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"Bart's Comet" is the 14th episode of The Simpsons' sixth season.

Synopsis

Template:Spoiler At the end of Science Week, Skinner launches a weather balloon. Before the launch, Bart sabotaged it, making it look like Skinner bending over and ripping his pants with the sign "Hi! I'm Big Butt Skinner." Skinner decides to punish Bart by having him help with his 4:30 AM astronomy. It is Skinner's dream to find something in the sky and have it named after him. They sight something, but it is only the weather balloon, and Skinner runs off to catch it. Bart then tampers with the telescope and accidentally discovers a comet after phoning the coordinates in to the local observatory.

Bart earns praise for discovering a new comet. Even the school nerds, the "Super-Friends", invite him to have lunch with them. However, his praise is dashed when scientists discover that the comet is heading straight for Springfield. Prof. Frink proposes a plan to launch a missile at the comet. Everyone's fear is lifted...until the missile flies pass the comet and blows up the only bridge out of town, dooming everyone in Springfield.

Springfield is left with only six hours before impact. Congress proposes a bill to evacuate Springfield, but it is defeated when another bill concerning taxpayer money being allocated to "the perverted arts" is added onto it. To help his family, Homer decides that they stay in the bunker that Flanders built. Anticipating this, Ned built the bomb shelter for both families. One hour before Springfield is destroyed, everyone in town demands a place in the bunker; however, Homer is unable to close the door and someone has to leave. After going through a list of who should stay several times, Homer says that the "world of the future" will not need left-handed stores and tells Ned to go. While everyone is trying to pass the remaining time, Homer feels guilty and leaves; all then do the same. As the comet enters the atmosphere, it burns up from the extra thick layer of pollution. It pops the weather balloon and destroys Ned's bunker. Bart and Lisa then become frightened, as the comet burned up to the size of a chihuahua's head...exactly as Homer had predicted.

Trivia

• During the scene in the bomb shelter, Waldo of Where's Waldo initially appears near the top-left of frame during a group shot, imitating the style of the Where's Waldo books. After a cut to a close-up, subsequent group shots in the shelter show that Waldo is gone.
• Show runner David Mirkin has stated that this is one of his favorite episodes.
• Although all the other "Super Friends" are seen in later episodes, Database becomes more prominent.
• Springfield Shopper headlines during this episode: "Boy Discovers Comet" and "Rocket to Kick Comet's Tail".
• A sign on the side of the rocket sent to blow up the comet reads, "Caution! Aim Away from Face".
• Two slingshots are thrown at Skinner's car in attempts to get the weather balloon down.
• Matt Groening is on top of the list of the news' list of people who are gay. According to the audio commentary on the DVD, the people, primarily consisting of writers or production crew members, whose names were listed had to sign waivers agreeing not to sue for libel. The commentators mentioned that they appear on internet lists of gay people occasionally.
• Homer states that 'what's left of the comet will be no bigger than a chihuahua's head. When the remnants of the comet bounces towards Bart and he picks it up, he is standing next to a chihuahua.

Cultural References

• This episode's plot is similar to the Twilight Zone episodes "The Shelter" and "The Monsters Are Coming To Maple Street".
• The shelter being destroyed after everyone leaves is similar to what happened on an episode of "Gilligan's Island".

Goofs

• When people who had been in the bomb shelter go to join Flanders on the hill, Apu appears yellow.
• When the "Big Butt Skinner" balloon gets away, Skinner rants, "Curse the man who invented helium! Curse Pierre Jules Cesar Janssen!" Since helium is a naturally occurring element, there's no way it could have been invented. Also, Pierre Jules Cesar Janssen wasn't the only person to discover helium. Janssen discovered helium with Joseph Norman Lockyer.
• When Bart arrives at the school at 4 in the morning, the American flag is still flying. The American flag cannot be on the flagpole at night unless there's a spotlight shining on it (Seth MacFarlane's cartoon American Dad recognizes this rule, which is why during nighttime establishing shots, the flag isn't shown).

Superfriends

Current members:

• Ham (known as this because he likes ham radio)
• Database or Data
• E-mail
• Report Card
• Cosine
• Lisa Simpson

Following the discovery of his comet Bart Simpson was asked to join but he declined after being given the nickname "Cosmos".

Quotes

• Congressman 1:Then it is unanimous. We are going to approve the bill to evacuate the town of Springfield in the great state of....
  Congressman 2: Wait a second, I want to tack on a rider to that bill. Thirty million dollars of taxpayer money to support the perverted arts.
  Congressman 1:All in favour of the amended Springfield/Pervert bill? (members of congress boo) Bill defeated
  Kent Brockman: (on TV) I've said it before and I'll say it again—democracy simply doesn't work.
• Moe: Let's go burn down the observatory so this will never happen again!
• F-18 pilot 1 (after Willie shoots at him and his wingman, trying to hit the weather balloon): Tagger 14, we're being fired upon. (looks at his read-out. It shows a silhouette of Willie and identifies him as an Iraqi fighter jet) Iraqis again. Launching sidewinder missile. (launches it, it hits his wingman) Missed him. Launching second sidewinder missile.
  (launches the second missile. It hits his own plane. The camera pans downward, showing the two pilots in their parachutes)
  F-18 Pilot 1: This is what happens when you take money out of the military and put it into health care!
  F-18 Pilot 2: It's a good program! Just give it a chance! That's all I ask!
  (their parachutes rip and they plummet to the ground, where they begin hitting each other)
• Prof. Frink: Uh, good evening ladies and...
  Extremely scared man: Quit stalling! What's the plan!?!
  Prof. Frink: Just be quiet now, take your seat, take your seat.
• Rev. Lovejoy: (after rocket fails to hit comet, the Reverend is running past the Simpsons house): It's all over people! We don't have a prayer!
• Rev. Lovejoy: Okay, let's start again. We'll need laughter, religious enlightenment, gossip. That's Mrs. Lovejoy...
• Ned: I may go mad with fear, so Todd, I want you to shoot Daddy if he tries to get back in.
  Todd: OK, Dad. (sniffles and loads up a 12-gauge shotgun}
• Homer (after everyone fights over a barn yard guessing game): I can't let that man die alone! I am completely disgusted by all of you, especially his children! I'm going out there! (slams the door and opens it again) And it was a baby ox! (slams door again)Moe: He's right you know Barney: About the ox? Moe: About everything!
• Skinner: Now that you have impeded science, you will now aid science. 4:30 in the morning!
  Bart: There's a 4:30 in the morning now?
• Data: It must be coming towards us at a fantastic speed.
  Cosine: We must alert the proper authorities.
  Report Card: To the observatory!
• Super Friends singing: "We are the super friends!"
  Bart: Hey, shut up!
• Homer's Comet Prediction (which eventually comes true): What's everyone so worked up about? So there's a comet...big deal. It'll burn up in our atmosphere and what's ever left will be no bigger than a chihuahua's head.
• Marge:Stop, stop, stop! Can't you see this barnyard guessing game is tearing us apart?! (They all stop, and hear Flanders singing on the hill)
  Marge:Say, Moe? Was it a duck?

External links

• "Bart's Comet episode capsule". The Simpsons Archive.

• The Simpsons episodes, season 6