How the Test Was Won
| "How the Test Was Won" | |
|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |
| File:How the Test Was WOn.jpg | |
| Episode no. | Season 20 |
| Directed by | Lance Kramer |
| Written by | Michael Price |
| Original air date | March 1, 2009 |
| Episode features | |
| Chalkboard gag | "March Madness" is not an excuse for missing school. |
| Couch gag | A montage of old sitcom parodies, before the family finally sits on the couch. |
"How the Test Was Won" is the eleventh episode of the twentieth season of The Simpsons. It aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 1, 2009.[1] It was written by Michael Price and directed by Lance Kramer. The episode features cultural references to the television shows The Honeymooners and Cheers, and the film Footloose. Since airing, the episode received mostly mixed reviews from television critics.
Plot
Bart receives a perfect score on a practice test for the upcoming Vice President's Assessment Test. This enables him to attend a special pizza party, with a helicopter as his escort. However, it turns out to be a clever plan to purge the school of all bad test takers. Bart didn't receive a perfect score and the helicopter is a disguised school bus. He, Nelson, Ralph, Kearney, Dolph, and Jimbo are driven to Capitol City by Otto, along with Principal Skinner, who was pushed onboard the bus by Superintendent Chalmers. On the way, Ralph stops for a bathroom break, and the bus is disassembled by a vandal (while Otto is still sitting in it). The group attempts to walk the rest of the way, but they lose Ralph on a garbage barge. Skinner signals for a piano cargo ship to rescue Ralph with its crane, but Ralph is too stupid to understand. Skinner rescues Ralph himself by jumping onboard the crate hoisted by the crane and using the law of conservation of angular momentum. He lands on the barge and the kids and Otto follow him. As it turns out, the garbage barge they have all landed on is headed towards Springfield Elementary, and so Skinner reads The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to the boys until they arrive, which they enjoy.
Meanwhile, Homer is late making an insurance payment, and won't be insured until 3:00 PM, so he can't hurt himself until then. Images of injuries flood his mind when he gets home, envisioning Marge's book club being killed by a series of freak accidents. He has to keep the entire book club safe while he is still uninsured, but ends up throwing a knife in Mr. Burns' head at 3:01 as he randomly walks onto the Simpsons' property. At school, Lisa is unable to focus on the test, as the thought of Bart being smarter torments her. When the test ends, she hasn't answered a single question. However, Skinner returns just in time to cancel the test and lift the school's ban on dancing.
Cultural references
The title references the 1962 western film, How the West Was Won. The episode's couch gag includes the family running into scenes from sitcoms from different decades: The Honeymooners, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Brady Bunch and Cheers.[2] As an in-joke, Sideshow Bob walks in on the Cheers segment of the gag; Sideshow Bob is voiced by Kelsey Grammer, who also played Dr. Frasier Crane in the sitcom. The dancing number at the end of the episode is the dancing and music from the 1984 film Footloose.[1]
Homer's insurance company is Blue Umbrella Insuance which is a parody of Travelers Insurance (for the unbrella logo) and Blue Cross and Blue Shield (for the word "Blue" in the compay name and blue logo). Ironically, one of the health insurance choices that Travelers employees have is Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota.
Reception
Since airing, the episode received mixed reviews from television critics. Steve Heisler of The A.V. Club wrote: "I'm sorry, but 'How The Test Was Won' was about as low as things get these days—the worst of the season by far, and quite possibly one of the worst episodes I've watched in this brave 'new' era of yellow people."[3] Erich Asperschlager of TV Verdict commented: "Despite three strong set-ups and a great first act, the episode barely got off the ground, crash landing long before its what-the-heck Footloose finale. There might have been enough time for Homer hilarity if they hadn’t dedicated so much time to the meandering and ultimately boring story of Skinner trying to keep his dull charges safe after they get stranded in Capital City."[1] Robert Canning of IGN gave the episode an 8.8/10, calling it "a smart, very funny half hour" and praising the couch gag and Homer's sub-plot but adding that the ending "didn't quite live up to what preceded it."[2]
References
- ^ a b c "The Simpsons 20.11: "How The Test Was Won" |". Tvverdict.com. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
- ^ a b Canning, Robert (2009-03-02). "The Simpsons: "How The Test Was Won" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2009-03-03.
- ^ Heisler, Steve. ""How The Test Was Won"/"Master Of Puppets"/"Live And Let Fry" | TV". A.V. Club. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
