Season Premiere
The Simpsons season premiere airs after the Halloween special. The chronology
doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but I really can't take issue with this fine
episode of the best series on television. The introduction is new, but pretty
mediocre. It features topical chalkboard text against subliminal messages that
has one for Al Gore. In the couch scene, Bart places a whoopee cushion under
Homer.
A badger takes over Santa's Little Helper's doghouse. Homer chides Bart and
Lisa for thinking that a badger would appropriate the doghouse and be vicious.
He crawls into it and the sounds of a scuffle emanates. Homer comes out pretty
clawed up. He lifts his shirt to show his organs falling out. Lisa asks why his
shirt isn't ripped. In a subtle and hilarious twist on a rather crude visual
joke, Homer replies, something along the lines of, "How should I know? Am I
a tailor?"
Homer stumbles into the house and discovers that the town has a new area code
when the radio dials his number, sans area code, to give away tickets to The
Who. Mr. Burns, who has the same number with the right area code, wins them.
Homer is outraged. The badger peeks into the kitchen window. Homer tells him to
get lost; there are bigger problems now.
At a town meeting, Homer points out that the rich side of town got to keep
the old area code of 636. Outraged, he divides the town and becomes mayor of New
Springfield.
Class conflict worthy of Marx ensues. Homer and his cronies cut off the dam.
This dries up the riverbed in Old Springfield. Unfortunately for Homer, this
leads to the discovery of gold. Old Springfield is able to import a
bottled-water factory. In the funniest and most scandalous scene ever to get by
the censors, Kent Brockman thanks New Springfield for making the citizens of Old
Springfield so rich that they are now taking, "golden showers."
Homer proceeds to build a wall, dividing the Old and New Springfield. As
there are no hospitals or other necessities, everyone but the Simpson family
abandons New Springfield. Homer retaliates by convincing The Who to play New
Springfield. The power of music unites the town. With all of Springfield dancing
to the rock and roll, the badgers, joined by what look to be raccoons, decide it
is time to attack.
