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Recap / The Simpsons S30 E18 "Bart vs. Itchy & Scratchy"

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Season 30, Episode 18

Original Airdate: 03/24/2019

When Krusty the Clown announces that Itchy & Scratchy will be portrayed as girls, Bart and the other boys pledge to boycott the cartoon by not watching it. Lisa is stoked and records a reaction video of herself, and ends up catching Bart laughing in enjoyment when he gives in to the temptation to take a peek. Bart gets called out for his hypocrisy on the internet, which turns him into a social pariah among the boys at school. This leads to him to hanging out with a group of rebellious sixth-grade girls who fight for women's rights. The escalation between the boys and the girls ultimately leads to the girls trying to destroy the master tapes of every Itchy & Scratchy on live TV, which causes Bart to reconsider his views.

This is the first episode of The Simpsons released by Disney as the acquisition of the 20th Century Fox assets finalized the Tuesday prior to the episode airing.

Tropes

  • All Part of the Show: Among Krusty's published bloopers, there's one where Legs and Louie are beating him up and he pleads to the kids to call the cops because it's not part of the show, and one where a piece of scenery falls on Sideshow Mel and Krusty plays along.
  • All There in the Script: The Bossy Riot members' names are only given the script.
  • An Aesop: Sometimes the best action is inaction, everything could have been avoided if the boys had just ignored the Itchy and Scratchy reboot instead.
  • Asshole Victim: The humiliation of the Boys Rights Association on live television is somewhat deserved since they exiled Bart for enjoying something they hate and really shouldn't care about.
  • Bile Fascination: Invoked when Nelson decides to "hate watch" the new Itchy & Scratchy, but Bart counters with the more radical notion of not watching it at all.
  • Both Sides Have a Point: Lisa calls Bart out on joining a protest for a cause he doesn't believe in. Bart fires back that Lisa hasn't joined the protest while believing in the cause.
  • Broken Aesop: The episode tries to tackle radical feminism but portrays everyone else but Lisa and Bossy Riot as in the wrong. The Boys Rights Association are portrayed as sexist crybabies for not immediately liking something different and Bart is publically humiliated by Lisa when she uploads footage of Bart enjoying a joke from the reboot. While Bossy Riot and Lisa get away with their wrongdoings and are even lionized for them because they are marginalized for their sex.
  • Continuity Nod: Milhouse's cousin Annika from "Let's Go Fly a Coot" is visible in a family photo at his house.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: In retaliation to the all-female reboot being canceled, Bossy Riot attempts to destroy every single episode of the original Itchy & Scratchy.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything?: The episode is clearly referencing the controversy surrounding Ghostbusters (2016) and the latest Star Wars movies featuring a female lead.
  • Evil Is Cool: In-Universe, Bart and Lisa believe Bossy Riot are underdogs fighting a misogynistic system. In reality, Bart was a mercenary for the cause and nothing more than a scapegoat to Bossy Riot. Bossy Riot are also just hypocrites with an excuse to hurt others.
  • Fetish: Learning that Milhouse, the leader of the Boys Rights Alliance, actually has friends, ends up being a major turn on for Kirk and Luanne.
    Luanne: Say it again!
    Kirk: Milhouse. Has. Friends.
    (Luanne moans in delight before kissing Kirk again)
  • Fun with Acronyms: The Boys Rights Alliance all wear shirts that spell out "BRA".
  • Grey-and-Gray Morality: The Boys Rights Alliance and Bossy Riot are both portrayed as being in the wrong and the episode doesn't portray either side as having the moral high ground. B.R.A are just wasting their energies on something trivial, whereas, Bossy Riot are just using feminism to justify their crimes. This matches the overall lesson of the episode, some things are just not worth fighting about.
  • Hypocrite: Bart gets called out for being a hypocrite for watching the female Itchy & Scratchy cartoon. Lisa uploads his reaction to the internet and turns him into a meme.
  • I Do Not Like Green Eggs and Ham: Bart has this reaction when he actually sees the pilot for the female Itchy & Scratchy.
  • Instant Humiliation: Just Add YouTube!: Lisa uploads the video of Bart laughing at the female Itchy & Scratchy. Bart thinks he's built enough street cred to counter the humiliation but is then cornered by the other boys, who label him a traitor.
  • Insult Backfire: When Milhouse starts ranting about Bart betraying them and about how girls keep ruining all the things they enjoy, the other boys agree with him. Bart tries to difuse the situation by pointing out they're listening to a loser like Milhouse, but that makes Milhouse realize that since the other boys are listening to him, he immediately turns the tables by assuming leadership and ordering them to get Bart.
  • Karma Houdini:
    • Lisa never gets in trouble for uploading the video of Bart online, setting the plot in motion as a result. Likewise, Bossy Riot suffers no repercussions for their extremist activities.
    • Krusty is never called out on using feminism for profit; the boys are more concerned about the reboot ruining their childhood and Lisa isn't offended by Krusty's agenda with the reboot. The closest that happens is that Bossy Riot tries to destroy every single episode of Itchy & Scratchy.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: Milhouse becomes the leader of B.R.A after they discover Bart laughing at the Itchy and Scratchy feminized reboot, so they assault and exile him. In the end, B.R.A disbands after being publicly humiliated by Bossy Riot. Though they never do apologize to Bart.
  • No Sympathy: When the TV show host shows the viral video of Hans Moleman being crushed by a boat, he says he's upset... at Moleman for not wiping his bloodstains.
  • One of the Guys: Gender inverted: Bart gets all hyped up for feminism without actually doing any research for what it is, and tries to pass himself off as one of the Bossy Riot gang.
  • Only in It for the Money: Krusty doesn't even try to hide that the change of Itchy and Scratchy into girls was just to cash in on feminism rather than actually being for it.
  • Shout-Out:
  • Spit Take: Bart spits out his soda when watching the Itchy & Scratchy cartoon.
  • Straw Feminist: Bossy Riot are a trio of feminists who use extremism to prove a point. However, it's very clear that they are just using feminism to justify their actions, as they commit vandalism, publicly humiliate the boys and even admit to using Bart as their scapegoat.
  • They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: In-Universe, Bart and the other boys react badly at the new all-female Itchy & Scratchy. However, the extent of the change is mostly just the pair with long hair but with identical levels of violence (and a musical bit based on Pitch Perfect). When catching the short by accident Bart finds it just as funny as ever, and gets ostracized for not jumping on the hate wagon.
  • They Killed Kenny Again: Hans Moleman gets crushed by a boat, as seen in a viral video.
  • Versus Title: The episode is titled "Bart vs. Itchy and Scratchy".

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