I really love that one of the bennies of this gig is I get to watch new Simpsons episodes and then recap them for you. Bunny Foo Foo got the pleasure the last couple times, but as Alissa actually let her out of the basement for a vacation, it’s my turn this week. Woo hoo!
Today we’re gonna go over Season 25, Episode 7, Yellow Subterfuge. As all us tapaholics know due to the episode tie-in, it has something to do with Skinner’s secret plan.
The episode wastes no time getting to this, but first I just wanted to say I always enjoy the opening sequences of almost every Simpsons episode. This one is no different: Kang and Kodos in a non-Halloween appearance, Moe being creepy and endorsing fake IDs, “I will stop asking when Santa goes to the bathroom” on the chalkboard and a great couch gag with the family as those annoying flappy advertising dealies in a used couch lot. Man, I love this show!
AFter this amazingness, the show starts with an awesome cowboy montage with Skinner as the sheriff of the west laying down the law. Highlights include him gunning down the bullies and making Bart spill his milk. This all finished with Skinner riding Chalmers like a horse. So sad for Skinner that it was all only a daydream.
Skinner announces to the student body a field trip so amazing, we’ve put sign here stickers on the permission slips. Thanks to his old Navy buddy who also loves to shop at Old Navy, the field trip will be on a nuclear powered, attack class submarine, the USS Tom Clancy.
I love the footage of the sub to include the Party Posse throw back of Yvan eht nioj.
Due to limited room on the sub, only the best behaved students get to go on the trip. They all get a clean slate but Skinner holds the red pen. Pranks, inside use of outside voice, off color whistling and you’re stricken from the list… and once crossed off, you stay crossed off, that’s what pens do.
Bart is really excited to have the chance to go on the sub but even his family doesn’t think he can be good that long. Skinner may have given him a clean slate but they know how Bart can be. El Barto is determined to prove them wrong. Good one ding dong. Despite this dinnertime banter, the golden moment is Marge starting Homer’s car by breathing into his breathalyzer. And the haters say our families enable our TSTO addiction…. Jeesh!
Bart starts off his clean slate by getting rid of all his temptations. Lisa takes off for a bike ride and encounters Krusty having all his stuff repossessed. This is a great shot of Krusty’s mansion and limo.
Not surprisingly, Krusty’s gambling has lost him everything. Lisa suggests selling the foreign rights to his show to make money. Heck, even Spongebob apparently did it.
Meanwhile back at Springfield Elementary, Skinner is ready to give students the axe from the field trip. Gum on the floor… off the list. Unauthorized meat-a-pult… off the list. Lips touching the fountain… off the list. One flub… No sub.
Bart is serious about staying on the list and especially making it to school on time. He wears a suit and even hoofs it to school when Otto’s bus (aka his long, yellow car) breaks down. During Bart’s trek… we get our quick view of the Oscar’s Obstacles truck as it crashes and its contents fall out.
Unfortunately Bart’s trek results in him tracking muddy footprints into the school… OFF THE LIST.
Bart tries to use sound clips of US President Barack Obama to try and get back on the submarine list. Unfortunately he fails, foiled by a bird but the resulting phone conversation is great.
Krusty’s pyramid of laughter is a great way to teach foreigners how to be Krusty. He basically wants them to do Krusty in their country and send 10%, then 60% and then 5% of their money, which rhymes with funny, which they can be if they like, as long as he gets his cut.
Poor Bart tries hard to get back on the submarine list but ultimately fails. I really feel for him as the class submerges in the USS Tom Clancy without him.
Lisa is watching Foreign versions of Krusty’s show with the originator. The Jamaican version is pretty hilarious. Chinese Krusty with Sideshow Mao and Irish Krusty are also funny but let’s just say Rasta Wookiee likes Itchem and Scratchem.
I find it really funny that later, the foreign Krusty’s all end up more popular than the real article. American Krusty is now the least popular Krusty in the world. As MyTube videos are better than any image I’d use to highlight all this, let’s go with the pros:
Back to our main characters. Homer shows up to the dock to cheer up Bart. I love his Pig Gulp with Spiderpig on it. That’s a lot of soda.
“As I always say, don’t get mad, get dinner, then get even… with Skinner.” They decide to use Skinner’s weaknesses against him. What are his weaknesses? Everything.
Homer and Bart fake the murder of Skinner’s mother to get back at him and use his fear of the incompetent Springfield cops to get him to leave town under the identity of Dick Fiddler.
Skinner ultimately decides not to leave and instead to accept responsibility for his actions. Marge pulls the hood off Homer and Bart’s ruse. Agnes is none too happy that Skinner said he’d be glad to see his mother gone. Now she’s going to be meaner to him than ever. How is that possible? She’s no longer going to take the pills which keep her nice. Poor Seymour.
ALl the shenanigans close with a return to the western montage from earlier but this one is much sadder with Skinner as Dick Fiddler riding his donkey into a den of ill repute with all-Agnes ladies of the evening. Now that’s sad AND scary AND mildly disturbing.
This montage would have been a fitting end to the episode but the writers decided to end it with Krusty welcoming all the Krusty’s of the World at a beautiful hotel which makes me think of Miami, Florida. The new Krustys are dissatisfied with his 75% take and don’t like the idea of him doing a guest shot on their shows.
As he’s chased by all the K’s, Krusty reveals he’s not good under pressure, can’t ad lib or tell jokes. The reason he even became a clown was that he was supposed to be one of the sad ones. Who knew? Well, now we do. Merry Christmas!
And cue the credits. All in all, while sort of a strange episode, it had some really funny moments. As for the decorations from the tie-in, I’m actually really pleased. Granted the sub played a much bigger part than the truck and the Budget Dog Bus could’ve been a cool addition to the game but ultimately, what was made available for us was really cool and different. Maybe it’d have been better to get some Krusty stuff but it’s so easy to armchair quarterback after the game is over.
Well, y’all stay classy tapperinos. As always, it’s better to watch the episode for yourself, but if you can’t, I hope you enjoyed this recap. Wookiee out!