Trappuccino
- ""This is Kent Brockman on a crisis so serious it has its own name and theme music, "Trappuccino""
- ―Kent Brockman[[The Simpsons Movie|[src]]]
- ""D'OOOOOOOOOOOOOOhme!!""
- ―Homer Simpson[[The Simpsons Movie|[src]]]
The Dome Incident is the crisis where a dome was placed over the city of Springfield by Russ Cargill and the Environmental Protection Agency. It was one of the worst moments in the history of Springfield and lasted for over 93 days. The crisis was given the name Trappuccino by Channel 6 News.
After cracks started appearing in the dome, Cargill launched Operation Soaring Eagle, the goal of which was to blow up Springfield. However, his plan was thwarted by Homer, and the dome was destroyed by a bomb. Afterwards, things slowly went back to normal.
Contents
Background
Lake Springfield had become a source of pollution, being the dumping site for everything from radioactive waste from the Nuclear Power Plant to empty bottles of beer. It was so polluted it killed the band Green Day while they were playing a concert on the lake (the lake dissolved the barge they were playing on and drowned the band when they fell into the water.).
Lisa Simpson and Colin found out about the extent of the pollution in the lake, and urged the people of Springfield to clean up the lake during a presentation at town hall, named "An Irritating Truth". To convince the audience further, Lisa placed water from the lake into their drinking glasses. The tactic paid off, and Mayor Quimby raised the town's alert level to "Code Black", the town's highest alert level.
The town then proceeded to clean up the lake. Mayor Quimby led the construction of a shoulder-level concrete wall, which was presumably "idiot proof". The lake was surrounded by "No Dumping" signs and all hazardous waste could only be disposed at a waste disposal plant.
Turn of Events
Some time after the clean up, Lard Lad Donuts was being shut down by health inspectors, and the donut shop was giving away free donuts. Unfortunately, this proves to be a distraction for resident Homer J. Simpson, who is waiting behind a long line of cars at the waste disposal plant to dispose of a large silo of "pig crap", filled with the leavings of his newly adopted pig Plopper. Unable to wait any longer, he went off to dispose of the silo quickly by dumping the waste into the lake. Ignoring the warning signs, he crashed through the concrete barrier and dumped the silo into the water, which instantly dirties the entire lake, just days after it was cleaned up.
Homer and Plopper quickly fled the scene, while at the same time, a squirrel fell into the water and was instantly mutated into a multi-eyed creature. The creature was later captured by the Environmental Protection Agency, and went into the possession of Russ Cargill, head of the EPA. He shows President Arnold Schwarzenegger the abomination of nature and expresses how high the pollution in Springfield has become. Russ Cargill presented the president 5 options on how to deal with the town. He picks Option 3 without even reading it.
The Dome
Option 3 was to trap the entire town of Springfield under a thick glass dome in order to prevent the pollution from spreading. Incidentally, Russ Cargill is also the owner of the company that makes the dome. The dome was carried by over a hundred helicopters, attaching ropes with large suction cups to the dome. The inhabitants of the entire town witnessed the dome casting a shadow over Springfield. The dome was soon lowered, covering the entire perimeter of Springfield and cutting the "Springfield" sign in half. At least one person was flattened and killed when the dome was lowered.
After the Dome was Lowered
The Springfield Police Department attempted to crack the dome by shooting at it, but instead the bullets richocheted back towards them. Professor Frink announced that he created an drill that can drill through anything, but unfortunately, it is right outside the dome. Soon after, Russ Cargill appeared on a giant screen on the dome, explaining to the Springfieldians that in order to keep pollution from spreading into other areas, the United States government was forced to trap the entire town inside a dome. When Lisa Simpson exclaims to him that they just cleaned up the lake, Russ Cargill simply retorts that "someone didn't get the message".
To keep anyone from finding Springfield, Springfield was removed from the official state maps and wiped out from GPS devices.
The town soon faced the beginning of a long range of problems such as the shortage of supplies like Botox and Gasoline, and there is a grab for supplies. The dome also prevents swallows from returning to Springfield for the springtime.
The Riot
Sometime later, the Springfield Police Department discovered a large silo with the words "pig crap" written on it, plus the message "If found, please return to Homer Simpson. No reward." The culprit behind the pollution of Lake Springfield was revealed, and Channel 6 news called for vigilante justice against Homer Simpson. A massive angry mob converged onto 742 Evergreen Terrace, home of Homer Simpson and the Simpsons family, with intention to kill. The family and Homer Simpson ultimately escaped by jumping into a sinkhole in their backyard that brought them outside the dome, but the sinkhole later expands, destroying the house.
Deteriorating Conditions
As weeks passed, the situation gets worse in Springfield. Power outages plagued the town and the residents started looting buildings including Moe's Tavern. Mr. Burns refused to give free access to power despite the pleas of Dr. Hibbert, Chief Wiggum and Apu Nahasapeemapetilon.
By Day 93, the residents of Springfield finally reached the breaking point. After a book thrown by Lindsay Naegle spilled coffee from a coffee machine at an alcoholic's anonymous meeting, Barney finally cracked and ran out to the dome in a futile attempt to break the dome. The rest of the townspeople soon followed, trying to crack the dome repeatedly with objects such as Boxing Gloves, Jackhammers, Battering Rams, Bubbles (Ralph Wiggum), Swordfish, Sticks, and Shovels (ironic, since the townspeople could've dug themselves out in the first place). Stampy the elephant struck the dome with his head, and manages to form a small crack on the dome.
Russ Cargill and the president witnesses this from a surveillance camera. Convincing the president that a breakout from the dome will expose a government conspiracy and start a federal investigation, Russ Cargill once again gives the president 5 options, but this time, he manipulates the president to pick Option 4: Blow Up Springfield.
Operation Soaring Eagle
The government passed off the upcoming destruction of Springfield as the creation of a "new Grand Canyon", and released a commercial promoting it featuring Tom Hanks. The commericial describes the new Grand Canyon to be located "East of Shelbyville and South of Capital City", the very location of Springfield.
The Simpsons family was soon found and captured by the EPA, thanks to a nationwide survellience program that involves tapping into people's conversations. Homer Simpson wasn't captured, as he left the family. The family was placed back into the Dome.
By now, Springfield was in a state of near ruin. Many of its buildings collapsed, including the Town Hall and excluding Springfield Elementary. Moe Syzlak has become the self-proclaimed "Emperor of Springfield". Mr. Burns' Estate was looted and Mr. Burns was stripped of his wealth, with Mr. Burns even hinting that he'd watch Smithers try to commit suicide to focus on something other than his current predicament. Right after the Simpsons family returned to Springfield, Russ Cargill appeared on the television screen on the dome once again, telling the Springfieldians that the United States government's decision to trap the town inside the Dome was a mistake, and the government has commenced with "Operation Soaring Eagle", which involves wiping out the entire town. A bomb hoisted onto a rope from a helicopter was lowered from a hole at the top of the Dome, with a timer set to 15 minutes. The townspeople decided to climb the rope and escape through the top of the Dome, while Cletus distracted Russ Cargill. In a sick twist of fate, Homer Simpson came down the rope at the same after climbing up the Dome, knocking everyone off the rope. His act also causes the bomb to drop, making the timer freeze. Unfortunately, Homer kicked the bomb, causing not only the timer to reactivate, but also halving the time to three minutes.
Deciding that he has to save the town, Homer took the bomb and attempts to ride a motorcycle up the dome (like in a motorcycle stunt cage). He took his son Bart Simpson, who helped him hold the bomb. At the moment they made it to the top, Bart threw the bomb out of the hole, ten seconds before detonation. After nearly falling back into the hole, the bomb safely flipped its end onto the dome, and causes a massive explosion on the side of the Dome with a force that strips the leaves off the nearby pine forests. The explosion caused the dome to shatter into pieces, mostly tiny and harmless except for an large one that crushes Dr. Nick, one of the only casualties of the Trappuccino incident. Homer and Bart landed safely near Springfield Gorge, only to be confronted by Russ Cargill, who attempted to kill Homer after refusing to admit defeat. Before he could fire, he was knocked out by a boulder thrown at him by Maggie Simpson.
Aftermath
Homer Simpson was hailed as a hero, being the man who was the direct cause of the "Dome incident" and responsible for its end. The town of Springfield was repaired and rebuilt, and the status quo returned once again.
Trivia
- It is unknown why the residents of Springfield never bothered to dig a hole to get out of the dome, but a common idea is that they are not thinking through logic, but through force. This has been joked upon by the producers, who had created the characters to be dull and oblivious to their surroundings and situations.
