There Will Be Buds

Last updated

"There Will Be Buds"
The Simpsons episode
Episode no.Season 28
Episode 6
Directed by Matthew Faughnan
Written by Matt Selman
Production codeVABF22
Original air dateNovember 6, 2016 (2016-11-06)
Guest appearance
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Trust but Clarify"		Next →
"Havana Wild Weekend"
The Simpsons season 28
List of episodes

"There Will Be Buds" is the sixth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons , and the 602nd episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by Matt Selman. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 6, 2016.

Contents

In this episode, Homer coaches a children's lacrosse team with Kirk Van Houten, who disappears when he learns that Homer thinks he is a loser. The episode received mixed reviews.

This episode was dedicated to longtime Simpsons writer Kevin Curran who died on October 25, 2016, from cancer complications.

Plot

During the season opener game of the Springfield Neutrinos peewee football team, an excessive amount of special effects smoke fills the field causing the entire team to crash into each other and even though no one seems to be hurt, the parents freak in assuming that they have suffered concussions and the football season is suspended. At a town meeting, no one is happy with alternatives like baseball or basketball, and when Kirk Van Houten tries to pitch the idea of coaching a junior lacrosse team nobody wants to hear it. Marge feels bad that everyone including Luann treats Kirk like garbage and orders a reluctant Homer to make the crowd shut up and listen to Kirk. The pitch, which includes a description of lacrosse as a cross between "hockey and soccer" and a display of great ability by Milhouse himself, leads everyone to ignore the very high rate of concussions in lacrosse and create a new kids league for it.

The team is formed with Kirk and Homer as coaches, where Kirk does the actual coaching while Homer sits on the sidelines cutting oranges. Their team wins their games easily, making it all the way to the championship match and giving the kids a great time. Kirk's coaching skills stem from his experience as a star lacrosse player in college; he had been on the verge of turning professional, but his hopes were ruined when he broke his wrist giving a high five to the school mascot, dressed in a suit of armor. Though Homer is impressed by Kirk's coaching, he becomes increasingly annoyed by all the time they are forced to spend together, not least when Kirk keeps trying to get Homer to go to strip clubs when Homer does not want to. After a musical number during which he hears Homer insult him at length and call him a loser, Kirk then disappears just as the team needs him for the championship game.

When Lisa asks Homer what is going on, he gives up his denial and confesses to driving Kirk away. Homer finds out from Luann that Kirk has withdrawn all his money in $1 bills, and instantly realises that Kirk fled to a strip club. Encouraged by Marge, the team, and eventually the rest of the crowd, Homer goes to search for Kirk and finds him at Clubbb Sinnn talking to the strippers. When Homer tries to get Kirk to come back for the game, he angrily declines and says nothing between him and Homer was real. When Homer says he respects Kirk for turning their loser kids into winners, Kirk is inspired to come back to coaching. Then the owner reminds Kirk that he owes back $15,000 for the time he has spent in the club and proceeds to have the club's security block the exits. Fortunately for Homer and Kirk, the club's strippers are sympathetic to their situation, as they are all mothers with young children, and allow them to use a helicopter from the club to get to the game just in time and the team wins. Afterwards while the kids enjoy a victorious pizza party, Homer sincerely offers Kirk a high-five. The gesture causes both men to break their wrists, leaving them sharing a hospital room where Homer continues to be annoyed by Kirk.

During the credits, Kirk does a MyTube video that someone keeps skipping to different parts all the way to the end, which includes a segment on preparing his famous rice sandwiches and a reference to 9/11 conspiracy theories.

Production

Writer and executive producer Matt Selman wanted to make the lacrosse look authentic, but no one on the show played lacrosse. The creative team watched videos, used a lacrosse dictionary, and checked with former lacrosse players. Selman stated, "We wanted insider references so that someone who does play lacrosse is going to watch this and not go 'Oh, these guys are just throwing it in.'" The children in the episode watched a video of the Gait brothers playing at Syracuse. Gary Gait, a Simpsons fan, was not aware he would be mentioned in the episode but thought it was "one of his biggest honors." [1]

Along with the following episode "Havana Wild Weekend", "There Will Be Buds" was a holdover from the previous season's production run. It was the final episode to be produced in this run and the last episode of the series to be animated by Film Roman, before the show moved its domestic production to Fox Television Animation.

Reception

Dennis Perkins of The A.V. Club gave the episode a B+ stating, "The episode looks great. The cozy familiarity of Springfield’s yellow-dominated color scheme is so universal that it’s easy to overlook the show’s visuals. But the design and blue-and-gold palette of the kids’ uniforms is striking, and there’s a nicely thought-out fluidity to both the brief snippets of in-game action and movement all through the episode. The clearly defined motion and purpose of the lacrosse sticks makes for some truly funny and excitingly-designed sight gags, too...Matthew Faughnan’s direction makes it all crisp and fun to watch. It’s one story, well-told. A Simpsons episode with a little time to breathe (this one skips the theme song and couch gag entirely) is often a good sign." [2]

Tony Sokol of Den of Geek gave the episode 2.5 out of 5 stars. He called the episode boring because of the focus on Milhouse's dad and could have been better with a strong secondary plot. [3]

"There Will Be Buds" scored a 1.4 rating with a 5 share and was watched by 3.14 million people, making it Fox's highest rated show of the night. [4]

Related Research Articles

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

Nelson Mandela Muntz is a fictional character and the lead school bully from the animated television series The Simpsons, where he is best known for his signature mocking laugh "Haw-haw!". He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright. Nelson was first introduced in Season 1's "Bart the General" as an antagonist, but later became more of an anti-hero, continuing to bully those weaker than him while occasionally showing a friendly and sensitive nature underneath. Nelson lives in poverty with his mother in a run-down home, and often shoplifts from convenience stores to get by.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pranksta Rap</span> 9th episode of the 16th season of The Simpsons

"Pranksta Rap" is the ninth episode of the sixteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on February 13, 2005. The episode was directed by Mike B. Anderson and written by Matt Selman. The episode title refers to the music genre gangsta rap.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homer Defined</span> 5th episode of the 3rd season of The Simpsons

"Homer Defined" is the fifth episode of the third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on October 17, 1991. In the episode, Homer accidentally saves the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant from meltdown by arbitrarily choosing the emergency override button using a counting rhyme. Homer is honored as a hero and idolized by his daughter Lisa, but feels unworthy of the praise, knowing his apparent heroism was blind luck. Meanwhile, Bart is downhearted after learning that Milhouse's mother forbids the boys to play together anymore because she thinks he is a bad influence on her son.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bart of War</span> 21st episode of the 14th season of The Simpsons

"The Bart of War" is the twenty-first and penultimate episode of the fourteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 18, 2003. In the episode, Bart and Milhouse badly damage Ned Flanders' collection of Beatles memorabilia. Under adult supervision, they are then placed in separate youth groups, but the groups go to war.

"A Milhouse Divided" is the sixth episode of the eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox Network in the United States on December 1, 1996. In the episode, Milhouse's parents Kirk and Luann get a divorce, causing Homer to examine his own marriage. It was directed by Steven Dean Moore and is the only episode for which Steve Tompkins has sole writing credit.

"Milhouse of Sand and Fog" is the third episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on Fox network in the United States on September 25, 2005. The episode was written by Patric M. Verrone and directed by Steven Dean Moore.

"Little Orphan Millie" is the sixth episode of the nineteenth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 11, 2007. This episode represents a milestone in Simpsons' history as it sees Kirk and Luann remarry after initially divorcing eleven seasons earlier in the episode "A Milhouse Divided". It was written by Mick Kelly, production assistant to Al Jean, and directed by Lance Kramer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milhouse Van Houten</span> Fictional character from The Simpsons franchise

Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a recurring character in the Fox animated television series The Simpsons voiced by Pamela Hayden and created by Matt Groening. Milhouse is Bart Simpson's childhood best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School. He is insecure, gullible, and is often led into trouble by Bart, who takes advantage of his friend's naïveté. Milhouse is a regular target for school bully Nelson Muntz and his friends Jimbo Jones, Dolph Starbeam and Kearney Zzyzwicz. He has an unrequited crush on Bart's sister, Lisa, which is a common plot element.

"The Changing of the Guardian" is the eleventh episode of the twenty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 519th episode overall. The episode was directed by Bob Anderson and written by Rob LaZebnik. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 27, 2013. The title "The Changing of the Guardian" is a pun on the term the changing of the guard.

"The Day the Earth Stood Cool" is the seventh episode of the twenty-fourth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by Matt Selman. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on December 9, 2012.

"The War of Art" is the fifteenth episode of the twenty-fifth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons and the 545th episode of the series. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 23, 2014. It was written by Rob LaZebnik and directed by Steven Dean Moore.

"Let's Go Fly a Coot" is the twentieth episode of the twenty-sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 572nd overall episode of the series. The episode was directed by Chris Clements and written by Jeff Westbrook. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 3, 2015. The episode's title is a parody of the song "Let's Go Fly a Kite".

"Dad Behavior" is the eighth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 604th episode of the series overall. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 20, 2016. The plot revolves around Homer discovering an app that makes his life easier, and Grampa learning that he's about to become a father again. It was the first episode to be written by Ryan Koh, and was directed by Steven Dean Moore. Matt Leinart makes a guest appearance as himself.

"22 for 30" is the seventeenth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 613th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Chris Clements and written by Joel H. Cohen. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 12, 2017.

"A Father's Watch" is the eighteenth episode of the twenty-eighth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 614th episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Bob Anderson and written by guest writer Simon Rich. It aired in the United States on Fox on March 19, 2017.

"Whistler's Father" is the third episode of the twenty-ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 621st episode of the series overall. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by Tom Gammill and Max Pross. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 15, 2017.

"Livin La Pura Vida" is the seventh episode of the thirty-first season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 669th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on November 17, 2019. The writer was Brian Kelley, and the director was Timothy Bailey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treehouse of Horror XXXII</span> 3rd episode of the 33rd season of The Simpsons

"Treehouse of Horror XXXII" is the third episode of the thirty-third season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 709th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 10, 2021, and unlike the previous season, aired at the appropriate time to avoid conflict with Major League Baseball’s post-season, which stretched into November. The episode was directed by Matthew Faughnan and written by John Frink.

<i>The Simpsons</i> season 36 Season of television series

The thirty-sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons premiered on Fox on September 29, 2024. This is the second of two seasons ordered by Fox. It is produced by Gracie Films and 20th Television Animation. The primary showrunner for the season is Matt Selman.

References

  1. ↑ Hamilton, Matt (November 7, 2016). "Lacrosse Gets the Simpsons Treatment". US Lacrosse Magazine. USA Lacrosse. Archived from the original on November 9, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
  2. ↑ Perkins, Dennis (November 6, 2016). "The Simpsons scores as Springfield goes lacrosse-crazy". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on November 7, 2016. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  3. ↑ Sokol, Tony (November 7, 2016). "The Simpsons: There Will Be Buds Review". Den of Geek . Archived from the original on July 22, 2023. Retrieved July 22, 2023.
  4. ↑ Porter, Rick (November 8, 2016). "'NCIS: LA' and 'Madam Secretary' adjust up: Sunday final ratings". TV by the Numbers . Archived from the original on November 9, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.
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.