Little Big Girl
| "Little Big Girl" | |
|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |
 | |
| Episode no. | Season 18 |
| Directed by | Raymond S. Persi |
| Written by | Don Payne |
| Original air dates | February 11, 2007 |
| Episode features | |
| Chalkboard gag | None |
| Couch gag | The family are paper dolls, and are each dressed into their regular clothes. |
"Little Big Girl" is the twelfth episode of The Simpsons' eighteenth season, which originally aired on February 11, 2007. It was written by Don Payne, and directed by Raymond S. Persi. It sees Natalie Portman guest star as the new character Darcy. The title is a play on the Dustin Hoffman movie Little Big Man.
Synopsis
Template:Spoiler At his farm, Cletus is milking his cow until he kicks over the bucket. Terrified, Cletus drops his smoking pipe on the hay, starting a Rube-Goldbergesque wildfire around Springfield. Everyone tries to extinguish it, but it isn't enough. At Springfield Elementary, Principal Skinner asks Groundskeeper Willie to get the fire extinguishers, but they have been stolen. Apparently, Bart has been preparing to use them for a wild ride on his wagon. Nevertheless, while the wagon goes at huge speed around town, the liquid released from the extinguishers puts the wildfire out quickly for good, and Bart is cheered by everyone and rewarded with a driver's license by Mayor Quimby. Bart starts using Homer's car for driving, and in an attempt to escape endless family errands and chauffeuring (mostly Homer), he flees to North Haverbrook, where he meets a fifteen year-old girl named Darcy (voiced by Natalie Portman), who believes Bart to be sixteen. They quickly begin a romantic relationship and Darcy soon proposes marriage. At the Court house, Bart reveals his age afterwards Darcy reveals that she is pregnant causing Bart to flee (to no avail). Despite Bart's initial reaction, Darcy admits that Bart is not the father and she wants to get married because her parents would be angry with her unwed pregnancy. In an act of uncharacteristic and oddly mature chivalry, Bart agrees to take Darcy to Utah and marry her. Eventually, Homer, Marge and Darcy's parents catch up with them to stop them. Darcy's mother reveals her own pregnancy she says that she could pass Darcy's baby as her own and the family is again together. Darcy and Bart end their relationship, while Bart, (in his own way) assures her they will meet again, in which she agrees. Later, Bart admits to Homer that he looked forward to being a father, and they both end up driving happy while singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" in the night.
Meanwhile, when Lisa struggles to find excitement and intrigue in her family heritage for a school presentation, she decides to take creative license. Inspired by the kitchen curtains (that have corn on them) Lisa claims to be Native American, from the Hitachi tribe (named after the brand of the family's microwave oven). What begins as an innocent embellishment quickly turns into a web of lies when Lisa is chosen to represent the school and her "people" at City Hall, then as a keynote speaker for the National Native American Tribal Council. She eventually admits that she had lied about her heritage, which compels others to admit they are not Native Americans as well. Homer mentions at the end that his great-great-grandmother was a Native American, much to Lisa's chagrin. Template:Endspoiler
Notes
- This episode marks the first time since season 4's "Marge vs. the Monorail" that North Haverbrook has been seen. It appears to have recovered from the Monorail disaster. Bart also can be seen driving past signs which read "Brockway" and "Ogdenville", which were also towns in which the monorails supposedly were sold.
- "Mylar Baggins" is the second comic book store on the series to be named after a character from The Lord of the Rings. The first is "Frodo's of Shelbyville", which Comic Book Guy mentions as his competition in "Worst Episode Ever".
- When Lisa finally admits that her story on her Native American heritage was not completely fact-checked, Homer says "My little girl's just like CBS News". This is a reference to the Killian documents controversy in 2004.
- After Homer learns that Darcy is pregnant, he says "Simpson men get the job done!" and makes other references to Bart's out of wedlock conception, hearkening back to "I Married Marge."
- This is the second time a Simpson child has pretended to be older. Lisa passed herself off as a college coed in "Little Girl in the Big Ten".
- This is the second time Bart receives a driver's license (the first was in "Bart on the Road"). In fact, the second one is a real one, while the first is fake, created by Bart himself.
- This Episode was meant to be aired in the Uk on Sunday February 11 but unfortunately didn't air.
Incidental music
- The song used during the sequence at Cletus' where the fire is lit is Raymond Scott's "Powerhouse".
- The song played when Bart drives to North Haverbrook is "Low Rider" by War.
- The song played after Bart's visit in the comic book store is "Rock Around the Clock" by Bill Haley & His Comets
- The song played during Bart's fantasy life in Utah is "Polovetsian Dances" from Alexander Borodin's opera Prince Igor.
- The song played during the alternate introductory sequence where Bart is shown driving around is "Jessica", by the Allman Brothers Band. UK car show Top Gear uses the song as its theme tune.
- The ringtone of Bart's cell phone is Für Elise.
External links
