Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment

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The Simpsons episode
"Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment"
Homer and Bart dig up the illegal alcohol.
Episode no. 171
Prod. code 4F15
Orig. Airdate March 16, 1997
Show Runner(s) Bill Oakley
Josh Weinstein
Written by John Swartzwelder
Directed by Bob Anderson
Couch gag The family are depicted as cowboys; the couch, like a horse, rides away.[1]
Guest star Dave Thomas as Rex Banner
Joe Mantegna as Fat Tony
DVD commentary by Matt Groening
Josh Weinstein
Dan Castellaneta
Dave Thomas
Bob Anderson
David Silverman
SNPP capsule
Season 8
October 27, 1996 – May 18, 1997
  1. Treehouse of Horror VII
  2. You Only Move Twice
  3. The Homer They Fall
  4. Burns, Baby Burns
  5. Bart After Dark
  6. A Milhouse Divided
  7. Lisa's Date with Density
  8. Hurricane Neddy
  9. El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer (The Mysterious Voyage of Homer)
  10. The Springfield Files
  11. The Twisted World of Marge Simpson
  12. Mountain of Madness
  13. Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala(Annoyed Grunt)cious
  14. The Itchy & Scratchy & Poochie Show
  15. Homer's Phobia
  16. Brother from Another Series
  17. My Sister, My Sitter
  18. Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment
  19. Grade School Confidential
  20. The Canine Mutiny
  21. The Old Man and the Lisa
  22. In Marge We Trust
  23. Homer's Enemy
  24. The Simpsons Spin-Off Showcase
  25. The Secret War of Lisa Simpson
List of all Simpsons episodes...

"Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons' eighth season, which originally aired March 16, 1997.[2] Prohibition is enacted in Springfield and Homer helps fight it by illegally supplying alcohol. It was written by John Swartzwelder, and directed by Bob Anderson.[2] Guest starring Dave Thomas as Rex Banner and Joe Mantegna as Fat Tony.[2]

Contents

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
"To alcohol! The cause of... and solution to... all life's problems."
"To alcohol! The cause of... and solution to... all life's problems."

A prohibitionist movement emerges in Springfield after Bart is accidentally made drunk during a St. Patrick's Day celebration. The municipal government discovers alcohol has actually been banned for two centuries, and moves to enforce the law, forcing Moe to hide what remains a bar as a pet shop. With the town becoming impatient with the police's incompetence, Chief Wiggum is replaced by Rex Banner, an officer of the United States Treasury Department.

In the mean time, Homer figures out a way to keep Moe's bar operating, through bootlegging. He and Bart sneak out to the city dump one night to regain the beer that was disposed of when the Prohibition law began to be enforced. He then sets up shop in his basement pouring the beer into hollow bowling balls. Using an intricate set of pipes under the Bowlerama, he bowls the balls into Moe's. The media realizes someone is allowing Springfield's underground alcohol trade to flourish, and they give the still-unknown Homer the nickname "Beer Baron." Rex Banner fails to catch the Baron and resorts to stopping people in the street to question them.

When his supply of beer runs out, Homer begins to brew his own “moonshine”. His operation continues for a time until he is confronted by a desperate Chief Wiggum. In an attempt to rekindle Wiggum's career, Homer allows him to turn him in. The punishment that awaits him is being catapulted out of town. In the end, it is Rex Banner who is catapulted out of town, and Wiggum is given his job back. The town scribe finds out that the Prohibition law was repealed a year after it was put in place, and so Homer is released. Within five minutes Fat Tony floods the town with alcohol once more, and Springfield salute its qualities.[3]

[edit] Production

The main plot of the episode is based on the Prohibition laws of the 1920s, in which alcohol was banned in America.[4] As The Simpsons has many episode's that have stories and jokes related to alcohol, the writers thought it was strange that they had never done an episode related to Prohibition, and that that seemed "perfect".[4] The episode features a vast amount of Irish stereotyping at the St. Patrick's Day celebration, this was reference to when Conan O'Brien was a writer for the show, and his use of Irish stereotypes.[4] Various writers were very concerned about Bart getting drunk, this was why he drank the beer through a horn, to show that it was only accidental.[4] This was a toned down version of what was in John Swartzwelder's original script.[5] Originally Chief Wiggum's first line was "their either drunk or on the cocaine", but it was as it was deemed too old-fashioned.[6] The discovering of "more lines on the parchment" was a cheap way to get Homer freed and to end the episode.[4]

When Homer first enters Moe's "Pet Shop" the man that tips his hat to him outside was a resurrected character from the early seasons.[6] The riot at the beginning of the episode was taken from the end of "Lisa on Ice" and updated.[7] The line "To Alcohol! The cause of... and solution to... all life's problems.", was originally the act break line at the end of act two, but was moved to the very end of the episode.[8]

[edit] Cultural references

The shot of the diner, a reference to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.
The shot of the diner, a reference to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks.

The episode parodies the film The Untouchables, with the character of Rex Banner based on Eliot Ness.[1][9] The voice of the narrator is based on that of Walter Winchell.[6] Barney leaving flowers outside the Duff brewery is a reference to people in Hollywood leaving flowers at the graves of Rudolph Valentino and Marilyn Monroe.[4] The shot of the diner is a reference to Edward Hopper's Nighthawks painting.[4]

[edit] Reception

The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, called it "A nice episode in which Homer actually devises a clever plan to keep the beer flowing."[1] The Toronto Star described the episode as one of Bob Anderson's "classics."[10] It currently holds a rating of "Superb" with a score of 9.1/10 at TV.com,[11] and a score of 8.1/10 at the Internet Movie Database.[12] Homer's line "To alcohol! The cause of... and solution to... all life's problems." was described by Josh Weinstein as "one of the best, most truthful Simpsons statements ever."[4]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  2. ^ a b c Richmond, Ray; Antonia Coffman (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family. Harper Collins Publishers, p. 231. ISBN 0-00063-8898-1. 
  3. ^ "Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment". The Simpsons.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Weinstein, Josh. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  5. ^ Groening, Matt. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  6. ^ a b c Silverman, David. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  7. ^ Anderson, Bob. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  8. ^ Weinstein, Josh; Silverman, David. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  9. ^ Thomas, Dave. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Homer vs. The Eighteenth Amendment" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
  10. ^ Ben Rayner, "Offering up the goods on Springfield's finest; The Simpsons have breached the boundaries of animation. Today a director details how they do it, writes Ben Rayner," Toronto Star, October 30, 2005, pg. C.06.
  11. ^ Homer vs. The 18th Amendment. TV.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  12. ^ Homer vs. the 18th Amendment. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.

[edit] External links

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