The Simpsons: 11 Most Paused Moments

The episode of "Homer vs. Patty & Selma" sees Homer in great financial debt. Stressed in his sleep, he dreams that he has become rich from an invention. But even in Homer’s own dream, he can’t see what he's created as it is obscured in his colleague’s hand. Even more frustrating, none of his colleagues mention the product’s official name. The ad campaign for it is then projected in front of him but is still out of vision as the meeting crowd over to look at the presentation. Homer shoves them out of the way to see what he has made.

For a microsecond, we see the invention in all its glory before Marge wakes Homer up into the real world and thus, the idea that he envisioned is wiped out completely. This particular scene is one where it requires a few attempts to pause at the exact correct moment because when the creation is shown, it’s displayed in the quickest flash.

The big question then follows – what even is the ‘invention’ that Homer subconsciously created in his mind? Visually, it appears rounded with a couple of cylinder-type buttons and wires sticking out. It was described as “simple, yet ingenious and it fits right in the palm of your hand. Every person American now owns one of these and in many cases, three or four”.

Is it some sort of satellite technology or a prototype mobile device? Can anyone truly pinpoint what Homer’s great idea was? It doesn't matter. But out of pure boredom, it’s interesting to debate what Homer's contraption actually could have been.