Woo-Hoo Dunnit?
"Woo-Hoo Dunnit?" is the 22nd episode of the thirtieth season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons, and the 661st episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on May 5, 2019.
| "Woo-Hoo Dunnit?" | |
|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 30 Episode 22 |
| Directed by | Steven Dean Moore |
| Written by | Brian Kelley |
| Production code | YABF15 |
| Original air date | May 5, 2019 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
| |
Plot
A documentary crime series, Dateline: Springfield, is interviewing the Simpson family after Marge and Lisa, returning home, find that Lisa's college fund of $670.42, hidden in a can of kitchen cleanser under the sink, is missing. The police are called and Chief Wiggum and Lou investigate, but when the narrator says that the suspicion turned toward the Simpson family, Marge gets angry at the accusations, insisting that whoever stole the money left a drink on the table without a coaster, leaving a ring on the table, which she stresses everyone against leaving with their drinks.
A call to the police made by Helen Lovejoy brings Marge to the top of the list of suspects, accusing her of using the money for her gambling problem, though surveillance cameras shows that even though she went to the casino, she resisted the temptation and walked out. The next person on the suspect list is Homer, due to his tab at Moe being cut off. The police speculate that when Homer got drunk, he stumbled home, fell on and ate some spaghetti leftovers, and then upon stumbling on the cleanser cup with the money, used the cleanser to clean the kitchen and used the money to pay the tab. With the ruse of granting admission to a Super Bowl viewing party in exchange for a pair of pants, the cops retrieve Homer's pants, but find no evidence of money on them. Dateline: Springfield looks at Mr. Burns next, but with him being a billionaire, $600 would have been nothing. Next, Moe accuses Homer directly, but the police find out Homer has an alibi: he had made a six-hour call that night to Disco Stu by mistake; and had cleaned the kitchen without the cleanser by licking it in the process.
The next suspect is Bart, who is accused by Milhouse of buying Slime with the money. Bart knew of the money under the sink but always paid back what he borrowed. He is then seen as the mastermind behind the production of green Slime (à la Breaking Bad), at Springfield Elementary. But when the market price fell, he sold his remaining inventory of the Slime to Comic Book Guy and put the money back in the can, filming this in case the police wouldn't believe him.
The final suspect of the family is Lisa, who is accused by Martin because she wanted a new saxophone. They go to King Toot's Music Store and he shows a tape of Lisa trying out a new bari sax for over 14 hours, but she did not buy it, Krusty the Clown buying it before she got the chance. Lisa's alibi is that Marge took her to a hopscotch tutor, much to Lisa's embarrassment. With all suspects gone, Homer and Marge kick Dateline: Springfield out and force the crew to apologize for their inconvenience, leaving the mystery unsolved.
Marge and Homer are seen watching the documentary, and Marge places a snap-on coaster she invented under Homer's drink. When she casually mentions she wants to start a business with the coasters, which cost $0.65 apiece to make, Homer realises that Marge was the culprit, stealing the money to invest in the business and having denied it the entire time. Homer calls the kids downstairs, preparing to tell them the truth, but when Marge compares Homer's visits to Moe's to life adventures and admits she wants something similar for her business, he has a change of heart, covers for Marge and lies to the kids, saying rats ate the money thanks to Grampa leaving the cabinet open, and then goes to the beach and enjoys a stroll with Marge.
Meanwhile at the studio, the narrator loses his voice after arguing about the unresolved end of the show, and gets a vocal cord transplant from a sheep.
Reception
Dennis Perkins of The A.V. Club gave the episode an A-, stating, "’Woo-Hoo Dunnit?’ falls somewhere between ‘solid’ and ‘sublime,’ but the fact that it’s even in the conversation is a damned delight. Like ‘22 For 30,’ the episode breaks up the usual storytelling style when a documentary lens is turned on the family. Smartly conceived, tightly plotted, exceptionally acted by all, and, most importantly, true to the characters even as they’re thrown outside their comfort zone, it’s one of those late-run Simpsons episode that nurtures something like hope. It’s terrific."[1]
"Woo-Hoo Dunnit?" scored a 0.7 rating with a 4 share and was watched by 1.79 million people.[2]
References
- Perkins, Dennis (May 5, 2019). "A true crime documentary brings out the best of The Simpsons". Avclub.com. Retrieved May 5, 2019.
- Welch, Alex (May 7, 2019). "'American Idol' adjusts up: Sunday final ratings". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
