Bart vs. Thanksgiving

"Bart vs. Thanksgiving" is a perfect "Thanksgiving special."

Semi-strangers come to town. It's Marge's mother and sisters. These guests would be a source of stress even for the coolest cucumber on Earth. Mrs. Bouvier observes, "I'm dying, and it hurts when I talk, so I'll say just one thing, Marge. You never do anything right." And Selma and Patty are terrible. Marge has asked that the sisters not bring any food--but they disobey the order, because, they say, "We don't like what you cook."

Children will listen. Bart acts out. He shoves aside Lisa's elaborate centerpiece to make room for the turkey; the centerpiece goes up in flames. Rather than empathize, Bart claims to be incapable of understanding Lisa's pain. He runs away. It's only through slow, painful, draining, mental work that he can take various important steps: "Lisa worked hard on the project. I treated it like trash. So I treated *Lisa* like trash. And I don't like being treated that way. Therefore, I need to apologize to Lisa."

George Meyer had never before authored a "Simpsons" script--at least, not as a "solo" contributor. This is an example of a grand slam.

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