Difference between revisions of "When Flanders Failed"

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"When Flanders Failed"

Episode Information Showrunner: [[{{{showrunner}}}]]

This episode was the third episode aired in Season 3.

Synopsis

Ned Flanders invites the Simpson's over for a barbecue. Initially the entire family attends, but Homer declines because he doesn't like Ned. However, once he smells the food cooking, he quickly reconsiders. While they eat, Ned announces that he is quitting his job and opening a specialty store for left-handed people, called The Leftorium. Almost immediately, Homer begins to hope that Ned fails in his new venture, even wishing on a wishbone for him to bottom out.

In a side plot, after a lecture from Marge about exercise, Bart asks to take karate lessons. While taking him on his first day, Homer gets his first look at Ned's new store. Business doesn't seem to be going very well, which pleases Homer. Bart quickly becomes bored of the karate lessons, and takes to the arcade to play karate video games during his following lessons, merely pretending he is actually learning karate.

Things progress in this vein, and even when Homer begins to witness left-handed people who would benefit from patronizing Ned's store, he does nothing to send them in that direction. Soon after, Flanders begins to experience financial hardship as a result of his failing business venture. Rather than helping him, he buys most of Ned's belongings at a garage sale. Eventually, Ned loses his store and is forced to close.

On the school playground, bullies antagonize Lisa, and she calls upon Bart to defend her with his martial arts skills. Predictably he gets pummeled. That night, Homer finds the Flanders family living in their car after losing their house, and Homer has a heart to heart with him. Stricken with guilt, Homer decides to take it upon himself to make several phone calls and get everyone to start buying there.

Trivia

• Although Ned states in this episode that he is left-handed, he was putting right-handed in the episode Dead Putting Society.
• This is the last time the slightly different theme music in the opening titles from Season 2 is played.

Cultural References

• The final scene is a nod to the final scene in "It's A Wonderful Life".

Errors

Near the end of the episode Homer congratulates Flanders for being the richest left landed man in Springfield. This would not be true considering Mr.Burns is also left handed.

Quotes

Man: Hey, I hear you validate parking tickets without purchase.

Ned: Oh, right as rain! Or, as we say around here, `left as rain', heh heh.

Man: Just stamp the ticket.

Ned: Oh, okay.

Ned: At times like these, I used to turn to the Bible and find solace, but even the Good Book can't help me now.

Homer: Why not?

Ned: I sold it to you for seven cents.

Homer: Oh.