Krusty Gets Busted
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"Krusty Gets Busted"
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Episode Information
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- "Krusty the Clown, you are being arrested for armed robbery!"
- ―Clancy Wiggum
Krusty Gets Busted is the twelfth episode of Season 1. It aired on April 22, 1990. The episode was written by Jay Kogen and directed by Brad Bird. Kent Brockman and Scott Christian make their first appearances on The Simpsons in this episode. Kelsey Grammer makes his first appearance on the show as Sideshow Bob.
Homer witnesses a robbery at the Kwik-E-Mart, and he idenitifies Krusty the Clown as the culprit. Krusty is arrested, tried, jailed, and replaced on the show by Sideshow Bob. Lisa and Bart are adamant that Krusty is innocent, so they examine the evidence and they conclude that he was framed. Eventually, they uncover evidence proving Krusty's innocence and showing that the robber was Sideshow Bob, who framed Krusty. When Bart confronts Bob, he admits to the crime and is sent to jail, while a grateful Krusty is released and thanks Bart for believing in him.
Plot
After work, Homer stops by the Kwik-E-Mart after learning that his wife's sisters are coming over. While in the store, he encounters a masked gunman (accidentally stepping on the gunman's foot) who proceeds to rob the Kwik-E-Mart. When Homer is asked to identify the gunman, he says it was Krusty the Clown, and photographic evidence (from the store's security cameras) appears to confirm the identity of the gunman. It doesn't take long before the media breaks the story, and Bart becomes disillusioned by the apparent fall of his television idol.
Krusty is arrested and put on trial, and all the evidence points to him as being the robber. During this time, parents' groups and church groups alike take up arms to hold a public burning of all of Krusty's merchandise.. Shortly after Krusty is found guilty and sentenced, Sideshow Bob takes his place on television, promising that his television program will become a more educational and pleasant experience.
During this time, Bart manages to convince Lisa that he believes Krusty was framed. When they visit the scene of the crime, they recall two things:
1) The robber used the microwave oven to heat up a burrito. However, a sign on the microwave says that people with pacemakers should not go near it, and Krusty was fitted with a pacemaker following a much-publicized heart attack (that happened on live TV).
2) The robber was reading a magazine, but it is well-known that Krusty is illiterate.
Hoping to find more clues, Bart, Lisa and Maggie go to the television studio to interview Sideshow Bob. Bob casually waves them aside, but gives them free tickets to attend the next show. During the taping of "The Sideshow Bob Cavalcade of Whimsy," Bart is chosen to speak with Bob in a one-in-one interview session, When Bob notices that Bart appears troubled, Bart explains what he and Lisa have come up with -- evidence indicating that Krusty was framed. While Sideshow Bob shows concern, he says that Bart should move on, commenting that he (Bob) has some "big shoes to fill." When Bart hears these words, he suddenly remembers the video footage where Homer stepped on the end of the robber's clown shoes and the robber yelled in pain, indicating that he had very large feet. Noticing Sideshow Bob's large feet, Bart suddenly blurts out on TV that Sideshow Bob framed Krusty. Bart's proof is that while Krusty wears big floppy shoes, he has little feet (like all good-hearted people), which is confirmed by video footage of Krusty being walked to the courthouse during his trial that clearly shows his small feet. For further proof, Bart hits Sideshow Bob's foot with a mallet and pulls his shoe off, revealing his large feet to the audience.
Soon afterward, Bob is arrested and admits that he framed Krusty due to the amount of humiliation he endured as the fall guy for all of Krusty's pranks. Once Krusty is released from jail, he cheerfully thanks Bart for believing in him through the entire ordeal. Bart is rewarded with an enormous amount of Krusty-related merchandise that we see all over his bedroom as the episode ends.
Production
Sideshow Bob makes his first appearance as a major character in this episode. However, his official first appearance was in the background of a scene in the season one episode The Telltale Head. Bob's design was revamped, with his original round hair being turned into his now-famous "palm tree" style. James Earl Jones was originally cast as Bob, but the producers decided to try Kelsey Grammer. Also making their first appearances in this episode are Kent Brockman and Scott Christian.
Reception
The episode finished thirteenth place for May 23–29, 1990, with a Nielsen rating of 16.4. The episode received positive reviews from critics. Matt Groening has listed it as his ninth favorite episode of the show and said "I have a peculiar love of TV clownery". In a DVD review of the first season, David B. Grelck gave the episode a rating of 3/5. Colin Jacobson at DVD Movie Guide said in a review that "throughout the episode we found great material; it really seemed clear that the show was starting to turn into the piece we now know and love. It’s hard for me to relate any deficiencies" and added that "almost every Bob episode offers a lot of fun, and this episode started that trend in fine style."
The Krusty the Clown Show
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| Main cast | ||
| Krusty the Clown • Sideshow Mel • Mr. Teeny | ||
| Other cast | ||
| Tina Ballerina • Clown doctor • Ms. No Means No • Corporal Punishment | ||
| Former cast | ||
| Sideshow Bob • Sideshow Leonard Cohen • Holly Hippie • Princess Penelope • Sideshow Luke Perry • Sideshow Raheem • Bart Simpson • Lisa Simpson • Sideshow Agent Tom Stovak | ||
| Guest cast | ||
| Battery • Professor Gas Can • George Meany • Robert Frost • Hyman Krustofsky • Miami Sound Machine • Madame Mimi • Ravi Shankar • Sophie • Stingy | ||
| Staff | ||
| Howard |
