Difference between revisions of "Junior Campers"

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The Junior Campers is a Scouting organization in Springfield; its aim to help Springfield's children learn survival skills. Its headquarters is a single room in an unknown building - possibly Springfield Elementary School, but not verified to be so.

History

The early history of the Junior Campers is unknown; the organization was not seen or mentioned before Bart became a member.

Bart Simpson and Milhouse Van Houten found a $20 dollar bill on the ground, after it flew from the Simpson residence with the help of the wind. Bart and Milhouse went crazy and didn't use the money wisely. After purchasing an all-syrup squishee from the Kwik-E-Mart, Bart and Milhouse became hyper. When Bart woke up the next morning in his bedroom, suffering from a sugar hangover, he found that he had unconsciously joined the Junior Campers. Milhouse instead ended up with a curse word shaved into his head, which prompted Principal Skinner, upon Milhouse's arrival at Springfield Elementary, to shave all of his hair off.

Bart attending his first meeting.

In class, his teacher notified Bart and the other students that there would be a surprise quiz. When a student, Warren, told the teacher, Mrs. Krabappel, that he needed to go to a Junior Campers meeting, Bart quickly followed suit, pulling on his uniform, and telling his teacher he needed to go to the meeting too. Cheerily, he went to his first meeting - only to be greeted by patrol leader Ned Flanders, his annoying next-door neighbor, and the rest of the group bathing Jasper Beardly. Bart screamed and left, only to catch the knot of his bandanna in the door, and fall to the ground, falling unconscious. Minutes later, Bart awoke to find Ned instructing a boy to breathe into Bart's mouth to awake him. He threw the boy off and stayed with the group. After he discovered the members receive pocket knifes, Bart was elated, but then appalled when he was handed the group's knife safety manual, so he left the group, only to find knifes were very important (and cool), and so he returned to pass the knife safety test and received only a rubber training knife for his trouble. With passing the knife safety test, Bart was promoted to the rank of "Pussy Willow". Bart, offended, nearly left (yet again), but when Ned told the group that they would be taught how to capture wild animals, Bart was enticed back in.

Influenced by the lesson, Bart created a trap. He laid a piece of pie on a plate in his kitchen, with a noose around it, intending to catch Homer, who sneaked up and was about to take the pie when Bart caught hold of Homer's leg with the rope, leaving him hanging upside down in the kitchen. He later created yet another pie trap whilst gaining five badges. Next time, Ned informed the group about the Father & Son Rafting Trip the following weekend, and told fellow member Warren, whose father was imprisoned, that they had hired a "celebrity dad", Ernest Borgnine for him, despite his wishes to take his older brother. Bart was resolved not to take his father, and planned that Homer would say no if he asked him, but Homer was also counting on Bart saying no if he said he would like to go on the trip. In the end, Homer and Bart ended up going together, while Ernest Borgnine tried to convince Warren it would be great fun together. Homer, discontented, was forced, with Bart, to join Ned and son, Rod in their dinghy. Further down the rapids, they came across a split, and while Ned went left after Homer used his map for a hat which blew agway, the others went to the right. Ned then inadvertently made it into the ocean, and while he instructed the group to fight the current, Homer was more relaxed about the situation, entrusting them to the fact they should just wait and let the current take them back to land - when it actually took them further out to sea.

The group restraining Homer as he began to eat most of the remaining rationings.

Out at sea, Homer got irritated, ending up throwing Rod's tape player into the sea, using the last of their drinking water to wash his socks, and eating most of the rationings. Meanwhile, the rest of the patrol were travelling down a river in a secluded, frightening, woodland area. Homer then failed the rest of the group again, using the flare gun to try and catch the attention of someone in a plane flying over the sea, but ending up making it destroy his plane and use a parachute to drop onto another plane flying nearby. Later, they were greeted by some dolphins who Ned thought were going to help them, but actually chuckled in their own language "You're going to die", and left. Ned then went crazy, knowing they were done for, and Homer exploited the situation by slapping Flanders repeatedly. Then, Homer used their last cheese doodle to catch a fish, which swam away with the not-attached line. Thinking they weren't going to survive, Homer gave Bart a present - a Swiss Army Knife he stole from Borgnine - whose group, at that moment, was being come on to by a bear. Homer then accidentally dropped the Army Knife while its appendages were out, but ended up resting nicely on the surface of the dinghy, only for the sun to emerge, shine onto the mini-magnifiying glass and burn a hole in the dinghy. The group then later got the smell of hamburgers. Using a map of Krusty Burger locations Homer had brought, they found there was one located on an off-shore oil rig; Homer instructed the group to row towards the source of the stench, which they did, and Homer ordered 700 hamburgers at the branch, much to the delight of employees.

Meanwhile, in an abandoned summer camp, which the other members of the patrol had set up camp in, they were singing around a campfire, while something was in the trees watching them, and attacked the group. It is unknown what happened to the patrol after this; Bart most likely quit as he is not seen wearing the uniform or participating with the organization again.

Known badges

The following badges were the five Bart had obtained for his sash:

• 

  Archery

• 

  Debt Collecting

• 

  Embalming

• 

  TV Trivia

• 

  Patch Forgery

Behind the Laughter

• The Junior Campers are based on the Boy Scouts.

Appearances

• Episode – "Boy-Scoutz 'N the Hood"
• Episode – "The Last Temptation of Krust"
• Episode – "Black-Eyed, Please"
• Episode – "Whiskey Business" (Homer's imagination)
• {{bon|Bart's Junior Camper Demerit Badge Manual}
• Comic story – Ralph vs. Wild