"Jazzy and the Pussycats"[1] is the second episode of The Simpsons' eighteenth season and first aired September 17, 2006.[1] When Bart turns a quiet funeral into a chaotic mess, Homer and Marge are faced with angry Springfielders who've had enough of Bart's mischievousness. But when a psychiatrist assists Bart by channelling Bart's anger through drums, Lisa feels Bart may have stolen the one thing she held strong: music. For this, Lisa begins collecting animals to subdue her misery. It was written by Daniel Chun and directed by Steven Dean Moore.[1] Meg White and Jack White of the White Stripes guest star as themselves.[1] In its original run, the episode received 8.94 million viewers.[2]
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Plot
Amber, Homer's "Vegas wife" from "Viva Ned Flanders", dies of a drug overdose, so the Simpson family attends her funeral. Bart, frustrated for having to go to a funeral for someone he doesn't know, plays a game of paddle ball. The game, however, goes awry when the ball flies into several people's mouths, causing mayhem. Homer and Marge are faced with the angry church, who has had enough of Bart's antics. As a result, he is forced to see a competent psychiatrist (from "Brake My Wife, Please") who suggests Bart get a drum set in order to harness his anger and the energy he has and find the focus and discipline that he needs. Bart gets a kit and instantly becomes a natural at it. He practices non-stop, and literally runs into The White Stripes on the street. Eventually, his drumming drives Homer and Marge mad and Lisa suggests to her parents that she can take Bart to a jazz brunch.
Lisa asks Bart to jazz along with her quintet, which he does. Bart easily overshadows everyone, including Lisa, and a legendary jazz group asks him to play with them, much to Lisa's anger. Lisa then tries to overtake Bart in his passion of skateboarding which ends in failure. Marge, who does not want Lisa to compete against Bart, decides to let her adopt a puppy in order to make her happy. At the animal shelter, Lisa picks the cutest puppy over a very sick dog that would otherwise die. But at night, the sick dog comes in a ghost-like form to tell her that his fate is doomed because she chose the other dog over him. Lisa decides to go back and adopt the sick puppy, but after seeing how sick many of them are, she decides to adopt them all in order to save their lives. On her way home, many other animals join her, including a horde of circus animals. Having nowhere to put them, Lisa puts them in the attic. After dinner that night, Lisa goes into the attic and finds Bart with the animals she rescued. A tiger bites Bart's drumming arm causing extensive nerve damage and meaning that he can no longer play.
In order to raise money for the operation he needs, Bart organizes a benefit concert. Meanwhile, Lisa is informed that her animals will be taken to a pound and killed if she cannot find a suitable home for them. In the end, after the benefit concert was a good success, Bart feels empathy for Lisa and decides to use the money to build a home for the animals. It is then hinted that another benefit concert will be thrown to repair Bart's arm.[1]
Cultural references
- The title is a play on the fictitious rock band Josie and the Pussycats.[3][4]
- The White Stripes' sequence is identical in style to their music video for "The Hardest Button to Button".[4] The two are also wearing the same outfits they were in the video.[4] The guitar Jack is playing in the episode is his famous JB Hutto Montgomery Airline.
- The Blue Man Group are seen at the funeral; when someone gives a choking member the heimlich maneuver, a multitude number of balls start falling out, and the member's face becomes a "regular" color.[4]
- Gunter and Ernst are also seen at Amber's funeral. Amber and Ginger are seen with them at the end of "Viva Ned Flanders", saying they "know how to treat a woman."[4]
- The scene where Lisa accumulates animals while strolling down the street is a nod to the opening credits from Quentin Tarantino's 1992 film Reservoir Dogs and the song "Little Green Bag" by George Baker can be heard.[4]
- When Bart sits in with the professional jazz musicians, the song they play is "Big Noise From Winnetka" by Bob Haggart.
- Other songs heard include "Take Five", by Dave Brubeck[5] and "Killer Joe", by Benny Golson.
- At Jazzy Goodtimes, Ralph Wiggum plays a Fisher-Price Corn Popper.[4]
- The Jazzy Goodtimes club is a facsimile of the House of Blues nightclub on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood, Ca.
- Moe calls the Titanic unsinkable in the box office.[3]
- The couch gag references the King Homer segment from Treehouse of Horror III which in turn spoofs King Kong.[3]
- A mentioned jazz musician shares the name CSI: Miami.[3]
- At the beginning of the jazz benefit they play "Caravan" by Duke Ellington. [5]
Reception
In its original run, the episode received 8.94 million viewers.[2] Dan Iverson of IGN quotes that like the previous episode, it was decent, and praised the strength of the eighteenth season so far.[6] He called the White Stripes' cameo funny, and called the episode entirely random, starting off with the death of Homer's Vegas wife Amber.[6] He gives the episode a final rating of 7/10, similar to the previous episode.[6]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "The Simpsons: "Jazzy and the Pussycats"". The Futon Critic. http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listings.aspx?id=20061208fox12. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
- ^ a b Simpsons Channel' ratings for "Jazzy and the Pussycats"
- ^ a b c d Cultural references in: "Jazzy and the Pussycats"
- ^ a b c d e f g The Simpsons: Jazzy and the Pussycats
- ^ a b Songs featured in: "Jazzy and the Pussycats"
- ^ a b c "IGN: "Jazzy and the Pussycats"". IGN. http://tv.ign.com/articles/733/733359p1.html. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
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