Where Did THAT Come From – Pin Pals, Claw Machine, Bowling Trophy, Laramie Vending Machine & 300 Balloon

In our silly lil game, we sometimes see things pop in that we have no clue as to their Origin. They seem familiar, but we just can’t pinpoint from where. So that is why we decided to make a fun lil reminder out of it. To let you know just Where Did THAT Come From?

Bowling! One of the things in the Best. Show. Ever. that we’ve always needed more of and now there’s been an entire mini-event all about it. The 2017 Pin Pals mini event has had all sorts of items about throwing balls into gutters and wondering if one-armed bowlers are lefties or righties. Strike that… dumb question. If you’re in Springfield, lefty is always a good guess.

Anyhoo… hooray for new ideas in TSTO! As usual, when new additions arrive in the game, there’s always an inevitable tapping on my attic floor from Alissa to get started on writing about the origins for it all. It’s always a pleasure to re-watch episodes of the Best. Show. Ever. to do just that after I blow the Cheetos dust of my furry fingers so I don’t gum up my key board. Fun fact: said dust is not a good substitute for talcum when bowling. For this round of origins, we’ll be taking a look at a whole mess of bowling items from the mini-event: the Pin Pals, Claw Machine, Bowling Trophy, Laramie Vending Machine & 300 Balloon.

“Team Homer” (S7:E12)

Oh… the Pin Pals. One of those iconic teams and episodes that bring a smile to this fuzzball’s face. I actually did a whole post about them when Apu’s skin became available during the 2015 Tap Ball Event. Absolutely nothing wrong with an episode about league bowling and Burns buying special shirts for his new chums.

There’s a few appearances for the Pin Pals in that linked post but what I didn’t cover were all the extra bits which now grace our game courtesy of this little bowling mini-event. In the episode, Otto was originally on the team before Monty replaced him. Homer, Moe, and Apu wanted to form a team for the local league and found Otto while he was playing the claw machine. Our favorite bus-driving stoner man was attempting to win a lobster harmonica AND could actually bowl too.

The reason Burns became a part of the team involved ether, Poppin Fresh, and Burns donating 500 dollars for the league entry fee. The Pin Pals may not have had fancy uniforms but they encouraged each other with funny rhyming chants and Otto actually was a good bowler, like picking up 7/10 splits good. The guys really wanted to win the league and earn the championship trophy.

Unfortunately Burns realized the expenditure when he came down from his high and insisted on being a part of the team. Otto got the boot and was back to the claw machine. This time to claw a Harvard diploma.

Basically Burns sucks at bowling but the team does get the fancy green shirts for the team that are now skins for characters in our games. I guess I should mention that the Laramie vending machine shows up in the episode too although its shorter than the one offered for free in our games. It’s all a backdrop for Moe pulling a Monica Lewinsky (Wookiee note: I was thinking Nancy Kerrigan but had a 90s brain stroke apparently… thanks Stokerace!) on Burns which backfires and just fixes his trick knee before the big game against the Holy Rollers.

The claw machine figures into the episode once more when Otto successful gets the previously mentioned lobster harmonica by accidentally smashing the claw machine which results in Burns actually knocking over two pins and winning the championship.

Too bad Burns yoinks the trophy. All’s well that ends well though.

Seriously though, Moe, Apu and Homer bowl really well on their team. Homer may even be a better bowler than Fred Flintstone and that’s saying something. I think it’d be safe to compare the hobbies of those two cartoon dads. Homer and Fred have a lot in common. Just check out the opening to the monorail episode if you don’t believe me. Anyhoo… Homer bowls a lot in the Best. Show. Ever. but it is “Hello Gutter, Hello Fadder” (S11:E6) where we see Homer achieve that most elusive and illustrious goal of any hominid that wants to brag about their skill in an alley and not get arrested for it… the perfect 300 game. The best part of the victory is the one balloon which falls from the ceiling to commemorate the achievement.

The bowling trophy is seen in this episode too.

So there you go. Balls and balloons and trophies and harmonicas and more. What do you think of the new stuff? Did you get it all? Remember the episodes? Surprised that all the Pin Pals can bowl perfect games? Sound off in the comments with your thoughts. I’m just happy for new stuff from episodes that certainly were not “the suckiest bunch of sucks that ever sucked. Gotta go, my damn wiener kids are listening.”

TTFN… Wookiee out!