Bart the General
"Bart the General" is the fifth episode of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on February 4, 1990.[2][1] In the episode, Bart Simpson enlists Grampa's help to battle local bully Nelson Muntz. Bart unites the neighborhood children against Nelson and defeats him. The episode was directed by David Silverman and was the first to be written by John Swartzwelder.[2]
"Bart the General"
Plot[edit]
Bart gets into a fight with Nelson Muntz, the school bully, after Nelson's friends stomp on a box of cupcakes that Lisa baked for Miss Hoover's birthday party. Nelson beats up Bart after school and warns him to expect the same pummeling the next day. Marge encourages Bart to reason with Nelson, but Homer urges him to bend the rules and fight dirty. Bart follows Homer's advice and gets beaten up again. He turns to the toughest member of the Simpson family, Grampa, who introduces him to Herman, the crazed one-armed proprietor of an army surplus store called Herman's Military Antiques. After Herman teaches him military tactics, Bart declares war on Nelson and his gang of bullies.
Bart enlists all of Nelson's other victims — nearly all of his friends and classmates — and trains them for combat. With Herman commanding from Bart's tree house, Bart leads his forces into battle by ambushing Nelson and his minions. They commence saturation bombing with water balloons, forcing Nelson's thugs to surrender and Nelson to be taken prisoner, who threatens to beat up Bart as soon as he is untied. Herman drafts an armistice that states that Nelson will retain his honorary position and name but not hold any actual power. After Bart and Nelson sign the treaty, Marge serves cupcakes and peace prevails.
During the epilogue, Bart tells the audience that contrary to the events of the episode, war is neither glamorous nor fun, and states that there are no winners and very few good wars. He also advises that the audience visit their local library for more information about war.
Cultural references[edit]
The episode featured several references to war films. Several lines of dialogue, Bart slapping one of his soldiers for "being a disgrace", and the music was lifted directly from the 1970 film Patton, composed by Jerry Goldsmith. Fox owned the rights to this film, so it was no problem to use the soundtrack.[5] The marching sequence[6] and the silhouettes of the children climbing the jungle gym against the setting sun are a nod to Stanley Kubrick's 1987 film Full Metal Jacket. The Longest Day from 1962 is also referenced.[4] The episode parodies the famous sailor kissing a girl in Times Square photograph taken on V-J Day, where a random boy in a sailor suit kisses Lisa, before she slaps him in the face. Bart concludes the episode by saying the only "good wars" are the American Revolution, World War II, and the Star Wars trilogy.[8]
Home media[edit]
The episode was released first on home video in the United Kingdom, as part of a VHS release titled The Simpsons Collection; the episode was paired with season one episode "There's No Disgrace Like Home".[14] It was released in the US on the VHS release The Best of The Simpsons, Vol. 2 (1997), paired with "Moaning Lisa".[15] It was later re-released in the US in a collector's edition boxed set of the first three volumes of The Best of The Simpsons collections.[16] It was re-released in the UK as part of a VHS boxed set of the complete first season, in November 1999.[17] The episode's debut on the DVD format was as a part of The Simpsons season one DVD set, which was released on September 25, 2001. Groening, Brooks, and Silverman participated in the DVD's audio commentary.[18] A digital edition of the series' first season, including the episode, was published December 20, 2010 in the United States through Amazon Video and iTunes.[19]