History Recap / TheSimpsonsWhoShotMrBurns

* SharedDream: During a lull in the investigation, Chief Wiggum has a surreal dream in which Lisa tells him to examine Burns's suit. Wiggum wakes up, upon which Eddie approaches him, having come to the same conclusion. [[DefiedTrope Eddie did not, however, have the same dream]]:

* SharedDream: Defied. During a lull in the investigation, Chief Wiggum has a surreal dream in which Lisa tells him to examine Burns's suit. Wiggum wakes up, upon which Eddie approaches him, having come to the same conclusion. Eddie did not, however, have the same dream:

* BasicInstinctLegsCrossingParody: There's a segment where [[ViolentGlaswegian Groundskeeper Willie]] is being interrogated by the Springfield P.D. while [[ManInAKilt wearing a kilt]]. When he crosses his legs, the cops recoil in horror, before one of them pulls out his sidearm and warns him not to do that again.

[[caption-width-right:350:This is not a clue... or is it? [[spoiler:It is. From his perspective, he is pointing to the letters "M" and "S" - '''M'''aggie '''S'''impson.]]]]

Episode - 2F16\\
First Aired - 5/21/1995

** The sundial clue in part one also serves as this, while also giving the identity of the actual shooter away if one thinks more carefully. Burns' hands land on the west and south points of the sundial, matching the initials of Waylon Smithers, the initial main suspect - and indeed, several other suspects have the letters 'W/M' and 'S' feature prominently in their names (Moe Syzlak, [[SuddenNameChange W. Seymour Skinner]], Sideshow Mel) or a phrase of some significance (there's a gun floating around that's a Smith & Wesson, Santa's Little Helper is called the "Simpson mutt").

** Mr. Largo, the school's music teacher, also lost his job - but had no attention drawn to him in the Town Hall scene, so maybe he rushed off early?
** Snake Jailbird -- known as such for the Snake tattoo on his arm - shows up with a revolver at the last minute and apologises for ''not'' shooting Mr. Burns -- to Apu.

Episode - 2F20\\
First Aired - 9/17/1995

* {{Irony}}: As it happens, Mr. Burns really ''can't'' steal candy from a baby.

* FugitiveArc: Homer manages to escape police custody because of an accident en route to prison and goes on the lam, trying to demonstrate he wasn't the one who shot Mr. Burns... [[NotHelpingYourCase which unfortunately means that the cops find him strangling Mr. Burns for because he's angry that Burns can only say his name, causing the Police to think he was the killer.]]

* FugitiveArc: Homer manages to escape police custody because of an accident en route to prison and goes on the lam, trying to demonstrate he wasn't the one who shot Mr. Burns... [[NotHelpingYourCase which unfortunately means that the cops find him almost shooting Burns for real because he's angry that Burns can only say his name.]]

** The sequence involving the package being delivered spoofed the advertising campaign at the time for Federal Express, including Mr. Burns saying the slogan "it must absolutely be there overnight.".

* RestrainedRevenge: Happens in one of the alternate endings where the culprit turned out to be Smithers. Burns punishes Smithers's murder attempt by giving him a 5% pay cut, to which Smithers is utterly dismayed.

* EveryoneHasStandards: Tito Puente, when interrogated as a suspect, answers that he's not a man who believes in violent revenge: after all, why shoot someone when he can create a slanderous EarWorm of a mambo that will probably outlive both men?

* AlienInvasion: Groundskeeper Willie states that he got arthritis [[NoodleIncident from "Space invaders" in 1977]]. Chief Wiggum assumes he's talking about Videogame/SpaceInvaders. However, Willie wasn't aware of the game, which debuted in 1978.

* AlienInvasion: Groundskeeper Willie states that he got arthritis [[NoodleIncident from "Space invaders" in 1977]]. Chief Wiggum assumes he's talking about Videogame/SpaceInvaders. However, Willie wasn't aware of the game, which debuted in 1978.

** Groundskeeper Willie couldn't have fired the shot because of crippling arthritis on his index fingers, which he got in the eighties from ''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders''. [[note]] "Yeah, that was a very addictive video game." "Video game?"[[/note]]

* AssholeVictim: Mr. Burns himself. Throughout this episode, Burns has illegally stolen oil from the school (leading to the school nearly going bankrupt and staff being fired), caused several buisnesses to close (thereby harming people who own those buisnesses, as well as their frequent customers) and is responsible for Bart's dog being injured and Grampa becoming homeless. If that wasn't enough, he then concocts a scheme to ''block out the sun'' and fires Smithers for objecting. By the time he's shot, EveryoneIsASuspect because everyone wanted him dead for all he had done.

* ArtMajorBiology: In-universe; Marge is under the impression that marrying Homer gave her Simpson DNA. Lisa is not impressed.

* AssholeVictim: Mr. Burns himself.

* WhoMurderedTheAsshole: Downplayed in that Burns isn't ''killed'', but he does everything in his power to become such a colossal example of the AssholeVictim within a handful of minutes/a couple of days InUniverse that the ensuing mystery was treated pretty seriously because, yeah, even ''babies'' wished him dead.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: As ''Series/{{Mythbusters}}'' has demonstrated, taking candy from a baby is not as easy as it sounds.

"Who Shot Mr. Burns" is ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'''s first multi-part episode, and the only one for the first 27 seasons of the show. It was the end of season 6 and the opener for season 7.

!Part 2[[#S7E1]]

* MultiPartEpisode: The show's first.

"Who Shot Mr. Burns" is ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'''s first multi-part episode. It was the end of season 6 and the opener for season 7.

[[caption-width-right:350:This is not a clue... or is it?]]

** The music in the credits is done to match Oliver Stone's ''JFK''.

* SolemnEndingTheme: To highlight the tension of the cliffhanger, the closing credits of this episode [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cf1JTGav7rk had a serious, march-like version]] of the main theme.

* SixIsNine: The official answer to the mystery involves a clue where Burns left when he fell on the town sundial, pointing to W and S which implicates Waylon Smithers -- except from his angle, he was pointing to M and S for Maggie Simpson, the true culprit. Notably, though, the episode had many RedHerring that ''still'' work with those same letters--it could have implicated '''M'''oe '''S'''zylack (whose last name is even revealed in this episode by his liquor license), '''S'''ideshow '''M'''el, Grandpa and Bart Simpson (the former brags about owning a '''S'''mith & '''W'''esson revolver, and the latter knows about said revolver), Skinner (whose full name is given as '''W'''. '''S'''eymour '''S'''kinner this episode), Groundskeeper Willie (while his full name[[note]]William [=MacDougall=][[/note]] wouldn't be revealed until ''[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS20E9LisaTheDramaQueen Lisa the Drama Queen]]'', he's a '''S'''cotsman named '''W'''illie), and even ''Santa's Little Helper'' (who Burns prominently refers to as "the '''S'''impson '''m'''utt").

* PlotHole: One that almost completely destroys Smithers's alibi: He says that he left the Town Hall meeting early in order to catch the beginning of "Pardon My Zinger," but Part 1 shows him leaving the same time as everyone else (he can be seen walking past in the background when Lunchlady Doris is commenting on the blocked-out sun).

* DarkerandEdgier: And how! While still comedic, the build up to Mr Burns getting shot is played completely straight. There are no jokes to ease the mood as the episode cuts back from Mr Burns walking to the noted absence of various characters. Only when Burns is shot do we end the first part on two jokes.