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"Bart's Inner Child"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.	Season 5
Directed by	Bob Anderson
Written by	George Meyer
Original air dates	November 11, 1993
Episode features
Couch gag	The family arrives to see a fat man sitting on the couch. He moves a bit to the right and the family squeezes in beside him.
Episode chronology
The Simpsons season 5
List of episodes

"Bart's Inner Child" is the seventh episode of The Simpsons' fifth season, first aired on November 11, 1993.

Synopsis

Template:Spoiler

As Homer eats breakfast and reads his newspaper, he comes across an advertisement giving away a trampoline in the newspaper's For Free section. Immediately, Homer rushes to the house that was giving away the trampoline, discovering that it was Krusty's house. Krusty willingly gives him the trampoline (as well as making sure he doesn't come back with it). After playing with the trampoline for a while, Homer decides to use the trampoline for profit and imagines charging people $50 to enter "Homerland" and play with the trampoline as well as with a mud puddle and a fort made of soiled mattresses. However, eventually the trampoline injures all the kids who try it and Homer is forced to get rid of the trampoline, though no matter what he does the trampoline always returns to him.

Eventually Marge gets fed up with Homer, though Homer argues that at least he is trying new things (with the trampoline) while Marge nags all the time. Marge realizes her nagging problem and rents a video called "Adjusting Your Self-O-Stat" (starring Troy McClure and created by Brad Goodman). After watching the video the Simpsons family decides to go to Brad Goodman's live lecture, where Brad Goodman tells everyone that they should follow their inner child similar to the way Bart Simpson acts regularly. When the lecture is over, all of the Springfield adults begin to act like children, doing whatever pleases them, and eventually the "Do what you Feel" festival is organized. However by the time of the festival the "inner child" concept causes chaos in Springfield and the town blames Bart and chases after him, though Homer saves Bart with a float. The episode ends with the Simpson family watching TV at night.

Cultural references

• The scene with a field full of injured kids from the trampoline is a parody of the injured soldiers in Gone with the Wind.
• Homer trying to push the trampoline off the cliff is a reference to Wile E. Coyote/Roadrunner cartoons.
• Goodman uses fingers as quotation marks, similar to what Chris Farley's recurring character Bennett Brauer did in a couple of Weekend Update installments on Saturday Night Live, his most famous one being where Farley (as Brauer) flies after overusing his finger quotes, but the cables used to lift him are caught in a stage light and Farley ad-libs that he has a weight problem as Kevin Nealon (the WU anchor at the time) and a stagehand free Farley.
• The after-brownie exchange between Marge and Homer is a parody of Semi-Tough.
• The run-away ferris wheel is a reference to 1941.
• McGarnigle (the cop)'s voice and lines sound similar to that of Clint Eastwood from Dirty Harry.
• Women reveling on the gold idol of Brad Goodman is a reference to The Ten Commandments
• This is Albert Brooks' third guest appearance in a Simpsons episode, once again credited as A. Brooks.
• During the final scene of the "I Feel Good" song performance (when the stage starts crumbling), the rear view of Jebediah Springfield's statue appears as though he is "giving the finger".

Goofs

• When Homer pulls Bart into the float, while running away from the angry mob, he somehow manages to do it without creating any breaks in the chicken wire forming the float or injuring Bart.
• Homer & Marge wouldn't be able to see Jimbo and Kearney jump on Homer's car (which isn't normally parked under their bedroom's window).
• Krusty is living in a house, but on "Krusty Gets Kancelled", he lived in an apartment (and later, in "Bart the Fink", he lives in a mansion).
• This is the last appearance of Dr. Marvin Monroe until season 15. He is seen shortly after the zoo animals are set free and a camel is chasing him; possibly this could be the moment when he died (or became "very sick").
• When Homer says "Name something in the past week something fun you did," and Marge says "I can name ten things," it is obviously recycled animation from the season three episode Colonel Homer because Marge was naked when she said, "That's not true", but was fully clothed when she said, "I can name ten things. Uh, I made sloppy joes!"

Quotes

• Homer: (Upon finding the ad for the trampoline) Oh, my God! Tramampoline! Trambopoline!
  Bart: He said what now?
• Todd: Each leap brings us closer to God.
  Rod: Catch me, Lord, catch me! (They collide and fall onto the ground). What have we done to make God angry?
  Todd: You did it!
• Milhouse: Stop jumping on me, I'm hurt!
  Homer: Kids, kids: once you get hurt, move aside and let other people jump
• Homer: Hey, Krusty, I'm bringing back the...
  Krusty: (points a shotgun at Homer) You just keep right on driving.
• Homer (attempting to drop the trampoline off a cliff's edge): That's the last I'll see of Mr. Trampoline. Yep, it's finally gone. (a shadow grows above Homer. The trampoline bounces repeatedly off his head, driving his feet into the ground)
• Marge: That video really opened my eyes. I can see that I'm just a passive-aggressive co-culprit. By nagging you when you do foolish things, I just enable your life script.
  Homer: And that sends me into a shame spiral.
  Marge: Exactly!
• Marge: Homer, did you eat my whole pan of brownies?
  Bart: Uh oh. You're in for it now, Dad.
  Homer: Marge, I'm feeling a lot of shame right now.
  Marge: I'm hearing that you feel a lot of shame
  Homer: And I feel that you hear my shame.
  Marge: I'm feeling annoyance and frustration, but also tolerance.
  Homer: I feel validated by that.
  Marge: Good! I'm glad we had this talk.
  Homer: Me too (walks off whistling).
• Lisa: This is madness. He's just peddling a bunch of easy answers.
  Carl: And how!!!
• Kent Brockman: A new mood is in the air in Springfield, as refreshing as a pre-moistened towelette. Folks are finally accepting their feelings and really communicating, with no holding back, and this reporter thinks it's about ****ing time
• Kent Brockman: Springfield will have its first annual "Do What You Feel" Festival this Saturday. Whenever you feel like showing up, it'll be a welcome change from our annual "Do As We Say" Festival started by German settlers in 1946.
• Skinner: Eat my shorts young man!
• Brad: Let me hear what's troubling you. Don't be shy, yell it out. Everybody, go!
  Quimby: I, er, can't commit to a relationship.
  Mr. Burns: I'm too nice!
  Apu: I have problems with--
  Lenny: I'm always interrupting people!
• Squeaky-voiced Teen: Mister, I can't stand the sound of your voice!
• Homer: Ooh! It's that new show about the policeman who solves crimes in his spare time.
• Brad Goodman: You know, my course can help with every personality disorder in the "feel bad" rainbow. Let's look at the rainbow. What's in there? (scrolling on screen) Depression, Insomnia, Motor Mouth, Darting Eyes, Indecisiveness, Decisiveness, Uncontrollable Falling Down, Geriatric Profanity Disorder, and Chronic Nagging...
• Brad: Principal Skinner, let's try some rage work. I want you to pretend that this dummy is your Mother.
  Skinner: O.K. I'll try.
  Brad: Tell this dummy mother exactly how you feel. Right now.
  Skinner: (getting progressively more angry) I'm annoyed with you, Mother. Not just annoyed...angry! I'm a grown man now (shouting) and I can run my own life!!! (pummels dummy and tears it open with his teeth)
  Brad: Shh. Shh. Moving. You can sit down now.
  Skinner: (Skinner returns to his seat next to his mother) We're still going antiquing, right Mother?
• Bart: Lis, everyone in town is acting like me. So why does it suck?
  Lisa: It's simple, Bart. You've defined yourself as a rebel and in the absence of a repressive milieu your societal nature has been co-opted.
  Bart I see.
  Lisa: Ever since that self-help guy came to town, you've lost your identity. You've fallen through the cracks in our quick-fix-one-hour-photo-instant-oatmeal society.

External links

• Bart's Inner Child at SNPP.com
• Bartism - A religion based on Bart's "Do what you feel like" attitude

• The Simpsons episodes, season 5