Introduction

The episode of The Simpsons Called ‘E-I-E-I-D’Oh!’ begins with the entire Simpsons family – Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie – sitting in a movie theatre. As they wait for The Poke of Zorro to start, they watch an Allied soldier storm the beaches of Normandy and charge a German, skewering him with a bayonet. The German falls over dead, and the Allied soldier reaches into his adversary’s breast pocket to reveal a can of ‘Buzz’ Cola. A peppy voiceover announces, ‘Buzz Cola: the taste you’ll kill for,’ before the dead German sits up to add, ‘Available in ze lobby.’ Then, as the movie begins, we are treated to several scenes of a swashbuckling blockbuster replete with cheesy dialogue and stereotypical characters. Inspired by the lead character’s penchant for dueling, Homer spends the next few days challenging random people to duels, until finally a Southern gentleman accepts, causing Homer to flee in fear with his family to a never-before-mentioned family farm. As the family arrive at the ramshackle home, Homer gleefully announces, ‘This is our big chance: the Simpsons will be reborn as a bunch of gap-toothed bumpkins!’ Oblivious to the decrepit scene around them, Bart cheerfully pipes in, ‘I’ll dig an outhouse!’ and Lisa exclaims, ‘I’ll weed the floor!’ For her part, Marge adds with considerable pep, ‘I’ll repress the rage I’m feeling!’ From there, the story continues through multiple other hoops until finally the family is safe to return home, and the episode ends with the farm and dueling Southerner behind them.