The Canine Mutiny
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"The Canine Mutiny" is the twentieth episode of the The Simpsons' eighth season, which originally aired April 13, 1997.[1] It was written by Ron Hauge and directed by Dominic Polcino.[1] It guest stars voice actor Frank Welker as Laddie,[2] a fictional dog and parody of Lassie.
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[edit] Synopsis
When Bart complains he never gets any mail, Marge gives him the family's junk mail. One piece contains a credit card application, which Bart fills out under the name of his dog Santa's Little Helper. Although the company misread the name as "Santos L. Halper", the credit card application is approved, and before long, Bart receives a credit card. Bart goes on a shopping spree, buying the family some very expensive gifts from a mail order catalog: Vancouver smoked salmon and a radio-frying pan for Marge, a golf shirt with corporate logo for Homer, "Trucker's Choice Stay-Alert Capsules" for Lisa and many things for himself. The best item of all that Bart buys is a finely-bred, pre-trained collie. Not letting its $1,200 purchase price stand in the way, Bart promptly orders one. Upon the its arrival Bart learns the dog's name is Laddie, and the rest of the family fall in love with the new dog.
Bart fails to pay off "Santos L. Halper's" credit card bill, and it isn't long before he gets a call from a debt collection agency demanding payment. When the calls and collection letters persist, Bart enlists Laddie to help him bury his ill-gotten credit card. Later, repo men arrive to take back all of the things Bart has purchased. Lisa demands an explanation, and Bart is forced to admit the truth. When a repossessor demands the $1,200 dog, Bart identifies Santa's Little Helper as the one they are after. The greyhound is herded into the truck, and Bart sadly watches as it drives away. Noticing that Santa's Little Helper is gone, the family begins to bond with Laddie, except for Bart, who fears for Santa's Little Helper's fate. An exhausted Bart is giving Laddie yet another walk, when the collie saves the life of Baby Gerald. At the ceremony honoring Laddie's heroism, Chief Wiggum decides that Laddie would make the perfect police dog. Bart gives him away, and is forced to explain why the family now has no dog at all. Homer instructs Bart to do whatever it takes to get Santa's Little Helper back and he goes hunting around the town, trying to find him. Bart eventually learns from Reverend Lovejoy that the dog was given to a parishioner named Mr. Mitchell.
Bart visits Mr. Mitchell, who is blind, and asks for his dog back, but when he sees how the man and Santa's Little Helper have bonded, a heartsick Bart leaves. Still determined to get his dog back, Bart makes a late-night visit to Mr. Mitchell's home to steal the dog back. The pair are reunited, but Bart traps himself in a closet. Mr. Mitchell calls the police and wants Bart charged with burglary, but Bart explains that Santa's Little Helper was his dog and that he really wants him back. To solve the problem Bart and Mitchell let Santa's Little Helper decide where he wants to go, with him chosing Bart. Chief Wiggum arrives with Laddie, who immediately sniffs out a marijuana packet in Mr. Mitchell's pocket. Bart and Santa's Little Helper head home, leaving the police to "finish up".[3]
[edit] Production
The episode uses the full opening sequence because the story came out short.[4] Despite this, a large sequence was cut from the middle of the episode,[4] with half of the episode having to be re-written after the animatic had been finished.[5] The opening stemmed from the fact that the show had not had a sequence where the family receive mail, and the writers wanted to create a joke about the different types of mail each of the family get.[4] The main plot of the episode came from an original idea that the family would be issued a credit card in the name "Hobart Simpson" and that Bart would use that.[4] The catalog Bart uses is a combination of the Lillian Vernon catalog and The Sharper Image.[4] An original side-story was that Lisa would become addicted to the "Trucker's Choice" pep pills.[5]
Laddie was designed to resemble of a real dog.[4] Originally, instead of going to the dog park, the family took Laddie to a waterfall and he performed a series of dives,[5] but it was scrapped as it had already been proven that Laddie was a form of "superdog".[6] After Bart's "dog burning" fantasy, and he hears a ships horn in the distance, there was originally going to be a faint cry of "more dogs", but it was deemed that it took the joke to far.[4] When Laddie rescues Baby Gerald there was a long and complicated rescue scene, but this was turned into a straight "cut to" shot.[4] Hank Azaria ad-libbed the entire sequence during the credits in which Chief Wiggum and Lou sing along to "Jammin'".[4]
[edit] Cultural references
The dog "Laddie" is a play on Lassie, in terms of name, appearance and uncanny intelligence.[2][4] Marge listens to the song "You Really Got Me" by The Kinks played on the frying pan radio.[2] At the end of the episode, the song "Jammin'" by Bob Marley is played.[2] The design of the "Repo Depot" is based very loosely on the repossession agency from Repo Man.[4] The address of Mr. Mitchell's house 57 Mt. Aubum Street is one of addresses of the Harvard Lampoon.[4] Mr. Mitchell having a dead parrot that he believes to still be alive is a reference to the "Dead Parrot" Monty Python sketch.[6]
[edit] Reception
The episode's ending with Chief Wiggum and Lou signing along to "Jammin'" by Bob Marley is often cited as one of the best endings in the history of the show.[4] The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, called it "A sweet episode".[2] It currently holds a rating of "Great" with a score of 8.2/10 at TV.com,[7] and a score of 7.0/10 at the Internet Movie Database.[8] Homer's line "There, there, shut up boy" is one of Josh Weinstein's favorites.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Richmond, Ray; Antonia Coffman (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to our Favorite Family. Harper Collins Publishers, p. 233. ISBN 0-00063-8898-1.
- ^ a b c d e f Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). The Canine Mutiny. BBC. Retrieved on March 30, 2007.
- ^ "The Canine Mutiny". The Simpsons.com. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Weinstein, Josh. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "The Canine Mutiny" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ a b c Polcino, Dominic. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "The Canine Mutiny" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ a b Meyer, George. (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "The Canine Mutiny" [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ The Canine Mutiny. TV.com. Retrieved on March 30, 2007.
- ^ The Canine Mutiny. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on March 30, 2007.
[edit] External links
- "The Canine Mutiny" at The Simpsons.com
- "The Canine Mutiny" episode capsule at The Simpsons Archive
- "The Canine Mutiny" at TV.com
- "The Canine Mutiny" at the Internet Movie Database
