Dude, Where's My Ranch?

Last updated

"Dude, Where's My Ranch?"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.Season 14
Episode 18
Directed by Chris Clements
Written by Ian Maxtone-Graham
Production codeEABF13
Original air dateApril 27, 2003 (2003-04-27)
Guest appearances
David Byrne as himself
Andy Serkis as Cleanie
Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Luke Stetson
Episode features
Couch gag The Simpsons are mimes that sit on an imaginary couch.
Commentary Al Jean
Ian Maxtone-Graham
Matt Selman
Brian Kelley
Dan Castellaneta
David Byrne
Mike B. Anderson
Ken Keeler
David Silverman
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Three Gays of the Condo"		Next →
"Old Yeller-Belly"
The Simpsons season 14
List of episodes

"Dude, Where's My Ranch?" is the eighteenth episode of the fourteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons . It originally aired on the Fox Network in the United States on April 27, 2003. It was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham and was the first episode directed by Chris Clements.

Contents

In this episode, the Simpson family visit a dude ranch to escape from an annoying popular song created by Homer and David Byrne. Andy Serkis and Jonathan Taylor Thomas guest starred. Musician David Byrne appeared as himself. The episode received mixed reviews and won an Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Music.

Plot

At Christmas time, the Simpsons go caroling around Springfield before the Blue-Haired Lawyer wrongly orders them to stop, citing copyright infringement. In response, Homer tries to write his own carol but when Ned Flanders tries to help, he soon creates an anti-Flanders song titled "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders", produced by and featuring vocals from David Byrne of Talking Heads. The song becomes so popular (which even Ned enjoys listening and singing to) that the family, annoyed by its constant presence, leave for a dude ranch. As the family drives to the ranch, Byrne tell them he's made a new salsa mix of the song. As he is dancing to it on the hood of his car, Byrne slips and falls into Moe's (who was driving directly behind Byrne). When Byrne asks Moe to take him to the hospital, he instead drives past it and ask Byrne if he's ever seen the movie Misery . When Byrne replies that he hasn't, Moe says this will all be new to him.

At the ranch, Lisa meets a cowhand named Luke Stetson, with whom she begins to bond. Meanwhile, Homer and Bart meet a tribe of Native Americans who want a beaver dam removed so they can reclaim their land. They are confronted by the beavers while attempting to dismantle the dam and eventually destroy it after luring the beavers away.

Lisa overhears Luke expressing his love to a girl named Clara over the phone. When a jealous Lisa encounters her, she tricks her into going the wrong way on the path to a dance. Lisa finds out that Clara is Luke's sister and runs to the beaver dam with Bart. They find Clara standing on a rock in the middle of a torrential river. Bart taunts some beavers and scales a tree; the beavers chew through the tree, causing it to fall and create a bridge that Clara can cross. When Lisa comes clean about what happened to Clara, Luke is offended and leaves her. As the Simpsons return to Springfield, they hear a song entitled "The Moe Szyslak Connection" on the radio, sung by Moe Szyslak and produced by Byrne, and turn around to spend another week at the ranch.

Production

Musician David Byrne appeared as himself. [1] Producers sent Byrne the song "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders" to Byrne to ask if he was interested in performing. When he agreed, music editor Chris Ledesma went to New York to record him. In 2013, executive producer Al Jean wrote that the song was one of the writers' ten favorite songs from the series. [2]

Cultural references

Maggie dances to the song "Oops!... I Did It Again" by Britney Spears. [3]

Reception

Viewing figures

The episode was watched by 11.71 million viewers, which was the 34th most-watched show that week. [4]

Critical response

On November 2, 2004, the episode was released in the United States on a DVD collection titled The Simpsons Christmas 2, along with the season twelve episodes "Homer vs. Dignity" and "Skinner's Sense of Snow" and the season fifteen episode " 'Tis the Fifteenth Season", despite Christmas only playing a minor role in the first act and not being brought up again afterward. [5]

Reviewing the DVD, Brian James of PopMatters wrote that "Dude, Where's My Ranch?" displays "the series' nefarious habit of using the first third of the episode as a clearinghouse for disconnected jokes before actually beginning the plot, a blight made that much more glaring here since the only connection to Christmas comes early with the rest not even taking place in winter." [5]

Colin Jacobson of DVD Movie Guide liked Homer's song and the scenes at the ranch but felt the episode is not as good as the series’ best episodes. [6]

On Four Finger Discount, Guy Davis and Brendan Dando thought that while the episode was good, the quality compared to earlier seasons was starting to drop. They highlighted the performance by David Byrne but did not recognize that Jonathan Taylor Thomas had guest starred. [7]

Josh Spiegel of The State Press liked the performance by David Byrne and the scene of Maggie dancing. He thought the plot was not original and that "[t]here were laughs to spare, but nothing so gut-busting that would last in my mind for awhile." [3]

Awards and nominations

At the 31st Annie Awards, composer Alf Clausen, writer Ian Maxtone-Graham, and Ken Keeler won the Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement for Music in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production for this episode. [8] They were also nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics for their song "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders" at the 55th Primetime Emmy Awards. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bart Simpson</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons

Bartholomew Jojo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional character in the American animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening created and designed Bart while waiting in the lobby of James L. Brooks' office. Groening had been called to pitch a series of shorts based on his comic strip, Life in Hell, but instead decided to create a new set of characters. While the rest of the characters were named after Groening's family members, Bart's name is an anagram of the word brat. After appearing on The Tracey Ullman Show for two years, the Simpson family received its own series on Fox, which debuted December 17, 1989. Bart has appeared in every Simpsons episode except "Four Great Women and a Manicure".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moe Szyslak</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Moammar "Moe" Szyslak is a recurring character from the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Hank Azaria and first appeared in the series premiere episode "Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire". Moe is the proprietor and bartender of Moe's Tavern, a Springfield bar frequented by Homer Simpson, Barney Gumble, Lenny Leonard, Carl Carlson, Sam, Larry, and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire</span> 1st episode of the 1st season of The Simpsons

"Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire" is the series premiere of the American animated television series The Simpsons. A Christmas special, the show had a very long delayed release. It first aired on Fox in the United States on December 17, 1989. Introducing the Simpson family into half-hour television in this episode, Bart Simpson disobediently gets a tattoo without the permission of his parents. After Marge spends all the family's holiday budget on having it removed, Homer learns that his boss is not giving employees Christmas bonuses, and takes a job as a shopping mall Santa.

"Worst Episode Ever" is the eleventh episode of the twelfth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 4, 2001. In the episode, Bart and Milhouse are banned from The Android's Dungeon after stopping Comic Book Guy from buying a box of priceless Star Wars memorabilia for $5. However, when Comic Book Guy suffers a massive heart attack, he hires Bart and Milhouse as his replacements while he leaves his job to pursue a relationship with Agnes Skinner.

Joseph Stewart Burns, better known as J. Stewart Burns or simply just Stewart Burns is a television writer and producer most notable for his work on The Simpsons, Futurama, and Unhappily Ever After.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trash of the Titans</span> 22nd episode of the 9th season of The Simpsons

"Trash of the Titans" is the twenty-second episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. The 200th episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Fox in the United States on April 26, 1998. The episode, which was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham and directed by Jim Reardon, sees Homer Simpson run for the job of Springfield's Sanitation Commissioner. Steve Martin guest stars as Ray Patterson, the incumbent commissioner, while U2 play themselves after requesting an appearance on the show.

Ian Maxtone-Graham is an American television writer and producer. He has formerly written for Saturday Night Live (1992–1995) and The Simpsons (1995–2012), as well as serving as a co-executive producer and consulting producer for the latter.

"Homer Loves Flanders" is the sixteenth episode of the fifth season of The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 17, 1994. In the episode, Ned Flanders invites Homer to a football game and the two become good friends. However, in a reversal of their usual roles, Ned soon grows weary of Homer's overbearing friendship and stupid antics, and actually begins to hate him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Seemingly Never-Ending Story</span> 13th episode of the 17th season of The Simpsons

"The Seemingly Never-Ending Story" is the thirteenth episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 12, 2006. The episode was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham and directed by Raymond S. Persi.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 14 Season of television series

The fourteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons was originally broadcast on the Fox network in the United States between November 3, 2002, and May 18, 2003, and was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. The show runner for the fourteenth production season was Al Jean, who executive produced 21 of 22 episodes. The other episode, "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation", was run by Mike Scully. The season was the first to use digital ink-and-paint for most of its episodes, though four episodes were hold-overs from season 13's production run and used traditional ink-and-paint. A fifth season 13 holdover episode, which was the first episode of season 14, used digital ink-and paint like the rest of the season. The fourteenth season has met with mostly positive reviews and won two Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Animated Program, four Annie Awards and a Writers Guild of America Award. This season contains the show's 300th episode, "Barting Over".

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 12 Season of television series

The twelfth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired between November 2000 and May 2001. It began on Wednesday, November 1, 2000 with "Treehouse of Horror XI". The season contains four hold-over episodes from the season 11 (BABF) production line. The showrunner for the twelfth production season was Mike Scully. The season won and was nominated for numerous awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards wins and an Annie Award. Season 12 was released on DVD in Region 1 on August 18, 2009, Region 2 on September 28, 2009, and Region 4 on September 2, 2009.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 11 Season of television series

The eleventh season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox Network in the United States between September 26, 1999 and May 21, 2000, starting with "Beyond Blunderdome" and ending with "Behind the Laughter". With Mike Scully as the showrunner for the eleventh season, it has twenty-two episodes, including four hold-over episodes from the season 10 production line. Season 11 was released on DVD in Region 1 on October 7, 2008 with both a standard box and Krusty-molded plastic cover.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 10 Season of television series

The tenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons was originally broadcast on the Fox network in the United States between August 23, 1998, and May 16, 1999. It contains twenty-three episodes, starting with "Lard of the Dance". The Simpsons is a satire of a middle-class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie. Set in the fictional city of Springfield, the show lampoons American culture, society, television, and many aspects of the human condition.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 4, 1994, and May 21, 1995, and consists of 25 episodes. The Simpsons is an animated series about a working class family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The show is set in the fictional city of Springfield, and lampoons American culture, society, television and many aspects of the human condition.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 5 Season of television series

The fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 30, 1993, and May 19, 1994. The showrunner for the fifth production season was David Mirkin who executive produced 20 episodes, with the season being produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. Al Jean and Mike Reiss executive produced the remaining two, which were both hold overs that were produced for the previous season. The season contains some of the series' most acclaimed and popular episodes, including "Cape Feare", "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy", "Homer Goes to College", "Deep Space Homer", and "Rosebud". It also includes the 100th episode, "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song". The season was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards and won an Annie Award for Best Animated Television Program as well as an Environmental Media Award and a Genesis Award. The DVD box set was released in Region 1 on December 21, 2004, Region 2 on March 21, 2005, and Region 4 on March 23, 2005.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 4 Season of television series

The fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 24, 1992, and May 13, 1993, beginning with "Kamp Krusty". The showrunners for the fourth production season were Al Jean and Mike Reiss, with the season being produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. The aired season contained two episodes which were hold-over episodes from season three, which Jean and Reiss also ran. Following the end of the production of the season, Jean, Reiss and most of the original writing staff left the show. The season was nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards and Dan Castellaneta would win one for his performance as Homer in "Mr. Plow". The fourth season was released on DVD in Region 1 on June 15, 2004, Region 2 on August 2, 2004, and in Region 4 on August 25, 2004.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons originally aired on the Fox network between September 19, 1991, and August 27, 1992. The showrunners for the third production season were Al Jean and Mike Reiss who executive produced 22 episodes for the season, while two other episodes were produced by James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, and Sam Simon, with it being produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. An additional episode, "Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?", aired on August 27, 1992, after the official end of the third season and is included on the Season 3 DVD set. Season three won six Primetime Emmy Awards for "Outstanding Voice-Over Performance" and also received a nomination for "Outstanding Animated Program" for the episode "Radio Bart". The complete season was released on DVD in Region 1 on August 26, 2003, Region 2 on October 6, 2003, and in Region 4 on October 22, 2003.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 23 Season of television series

The twenty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons began airing on Fox on September 25, 2011, and ended May 20, 2012. The season was produced by Gracie Films and 20th Century Fox Television. The showrunner for the season was Al Jean, with three episodes ran with Matt Selman, one of those he also wrote himself. The show's 500th episode, "At Long Last Leave," aired February 19, 2012. On October 7, 2011, the series was renewed for a twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moe Goes from Rags to Riches</span> 12th episode of the 23rd season of The Simpsons

"Moe Goes from Rags to Riches" is the twelfth episode of the twenty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. The episode was directed by Bob Anderson and written by Tim Long. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 29, 2012.

References

  1. ↑ Lynch, Joe (March 21, 2022). "Here's Every Musical Guest on 'The Simpsons,' in Chronological Order". Billboard . Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  2. ↑ Jean, Al (March 18, 2013). "The Ten Best Simpsons Songs, As Picked by the Show's Writers". Vulture . Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  3. 1 2 Spiegel, Josh (April 27, 2003). "'Simpsons' visit dude ranch in forgettable episode". The State Press . Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  4. ↑ Lowry, Brian (April 30, 2003). "CBS slaps a new coat on an old genre with 'House'". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on June 18, 2003. Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  5. 1 2 James, Brian (December 28, 2004). "The Simpsons Christmas 2". PopMatters . Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  6. ↑ Jacobson, Colin (December 16, 2011). "The Simpsons: The Complete Fourteenth Season [Blu-Ray] (2002)". DVD Movie Guide. Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  7. ↑ Davis, Guy; Dando, Brendan (December 18, 2021). "Dude, Where's My Ranch? (S14E18)". Four Finger Discount (Simpsons Podcast) (Podcast). Event occurs at 3:00. Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  8. ↑ "31st Annual Annie Awards Legacy". ASIFA-Hollywood . Retrieved October 19, 2024.
  9. ↑ Baisley, Sarah (July 17, 2003). "2002 – 2003 Primetime Emmy Awards Nominations". Animation World Network . Retrieved October 19, 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.