Episode 7G05
Written by John Swartzwelder
Directed by David Silverman
Also starring: Susan Blu, JoAnn Harris, Pamela Hayden

Premise: Bart is being bullied. He teams up with Grampa to battle bully Nelson Muntz, aided by Herman, owner of Springfield's Military Antiques Store, and also owner of rather extreme political views.

Features: Milhouse, Principal Skinner, Grampa, Jasper.

Couch: None. The opening sequence crashes straight from the school and into the episode.

And introducing: Nelson Muntz, Herman.

Trivia:

• Lisa refers to her teacher as Mrs (rather than Miss) Hoover, but we don't see her.
• Herman's store claims to have a pair of Hitler's teeth in a display case.
• There's a poster of Krusty in Bart's room, although we still haven't seen him.
• There's a first mention of Kwik-E-Mart (spelt Quick-E-Mart) and squishees, but no sign of Apu.

Homage: There are lines taken wholesale from Patton (Franklin Schnaffner, 1970), and some vague nods in the marching sequences to Full Metal Jacket (Stanley Kubrick, 1986).

Mmmmm: ...cupcakes.

Notes: Some good lines and setpieces aside - we love Bart's fantasy of death at Nelson's hands - this episode nevertheless feels a bit unsure of itself, particularly towards the end.