"Tooth Or Consequences" is an episode in the fourth season of Married... with Children.
After another long day at work and finding no homemade food at home, Al makes Peg cook. Things take a bad turn for Al when he has a toothache severe enough to warrant a visit to the dentist Marcy recommends, which gets worse for him as the dentist is in a bitter divorce with his wife.
Tropes in this episode:
- Cassandra Truth: Bud actually has some action with a girl, but Al and Peg both dismiss it as a joke when told about it, much to Bud's dismay.
- Cheating with the Milkman: "Mailman" in this case. Al's retort to a taunting neighbor who boasts of his own supper has this trope in mind.Neighbor: *off-screen* Hey, Bundy! I have steak tonight! What are you having?Al: If I was the mailman, I'd be having your wife!
- The Dentist Episode: Al is forced to visit Marcy's dentist when The Tooth Hurts too much for him to put it off any longer.
- Gilligan Cut: Al insists that he doesn't need to see the dentist, despite Marcy finding severe signs of tooth decay in his mouth, because, in his words, "if my teeth don't hurt, there's nothing wrong with them, and my teeth don't hurt", only for the scene to cut to later that night, where his toothache kicks in and causes him to scream from the pain of it.
- I Resemble That Remark!: After Al insults Marcy by calling her a chicken, Marcy protests to Steve about Al's remark... while bobbing her head up and down with her hands on her hips.Marcy: I am not a chicken! (turns to Steve) Why does he keep calling me a chicken?!
- Pyrrhic Victory: Peg finally gives in to Al's demand and makes an amazing dinner for the family... which Al can't eat because he had recently taken a trip to the dentist.
- Tempting Fate:
- The episode starts with Al standing at the front door and trying to reassure himself that there will be dinner at home, only to find Peg sleeping on the couch with a nearly-empty pizza box and NO sign of dinner at home as he enters the house.
- Despite Marcy finding many teeth in bad shape (or color, for that matter) inside Al's mouth, Al insists that he doesn't need to see the dentist because "if my teeth don't hurt, there's nothing wrong with them, and my teeth don't hurt". Cut to later that night...NOW my teeth hurt! *screams*
- As Al braces himself at Marcy's dentist's office, said dentist assures Al that he's Seen It All as far as bad dental hygiene goes in order to coax Al into opening his mouth. The moment he catches a glimpse of Al's teeth, he lets out a Big "OMG!" before asking for his assistant to bring some drop cloth to soak up more potential blood for the dental work.
- Finally, the dentist assures Al that he'll avoid digging too deep inside Al's teeth for the dental work, putting Al at ease. Just then, his assistant enters and informs him that the attorney for his wife, whom he's in a bitter divorce with, is calling for him. The result of the call leaves the dentist shaking in anger so much that all of his prior assurance to Al goes out the window as he starts the operation in shaky hands, ensuring that Al's trip to the dentist will end painfully.
- The Tooth Hurts: Al's toothache occurs in this episode. It's why he finally goes to see a dentist, albeit unwillingly.
- Verbal Backspace: Marcy's recommendation about visiting a dentist falls into this, considering she had just described the scenario in such an erotic fashion.Marcy: Everyone should see their dentist at least twice a month — I mean, year.
- Vorpal Pillow: Peg claims that she covered Al's face with a pillow when his toothache kicked in the night before in order for her to get some shut-eye. His appearance soon afterwards proves that she didn't kill him this way.
- You Need a Breath Mint:
- Steve's remark about Al's dental hygiene, after Al boasts of having never had any cavities despite having never visited a dentist, overlaps this trope with Sarcasm Mode.Al: I haven't had a cavity my whole life and I've never been to the dentist.Steve: And still you have that delightful breath.
- Marcy's initial reaction upon close inspection to Al's teeth is this trope, but with outright disgust instead of sarcasm.Oh my God, it smells like a hamper.
- Steve's remark about Al's dental hygiene, after Al boasts of having never had any cavities despite having never visited a dentist, overlaps this trope with Sarcasm Mode.
