Bart Gets an F

"Bart Gets an F" is the first episode of The Simpsons' second season. This was the first episode to feature the series' new, shorter opening sequence. This episode marked the first appearance of Mayor Quimby.

1 Plot
2 Cultural references
3 Reception
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Plot

When Bart presents his book report at school on Treasure Island, it is clear to everyone that he has not read the book. Mrs. Krabappel proves her suspicion when Bart is unable to answer her question about the name of the pirate in the book. After school, Mrs. Krabappel tells Bart his grades have steadily gotten worse and warns him about an upcoming exam on Colonial America; Bart does not pay attention. At home, Bart tries to study but procrastinates instead. The next day at school, Bart "collapses" in class to get out of taking the test, and the nurse sends him home after diagnosing him with amoria phlebitis.

At home that night, Bart again fails to study, instead calling Milhouse for the answers. The next day at school, Bart takes the test but fails; Krapabbel tells him his effort is "worse than Milhouse's exam." Homer and Marge are called in to meet with Krabappel and school psychiatrist Dr. J. Loren Pryor. They are told that Bart is an underachiever and that they recommend holding him back.

Bart finds out he may flunk fourth grade and, in desperation, asks Martin for help. He helps Bart study, and Bart reciprocates by showing him how to be more popular, which encourages him to take on some of Bart's bad attitudes. Bart reminds the "new" Martin about the test, but he ignores it, preferring to hang out with his new friends and play practical jokes. Left with little time to study on his own, Bart prays to God that something will happen to make him miss school the next day so he can have more time to study. That night, Springfield is hit with a massive blizzard, and the schools are closed.

After receiving word of the school closures, Bart excitedly prepares for a fun snow day. However, Lisa reminds him of his prayer, and he decides to study for the rest of the day while everyone is outside having fun. Bart actually concentrates while he is studying, and after he finishes the test, he asks Mrs. Krabappel to grade it immediately. She gives it back to him, and he sees that he got 59%, another F. Extremely upset at this failure after his honest effort, Bart breaks down over the fact that now he knows how George Washington felt when he surrendered Fort Necessity to the French in 1754. Mrs. Krabappel, stunned at this obscure historical reference, realizes that Bart did study after all. She gives Bart an extra point for demonstrating applied knowledge, pushing his grade up to a D-. Bart is proud of this, and he tells everybody he actually passed before realising he had kissed the teacher. Homer proudly displays Bart's new personal best on the refrigerator.

[edit] Cultural references

How the Grinch Stole Christmas — The scene where everyone in Whoville gathers around the town circle, holds hands and begins singing is mimicked by the townspeople of Springfield.
Gone with the Wind — Bart's claim, "As God is my witness, I can pass the fourth grade!" is a reference to a nearly identical quote from Scarlett O'Hara ("As God is my witness, I will never go hungry again!").
King Kong — The movie Gorilla the Conqueror is a spoof of the 1933 (and subsequent 1976 remake) film.
Famous pirates — Various pirates and other characters that Bart thinks may be the main character of "Treasure Island":
- Blackbeard — The English pirate behind a reign of terror in the Caribbean Sea between 1716 and 1718.
- Bluebeard — Actually not a pirate, but the title character of Charles Perrault's 1697 novel about a violent nobleman; this was Bart's answer to Mrs. Krabappel's question.
- Captain Hook — From Peter and Wendy.
- Captain Nemo — From Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.
- Long John Silver — The correct answer to Krabappel's question asking for the identity of the pirate from Treasure Island.
- Peg-Leg Pete — From the Walt Disney family of cartoons.
Samuel Johnson — In her admonition to Bart, Lisa changes the first word of the 18th century essayist's famous 1775 quote, "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel" to "prayer".
The sled Benjamin Franklin is carrying in Bart's daydream about the Continental Congress reads "Don't sled on me", a reference to the legend on the historical Gadsden flag: "Don't Tread on Me".

[edit] Reception

The episode was ranked 31st on Entertainment Weekly' list of the 100 Greatest Moments in Television.^[1]

It marked the first time that The Simpsons aired at the same time as The Cosby Show on NBC. It averaged an 18.4 Nielsen Rating and 29% of the audience. In the weeks ratings, it finished tied for eighth behind The Cosby Show which had an 18.5 rating. However, an estimated 33.6 million viewers watched the episode, making it the number one show in terms of actual viewers that week. At the time, it was the most watched episode in the history of the Fox Network.^[2] At the time, NBC had 208 television stations, while Fox only had 133.^[3] It is still the highest rated episode in the history of the show.^[4]