I agree with you that this makes him not fit into the dynamic of the show, but its still interesting.

I actually like the fact that there are characters that are hardly seen. It gives the Simpsons world more depth, makes it seem more realistic... in real life, there are people who don't play a major role in your life, and you may not see them for years at a time, but you see them every once in a while.

Like a lot of early Simpsons, Herman was a parody of a common trope in 1980's TV, fiction and culture. The dodgy Vietnam Vet was a recurring character you'd find in most American neighbourhoods and in American fiction at the time and he was very much inspired by that. I can see why he fell out of use as by the time we got to the 90's, Vietnam vets reached retirement age and were no longer common sights in average American streets.

Herman's runnng joke was continued in the comics. One of the jokes was that he lost his arm because he used to be a comicbook artist and draw way too much.

I always found the cat lady to be the most mysterious character. Her backstory is kinda sad

"Questioning someone's military service is kind of yucky" ... it's a Simpson's side character. Don't think Herman will mind.

Can't even use him as a villain either because of Sideshow Bob, probably the same reason they never brought the babysitter bandit back.

You just gave more airtime to Herman than he'd ever received on the show combined.

When I was a kid, my grandpa had a buddy (Vietnam vet) who ran a small military collectibles shop that I used to go with him to (my grandfather was a WW2 vet) and this guy was basically a two-armed version of Herman. He actually was a great guy, gave me lots of books about history and old military items to play war with, and the shop kind of became a hangout for local vets. It was fun to sit around and hear all the old guys share stories while they smoked cigars and make comments about this and that at the random piece of field gear or helmet that came in for sale or trade. But much like Herman- there were moments where even as a 10-12 year old you sat and went "oooooooohhh-kaaayyy..." and there was a rifle or grenade or two hidden around that shop that may have not been copacetic with the state and may have been of "mysterious" origins. I actually miss that place and times. My grandfather is gone, as is the shop owner now...sad.

Personally I quite like herman. I think we could have an all out simpsons episode about him, because he seems resourceful and sketchy enough to be a really good antagonist. Also I'd argue in the Movie, he could have had a few good scenes, just because he is well enough equipped to survive the dome, no issues.

honestly I feel the best ways to use Herman is by playing on his darker nature, either by having him be a more serious antagonist comparedd to most villains in the simpsons, or just by being a rather dark and unsettling straight man to the usual antics. He could also act as a middleman between criminal characters, you know, a sort of 'set up' character. One could also play on his shadiness more to make him more of a habitual liar or play up his inhinged side for darkhumour. and of course, arm jokes.

I'd also argue Fat Tony also kinda steals the "shady dealings" character. Why have some random character running illegal wears when you can use Tony, who is a part of organized crime and can be used to parody the mafia?

I always think of him as either one of those Vietnam vets who never moved on and does tons of drugs, or as just your typical conspiracy theorist doomsday prepper. So it's fitting that you don't see him often, because those kinds of people usually live in the shadow of society. But when they need him he has his place.

"What, you're all selling fake jeans? I have to tell everybody!" "Slow down there Homer." (Homer stops running and starts to slowly walk to the door.) "How about you come to a complete stop."

I think you overlooked something. The later episode shows Herman getting his arm ripped off while trying to hitchhike to piano class. A pianist losing his arm and thus losing the amibility to do something he loves is potentially enough to drive him insane.

I could see Herman being unable to serve due to losing his arm, and that might have embittered him and led to some of his behavior

In addition: Fat Tony. Fat Tony basically has all the shadiness you need, can get away with being a serious villain when necessary, plus is overtly mob. When you have Fat Tony, Herman just seems too vague to be a useful criminal character. But I think it mostly comes down to characterization. Plenty of Simpsons characters are unhinged, especially Moe and Mr. Burns and ESPECIALLY Sideshow Bob, but Herman never came across as the FUN kind of unhinged. He doesn't have a soft side, he doesn't have personal goals, and his personality is constantly stand-offish--given how they presented him there was no way to make him affable. The only way I would see to rescue his character would basically be to change his character. He'd need to be given something or someone to care about, or at the very least be given some kind of situation that's in total contrast to his personality (like you constantly see with Snake). Basically, they took his premise as Shady Arms Dealer way too seriously. So my changes: Arms dealer to pawn shop owner. Pawn shop is much more narratively useful, can still involve weaponry, and is similarly shady. Some of his goods might be outright fenced. If he's going to be ambiguously ex-military, play it up. Not just with his arm, make his entire past multiple choice. Constantly referencing things he may or may not really have been a part of, occasionally obvious fabrications. Basically you get yourself a habitual liar who ends up getting away with it because he is useful. His utility should be his positive trait. He has a plethora of skills and tools (some imaginary, but he'll often claim he has the skills) that he's willing to aid with for a price or for favors. It ends up being how he keeps out of jail, because he's frustratingly more competent than the police (or at least more devious). And you could give him additional traits that contrast with his main demeanor. Like being unusually friendly with children when he's intimidating to adults and his business should exclude children anyway. In hindsight this was kinda obvious how to improve the character, but I wonder if part of the issue was that he was introduced in season 1, the season where they were trying hard to be grounded like a real sitcom, rather than look for the long term utility of characters in comedy.

I think the tone of his character is why he works so well... he’s genuinely threatening, which in a series that uses dark comedy so well is a really interesting character to write with. It’s nice to have the elusive creep to balance all of the comedy villains.

Herman just seems deeply disturbed and I kinda like his role. All the other crazy/villain characters joke around and are more comedic but he seems like a real and dark interpretation of someone deeply deranged. After Frank Grimes he may be the most tragic character in the show. Just a random man who lost his arm and his sanity in a more shockingly dark way than any other character

I disagree. Herman always struck me as the kind of far-right conspiracy theorist doomsday prepper type. There's and endless trove of jokes and side stories in that. Plus I know a ton of people like that, so it made Springfield that much more relatable.

Here's a Simpsons mystery idea how much does Homer get paid at the power plant.

In The Simpsons Hit and Run, Herman's antique store appears and his face is even used as a mission icon at one point. But he has no model in game and no lines. Just kinda thought that fit in with everything else here.

I like Herman and his shady nature. He's like the evil villain that always has his plans spoiled. I'm more surprised that Gill seemed to have made so many more appearances.

I would love to see a series where you go over character histories. Taking seldom used characters like Herman and talking about each of their appearances and what you think works, and doesn't work with the character.

I like Herman, the idea of some paranoid weapon selling dude with a Confederate flag in his shop is just funny at the face of it. But you're correct when you said that aspects of his character can be filled in by other charters such as Moe and Snake. Still thou I like him.

In Czech version Herman says about the loss of his arm: "Remember - never make nazi salute out of the bus window." :D

Herman and Moe would be good together. Moe could ask Herman to turn his back room into a doomsday shelter and then have him keep hanging around the bar talking about conspiracies

Am I the only one who loves Herman and wished he got more time? He's cool, mysterious and nostalgic.

I like to blame this on Disco Stu. See, Disco Stu got Herman to go dancing. While doing the dance with the pointing (the John Travolta one) there was a freak accident with a razor sharp ceiling fan. Herman never danced again. Stu was stricken with grief and tried to dance away the pain. They haven't spoken to each other since.

I always assumed Herman was *not* a veteran. As a veteran myself, I've seen these type of guys frequently- the ones who seem to have an explanation for why they didn't serve and compensate by having an exaggerated, and often misplaced, sense of patriotism. I don't mean to pass judgment; it's simply anecdotal from my years in the Army under Dubya (Bush Jr).

If herman lost his arm as he kid he definitely never served. I think he is just one of those guys who are just obsessed with the military

The reason it was so long for him to be in another episode was because he was in a coma from Milhouse hitting him in the head with a flail.

I realized something a while ago, though I'm sure everyone has pointed it out. In the episode Bart Gets Hit By A Car (and I swear in multiple other episodes), when Bart momentarily is dead, the devil both resmbles and sounds like Herman. I find it highly unsual - if he looked like Homer or even Bart I'd understand - they're both shown to be chaotic and antagonistic, so it'd be a silly visual reference to their behaviour; but Herman is a character that we see much less of + know a lot less about.

I've always pictured him to be an essential archetype of american society, extremist beliefs, gun fanatic, traumatized veteran and conspiracy theorist just as much as the plot or joke needs it. Maybe as a loner, more urban equivalent to Clethus.

I think Hermann works well as the unhinged, paranoid veteran conspiracy/doomsday guy, but I see your point about his niche being covered by other characters. Hell, Skinner himself already pulls off the veteran with a traumatic past pretty well, and it's made funnier in comparison with his overly-serious role as a school principle.

Kent Brockman's former co-anchor Scott Christian hasn't been seen or heard since season 5 either.

I had no idea Herman didn't speak until those two episodes. He was always around, I just never thought about it.

Headcanon: Herman never served, he's just one of those guys that LARPs on Reddit all day. That's why he stopped appearing.

I remember thinking, during the swap meet scene, that he seemed to have a sympathetic look on his face when Skinner tried on his old POW helmet. I always just figured he was Skinner's opposite. For all the jokes at Seymour's expense, he came home from 'Nam, and for the most part picked up where he left off. Herman? Yeah he's still over there, and has a constant physical reminder. At the end of the day that makes him a bit of a dark character for the show.

I like that character, I don't think he is uninteresting at all.

I feel like Herman, and Otto for that matter, are characters straight out of the 80's that proved to have little relevance in the 90's and later. I feel like Herman was supposed to represent a specific kind of Vietnam vet you'd see just around in small town America in the 80's. I think the creators ended up pinning the vietnam vet jokes on Skinner, because he is a more charming character who is easier to connect to the story. As a kid I always thought his "bus window" explanation was more tongue and cheek than gospel, but who knows.

"The key to Springfield has always been Elm Street. The Greeks knew it. The Carthaginians knew it. Now you know it." I like Herman. While his best scenes are in The Springfield Connection and 22 Short Films About Springfield (him being so shady and cold-blooded makes those moments more thrilling), my favourite portrayal of him as a character is in Bart the General. I see Herman as a delusional megalomaniac who spends his time studying war history and collecting a private arsenal of weapons to get an advantage if a new civil war begins or something. What makes this funny is how his preparation either consists of totally irrelevant or completely made-up history trivia (Carthaginians, really?) or is absurdly overkill (keeping a private nuclear bomb in the backyard, making a whole war strategy to throw a 10-year-old with water balloons). Stuff like him having a copy of the Franco-Prussian War's declaration of war at hand adds silly quirkiness to the character. I think he sells those fake items in his store not just to make money but also to pose as a bigger history expert and more important guy than what he is actually is. I'm honestly surprised that they haven't used Herman more to satirize conspiracy theorists, gun right activists, survivalists etc. Those are the sort of groups that I would expect the Simpsons writers being eager to target, and Herman would be perfect for that. Also, if you think Herman is too creepy, how about his unseen friend Zed?

The 'Herman Hermann' name is a (perhaps unintentional) reference to a Nabokov character, if anyone's interested.

When I was a kid I had Herman (or as I called him back then, "one armed gun store owner") as the favorite to shoot Mr. Burns. He hadn't been used very much, he was obviously unhinged, and he just came off as the sort that would do something murderous. The other criminals in the show at that point didn't have that seriousness and Homer/Smithers always felt like red herrings (I mean who would want lovable Homer to turn out to be a killer?). I always liked old Hermy, his contrast in tone actually made him interesting I thought. Personally I think it may have been a blessing in disguise for the writers that they stopped using him because he could very easily have been the staple Neo Nazi of the show that current culture today would freak out over worse than Apu.

A regular, guy, who lost his arm in a tragic mishap, ruining his dream of playing piano, made bitter, and building a world around himself, (which acts as a metaphor) fake military surplus, and counterfeit jeans to explain his circumstances...he never says he's a vet, the show wouldn't have a stolen valor scenario, but Herman would let you assume so based on his appearance, and take any advantage that offered... It is interesting how they throw him in as a flashback, just so they could feature him in the next episode...evidence of the show's lackluster writing these days...

I always assumed that Herman was a Vietnam Vet, which is why he's so shady; he's been so desensitized, disillusioned, and disenfranchised since the war and the loss of his arm, that he ultimately has lost his moral scope. He does what he does for his own survival. A guy with one arm can't actually compete in the economy, so Herman has to augment his income with shady activities like his phony antiques and his pants rink. But I also think that - most likely due to PTSD - Herman has become a little unhinged, to the point where he doesn't recognize what is and isn't Combat vs. Socially Acceptable behavior. Like when he takes Wiggum and Snake hostage. I figured the reason why he was eventually phased out was because, over time, the Vietnam war stopped being relevant, which would've made his character seem dated. It wouldn't make sense to just say he was in the War in Iraq because that had started long after his character was introduced. But like you said; it was a general assumption. But me personally; I actually find Herman's segment from 22 Short Films to be quite interesting. In fact, I almost wish there was a follow-up to this, or better yet, have this be its own episode. I felt like it could've provided a lot of much-needed insight to Herman's character; and as the situation evolved, we would learn more about his motivations - why he's so shady, so unhinged, how he lost his arm, and what would lead him to do this. I guess I'm a guy that just has to know the "Why?"

I think Herman's whole insanity could be played well. I think he's generally the reason why Bart the General works, as having this insane military nut plot a strategic course to throw water balloons at a bully is genuinely funny and makes the episode much better. He is relatively serious most of the time, but I think he could work in being completely loony in situations that're otherwise pretty tame. I mean it's like Batman, you put this big gruff man in a mundane situation like watering plants and it's so absurd that the contrast kinda writes itself. Then again, considering how tied to his military antique shop he is, it makes sense why he really fell off.

I wish the YES guy would come back

I honestly like Herman. I like how they kept him on the backburner even when he didn't come in handy much. I like his limited uses and I like how they tried fitting him in scenarios whenever he would work. It's always nice to see him, and the writers seem to like him too. I wish other characters got this type of usage on the show, like Ruth Powers. Who is only a background character after an episode in season 4 playing a minor role and getting her own full episode with Marge in Season 5.

He just fits the stereotype of the "crazy army obsessed civilian who didnt actually go to war" too much. Maybe he spent a little time in the reserves at best. Maybe he really wanted to be military and his lack of arm kept him out which caused him to be one of those people who takes military obsession too extremely

The best minor Simpsons character! A loony fire arms lover, doomsday prepper, much like Burt Gummer in the Tremors film series, I feel like there are plenty of situations writers could put him in, but his character is rather mysterious and I prefer him to remain that way.

I remember reading a Simpsons comic book (can't remember the issue, but I think it was #100) where Herman explains that he lost his arm because he wore it down from drawing so much. Now that I think about it, it would be interesting to talk about Simpson comics since few seem to remember them as well as the show.

Anyone else back after they cast Herman as CAPTAIN AMERICA in their Avengers spoof?

They should have a Vietnam episode with Herman and Skinner

Fact is, there's a creepiness and harshness in his character that sits uneasily with the 'feel' of the show. Local Oddball that seems uneasy with the general upbeat nature of the show.

The Herman's Head joke made me love this video before you even got to your point.

0:28 "What the heck is going on in Herman's Head?" I see what you did there...

I guess he was just a relic of the early days that lost his relevance once the show found it's ground. There's a lot of characters that debuted in the early seasons that fell on the wayside fast, like Bart's other friends Lewis and Richard, or Wendell, or Nelson's cronies. They're just artifacts from a different era. Also I wanted to bring this up with someone for a long time but never had a chance to until now, but I never liked how they made him, well, evil. I mean, yeah, he was always shady and unhinged, but he wasn't a violent criminal who'd be prepared to kill cops or do worse, which is the really baffling direction they took him in on The Springfield Connect and 22 Short Stories. I mean, he wasn't much of a character, but that felt like character assassination to me, and I have no idea why they did that. He was kinda likeable and entertaining in his first appearance where he helped Bart with his bully problem.

3:07 I appreciate Jims not trying to be some fancy Frenchman.

"Questioning someone's military service is kinda yucky" Most American sentence ever said

New Simpsons Mysteries? *CLICK* Please give us more Jims!

In an episode in season 30 called “From Russia without love” Herman makes a long appearance and gets a speaking role

It's interesting what can dub do to a character. I remember in czech version, when he sees Bart, he greets him by saying "Sieg Heil, mein junge!" which is literally a nazi greeting; mein junge means "my boy". And when Bart asks him how he lost his arm, he says he lost it while doing nazi salute from a bus, which makes Bart look of discomfort very obvious. I always assumed he was in Hitlerjugend, and after war, he fled to USA to start new life, but not really forgetting about it. It's not really something that is played with alot in Czech version, and obviously various dubs put jokes that make sense in their language or culture, but it definitely makes you see him much worse than he is, especially with all things that were said in video.

I always assumed Herman and the nasty babysitter were related. Was that ever mentioned in the show? I feel like I've seen it mentioned somewhere. Aside from physical resemblances, they have similar character traits. I love this series, always nice to see new uploads from you. Also, I agree with the character breakdown episodes. There's so much to delve into! It's exciting.

I don’t LOVE Herman, but he’s actually a character I’m quite fond of the more I think on it. I like how (until The Simpson’s seasonal rot) the event that caused him to lose his arm was never shown, leaving the audience to create a scenario for themselves. And this arm scenario I believe is actually a microcosm of Herman’s appeal. He is engulfed by a constant feeling of unease and we know almost nothing about him. He’s not a super villain, he instead keeps a low profile and only commits morally ambiguous acts under a modicum of protection. I also like the ex-military backstory a lot because of how downplayed it is as well, leading to many Easter eggs that take the form of his store Knickknacks to possibly allude to a more clear cut background.

Herman is actually Ian from Forgotten Weapons. I love them both.

No discussion on his uncanny resemblance to THE DEVIL character??? I thought that would be a major talking point of this video but it's not even mentioned. In season 2 the Devil looks and sounds just like Herman, and this is in a non Halloween episode. All of the evil actions Herman displays and his penchant for war; it's possible he is a living embodiment of The Prince of Darkness himself.

May I just say there is a brief possible reference you could have gone to... In Marge on the Lam, Homer got his arm stuck in a vending machine Carl said "I heard someone lost an arm in there" and you see an arm ripped off and stripped to the bone. Now it's not specifically mentioned to be his arm but it's still a possible link.

Herman is definitely an army larper. He owns a bunch of army stuff and is a psycho but probably was like that before he could enlist

I've always liked Herman as a character personally. Not entirely sure why. I feel like what they could've done from the start is make his store less specific and do the military and weapons stuff in the back, given he's already a shady dude. Something like a Pawn Shop as a front would make him able to be used in a lot more scenarios. As-is, I'd imagine he will, rarely, get speaking roles in the future, but only if they need his specific style of character.

He's supposed to represent the Bitter Crackpot 'Nam Vet trope that stopped being a thing for most people around y2k (not unlike The Simpsons), probably due to ageing, gulf war vets, prescription opioids and PTSD being better understood keeping guys like that off the streets and out of peoples everyday lives.

I think the fact that he appears so sparingly is the thing that makes Herman interesting. He pops up and you think "Oh look, it's Herman, haven't seen him in a while." Then he disappears again and you forget about him until the next time.

4:13 I expect that Herman's origin story flashback was there to remind viewers of his existence and introduce the character to people who may not have seen his earlier appearances. "Remember this guy? Good, now we can use him without having to reintroduce him again."

I love your simpsons videos man. Brilliant tone and pace. Rewatch em all the time.

They did use him as a visual pun in Martin's school fund raiser casino, Herman was playing the slot machine, slot machines are also known as one arm bandits.

Herman didn’t effect anything in Homer’s Barbershop Quartet, he was just thrown in there.

To me his character was a stereotype of a Vietnam vet who had trouble fitting in to society.

My mother was an ER nurse and treated a child who lost his arm hanging it out a school bus window. So it can happen. And having an ER nurse as a mother, my brother and I had a weird list of things we couldn’t enjoy because they caused injuries in other kids, like we couldn’t eat Pringles out of those cans in the 80s, we had to put them in a bowl. We also weren’t allowed to chew gum or have those snap bracelets or play lawn darts. Oddly enough, my brother and I both played dangerous sports (he played football and I took riding lessons) and she never made us wear helmets when riding a bike

I watch this video whenever I feel down because I love me some good Herman content

Marge: "What's so funny?" Lisa: ''Oh, uh, I was just thinking of a joke I saw on Herman's Head. Ha ha ha..." Marge: "Hmmm"

"What the heck is going on in Herman's Head?" i see what you did there. Nice.

The "disturbing scene" is but a blatant Pulp fiction reference -- obviously -- and nothing deeper than that.

I think the problem with his character is to two fold, one: the relic part you said, especially since there hasn't been a proper war in a long time, since that's where his character archtype derives from, wether he was fought in war or not. And second: he is too real of a character to put in a light hearted context most of the time, is was fine at the start of the show when the world was somewhat grounded in reality, but as it got crazy, characters needed to adapt to the new tone, which they couldn't do with such an intrinsically dark and twisted character.

After 30 years of stories, I think the Simpsons who benefit from using Herman instead of repeating storylines

"She can take a 16 megaton blast -- no more, no less."

I always figured he was based on a Vietnam war vet, and was rarely used due to being deemed "insensitive" to the real war vets....

I think it's good to have a character like this in the Simpsons, I feel like it adds more legitimacy to the positive tone and silliness of many of the other characters.

He should have been used more often. The Springfield Connection was a fantastic episode and Herman made it even better. It is really one of the most underrated episodes. I actually think it is one of the best Marge episodes along with In Marge We Trust

I think the specific type of authority figure portrayed by Herman is totally foreign to younger people. I remember a few Vietnam vets growing up that were…damaged in similar ways, but I dunno if anyone younger than millennial would identify with him.

When I first saw him in 22 Short Films about Springfield I thought he was a 1-time character who just happened to share a voice actor with Ned Flanders because he was available

I didn't even know his name but I always enjoyed his voice.

I know I’m late to the party but I’d also like to add that the Simpson’s no longer uses characters who smoke or uses guns. Idk why.... but can you honestly remember the last time a Simpson’s character pulled a gun on someone? Or it could be the fact that they don’t want to show old military people in a negative light. 🤷🏾‍♀️

I think his role in the show was precisely to be the guy who is actually supposed to make you uncomfortable, so yeah that the kind of thing works in more crude shows like Fam Guy and South Park but not so much in the Simpsons, I still think he had potential for more minor appearances tho, Im glad they included him in the crazy survivalist club

They were probably like 'well we just made a Herman model might as well use it again' in season 24

I agree w/ your points in this video, and I kinda like that he's so rarely used. it adds a lot of mystery and unfamiliarity to him, and I think that's what makes him so interesting. We know almost nothing about him as an audience, so we can really believe anything we want about him.

What if HERMAN was nelson's father!? (excluding that other guy because pre-season 10 simpsons purity) he has the vest the hair and the cigarette WAKE UP SHEEPLE

Herman kidnapping Wiggum and Snake was a reference to the movie Pulp Fiction

The shady, small-time criminal activity is so much funnier when Moe does it.