Marge on the Lam

"Marge on the Lam"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no. 87
Directed by Mark Kirkland
Written by Bill Canterbury
Showrunner(s) David Mirkin
Production code 1F03
Original air date November 4, 1993
Couch gag The family run towards the couch and crash through the wall.[1]
Guest appearance(s) Phil Hartman as Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure
Pamela Reed as Ruth Powers
George Fenneman as the narrator
Commentary Matt Groening
David Mirkin
Mark Kirkland
David Silverman

"Marge on the Lam" is the sixth episode of The Simpsons' fifth season. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 4, 1993.[2] When Marge invites her neighbor Ruth Powers to attend the ballet with her, the two become friends and begin to go out, making Homer jealous as he wants Marge to spend time with him. Ruth and Marge agree to remain friends but not go out together after a large police pursuit with Chief Wiggum.[2] It was written by Bill Canterbury and directed by Mark Kirkland. Phil Hartman, Pamela Reed and George Fenneman guest star.[1]

Plot

After donating money to public television, Marge receives complimentary ballet tickets. She asks Homer to accompany her, and much to Marge's surprise he agrees, confusing ballet with a circus. On the day of the ballet, however, he inadvertently gets his arm stuck in a vending machine while trying to steal a can of soda from it and then gets his other arm stuck in a candy machine, and so is unable to attend the ballet as a result. In disbelief about Homer's story, Marge invites her neighbor, Ruth Powers to attend with her. They both enjoy themselves and arrange to go out again the next night. Marge and Ruth's friendship annoys Homer, who feels Marge should be spending time with him instead. However, ignoring Homer's protests, Marge and Ruth visit bars and clubs in Springfield, and Ruth later shows Marge how to use a pistol.

Homer, attempting to prove to himself he can have a good time without Marge, leaves Bart, Lisa and Maggie under the supervision of Lionel Hutz and goes out by himself. Finding Moe's Tavern more depressing than usual, Homer visits the hilltop where he and Marge used to come to on dates before they got married. Ironically, Marge has also taken Ruth there to finish the night, but they leave just before Homer arrives. Chief Wiggum finds Homer depressed and offers him a ride home, which Homer accepts. As Ruth and Marge are driving home, Chief Wiggum, with Homer as a passenger in his patrol car, spots Ruth's car and claims that one tail light is slightly smaller than the other. He decides to pull them over. Reluctant to stop, Ruth reveals to Marge that the car she's driving actually belongs to her ex-husband, and that she had stolen it as revenge for stiffing her on child support (although Marge points out that Ruth could've just reported him to child services). Ruth leads the police on a high-speed chase rather than turning herself in. Homer realizes it is Marge in the car, and believes she is leaving him after discovering that she can have a better time without him. Ruth successfully evades Wiggum by turning off her headlights, which leads him to believe her car is a ghost car.

After seeing Marge and Ruth again while cooking breakfast on his car engine, Wiggum continues his chase of the two, aided by other Springfield Police vehicles. After noticing a cliff ahead, Homer believes that Marge and Ruth are attempting suicide because of him and, using a megaphone, apologizes to Marge for all the mistakes he has made in their marriage and urges them not to drive into the chasm. Ruth, who had not noticed the chasm, slams on the brakes and stops in time; however, Homer and Wiggum fail to stop and fly over the edge of the cliff only to crash into a landfill. The episodes ends with a description of the fates of each of the characters involved in the episode.

Production

Dan Castellaneta actually used a bullhorn to record his part when Homer was talking on one.[3] The sunset shown when Marge and Ruth are at the café was airbrushed in, although the episode was done before computer animation was put into practice.[3]

Cultural references

George Fenneman narrates the end of the episode, a parody of Dragnet

Much of the plot, including Ruth's blue convertible and Homer and Wiggum's fall over the chasm, is a parody of the Ridley Scott film Thelma & Louise.[4] Crystal Buzz Cola is a reference to the fad drink Crystal Pepsi,[3] and when Homer reaches into the vending machine, a can of Fresca is seen in a skeletal hand. The comedian who performs at the telethon who the Simpson family does not find funny is a parody of Garrison Keillor.[5][6] Ruth mistakenly inserts Lesley Gore's song "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows" into her car stereo before beginning her and Marge's wild night out; later, Chief Wiggum plays the song on his police cruiser's stereo as "appropriate" car chase music. After extracting the wrong tape, Ruth pops in "Welcome to the Jungle" by Guns N' Roses.[1] The scene when Homer is in Moe's Tavern is emulated from Thelma & Louise.[3] Quimby dancing in a night club is in reference to the Kennedys.[3] When Marge gets hit on in the bar, the guy who does not talk is a caricature of show runner David Mirkin.[4] The old man that comes out when Marge is shooting his cans is a parody of Walter Brennan.[4] The episode's closing sequence is a reference to Dragnet. George Fenneman recorded the ending in the same fashion as he did on Dragnet.[3]

Reception

In its original broadcast, "Marge on the Lam" finished 32nd in ratings for the week of November 1–7, 1993, with a Nielsen rating of 13.1, equivalent to approximately 12.2 million viewing households. It was the highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, beating Beverly Hills, 90210.[7]

The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, said "Marge getting to let her hair down is always a treat, and in Ruth Powers she seems to have a real friend. A pity we don't see more of her".[1] The A.V. Club named Homer's line "Stupid TV! Be more funny!" as one of the quotes from The Simpsons that can be used in everyday situations.[8] On their 2000 album And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out, indie rock band Yo La Tengo has a song entitled "Let's Save Tony Orlando's House"; the song is named after a telethon in Troy McClure's fictional CV seen in this episode.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Marge on the Lam". BBC. Retrieved 2008-01-22.
  2. 1 2 "Marge on the Lam". The Simpsons.com. Retrieved 2011-09-17.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kirkland, Mark (2004). The Simpsons The Complete Fifth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Marge on the Lam" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  4. 1 2 3 Mirkin, David (2004). The Simpsons The Complete Fifth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Marge on the Lam" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  5. ↑ Groening, Matt (2004). The Simpsons The Complete Fifth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Marge on the Lam" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  6. ↑ Groening, Matt (1997). Richmond, Ray; Coffman, Antonia, eds. The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family (1st ed.). New York: HarperPerennial. p. 126. ISBN 978-0-06-095252-5. LCCN 98141857. OCLC 37796735. OL 433519M..
  7. ↑ Associated Press (November 11, 1993). "7 ABC shows make Nielsen's top 10". Sun-Sentinel. p. 4E.
  8. ↑ Bahn, Christopher; Donna Bowman, Josh Modell, Noel Murray, Nathan Rabin, Tasha Robinson, Kyle Ryan, Scott Tobias (2006-04-26). "Beyond "D'oh!": Simpsons Quotes For Everyday Use". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2008-08-02.
  9. ↑ Thompson, Stephen (March 2000). "Yo La Tengo: Tengo inside out". The Onion AV Club. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
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