Original air date: 5/18/2003
Production code: EABF-16
After Bart and Milhouse are caught by the police sneaking inside Ned's Beatles memorabilia basement, Bart is put in a peer group called "Pre-Teen Braves" in order to be supervised by an adult (Marge), until they come head-to-head with Milhouse's peer group "Cavalry Kids".
Tropes featured:
- Beyond the Impossible: In less than a day since the Pre-Teen Braves nature tour, the Cavalry Kids are able to transform the polluted wasteland back into a healthy and flourishing forest.
- Bigger Than Jesus: Ned loves The Beatles because they declared "they were bigger than Jesus"(
though not using those words). - Breaking the Fellowship: Marge has Bart participate in a peer group without Milhouse as she believes something about him "shakes up his soda".
- Broken-Window Warning: The Cavalry Kids throw Ralph (with a threatening note taped to him) through the Simpsons' front window.Ralph: I'm a brick!
- Cheaters Never Prosper: The Pre-Teen Braves swap out their rival's candy bars with laxatives. But this grants the Cavalry Kids a major win since they sell a greater number of candy to the local seniors.
- Contrast Montage: There's a montage featuring the Pre-Teen Braves competing against the Cavalry Kids when it comes to their community service projects.
- Counterpart Combat Coordination: The two peer groups fight their respective counterparts: Bart vs Milhouse (former friends), Database vs Martin (nerds), Nelson vs Jimbo (bullies), Ralph vs Cosine (little guys).
- Fighting Your Friend: Bart and Milhouse become rivals when their peer groups battle each other for publicity. It escalates in the climax where the Springfielders who normally get along turn into bitter enemies.
- Foreign Culture Fetish: The episode takes jabs at Caucasian peer groups that appropriate Native American culture and outfits. Apu even calls out the Pre-Teen Braves for doing so.
- G-Rated Drug: Bart and Milhouse start hallucinating after drinking 40-year old sodas of the Beatles merchandise.
- Identity Impersonator: Once the real Cavalry Kids are led astray and away from the sporting event, Bart and his friends disguise themselves as their rivals in order to slander the National Anthem and ruin their reputation. Bart even disguises himself as Milhouse to support the illusion.
- Last of His Kind: Invoked. The Preteen Braves meet a Mohican and he says each one just pretends to be the last one to score girls.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: As Milhouse and Bart watch South Park:Milhouse: I hear those kids' voices are done by grown-ups.Bart: Hey, there's nothing wrong with that! I just wonder how they keep it so fresh after 43 episodes.note
- Moose and Maple Syrup: Springfielders decide to stop fighting and join together to sing "O Canada", even forming the Maple Leaf emblem while Marge waves the Canadian and Quebec flags.
- Moral Guardians: Marge disapproves of Bart and Milhouse watching South Park and switches it for a light-hearted religious sitcom.
- Mushroom Samba: After drinking the Beatles sodas, Bart imagines Milhouse as John Lennon in the different phases of his life, from Beatlemania to Sgt. Pepper to "Let It Be" to "Double Fantasy".
- My Country Tis of Thee That I Sting: After singing "O Canada", Bart and Milhouse make up with each other:Milhouse: Well, Bart, we've learned that war is not the answer.
Bart: Except to all of America's problems.
Milhouse: Amen. - No Sympathy: After Nelson hugs a tree a second time while calling it his papa, Marge makes a rude remark on why his father never came back for him.
- Oh, Crap!: Mr. Burns's reaction to seeing Indian smoke signals.Monty Burns: Oh no, the Pawnee have returned. They probably want their souls back.
- Sex with the Ex: Lou expresses annoyance at Eddie sleeping with his ex-wife.
- Take That!: Flanders chooses not to press charges since he claims that the supreme court is only good at dictating what women can do with their lives compared to administering justice to some juvenile delinquents.
- This Is Gonna Suck: During the stadium brawl, Moe finds himself about to fight Drederick Tatum.Moe: Oh, geez. How did this happen?
- Where the Hell Is Springfield?: Spoofed in a deleted scene as Bart and Milhouse watch South Park:Milhouse: You know what I've always wondered: what state is South Park in?Bart: Colorado.Milhouse: Woah, just like us...sometimes.
