History Recap / TheSimpsonsS2E2SimpsonAndDelilah

* ClingyJealousGirl: Marge gets little annoyed when Homer tells her that the women applying for the job as his assistant keeps making kissy faces at him, the moment she hears a man's voice, she immediately says he should hire him.

* This is the only episode in the show's history scored by [[Film/AllOfMe Patrick]] [[Series/{{Columbo}} Williams]], one of several composers given a trial run after season 1's regular, Richard Gibbs, departed.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: This is the only episode in the show's history scored by [[Film/AllOfMe Patrick]] [[Series/{{Columbo}} Williams]], one of several composers given a trial run after season 1's regular, Richard Gibbs, departed.

* {{Irony}}: Marge dislikes the idea of Homer working with pretty women, and suggests he hire Karl. Karl kisses Homer later, and judging from Homer's comments, he has some sort of a man-crush on Karl too.

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: In this episode, Smithers is a {{Jerkass}} with a strong hatred of Homer; so much that he goes as far as to ruin his life by getting Karl fired, and take sadistic pleasure in Homer's misery, even to the point of a SuicideDare. His characterization here is way different from his perona in later episodes, that of a morally conflicted YesMan with a SingleTargetSexuality towards Burns. And while he still thinks little of Homer, it takes a lot more to push him into acting on that hatred beyond making dismissive remarks.

* CharacterizationMarchesOn: In this episode, Smithers is a {{Jerkass}} with a strong hatred of Homer; so much that he goes as far as to ruin his life by getting Karl fired, and take sadistic pleasure in Homer's misery, even to the point of a SuicideDare. His characterisation here is way different from his morally conflicted YesMan with a SingleTargetSexuality towards Burns in later episodes, and is more on par with Frank Grimes in Season 8.
** Subverted when you realize that Smithers' {{Jerkass}} hatred of Homer probably stems from Homer threatening his status as Burns' [[TheDragon Dragon]]. Since Homer isn't usually a threat to his position, Smithers doesn't have any grudge against him.

* GutturalGrowler: Karl has an extremely deep voice. Justified by his [[Creator/HarveyFierstein voice actor]].

* UglyGuyHotWife: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by Homer when, at the end, he bemoans that Marge will surely stop loving him because he's "ugly and bald." Marge promptly takes him into her arms and croons "You Are So Beautiful," assuring him that in her eyes, he's the handsomest man on Earth.

* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: As Homer runs through town with his new hair, he meets up with a man who's done the same thing he did.
-->'''Both:''' DIMOXINIL!

* LoopholeAbuse: Every year, Mr. Burns must promote one of his employees. But as long as he gives the employee's job a different name, it doesn't matter if said employee's work ''and'' pay remain the same.

* ContinuitySnarl: Mr. Burns states his age is 81. In every future episode where his age is mentioned, it's 104 (and in some much later episodes, Burns' age is implied to be four digits long).

'''Homer:''' I don't know.... 102?

* ItWasWithYouAllAlong: Karl convinces Homer that it's his own competence and personality, not his hair, that makes him a shining employee. It's [[SubvertedTrope subverted]], though, as it turns out the plant's community are genuinely ''that'' shallow, quickly rejecting him for his baldness and leaving him demoted back to his old job (they don't even let him finish the exposing of ideas he had written and tried to expose while bald).

* PetTheDog: Mr. Burns gives Homer his old job as Safety Inspector back after the failed speech because he went bald when he was younger and sympathizes.

* WhatTheHellHero: After Bart destroys his one bottle of Dimoxinil, Homer decides not to kill him, but to tell him he's ruined his father, crippled his family, and that [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking baldness is hereditary]]. Bart seems pretty choked up about the final one.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: This is the only episode in the show's history to be scored by Patrick Williams, who was one of several composers given a trial run after season 1's regular composer, Richard Gibbs, departed.

* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Homer's hairstyles change several times throughout the episode. He starts off with long hair, then to a 1970s style small afro, then to a more close cropped 1950s type haircut, and finally a 1980s ''Series/MiamiVice'' style angular cut with a small ponytail.

* ForgottenPhlebotinum: Dimoxinil is never seen or mentioned again in any future episodes, despite being a miracle drug that immediately cures baldness. You would think a product like that would get a lot more staying power, regardless of its price tag.

* GutturalGrowler: Karl has an extremely deep voice.

* BrickJoke: Homer is initially nervous about defrauding the company to pay for his Dimoxinil. Lenny scoffs, pointing out that such a small sum is just "one less ivory back-scratcher" for Mr. Burns. Later on, when Burns is informed of the fraud, we learn that's ''exactly'' what he was planning on buying.

** This being long before Patty was established as a lesbian (or even before she was established as a willfully celibate man-hater who HatesBeingTouched, which was the original characterization), she and Selma ''both'' express attraction to Homer when he grows out his hair.

* ClingyJealousGirl: Marge gets little annoyed when Homer tells her that the women applying for the job as his assistant keeps making kissy face at him, the moment she hers a man's voice, she immediately says he should hire him.

* CrazyJealousGirl: Marge gets little annoyed when Homer tells her that the women applying for the job as his assistant keeps making kissy face at him, the moment she hers a man's voice, she immediately says he should hire him.

Episode - 7F02\\
First Aired - 10/18/1990

* SpecialGuest: Harvey Fierstein as Karl, who is noted in the commentary to be the show's first guest star who wasn't ashamed to say he'd done it. "Maybe not the most important barrier he ever broke down."