After suffering a workplace accident, Homer is left in a cast and contemplates suing Mr. Burns. Meanwhile, Marge feels as if their love life is losing traction, and looks to a surprise source of romance— Mr. Smithers.
Tropes:
- 0% Approval Rating: Mr. Burns has no chance of winning any lawsuits in Springfield because the residents hate him for eating the town's panda.
- 555: Homer sees an ad of a lawyer whose phone number is 555-555-5555. Homer fails to memorize it.
- Ambulance Chaser: Homer's lawyer doesn't care if his clients' accidents are really accidents or not.
- Artistic License – Law: Smithers thinks that eating a cake with a waiver written on it counts as signing a waiver for as long as it's done in front of a notary.
- Bait-and-Switch: At first, Homer seems upset that Marge mentions another man during sex but then he's happy it excites her during sex.
- Big Brother Is Watching: Lisa has a Imagine Spot where she has this power in the school bus.
- Big Eater: Homer says he can't be bought with a cake because he's already eaten several pies.
- Credits Gag: Instead of on the TV as per usual, the "Created by" and "Developed by" credits appear on parking space signs while Homer searches for an open spot.Homer: D'oh! Mandatory credit!...D'oh! "Developed by"? What does that even mean?
- Frivolous Lawsuit: To comfort his lawyer after he gives up on suing Mr. Burns, Homer offers to pretend to fall downstairs. The lawyer accepts the offer.
- Gay Best Friend: Upon befriending Smithers, Marge says she now understands why so many women have these.
- Incompatible Orientation: Marge finds Smithers attractive (and Smithers himself feels she'd look good with a mustache).
- It's All About Me: Homer's lawyer. When Homer expresses second thoughts about suing Mr. Burns, the lawyer points out what Homer suffered and asks is he (the lawyer) doesn't deserve anything out of it.
- Laser-Guided Karma: After Homer and Mr. Burns settle out of court, Homer pretends to accidentally fall downstairs and ends up being run over. Then his father accidentally spills hot soup on him and a caption states it happens to him every night he's bedridden.
- Let Us Never Speak of This Again: Mr. Burns is revealed to Smithers and the viewers as the owner of Chernobyl's power plant. He doesn't want the fact to be spoken of again.
- Narrative Profanity Filter: When Bart writes on Homer's cast, it's in a place Homer and the audience can't see and Bart says it starts with "f" and ends with "ck". It's then shown to the viewers Bart wrote "Father good luck".
- Noodle Implements: Homer walks into Mr. Burns's restroom which contains machinery, a pair of women's shoes, an electric chair, shackles, knives, the Nefertiti Bust, and a piano. What these are for is anybody's guess but they're nefarious enough that it creeps Homer out.
- Notary Nonsense: Smithers thinks that eating a cake with a waiver written on it counts as signing a waiver as long as it's done in front of a notary. Scatterbrained Senior Abe Simpson being that notary doesn't help the situation.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Marge and Smithers bond over the fact that no one understands the choices they've made and that both are all too used to the words "What do you see in him?"
- Reassigned to Antarctica: Mr. Burns threatens to reassign Smithers to the Chernobyl plant if Smithers fails to convince Homer to sign the waiver.
- Retargeted Lust: The emotional bond Marge forms with Smithers leaves her dissatisfied when he heads back to the plant and she reacts by coming on strongly to her "husband with benefits."
- Rules Lawyer: The blue-haired lawyer notes that the old trapdoor was perfectly legal due to various grandfather clauses in the original plant, but since Burns was having it renovated when Homer fell down Homer can legally sue Burns for his injuries.
- Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Homer doesn't remember he can sue Mr. Burns over his accident until Smithers shows up to ask him to sign a waiver.
- Shout-Out: Homer discovers some sort of torture chamber with a Wicked Cultured flair in what is supposed to be Burns's bathroom. One curiosity present is the Nefertiti Bust (or a replica). Homer leaves and does not ask questions.
- Technologically Blind Elders: Grandpa thinks microwave-heated soup must be heated for two hours.
- Wrong-Name Outburst: Marge accidentally calls Homer "Smithers."
- Yellow Sash of Power: A variation wherein Lisa goes mad with power as the school bus monitor.
