Original air date: 12/1/1996
Production code: 4F04
Notable for the breakdown of the relationship between Kirk and Luann van Houten (Milhouse's parents) during a dinner party organized by Marge. While Luann sees a chance to reinvent herself and Milhouse doesn't really care about it, the fact Kirk's life is going to the dogs after the divorce makes Homer nervous about the state of his own marriage.
Plot
After realizing how lazy and slovenly her family has become by dining each night in front of the TV (including Homer complaining about the dishes not being transparent and Bart being in his underwear), Marge decides to throw a dinner party. Among those in attendance are the Flanders, the Hibberts, the Lovejoys and the Van Houtens, with Kirk's crack about Luann's eyebrows being the first in a series of backhanded insults between the two, turning things very awkward in the process.Their bickering reaches a breaking point while playing Pictionary, with Luann being unable to guess Kirk's drawing about "dignity." Kirk claims that he doesn't know to draw it because he lost it after marrying her. Luann then tells about the penurious conditions they have been through, and Kirk shoots back that she actually loves it when he fails. Finally, (after Lisa is brought in to sing to calm things down) Luann demands a divorce, something that takes Kirk aback at first, but tries to brush it off by showing (or in this case, drawing) her the door. When the party finishes, Luann drives off before Kirk can get in the car.
After the divorce, Luann becomes determined to turn herself into a modern woman and burn every trace of her married life (doing this literally with Kirk's shirts). Meanwhile, Milhouse is either losing his mind or is actually thrilled by the fact his mother has a new boyfriend called Chase, who used to be an American Gladiator. Things aren't going right for Kirk however, as he has to move into a dirty apartment building for divorced men, is fired from his former father-in-law's cracker factory for being single and has his car stolen by a woman he had recently met, destroying his demo tape in the process. He then realizes that had he been a better husband, he probably wouldn't have seen his life circle the drain. Homer tells him that his marriage to Marge is as strong as ever, but begins to worry when he finds out that Marge left him some sausages defrosting in the sink (as Kirk had predicted).
After looking for Lisa's advice (and recalling his piss-poor wedding "reception" at a roadside gas station), Homer decides to make amends with Marge to avoid the same fate: He first buys her season tickets to a dinner theater she and Luann went to the previous night and makes some "white noises", but this only annoys Marge. Then at the hair salon, he tries to give Marge's hair a new style, only to completely mess it up, and an irked Marge claims she doesn't need this kind of attention. Considering that his wife needs to start anew, Homer sheepishly files for a divorce.
After taking the kids to the dentist, Marge hears Homer wanting to have a talk with her. Fearing for the worst, she is surprised to find him proposing to her once again in front of their friends and they re-marry. Kirk seizes the opportunity to dedicate his song to Luann in hopes she will come back to him, but she rejects him and Chase kicks him out. After asking for his shirts, Kirk says he will be back — maybe.
"A Milhouse Divided" contains examples of:
- Actor Allusion: At dinner, Marge asks "Has anybody seen the new Woodsy Allen movie?", with Woodsy being an obvious parallel to (or mispronunciation of) Woody Allen. Julie Kavner has appeared in several of his movies in minor or secondary roles.
- Artistic License – Law: Homer manages to get a divorce extremely quickly and without Marge knowing. In real life, the only way one would be able to get a divorce without the spouse knowing is if they were unable to be contacted.
- Bait-and-Switch:
- Nelson comes over and asks if it's true Milhouse's parents divorced. Milhouse automatically assumes Nelson is going to make fun of him; however Nelson has no such intention and tries to console Milhouse with his own experiences of his parents' marriage ending.
- Lamenting that "Marge deserves a fresh start," Homer heads to town hall and files for divorce. In the next scene, she walks into the kitchen with the kids, but he calls out to her from the living room asking her to come and talk to him. As it turns out, he just invited everyone over to watch him marry her again.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Marge wished to have a fancy dinner party for all her friends, and it ends with everyone getting a front row seat to Kirk and Luann humiliating each other before deciding to divorce.
- Bittersweet Ending: Even after Kirk's heartfelt song, Luann still rejects him and has her boyfriend kick him out of the Simpson house. In this case, the downer ending was invoked by the writers because they didn't want to do the cliched ending where the divorced couple get back together. On the other hand, the ending for Marge and Homer is incredibly sweet.
- Bowdlerization: When aired in the United Kingdom, the part where Luann packs away Kirk's shirts, douses them with lighter fluid, and burns the box (along with her line "Presto, change-o, KABOOM! Sweet Fanny Adams, bye-bye!") was cut for two reasons: 1) use of the word "fanny" (which doesn't mean "butt" like it does in American English), and 2) Luann using lighter fluid and burning the boxes (with no character pointing out how dangerous it is or showing a real-life consequence to that action) is considered "dangerous behaviour"note according to BBFC ratings guidelines.
- Break-Up Bonfire: Luann sets the shirts Kirk left in the house on fire after they split up.
- Brick Joke: After kicking Kirk out, Luann burns his shirts. Kirk asks for them at the end of the episode.
- Call-Back: The flashback of Homer and Marge's quickie wedding at Shotgun Pete's from season three's "I Married Marge", along with a new scene where Homer buys Marge a Carvel ice cream cake shaped like a whale.
- Cerebus Retcon: That Homer and Marge's Shotgun Wedding was at a cheap driveby church with none of their friends or family present was treated very lightly in "I Married Marge". This episode reveals in flashback that Marge was actually left heartbroken that she couldn't have a proper wedding, and Homer was left always regretting that he couldn't have done better for her.
- Chairman of the Brawl: Luann's new boyfriend is a stunt double who proves his skill by having Bart break a chair over him and not reacting at all. We next see Homer taking a bath as Bart approaches him from behind with a chair...Homer: [screams in pain] What the hell is wrong with you?
Bart: Jeez, sorry. It's a pretty standard stunt, Homer. - Cheerful Child: Kearney's son lives in appalling conditions after his parents' acrimonious break-up, but he seems pretty okay with it.Kearney's son: I sleep in a drawer!
- Chekhov's Gun: Homer dates his failures as a husband back to the "wedding reception" he had for Marge, which was just the two of them seated at a picnic table outside Carvel with a cake he bought in the store—to which she said sadly, "It's getting less and less likely you're going to yell 'surprise' and have all my friends jump out." When he decides to marry her again, that's just what he does.
- Clumsy Copyright Censorship: The store where Homer buys Marge a cake after their wedding is clearly Carvel (with the cake itself resembling the store's signature "Fudgie the Whale" cake), but only the bottom half of the logo is visible.
- Comically Missing the Point: "Did anyone see that new Woodsy Allen movie?" "You know, I like his films, except for that nervous fella's always in 'em".
- Continuity Nod: The previous season's "Lisa the Iconoclast" revealed that Jimbo's thug Kearney was older than he looked, apparently being old enough to remember the 1976 bicentennial celebration. This episode reveals he also has a child as well.
- Couch Gag: The family sits down, but Bart is green. Homer fiddles with the TV antenna and Bart changes to red. Homer then returns to the couch, and smacks Bart in the back of the head, which returns him to his normal color.
- Didn't See That Coming: Kirk never saw the divorce coming.
- Divorce Is Temporary: Subverted when it looks like Kirk is about to win Luann back at the end, but she's not interested (though they would play this straight many seasons later). Exaggerated with Homer, who divorces Marge specifically for the purpose of marrying her again in a romantic gesture.
- Everyone Knew Already:Homer: As you know, there’s been a lot of talk about divorce lately, and I think your mom might not be happy with me.
Lisa: You’ve done a lot of crazy stuff over the years, and she stood by you. Why would she leave you now?
Homer: Cause there's lots of stuff she doesn’t know about!
Lisa: You mean like your poker shack out in the swamp?
Homer: Mmm-Hmm.
Lisa: She knows. - Exact Words: When Kirk is fired:Kirk: So that's it? After twenty years, "so long, good luck"?
Boss: I don't recall saying "good luck". - Firing Day: In addition to his wife divorcing him, Kirk loses his job at the cracker factory, because he's a single man and his boss believes that crackers are a family food. According to Luann, he caused the company to suffer, so that probably played a factor.
- Frozen Dinner of Loneliness: Kirk sums up his divorce to Homer with this line implying he's not only alone but also destitute:Kirk One minute, your wife is cooking you your favorite meal; the next, you're thawing hot dogs in a gas station sink.
- Game Night Fight: Kirk and Luann bicker throughout the dinner party, but it all comes to a boil when Luann is unable to guess Kirk's drawing of "dignity" in Pictionary. This leads to a heated argument, leading to both of them getting divorced.
- Gasoline Dousing: Following their divorce, Luann packs Kirk's things in boxes, tapes said boxes shut, douses them in gasoline, then lights them on fire.
- G-Rated Drug: Nelson recalls his mom getting severely addicted to cough drops, to the point that, as he put it, "her breath was so fresh, she wasn't my mother anymore."
- Halfway Plot Switch: Zigzagged. The start of the episode seems to be setting up Homer acting boorish and ruining another party, much akin to the same plot in "War of the Simpsons." Instead Homer cleans himself up quickly enough, and the party starts off amicably until the tension between Kirk and Luann rises. The final act of the episode does return to the formula of Marge and Homer's relationship in tension however.
- Hollywood Board Games: Luann and Kirk van Houten, whose marriage is in its last legs, have been exchanging underhanded insults throughout the Simpsons' dinner party. Kirk has his Rage Breaking Point in the middle of a Pictionary game, triggered by his wife's inability to guess just what the hell that oblong shape her husband has made means. When time runs out, Kirk loses it, points out it's supposed to be a drawing of "dignity," and challenges her to depict it, which she does so marvelously that Dr Hibbert comments it's "worthy of Webster's".
- Hollywood Tone-Deaf: After his divorce, Kirk tries to start a singing career. Unfortunately, the woman he meets on the rebound destroys his demo tape. Homer laughs at the tape's silly title "Can I Borrow A Feeling?", much to Kirk's annoyance. When Kirk performs the song at Homer and Marge's second marriage ceremony to try and win back Luann, it's...not good. The music world clearly didn't lose anything by having his tape wrecked.
- Horrible Honeymoon: It's revealed that after Homer and Marge had their Shotgun Wedding, they spent their honeymoon at a trucker gas station, where Homer tried to console a disappointed Marge with a cake labeled "To a Whale of a Wife". Homer's revelation of how crummy a honeymoon it was became one of the factors that drove him to eventually do a second wedding with Marge to try to make up for it.
- Hypocrite: Luann criticizes Kirk for driving the Southern Cracker Company into the ground after her father made him the manager...but her father is a thoroughly incompetent boob himself. He deliberately avoids trying to enter the singles market, even though the company's in trouble and it could use all the sales it could get.
- Incompetence, Inc.: While Kirk's being fired from the Southern Cracker Company is harsh, especially since later episodes establish that Kirk and Luann are cousins and that Kirk was essentially fired by his uncle, it was still justifiable. Under Kirk's leadership, the Southern Cracker Company went from being the leading cracker brand in Springfield to only being sixth. That said, Kirk's uncle seems almost as incompetent as Kirk himself, given that he deliberately avoids trying to penetrate the singles market when the company needs all the customers it can get.
- Jerkass Realization: Kirk realizes what a jerk he's been to Luann and how he should have respected her more only after she kicks him out.
- Kick the Dog: After 20 years of service, the cracker factory manager fires Kirk for being single in what the manager states is a "family business". He then goes on to say he doesn't wish Kirk any good luck.
- Lampshade Hanging: Marge admitting she doesn't really know anything about Luann to begin with, since the two have never really interacted much before this episode.
- Lethal Chef: According to Kirk, Luann is such a bad chef that the last time Kirk ate well (before Marge's dinner party) was when he was in the Army and when Luann tells everyone about the time some punks egged Kirk's Bonneville, he snarks, "Should have asked them to hurl some bacon. Then I could have a decent breakfast for once."
- Let the Past Burn: Invoked by Luann, who collects all of Kirk's stuff in a box and gleefully sets it ablaze while celebrating her post-divorce reinvention.
- Literal-Minded: Homer decides to redo their wedding to give Marge the wedding she deserves instead of the one she had. Rather than a simple vow renewal, it is important to Homer that the second wedding be real, so he files for divorce first.
- Lonely Bachelor Pad: Kirk moves into the "Casa Nova" complex after Luann kicks him out. The apartment is largely unfurnished aside from the racecar bed and a the neighbors tell Kirk a possum died in the pool.
- Metaphorgotten: When Reverend Lovejoy reads Homer's vows:Lovejoy: "Do you, Marge, take Homer in richness and in poorness..." Poorness is underlined... "...in impotence and in potence, in quiet solitude or blasting across the alkali flats in a jet-powered, monkey navigated..." ...And it goes on like this.
- Mood Dissonance: Homer cheerfully says goodbye to everyone leaving the party, who are all downbeat due to Kirk and Luann splitting up in front of everyone.(Homer and Marge are in bed after the dinner party.)
Marge: I feel terrible. The Van Houtens split up at our party.
Homer: Marge, please. That was twenty minutes ago. - My Country Tis of Thee That I Sting: While Homer and Marge are buying items for the dinner party, Marge learns the nations each item came from and refuses to buy the one made in America.
- Nepotism: This is heavily implied to be the only reason why Kirk wasn't fired from the cracker factory, as despite his incompetence in turning one of the leading cracker companies in town into one of the worst, he was still married to Luann. However, once he learns about his daughter divorcing him, Luann's father quickly fires him.
- Never My Fault: Luann is more than happy to act like Kirk is the only reason why their marriage was a miserable one despite some complaints Kirk himself had when they finally split up.
- Never Trust a Title: The title refers to Milhouse's parents breaking up, but Milhouse isn't really focused upon throughout the episode.
- Non-Indicative Name: Otto walks out of "Stoner's Pot Palace", not particularly happy.Otto: Man, that is flagrant false advertising!
- No Sympathy:Homer: I'd like to file for... divorce.
Clerk: These things happen. Eight dollars. - Oh, Crap!: Kirk explains to Homer the signs of a potential divorce depends on the food you eat. One minute you are eating a delicious meal, the next you are thawing hot dogs in a sink. When Homer goes home he finds hot dogs thawing on the kitchen sink, so he obviously freaks out. Marge actually left them for Homer after he called to tell her he won't be with her that night like he promised.
- Older Than They Look: Another joke about Kearney being older than he looks, when he's revealed to be divorced, and has a school-aged son of his own.
- Only the Leads Get a Happy Ending: Increasingly concerned about his own marriage thanks to the Van Houten's bitter divorce, Homer demonstrates his love by committing to Marge again with all their friends in attendance. However, Luann rejects Kirk's attempt to do the same.
- Pet the Dog:
- Despite the fact that Nelson and Kearney constantly pick on Milhouse, they give their sympathy for him after learning about his parents' divorce; they even refused to make fun of it in order to spare his feelings. Nelson explained that his own parents got divorced because of his mom's addiction of cough drops and that he felt that she wasn't acting like a real mother because of it. Kearney also admits that he was married and got a divorce that was tough on his son, but the latter was able to grow out of it, and Kearney assured that Milhouse can do the same.
- Despite the constant enmity between Homer and his in-laws, Jacqueline, Selma and Patty all happily show up to Homer and Marge's second wedding, which Homer would have had to invite them to since it was a surprise for Marge.
- Playing Pictionary: The Simpson family hosts a dinner party with a game of Pictionary. Maude guesses "cornstarch" from three dots drawn by Ned, while Kirk is unable to draw "dignity," though Luann is. Homer thinks that Kirk is also unable to draw "a door".
- Prisoner's Last Meal: After finishing his meal at the Simpsons' dinner party, Dr. Hibbert makes reference to this when he "compliments" Marge's cooking in a way that does not entirely sound like a compliment.Dr. Hibbert: Marge, if that were my last meal, I'd tell the warden, "Bring on the lethal injection!" [Signature Laugh]
- Rearrange the Song: The closing theme is played in the style of the later Steely Dan albums.
- Riddle for the Ages: What did Luann's drawing of "dignity" look like?
- Secret-Keeper: It's hinted that Homer shares some of his secrets with Lisa more willingly than he does with Marge (who actually knows anyhow).Homer: There's lot of stuff she doesn't know about.
Lisa: You mean like your poker shack out in the swamp?
Homer: Yuh-huh.
Lisa: She knows. - Shout-Out:
- The Allied Biscuits box has a red triangle in one corner reminiscent of Nabisco.
- The band at Homer and Marge's second wedding features one of The Doobie Brothers as a saxophonist.
- The closing credits feature an arrangement of the theme song in the style of Steely Dan's "Deacon Blues".
- Status Quo Is God: Subverted. The Van Houten's don't get back together. At least 'til season 19's "Little Orphan Millie".
- Stepford Smiler: Milhouse is very upset by his parents' divorce, but he represses his anger. Bart sees him driving his toy car around his bedroom and trashing everything while ranting about winning the race. When Luann asks him if he really wants to drive his car indoors, he confirms that yes, he does. Luann then leaves her "sweet treasure" alone even though Milhouse is clearly messed up and needs some support.
- Sting: One plays after Homer files for divorce.
- Take Our Word for It: We don't see how Luann drew "dignity", but everyone agrees that it was a very, very good drawing.
- Take That!:Neighbor: A possum drowned in the pool. You have any garbage bags?
Kirk van Houten: Just throw it over the fence and let Arby's deal with it. - Talking to Themself: Marge does this when she goes into the other room for an adult conversation and says that anyone is welcome to join her.Marge: "Hello, Marge, how's the family?" I don't wanna talk about it. Mind your own business!
Homer: Keep it down in there, everybody! - Tempting Fate:
- Kirk tells Homer about his high position at the cracker factory. The next scene shows him being fired.
- After his car gets stolen, Kirk tells Homer that he took Luann for granted for so long that that the divorce caught him by surprise, and tells Homer about how one day his wife will be preparing his favorite meal, the next thawing hot dogs over a sink, and Homer says that he has nothing to worry about since he and Marge have a comfortable routine going. The next scene has Homer reading a note from Marge telling him that since he didn't go with her to have dinner with Luann and her new boyfriend, she left him some hot dogs thawing in the sink.
- Terrible Artist: Kirk. He can't draw "dignity" well, and gets angry at Luann for not being able to guess, which sets off the argument. Later:Kirk: (surprised) I... I... a divorce? Sure. Divorce. Hey, you got it, toots! And here's a picture even you can figure out! (draws a circle in a rectangle) It's a door! Use it!
Homer: That's a door!? - That Man Is Dead:Luann: Forget everything you thought you knew about Luann Van Houten!Marge: Actually, Luann, I don't really know anything about you...Luann: Forget it! She's gone! Presto-change-o!
- Toilet Seat Divorce: Kirk and Luanne divorce over a game of Pictionary ... well, sort of. In actuality, they were fighting all night before the game started, and the game just unleashed years of frustration.
- The Unfair Sex: Despite the Van Houtens' divorce supposedly stemming from their mutual resentment towards each other (with the Game Night Fight being the last straw), once the divorce goes through, Kirk gets all the blame and loses everything he cares about, while Luanne is off having the time of her life.
- Unusual Eyebrows: In a one-off gag, when the Van Houtens first arrive at the party, Luanne is glancing away
◊ as Kirk explains that they were late because she was busy with her makeup, saying she didn't want anyone to know that she had no eyebrows. Luanne turns to glare at him, revealing a bizarre quizical look◊.Kirk: What? You don't! - Unwanted Assistance: Homer tries to be more supportive and helpful toward Marge when he thinks their marriage is on the rocks, but his attempts just irritate her.
- Voice of Reason: Lovejoy tries to diffuse the argument between Kirk and Luann, but Kirk quickly shuts him down.
- Wham Episode: Kirk and Luann are divorced, although they remarry eleven seasons later in "Little Orphan Millie".
- Wham Line: Luann delivers one of the biggest ones in the show's history, and one that sets off the events of the episode.Luann: I am not happy, and I haven't been happy for a long time. I want a divorce!
