Line #13 Recap/TheSimpsonsS9E5TheCartridgeFamily


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/c09a86f8e4f15d5d616f1138e89de7c7.jpg]]
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3	'''Original air date:''' 11/2/1997
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5	'''Production code:''' 5F01
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7	'''The Cartridge Family''' is the fifth episode of the ninth season of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', airing for the first time on Creator/{{Fox}} in the United States on November 2, 1997. It was also the first episode (in production order) where Mike Scully was showrunner, taking over from Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein, the showrunners for seasons seven and eight.
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9	Homer buys a handgun to protect his family better after a soccer riot plagues the town — much to Marge's dismay.
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11	!!Tropes:
12	* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: On both sides. Getting the gun gives a boost to Homer's ego, and Marge, who spent most of the episode denouncing guns, [[NotSoAboveItAll decides to keep it in the ending after she likes how cool and dangerous she looks with it.]]
13	* AmericansAreCowboys: The episode tackles UsefulNotes/AmericanGunPolitics. Despite having been in a mental institution, having frequent problems with alcohol, and having beaten up (''[[InsistentTerminology former]]'') President UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush, Homer's "potentially dangerous" status only restricts him to three handguns (or fewer).
14	* ArtisticLicenseGunSafety: While Homer’s misuse of guns is rightfully called out, Springfield’s NRA is not without fault. Moe ludicrously modifies five guns into one, and has it pointed at the people he’s showing it off to.
15	* BadLiar: After Homer shoots all the dinner plates, the family is eating dinner out of glasses:
16	-->'''Marge''': Does anyone know where all my dinner plates went?
17	-->'''Bart''': Uh...
18	-->'''Homer''': You probably left them at work.
19	* BaitAndSwitch: After the montage of Homer waiting five days, we cut to him anxiously waiting outside of the gun store, wanting to be let in. When the owner unlocks the door, he rushes inside... to use the bathroom.
20	* BigDamnHeroes: Double subverted. Homer pulls his gun on Snake in the motel's office to stop the ensuring robbery. Marge turns on Homer for lying to her again about getting rid of the gun, distracting him and causing Snake to snatch it. Homer points out the gun is unloaded, and as Snake grabs the box with the bullets in it, the NRA show up.
21	* BlackComedy: The gun store having the PunnyName "Blood Bath and Beyond", with the handguns being right next to the ''sympathy card'' display.
22	* BothSidesHaveAPoint: The writers gave both sides of the gun rights debate reasonable arguments (credited writer John Swartzwelder opposed gun control, making him an outlier on the then-staff). WordOfGod says that if there is any message in the episode, it is that irresponsible idiots like Homer shouldn't own guns.
23	* {{Bowdlerization}}: The terrestrial channel showing ''The Simpsons'' in the UK, Creator/Channel4, has edited the episode (most notably removing the final sequence where Marge takes the gun for herself and an earlier scene when she and the kids arrive at the motel and a hooker asks Bart if he's looking for a good time).
24	* BrickJoke: When Homer defends having a gun to Marge and Lisa, he says that without it the King of England could walk into their house and push them around. Later in the episode, Krusty claims that guns should only be used for three things: family protection, hunting, and keeping the King of England out of your face.
25	* BullyingADragon: Homer during the soccer riot. He doesn't want to leave when Marge says they have to, because he himself wants to do some rioting. He shoves one of Groundskeeper Willie's buddies, who furiously threatens him. [[KnowWhenToFoldEm Homer wisely chooses to get out of there.]]
26	* CallBack:
27	** Among the many incidents from Homer's background check are fighting UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS7E13TwoBadNeighbors "Two Bad Neighbors"]] and being institutionalized in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E1StarkRavingDad "Stark Raving Dad"]].
28	** Marge references [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS7E1WhoShotMrBurnsPartTwo the time Maggie shot Mr. Burns]].
29	-->'''Homer''': [[AudienceSurrogate I thought it was Smithers.]]
30	-->'''Lisa''': That would've made more sense.
31	* CerebusSyndrome: A big one. The episode starts with the people of Springfield destroying their own city in a riot [[SoccerHatingAmericans just because they don't like soccer.]] The rest of it is about the dangers of guns, including to their owners' psyche as well as to those around them.
32	* CouchGag: The couch is a trough filled with water, and the Simpsons, on fire, rush in and sit on the couch to extinguish the fire.
33	* CreepyShadowedUndereyes: The shady home security system salesman sports these.
34	* DarkerAndEdgier: This episode is considered to be one of the darkest episodes of the entire series. The scene where Marge informs her husband that hiding the gun is the worst thing he's ever done, marked a turning point in not just the episode, but the series as a whole. This marked the only time in the show's history that we, the audience, genuinely felt like the family would break up, making this a near-wham episode. Other episodes dealt with similar themes, but they always had everything get resolved by the end of the episode. Yet the fact that Homer keeps on lying about getting rid of the gun, pushes the episode into darker territory.
35	* DistinctionWithoutADifference: After the clerk at the gun store discusses Homer's background check with him and he mentions that he beat up [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush President Bush]], Homer is quick to reply, ''"Former'' President!"
36	* DrunkWithPower: As Homer explains, holding the gun gives him an "incredible surge of power" which he abuses it such as almost robbing the Kwik-E-Mart for no reason other than he could. Later, Marge gets the same feeling when she holds the gun, prompting her to keep it.
37	* EveryoneHasStandards: Springfield's NRA members include a bitter, emotionally abusive old woman (Agnes Skinner), a Mafia henchman (Louie), a surly bartender (Moe), a DepravedKidsShowHost (Krusty the Clown), a single mother who stole her lazy husband's convertible to get him to pay child support (Ruth Powers), and a gun-crazy redneck (Cletus the Slack-Jawed Yokel). They're all so shocked at how recklessly Homer uses his gun that they revoke his membership.
38	-->'''Dr. Hibbert''': Homer! You use your gun as a can opener!?
39	-->'''Homer''': I use it for everything! Watch me turn on the TV! ''(Shoots at the TV a few times until it turned on to a western featuring a guy getting shot as everyone stares in shock)''
40	-->'''Agnes''': I've never seen such RECKLESSNESS!
41	-->'''Louie''': You mighta hurt someone!
42	-->'''Cletus''': Are you some kinda MORON!?
43	-->'''Homer''': [[ComicallyMissingThePoint Yeah but-]]
44	-->'''Krusty''': Hey! Yutz! Guns aren't toys! They're for family protection, hunting dangerous or delicious animals, and keeping the King of England out of your face!
45	-->'''Moe:''' [[TurnInYourBadge Your membership card please, Homer]].
46	** When ''Cletus'' of all people asks if you're a moron for your behavior, you'd better believe you've screwed up somehow.
47	** It's pretty telling that ''Bart'' joined Lisa in shaking his head "No" towards Homer when Marge first talked about Homer's gun and Homer starts making motions to protest.
48	* FootballHooligans: Most of Springfield turn into hooligans, although in this case it's because they're all ''bored'' of the football "match" (which let's be fair, would probably cause similar reactions in football-loving regions). When the fight breaks out Groundskeeper Willie and his Scottish friends eagerly jump in to make it a proper riot.
49	* FunWithAcronyms: When hosting the [=NRA=] meeting, Homer has a sign reading '''N'''achos, '''R'''ifles, '''A'''lcohol.
50	* GrievousBottleyHarm: At one point in the soccer riot, a bottle smashes on the back of a man's head. During Kent Brockman's subsequent news report about the riot after it has escalating throughout the town, he had to duck to avoid being hit by a bottle.
51	* GunAccessories:
52	** Exaggerated with the revolver's add-ons, including a silencer, a loudener, a speed-cocker ("Oh, I like the sound of that!") and finally a barrel screw-on system for shooting down police helicopters that looks like a bazooka with the little revolver sticking out the back.
53	-->'''Homer''': Oh, I don't need anything like that ... ''yet''.
54	** Also exaggerated with Moe managing to attach multiple weapons, some of them fully automatic, to his double-barreled shotgun (to shoot them, he needs to pull the shotgun's trigger -- their triggers are joined to it with some cord).
55	* HardTruthAesop: In the commentary, the writers admit that the episode doesn't really have AnAesop except maybe "idiots like Homer shouldn't own guns". Considering the absurd amount of times Homer's horrible lack of firearms safety nearly gets someone shot (including leaving the gun, fully loaded, in a place where a kid like [[EnfanteTerrible Bart]] can easily[[note]]well, ''accidentally'', Homer hid it in the vegetable drawer in the refrigerator[[/note]] find it), it's not a bad Aesop to give, even if it's supposed to be [[SpoofAesop a joke]].
56	* HereWeGoAgain: At the very end of the episode, Homer gives Marge the responsibility to get rid of the gun once and for all, but when she's about to throw it in a trashcan, she notices her reflection in the lid and likes how impressive and dangerous it makes her look, and as such she decides to keep the weapon for herself.
57	* HonorBeforeReason: Marge chooses to berate Homer while he's currently holding a dangerous thief at gunpoint. Her speech ends up distracting Homer and allowing Snake to disarm him and continue with his crime. If she was going to be angry with Homer, she should have waited until they were in absolute safety.
58	* {{Hypocrite}}: Zigzagged. Despite all her anti-gun talk from start-to-almost-finish, Marge keeps the gun for herself when she sees herself with it in the trashcan lid reflection, liking how cool and dangerous it makes her look. However, she ''was'' officially trained with firearms during her time working as a police officer back in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E23TheSpringfieldConnection The Springfield Connection]]", while the rest of this episode proved just how irresponsible Homer is with firearms (which is why Marge wanted him to get rid of the gun in the first place).
59	* HypocriticalHumor: When the other [=NRA=] members are calling out Homer for his RecklessGunUsage, Louie (a mafioso) warns him that he might hurt somebody and Cletus (the famously slack-jawed yokel) wonders if he’s a moron.
60	* ImagineSpot: Homer has one after wondering what his life would be if he robbed the Kwik-E-Mart. [[ItMakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext He then imagines himself as a senator with a mansion while Marge dances the Monkey in a bikini]].
61	* InsaneTrollLogic: When the gun shop owner is looking at Homer's background check and points out that he once beat up [[UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush President Bush]], his only reply to that is ''"former'' President Bush!"
62	* InsigniaRipOffRitual: As Homer gets kicked out of Springfield's NRA, he has his membership card ripped up and is told to turn in his ''tattoo'', which Moe offered to remove with a cheese grater (to Moe's disappointment, Homer never got the tattoo).
63	* ItWorksBetterWithBullets: Homer tells Snake after he snatches Homer's gun that the joke's on him, as the gun is empty. Then immediately subverted - Snake threatens to toss the gun at Homer's face, and Homer hands over the bullets in a "Here you go, just don't hurt me!" fashion.
64	* {{Jerkass}}: Homer buys a gun, wreaks havoc with it, putting his family and friends in danger, and lies to Marge about having gotten rid of it ''twice''. He also threatens the shopkeeper for making him wait for the gun, and one scene implies that he wanted to shoot Flanders and ''a row of baby ducks''.
65	* KarmaHoudini: Snake gets away with the motel's cash, because all the gun-owners holding him up didn't bother to shoot him. Lisa and Moe point this out.
66	* LargeHamAnnouncer: The Spanish soccer announcer, a stark contrast to Kent Brockman's bored delivery.
67	* LostAesop: Marge and Homer are at odds over the gun he buys, which even leads Marge to briefly leave him. In the end, Homer finally agrees to let Marge get rid of the gun, so Marge heads to the nearest garbage bin to throw it out. However, seeing herself holding the gun from a reflection in the lid, she likes how dangerous and cool she looks so she decides to hold on to the gun, putting it in her purse. The writers said that there was no real message from the story, but if there was, it'd be that people like [[IdiotHero Homer Simpson]] should not have a gun.
68	* MundaneMadeAwesome: Kent Brockman is unable to make the boring soccer match interesting, but his overly excited Latino counterpart does manage to do so.
69	* NegativeContinuity:
70	** The main plot revolves around Homer buying a gun for the first time, yet previous episodes establish that Homer owned a gun (he tells Marge to "get [his] gun" in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS4E7MargeGetsAJob "Marge Gets a Job"]] and in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E10Springfield "$pringfield"]] he brandishes a shotgun when he gets freaked out by Lisa's nightmare about the boogeyman).
71	** He's also briefly seen with a shotgun when Bart tricks him into thinking aliens have invaded in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E13RadioBart "Radio Bart"]]. "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E11HomerTheVigilante Homer the Vigilante]]" also sees Homer and his vigilante group (which includes Moe) briefly wielding guns, which admittedly goes very poorly as the guns keep discharging indoors (and Bart gets his hands on one of them).
72	** In the episode [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E23TheSpringfieldConnection "The Springfield Connection"]], Marge also wields a gun after she joins the police and is also shown to be a really good shooter.
73	* NoodleImplements: Homer's burglar alarm is made of [[https://frinkiac.com/img/S09E05/284934.jpg a fishing pole (propped up by some books), a flashlight, a magnifying glass, an alarm clock, and a goldfish in a bowl.]]
74	* NotSoAboveItAll:
75	** Lisa gets a moment when Homer, after accidentally shooting a picture of Marge twice, worryingly puts the gun down on the table so he doesn't do any more damage. The gun [[RuleOfFunny somehow fires on its own]] seconds later, hitting a knife, which spins through the air and hits the picture.
76	-->'''Lisa''': No offense, Mom, but that ''was'' pretty cool.
77	** Marge is very adamant against guns being in their possession but when she sees herself with the gun in hand she can't help but admire how cool she looks and keeps it.
78	* NoTellMotel: Selma sends Marge and the kids to the "Sleep-Eazy Motel" mentioning that [[NoodleIncident she woke up there once]].
79	* OhCrap:
80	** Marge during the aftermath of the riot when the doorknob starts rattling.
81	** Marge when she opens her eyes and sees Homer pointing his gun in her face.
82	** Snake at the end when the NRA show up and point their guns at him.
83	* TheOldestProfession: Bart unknowingly courts two prostitutes outside the Sleep-Eazy Motel.
84	-->'''Prostitute''': Looking for a good time, sailor?
85	-->'''Bart''': I certainly am!
86	-->'''Marge''': [''Grabs Bart''] No you're not! [''To prostitutes''] He's really ''not''.
87	* PatiencePlot: Homer spends five days sitting outside the house, waiting for his background check to be completed so he can buy a gun.
88	* PizzaBoySpecialDelivery: The TV repairman that Selma called was no doubt summoned for the exact purpose of sleeping with her, especially given how tramped up she was and how the TV was simply unplugged.
89	* PlanetOfSteves: Parodied:
90	-->"You'll see all your favorite soccer stars, like Arriaga, Arriaga II, Bariaga, Arugila and Pizzouza!"
91	* PottyEmergency: After making it through a five day waiting period to purchase a handgun, Homer is seen standing outside the entrance to the Gun store anxiously waiting for it to open. Once it does so, he rushes to the bathroom to relieve himself.
92	* PowderKegCrowd: Springfield descends into a full-blown riot out of ''sheer boredom''.
93	* PunBasedTitle: The title is a pun on ''Series/ThePartridgeFamily''.
94	* RecklessGunUsage: Deconstructed with Homer:
95	** In the gun store, Homer ''points it at the clerk and pulls the trigger five times'' (unloaded, thankfully). If this wasn't Springfield, he would have been banned from the store immediately at best, or shot by other patrons of the store at worst (as there have been several instances of [[TooDumbToLive would-be gun store robbers]] or other idiots being killed for pointing a weapon at a clerk).
96	** Homer trap shooting in his backyard using dinner plates.
97	** Homer shoots a soda can display on a food counter ''behind'' the shooting line at a range.
98	** Homer stores his (loaded) gun in the vegetable crisper inside the refrigerator, where Bart finds it and plays "William Tell" with Milhouse (with Milhouse holding the apple ''in his mouth'').
99	** The NRA are appalled at Homer when they see him shoot a beer can and his television and expel him on the spot. When they leave, he shoots out the lights instead of turning them off.
100	* RubeGoldbergDevice: Homer's alleged burglar alarm, which somehow involves a goldfish (and it getting squashed by an alarm clock). Someone reaches their hand through the mailslot and steals the fish.
101	* ScrewThisImOuttaHere:
102	** Sideshow Mel tries to do this at the stadium when he can't stand the boredom of the soccer game any longer, but Moe says he wants to leave first. This starts the riot when Moe puts Ned Flanders in a headlock when he tries to intervene.
103	** The Simpsons, bar Homer, at the soccer riot when it starts to escalate. Homer only decides to leave too after shoving one of Groundskeeper Willie's buddies, who threatens him.
104	** Mayor Quimby chooses to run from the motel office after Homer points his gun at Snake when Snake holds his hands up.
105	** [[OhCrap Upon seeing several NRA members pointing guns at him]], Snake grabs the money from the clerk's hand and bolts.
106	* SeeYouInHell: Homer says this to a ''[[MundaneMadeAwesome dinner plate]]'' before blasting it to pieces with his gun.
107	* SelfDeprecation: After Marge acknowledges the time Maggie shot Mr. Burns, Homer remarks he thought ''Smithers'' did it.
108	-->'''Lisa''': [[DeadpanSnarker (dryly) That would've made a lot more sense.]]
109	* SerialEscalation: Homer's tour of the NRA's shooting range. Some of the members were using run-of-the-mill handguns and pistols, while some others were using machine guns and assault rifles. [[NeverMessWithGranny Mrs. Skinner]] even threw a hand grenade.
110	* SeriesContinuityError: Homer wielded a shotgun in [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E10Springfield $pringfield]]", and "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E13RadioBart Radio Bart]]" and even Marge brought a gun to the house in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E23TheSpringfieldConnection The Springfield Connection]]" but this is still treated like the first time that they've had a gun on them.
111	* ShockinglyExpensiveBill: "Five hundred dollars?! AWWWWWW!"
112	* ShootTheTelevision: Parodied and inverted as Homer turns his TV on by shooting it. Hilariously, the image that comes on the screen when it does turn on is of a cowboy, having been shot, falling off a roof.
113	* ShoutOut:
114	** The title is a reference to ''Series/ThePartridgeFamily''.
115	** The scene at the Sleep-Eazy Motel with the body floating in the pool is a reference to the 1950 film ''Film/SunsetBoulevard''.
116	** Marge leaving with the gun near the end is accompanied by the theme music of ''Series/TheAvengers1960s''. On the DVD commentary the makers did say they should have chosen a different piece of music.
117	* SignsOfDisrepair: The '''SL'''E'''E'''P-E'''AZY''' Motel.
118	* SkewedPriorities: Homer turns down the home security expert's offer and throws him out of the house. Not because the guy was an obvious con man and thief, or because he proposed a solution that would have suffocated everyone in the house, but because Homer was unwilling to pay the $500 it would have cost.
119	* SmartBall: Homer eventually tells Marge he doesn't trust himself about getting rid of the gun and tells her to get rid of the gun herself, because he feels sure his attachment to it would mean lying to her again and again.
120	* SoccerHatingAmericans: Practically everyone in Springfield turns out for the soccer match at the start of the episode, but they perceive it as boring, and their boredom eventually triggers a full-blown city-wide riot. This is a joke that could only be made in the USA where, in contrast with the rest of the world, soccer has never caught on. WordOfGod said they were skewering how soccer was more boring on television than live. One line in the opening commercial for the match is actually a terrific summation of why the sport has had trouble appealing to Americans.
121	-->"It's all here! Fast-kickin'! Low-scorin'! And ties? You bet!"
122	* StabThePicture: An accidental variant. Marge is worried about Homer's RecklessGunUsage , so Homer tries to turn on the safety, only for the gun to fire at a photo of Marge. ''Twice.'' Homer puts down the gun, only for it to go off ''again'', this time hitting a knife which goes flying and lands in the picture, squarely between Marge's eyes.
123	-->'''Lisa''': No offense, Mom, but that ''was'' pretty cool.
124	* StickyFingers: The home security system salesman pockets various items around the Simpson house, including a remote and an ashtray.
125	* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: When Lisa tells Homer the Second Amendment is just a relic, Homer retorts that it keeps them safe from the King of England. Later in the episode, when the [=NRAers=] learn how irresponsible Homer is with his gun, Krusty starts berating him by claiming that guns should be used for "family protection, hunting dangerous or delicious animals, and keeping the King of England out of your face."
126	* SuperStoicShopkeeper: Homer goes to buy a gun from Bloodbath & Beyond. The clerk remains completely nonplussed, even when Homer repeatedly fires an unloaded handgun in his face and threatens his life for imposing a waiting period.
127	-->'''Homer''': I'd kill you if I had my gun!
128	-->'''Clerk''': Yeah, well, ya don't.
129	* TakeThat: The reason the soccer riot starts is because the soccer game is incredibly slow and boring. The team with the ball just pass it to one another non-stop without moving down the field, while the other team makes no effort to try and take the ball, leaving the game at a literal standstill.
130	-->'''Krusty:''' Come on, you schnorrers, '''do something'''!
131	* TimePassesMontage: Homer spends the entire five-day waiting period sitting on his lawn, seeing different people and things he'd like very much to shoot with a gun (Flanders; Patty and Selma; a row of ducks; rabbits; a truck owned by Target, because of the famous bullseye logo on the side) while Music/TomPetty's "The Waiting" plays.
132	* TooDumbToLive:
133	** After the Simpsons have fled the riot at the stadium, a man is seen ''getting back into a burning car''.
134	** During the WilliamTelling Bart and Milhouse attempt with Homer's gun, Milhouse has the apple ''in his mouth'', instead of on top of his head. Thankfully, Marge enters before anything else can happen.
135	** Homer tells Snake his gun (which Snake just grabbed from him) has no bullets in it, and tauntingly holds up the box containing the bullets. Snake then threatens Homer with the empty gun to hand over the bullets, which he does out of idiotic fear.
136	** Not as bad as the other two, Marge choosing to berate Homer and preparing to give him a speech about lying to her. While he's currently holding an armed thief at gunpoint who had just held the mayor hostage. Homer gets distracted and Snake is able to disarm him.
137	* TriggerHappy: Homer devolves into this very rapidly after getting the pistol. Even before getting the gun, all he can talk about for a few minutes is how he wants to shoot things.
138	* TwoDecadesBehind: Both Homer and Krusty are unaware that the United Kingdom hadn't had a king since 1952 (and wouldn't have one again till 2022, when Queen Elizabeth II passed away and was succeeded by King Charles III), and that the title of King of England fell into disuse after the the Acts of Union of 1707.
139	* UngratefulBastard: When Homer holds Snake up with his gun when the latter takes Quimby hostage at knifepoint, potentially saving the lives of all present, Marge's first reaction is to berate Homer for lying to her about not getting rid of it.
140	* VerySpecialEpisode: An odd version. For one thing, it was a shift from the original set-up (which has The Simpsons trying to survive a soccer riot that erupted in town). For another, it was a big SeriesContinuityError as Marge had a gun before on the episode where she becomes a cop and Marge never complained before about Homer having guns in the house [[note]]though most of the other guns Homer had were shotguns and rifles, and the gun Homer had was a handgun, which can easily be mistaken for a toy gun and is more likely to be misused by the children[[/note]]. For a final note, Homer learns his lesson about guns (and lying to his wife), but Marge ends up with the gun after seeing how good she looks with it, which leads to a BrokenAesop of "Yeah, guns are dangerous, but they make really good fashion accessories."
141	* ViolentGlaswegian: When the riot starts, Groundskeeper Willie and his Scottish friends are disappointed that it ''isn't violent enough''.
142	-->'''Willie:''' They call this a riot? Come on, lads, let's take 'em to school!
143	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The soccer riot was over with in a single night, and despite the city-wide looting and destruction, Springfield appears to be perfectly normal afterwards. No consequences were seen from the riot's actions, the issue was never resolved, and it basically just made an excuse to have Homer buy a gun.
144	* WilliamTelling: Bart and Milhouse try to do this with a gun and an apple placed [[TooDumbToLive inside Milhouse's mouth]]. So [[AccidentalHero it was a good thing Marge came home when she did]].

Context Recap / TheSimpsonsS9E5TheCartridgeFamily