'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky

"'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky"
The Simpsons episode
Lisa with her telescope.
Episode no.	307
Prod. code	EABF11
Orig. airdate	March 30, 2003
Written by	Dan Greaney Allen Grazier
Directed by	Steven Dean Moore
Couch gag	The living room is in an ocean. Homer is on water skis, with the others on him, as he ski-jumps over sharks; everybody lands on the couch, but Homer's legs are in the mouth of the shark
Guest star(s)	Eric Idle as Declan Desmond Joe Mantegna as Fat Tony
DVD commentary	Al Jean Dan Greaney Allen Glazier Carolyn Omine Kevin Curran J. Stewart Burns Joe Mantegna Steven Dean Moore David Silverman
Season 14 November 3, 2002 – May 18, 2003 "Treehouse of Horror XIII" "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation" "Bart vs. Lisa vs. the Third Grade" "Large Marge" "Helter Shelter" "The Great Louse Detective" "Special Edna" "The Dad Who Knew Too Little" "Strong Arms of the Ma" "Pray Anything" "Barting Over" "I'm Spelling as Fast as I Can" "A Star Is Born Again" "Mr. Spritz Goes to Washington" "C.E. D'oh" "'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky" "Three Gays of the Condo" "Dude, Where's My Ranch?" "Old Yeller Belly" "Brake My Wife, Please" "The Bart of War" "Moe Baby Blues" List of all The Simpsons episodes
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"'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky" is the sixteenth episode of the fourteenth season of The Simpsons that aired March 30, 2003. The title is a punning reference to the line " 'Scuse me while I kiss the sky" from the song "Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix.

Plot

Declan Desmond, an opinionated British documentary film producer, informs the students of Springfield Elementary School that he is filming a documentary in the school on the students' lives. He belittles Lisa as she goes on about the multiplicity of her interests, insinuating that she could neither be happy nor successful juggling too many hobbies or passions. Even though she is hurt by his criticism, Lisa aims to correct it and resolves to find a singular passion to which she can devote herself, astronomy. She convinces Homer to buy her a telescope, but discovers that light pollution from the city is blocking her view of the sky. After a discussion with Professor Frink, Lisa starts a petition to reduce the city’s light pollution. After gaining enough signatures, Mayor Quimby agrees to turn off the streetlights, leading to a clear view of the stars, at which many people from Springfield marvel.

Meanwhile, Bart is looking for a way to regain his popularity after being humiliated. After seeing Nelson parading around with stolen car hood ornaments, he decides to steal one off Fat Tony's car. Milhouse and Bart are foiled on their first attempt because Quimby has bowed to public pressure to switch the lights back on permanently due to rising crime. Lisa, still wanting to see the light pollution reduced, and Bart, still wanting to steal Fat Tony’s Hood ornament, take a now sleep-deprived Homer to the Power plant and overload the generators causing a power outage, which dismays the citizens. However, Lisa points out a meteor shower and the town look on in wonderment while Bart sneaks off and steals Fat Tony’s hood ornament.

The show ends with a montage of clips from Declan’s documentary.

Cultural references

• The title is a play on the Jimi Hendrix song "Purple Haze": "Actin' funny, but I don't know why-- 'scuse me while I kiss the sky".
• When Lisa shuts down the power for the last time in the episode, Sideshow Mel says: 'I say we'll tear her limb from limb'; as a reference to the Bob Dylan song 'Bob Dylan's 115th Dream' from the album Bringing It All Back Home.
• The recording from Springfield Museum mentions Rigel VII as a planet, although it is merely a fictional planet originally from the Star Trek universe, and the apparent home of Kang and Kodos from The Simpsons.
• The store where Homer buys Lisa's telescope is called "Teenage Pasteland". This is a parody of the phrase "teenage wasteland" which is a line from (and is often mistaken to be the title of) the The Who song, "Baba O'Riley".
• The music playing when Lisa is in the museum and first develops her inspiration for astronomy is Jupiter from Gustav Holst's The Planets Suite.
• The Krusty Burger documentary's name Do You Want Lies with That? became the tagline for the film version of Fast Food Nation.
• Groundskeeper Willie is revealed to be an Aberdeen F.C. fan.
• Don McLean's song "Vincent" plays during the meteor shower.
• The scene in which the baseball lights explode parodies the home run scene from The Natural, accompanied by the dramatic music.
• While sleep-deprived, Marge yells Saturday Night Live's famous opening catch-phrase, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night!".
• In the background of the toy store there is a box that reads Clay D'oh. The item's name is a parody, combining Play-Doh and Homer's annoyed grunt.
• While watching the meteor shower, Marge comments "this is better than a screen saver". This is a reference to the 'Starry Starry Night' module on the 'After Dark' screensaver packs.^{[citation needed]}
• The picture on which the Captain draws Lisa's petition by way of signature is an image of the closing chapter of Moby Dick. It depicts the Pequod being smashed by an upwards lunge from Moby Dick.
• Declan mentions Machiavelli while in the playground.
• Documentarian asks several children, "where do you see yourself in seven years," referring to the Up Series.
• Mayor Quimby's comment about the fading southern belle is an allusion to the Tennessee Williams play A Streetcar Named Desire.

External links

• "'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky" at The Simpsons.com
• "'Scuse Me While I Miss the Sky" at the Internet Movie Database