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| {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}} | |||
| {{Infobox Simpsons episode |
{{Infobox Simpsons episode | ||
| episode_name = G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)| | |||
| ⚫ | | image = GI Doh.png | ||
| episode_no = 383| | |||
| | caption = The episode's promotional image featuring Homer, Cletus, and the Colonel. | |||
| prod_code = HABF21| | |||
| ⚫ | | season = 18 | ||
| airdate = ], ]| | |||
| | episode = 5 | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| | director = ] | |||
| ⚫ | | writer = ] | ||
| blackboard = "We are not all naked under our clothes."| | |||
| | production = HABF21 | |||
| couch_gag = The family goes through a car wash while sitting on the couch.| | |||
| | airdate = {{Start date|2006|11|12}} | |||
| guest_star = ]| | |||
| | guests = ] as The Colonel<br/> ] as The Assistant Colonel | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| | blackboard = "We are not all naked under our clothes"<ref name="Futon">{{cite web|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listings.aspx?id=20070924fox02|title=HOMER BECOMES A JARHEAD ON "THE SIMPSONS" SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7, ON FOX|access-date=2008-05-25|publisher=]}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| | couch_gag = The Simpsons are on a ] conveyor belt; they get washed, blasted with wax, scrubbed with prickly brushes, resulting with ]'s bushy hair and ] with a fresh pacifier.<ref name="Futon"/> | |||
| | commentary = ]<br />]<br />]<br />]<br />] | |||
| | prev = ] | |||
| | next = ] | |||
| }} | }} | ||
| "'''G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)'''", also known as "'''G.I. D'oh'''", is the fifth episode of the ] of the American animated television series '']''. It first aired on the ] in the United States on November 12, 2006. It was written by ] and directed by ], while ] makes his first of two guest appearances this season. ] does additional voices.<ref name="Futon"/> In its original run, the episode received 11.43 million viewers.<ref name="Ratings">{{cite web|url=http://www.simpsonschannel.com/news/monthly-archive-11-2006.html|title=Ratings|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080508163638/http://www.simpsonschannel.com/news/monthly-archive-11-2006.html |archive-date=May 8, 2008|website=Simpsons Channel|access-date=November 22, 2024}}</ref> The episode is a critique of the U.S. ]. | |||
| '''G.I. D'oh''' is an episode from the ] of ]. | |||
| == |
==Plot== | ||
| At the Springfield Mall, ] and ] torment the bullies as they work in a shoe store. When the manager leaves, however, they are stripped to their underwear by the bullies and hung in the store window. Two ] ] fail to tempt ], ] and ]. Realizing that even the dumbest teenagers in the dumbest city in the dumbest US state do not want to join the Army, they decide to start targeting children. During a surprise assembly at ], the recruiters show a short movie depicting the Army as a high-tech adventure. According to the film, soldiers fly around in attack helicopters destroying evildoers by day and rocking out in front of thousands of screaming fans by night. The students are easily swayed and quickly line up to enlist. | |||
| {{spoiler}} | |||
| ] and ] visit the ] Mall and find ], ] and ] working in a shoe store. They visit the store and give the bullies a bad time, since the bullies, being employees, can't beat them up. However, things turn sour for Bart and Milhouse, when the store owner (the ]) quits. | |||
| An excited Bart comes home from school and shows ] and ] his ] form. Though Homer is impressed, Marge is appalled at the idea of Bart joining the Army when he turns 18, prompting her to send Homer down to the recruitment center to get Bart out of his ]. Homer reluctantly forces the two recruiters to tear up Bart's paperwork, though he apologizes for it, saying that it was Marge who told him to do so. Upon learning this, the recruiters prey upon Homer's gullibility and convince him to enlist instead. At the ] Homer infuriates his new hard-nosed ] (]). Homer loves the sound of the colonel's noticeably "awesome" gravelly voice. While the majority of recruits are assigned to the ], Homer, and a group of stupid recruits, are assigned to a ]. During ] at night, Homer and the other stupid recruits are given the role of the ], (]). Upon learning that it is a ], with the weapons to be tested on them, the unit tries to hide. Homer, mistaking gunfire for ], accidentally exposes his unit's location by launching a ] gun in the air. The flare blinds the colonel and his men, who were all wearing ]. Homer and his unit soon escape into ] while the Army gives chase as well as invades Springfield. | |||
| Two ] ] try and talk the bullies into enlisting, but are blown off. So they decide to do something drastic. They visit Springfield Elementary to enlist kids into the ] so that upon reaching the ], they will automatically be enlisted. Comparing war to video games and showing epic movies, they soon have the impressionable kids eating out of their hands. Bart signs up immediately. However, when he tells ], she forces ] to get Bart out of the army. Homer does so but falls prey to the recruiters' sweet-talk and soon joins up (in the process, getting a Parade... Magazine). | |||
| As the colonel and his troops patrol Springfield searching for him, Homer sneaks back home. Marge and Homer are surprised by a ] and (in a scene reminiscent of many classic cartoon chases) Homer attempts to avoid it, running through the entire house, eventually leading the helicopter into a downstairs closet full of ] and ]. He locks the door behind the UAV and the closet explodes. To avoid the army, Homer reluctantly hides out at the Retirement Castle with ]. Marge rallies the Springfield community in coordinated resistance to the occupiers through a ] campaign. The citizens ] the town ] with ], intoxicating the occupying forces. The colonel's resulting ] is so great he reluctantly surrenders to the townsfolk, stipulating only that Homer finish his ]. Homer does so by becoming a recruiter. | |||
| Despite Marge's protests, Homer has to report to ] Clinton for training. There he's given the nickname "Snowflake". When he questions it, the ] "punishes" him by making him eat ], while the rest of the recruits do push-ups. Further questioning of the punishment leads to Homer getting ] and a foot-rub by the sergeant, while the other recruits do push-ups one-handed. | |||
| During the closing credits, a martial scoring of ''The Simpsons'' theme plays and the colonel voices "frontline infantry" assignments to nearly every cast and crew member (one exception being ], who is assigned to the ]), as the credits roll.<ref name="Futon"/> | |||
| Finally, they are introduced to their ], who has "an awesome voice". Based on the recruits' aptitude test scores, most of them are assigned to front-line ]. However, Homer and a few other morons (including ]) are assigned to ] during the army's ]. | |||
| The war games start, with Homer's unit climbing up a hill. Unbeknownst to them, the front-line infantry (led by the Colonel) is watching them through ] goggles, ready to attack. However, Homer suddenly realises it's ] and starts firing flares into the air, temporarily blinding the Colonel's unit, not to mention, exposing their location. Homer and his unit hightail it into Springfield. The Colonel orders the army to pursue the OPFOR into the populated town, citing a little known clause in the ] Day proclamation. | |||
| Soon, the streets of Springfield are overrun by grunts and tanks, in this "simulation". Homer's unit hides at ], in the cellar. ] then betrays them to the Colonel for "a whole lot of money". Soon the army arrives at Moe's and the Colonel fires live ammo into the cellar to draw out the loser squad. However, Homer manages to escape through a hole in the floor of the basement, after seeing that the bubble fluid in his gun is not of much help. | |||
| Although Homer's unit has been captured, Homer is still absconding. At home, Marge wishes he was there. Lo and behold, he's in the bathroom, learning that "H means Hot". They snuggle, laughing at the "huge helicopter" looking for him in "the distance". But it turns out to be a small ], which enters their bedroom and recognises Homer as the enemy. In a scene reminiscent of the ] gags, Homer runs through his house with the UAV in hot pursuit. He finally manages to lure it into a dark room and when it lights a match, it finds itself in a room full of explosives. | |||
| After the explosion, a "That's all, folks!" message comes across the screen, through which the Colonel watched the chase. The infuriated Colonel declares war, and is reminded, much to his annoyance, that they already are at war. Soon, all people who are fat, bald and have been amused by Homer's antics are to be rounded up by the army and imprisoned in a pen. Marge, tiring of this occupation, decides to take matters into her own hands. Using a phone tree, she calls the Springfielders to the reservoir, with all their liquor. They proceed to spike the water in the reservoir with their booze. | |||
| The result is almost instantaneous. The soldiers, replenishing their water from a tap, are soon intoxicated and fall into drunken stupors. The next morning, the Colonel awakens to find himself surrounded by angry Springfielders, who want him to surrender. When he refuses, Homer blasts an air horn in his ear, thereby aggravating his hangover. He surrenders. When Lisa lectures him about the futility of this exercise, he pleads for the horn again. | |||
| The terms of surrender thus signed, the Colonel reminds Homer that he must finish his enlistment. When Marge protests, the Colonel assures her by saying that they have a special assignment for Homer - Recruitment. | |||
| ==Cultural references== | ==Cultural references== | ||
| The episode title is a reference to ].<ref name="IMDB">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0864054/movieconnections|title=Cultural references for "G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)"|website=IMDb|access-date=November 22, 2024|archive-date=March 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319074838/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0864054/movieconnections|url-status=live}}</ref> The army video game shoots down ], ], ] and a "deadly ]".<ref name="TVSQUAD">{{cite web|first=Adam|last=Finley|date=November 13, 2006|url=http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/11/13/the-simpsons-g-i-annoyed-grunt/|title=The Simpsons: G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)|website=]|access-date=November 22, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080423234623/http://www.tvsquad.com/2006/11/13/the-simpsons-g-i-annoyed-grunt/|archive-date=April 23, 2008}}</ref> The music is taken from ]'s ] for ]'s '']''. Marge references an earlier episode with a similar plot, "]", in which Homer joins the ] after being fired and causes an international incident.<ref name="TVSQUAD"/> The episode parodies several scenes from ]'s '']'' (1987). Homer wonders if the drill sergeant will ask the recruits "what our major malfunction is" (Homer's is he cares too much). The drill sergeant gives Homer the nickname "Snowflake" (in the film ''Full Metal Jacket'' one of the Black recruits is nicknamed "Snowball" by the drill sergeant as an ironic jibe). Later, Homer receives a punishment of being made to eat doughnuts while the other recruits have to do push-ups.<ref name="IMDB"/> Homer mentions '']'' when heading for Moe's basement,<ref name="IMDB"/> and imagines the greatest leader as ].<ref name="TVSQUAD"/> The scene with Homer being chased by the mini helicopter parodies the style seen in many '']'' and '']'' cartoons.<ref name="IMDB"/> The scene makes a nod to ], ] and ].<ref name="IMDB"/> The scene ends with a computer monitor showing the "That's All Folks!" end title card.<ref name="IMDB"/> The episode also contains the melody of '']''. The song that the U.S. Army plays on stage during the video shown at the school is a variant of "]" by ]. During the training scene, the ] song "]" plays. The episode also includes a reference to the ] when Homer says that the Army will strip people naked, put a bag over their face, and have hicks laugh at them. | |||
| *The title is a reference to ]. In addition, "grunt" is slang for an ] soldier. (Annoyed Grunt) is the scripted term for Homer's "D'oh!", and has been referenced in several previous episode titles (see ]). | |||
| *The colonel has the ] ] do push-ups while Homer eats donuts, in a recreation of a scene from '']''. | |||
| *The Army recruitment film shown at Springfield Elementary uses ''Arise, Ye Russian People'' from Prokofiev's soundtrack for '']'' before switching to ]'s "]." | |||
| *Milhouse asks if the assembly is a surprise '']'' concert. | |||
| == |
==Reception== | ||
| In its original run, the episode received 11.43 million viewers,<ref name="Ratings"/> and garnered mixed-to-mostly negative reviews.<ref name="TVSQUAD"/><ref name="Reviews">{{Cite web |url=http://www.tv.com/the-simpsons/g.i.-annoyed-grunt/episode/842860/summary.html |title=Community reviews |access-date=2008-06-08 |website=]|archive-date=2008-02-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080210044034/http://www.tv.com/the-simpsons/g.i.-annoyed-grunt/episode/842860/summary.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> | |||
| *Kiefer Sutherland will make two appearances during the 18th season, this episode and "]", the 400th episode of the show, which will air on ], ]. His father and fellow Canadian actor ] appeared in the episode "]". | |||
| *This is the second week in a row that an ] was made to Springfield being under a similar occupation as ]. See segment 3 of ], ''The Day the Earth Looked Stupid.'' | |||
| Adam Finley of '']'' praised that the episode was entirely random, and enjoyed the parody of ''Looney Tunes''.<ref name="TVSQUAD"/> Dan Iverson of '']'' however, hated the episode, giving it 3.5 out of 10, calling it "painfully unfunny", and "the show's attempt to satirize the state of the U.S. military simply crossed the line of good taste". He concluded that it was "by far" the worst episode of the season, and "quite possibly" the worst episode in the entire of ''The Simpsons'' history. He did, however, enjoy the ''Looney Tunes'' parody and Sutherland's guest performance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/796/796072p1.html |title=The Simpsons: Season 18 Review |access-date=2007-06-15 |date=2007-06-14 |first=Robert |last=Canning |website=] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070622003447/http://uk.tv.ign.com/articles/796/796072p1.html |archive-date=June 22, 2007 }}</ref> Conservative commentator ] criticized the episode, writing, "the mockery of Army recruiters and enlistees is absolutely disgusting."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://michellemalkin.com/2006/11/13/the-simpsons-pull-a-john-kerry/|title=The Simpsons pull a John Kerry|first=Michelle|last=Malkin|author-link=Michelle Malkin|date=November 13, 2006|website=MichelleMalkin.com|access-date=November 22, 2024|archive-date=June 3, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603090428/http://michellemalkin.com/2006/11/13/the-simpsons-pull-a-john-kerry/|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| ==Broadcasting Information== | |||
| == |
==References== | ||
| {{ |
{{Reflist|30em}} | ||
| == |
==External links== | ||
| {{Wikiquote|The_Simpsons/Season_18#G.I._.28Annoyed_Grunt.29|"G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)"}} | |||
| <div class="references-small"> | |||
| {{Portal|The Simpsons}} | |||
| <references/> | |||
| * {{IMDb episode|id=0864054}} | |||
| </div> | |||
| {{The Simpsons episodes|18}} | |||
| ] | |||
| {{simpsons-stub}} | |||
| ] | |||
Latest revision as of 12:48, 21 December 2024
5th episode of the 18th season of The Simpsons
| "G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |||
 The episode's promotional image featuring Homer, Cletus, and the Colonel. | |||
| Episode no. | Season 18 Episode 5 | ||
| Directed by | Nancy Kruse | ||
| Written by | Daniel Chun | ||
| Production code | HABF21 | ||
| Original air date | November 12, 2006 (2006-11-12) | ||
| Guest appearances | |||
| Kiefer Sutherland as The Colonel Maurice LaMarche as The Assistant Colonel | |||
| Episode features | |||
| Chalkboard gag | "We are not all naked under our clothes" | ||
| Couch gag | The Simpsons are on a carwash conveyor belt; they get washed, blasted with wax, scrubbed with prickly brushes, resulting with Marge's bushy hair and Maggie with a fresh pacifier. | ||
| Commentary | Al Jean Matt Selman Michael Price Tom Gammill Max Pross Mark Kirkland | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
| |||
| The Simpsons season 18 | |||
| List of episodes | |||
"G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)", also known as "G.I. D'oh", is the fifth episode of the eighteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 12, 2006. It was written by Daniel Chun and directed by Nancy Kruse, while Kiefer Sutherland makes his first of two guest appearances this season. Maurice LaMarche does additional voices. In its original run, the episode received 11.43 million viewers. The episode is a critique of the U.S. military-industrial complex.
Plot
At the Springfield Mall, Bart and Milhouse torment the bullies as they work in a shoe store. When the manager leaves, however, they are stripped to their underwear by the bullies and hung in the store window. Two US Army recruiters fail to tempt Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney. Realizing that even the dumbest teenagers in the dumbest city in the dumbest US state do not want to join the Army, they decide to start targeting children. During a surprise assembly at Springfield Elementary, the recruiters show a short movie depicting the Army as a high-tech adventure. According to the film, soldiers fly around in attack helicopters destroying evildoers by day and rocking out in front of thousands of screaming fans by night. The students are easily swayed and quickly line up to enlist.
An excited Bart comes home from school and shows Homer and Marge his delayed entry program form. Though Homer is impressed, Marge is appalled at the idea of Bart joining the Army when he turns 18, prompting her to send Homer down to the recruitment center to get Bart out of his contract. Homer reluctantly forces the two recruiters to tear up Bart's paperwork, though he apologizes for it, saying that it was Marge who told him to do so. Upon learning this, the recruiters prey upon Homer's gullibility and convince him to enlist instead. At the post Homer infuriates his new hard-nosed colonel (Kiefer Sutherland). Homer loves the sound of the colonel's noticeably "awesome" gravelly voice. While the majority of recruits are assigned to the infantry, Homer, and a group of stupid recruits, are assigned to a rehabilitation platoon. During field training exercises at night, Homer and the other stupid recruits are given the role of the opposing force, (China). Upon learning that it is a live fire exercise, with the weapons to be tested on them, the unit tries to hide. Homer, mistaking gunfire for Chinese New Year, accidentally exposes his unit's location by launching a flare gun in the air. The flare blinds the colonel and his men, who were all wearing night vision goggles. Homer and his unit soon escape into Springfield while the Army gives chase as well as invades Springfield.
As the colonel and his troops patrol Springfield searching for him, Homer sneaks back home. Marge and Homer are surprised by a camera equipped toy helicopter and (in a scene reminiscent of many classic cartoon chases) Homer attempts to avoid it, running through the entire house, eventually leading the helicopter into a downstairs closet full of TNT and dynamite. He locks the door behind the UAV and the closet explodes. To avoid the army, Homer reluctantly hides out at the Retirement Castle with Grandpa. Marge rallies the Springfield community in coordinated resistance to the occupiers through a word of mouth campaign. The citizens spike the town reservoir with alcohol, intoxicating the occupying forces. The colonel's resulting hangover is so great he reluctantly surrenders to the townsfolk, stipulating only that Homer finish his enlistment. Homer does so by becoming a recruiter.
During the closing credits, a martial scoring of The Simpsons theme plays and the colonel voices "frontline infantry" assignments to nearly every cast and crew member (one exception being Kiefer Sutherland, who is assigned to the United States Coast Guard), as the credits roll.
Cultural references
The episode title is a reference to G.I. Joe. The army video game shoots down Osama bin Laden, Adolf Hitler, Jason Voorhees and a "deadly hurricane". The music is taken from Sergei Prokofiev's score for Sergei Eisenstein's Alexander Nevsky. Marge references an earlier episode with a similar plot, "Simpson Tide", in which Homer joins the U.S. Navy after being fired and causes an international incident. The episode parodies several scenes from Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket (1987). Homer wonders if the drill sergeant will ask the recruits "what our major malfunction is" (Homer's is he cares too much). The drill sergeant gives Homer the nickname "Snowflake" (in the film Full Metal Jacket one of the Black recruits is nicknamed "Snowball" by the drill sergeant as an ironic jibe). Later, Homer receives a punishment of being made to eat doughnuts while the other recruits have to do push-ups. Homer mentions Stripes when heading for Moe's basement, and imagines the greatest leader as Cap'n Crunch. The scene with Homer being chased by the mini helicopter parodies the style seen in many Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons. The scene makes a nod to Bugs Bunny, the Road Runner and Tom and Jerry. The scene ends with a computer monitor showing the "That's All Folks!" end title card. The episode also contains the melody of Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye. The song that the U.S. Army plays on stage during the video shown at the school is a variant of "Communication Breakdown" by Led Zeppelin. During the training scene, the Martika song "Toy Soldiers" plays. The episode also includes a reference to the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison when Homer says that the Army will strip people naked, put a bag over their face, and have hicks laugh at them.
Reception
In its original run, the episode received 11.43 million viewers, and garnered mixed-to-mostly negative reviews.
Adam Finley of TV Squad praised that the episode was entirely random, and enjoyed the parody of Looney Tunes. Dan Iverson of IGN however, hated the episode, giving it 3.5 out of 10, calling it "painfully unfunny", and "the show's attempt to satirize the state of the U.S. military simply crossed the line of good taste". He concluded that it was "by far" the worst episode of the season, and "quite possibly" the worst episode in the entire of The Simpsons history. He did, however, enjoy the Looney Tunes parody and Sutherland's guest performance. Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin criticized the episode, writing, "the mockery of Army recruiters and enlistees is absolutely disgusting."
References
- ^ "HOMER BECOMES A JARHEAD ON "THE SIMPSONS" SUNDAY, OCTOBER 7, ON FOX". The Futon Critic. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
- ^ "Ratings". Simpsons Channel. Archived from the original on May 8, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "Cultural references for "G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)"". IMDb. Archived from the original on March 19, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ Finley, Adam (November 13, 2006). "The Simpsons: G.I. (Annoyed Grunt)". TV Squad. Archived from the original on April 23, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- "Community reviews". TV.com. Archived from the original on February 10, 2008. Retrieved June 8, 2008.
- Canning, Robert (June 14, 2007). "The Simpsons: Season 18 Review". IGN. Archived from the original on June 22, 2007. Retrieved June 15, 2007.
- Malkin, Michelle (November 13, 2006). "The Simpsons pull a John Kerry". MichelleMalkin.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
