History Recap / TheSimpsonsS3E11BurnsVerkaufenDerKraftwerk

* HiddenDepths: Mr. Burns is revealed to be fluent in German (though a native German-speaker would realize that some of what he says isn't correct). This becomes FridgeHorror[[invoked]] when, in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E18AStarIsBurns A Star Is Burns]]", he reveals that he's a lot like Oskar Schindler (of ''Film/SchindlersList'' fame) in that he made artillery shells for the Nazis (with the only difference being that Burns' shells "''worked'', damnit!").

'''German 1''': Mr. Simpson? Mr. Simpson?\\

'''German 2''': That was ten minutes ago!

* MathematiciansAnswer: Homer mostly just answers the exact question his new bosses are asking so he doens't have to expand on the answers (because of course he can't), and show his incompetence.

* BlindIdiotTranslation: "Burns Verkaufen der Kraftwerk" is a mistranslation of the intended title (in English), which is "Burns Sells the Power Plant". The correct translation would be "Burns ''Verkauft das'' Kraftwerk".

* SurprisinglyGoodForeignLanguage: Mr. Burns' German during the dinner with the German businessmen is correct, even if it has a few grammatical errors.

* GratuitousGerman: Naturally a lot, since German businessmen buy the power plant. Even Smithers tries to learn German. The title itself is a translation of "Burns Sells the Power Plant." On the DVDCommentary, the writers referred to it as "The German Episode."

* GratuitousGerman: Naturally a lot, since German businessmen buy the power plant. Even Smithers tries to learn German. The title is a horribly mangled translation of "Burns Sells the Power Plant." For one thing, "Kraftwerk" ("power plant") is a neuter noun, so it would need "das" (which is a neuter definite article) instead of "der" (which is used for masculine nouns). For another, "verkaufen" (the infinitive) is used instead of "verkauft" (which is the third-person conjugation). The correct German title of this episode would be "Burns verkauft das Kraftwerk." On the DVDCommentary, the writers simply give up and refer to it as "The German Episode."[[invoked]]

* SlummingIt: A recently-retired Burns catches sight of Moe's Tavern and eagerly stops to "go slumming" ("Hold your nose, Smithers, we're going in"). His awkward effort to blend in by ordering a beer for Homer backfires badly when Homer, who he didn't recognize, treats him to a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech in front of the entire bar, blaming his sale of the factory for the loss of his job.

-->'''Burns''': I keep my enemies close, and my enemies even closer. He'll slowly regain his confidence as the months and years drift by, blissfully unaware that the sword of Damocles is dangling just above his head. And then one day, when he least expects it... [''Stabs a child's toy on his desk'']

* InsultBackfire:
-->'''Homer:''' Let me ask you something, does your money cheer you up when you're feeling blue?
-->'''Mr. Burns:''' [[BluntYes Yes]].
-->'''Homer:''' Okay, bad example.

-->'''Homer:''' Let me ask you something, does your money make you happy?

-->'''Mr. Burns:''' Yes.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Homer repeatedly screws himself and his family out of a fortune and eventually ends up jobless and bankrupt. He sells all his company stocks just before they shoot up tremendously, he obliviously gives the Germans a price to buy out Burns' position and then gets himself fired when they discover his incompetence.

* MathematiciansAnswer:

* {{Revenge}}: The Germans swear this at the end.
* SarcasmMode: Mr. Burns' response to the Germans swearing revenge is full of this.

* SurprisinglyGoodForeignLanguage: Mr. Burns' German during the dinner with the German businessmen is correct, even if it has a few grammatical errors. On the other hand, the Mexican Spanish dub replaced Burns and the other Germans' speech with German-sounding gibberish, as neither of the voice actors spoke German.

* WeCare: When Homer is at the Germans' office, there's a sign reading "we care".

Episode - 8F09\\
First Aired - 12/5/1991