Ned Flanders holds a yard sale. Bart buys a bunch of books that Ned has "sanitized" by cutting out words like "damn" and "hole." Bart wants the books for a stunt in which he rides his bicycle over a stack of burning books.
But one book survives the fire: the diary of Edna Krabbapel, who was married to Ned until her untimely death. Thanks to the diary, Bart takes the car of Superintendent Chalmers for a ride and takes a peek at the teachers' lounge, where teachers work as telemarketers to supplement their meager salaries.
Bart also completely misunderstands what Edna writes about her cat. Edna was proud of Bart? Edna thought Bart had potential? Based on this misunderstanding, Bart resolves to become better at school. After getting an A on a pop quiz, Marge and Lisa are desperate to figure out how he cheated.
Lisa worries about it so much that she gets a stress rash. At the hospital, Dr. Hibbert (now voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson) prescribes her some chewables. The doctor also suggests Marge start taking Troxodone for chill "zombietude."
Bart feels confident enough to go on a spelling bee. Right after Bart gets the word "interlude," Lisa pulls him aside and explains that Edna was writing about her cat. Bart is very depressed by this revelation.
In Bart's treehouse, Ned explains to Bart that the Flanders family had considered moving out of Springfield, but Edna rejected the idea because she felt an obligation to kids like Bart. Ned also quietly takes Edna's diary.
This episode contains examples of:
- Abnormal Allergy: Milhouse mentions he took karate, but was allergic to his gi, forcing him to fight in his underwear and inside of a plastic bubble.
- Absent Animal Companion: No word on what became of Edna's cat after she passed away.
- Animation Bump:
- The musical segment at the beginning of the story has better animation quality than the rest of the episode.
- The ending montage includes a still from season 3's "Bart The Lover" redrawn to match the higher quality of more modern episodes.
- Aside Glance: An in-universe example. After Ned reveals to Bart that Edna really did appreciate him, Bart thanks Ned for his help and gives him the diary. Ned smiles, looks up to the heavens (presumably to Edna), and gives a thumbs-up.
- Bait-and-Switch:
- When Bart imagines himself having a bright future, he imagines himself graduating college, leading meetings, and sitting in the President's chair...only to get kicked out after three weeks. Turns out he was only the presidential chair tester.
- Bart gives a bunny as a gift to Groundskeeper Willie, and he responds that he'll take the bunny...for his evening stew. Cut to Willie and the bunny enjoying the stew together.
- Bait-and-Switch Comment: Ned reads in Edna's diary that he "has made [her] life a living..." He takes a moment to ask for forgiveness before reading "...dream come true."
- Book Burning: Bart and Milhouse buy two giant boxes of books from Flanders, only to burn them for a skateboard jump.
- Celebrity Paradox: The ending montage shows Edna watching The Bob Newhart Show on her TV. Marcia Wallace, who played Edna, starred on The Bob Newhart Show as Carol Kester, Bob's receptionist.
- Couch Gag: The family land on Mars. Their spaceship destroys the couch. Homer forgets to wear his helmet and thus his head explodes.
- Comic-Book Time: Edna's relationship with Ned lasted at least a year before she passed away, with none of the kids any older.
- Garage Sale: The entire town has a West Side Story-inspired song and dance number about the Flanders house's legendary garage sale, where all sorts of useless objects can be found. Homer berates Marge about missing it when the song ends, to the rest of the town's bemusement and annoyance for being late."You miss one rehearsal and you're totally lost!"
- Really Dead Montage: The episode ends with a montage of Edna's life, ending with the chalkboard gag of Bart writing "We'll really miss you, Mrs. K." from "Four Regrettings And A Funeral", the show's original tribute to Marcia Wallace after her passing in 2013.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Bart reads his deceased teacher Edna Krabappel's diary and, mistaking her references to her cat for references to him, is empowered by the belief that she thought more highly of him than she ever told him and felt he had a future. Which, as it happens, is true: in a video Ned took, which he shows to Bart, she described Bart as a sweet, misunderstood boy who just needed "someone to recognize the basic goodness that's trapped inside [him] and is desperately trying to get out."
- Secret Diary: The main focus of the episode revolves around Bart finding Krabappel's diary and reading what he thinks are entries about him.
- Self-Deprecation: In the box of "Things Ned Doesn't Find Funny" at the garage sale, there is a DVD of season 3 of The Simpsons.
- Snooping Little Kid: Lisa, who reads Krabappel's diary when she finds it left in Bart's treehouse. She realizes that all the nice things Bart thinks are about him are actually about her cat, but won't tell him the truth.
- Stealth Pun: In one of the pictures in the ending montage, Bart is seen writing on the chalkboard, "I WILL NEVER BE A TEACHER'S PET."
- Stock Audio Clip: Edna's diary entry, "If you can teach one kid one thing, then today will be a success", is recycled from "Bart Gets a Z". Meanwhile, her line in Ned's flashback from the end of the episode is recycled from "The Seemingly Never-Ending Story."
