The Simpsons 211-215

Homer Simpsons In "Kidney Trouble"

This episode premiered on December 6, 1998. The lead in show was Annabelle's Wish and it was followed by That 70's Show. It ran opposite The W.W.O. Disney (Pooh's Christmas/Beauty And The Beast), Touched By An Angel and Dateline NBC.

The title comes from the Roger Rabbit cartoon Tummy Trouble and the various Itchy And Scratchy shows that had run on the series over the years.

The chalkboard gag is "I am not a licensed hairstylist" and the couch gag is a repeat of the frogs on the lily pad.

The Simpsons are on their way to a Ghost Town when the Check Engine light comes on and they break down, right in front of the nursing home, and it just happens to be Grandpa's birthday. The town was founded as a prostitute stop. Grandpa drinks too much sarsaparilla and needs to use the restroom but Homer is in a hurry to get home to see The Actor's Studio featuring F. Murray Abraham. Because Abe held too long his kidneys explode. Homer volunteers to give Abe a kidney. The family treats Homer like a hero however the crowd at the bar tells him all the horrible things about organ donations and he starts to panic. At the hospital Homer runs away. Krusty comes to visit Abe as part of the "Last Laugh Program". Homer gets a job on a a ship, the Sea Captain calls it The Ship Of Lost Souls" even though the name on the boat is Honeybunch. The people on the ship all have stories of why they fled to sea, when they hear Homer's reason they toss him overboard. Grandpa says he's going to a better place, Shelbyville Hospital. Homer finally shows up but runs away again. He's almost hit by a truck but is crushed by one of the cars it was hauling. The hospital took out one of Homer's kidneys while working on his broken bones. Homer hugs Bart to check out one of his kidneys. 

Bloodbath Gulch "The Friendlies Town In The Old West."

The western saloon has animatronic figures including a guy chasing a woman in a circle, this is a spoof on the classic Pirates Of The Caribbean ride (before it was PC'd)

Bart has a Wanted for Lewd Behavior poster with a photo of Homer, it's not a souvenir, the town's security guard is passing them out to the customers. 

Highway sign: Rest Area 85 Wonderful Bathrooms. They drive by the World's Largest Toilet. People are sitting around the rim reading magazines.

Bart rents Homer's favorite gorilla movies: Gorilla Squadron / Gorilla Island 6 / Apes-A-Poppin'

Springfield Hospital sign: Doctors Carry Less Than $5 Cash

Hospital intercom pages: Doc Martin to Podiatry (the shoe guy). Dr. Bombay, come right away. (Bewitched, complete with how they called him).

Barnacle Bill's Anger Management Center

Homer buys his sea clothes at Davy Jones' Hamper 

Call Me Delish-Mael Taffy Shop. This is a spoof on the opening line from Moby Dick "Call me Ishmael"

The ship has a character based Peter Lorre including the way he talked. 

Dr Hibbert says he had a kidney for Grandpa but Larry Hagman took it, he has 5 kidneys and three hearts.

Mayored To The Mob

This episode premiered on December 20th 1998. The lead in show was The World's Funniest and it was followed by That 70's Show. It ran opposite the ABC Family Movie (The Baby-Sitters Club), Touched By An Angel and Dateline NBC.

The title of the episode comes from the 1988 movie Married To The Mob.

The chalkboard gag is " 'The President did it' is not an excuse" and the couch gag is  a repeat of the car crusher gag. 

The family is watching The Thousand Dollar Movie, Roger Corman's Titanic. The ship tries to eat Jack and Rose just as she's getting naked. There is a commercial for the Bi Monthly Sci Fi Convention Bi-Mo-Sci-Fi-Con featuring Mark Hamill, Alf and many more. Homer says the convention is nothing but a bunch of nerds, everyone there knows Lisa. Hamill does a pitch for Sprint. When he asks for a volunteer to play Obi Wan a riot breaks out. Homer goes charging and saves Hamill and Quimby. The Mayor fires his bodyguards and hires Homer. Homer goes through bodyguard training, they use watermelon as stand ins for celebrities however nobody saves there's, but since their checks cleared they all become bodyguards. Homer uses a Vulcan nerve pinch on the family. Homer takes the Mayor to Moe's where they get a case of Duffenbraus, semi imported. Homer drives the Mayor around to collect his bribes. When Lisa starts complaining about the Mayor Homer does the nerve pinch on her again. The mob bribes the Mayor for the school milk contract but it turns out to be rat milk. Homer goes to tell off Quimby but accidentally hits the speed control on the treadmill and flings the Mayor out the window. Quimby catches the ledge, Homer promises to save him if he does something about the rat milk. The police raid the Gentlemen's Club and Fat Tony vows revenge. To help the Mayor forget about the mob Homer takes him to the Springfield Dinner Theater that is doing a production of Guys And Dolls where Mark Hamill is staring as Nathan Detroit. Homer talks to Fat Tony and delivers a message to the Mayor, the kiss of death. Homer suspects that Fat Tony poisoned the Mayor's dinner so he scarfs it all down. Hamill shows up dressed as Luke. Mobster Louie ends up on stage doing a dance number and gets a round of applause, Hamill tells him off and gets punched. Louie tries to jump off the stage and stab Quimby but Homer jumps in the way, Hamill tells him to "use the fork" and Homer pins Louie's ties to the table, meanwhile Fat Tony is beating the Mayor with a bat. The Mayor goes to the hospital and Homer has to carry Hamill through the crowd of fans while I will Always Love You by Whitney Houston plays (a spoof on the 1992 movie The Bodyguard)

Mark Hamill does his own voice for this episode. Dick Tufeld does the voice of the Lost In Space robot.

The convention features a fight between The Mighty Battle robots from Battlestar Galactica vs. The Gay robots from Star Wars (Classic Battlestar btw)

Science Fiction Convention Set Phasers On Fun!

Autographs: Gort (The Day The Earth Stood Still) / Doctor Who (Tom Baker version) / Godzilla / Neil Armstrong (nobody is getting his autograph) / Dr. Smith and the robot B-9 (Lost In Space)

When Mark Hamill comes on stage he uses his light saber to knock over cardboard cutouts of the Stormtroopers, and Wonder Woman. 

Comic Book Guy sees a woman and the Star Trek seduction music plays. 

Homer goes to Leavelle's Bodyguard Academy A Division Of Ray-Ban (This is a spoof on James Leavelle, the homicide detective who was escorting Lee Harvey Oswald when Jack Ruby jumped out of the crowd and shot him)

Celebrity names on the watermelons, Sting, Madonna, Al Gore, Ann Landers (Homer eats his)

Berating Room Session In Progress

The mob sells Squeaky Farms Brand Genuine Animal Milk. With a picture of Fat Tony holding a pitchfork. This is a spoof on Squeaky Fromme, a member of Charles Manson's "Family"

Continuity error, Lisa is drinking milk despite being a vegetarian. I guess the rules were a little more lax in the 90's.

When Homer thinks the Mayor is dead he starts to plot a Weekend At Bernie's plan. 

The Mayor's doorbell plays Hail To The Chief. 

Signs at the dinner theater: Mark Hamill IS Nathan Detroit, Pepper Steak IS The Entree.

The previous show at the dinner theater was Othello with Peter Marshall. 

The cast sings Guys And Dolls to the tune of Hooray For Hollywood. "Luke be a Jedi tonight"

This was the last episode of 1998. the series was starting to show its age and the individual plots weren't as good as they use to be, would 1999 be any better? I guess we'll find out. 

Viva Ned Flanders

This episode premiered on January 10th 1999. The lead in show was The World's Funniest and it was followed by The PJs. (a claymation sitcom featuring Eddie Murphy) It ran opposite The W.W.O Disney (The New Swiss Family Robinson), Touched By An Angel and Dateline NBC.

The title of the episode comes from the Elvis song Viva Las Vegas. 

The chalkboard gag is "My Mom is not dating Jerry Seinfeld"  and the couch gag is a repeat of the family being spun. 

Kent Brockman is reporting on the implosion of Burns' casino. The construction worker says "Implosion? But I thought you said Explosion" just as the building blows up, Don Rickles goes flying out of the top of it. The Simpson's car gets coated with dust so they go to the car wash, Homer is pissed that it costs him $10 and then Ned gets a senior discount. At church Homer exposes Ned as a fraud however Ned confesses that he's 60. He claims his youthful appearance is due to his clean living, everyone puts him down for never having really lived. Grandpa and Jasper pull up next to Ned in a car full of women and wave at him, Ned thinks they're having fun but the truth is they are being carjacked, the women want to go to Dress Barn. Ned tries to go wild by not trimming his mustache or sitting with a chair turned backwards. He looks out and sees Homer on the roof smoking a turkey using the chimney. Ned goes to Homer got learn how to be wild, Homer insists on $5 a day fee. Homer decides to head to the Monty Burns Casino, forgetting that they just blew it up, so they head to Las Vegas instead. Ned gets overstimulated and jumps out of the car but he's confronted by Joan Rivers who is trying to get an audience for her informercial, he dives back in the car. They stay at Nero's Palace, where Lance Murdock is trying to make a jump on his Suicycle. Homer tries to get Ned to be the volunteer Lance is jumping over but he won't so Homer does it instead. He asks where they want him and Lance says On the X, which is a skull and crossbones covered in blood. Lance makes it through all the obstacles but Homer sits up at the last minute causing Lance to lose control and crash into a wall. Ned doesn't feel right betting in a casino so he prays to God and hears a voice saying "keep gambling", it's the security guard watching the camera feed. Homer bets all of Ned's money and loses. Homer convinces Ned to try drinking so he orders a white wine spritzer, the next day they wake up in a trashed suite and discover they married the cocktail waitresses. Ned tells the women that they are already married but the women won't give them up without a fight. Homer has a fantasy about his two wives doing all the work. He decides to run off and Ned joins him. They try to grab two workers and steal their uniforms, but get beat up. Gil is at the casino, betting the companies payroll, and rolls craps, Ned and Homer are hiding behind his chips. Along with security, Gunther and Ernst, Dredric Tatum and The Moody Blues stop Homer and Ned, they jump into a prize 64 Corvette but the mob gets them. Ned and Homer get thrown out of Nevada and their new wives ditch them for Gunther and Ernst, who look confused "wink wink". They start walking home while making up a story about being abducted by aliens.  Viva Las Vegas plays over the closing credits which are seen on a Vegas marquee. 

The Moody Blues do their own voices.

Entertainers at Burns' casino, Little Timmy and the Shebangs / The Shebangs / The New Shebangs featuring Big Timmy.

Self Observation jokes, when Marge talks about Burns' casino she says "remember how excited we were went it was opened, and then a week later we just forgot about it" ($pringfield) Lisa wonders why they moved it when they moved the town. (Trash Of The Titans). Homer is about to explain when they blow up the building. 

Stickers on Comic Book Guy's car: My other car is a Millennium Falcon / The Truth is in Here / I break for Tribbles / My child is an honor student at Starfleet Academy / Kang is my CoPilot (self aware joke since Kang is a character on The Simpsons) / Keep honking, I'm charging my phaser. His plate number is NCC-1701

First Church Of Springfield message board Today's Topic: He Knows What You Did Last Summer. (A spoof on the 1997 film I Know What You Did Last Summer)

When Grandpa pulls up in the car Anyway You Want It by Journey is playing. Ever since Caddyshack it's the official party song. 

On the way to Vegas Homer and Ned pass the Ralph Steadman images from Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. They are complaining about Vegas having too many kids. In the 90's Las Vegas tried to become more "family friendly" with rides, family shows and so forth. It didn't last. 

Vegas Casinos: Dupes "Nudes On Break! / Lucky Lucky Casino / Nero's Palace / Peacock / Golddiggers Casino, Cirque du Buffet, Loosest Craps In Town / Newark Newark (it has a rat mascot) Presents: Legends Of Cleavage, Turnpike Lounge featuring Rip Taylor Negron / Rivera's Presents Okla-Homo / Snowshoe Casino Arctic Circle Showroom Presents Klon-Dykes! / Quicksands The Satin Knights Sing The Moody Blues, Opening Act: The Moody Blues / Safari Casino (with zoo animals riding the roller coaster)

After finding out he's married Ned has a panic attack and shouts "And then there's Maude!". This is a reference to the theme song of the 1972 tv series Maude.

When Ned and Homer are fleeing the casino Viva Las Vegas by Elvis plays. 

Gunther and Ernst show up, they were first seen in the episode $pringfield. Daredevil Lance Murdock first appeared in the episode Bart The Daredevil.

Continuity Error: In the episode Hurricane Neddy, Ned had been treated for his childhood aggression 30 years earlier, which would have been the mid 1960's, not to mention his parents were Beatnicks, a social movement from the late 1950's-early 1960's. However if he's 60 in this episode that means he would have to have been born in 1939. 

Note, this episode ran 10 years before the movie The Hangover but featured many of the same elements, guys waking up in a trashed out hotel room after being black out drunk, a tiger, a heavyweight champion, a marriage to a strange woman. 

On a side note, The Sopranos debuted on this night on HBO

Wild Barts Can't Be Broken

This episode premiered on January 17th 1999. The lead in show was World's Funniest and it was followed by That 70's Show. It ran opposite The W.W.O. Disney (Selma, Lord, Selma), 60 Minutes and Dateline NBC. 

The title of the episode is a reference to the 1991 film Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken

The chalkboard gag is "Sherri Does Not "Got Back" and the couch gag is the family, wearing cowboy hats, straddle the back of the couch, just then the bomb bay doors open and they are dropped on Springfield.

The family goes to an Isotopes game, Homer heckled them because they broke his heart. After the first pitch Homer goes to the car to wait, the team lost by two runs. Six months later Homer goes to Moe's and discovers that the Isotopes are in the championship because of a sniper at the all stars game. Homer runs out to the car to get his Isotopes gear and gets interviews by Kent Brockman. The Isotopes win with a bottom of the 9th home run. Homer and the gang drive home drunk and trash out Springfield Elementary including crashing into the Puma mascot and the empty trophy case. Lisa asks Homer what he did last night, he remembers in a series of silent movie clips. He goes to the bar, scene missing, dancing around the May pole, scene missing, the end. An Ethanol Picture. Bart is happy to discover the school has been trashed, Wiggum declares that it must have been the work of no good kids so he imposes a curfew. When Homer goes outside and discovers his car crashed through the back fence he blames the punk kids. The kids are all outside enjoying the summer when Wiggum shows up and orders them all to go home. The bullies defy the curfew so Wiggum arrests Jimbo and Dolf but lets Nelson go because he has Dr. Hibbert's ID (he even does the Dr's laugh). Bart and Lisa are upset that they are stuck in the house on a summer night, just then Homer breaks in to tell them the carnival is in town for one night only and there are no lines because all the kids are stuck at home, he then runs back to the carnival without them. The kids watch prime time tv, it's a goofy Friends style sitcom but they see a commercial for the movie The Bloodening, they decide to sneak out and go to the drive in to see the movie.  The movie features creepy kids who read the adults minds and have telekinetic powers. The kids get to excited and get caught by Wiggum, they are forced to clean his curfew billboard. Bart decides they need to stand up to the adults, Lisa points out they know their parents secrets. They go around and steal electronic equipment from town. The kids get the adults to listen to the radio, the kids speak in a creepy British voice and spill the secrets. They threaten to continue to spread stories until the curfew is lifted. Frink helps Wiggum find the kids who are using the police billboard for their broadcasts. A musical argument breaks out between the kids and the adults. Grandpa and the senior citizens show up and tell off everyone for keeping them up with all the noise. The seniors vote to impose a curfew on anyone under 70, because they are the only ones who go to the polls. The show ends with the the seniors out in the street playing while the Old Jewish Guy complains. 

Cindi Lauper does her own singing of the National Anthem at the ballgame in this episode.

The movie The Bloodening is based on the 1960 movie Village Of The Damned.

The chalkboard gag is a reference to one of the series' twins Sherri and the 1992 song Baby Got Back by Sir Mix-a-Lot, the couch gag is a reference to the scene in Dr. Strangelove when Colonel Kong rides the nuclear bomb to the target site.

On Miss Hoover's Second Grade board is a drawing by Ralph of Chief Wiggum, his mother, him and a baby. There has never been a mention of another member of the Wiggum family.

The Puma mascot first appeared in the episode Separate Vocations. The empty trophy case was in the episode Lard Of The Dance.

Homer, Carl, Lenny and Barney sing We Are The Champions by Queen in the Boys Shower Room.

When imposing the curfew Wiggum tells the kids "Achtung Babies". This is a reference to the U2 album Achtung Baby.

Native American Ice Cream, Formerly Big Chief Crazy Cone. The truck first appeared in the episode Itchy And Scratchy: The Movie.

Simpson board games: Citizenship / Energy Shortage Game (with a gas line on the cover) / Hippo In The House / The Game Of Lent

Billboard sign: We're Watching You Kids, Cops Never Sleep. There is an image of Wiggum drinking coffee. 

Sitcom: Don't Go There. Marge gets tired of the show so she wants to watch Talk To The Hand, staring David Faustino (best known for playing Bud on Married With Children), instead. 

Milhouse is watching Teletubbies and later is seen wearing underwear with their images on it.

Kids who break curfew, Bart, Lisa, Milhouse, random kid, Martin, Janey, the Black kid, Nelson. 

Skinner and Krabappal with Chalmers and Agnes go to the drive-in. Luanne Van Houten and Chase are making out at the movie. The kids later reveal she's been cheating on Chase, aka Gyro with Pyro. 

When the kids are hauling their stolen stuff to build their transmitter it's a spoof on the Our Gang comedies complete with Milhouse wearing clothes and his hair like Alfalfa, they even have the dog Petey. 

While trying to find the kids broadcast Lisa turns the dial to the A Date Which Will Live In Infamy speech by Franklin Roosevelt. 

Homer threatens to spank Bart back to the stone age. This is based on Curtis LeMay's threat to bomb Vietnam back to the stone age. 

The fight between the kids and the adults turns into a version of the song What's The Matter With Kids Today from Bye Bye Birdie. 

The end of the show with the seniors playing in the street is based on the 1962 episode of The Twilight Zone, Kick The Can.

Sunday, Cruddy Sunday

This episode premiered on January 31st 1999. It was Super Bowl Sunday so the program ran late. It's lead in show was Family Guy and it closed out the night's schedule. Since it was an hour after prime time it ran opposite local affiliates programming, probably the local news.

The title of the episode comes from the U2 song Sunday, Bloody Sunday.

The chalkboard gag is "I will not do the Dirty Bird" and the couch gag is the living room is flooded, the family jumps on the couch but it hits an iceberg and sinks. Only Maggie is saved when she floats up on a cushion with the remote. 

The school goes on a field trip to the post office but they're bored since they went there the year before. Nelson asks the postmaster if he's ever gone on a shooting spree. When they check the employee lounge the postmen are opening cards looking for cash. The kids are allowed to grab a letter from the dead letter pile. Ralph finds a package for Otto, it sets off the drug dogs. Milhouse finds his letter to Santa, Bart gets a coupon book that he gives to Homer as a birthday present. Homer goes for a free balancing but is tricked into buying four new tires. He runs into Wally Kogen, they met before in a pyramid scheme. Wally runs a tour service and has a charter bus going to the Super Bowl. All the guys let their guts out since no women are going on the bus, until they see that the driver is a female and then they suck them back in. Rudy shows up but they don't stop for him. Dan Marino throws a spiral at Bart but at the last minute Homer intercepts it, Bubba and Hacksaw tackle him. (Bubba Smith and Jack "Hacksaw" Reynolds). At home Marge and Lisa are doing an egg decorating kit but discover the legs are missing, Marge calls the company even though the kit was made in 1967. A recording from Vincent Price (who died in 1993) tells their to leave their name and address at the beep. At the Super Bowl they find out that their tickets are fake, and printed on graham crackers. Homer goes to a scalper but he had just insulted the guy. Homer sees a rack of halftime costumes and knocks the guards over with it, everyone rushes into the stadium, cut to the stadium jail where everyone is taking turns kicking Homer. Dolly Parton comes and it turns out Wally knows her, she helps them escape with her extra strength makeup remover. The guys run around lost until they find a luxury box and swarm on the buffet, however it's Rupert Murdock's skybox. The guys finally find a way to the field but it's where the team is running back into the locker room and they end up there. Homer answers the call from Clinton. The guys all steal Super Bowl rings and Homer steals the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Pat Summerall and John Madden do a review of the episode and then Vincent Price shows up driving a bus. An image of Homer in the tire shop waiting room with The Little Spanish Flea by Herb Albert and the Tijuana Brass play during the closing credits.

The couch gag is based on the 1997 movie Titanic.

Troy Aikman, Rosey Grier, John Madden, Dan Marino, Rupert Murdoch, Pat Summerall and Dolly Parton do their own voices in this episode. Wall Kogen is voiced by Fred Willard.

The Post Office is offering the Legends of Comedy stamps, Charlie Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle, Harold Lloyd, Ben Turpin. Krusty is complaining and says "What has Arbuckle done that I haven't done?" He was accused of having an illegitimate child and it ruined his career.

Didn't age well joke: Nelson asks if the post master ever went on a shooting spree, Skinner says he's glad he works at an elementary school. 

One of Homer's coupons is for a colonic, he heads out singing Do You Like Pina Colonics? It's a spoof on the song Escape by Rupert Holmes. Bart got a birthday coupon book in the episode Radio Bart. 

High Pressure Tire Sales. Waiting room, Trout Fever magazine, broken B&W tv.

When talking about the Super Bowl the characters hold a glass up to their face every time they say the team so the names can be dubbed in at the last minute. They also dub in Bill and Hillary's name. This is also a joke about the potential of future syndication where they can dub in the names of the teams and President. 

Guys going to the super bowl, Wally, Homer, Bart, Sea Captain, Lawyer, Sideshow Mel, Krusty, Dr. Nick, Larry, Barney, Carl, Lenny, Ned, Dr Hibbert, Bill, Reverend Lovejoy, Kirk, Jasper, Moe, Wiggum, the Jewish Senior, Bumblebee Man, Pimple faced teen, Comic Book Guy, Apu

When Rudy tries to join the gang on the bus they leave him behind, it's a spoof on the 1993 movie Rudy.

On the bus they listen to Wild Weekend by NRBQ.

In the activity closet, The game of Rat Trap and Monopolize, Leather Craft, Clay Play, Li'l Leonardo Art Set (Lisa complains about this one), Vincent Price's Egg Magic. (another Lisa problem, she complains about the leather craft kit but doesn't object to the egg kit)

In the Super Bowl parking lot: Rosy Greer's PortA-Chapel / Football Trading Cards / Jerry "Lightfoot" McGee (the NFL's oldest surviving player) / Take a Leak With NFL Greats (Plunket and Waters at a urinal) / Caricatures By Troy Aikman!! / Catch a pass from Dan Marino

There is a Super Bowl commercial for the Catholic Church where a group of hot women come out and gas up a guy's car, with a lot of sexual innuendos. Voiceover "We've made a few changes". This is based on the video for Gimme All Your Loving by ZZ Top complete with the song. 

Dolly Parton is performing a medley with Rob Lowe and Stomp, she jet packs in while wearing a Snoopy head. Stomp was a popular Broadway show.

When the gang escapes from the stadium jail they run around to the tune Song 2 by Blur. 

When Clinton calls to congratulate the winners Al Gore is in the background measuring for new drapes in the Oval Office. If only. (also chalk this one up as a Simpsons prediction miss)

In this episode we find out Carl is married and his anniversary is Jan. 31st. 

The 1999 Super Bowl was between the Denver Broncos and Atlanta Falcons 34-19. In the Episode You Only Move Twice Hank Scorpio gave Homer the Broncos but at the time they were still losers. 

Normally the episode would be preempted for the Super Bowl but the plot line had to do with the big game so they had a special late showing.

Well, I've reached episode 215. I'm closer to being done than when I started. 

Note, my last post got a restriction warning. It either had to do with the episode where Bart shoots a bird with a BB gun or where Homer mixes psychedelics in the Hippie's all natural juice. Either way, there isn't anything really bad in the blog.