A Smith in the Hand

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“A Smith in the Hand”
American Dad! episode
Episode no. Season 1
Episode 9
Written by David Hemingson
Directed by Pam Cooke
Production no. 1AJN10
Original airdate September 18, 2005
Episode chronology
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"Bullocks to Stan" "All About Steve"
List of American Dad! episodes
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"A Smith in the Hand" is the 9th episode of the animated series American Dad!. It features the special voice participation of Scott Menville (as Timmy/Kids), Peter MacKenzie (as Dr. Grossbard/Senator #1), Kevin Michael Richardson (as TV Announcer/Principal Lewis), Mike Henry (as Senator #2) and Mike Barker (as Dr. Heisler/Terry).

[edit] Episode summary

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

When Steve brings home a permission slip to take sex ed at school, Stan flips out and demands to teach it himself. Stan proceeds to give an unrealistic explanation that demonises sex and masturbation. Shortly after, he gets into an accident that damages his crotch and, due to a misunderstanding, masturbates for the first time while applying lotion to the injured area. Stan becomes secretly hooked on masturbation, but Steve, who was responsible for his dad's accident, interprets his father's sudden reclusiveness as anger and disappointment in him.

When Steve learns the truth about what his father is doing, Stan tries to get out of it by blaming television. Together, Stan and Steve hijack a TV network and use it to broadcast Stan's anti-sex class, until Francine finally has enough of it and tells them that sexual feelings and arousal is natural just good enough to put a stop to their enterprise. So Stan, knowing Francine is right, tells Steve the truth about sex... on live TV.

Meanwhile, Roger becomes a bartender in hopes of making something of himself.

[edit] Cultural references

  • The way Klaus and Roger shout "Francine!" when she walks into Roger's bar is a throwback to the popular NBC show Cheers, where everyone would shout "Norm!" when he entered the bar.
  • In "The Wages of Self-Abuse" quasi-educational video, two mythical consequences of excessive masturbation are portrayed: hairy palms and blindness.
  • The song that is playing while Francine going back to the bedroom to get her underwear is O Fortuna from Carl Orff's Carmina Burana (According to DVD commentary, this song was almost not used because the recording kept getting lost).
  • When Stan is desperately looking through the trash can for ointment, he says, "Just a dab will do me." This is referring to Brylcreem's jingle, "A Little Dab'll Do Ya!"
  • Roger's line, "Oh, what fresh hell is this?" before it cuts to Stan singing on TV is actually a famous line from writer Dorothy Parker (which she said when she answered the phone) and the title of her biography.

[edit] Notes

  • The title "A Smith in the Hand" is a parody of the proverb, "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush."
  • The episode was originally going to air on September 11, 2005; it didn't because it showed a picture of Osama Bin Laden.
  • Stan's buttocks were digitally blurred out during the airing of the episode on the FOX version, however on the Cartoon Network version and the DVD, it is uncensored.
  • The cast performed this episode live at the 2005 Aspen Comedy Festival. The reading can be seen on the DVD.
  • In this show, no one ever actually says the word "masturbation" (similar to the famous Seinfeld episode The Contest, where Jerry, George, Elaine, and Kramer make a bet that none of them will pleasure themselves).
  • According to the American Dad DVD commentary (and collection of deleted and alternate scenes), there was a scene after Stan locks himself in the closet where Timmy (the boy from the "Wages of Self-Abuse" film) encourages Stan to masturbate.
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