Funeral for a Fiend
Encyclopedia
"Funeral for a Fiend" is the eighth episode of The Simpsons
' nineteenth season
and first aired on November 25, 2007. It was written by Michael Price and was directed by Rob Oliver. It features Kelsey Grammer
in his tenth appearance as Sideshow Bob
, as well as David Hyde Pierce
in his second appearance as Cecil Terwilliger. John Mahoney
makes his first appearance as Dr. Robert Terwilliger, Sr., the father of Bob and Cecil. Keith Olbermann
also makes a guest appearance as himself.
goes to Circuit Circus to buy a camera battery, but winds up purchasing a TiVo
because the batteries are free with the purchase of a TiVo
. The family enjoys using the TiVo to watch TV without the commercials, especially Marge
, who happily skips over them. Late one night, Marge dreams of Keith Olbermann
accusing her of not watching the commercials that pay for the TV shows, and convinces her to watch them. One such ad is for a new rib
restaurant
, owned by a cowboy named Wes Doobner. The restaurant is perfectly suited to each member of the family, and they decide to visit it for its grand opening
.
When they arrive they find the building deserted, and the door locks behind them. Wes Doobner is revealed as Sideshow Bob
after he speaks, since Lisa
recognizes his voice and realizes that "Wes Doobner's World Famous Family Style Rib Huts" is an anagram
of "Sideshow Bob's World Famous Family Style Return". After tying up the Simpsons, Bob shows them a slideshow of how he got to Springfield
after Krusty prevented Bob from killing the Simpsons in Italy
, built the restaurant, and produced the commercial. Sideshow Bob then reveals a large pile of TNT, with which he will kill them, thanks to a laptop
with a defective battery (which will cause it to overheat and explode) as a detonator. While gloating, Bob incorrectly quotes a phrase from Macbeth
and Lisa corrects him. He tries to look up the correct phrase, but the laptop explodes in Bob's hands. He is then arrested and taken to court.
During Bob's trial, Bob's father, Dr. Robert Terwilliger Sr., is brought to testify. He explains Bob has a rare heart condition, and also suggests that Sideshow Bob is insane because of his long-standing feud with Bart
. Sideshow Bob then asks if anyone was tormented by Bart's pranks, to which everyone responds positively. This convinces Springfield
that in the long-run Bart is ultimately to blame, and they turn against him. As Bart pleads his innocence, Bob takes out a vial labeled nitroglycerin, which Bart snatches and throws out the window, thinking it was an explosive. The vial was actually Bob's heart medication, and he collapses on the floor, unconscious, and is pronounced dead.
Bob's entire family attends the funeral: His mother, Dame Judith Underdunk, a well-known Shakespearean actress; his father, Dr. Robert Terwilliger Sr.; his brother Cecil, who was let out of jail for the occasion; his wife Francesca, who is now a widow; and his son, Gino. Many of the regular Springfielders also attend the funeral. Feeling slightly guilty, Bart speaks to Cecil and decides to go to the Springfield Funeral Home to make peace with Bob's corpse before it is cremated; however, Bob rises out of the coffin, very much alive, and traps Bart in the coffin to be incinerated, all the while gloating over his old foe. Back at home, a request to relax at the Simpson house by Milhouse
makes Lisa realize that everything was an elaborate plot put together by Bob's entire family, explaining that Bob, whose mother was an actress, knew Shakespeare too well to have misquoted him accidentally and that he must have done so intentionally to get caught and go to trial, where he was put in a temporary death-like state with a special drug injection by his father, a doctor. (Cecil helped by exploiting Bart's guilt and encouraging him to visit the corpse, though Bob still does not show appreciation for his brother's efforts, snidely remarking, "Yes, and Hamlet
is all about Laertes!"). The Simpsons race to the funeral parlor (but waste time driving in circles around the building for ten minutes for Lisa to finish her explanation) and narrowly save Bart from being burned alive by blinding Bob with unclaimed ashes. The police then arrive and arrest the Terwilligers. Defeated, Bob asks Lisa how she knew of his scheme, and Lisa explains that she was suspicious that Bob's coffin had extra room for his large feet, which the family would not have bothered to pay to have put in if Bob was really dead. Bob and his family are sentenced to prison for 87 years, where a deranged Bob daydreams of killing the Simpson family, and laughs maniacally.
" where Bart gets trapped in a coffin and starts to panic. Homer watches him panic on a closed circuit TV.
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
The Simpsons (season 19)
The Simpsons nineteenth season originally aired on the Fox network between September 23, 2007 and May 18, 2008.-Production:The nineteenth season of The Simpsons is the first one produced after the movie and contained seven hold-over episodes from season 18's JABF production line...
and first aired on November 25, 2007. It was written by Michael Price and was directed by Rob Oliver. It features Kelsey Grammer
Kelsey Grammer
Allen Kelsey Grammer is an American actor and comedian. He is most widely known for his two-decade portrayal of psychiatrist Dr. Frasier Crane on the sitcoms Cheers and Frasier...
in his tenth appearance as Sideshow Bob
Sideshow Bob
Robert Underdunk Terwilliger, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared briefly in the episode "The Telltale Head". Bob is a self-proclaimed genius who is a graduate of Yale, a member of...
, as well as David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce
David Hyde Pierce is an American actor and comedian best known for playing psychiatrist Dr. Niles Crane on the NBC sitcom Frasier, for which he received many accolades including four Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.-Early life:Pierce, the youngest of four siblings,...
in his second appearance as Cecil Terwilliger. John Mahoney
John Mahoney
John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...
makes his first appearance as Dr. Robert Terwilliger, Sr., the father of Bob and Cecil. Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann
Keith Theodore Olbermann is an American political commentator and writer. He has been the chief news officer of the Current TV network and the host of Current TV's weeknight political commentary program, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, since June 20, 2011...
also makes a guest appearance as himself.
Plot
HomerHomer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
goes to Circuit Circus to buy a camera battery, but winds up purchasing a TiVo
TiVo
TiVo is a digital video recorder developed and marketed by TiVo, Inc. and introduced in 1999. TiVo provides an on-screen guide of scheduled broadcast programming television programs, whose features include "Season Pass" schedules which record every new episode of a series, and "WishList"...
because the batteries are free with the purchase of a TiVo
TiVo
TiVo is a digital video recorder developed and marketed by TiVo, Inc. and introduced in 1999. TiVo provides an on-screen guide of scheduled broadcast programming television programs, whose features include "Season Pass" schedules which record every new episode of a series, and "WishList"...
. The family enjoys using the TiVo to watch TV without the commercials, especially Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
, who happily skips over them. Late one night, Marge dreams of Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann
Keith Theodore Olbermann is an American political commentator and writer. He has been the chief news officer of the Current TV network and the host of Current TV's weeknight political commentary program, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, since June 20, 2011...
accusing her of not watching the commercials that pay for the TV shows, and convinces her to watch them. One such ad is for a new rib
Ribs (food)
Ribs of beef, lamb, venison, and pork are a cut of meat. The term ribs usually refers to the less meaty part of the chops, often cooked as a slab .They can be roasted, grilled, baked, braised, or smoked....
restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
, owned by a cowboy named Wes Doobner. The restaurant is perfectly suited to each member of the family, and they decide to visit it for its grand opening
Grand opening
Grand opening is a term used when a business, public office, or private association wishes to announce the official opening of a new location. This differs from just opening the doors on the first day, in that a grand opening is more of a celebration event, not just the first day having the doors...
.
When they arrive they find the building deserted, and the door locks behind them. Wes Doobner is revealed as Sideshow Bob
Sideshow Bob
Robert Underdunk Terwilliger, better known as Sideshow Bob, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Kelsey Grammer and first appeared briefly in the episode "The Telltale Head". Bob is a self-proclaimed genius who is a graduate of Yale, a member of...
after he speaks, since Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
recognizes his voice and realizes that "Wes Doobner's World Famous Family Style Rib Huts" is an anagram
Anagram
An anagram is a type of word play, the result of rearranging the letters of a word or phrase to produce a new word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once; e.g., orchestra = carthorse, A decimal point = I'm a dot in place, Tom Marvolo Riddle = I am Lord Voldemort. Someone who...
of "Sideshow Bob's World Famous Family Style Return". After tying up the Simpsons, Bob shows them a slideshow of how he got to Springfield
Springfield (The Simpsons)
Springfield is the fictional town in which the American animated sitcom The Simpsons is set. A mid-sized town in an undetermined state of the United States, Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The geography of the town and its...
after Krusty prevented Bob from killing the Simpsons in Italy
The Italian Bob
"The Italian Bob" is the eighth episode of The Simpsons seventeenth season. It features Kelsey Grammer in his ninth appearance as Sideshow Bob and is the first time the Simpsons visit Italy.-Plot:...
, built the restaurant, and produced the commercial. Sideshow Bob then reveals a large pile of TNT, with which he will kill them, thanks to a laptop
Laptop
A laptop, also called a notebook, is a personal computer for mobile use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device and speakers into a single unit...
with a defective battery (which will cause it to overheat and explode) as a detonator. While gloating, Bob incorrectly quotes a phrase from Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
and Lisa corrects him. He tries to look up the correct phrase, but the laptop explodes in Bob's hands. He is then arrested and taken to court.
During Bob's trial, Bob's father, Dr. Robert Terwilliger Sr., is brought to testify. He explains Bob has a rare heart condition, and also suggests that Sideshow Bob is insane because of his long-standing feud with Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
. Sideshow Bob then asks if anyone was tormented by Bart's pranks, to which everyone responds positively. This convinces Springfield
Springfield (The Simpsons)
Springfield is the fictional town in which the American animated sitcom The Simpsons is set. A mid-sized town in an undetermined state of the United States, Springfield acts as a complete universe in which characters can explore the issues faced by modern society. The geography of the town and its...
that in the long-run Bart is ultimately to blame, and they turn against him. As Bart pleads his innocence, Bob takes out a vial labeled nitroglycerin, which Bart snatches and throws out the window, thinking it was an explosive. The vial was actually Bob's heart medication, and he collapses on the floor, unconscious, and is pronounced dead.
Bob's entire family attends the funeral: His mother, Dame Judith Underdunk, a well-known Shakespearean actress; his father, Dr. Robert Terwilliger Sr.; his brother Cecil, who was let out of jail for the occasion; his wife Francesca, who is now a widow; and his son, Gino. Many of the regular Springfielders also attend the funeral. Feeling slightly guilty, Bart speaks to Cecil and decides to go to the Springfield Funeral Home to make peace with Bob's corpse before it is cremated; however, Bob rises out of the coffin, very much alive, and traps Bart in the coffin to be incinerated, all the while gloating over his old foe. Back at home, a request to relax at the Simpson house by Milhouse
Milhouse Van Houten
Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a fictional character featured in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Pamela Hayden. He is Bart Simpson's best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School....
makes Lisa realize that everything was an elaborate plot put together by Bob's entire family, explaining that Bob, whose mother was an actress, knew Shakespeare too well to have misquoted him accidentally and that he must have done so intentionally to get caught and go to trial, where he was put in a temporary death-like state with a special drug injection by his father, a doctor. (Cecil helped by exploiting Bart's guilt and encouraging him to visit the corpse, though Bob still does not show appreciation for his brother's efforts, snidely remarking, "Yes, and Hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
is all about Laertes!"). The Simpsons race to the funeral parlor (but waste time driving in circles around the building for ten minutes for Lisa to finish her explanation) and narrowly save Bart from being burned alive by blinding Bob with unclaimed ashes. The police then arrive and arrest the Terwilligers. Defeated, Bob asks Lisa how she knew of his scheme, and Lisa explains that she was suspicious that Bob's coffin had extra room for his large feet, which the family would not have bothered to pay to have put in if Bob was really dead. Bob and his family are sentenced to prison for 87 years, where a deranged Bob daydreams of killing the Simpson family, and laughs maniacally.
Production
The scene where Homer blocks Marge from getting Bart out the coffin, telling her, "He has got to get over his fear of coffins," is derived from the opening scene from "Tennis the MenaceTennis the Menace
"Tennis the Menace" is the twelfth episode of the twelfth season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 11, 2001. In the episode, the Simpsons build a tennis court in their backyard, but Homer's inferior tennis ability...
" where Bart gets trapped in a coffin and starts to panic. Homer watches him panic on a closed circuit TV.
Reception
An estimated 9.0 million viewers tuned into the episode. Robert Canning of IGN gave the episode a 6.2/10, saying "there were some enjoyable scenes, but the half hour lacked in the number of laugh-out-loud moments, and Bob's ultimate scheme wasn't very surprising." Richard Keller of tvsquad.com said "While Pierce and Mahoney did have their moments it was all Grammer this episode as a Sideshow Bob coming apart at the seams". He went on to say, "For the most part this week's episode was entertaining. Plus, it also brought a bit of continuity into the show, something that comes and goes on the program."External links
- "Funeral for a Fiend" at The Simpsons.com