The War of the Simpsons

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


The Simpsons episode
"The War of the Simpsons"

Homer decides not to catch General Sherman, to prove his love for Marge
Episode no.	33
Prod. code	7F20
Orig. Airdate	May 2, 1991
Show Runner(s)	James L. Brooks Matt Groening Sam Simon
Writer(s)	John Swartzwelder
Director(s)	Mark Kirkland
Chalkboard	"I will not do anything bad ever again"
Couch gag	Homer's breadth knocks everyone else off one by one.
DVD commentary by	Matt Groening Mike Reiss Mark Kirkland
SNPP capsule
Season 2 October 11, 1990 – July 11, 1991
Bart Gets an F Simpson and Delilah Treehouse of Horror Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish Dancin' Homer Dead Putting Society Bart vs. Thanksgiving Bart the Daredevil Itchy & Scratchy & Marge Bart Gets Hit by a Car One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish The Way We Was Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment Principal Charming Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? Bart's Dog Gets an F Old Money Brush with Greatness Lisa's Substitute The War of the Simpsons Three Men and a Comic Book Blood Feud
List of all Simpsons episodes...

"The War of the Simpsons" is the 20th episode of the second season of The Simpsons.

1 Synopsis
2 Trivia
3 Cultural references
4 External links

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Marge and Homer throw a party. Homer gets drunk and humiliates himself by leering at Maude Flanders, telling off total strangers, and stumbling over furniture. The next day at church, Marge signs up for a weekend retreat of marriage counseling hosted by Reverend Lovejoy and his wife. Marge recruits Grampa for the weekend to babysit since the babysitter she previously hired was emotionally scarred by Bart when he was a baby.

Homer finds out that the retreat will be held at Catfish Lake and packs his fishing equipment, despite Marge telling him that the retreat will be resolving their differences. On the way there, he learns of the legendary catfish, General Sherman.

Meanwhile, at home, left with Grampa, Bart and Lisa decide to hold a party. At the lake the next morning Homer tries to sneak away to go fishing. Marge is upset that Homer would choose fishing over their marriage. Homer takes a walk instead. On the dock, Homer finds an abandoned fishing pole. The pole yanks him off the pier into a small rowboat, and onto the lake. From their cabin window, Marge watches Homer fish.

Bart and Lisa's party has ended and the house is a total mess. Watching Grampa cry and fearing that he will get in trouble, they frantically clean up the house, not knowing he was pretending.

Marge attends the workshops alone while Homer catches his fish. When he returns, Marge tells him their marriage is in trouble if he values fish more than her. To prove that he loves Marge more he lets the fish go (despite battling it for several hours) and they return together to a clean house.

[edit] Trivia

This is Snake Jailbird's first appearance.
This Marks The First Time Maude Flanders Name Is Heard
In the first two network airings of this episode, a scene where Marge tells Homer that "he blows his nose on towels and puts them back in the middle", which Homer tells her he's only done a couple of times, is missing. It can be found in the third Fox airing and on the Season 2 DVD boxset, as well as at least some syndicated versions.

[edit] Cultural references

The title of the episode is a reference to the film The War of the Roses.
The catfish, General Sherman, was named after the Union general during the Civil War.
John and Gloria bear a strong resemblance to George and Martha from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The music in the scene where an infant Bart chases his teenage babysitter with the car is similar to the score from The Omen.
The only known picture of General Sherman is a resemblance to the Loch Ness Monster.
Homer sings (and butchers) We Are the Champions by Queen after he catches General Sherman.
Homer's false memory of the party is a reference to the Algonquin Round Table, a group of New York City writers, critics, actors and wits. The guests and the party and the way they are drawn resemble Al Hirschfeld's caricature of the group. As Hirschfeld's drawings were always in black and white, the colour scheme is borrowed from the covers for the New Yorker.