Line #26 Recap/TheSimpsonsS9E18ThisLittleWiggy


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/this_little_wiggy_65.JPG]]
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3	'''Original air date:''' 3/22/1998 ''(produced in 1997)''
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5	'''Production code:''' 5F13
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7	While on a day trip to a hands-on science museum, Marge feels sorry for Ralph Wiggum being bullied and suggests to Chief Wiggum that Ralph and Bart be play buddies, which Bart objects to -- until he realizes that Ralph is the son of an incompetent police chief and has police equipment at his disposal (including a master key that opens up every lock in town -- including one to an abandoned prison's electric chair).
8	----
9
10	!!Tropes:
11	* AIIsACrapshoot: Apparently, Robby the Automaton’s ''default'' setting is to KillAllHumans, as he demonstrates with Skinner.
12	* AmazinglyEmbarrassingParents: Marge forces Bart to be friends with Ralph and insists on using the word "playdate."
13	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: When the bullies find out about the master key:
14	-->'''Kearney:''' Let's use this thing to rob the school.
15	-->'''Jimbo:''' Let's go to the zoo and tease the dingo.
16	-->'''Dolph:''' [[MundaneUtility Let's use it to key some cars]]. ''(Jimbo glares at him)''
17	* BaitAndSwitch: During the science expo, there is a scene on an alien planet [[https://frinkiac.com/img/S09E18/297129.jpg with "ARS" written]] in the Franchise/StarWars font. Turns out [[https://frinkiac.com/img/S09E18/297696.jpg it's an exhibit for "Mars"]].
18	* BiggerIsBetterInBed: When Mr. Burns says "There's a rocket in my pocket!", Smithers says "You don't have to tell me, sir."
19	* BreakTheCutie: Ralph when Bart betrays him to help the bullies get into the penitentiary.
20	* BrickJoke:
21	** Ralph mentions that he's friends with a leprechaun that tells him to burn things. In the end, when everyone is cheering for him, the leprechaun tells Ralph to burn down The Simpsons' house.
22	** When they first enter the Knowledgeum, The Simpsons are introduced to the place by Troy [=McClure=] who warns them that their car might be subjected to repeated break-ins. Homer was the only one worried about that. After leaving we clearly see their car has broken windows.
23	** Ralph comments that the electric chair smells like hotdogs. Later when Quimby sits on the chair and the boys realise they left the chair live, Ralph exclaims "he's gonna smell like hotdogs!"
24	* TheBodyPartsThatMustNotBeNamed: An in-universe example. When Marge puts her hand on Ralph's shoulder, he reacts by crying that Marge is touching his "special area", implying he was told [[TooSmartForStrangers what to do in the event someone tried to molest him]] and misinterpreted what "special area" was referring to because of the vague choice of words and his naivety.
25	* ChekhovsGun: Bart's rocket that Ralph touches turns out to be vital in saving Mayor Quimby.
26	* CirclingSaw: Homer saws a hole into the floor of Bart's room for some reason. He pops his head up, sees Marge and Bart, then says, "Uh-oh" and departs.
27	* CluelessAesop: Referenced when Ralph was apparently taught to let authorities know when people are touching his "special area", with nobody defining what that actually is to him. Ralph then thinks this special area is one of his shoulders and becomes very upset if anyone ever comes in contact with it. Don't forget that Ralph's father is Springfield's police chief...
28	* CouchGag: Bart peeks from around the TV, and runs in and spray-paints the family onto the couch, tagging it with an "El Barto" signature before running off.
29	* ADayInTheLimelight: For Ralph and Bart mostly, meaning that Creator/NancyCartwright gets to [[ActingForTwo talk to herself through 90% of the episode]], as she also voices Nelson Muntz and Kearney.
30	* DudeWheresMyRespect: Lisa is initially put off when the Simpsons give Ralph all the credit for saving the mayor's life when she was the one who planned the whole thing while he only suggested they should ask her. However, when Bart points out they should let him have this one because "after all, it's Ralph," she goes with it.
31	* ExactWords: Bart tries to exploit this to trick Ralph into giving him access to Clancy Wiggum's secret closet that he forbids his son from entering. Turns out because of Ralph's PronounTrouble, Bart assumes the chief had this covered just in case and he goes in anyway.
32	-->'''Bart''': C'mon, Ralph, your dad's a cop. There's gotta be some cool stuff around here. Bullets, dead body photos, what have you. \
33	'''Ralph''': He keeps that stuff in his closet, but he says I'm not allowed in there. \
34	'''Bart''': Did he say ''I'm'' not allowed in there? \
35	'''Ralph''': Yes.
36	* ExpositionAlreadyCovered: When Principal Skinner is about to surprise Bart's class by introducing a special visitor, Bart cuts him off, telling him that the visitor is a robot and they already saw him before coming into class. Skinner thanks Bart in an irritated tone.
37	-->'''Skinner:''' We have a very special visitor today. But he's no ordinary visitor. In fact, uh, you might say- \
38	'''Bart:''' He's a robot. We saw him on the way in. \
39	'''Skinner:''' ''(irritated)'' Thank you, Bart. ''(to the robot)'' All right. Come in. They know.
40	* FireForgedFriends: After the ordeal with the key, Bart sees Ralph as a genuine friend.
41	* HatesBeingTouched: Ralph, when Marge puts a hand on his shoulder while empathizing with him about his loneliness. He turns away from her hand with an uncomfortable expression and says, "Help! She's touching my special area!"
42	* HideAndNoSeek: To get Ralph away while he cleans up the mess Ralph left in his toybox, Bart challenges him to hide and seek.
43	-->'''Ralph:''' I've been in [the hallway closet] for two hours, and Bart ''still'' hasn't finded me!
44	* HurricaneOfEuphemisms: When Bart, Ralph and the bullies first arrive at the condemned prison:
45	-->'''Bart:''' Here she is- the big house. The stony lonesome. The thug jug. The mobster trap. Penn State. The old crook-
46	-->'''Nelson:''' Shut up. Let's just open the gate.
47	* ImaginaryFriend:
48	** Ralph has one he calls "Wiggle Puppy" who according to Chief Wiggum, is his only friend.
49	** Then there's also the pyromaniacal leprechaun Ralph claims to know who tells him to burn things. Though since we see the leprechaun, [[MaybeMagicMaybeMundane it leaves it ambiguous whether or not he's actually imaginary]].
50	* InadvertentEntranceCue: When Marge realizes Bart has tricked Ralph into playing hide and seek to get rid of him, she urges him to take his new "friend" outside.
51	-->'''Bart:''' But people will see me paired up with a doofus. You have no idea what that's like. \
52	''([[InstantlyProvenWrong A hole is sawed through the floor and Homer's head pokes through it]].)''\
53	'''Homer:''' Uh-oh.\
54	'''Bart:''' [[KnowWhenToFoldEm I'm going]].
55	* InsistentTerminology: Marge invites Ralph over without telling Bart and insists on calling it a "playdate," even when Bart keeps calling it "hanging out."
56	* IronicEcho: Lampshaded. Bart takes the police master key from Ralph, who laments, "I thought we were friends!" Moments later, Nelson grabs the key from Bart and plays keep-away. Bart says the same thing: "I thought we were friends."
57	--> '''Nelson''': Yeah? Well, I hope the irony's not lost on you, Simpson.
58	* KarmaHoudini: The bullies, as usual, suffer no repercussions for turning on Bart and throwing away Ralph's master key, last seen walking off to find huckleberries.
59	* LaserGuidedKarma: Soon as Bart regrets betraying Ralph to impress the bullies, they immediately turn on him and give him a taste of his own medicine.
60	* LoserFriendPuzzlesOutsiders:
61	-->'''Nelson:''' I don't get you, Simpson. Sometimes you seem kind of righteous, but then we see you fraternizing with lameoids.
62	* NoodleIncident: Bart reads through his parents' criminal records and reports that Homer has been to jail six times before expressing disappointment that Marge has "only" been to jail twice. (Marge doing a stint in prison was, of course, the subject of "Marge in Chains"; the other incident remains unknown.)
63	* NoseNuggets: "I found a moon rock in my nose!"
64	-->'''Bart:''' Houston, we have a booger.
65	* OddFriendship: Bart initially spends time with Ralph because Marge forces him to, and later because he realizes Ralph can get him access to Wiggum's SkeletonKey. But the two actually have fun together breaking in and out of stores and Bart develops a soft spot for him much as Lisa did in "I Love Lisa."
66	* RidiculousFutureSequelisation: The Wiggums were watching ''The Return Of Franchise/ThePinkPanther Returns'' when Bart and Ralph sneak in and take the skeleton key.
67	* SarcasmBlind: When Mrs. Krabappel asked the students seven times eight, Milhouse answered "low battery" (they were using calculators) and didn't understand her reaction to his answer was sarcastic.
68	* TheScrooge: Mr. Burns saved Mayor Quimby by cutting off the electricity supply to the electric chair, but his motives were less than noble. Burns simply wouldn't supply electricity to anyone who wasn't paying for it (though why would a prison still have electricity and a security guard if no one's been using it for years?)
69	* ShoutOut:
70	** The guns in the "Let's Make a Baby" game resemble the ''Millennium Falcon'' guns in ''Franchise/StarWars''.
71	** Among Ralph's toys is Binky the Rabbit from Creator/MattGroening's ''ComicStrip/LifeInHell''.
72	** When the model rocket lands at Mr. Burns' pocket, he says "Smithers, there's a rocket in my pocket!", paraphrasing the Dr. Seuss story ''Literature/TheresAWocketInMyPocket'', [[WaxingLyrical as well as the song "Cool"]] from ''Theatre/WestSideStory''.
73	* SkeletonKey: Chief Wiggum has one, [[VisualPun which is shaped like a skull]], which opens every door in Springfield. Bart and Ralph steal it and get up to mayhem.
74	* ThreeStoogesShoutOut: Nelson has an ImagineSpot where he measures the Stooges' brains (with their hairdos attached on top for some reason) to see which of theirs is the heaviest and he then comically slaps all three of them.
75	* ThrowTheDogABone: Lisa was the one to come up with a plan to save Mayor Quimby but the one congratulated was Ralph for suggesting to ask for her help. Lisa gives in out of pity.
76	* TooDumbToLive: Quimby seems to be actively trying to get himself killed with the electric chair.
77	* UnnecessaryCombatRoll: When he sees that someone broke into his closet and assuming it's a burglar, Chief Wiggum arms himself and performs one. He ends up throwing his back out upon doing so.
78	* WhatDoesThisButtonDo: Bart presses the keyboard buttons on the visible computer despite Frink telling him to stop. It's done to the point the computer crashes and [[ExplosiveInstrumentation catches fire]].

Context Recap / TheSimpsonsS9E18ThisLittleWiggy