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Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsWritersS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsCulturalS08':

  • The episode title is a play on Matthew 12:25.
  • Belle may possibly be named after Belle Watling, the owner of the burlesque house in Gone with the Wind.
  • When Homer stops the destruction of the burlesque house, Reverend Lovejoy says "This house is a very, very, very fine house", a reference to the Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young song "Our House".
  • The oil spill depicted in this episode is most likely a reference to the Exxon Valdez oil spill.
  • Mayor Quimby and the Quimby family, throughout Simpsons history, have been made to resemble JFK and the Kennedy family. Numerous little allusions to the Kennedy family have appeared throughout the series and in this particular episode, Mayor Quimby's wife is seen wearing a dress similar to one of Jackie Kennedy's dresses.
  • The title is not only a pun on the movie title The Brother from Another Planet (The Simpsons has also spoofed this title with the episode title "Brother from the Same Planet"), but also a reference to the fact that guest stars Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce also play bickering and childishly competitive brothers on the sitcom Frasier. A title card just before the start of the second act explicitly brings up this connection.
  • Cecil's guess of "Maris?" (see quotes) is a reference to Niles' never-seen wife on Frasier. According to the season 8 DVD commentary, writers for this episode ran the script by NBC executives and writers for Frasier. The only thing they took exception to was a brief scene showing a character named "Maris". Their argument was, "We don't show Maris." To which Kelsey Grammer repeats, "You can never show Maris."
  • Krusty performs a 'prison special' at Springfield Penitentiary dressed in black: I slugged some jerk in Tahoe/They gave my one-to-three/My high-priced lawyer sprung me on a technicality — a reference to Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash.
  • Bob concedes that the Cappadocians are the only civilization in history that has ever considered chief hydrological engineer a calling.
  • Bart's suggestion to look in the "haunted mine" for evidence is a reference to Scooby-Doo, as is the later comedy chase sequence in the dam.
  • At one point Bob punches through a window in order to grab a door handle, growling incoherently in the style of Frankenstein's monster.
  • The song playing over the street party scene is Journey's "Any Way You Want It". It featured on the soundtrack to Caddyshack, a film which starred guest star Rodney Dangerfield. The street party scene is very similar to the golf course party scene in Caddyshack in which both scenes play "Any Way You Want It".
  • Larry's line "I tell ya, I get no regard. No regard at all. No esteem neither." is a reference to Dangerfield's famous catchphrase, "I don't get no respect."
  • The ending sequence, with Homer and Larry locked up in the empty movie theater, parodies the ending of the movie Jimmy Hollywood, starring Joe Pesci. The 'possible outcome', in which Homer dies in a hail of bullets, was also fantasized by Pesci's character. Both pairs (Homer and Larry, and Pesci and his friend Christian Slater) eventually surrender to police.
  • Homer and Larry run into a costume shop which features an Environmental Protective Suit holding a guitar much like Marty McFly as "Darth Vader" in Back to the Future. After Homer and Larry go into the costume shop, the shop owner on his way to the bathroom passes a Darth Vader helmet.
  • There are many similarities in the appearance of the dog guide to the coyote from Carlos Castaneda's "Teachings of Don Juan" - wherein after Carlos ingests peyote he plays in the desert with a wild coyote which is (or isn't?) an hallucination.
  • There are also allusions in the episode to the works of Richard Bach, whose works often focus on the concept of "soulmates" and typically involve quests led by spirit guides. At the end of the episode, the Sea Captain, refers directly to Bach's most famous book, by exclaiming, "Arr! Jonathan Livingston Seagull!"
  • When Homer begins to hallucinate Jasper says "Goo goo gajoob?" which is a line from The Beatles song I Am the Walrus.
  • During Homer's hallucination, Ned Flanders' non-sensical talk includes the words "Gabba Gabba Hey" which is a reference to The Ramones.
  • Frank Grimes' way of waddling around the plant spoofs the scene from the Charlie Chaplin film Modern Times when Chaplin's character has a nervous breakdown from being overworked and begins waddling around the factory, tightening anything that looks like a loose nut with his wrenches. The only difference is that Chaplin's character didn't die in an electrocution that Frank Grimes did.
  • It's a Wonderful Life – as in the episode "When Flanders Failed", Homer leads the town to aid Flanders in his darkest hour, though on this occasion the results are far worse.
  • The CriticJay Sherman makes a cameo appearance in the mental hospital scenes. The Simpsons writers joked that this is what really happened to the character after the series was cancelled. Critic fans, however, don't consider this appearance part of the series' canon.
  • Dick Tracy and Pruneface – Ned's "Prune Tracy" remark is a pun on the comic strip detective. It's also an allusion to an off-color joke. Given the progression, the next name would be Dick Face, had Dr. Foster not stopped him.
  • Job – The plot of the episode is very similar to that of the Book of Job in the Bible.
  • One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest – Several scenes at Calmwood Mental Hospital are taken from the 1975 movie.
  • Swanson TV dinners – The Juvenile Aggression Study film is sponsored by Swanson Angry Man Dinners, a play on Swanson Hungry Man Dinners.
  • The "futuristic text" on the Mr. Sparkle box is katakana, a Japanese syllable-based alphabet used for foreign loan words. The box's main caption, ミスタースパーコル, transliterates as Misutā Supākoru, "Mister Sparkle" in Japanese syllables. The words in the speech bubble, however, are ハワークリーン!, which transliterates as Hawā kurīn!, or "Hower clean!". This is an animation error as it should say パワークリーン! (the first syllable having a handakuten accent), which translitarates as Pawā kurīn!, or "Power clean!".
  • The Japanese businessman in the Mr. Sparkle corporate video is bathing in a sentō, a communal bath. He tells the watching "American investor" that he (the investor) is interested in distributing Mr. Sparkle in his "home prefecture" referring to the jurisdictional divisions of Japan, as opposed to "home State".
  • In the zoo, one of the signs says "Habitat for Huge Manetees", a spoof of Habitat for Humanity International.
  • The title of this episode is based on At the Mountains of Madness, a novella written by H. P. Lovecraft.
  • Businesses in the port include "It's a Wonderful Knife" (parodying the movie It's a Wonderful Life) and Planet Hype (parodying the real-life celebrity-owned restaurant Planet Hollywood).
  • Smithers queueing in Dr. Nick Riviera's surgery, standing and looking distinctly embarrassed, is a reference to a persistent urban legend surrounding a celebrity (most commonly Richard Gere) reporting to an emergency room after having inserted a live gerbil into his own rectum. [1]
  • The reason Lisa choses to be a babysitter is because she reads 2 "Babysitter Twins" books an obvious spoof of the Ann M. Martin series The Baby-sitters Club
  • ==Quotes==
  • Ned: Homer, I've got a Fozzie of a bear of a problem. Y'know, Maude and her mother were visiting Tyre and Sidan, the twin cities of the Holy Land. They must've kneeled in the wrong place and prayed to the wrong God, because, well, they're being held prisoner by militants of some sort.
  • Homer: Militants, huh? Well, if I were you, I'd kick their asses.
  • Ned: Well, any hoodily-doodle, the embassy says it's just a routine hostage-taking, but I have to drive to Capital City, fill out some forms to get 'em out. Could you possibly watch the kids tonight?
  • Homer: Uh, gee, I'd reallly love to want to help you, Flanders, but...Uh, Marge was taken prisoner in the...Holy Land and uh...
  • Lisa: I'll do it! I'll babysit!
  • Ned: Well, I don't know, Lisa. You're awfully young, and the boys can be a handful. Todd's been pinching everyone lately.
  • Lisa: But I'm smart and responsible, and my parents will be right next door!
  • Ned: Well, what do you say, Homer? Can Lisa babysit my kids?
  • Lisa: Please, Please, Please!
  • Homer: Eh, I'll have to ask her.
  • (while playing a board game with no dice, a moth comes out of the box)
  • Rod and Todd: A moth! A moth! A moth! Aaaahh!
  • Lisa: Calm down! A moth's no more harmful than a ladybug.
  • Rod and Todd: A ladybug?!! Aaaaaaaaaaahhh!
  • (Rod and Todd run upstairs to their rooms while Lisa calmly shoos the moth outside)
  • Lisa (to herself): Oh, they're gonna be eaten alive in middle school.
  • (at Planet Hollywood, Homer and Marge notice a car sticking out of the building)
  • Marge: How cute. It looks as though a Cadillac drove right into the building.
  • Hans Moleman (in the car): Help me.
  • Krusty: (upon learning his sandwich-delivery was a prank call by Bart) Well, I'm not leaving until I get paid. I also get $300 for just saying "Hey, hey!"
  • US Air Force officer: We just got a report that a "Lisa Simpson" spotted a UFO.
  • Lisa: (frustratingly) I didn't see any UFO!
  • Officer: That's right. You didn't. (waves to a doctor who puts away a hypodermic needle)
  • Mayor "Diamond" Joe Quimby: I declare this....WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!!! (everyone sees Bart in the wheelbarrow which is being pushed by Lisa)
  • Helen Lovejoy: (Bart rolls out of the wheelbarrow into the ditch) She's murdered her brother!
  • Sideshow Mel: (pointing to the still-caged, hyperactive Maggie) And, as a grim finale, she plans to drown that poor caged baby!
  • Krusty: What kind of parents would leave their kids home with that babysitter?
  • Homer: (in panic mode) NOT US!
  • Lisa: (squinting to see the crowd staring at her) Where am I?
  • Maude Flanders: And she's on drugs!
  • Kent: Tonight on Eye On Springfield. Opening day of the worlds first two story outhouse.
  • (2 men enter the outhouse.)
  • Man in bottom floor of Outhouse: Oh God, stop!
  • Kent: A comedy nurse who's laughing all the way to the blood bank.
  • Nurse: Ok, how many of you are here for shoulder surgery, huh?.
  • (Several patients in bed attempt to lift their hands.)
  • Nurse: Got'cha!
  • The Homer v. Tatum bout is a reference to the film Rocky. Where a local champion faces the heavyweight champion.
  • The title of this episode alludes to the 1956 movie The Harder They Fall, the last film starring Humphrey Bogart. Its plot is the main inspiration for "The Homer They Fall". Bogart plays a washed up, cynical sports writer who agrees to lend his services to a criminal boxing promoter (played by Rod Steiger) by writing stories that make a star out of an untalented, naive Latino boxer whose fights - unbeknownst to him - are all fixed. When that system doesn't work any more and the boxer is about to be thrashed for good in what would surely be his last fight, Bogart's conscience reawakes. He helps the boxer escape to his home country of Argentina before the gangsters can take back all the money he won in his short-lived career. Moe's role in this Simpson's episode is in fact a combination of the roles played by Steiger and Bogart in the movie.
  • The character of Drederick Tatum is based on real life boxer Mike Tyson and his many run-ins with the law. Just before the fight with Homer, Drederick is seen walking to the ring with a group of shady looking characters walking behind him. This is also based on a real-life photo of Tyson.
  • The character of Lucius Sweet is an obvious parody of Don King, a vicious boxing promoter. Homer even points this out with the line "He's one of the biggest names in boxing! He's exactly as rich and as famous as Don King, and he looks just like him, too!" King was also the manager for Mike Tyson.
  • The montage of Homer's victories mid-episode spoofs Raging Bull. Some controversy has arisen about what song is exactly played during Homer's montage. DVD commentary of the episode has attributed the song to an original Alf Clausen composition. Some people alternatively have stated that it is "The Flower Duet" from Delibes' opera Lakmé. However, their is no passage in "The Flower Duet" song that convincingly matches up with the boxing montage scene but it can be said that the song is done in the style and semblance of "The Flower Duet."
  • A lot of the training sequences are based on the movie Rocky, including Homer running alongside Moe, Marge asking Moe not to let Homer fight and the line "You will always be a loser".
  • At one point in the episode, the screen freezes and turns to a black and white view of one of Homer's boxing opponents falling out of the ring. This scene is a parody of the 1924 painting Dempsey and Firpo by George Bellows.
  • Drederick Tatum's theme song is "Time 4 Sum Aksion" by Redman. It is the same song chosen by Mike Tyson for his first fight upon his prison release.
  • Homer's theme song is "Why Can't We Be Friends?" by War. He also comes in wearing a robe labeled "Opponent"
  • Happy Days – Roy addressing Homer and Marge as "Mr. S" and "Mrs. S" is a reference to how Fonzie and the teen-aged characters addressed Howard and Marion Cunningham on Happy Days. Poochie also claims to be "a third Fonzarelli".
  • Joe Camel – another character Poochie claims to be based on.
  • The "Wayne's World" sketches and movie – Poochie shouts "NOT!", much like Wayne Campbell.
  • Three's Company – Roy's announcement that he's "moving out to live with two sexy ladies" is a reference to the ABC sitcom.
  • Unnecessary addition of new characters to veteran TV shows – The addition of the Poochie character to The Itchy & Scratchy Show (and the unexplained presence of Roy in the subplot) spoofs the addition of new characters to veteran TV shows in their waning years, with the belief that viewer interest will be renewed. However, the result is often negative, and is often cited by fans as a moment when the show has jumped the shark.
  • The scene where Homer hides in a closet and secretly listens to a conversation in the conference room is a reference to a 1991 incident at NBC when Jay Leno hid in a storage closet secretly listening to NBC executives discuss who would take over The Tonight Show when Johnny Carson retires.
  • The episode title is a play on the Ernest Hemingway novel The Old Man and the Sea.
  • Wrestler Bret Hart appears as himself, moving into Burns' house and addressing him as a "pencil-neck geek," an insult used by pro-wrestler and manager "Classie" Freddie Blassie. His new neighbor, The Shrieking Sheikh, is a parody of The Iron Sheik.
  • Burns buys Count Chocula cereal at the Kwik-E-Mart.
  • At the end of the episode, Lisa runs through town begging people not to recycle. The townsfolk then respond robotically and Lisa discovers a truckload of animal slurry, parodying the ending of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. There are also some elements from the ending of Soylent Green.
  • The aliens featured in the FBI lineup were:
  • Moe hides Shamu in the back room of Moe's Tavern, and immediately worries when agents Mulder and Scully appear at the bar, telling his accomplices that "They're on to us, get him back to Sea World!" He is later seen towards the end of the episode trying to move the whale on his back, asking "Who'd have thought a whale could be so heavy?".
  • Donkey Kong is seen at the beginning of the episode outside the Noiseland Arcade. In anger at the lack of crowds he throws a barrel at the arcade owner.
  • Homer believes that a man named Apollo Creed single-handedly built a rocket and flew to the moon. While Apollo Creed is a character from the Rocky films, Project Apollo was responsible for landing humans on the moon in 1969, 1971, and 1972.
  • Homer's idea of using a looped video recording to leave work early is a reference to the film Speed. However, he wrongly thinks the film was called "The Bus That Couldn't Slow Down", despite mentioning the word "speed" several times in his description.
  • A spoof of Better Homes and Gardens magazine is shown, as Better Homes Than Yours.
  • The "dog birthday" gag is almost word-for-word identical to one featured earlier in an episode of Married... with Children.
  • The opening sequence is a spoof of Plan 9 from Outer Space.
  • In one of the arcade scenes, Milhouse plays a video game version of Kevin Costner's Waterworld where he puts 40 quarters in and accomplishes nothing. This is a reference to how Waterworld was a flop, despite its big budget.
  • In one chapter title, the phrase "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" is a quotation from The Shining.
  • Kent Brockman previews a news story about a man who went into a coma when The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour was still on TV.
  • Jimbo Jones is seen holding a sign asking the alien for Pearl Jam tickets.
  • Mr. Largo, the school music instructor, conducts five of his students in playing the famous 5-note theme from Close Encounters of the Third Kind with marching band instruments.
  • The Budweiser Frogs appear in the swamp, chanting their names, "Bud... Weis... Er." They are then eaten by an alligator who growls "Coors!"

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsTriviaS08':

  • The Simpsons visit Mt. Swartzwelder Historic Cider Mill, which is named after Simpsons writer John Swartzwelder.
  • Homer, as a pretend kidnapper, hides with Larry in a movie theater just like Lee Harvey Oswald did.
  • According to the DVD audio commentary, Dangerfield was very helpful in the writing process of this episode.
  • Larry decides to return home after realizing he has forgotten about his wife and kids, this would mean that Burns has a daughter-in-law and grandchildren.
  • Ned Flanders' Season Pass to the Cider Mill is Number, 00001.
  • The play in Mr. Burns' "Play Room" is Death of a Salesman
  • The episode was originally pitched by long time writer George Meyer during season 3. The staff felt it was too odd for the show, but showrunners Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein decided to use it.
  • This is the second episode to have its English title in another language, the first being "Burns Verkaufen der Kraftwerk".
  • Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan were the writers' two choices to play the coyote. Bob Dylan has turned the show down many times, so Johnny Cash was given the part.
  • When Homer hallucinates, Ms. Krabappel sounds like the teacher from Peanuts.
  • The coyote was intentionally drawn in a more boxy way so that it looked unlike the other Simpsons characters. It was also done that way to resemble the representations of coyotes in American Southwestern art.
  • Most of the chili pepper sequence was animated completely by David Silverman, who wanted it to look just right and didn't want to risk sending it to Korea.
  • The shot of real life clouds is only the second time live-action footage was used in The Simpsons. The first time was in "Treehouse of Horror VI". Afterwards there was also live-action footage in "Treehouse of Horror IX".
  • Some 3D computer animation is used in this episode for the giant butterfly seen during Homer's hallucination. Also, during the same hallucination, Ned Flanders' line ("What can I do-diddily-doodily-diddly-hobbily-hibbily-gobbily-gobbily-gobble-gabba-gabba-hey!") was also treated on an Macintosh computer so that it increased and decreased pitch.
  • This episode's commentary on the season 8 DVD set was the first commentary to include children.
  • The FOX censors sent a note to the writers about the part where Homer coats his mouth with hot wax so he can eat Chief Wiggum's super-spicy chili pepper. (the actual note reads as follows: "To discourage imitation by young and foolish viewers, when Homer begins to pour hot wax into his mouth, please have him scream in pain so kids will understand that doing this would actually burn their mouths."[2])
  • This episode mentions that Springfield slopes westward to the sea, indicating that it is either on the West Coast or western Florida.
  • The name of the shop where Homer purchased the bathtubs was the 'Houseware Warehouse'.
  • During the St Patrick's Day parade scene, the Irish Republican Army guerrilla fighter is portrayed with "John Bull's Fish and Chip Shop" exploding due to a planted bomb. This part of the scene is usually cut out on UK television, but is left unedited in Ireland.
  • The directors (particularly Matt Groening) were displeased on the DVD comentaries at the appearances of the background characters in this episode. This is most notable in the first scene at the speakeasy when Chief Wiggum and Princess Kashmir are dancing together, as the latter's breasts move in a very bizarre manner.
  • When Marge compliments Homer on his bootlegging scheme, and Lisa objects, Marge, Homer, and Bart tell Lisa to go to her room.
  • This episode was listed by Matt Groening as one of his favorites.[1] It is also a favorite of then-showrunner Josh Weinstein and The Office creator Ricky Gervais.
  • Frank Grimes gets mentioned throughout the series, and we later learn he has a son, called Frank Grimes Jr. His son explained that his mother was a hooker.
  • Chief Wiggum's quote "Ralphie, get off the stage sweetheart!" is used as the chorus of the 2005 song by Bloodhound Gang, "Ralph Wiggum." The song lyrics are composed chiefly of Ralph Wiggum quotes.
  • Hank Azaria did the voice of Frank Grimes, but he originally thought that William H. Macy should do the role. However, the producers felt this was a role that a regular cast member was more suited to do, so Azaria provided the voice of Grimes, but modelled many of his mannerisms after Macy.
  • This was an extremely controversial episode. FOX was flooded with angry letters, but every station still aired the episode as scheduled. It was later praised by several gay communities of America, because Homer learns his lesson in the end.
  • John wears Homer's "Pin Pals" shirt from the episode "Team Homer".
  • Also, this episode was an 1997 Emmy Award-winner for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or Less).
  • The song playing in the steel mill is the 1991 number-one hit "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" by C+C Music Factory. The Alicia Bridges hit single "I Love the Nightlife" is also featured, as part of Homer's record collection.
  • The winged eyeball seen behind the John character in the shop is a tribute to the art of troubled musician Daniel Johnston. Matt Groening is a big fan and even talks about wanting to have Johnston on his show in one of the DVD extras to The Devil and Daniel Johnston.
  • Running out of the basement, Bart yells "Force majeure" - a legal term which allows at least one party to be freed of responsibility due to events out of their control.
  • ==Goofs==
  • In the closing scene where the Simpsons are being driven away in John's car, the background of stars moves relative to the movement of the car. It should stay still as a backdrop, of course.
  • ==Quotes==
  • Skinner (looking at political buttons at Cockamamie's): Hmm. These campaign buttons are all partisan. Don't you have any neutral ones? "May the better man win", "Let's have a good clean election", that sort of thing?
  • Cashier: Uh no, but we do have some old shirt buttons. They're kind of kooky and fun.
  • Skinner: Missy, you have just talked yourself right out of a sale! (leaves)
  • Marge: Oh, Homer, look. Look, a TV Guide owned by Jackie O!
  • John: Oh, you should see the crossword puzzle. She thought that Mindy lived with "Mark".
  • Homer: Give her a break! Her husband was killed!
  • John: Oh, I know, wasn't that awful?
  • Homer: That John is the greatest guy in the world. We've gotta have him and his wife over for drinks sometime.
  • Marge: Hmm, I don't think he's married, Homer.
  • Homer: Oh, a swinging bachelor, eh? Well, there's lots of foxy ladies out there.
  • Marge: Homer, didn't John seem a little... festive to you?
  • Homer: Couldn't agree more, happy as a clam.
  • Marge: He prefers the company of men.
  • Homer: Who doesn't?
  • Marge: Homer, listen carefully. John is a ho... mo...
  • Homer: Right.
  • Marge: ...sexual.
  • Homer: AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!
  • Homer: Ohmygod Ohmygod Ohmygod! Oh my god! I danced with a gay! Marge, Lisa, promise me you won't tell anyone. [shaking Lisa] Promise me!!
  • Marge: You're being ridiculous.
  • Homer: Am I, Marge? Am I? Think of the property values. Now we can never say only straight people have been in this house.
  • Marge: I'm very sorry you feel that way, because John invited us all out for a drive today, and we're going.
  • Homer: Woah-ho-ho, not me! And not because John's gay, but because he's a sneak. He should at least have the good taste to mince around and let everyone know that he's... that way.
  • Marge: What on Earth are you talking about?
  • Homer: You know me, Marge: I like my beer cold, my TV loud, and my homosexuals flaming.
  • (John takes the family on a tour of the sordid side of celebrity Springfield)
  • John: And that's where Kent Brockman was caught cheating in the Springfield marathon.
  • The Simpsons: Oooh...
  • (passing in front of a plumbing supplies store)
  • John: And there's where Lupe Vélez bought the toilet she drowned in.
  • The Simpsons: Ohhhh!
  • Smithers: John...
  • John: Oh, Waylon. I'd like ya to meet the Simpsons.
  • Smithers: I know the Simpsons. (in John's ear) So this is your "sick mother"?
  • John: Don't do this to me, Waylon.
  • Homer: Hey, boy, where'd you get that shirt?
  • Bart: I dunno. Came outta the closet.
  • Homer: Marge, the boy was wearing a Hawaiian shirt.
  • Marge: So?
  • Homer: There's only two kind of guys who wear those shirts: gay guys and big, fat party animals. And Bart doesn't look like a big, fat party animal to me...
  • Marge: So, if you wore a Hawaiian shirt, it wouldn't be gay?
  • Homer: Right. Thank you.
  • John: ...and Helen Lovejoy, sure, she looks blonde, but I've heard cuffs and collar don't match, if you get my drift.
  • Marge: I don't, but I loved hearing it!
  • John: Homer, what have you got against gays?
  • Homer: You know! It's not... usual. If there was a law, it'd be against it!
  • Marge: Oh Homer, please! You're embarrassing yourself.
  • Homer: No I'm not, Marge! They're embarrassing me. They're embarrassing America. They turned the Navy into a floating joke. They ruined all our best names like Bruce, and Lance, and Julian. Those were the toughest names we had! Now they're just, uh...
  • John: Queer?
  • Homer: Yeah, and that's another thing! I resent you people using that word. That's our word for making fun of you! We need it!! Well I'm taking back our word, and I'm taking back my son!
  • Rosco: I want all of youse to say hello to the Simpsons.
  • Steel Workers: (camp) Halloooooww!
  • Homer: (screams) Has the whole world gone insane?
  • Steel Factory Worker 1:Stand still! There's a spark in your hair!
  • Steel Factory Worker 2: (acting girly) Eek! Get it, get it!
  • Steel Factory Worker 3: (Carrying tub of molten metal) Hot stuff, comin' through!
  • Bart: Dad, why did you bring me to a gay steel mill?
  • Homer: (crying) I don't know! This is a nightmare! YOU'RE ALL SICK!
  • Steel Factory Worker 4: Oh be nice!
  • Homer: Oh! My son doesn't stand a chance! The whole world's gone gay! (hooter sounds) Oh my God, what's happening now?
  • Rosco: (Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) begins to play) We Work hard; we Play hard.
  • Moe: Where you been, Homer? The entire steel industry is gay. Eh, aerospace, too, and the railroads. And you know what else? Broadway.
  • Barney: I always hoped Bart would grow up just like us. What happened?
  • Moe: Aw, it ain't no mystery. The whole modern world's got a swishifying effect on kids today. And their MTVs and their diet sodas ain't gonna set 'em straight, neither. You gotta do it yourself, Homer, and you gotta do it fast.
  • Homer: But what would turn Bart into a man fast? You have to think for me!
  • Moe: Well, let's see now, uh, time was you sent a boy off to war. Shooting a man'd fix 'em right up. But there's not even any wars no more, thank you very much, Warren Christopher!
  • Barney: Hey, better yet, Bart could shoot a deer! That's like shooting a beautiful man.
  • Moe: Hey, he's right, Homer. After the boy bags a deer, all the diet sodas in the world won't turn him back. And you just sit right back and watch the grandkids roll in.
  • [Homer and Bart gear up for their hunting trip]
  • John: Uh oh. Something's gonna die.
  • Homer: Butt out, Buttinsky. What would you know about hunting?
  • John: I know this much: I wouldn't wear that hideous hat. Here, take this one. It was worn by Yale Summers in Daktari.
  • Homer: Hang on to it, Toy-Boy! You might need it when it starts raining naked ladies!
  • Barney: Today, you're gonna be a man, Bart.
  • Bart: You guys going to teach me to drive?
  • Moe: [to Barney] Oh, yeah, let Twinkle Toes drive Betsy. Right.
  • Homer: [chuckling nervously] No, boy. You can't drive. You're only ten. You're going hunting.
  • Moe: You ever been hunting before, there, Barty?
  • Bart: Nope. Something about a bunch of guys alone together in the woods... seems kinda gay.
  • [awkward silence]
  • Homer: That is a very immature attitude, young man.
  • Barney (after the deer-hunting trip turns out to be fruitless): Aw, we should have stayed at the bar and shot some rats.
  • Moe: Hey! Those ain't your rats, Barn.
  • Moe: Come on, don't take this so hard, Homer. You still got that other kid, uh... Lisa. Let's, uh, take her out hunting tomorrow, make her into a man.
  • Homer: Aw, she'd never go. She's a "vegetarian."
  • Moe: Oh, geez, Homer, geez! You and Marge ain't cousins, are ya?
  • Barney: Is it all right to come out now, Mr. Gay Man...sir?
  • Moe: Yeah, we'll do anything you say! (beat) ANYthing! (shifty eyes)
  • Barney: Aw, Moe, we were saved by a sissy.
  • Moe: Yeah, yeah, we'll never live it down. Oh, boy, it looks like it's suicide again for me.
  • Homer: Hey! We owe this guy, and I don't want you calling him a sissy. This guy's a fruit, and a... no, wait, wait, wait: queer, queer, queer! That's what you like to be called, right?
  • John: Well, that or "John."
  • Lisa: This is about as tolerant as Dad gets so you should be flattered.
  • John: Great! Well, Homer, I won your respect, and all I had to do was save your life. Now, if every gay man could just do the same, you'd be set.
  • Homer: Amen to that.
  • Homer: Son, maybe it's the concussion talking, but any way you choose to live your life is okay with me.
  • Bart (to Lisa): Huh?
  • Lisa: (whispers) He thinks you're gay.
  • Bart: He thinks I'm gay? (We home in on Bart's head as 'Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)' begins to play. As the car drives off with the song still playing, a message appears across the screen.
  • Message:Dedicated to the Steel Factory Workers of America. Keep Reaching for that Rainbow!
  • Marge: (hugs Homer) Hmm...you seem a little softer than before.
  • Homer: I've been tenderized.
  • "Dedicated to The Steelworkers of America—Keep Reaching For That Rainbow!" (closing supertitle)
  • In the crowd scene at the end, outside the mental hospital, one of the signs reads "Free John Swartzwelder". John Swartzwelder is a long-time writer on the Simpsons. Swartzwelder himself is seen in one of the mental institution cells, he quickly closes the door as he sees the Simpson family approaching.
  • Ms. Lucille Botzcowski (also known as Botz, the Babysitter Bandit.) from 7G01 - "Some Enchanted Evening" makes a cameo appearance pacing around in her cell.
  • The Critic”—Jay Sherman—from 2F31 (“A Star Is Burns”) makes a cameo appearance as well, telling his doctor, "It stinks! It stinks! It stinks!"; the doctor's response to humor him: "That's right, Mr. Sherman. Everything stinks." The Critic had recently been cancelled, and this was the writers' explanation as to why (The Critic creators Al Jean and Mike Reiss were the show runners when Oakley and Weinstein were hired to The Simpsons staff). Also, in the closing credits Jon Lovitz is credited so he probably came in for that small part, seeing as how he had no other part in the episode. (Dr. Foster was Hank Azaria).
  • Dr. Foster is later seen in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge", this time sporting a toupee.
  • Todd is wearing a Butthole Surfers shirt when the Flanders family is in the relief center ("Look, Dad! I'm a surfer!"). The censors, however, only allowed "Buttho Surfers".
  • Reverend Lovejoy's church sounds are an ambulance, a bird (which sounds like a hawk cry), and a disco whistle.
  • Much of the Japanese dialogue in the episode is poorly pronounced/translated and unintelligible to a Japanese listener. His first piece of dialogue, for example, in the original Japanese is, Aka ni taishite burei da. Yogore ni yoberu. Honki da yo, but literally translates as, "With respect to dirt [I] am rude. [I] can call out filth. [I] am serious!" The three women also refer to him as a hōmu rogo ("home logo"), the Japanese term for a corporate logo.
  • The fake Fruity Oaty Bar commercial in the film Serenity is partially inspired by Mr. Sparkle. The octopus featured in the Fruity Oaty Bar commercial can be seen as a toy in the background of the original Mr. Sparkle commercial.
  • Mr. Sparkle also appears as one of the Collector Cards in The Simpsons Hit & Run.
  • The name that the young Rainier Wolfcastle sings is Fritz Schnackenpfefferhausen.
  • The hot dog Apu has is the one that got him fired in "Homer and Apu".
  • In the "Making Of..." feature on the Kill Bill Volume 2 DVD, Quentin Tarantino can be seen wearing a t-shirt with his Simpsons likeness and quote pictured on the front.
  • A scene and song were cut from the episode, where Patty and Selma sing "I Love to Smoke" to the tune of "I Love to Laugh" from Mary Poppins. In fact, one line from the song, "Although we'll croak by the year 2003", refers to how the writers didn't expect the show to still be on by then.
  • Just as Shary Bobbins is a parody of Mary Poppins, Groundskeeper Willie serves as a parody of Dick Van Dyke's character. Like Van Dyke, Willie is seen playing several instruments in the park and singing. However, Willie sings "Maniac" , an obvious parody of Flashdance and even douses water on himself after the song, just like in the movie.
  • Julie Andrews was the original choice to portray Shary Bobbins but Nancy Cartwright mentions in her autobiography that after hearing Maggie Roswell's reading, the producers cast her in the role instead.
  • The voice of Itchy and Scratchy are actually voiced by Harry Shearer (Scratchy) and Dan Castellaneta (Itchy).
  • This episode, the 167th, was the episode that made The Simpsons longer-running than The Flintstones. As a result of this, when Sky One broadcast the episode, it replaced the existing couch gag (a Sergeant Pepper parody, first used in "Bart After Dark") with one in which the Simpson family encounter the Flintstone family sitting on the couch (recycled from Season 4's "Kamp Krusty"). This version of the episode was also broadcast by Channel 4 in 2006.
  • The writer who speaks out and gets fired is the caricature of Simpsons writer George Meyer.
  • Bret Hart was the first and (as of 2007) only professional wrestler to appear on the show.
  • Ralph Wiggum is in the junior achievers club, despite all of the academic problems he is seemingly faced with.
  • Mr. Burns' comments made about a synagogue are rather ironic, as Harry Shearer, who provides his voice, is himself a non-Orthodox Jew.
  • Mr. Burns' mental dictonary has an insert that states running dog n: one who does someone else's bidding: LACKEY, ie.(SMITHERS)
  • Many of the producers, notably Matt Groening, were uneasy about this episode, feeling that its intentionally bad writing and plots would be mistranslated as actual bad sitcom writing. He also didn't like the idea of breaking the fourth wall and saying that in "reality" the Simpsons were not a family and just a bunch of actors. This issue wasn't really addressed in this episode, but the viewers are left with the impression that they are a family. In the Season 11 episode "Behind the Laughter", the fourth wall is broken again, but the Simpsons are portrayed as a family that goes into acting together.
  • This episode has since proved very controversial, with some loving it, such as Entertainment Weekly which put the episode in its Top 25 Simpsons episode list, while others seem to misinterpret the intentionally bad writing and simply call it a bad episode.
  • Yeardley Smith, the voice of Lisa, has only one line in this episode (not counting her giggle as she removes her Mardi Gras outfit).
  • This was the first non-Halloween episode to have 3 separate stories, although "22 Short Films About Springfield" had over a dozen storylines.

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsBlackboardS08':

  • couch_gag = It shows a picture of the couch but no one comes in. Cut to the outside of the house where the Simpsons have locked themselves out
  • | couch_gag = Grampa is sleeping on the sofa bed. The family rushes in, fold up the couch before Grampa can move, and then take their places as usual.
  • | couch_gag = The family is depicted as if they are from a Western
  • "The truth is not out there"
  • | couch_gag = The couch is a giant whack a mole machine, a giant mallet pounds down at the family and constantly misses, until Homer's head pops out.
  • | couch_gag = Everyone parachutes into the living room, except Homer who falls flat on the floor.

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsGuestsS08':

  • Frank Welker as Executive Vice President Dog
  • Frank Welker as various animal voices
  • | season = 8
  • }}
  • "The Canine Mutiny" is an episode from the eighth season of "The Simpsons."
  • ==Synopsis==
  • {{spoiler}}
  • When Bart complains he never gets any mail, Marge gives him the family's junk mail. Bart is only interested in a credit card solicitation from MoneyBank. He fills out the application, and when pressed for a name, he uses Santa's Little Helper (the company reads the name as "Santos L. Halper"). Amazingly, the credit card application is approved, and before long, Bart is sporting his very own credit card.
  • Bart – blissfully ignorant at how credit works – goes on a shopping spree, buying the family some very expensive gifts from a mail order catalog: Vancouver smoked salmon and a radio-frying pan for Marge, a golf shirt with corporate logo for Homer, "Trucker's Choice Stay-Alert Capsules" for Lisa ... and plenty of toys and clothing for himself. Lisa is immediately suspicious, but Bart takes advantage of his sister being high on pills and explains his way out of her questions.
  • The best item of all that Bart buys with his fraudulent credit card: A finely-bred, pre-trained collie, of which only 800 will be born. Not letting its $1,200 purchase price stand in the way, Bart promptly orders one with his credit card. Before long, a crate with his new dog arrives. An overjoyed Bart learns the dog's name is Laddie, and Homer and Marge – still not suspicious about Bart's recent spending spree – falls in love with the dog, who can herd sheep and perform CPR.
  • Bart fails to pay off "Santos L. Halper's" credit card bill, and it isn't long before he gets a call from a collection agency demanding payment. When the calls and collection letters persist, Bart has enough and enlists Laddie to help him bury his ill-gotten credit card. Later, repo men arrive to take back all the merchandise. Lisa – who is the only one home – demands an explanation, and Bart is forced to admit the truth. When a repossessor demands the $1,200 dog, Bart identifies Santa's Little Helper as the dog they're after. The greyhound is herded into the truck, and Bart sadly watches as it drives away.
  • Noticing that Santa's Little Helper is gone, the family begins to bond with Laddie ... except for Bart, who begins to miss his canine friend. He fears for Santa's Little Helper's fate, at one point imagining him being burned alive in a cruise ship's furnace. An exhausted Bart is giving Laddie yet another walk, when the collie saves the life of the unibrow baby.
  • At a ceremony honoring Laddie's heroism, Chief Wiggum decides that Laddie would make the perfect police dog. Bart gives him away, and now Bart is forced to explain why the Simpsons now have no dog. Homer makes Bart do whatever it takes to get Santa's Little Helper back. Bart eventually learns from Rev. Lovejoy that the dog was given to a parishioner named Mr. Mitchell.
  • Bart visits Mr. Mitchell, who is blind, and asks for his dog back, but when he sees how the man and Santa's Little Helper (who has been renamed Sprinkles) have bonded, a heartsick Bart leaves. Bart, still determined to get his dog back, makes a late-night, unannounced visit to Mr. Mitchell's home. Bart and Santa's Little Helper are reunited, but Mr. Mitchell eventually traps Bart in a closet. He calls the police and wants Bart charged with burglary, but Chief Wiggum has brought along Laddie, who immediately sniffs out a marijuana packet in Mr. Mitchell's pocket.
  • Chief Wiggum begins to read Mr. Mitchell his rights, when Eddie remarks about medicinal uses of the drug. After sending Bart away with Santa's Little Helper, Chief Wiggum declares its time to party as the Bob Marley song 'Jamming' plays over the end credits.
  • ==Cultural references==
  • The episode title is a play on the 1951 Herman Wouk novel The Caine Mutiny and the subsequent Humphrey Bogart movie.
  • The dog "Laddie" is a play on Lassie, in terms of name, appearance (resembling a Rough Collie) and uncanny intelligence.
  • The notion of dogs mistakenly being issued major credit cards was previously mentioned in "Sideshow Bob's Last Gleaming". A real-life incident followed the episode in 2004, when a man replied who signed up to an e-mail list using his dog's name received a credit card in this name. [3]
  • Marge listens to the song "You Really Got Me" by The Kinks played on the frying pan radio.
  • The scene in which Santa's Little Helper has to choose between Bart and Mr. Mitchell is very similar to a pivotal scene in Air Bud, which was released several months after this episode.
  • Mr. Burns believes Laddie is a member of Skull and Bones, a secret organization based at Yale University.
  • At the end of the episode, the song "Jammin" by Bob Marley is played (with a clearly-doped Wiggum and Lou attempting to sing along).
  • Leonard Nimoy as himself
  • Gillian Anderson as Agent Scully
  • David Duchovny as Agent Mulder
  • | season = 8
  • }}
  • "The Twisted World of Marge Simpson" is the eleventh episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons.
  • ==Plot==
  • {{spoiler}}
  • Marge is a member of the Springfield Investorettes, along with other prominent Springfield ladies Edna Krabappel, Helen Lovejoy, Maude Flanders and Agnes Skinner. Marge is reluctant to invest money in high-risk ventures, so the other Investorettes kick her out of the group. At home, Lisa convinces Marge to "roll the dice" and beat the Investorettes at their own game. She decides to buy her own franchise.
  • Later on, at the Franchise Expo, she sees that the Investorettes have become members of the Fleet-A-Pita franchise. Marge decides to join the Pretzel Wagon franchise. Watching a Pretzel Wagon video, she sets up a makeshift office in her garage, and distributes flyers with Homer, Bart and Lisa's help. Finally, she makes the pretzels, which are approved by the resident "Pretzel inspector", Homer.
  • She sets up shop outside the Power Plant. However, the Investorettes' Fleet-A-Pita van rolls up and steals all her business. Dejected, she leaves. Lisa suggests that she think big. So Marge holds Free Pretzel Day in the Springfield War Memorial baseball Stadium. A lot of people take the free pretzels, only to throw them at Mr. Burns, who won a new car (and injuring Whitey Ford into the bargain). Marge goes into depression.
  • Homer decides to take matters into his own hands and tries to find someone who can help Marge. After finding out that the Pretzel Wagon owner has died, he goes to church... to meet Fat Tony (who had set up an ad in the bulletin there). Fat Tony agrees to help Homer. The next day, Marge gets a large order for pretzels. Many snack-food vendors are pushed around and intimidated by the mob. Even the Investorettes' Fleet-A-Pita van is blown up. Marge's business is booming!
  • Later, Fat Tony meets Homer and demands that he pay up for his "favor". Homer refuses. Later, Marge gets an order to some remote location. On the way, she encounters Fat Tony and his goons. He tells her about the deal he made with Homer and says he is entitled to a part of Marge's profits... just around 100%! Marge confronts Homer about this and he comes clean. Marge refuses to share her profits with the mob.
  • At home, knowing that the mob will be coming for the money, they make pretzels to calm themselves. When the mob arrives, Marge again refuses. Suddenly, the Investorettes show up, and this time, they have backup - the Japanese Yakuza. The mobsters and the Yakuza lay into each other. Marge and Homer withdraw into the house.
  • Homer apologises for his indiscretion, and Marge forgives him. The two gangs continue fighting...
  • ==Cultural references==
  • The opening scene takes place at the "Municipal House of Pancakes", a reference to IHOP.
  • Agnes says, "Children are so fat today! Isn't there some way we can make money off that?"
  • It is suggested that Marge "can't keep up with the go-go 90s".
  • The song played during Fat Tony's rampage of terror against food stands is the song "The Lineman."
  • Frank Ormand's "you'll be there" speech mirrors that of Tom Joad at the conclusion of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath.
  • Lemmon's portrayal of Frank Ormand is based on the character Shelley Levene in Glengarry Glen Ross, also played by Lemmon.
  • | season = 8
  • }}
  • "You Only Move Twice" is the 2nd episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons.
  • ==Synopsis==
  • {{spoiler}}
  • Hank Scorpio, the head of Globex Corporation and a James Bond-esque international supervillain, is on the prowl for the top nuclear technician in Springfield. After Smithers rejects his offer, his cronies move on to the person with the second longest tenure at the plant: Homer. After they win him over with a slick promotional video, the Simpsons pack their belongings and get ready to move to Scorpio's company town of Cypress Creek. After the family has difficulty selling their house, they abandon it and settle into a utopian neighborhood; however, things are not as they seem. Homer is happy with their new life; despite his destructive schemes, Hank is a dream boss, and Homer finally finds a job that he is good at: bossing other people around. However, the other family members endure various hardships: Bart is initially popular at his new school (he even meets a Milhouse-type), but when his teachers learn he doesn't know cursive or the multiplication table, they tuck him away in the special education class, which is filled entirely with Ralph Wiggum-like students; Lisa falls in love with the local flora and fauna, only to find that she's allergic to most of it; and a house that cleans itself leaves Marge with too much time to drink the company's complimentary wine. When they get sick and tired of dealing with all this they plead with Homer to take them back to Springfield, and after much soul-searching he gives in. It's just as well, as the government raids Scorpio's compound. When they arrive back in Springfield, they learn that Scorpio has taken over the East Coast, Otto and his girlfriend have been squatting in their house, and the Denver Broncos (a farewell gift from Scorpio) are on their front lawn.
  • ==Allusion to Silicon Valley (and beyond)==
  • Hank Scorpio bears a striking physical resemblance to Larry Ellison, the CEO of Oracle Corporation. Both men are exuberant, hyperenergetic, bearded Type A personalities with a love of sports and adventure. More supporting evidence:
  • Cypress Creek looks very similar to Redwood Shores, California, the planned community where Oracle's headquarters is located
  • The writers' original name for Cypress Creek was "Emerald Caverns," but the former was chosen because it sounded more like the name of a town in Silicon Valley.
  • The original town name of "Emerald Caverns" was probably a reference to Oracle's campus, which is nicknamed "The Emerald City" or "Oz" due to the shiny green glass that completely covers all of the buildings.
  • The building Scorpio and Homer work in is round, just like Oracle's headquarters
  • Scorpio also has been noted to resemble (physically and in behavior) former Philadelphia 76ers President and television personality/self-help author Pat Croce, as well as Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Records and other Virgin Brands and Danny Bonaduce.
  • ==Cultural references==
  • The episode features many references to Ian Fleming's James Bond and EON Productions' subsequent series of films. They include:
    • Hank Scorpio is a parody of a typical James Bondian villain, specifically Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Perhaps unintentionally, his name is also similar to that of Vladimir Scorpius, the villain from the James Bond novel Scorpius by John Gardner.
    • The episode title is a parody of You Only Live Twice.
    • Additionally, Scorpio's doomsday gun room and the battle with soldiers also greatly resembles Blofeld's volcano base and climatic battle in You Only Live Twice.
    • The episode ends with a theme song sung in the style as the themes to Goldfinger and Thunderball. The song describes Scorpio's "plot to rule the world" as one of his obsessions.
    • A British secret agent, "Mr. Bont", is tackled by Homer as he tries to escape. Earlier he is strapped to a table with a laser pointed at him, referencing a famous scene in Goldfinger. Bont asks Scorpio if he expects him to talk, to which Scorpio replies, "I don't expect anything from you except to die and have a very cheap funeral." As Hank congratulates Homer for tackling Bont ("When you get home tonight, there'll be another story on your house"), in the background guards can be seen surrounding Bont and shooting him with their submachineguns. This is the second time Homer has ensured the death of a secret agent. The first was a deleted scene in $pringfield, when Homer's terrible blackjack dealing skills led to James Bond-ironically under the same thin disguise of "Bont"- losing and Ernst Stavro Blofeld dragging him away. The scene was used in the third segment of "The Simpsons' 138th Episode Spectacular", which was devoted to deleted scenes.
    • A soldier is strangled by a woman using only her thighs, à la Xenia Onatopp from GoldenEye. The solider is actually General Norman Schwarzkopf, according to the DVDs episode commentary track.

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsCouchGagsS08':

  • "A Milhouse Divided" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons' 8th season.
  • Marge decides to throw a dinner party to escape from the doldrums of everyday life at the Simpson house. She invites the Flanders family, the Lovejoys, the Hibberts and the Van Houtens. Kirk, Luanne and Milhouse Van Houten come late, and the parents nitpick at each other all night as Milhouse plays upstairs with Bart. The two seem to get more quarrelsome as the party progresses, and finally, despite Marge trying to divert the party away from the fighting pair, Luanne demands a divorce.
  • Kirk moves out of the Van Houten house and into "Casa Nova: A Transitional Place for Singles", where he sleeps in a race-car bed. Despite his drab new surroundings, Kirk keeps a cheery attitude toward it all... that is, until he is fired from his job at the cracker factory for being newly single (crackers are "a family food," his boss explains). Meanwhile, Luanne quickly begins her life after Kirk by starting a new relationship with Chase, who goes by "Pyro" on American Gladiators. Marge invites Homer to go see Spalding Gray with Luanne and Chase, but Homer declines, instead going out with Kirk. Kirk also has a new relationship; he begins dating a wig-wearing radio station temp named Starla who promises to help him launch his singing career, but instead steals his car. While at Moe's, Kirk mentions that he never saw the divorce coming. "One day, your wife is making your favorite meal," he says. "The next day you're thawing a hot dog in a gas station sink." Homer begins to fear that his and Marge's marriage might be next, especially when he sees that Marge left hot dogs thawing in the sink for him.
  • Marge makes Bart her specialty "butterscotch chicken", but in "Blood Feud" Marge says that Bart's allergies are "butterscotch and imitation butterscotch."
  • Bart After Dark is the one hundredth and fifty-eighth episode of The Simpsons.
  • Lisa sees on the news that an oil tanker has crashed and has spilled thousands of gallons of oil on the beach. She asks Marge if she can go and help save the local wildlife. After begging, Marge agrees. Bart and Homer stay at home and quickly turn the house into a pig sty. Bart goes out to play with his friends and ends up damaging a creepy looking house. The owner of the house, Belle, demands compensation; Homer tells Bart to do chores for her to make up for the damages.
  • Bart discovers that the house is actually a burlesque house and quickly takes a new enthusiasm to his job. Meanwhile, Marge and Lisa discover that all the animal cleaning has been taken by celebrities and drive home. Homer learns about the true nature of the burlesque house, but does nothing about Bart working there. Soon, the Flanderses and Lovejoys confront him on the matter in front of Marge, who was previously unaware of Bart's form of employment.
  • Marge asks Belle to close down the burlesque house, but she refuses. At a town meeting, Marge brings up the matter of the house and soon gets support of the entire town to destroy it. An angry mob arrives to take it down. As they are about to destroy the house, Bart convinces Homer to tell them to stop. He does so by breaking into a musical number (accompanied by Belle and her backup dancers) which convinces the town not to destroy the house. (This is a parody of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas). However, Marge arrives with a bulldozer, having missed the song. She tries to sing her own song about her views, during which she accidentally puts the bulldozer into drive and damages the burlesque house. To help out, she starts a ventriloquist act to pay for the damage.
  • This episode contains one of the hints that Patty is a lesbian as she is seen exiting the house during the slide show, a fact that is confirmed in future episodes.
  • This episode won an Emmy for "Outstanding Music and Lyrics in a Comedy/Musical Film (An Hour or Less Long)" for the climactic musical number.
  • The Couch Gag for this episode parodies The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover. Homer looks behind him, and later turns around. This is a reference to the cover of the first Be Sharps album (from the Episode Homer's Barbershop Quartet.
  • The room is upside-down. They run up the ceiling and sit on the couch, until they fall to the "real" floor.
  • Balloons representing the family float into the room and burst when they hit the couch.
  • | guest_star = Johnny Cash as the Coyote
  • "Grade School Confidential" is an episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons. This episode establishes the long-term relationship between Seymour Skinner and Edna Krabappel.
  • Martin Prince invites his classmates to his birthday party, but the gathering – which features a mathemagician as the main entertainment – turns out to be incredibly boring. As a result, party guests Principal Skinner and Edna Krabappel strike up a conversation and discover they have romantic feelings for each other. The party comes to its merciful end when everyone becomes ill with food poisoning, as Martin insisted on serving oysters instead of a birthday cake. Vegetarian Lisa doesn't get sick, but nevertheless fakes illness to leave the party. Bart is the only other one to escape the poisoning, having fed his oysters to Martin's cat; he stays behind and spots Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel kissing inside Martin's playhouse.
  • Bart plans to reveal what he witnessed, but Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel – wanting their privacy respected – swear him to secrecy. They hire him as their gofer so they can secretly exchange messages. Bart agrees for awhile, especially since the reward for his cooperation is that Milhouse will inherit Bart's poor school record. Eventually, Bart grows frustrated about his home, school and social life continually being interrupted to help them advance their relationship. One afternoon at school, after he is embarrassed in front of his classmates by having to say one of Principal Skinners messages to Mrs. Krabappel out loud, an angry Bart gathers the entire student body in front of a janitor's closet ... where Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel are kissing.
  • Word quickly spreads throughout Springfield, with the story growing more illicit and exaggerated with each passing turn (e.g., Ralph explains he saw Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel "making babies and I saw one of the babies and the baby looked at me"). An appalled Chief Wiggum, upon hearing his son's version of the events, alerts Superintendent Chalmers. Chalmers gives Principal Skinner an ultimatum – end the relationship or have both of them face dismissal. Principal Skinner decides that love is stronger than his professional goals.
  • Bart learns that Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel have lost their jobs. Bart encourages Principal Skinner to stand up for himself, and he does just that. He locks down the school, calls the media and – after sitting on the roof – he and Mrs. Krabappel make their demands: They want their jobs back and the townspeople to not interfere in their relationship. However, several residents reply with their accusation about the two having sexual intercourse in the janitor's closet. Principal Skinner insists nothing of the sort happened, and that he, in fact, is still a virgin. Everyone accepts the explanation, and Chalmers agrees to reinstate Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel as though nothing happened. Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel decide to continue their relationship more privately than ever by convincing Bart that they have broken up.
  • ==Cultural references==
  • The episode's title is a play on Jerry Lee Lewis' song "High School Confidential".
  • Bart says, "Set your faces to stunned!" in reference to the Star Trek quote, "Set your phasers on stun."
  • Skinner pretends to be a suicide bomber by strapping Armour hot dogs to his shirt; Wiggum and Chalmers inadvertently quote the 1980s advertising jingle (previously sung by Bart and Lisa in "Lady Bouvier's Lover").
  • | guest_star = Dave Thomas as Rex Banner
  • Bart turns lime green when he sits on the couch. Homer fixes the TV, only to make Bart appear red, and Homer slaps Bart on the head to make him appear in his normal way.
  • | guest_star = John Waters as John
  • | guest_star = Jon Lovitz as Jay Sherman
  • | guest_star = Sab Shimono as Mr. Sparkle
  • "Lisa's Date with Density" is the 7th episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons.
  • At Springfield Elementary School, Superintendent Chalmers visits Principal Skinner to show off his newly purchased car – a 1979 Honda Accord – but becomes distraught when he discovers the car's hood ornament missing. Principal Skinner orders a search of everyone's lockers, and it is soon determined that Nelson Muntz is the culprit. As punishment, Nelson is forced to apologize and then help Groundskeeper Willie with chores around the school campus.
  • In music class, Lisa is caught looking outside the window at Nelson attempting to help Groundskeeper Willie, and is given detention. After school, she continues to watch Nelson ... and develops a huge crush on the bully.
  • Lisa lets Nelson know how she feels about him by attempting to pass a love note in class; however, Lisa speaks up only after Nelson has seriously injured Milhouse, thinking the note came from him. Lisa is resolved to reform Nelson into a model student. She changes his appearance by taking him to the Wee Monsieur (where he is dressed in a sweater and slacks) and giving him a new hairdo. The two later share a kiss during their date at the Springfield Observatory.
  • However, the influence of Nelson's friends – Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney – proves to win out when they convince him to throw spoiled coleslaw at Principal Skinner's house. Skinner immediately fingers the juvenile delinquents as suspects, and they flee. Nelson takes refuge with Lisa, proclaiming his innocence. Lisa believes him, until Nelson unwittingly lets slip the truth. Lisa realizes that Nelson is always going to be Nelson and ends their relationship, much to the relief of an overjoyed Milhouse.
  • In the subplot, Chief Wiggum arrests a scam artist for telemarketing fraud. Homer witnesses the arrest and sees the discarded autodialer in a nearby trash bin. Homer takes the autodialer home to use for tele-panhandling.
  • Homer ends up annoying most of Springfield with his "Happy Dude" scam, and it isn't long before Chief Wiggum catches him. Instead of confiscating the autodialer and taking Homer into custody, Wiggum gives him a citation and asks him to bring the autodialer with him to his court hearing. Homer does just that, and is ordered to apologize to everyone he had scammed. Using the autodialer, he apologizes ... and then asks for more money!
  • ==Cultural references==
  • The episode title is both a reference to the 1985 Robert Zemeckis film Back to the Future, where George McFly mixes up the words "destiny" and "density", and a play on the phrase "Date with destiny".
  • Homer's doughnut is made up of 13 M&M's (5 brown, 4 light orange, and 4 yellow), 3 Jolly Ranchers, a Twizzler, and a Mounds bar on it.
  • When Nelson is playing the guitar, he does a move similar to Angus Young's (and Chuck Berry's) "Duck Walk." He also mimicks Pete Townshend's "Windmill."
  • Maggie doesn't appear in this episode.
  • First episode to establish that Milhouse has a crush on Lisa (first seeing has a possible future in "Lisa's Wedding").
  • In the promos for this episode, there is a scene where Lisa and Nelson ride a bike together. This isn't in the episode proper.
  • Mountain of Madness is an episode of The Simpsons
  • Mr. Burns goes to work and decides to skip his usual morning coffee. But within an hour, he feels sleepy and has his drink. Energized, Burns decides to hold an evacuation drill but ends up settling for a good old-fashioned fire drill. However, instead of clearing the plant complex, the employees panic, and fail to get out in less than fifteen minutes. Outraged, Burns declares that everyone shall be subjected to a teamwork competition at Mt. Springfield. Homer gets partnered with Burns while Smithers has to journey on his own. The object of this competition is to reach a cabin at the top of the mountain; the last team to arrive will be fired.
  • Along the way, Burns talks Homer into cheating and they use a snowmobile to reach the cabin. Arriving several hours early, they get comfortable. Burns and Homer quickly form a friendship. However, while clinking their champagne glasses, they cause an avalanche that buries the entire cabin. They are unable to get a message to the outside world. Meanwhile, Bart and Lisa meet Smithers and agree to help him, though they do more stalling than helping. In the cabin, Burns and Homer fail to tunnel out. Each time they speak, they cause more avalanches that put more snow between them and freedom.
  • Soon, cabin fever begins to fall upon the two men. They build snowmen to pass the time (though Burns insists they build real men out of snow) and give them their clothing. As for the other workers, they reach what they think is the cabin. However, it is actually a ranger station and they realize that something bad has happened to their colleagues. In the cabin, Homer and Burns stare at each other's eyes, filling their minds with paranoia. Burns is driven mad and attempts to kill Homer. After a struggle, Burns ignites the cabin's propane tank, launching the cabin out of the snow and next to the other workers. Reminding everyone of the contest, all the workers run in and Lenny, being the last one to reach the cabin, is fired (though Burns decides that everyone has learned their lesson and that no one is fired after all). As for himself and Homer, the episode ends with the two of them exchanging paranoid glances.
  • Contrary to his established character, Mr. Burns remembers Homer's name throughout the episode.
  • The characters Burns hullucinates seeing are Mao Zedong, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Mahatma Gandhi.
  • When Burns asks Smithers how the mountain competition went, Smithers informs him that they have set a new record. After checking a watch that earlier he stated only went to 15 minutes.
  • On its way down the hill, the propane-driven house kills a squirrel.
  • Lisa decides to earn extra money as a babysitter. However, because of her age, no one takes her seriously. One day, Ned states that Maude has been taken hostage in the Holy Land and he must leave to get her released. Lisa offers to baby-sit. After a relatively uneventful night, Ned puts out the good word for Lisa, who experiences a business boom.
  • Lisa calling 911 trying to get an ambulance fails, after Bart attempted to make several prank calls earlier that night. Then she tries to call Dr. Hibbert but has a day-dream about what would happen. She then tries to take an unconscious Bart (and a hyperactive Maggie) to Dr. Nick Riviera's clinic but fails to get an appointment. She then takes Bart and Maggie on foot to the hospital. Along the way, Chief Wiggum halts Lisa to see what kind of wheelbarrow she has (what she was carrying Bart and Maggie in). After complimenting Lisa on her excellent choice of barrow Bart falls into the river right in front of the crowded Squid Port. Everyone assumes that Lisa murdered Bart and that she is on drugs, and is about to drown Maggie. Homer and Marge are shocked at these events. The next day, Bart gets treatment, confesses it was his fault and apologizes to Lisa. She is distraught that her reputation as a babysitter is ruined; however, despite the rumors, she still gets a few requests from other families, because she's one of the only babysitters in town.
    • Looter's Hernia
    • Allergic Reaction
    • Liquor Store Robbery
    • Hosting an AA meeting
    • Inviting the Ambassador of Ghana over
    • Hiring Krusty for a bachelor party
  • | guest_star = Alex Rocco as Roger Meyers, Jr.
  • Homer, Marge, Bart, and Lisa fly in the room with backpack rockets and sit on the couch. Maggie flies in wildly, makes a few loops, and lands on Marge's lap.
  • | image =
  • | season = 8
  • "Treehouse of Horror VII" is the first episode of The Simpsons' eighth season, as well as the seventh Halloween episode. The episode aired on October 27, 1996.
  • ===Opening sequence===
  • It's Halloween night, and Homer proceeds to light a jack-o'-lantern. The pumpkin ignites instantly, and the fire spreads to Homer's hand, then to his entire body. He runs back and forth, screaming, as "The Simpsons Halloween Special VII" appears on-screen. While running to the couch with the Grim Reaper sitting on it, the Simpsons die, piling over each other. The Grim Reaper uses them as a footstool.
  • ===The Thing and I===
  • Bart and Lisa think that there is something in the attic. Homer claims not to know what they are talking about, although he feeds the thing fish heads. Bart and Lisa investigate in the attic to find out that there really is a monster. Homer and Marge call Dr. Hibbert about the thing, which appears to be Bart's conjoined twin brother, Hugo (voiced by Nancy Cartwright as well).. Dr. Hibbert says that Hugo and Bart's birth as conjoined twins was an irregularity because one of them was pure evil (the one on the left side, since he continuously bit the one on the right side), and he had to separate them, choosing to take Bart home and let Hugo be chained up in the attic. Bart even sees the scar from the birth. The rest of the family leaves Bart at home, while they look for Hugo. Meanwhile, Hugo is actually home and takes Bart up to the attic and ties him up to a bed. Hugo decides he's going to sew himself and Bart up. When they come home, Dr. Hibbert realizes that Hugo's scar is on the wrong side, meaning that the evil twin is actually Bart, who is locked up in the attic in Hugo's stead and made to eat fish heads, while the rest of the family eats turkey.
  • ===The Genesis Tub===
  • Lisa performs a science experiment to see if cola will dissolve a tooth. Bart shocks Lisa as part of his project to prove that nerds conduct electricity. She accidentally shocks the tooth, and it undergoes an unusual electrical reaction: Lisa finds out she has created life. The people in her universe evolve at a rapid rate, going through the various ages humans have gone through into modern times and eventually, the future. Bart destroys some of the ecosystem in Lisa's tub universe, and the people respond, after Bart nearly destroyed their world by slipping his finger ("Whoops! My finger slipped." "Whoops! my finger slipped." "Whoops! My finger slipped.") by attacking Bart with spaceships. Lisa is shrunken to fit into the tub, and finds out that she is worshipped as their god, while Bart is feared as the devil. Lisa wants to return to her normal size, but the people in the tub have yet to invent a "re-bigulater" and she is trapped. Bart takes Lisa's project to school, which wins first prize in the science fair, and Lisa realizes she is now forever trapped in the tub.
  • ===Citizen Kang===
  • While fishing, Homer is abducted by the aliens Kang and Kodos. When they demand Homer point them towards Earth's leader, Homer tells them about the then-upcoming election, and that the winner could be either Bill Clinton or Bob Dole. Kang and Kodos kidnap both Dole and Clinton, placing them in suspended animation tubes. Kang and Kodos take on their forms to ensure that one of them will become the next leader. The aliens soak Homer in rum and return him to Earth; naturally, no one believes him despite Dole and Clinton's bizarre new manners of speech. At a debate between the candidates, he attempts to expose them as "alien replicons from beyond the moon." He is thrown out of the debate and accidentally finds the aliens' spaceship. Homer flies the ship into space, where he tries to return the real Dole and Clinton, but instead ejects them nude into space. On the day before the election, Homer succeeds at revealing the candidates' true identities in Washington, D.C. during a major speech; however, the invaders convince the crowd that voting against either of them and for a third-party candidate would be to "throw your vote away," much to Ross Perot's chagrin. Kang is eventually elected President and forces the citizens of America to build a giant raygun to aim at another planet.
  • The phrase "Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos" (said by Homer in response to Marge complaining about President Kang's initiative to use the humans as slave labor) was the inspiration for the name of the Ska band I Voted for Kodos (IV4K).
  • The music playing during the bioduplication sequence is the theme from the late-60s television series The Invaders.
  • Cartman's storyline in the South Park episode "Simpsons Already Did It" spoofs the "Genesis Tub" segment.
  • This is the first "Treehouse of Horror" episode since Treehouse of Horror II to have Kang and Kodos in more than a brief cameo.
  • In The Thing and I, Homer's autobiography is called Homer, I Hardly Knew Me.
  • At the end of The Genesis Tub, Lisa is barefoot; despite the fact that she was wearing slippers when she was beamed down to the Tub World. (However, due to the slippers having no backs, they could have fallen off during the time Bart took it to the school science fair.)
  • The rings which shrink Lisa in The Genesis Tub are a reference to the silent film Metropolis.
  • First Halloween episode to be the season premier.

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsWritersS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsCulturalS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsDirectorsS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsTriviaS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsBlackboardS08':

Additions to ListGenBot list 'SimpsonsCouchGagsS08':

  • Bart says, "Set your faces to stunned!" in reference to the Star Trek quote, "Set your phasers on stun." (Grade School Confidential)
  • Skinner pretends to be a suicide bomber by strapping Armour hot dogs to his shirt; Wiggum and Chalmers inadvertently quote the 1980s advertising jingle (previously sung by Bart and Lisa in "Lady Bouvier's Lover"). (Grade School Confidential)
  • The episode's title is a play on Jerry Lee Lewis' song "High School Confidential". (Grade School Confidential)
  • "A Milhouse Divided" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons' 8th season. (A Milhouse Divided)
  • "Grade School Confidential" is an episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons. This episode establishes the long-term relationship between Seymour Skinner and Edna Krabappel. (Grade School Confidential)
  • "Lisa's Date with Density" is the 7th episode from the eighth season of The Simpsons. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • "Treehouse of Horror VII" is the first episode of The Simpsons' eighth season, as well as the seventh Halloween episode. The episode aired on October 27, 1996. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Bart After Dark is the one hundredth and fifty-eighth episode of The Simpsons. (Bart After Dark)
  • Mountain of Madness is an episode of The Simpsons (Mountain of Madness)
  • (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ===Citizen Kang=== (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ===Opening sequence=== (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ===The Genesis Tub=== (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ===The Thing and I=== (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ==Cultural references== (Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density)
  • ==Synopsis== (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • ==Trivia== (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Along the way, Burns talks Homer into cheating and they use a snowmobile to reach the cabin. Arriving several hours early, they get comfortable. Burns and Homer quickly form a friendship. However, while clinking their champagne glasses, they cause an avalanche that buries the entire cabin. They are unable to get a message to the outside world. Meanwhile, Bart and Lisa meet Smithers and agree to help him, though they do more stalling than helping. In the cabin, Burns and Homer fail to tunnel out. Each time they speak, they cause more avalanches that put more snow between them and freedom. (Mountain of Madness)
  • At Springfield Elementary School, Superintendent Chalmers visits Principal Skinner to show off his newly purchased car – a 1979 Honda Accord – but becomes distraught when he discovers the car's hood ornament missing. Principal Skinner orders a search of everyone's lockers, and it is soon determined that Nelson Muntz is the culprit. As punishment, Nelson is forced to apologize and then help Groundskeeper Willie with chores around the school campus. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • At the end of The Genesis Tub, Lisa is barefoot; despite the fact that she was wearing slippers when she was beamed down to the Tub World. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Bart discovers that the house is actually a burlesque house and quickly takes a new enthusiasm to his job. Meanwhile, Marge and Lisa discover that all the animal cleaning has been taken by celebrities and drive home. Homer learns about the true nature of the burlesque house, but does nothing about Bart working there. Soon, the Flanderses and Lovejoys confront him on the matter in front of Marge, who was previously unaware of Bart's form of employment. (Bart After Dark)
  • Bart learns that Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel have lost their jobs. Bart encourages Principal Skinner to stand up for himself, and he does just that. He locks down the school, calls the media and – after sitting on the roof – he and Mrs. Krabappel make their demands: They want their jobs back and the townspeople to not interfere in their relationship. However, several residents reply with their accusation about the two having sexual intercourse in the janitor's closet. Principal Skinner insists nothing of the sort happened, and that he, in fact, is still a virgin. Everyone accepts the explanation, and Chalmers agrees to reinstate Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel as though nothing happened. Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel decide to continue their relationship more privately than ever by convincing Bart that they have broken up. (Grade School Confidential)
  • Bart plans to reveal what he witnessed, but Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel – wanting their privacy respected – swear him to secrecy. They hire him as their gofer so they can secretly exchange messages. Bart agrees for awhile, especially since the reward for his cooperation is that Milhouse will inherit Bart's poor school record. Eventually, Bart grows frustrated about his home, school and social life continually being interrupted to help them advance their relationship. One afternoon at school, after he is embarrassed in front of his classmates by having to say one of Principal Skinners messages to Mrs. Krabappel out loud, an angry Bart gathers the entire student body in front of a janitor's closet ... where Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel are kissing. (Grade School Confidential)
  • Bart turns lime green when he sits on the couch. Homer fixes the TV, only to make Bart appear red, and Homer slaps Bart on the head to make him appear in his normal way. (Homer's Enemy)
  • Contrary to his established character, Mr. Burns remembers Homer's name throughout the episode. (Mountain of Madness)
  • First Halloween episode to be the season premier. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • First episode to establish that Milhouse has a crush on Lisa (first seeing has a possible future in "Lisa's Wedding"). (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • Homer's doughnut is made up of 13 M&M's (5 brown, 4 light orange, and 4 yellow), 3 Jolly Ranchers, a Twizzler, and a Mounds bar on it. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • However, the influence of Nelson's friends – Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney – proves to win out when they convince him to throw spoiled coleslaw at Principal Skinner's house. Skinner immediately fingers the juvenile delinquents as suspects, and they flee. Nelson takes refuge with Lisa, proclaiming his innocence. Lisa believes him, until Nelson unwittingly lets slip the truth. Lisa realizes that Nelson is always going to be Nelson and ends their relationship, much to the relief of an overjoyed Milhouse. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • In The Thing and I, Homer's autobiography is called Homer, I Hardly Knew Me. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • In music class, Lisa is caught looking outside the window at Nelson attempting to help Groundskeeper Willie, and is given detention. After school, she continues to watch Nelson ... and develops a huge crush on the bully. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • In the promos for this episode, there is a scene where Lisa and Nelson ride a bike together. This isn't in the episode proper. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • In the subplot, Chief Wiggum arrests a scam artist for telemarketing fraud. Homer witnesses the arrest and sees the discarded autodialer in a nearby trash bin. Homer takes the autodialer home to use for tele-panhandling. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • It's Halloween night, and Homer proceeds to light a jack-o'-lantern. The pumpkin ignites instantly, and the fire spreads to Homer's hand, then to his entire body. He runs back and forth, screaming, as "The Simpsons Halloween Special VII" appears on-screen. While running to the couch with the Grim Reaper sitting on it, the Simpsons die, piling over each other. The Grim Reaper uses them as a footstool. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Kirk moves out of the Van Houten house and into "Casa Nova: A Transitional Place for Singles", where he sleeps in a race-car bed. Despite his drab new surroundings, Kirk keeps a cheery attitude toward it all... that is, until he is fired from his job at the cracker factory for being newly single (crackers are "a family food," his boss explains). Meanwhile, Luanne quickly begins her life after Kirk by starting a new relationship with Chase, who goes by "Pyro" on American Gladiators. Marge invites Homer to go see Spalding Gray with Luanne and Chase, but Homer declines, instead going out with Kirk. Kirk also has a new relationship; he begins dating a wig-wearing radio station temp named Starla who promises to help him launch his singing career, but instead steals his car. While at Moe's, Kirk mentions that he never saw the divorce coming. "One day, your wife is making your favorite meal," he says. "The next day you're thawing a hot dog in a gas station sink." Homer begins to fear that his and Marge's marriage might be next, especially when he sees that Marge left hot dogs thawing in the sink for him. (A Milhouse Divided)
  • Lisa calling 911 trying to get an ambulance fails, after Bart attempted to make several prank calls earlier that night. Then she tries to call Dr. Hibbert but has a day-dream about what would happen. She then tries to take an unconscious Bart (and a hyperactive Maggie) to Dr. Nick Riviera's clinic but fails to get an appointment. She then takes Bart and Maggie on foot to the hospital. Along the way, Chief Wiggum halts Lisa to see what kind of wheelbarrow she has (what she was carrying Bart and Maggie in). After complimenting Lisa on her excellent choice of barrow Bart falls into the river right in front of the crowded Squid Port. Everyone assumes that Lisa murdered Bart and that she is on drugs, and is about to drown Maggie. Homer and Marge are shocked at these events. The next day, Bart gets treatment, confesses it was his fault and apologizes to Lisa. She is distraught that her reputation as a babysitter is ruined; however, despite the rumors, she still gets a few requests from other families, because she's one of the only babysitters in town. (My Sister, My Sitter)
  • Lisa decides to earn extra money as a babysitter. However, because of her age, no one takes her seriously. One day, Ned states that Maude has been taken hostage in the Holy Land and he must leave to get her released. Lisa offers to baby-sit. After a relatively uneventful night, Ned puts out the good word for Lisa, who experiences a business boom. (My Sister, My Sitter)
  • Lisa lets Nelson know how she feels about him by attempting to pass a love note in class; however, Lisa speaks up only after Nelson has seriously injured Milhouse, thinking the note came from him. Lisa is resolved to reform Nelson into a model student. She changes his appearance by taking him to the Wee Monsieur (where he is dressed in a sweater and slacks) and giving him a new hairdo. The two later share a kiss during their date at the Springfield Observatory. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • Lisa performs a science experiment to see if cola will dissolve a tooth. Bart shocks Lisa as part of his project to prove that nerds conduct electricity. She accidentally shocks the tooth, and it undergoes an unusual electrical reaction: Lisa finds out she has created life. The people in her universe evolve at a rapid rate, going through the various ages humans have gone through into modern times and eventually, the future. Bart destroys some of the ecosystem in Lisa's tub universe, and the people respond, after Bart nearly destroyed their world by slipping his finger ("Whoops! My finger slipped." "Whoops! my finger slipped." "Whoops! My finger slipped.") by attacking Bart with spaceships. Lisa is shrunken to fit into the tub, and finds out that she is worshipped as their god, while Bart is feared as the devil. Lisa wants to return to her normal size, but the people in the tub have yet to invent a "re-bigulater" and she is trapped. Bart takes Lisa's project to school, which wins first prize in the science fair, and Lisa realizes she is now forever trapped in the tub. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Marge asks Belle to close down the burlesque house, but she refuses. At a town meeting, Marge brings up the matter of the house and soon gets support of the entire town to destroy it. An angry mob arrives to take it down. As they are about to destroy the house, Bart convinces Homer to tell them to stop. He does so by breaking into a musical number (accompanied by Belle and her backup dancers) which convinces the town not to destroy the house. (This is a parody of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas). However, Marge arrives with a bulldozer, having missed the song. She tries to sing her own song about her views, during which she accidentally puts the bulldozer into drive and damages the burlesque house. To help out, she starts a ventriloquist act to pay for the damage. (Bart After Dark)
  • Marge makes Bart her specialty "butterscotch chicken", but in "Blood Feud" Marge says that Bart's allergies are "butterscotch and imitation butterscotch." (A Milhouse Divided)
  • On its way down the hill, the propane-driven house kills a squirrel. (Mountain of Madness)
  • Soon, cabin fever begins to fall upon the two men. They build snowmen to pass the time (though Burns insists they build real men out of snow) and give them their clothing. As for the other workers, they reach what they think is the cabin. However, it is actually a ranger station and they realize that something bad has happened to their colleagues. In the cabin, Homer and Burns stare at each other's eyes, filling their minds with paranoia. Burns is driven mad and attempts to kill Homer. After a struggle, Burns ignites the cabin's propane tank, launching the cabin out of the snow and next to the other workers. Reminding everyone of the contest, all the workers run in and Lenny, being the last one to reach the cabin, is fired (though Burns decides that everyone has learned their lesson and that no one is fired after all). As for himself and Homer, the episode ends with the two of them exchanging paranoid glances. (Mountain of Madness)
  • The Couch Gag for this episode parodies The Beatles Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album cover. Homer looks behind him, and later turns around. This is a reference to the cover of the first Be Sharps album (from the Episode Homer's Barbershop Quartet. (Bart After Dark)
  • The characters Burns hullucinates seeing are Mao Zedong, Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt and Mahatma Gandhi. (Mountain of Madness)
  • The episode title is both a reference to the 1985 Robert Zemeckis film Back to the Future, where George McFly mixes up the words "destiny" and "density", and a play on the phrase "Date with destiny". (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • The music playing during the bioduplication sequence is the theme from the late-60s television series The Invaders. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • The phrase "Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos" (said by Homer in response to Marge complaining about President Kang's initiative to use the humans as slave labor) was the inspiration for the name of the Ska band I Voted for Kodos (IV4K). (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • The rings which shrink Lisa in The Genesis Tub are a reference to the silent film Metropolis. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • The room is upside-down. They run up the ceiling and sit on the couch, until they fall to the "real" floor. (Brother from Another Series)
  • This episode contains one of the hints that Patty is a lesbian as she is seen exiting the house during the slide show, a fact that is confirmed in future episodes. (Bart After Dark)
  • This episode won an Emmy for "Outstanding Music and Lyrics in a Comedy/Musical Film (An Hour or Less Long)" for the climactic musical number. (Bart After Dark)
  • This is the first "Treehouse of Horror" episode since Treehouse of Horror II to have Kang and Kodos in more than a brief cameo. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • When Burns asks Smithers how the mountain competition went, Smithers informs him that they have set a new record. After checking a watch that earlier he stated only went to 15 minutes. (Mountain of Madness)
  • When Nelson is playing the guitar, he does a move similar to Angus Young's (and Chuck Berry's) "Duck Walk." He also mimicks Pete Townshend's "Windmill." (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • While fishing, Homer is abducted by the aliens Kang and Kodos. When they demand Homer point them towards Earth's leader, Homer tells them about the then-upcoming election, and that the winner could be either Bill Clinton or Bob Dole. Kang and Kodos kidnap both Dole and Clinton, placing them in suspended animation tubes. Kang and Kodos take on their forms to ensure that one of them will become the next leader. The aliens soak Homer in rum and return him to Earth; naturally, no one believes him despite Dole and Clinton's bizarre new manners of speech. At a debate between the candidates, he attempts to expose them as "alien replicons from beyond the moon." He is thrown out of the debate and accidentally finds the aliens' spaceship. Homer flies the ship into space, where he tries to return the real Dole and Clinton, but instead ejects them nude into space. On the day before the election, Homer succeeds at revealing the candidates' true identities in Washington, D.C. during a major speech; however, the invaders convince the crowd that voting against either of them and for a third-party candidate would be to "throw your vote away," much to Ross Perot's chagrin. Kang is eventually elected President and forces the citizens of America to build a giant raygun to aim at another planet. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Word quickly spreads throughout Springfield, with the story growing more illicit and exaggerated with each passing turn (e.g., Ralph explains he saw Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel "making babies and I saw one of the babies and the baby looked at me"). An appalled Chief Wiggum, upon hearing his son's version of the events, alerts Superintendent Chalmers. Chalmers gives Principal Skinner an ultimatum – end the relationship or have both of them face dismissal. Principal Skinner decides that love is stronger than his professional goals. (Grade School Confidential)
  • Balloons representing the family float into the room and burst when they hit the couch. (Burns, Baby Burns)
  • Bart and Lisa think that there is something in the attic. Homer claims not to know what they are talking about, although he feeds the thing fish heads. Bart and Lisa investigate in the attic to find out that there really is a monster. Homer and Marge call Dr. Hibbert about the thing, which appears to be Bart's conjoined twin brother, Hugo (voiced by Nancy Cartwright as well).. Dr. Hibbert says that Hugo and Bart's birth as conjoined twins was an irregularity because one of them was pure evil (the one on the left side, since he continuously bit the one on the right side), and he had to separate them, choosing to take Bart home and let Hugo be chained up in the attic. Bart even sees the scar from the birth. The rest of the family leaves Bart at home, while they look for Hugo. Meanwhile, Hugo is actually home and takes Bart up to the attic and ties him up to a bed. Hugo decides he's going to sew himself and Bart up. When they come home, Dr. Hibbert realizes that Hugo's scar is on the wrong side, meaning that the evil twin is actually Bart, who is locked up in the attic in Hugo's stead and made to eat fish heads, while the rest of the family eats turkey. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Cartman's storyline in the South Park episode "Simpsons Already Did It" spoofs the "Genesis Tub" segment. (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • Homer ends up annoying most of Springfield with his "Happy Dude" scam, and it isn't long before Chief Wiggum catches him. Instead of confiscating the autodialer and taking Homer into custody, Wiggum gives him a citation and asks him to bring the autodialer with him to his court hearing. Homer does just that, and is ordered to apologize to everyone he had scammed. Using the autodialer, he apologizes ... and then asks for more money! (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • Homer, Marge, Bart, and Lisa fly in the room with backpack rockets and sit on the couch. Maggie flies in wildly, makes a few loops, and lands on Marge's lap. (The Springfield Files)
  • Lisa sees on the news that an oil tanker has crashed and has spilled thousands of gallons of oil on the beach. She asks Marge if she can go and help save the local wildlife. After begging, Marge agrees. Bart and Homer stay at home and quickly turn the house into a pig sty. Bart goes out to play with his friends and ends up damaging a creepy looking house. The owner of the house, Belle, demands compensation; Homer tells Bart to do chores for her to make up for the damages. (Bart After Dark)
  • Maggie doesn't appear in this episode. (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • Marge decides to throw a dinner party to escape from the doldrums of everyday life at the Simpson house. She invites the Flanders family, the Lovejoys, the Hibberts and the Van Houtens. Kirk, Luanne and Milhouse Van Houten come late, and the parents nitpick at each other all night as Milhouse plays upstairs with Bart. The two seem to get more quarrelsome as the party progresses, and finally, despite Marge trying to divert the party away from the fighting pair, Luanne demands a divorce. (A Milhouse Divided)
  • Martin Prince invites his classmates to his birthday party, but the gathering – which features a mathemagician as the main entertainment – turns out to be incredibly boring. As a result, party guests Principal Skinner and Edna Krabappel strike up a conversation and discover they have romantic feelings for each other. The party comes to its merciful end when everyone becomes ill with food poisoning, as Martin insisted on serving oysters instead of a birthday cake. Vegetarian Lisa doesn't get sick, but nevertheless fakes illness to leave the party. Bart is the only other one to escape the poisoning, having fed his oysters to Martin's cat; he stays behind and spots Principal Skinner and Mrs. Krabappel kissing inside Martin's playhouse. (Grade School Confidential)
  • Mr. Burns goes to work and decides to skip his usual morning coffee. But within an hour, he feels sleepy and has his drink. Energized, Burns decides to hold an evacuation drill but ends up settling for a good old-fashioned fire drill. However, instead of clearing the plant complex, the employees panic, and fail to get out in less than fifteen minutes. Outraged, Burns declares that everyone shall be subjected to a teamwork competition at Mt. Springfield. Homer gets partnered with Burns while Smithers has to journey on his own. The object of this competition is to reach a cabin at the top of the mountain; the last team to arrive will be fired. (Mountain of Madness)
  • (Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Mountain of Madness)
  • (Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density)
  • (Lisa's Date with Density)
  • (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • {{spoiler}} (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • | guest_star = Alex Rocco as Roger Meyers, Jr. (The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show)
  • | guest_star = Dave Thomas as Rex Banner (Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment)
  • | guest_star = John Waters as John (Homer's Phobia)
  • | guest_star = Johnny Cash as the Coyote (El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer (The Mysterious Voyage of Homer))
  • | guest_star = Jon Lovitz as Jay Sherman (Hurricane Neddy)
  • | guest_star = Sab Shimono as Mr. Sparkle (In Marge We Trust)
  • | image = (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • | season = 8 (Treehouse of Horror VII)
  • | season = 8 (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter)
  • }} (A Milhouse Divided, Bart After Dark, Grade School Confidential, Lisa's Date with Density, Mountain of Madness, My Sister, My Sitter, Treehouse of Horror VII)
  1. ^ Matt Groening interview SNPP. URL accessed on January 1, 2007
  2. ^ Matt Groening interview SNPP. URL accessed on January 1, 2007