Before I get into this episode, I do want to clear up a few things about my first appearance list since some might notice omissions early on. While I make it clear to mention all major and minor appearances, I didn't add Milhouse, Grampa, or Itchy and Scratchy, which have all appeared at this point. The main reason is I'm only counting first appearances of character who debut on the show proper and not outside of it. In the case of Itchy & Scratchy and Grampa (as well as Krusty), they all appeared on the Tracey Ullman Show first, hence their appearances won't be accounted. In the case of Milhouse, his origins were a bit different.
One of the first sponsorship deals The Simpsons signed on for was with Nestle and their Butterfinger bars, having Bart serve as their mascot. The first ad aired on December 31st, 1988, while the show was still in the Ullman days. The ad introduced the still unnamed Milhouse Van Houten as Bart's friend. And thus, while not in the most dynamic way, the world welcomed their favorite wiener kid, and the Simpsons was making some Butterfinger bank. Though "It's Neato" is a really lame early slogan.
February 4th, 1990 saw the premiere of "Bart the General". An interesting thing about season 1 and Bart is that he's got a load of enemies this season, perhaps as a way to show that while Bart is a hellion, he's not as bad or as evil as other kids and adults. We saw with Martin in "Bart the Genius" a foe that's smarter and more of a butt kisser, now it's time for Bart to deal with a bigger and tougher foe in one Nelson Muntz.
Due to episode length, the entire intro is omitted, so no couch gag or chalkboard gag. Since the latter isn't exactly bursting with dynamic gags yet, it's probably for the best.
We open the episode at the Simpson residence as cupcakes are being baked. Believe it or not, cupcakes are going to be the source of conflict for the next couple episodes. Bart goes to take one, but learns that they're being made by Lisa for her teacher Ms. Hoover (first mention, though not first appearance). Bart calls Lisa a butt kisser, to which Homer tries to convince the boy that being a butt kisser isn't a bad thing. It never hurts to grease the wheel a little. Even Homer doubts that Lisa is doing so in an act of generosity. We get a fun scene on the school bus as Bart is forced to apologize to Lisa to get a cupcake. She pulls the old "open your mouth and close your eyes, and you'll get a big surprise" gag, giving Bart a dropped cupcake.
When they get to school however, Lisa's cupcakes are stolen by a bully. Bart tries to defend her, but learns that the kid is a friend of the even bigger bully in school, Nelson Muntz. Despite this, Bart goes in for the fight, but ends up hitting Nelson, causing the bully to bleed from the nose. Despite Bart's attempt at an apology, he's still due a beating after school. We get one of several dream sequences in this episode. The first being Bart trying in vain to defend himself from a giant, indestructible Nelson. Milhouse tries to tell Bart to tell Principal Skinner, but Bart believes in the code of the school yard, hence no snitching. We get the second, more darker dream sequence of Bart's funeral.
I wouldn't be surprised if this is where that "Dead Bart" Creepypasta at least got some of its origin.
Bart tries to make his escape, but es easily beaten by the bully. After some hard punches to the noggin, his pummeling is met with the wonderful crescendo of being rolled down the street in a trash can. Bart comes home, already fearing for his life. Marge suggests telling on Nelson, but even Homer believes in the code of the schoolyard. Marge then suggests to just be kind, but Homer prefers that Bart goes in for the kill, and tries to train the boy in the art of fighting dirty, especially hitting him in the "family jewels". Interesting note, that little line got them in some hot water with the censors.
None of this works, obviously.
Since Homer's tactics fail to tread water, Lisa's suggestion is that Bart visit Grampa. This gives us the first appearance of the Springfield Retirement Home.
QUOTE OF THE EPISODE:
"Dear Advertisers, I am disgusted with the way old people are depicted on television. We are not all vibrant, fun-loving sex maniacs. Many of us are bitter, resentful individuals who remember the good old days when entertainment was bland and inoffensive. The following is a list of words I never want to hear on televison again. Number one: bra. Number two: horny. Number three: family jewels." -Abraham "Grampa" Simpson
It turns out Grampa isn't a great choice to pick on learning self defense as he is easily bullied by Jasper over the newspaper. Grampa instead brings Bart to crazy veteran Herman. A one-armed man who seems to have lost his arm sticking it out of a school bus (Reference to Homer's Odyssey perhaps?). Herman's strategy: An all out war. Clearly Herman is out of his mind, but Grampa thinks that they can't fail.
After his daily beating, Bart rallies the kids of Springfield Elementary to finally give Nelson a taste of his own medicine. He begins to put his fellow classmates through boot camp. Several obvious references to Patton, Stripes, Cool Hand Luke and Full Metal Jacket seen throughout the montage, which is definitely the episode's highlight.
Especially visually as some of the best to this point.
With their strategy in place, Bart and the kids finally get their revenge with a full on water balloon assault. They chase Nelson through town, bombarding him with a barrage of "Happy Birthday" balloons. Even Grampa gets in on the act, laying in a few on Homer. Eventually they corner Nelson, who is tied up and defeated. Nelson refuses to apologize for his actions, but eventually Bart and Herman come up with a war treaty, which leads to a sort of truce. And thus, Nelson goes from full on bully to occasional bully/Bart's friend when necessary. We end the episode with Bart in an educational segement talking about the horrors of war and books about war at the library.
"Bart the General" is easily the best episode we've seen since the Christmas Special. The story is a lot more focused, as Bart's conflict with Nelson is made apparent early on, and the focus never really shifts. We get some fun moments with Homer trying to teach Bart poor self defense, some great quotes (Grampa's "Thank Heaven for Children" line being also excellent), and some of the best looking animation since the series began honestly (though still very, very crude). Nelson makes for a decent antagonist (though we don't really have Ha-Ha Nelson yet), and Herman works well for the story, but feels like a character that doesn't have much place in other stories. Seems the writers agreed as he barely appears much after this.
Nitpicks, I will say the war stuff does feel very last minute, despite the episode's title, and I don't know, but it feels like Bart's perhaps a bit too wordy than usual. I don't know how to describe it, but he just seems a lot more talkative than Bart usually is, especially in trying to get himself out of a jam. An episode, that while a bit stale in places, still holds up as one of season 1's finest.
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FIRST APPEARANCES:
NELSON MUNTZ
HERMAN
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NEXT TIME ON 'ROUND SPRINGFIELD:
MOANING LISA
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