WDTCF – Phineas Q. Butterfat’s

How are my favorite tappers doing?  I bet by now a lot of you are done with Level 38 and just itching for the next content to ignore your family and obligations with, right?  Well… If my Wookiee senses are working correctly, I think we should be entering the Valentine’s Day arena very soon.  I hope I’m right and that EA brings a couple of my wish list items from WAWW part 1 and part 2.  Beside indulging me, the way EA could really show some love to all us tappers would be to bring back buildings from last year’s event.

My favorite of them was Phineas Q. Butterfat’s.  While admittedly, I don’t have much of a sweet tooth, I certainly love me some ice cream.  This building came our way during the 2013 VD Event for free.  All we had to do was earn some event currency (hearts) and the building was ours (probably sounds familiar, right?).  The building generates $275 and 22 XP every 16 hours.

Just for fun, I thought it’d be cool to do a WDTCF for Phineas Q. Butterfat’s 5600 Flavors Ice Cream Parlor.  It’s a neat building and has been in a lot of Simpsons episodes.  Throughout these, it also has had a few different looks.  (NOTE: From now on I’ll mostly refer to this building as PQB).  Our first glimpse of the parlor came in Season 3, Episode 8: Lisa’s Pony.  After Homer disappoints Lisa by failing to bring her a new saxophone reed for the school talent show, he tries to make up for it by taking her for ice cream.  We see that they offer deliciousness by the wheelbarrow.  This deliciousness is called a Mount Bellyache and costs 88 dollars.

Next up, we have Season 3, Episode 13: Radio Bart aka the Bart falls down a well episode.  Bart’s got a wad of Free Birthday coupons to use and first on the list is Phineas Q. Butterfat’s for a free sundae.  I guess this is another case of size not mattering.  Eat it and get out!  I think the free birthday shave at Jake’s Unisex Hair Palace was a much better deal but the Free Tango Lesson with Rosarita gets my true man vote.

Moving on past that sexy tango teacher, we have Season 3, Episode 15: Homer Alone.  Marge has a nervous breakdown from too much stress and is off to Rancho Relaxo (Springfield’s only 2 star health spa).  Bart and Lisa are off with Marge’s creepy sisters but Maggie doesn’t want to leave so it’s Homer and her in the house… all alone.  And we wonder why Maggie is an attempted murderess?  Maggie misses Marge so much she runs off to find her.  Although a bush resembles her mom, she finally finds solace at Phineas Q. Butterfat’s where the roof mascot looks just like Marge…. Well sort of.

While not identified as PQB’s, there is an ice cream parlor in Season 4, Episode 4: Lisa the Beauty Queen.  Bart really should have complimented the server during his birthday.  Complimenting the ice cream lady sure seemed to work.

Back to confirmed PQB sightings, in Season 5, Episode 20: The Boy Who Knew Too Much, we get a real quick shot of Bart exiting the parlor.  Just one of the places he visits while playing hooky.  Places he didn’t visit, the Springfield Natural History Museum and the 4H Club.

In Season 7, Episode 7: King-Size Homer (also known as the Homer becomes a gastropod, wears a mumu and saves Springfield with his lard episode), we learn that Hyperobesity is a disability in Springfield.  Leave it to Dr. Nick to know how to help.

“Now there are many options available for dangerously underweight individuals like yourself.  I recommend a slow, steady gorging process combined with asselhorizontology.” 

This is also the episode where Dr. Nicks Hollywood Upstairs Medical College dialogue from TSTO probably originates.  Where else would Homer go to help with his weight gain than PQBs?  NOTE: If your trying to gain like Homer, avoid the bananas in the splits, according to Bart they’re just empty calories.

Our next episode is The Homer They Fall (S8, E3).  The Simpsons family is walking amongst the town shops and come to the local high tech gadget store aka Miscellaneous, Etc.  It’s apparently right across the street from the ice cream parlor.

Seems like PQB’s geography and look just aren’t one of those things the writers cared about.  The next appearance to share is from Season 11, Episode 21: It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Marge.  This is the one that immediately comes to mind for me when I think of Butterfat’s.

Looks like the one in my town but who cares…. Otto’s getting married!  Or not.  He may love his girl Becky but when she makes him pick between her and Heavy Metal, it was an obvious choice for Otto.  Left at the altar, the Simpsons take Becky in.  Marge is afraid she is trying to steal her family a la The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.  It’s in Phineas Q. Butterfat’s that Marge sees Becky kissing Homer.

Of course the truth is Homer passed out in a giant sundae and needed to be resuscitated.  Just the unveiling speech of the massive ice cream that caused this by Squeaky Voiced Teen has me feeling lightheaded…

“And God said gather me two of every flavor, anoint them with 62 sauces, whipped cream and nuts and ye shall call it… the Ark.”

Can’t blame Homer.  Also… I think it’s sweet that Marge would shank somebody with a broken ice cream cone for love.

NERD NOTE: The Character of Becky was originally written for Drew Barrymore but she instead appeared in Season 12 as Krusty’s daughter Poppy.

Ooohhhh, this next one is cool… Season 13, Episode 11: The Bart Wants What It Wants.  Ahhhh… the short romance of Bart and Greta Wolfcastle.  Bart sure is a little romeo, isn’t he?  When Bart realizes Greta is in love with him, he realizes all he has to do is break up with her like she’s never been broken up with before and then they can go back to being friends.  “Women are easy.  State capitols are hard.”  The perfect place to break up with someone?  Phineas Q. Butterfat’s of course!

And for all our Canadian readers… the Simpsons go to Toronto in the episode.  Just be prepared for some humor at your expense.  Canadians like that kind, right?

Season 13 was a good one for PQB,  In Episode 22: Poppa’s Got a Brand New Badge, it shows up again.  You know an episode is worth a gander when it includes Homer as a more competent cop than Wiggum.  Phineas Q. Butterfat’s shows up in a scene parodying The Sopranos opening sequence.  It’s a lovely tribute to watch as Fat Tony and his crew (including his Jersey brethren… woot woot Alissa) head to gun down Homer.  I love Homie stating this is what he gets for “finally doing a job where he wasn’t lazy, stupid or corrupt”.  Spoiler Alert: Homer lives.

Skip forward two seasons and we have Season 15, Episode 14: The Ziff Who Came to Dinner.  Our ice cream parlor shows up right at the beginning of the episode.  Ned Flanders volunteers to take the old folks for ice cream to celebrate Jasper’s birthday.

Did someone say birthday?!?  MC Birthday and his gang are great even if they do send Grandpa into a war flashback.

Phew… you still with me?  We just got two to go, so hold on.  Season 18, Episode 22: You Kent Always Say What You Want.  TWO NERD NOTES: 1) This was the last episode to air before the Simpsons Movie debuted and 2) this episode used to be called “Kent State Massacre” but I’m sure you can see why that name got changed.

After a trip to the dentist (and a strange cameo by Ludacris), there really is no place else to go by the ice cream parlor.  Homer purchases the one millionth ice cream cone and gets on the news.  Let’s be honest… this is probably one of the most innocent things Homer has done to land on Channel 6.

Our last little screen grab comes from Season 23, Episode 18: Beware My Cheating Bart.  I like this one just because it shows how popular PQB must be.  It’s even in the Springfield Mall food court.  Also the only court Homer can never be in contempt of.

And there you go.  Lots of appearances by Phineas Q. Butterfat’s Ice Cream Parlor in the show spanning 21 seasons.  I’m sure I missed at least one somewhere in there.  I mean heck, the dang building is even in the HD Intro for the show.

Anyone else want a two-story Android’s Dungeon?  Anywho… I seriously hope that this building returns this Valentine’s and hope even more it’s for event currency or freemium prices.  Furry fingers crossed for all you tappers.  TTFN… Wookiee out!

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