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| "Yeah, that's what they all say. They all say 'd'oh'." |
Recalling what happened in Part One, there are several suspects for the shooting of Mr. Burns, currently in a coma. The one with the highest level of suspicion? Waylon Smithers, who as the episode begins is a complete wreck, his mouth full of cigarettes and watching Comedy Central of all things. Trying to recall what happened around the time Burns was shot, he recalls pulling out a gun and shooting an unclear victim. Smithers believes from this that he shot Burns, and soon confesses as much to the police. However, as Smithers appears on TV after being indicted, he quotes a line from Pardon My Zinger, a program on Comedy Central back in the 90s I guess. Watching this interview, Sideshow Mel notices the coincedence, and recalls that Smithers wouldn't miss that program, noting it odd that anyone would watch Comedy Central to begin with. Further noting that Burns was shot after the program began, he quickly surmises that Smithers could not of shot Burns as Smithers had already returned to watch that program. He quickly goes to the police station to inform them of this and Smithers then recalls that he did try to leave early, but still remembers shooting an old man: one by the name of Jasper, but no report of a second shooting was made. The police look into this and find that Jasper was indeed shot - but in his wooden leg. Smithers is relieved that he didn't kill anybody, and the investigation continues.
At the Simpsons place, as the family ponders how everyone in the family (except Marge I guess) could be the shooter, Lisa decides to get involved with the investigation. Around this time, Grampa reveals that he dug up his gun from the yard, placing an awful lot of suspicion on him at the moment. Meanwhile, as the police retrieve the bullet Burns was shot with and begin to determine motive, Lisa comes along with four possible suspects with motives: Moe and Barney who both lost Moe's bar, as well as Principal Skinner and Groundskeeper Willie who suffered big when Burns practically stole their oil. The police also include Tito Puente who would have similar motive to Willie at least, much to Lisa's dismay, and its Tito Puente they first investigate. After seeing that Puente's "revenge" was an angry mambo, the police clear him. Skinner reveals that while he was planning on engaging Burns, a failed attempt at camoflauge delayed him and the shot occured while he (and Superintendant Chalmers) were in the bathroom. Willie reveals that he couldn't of pulled the trigger as his crippling arthritis (from "Space Invaders") prevents him from handling a firearm. Moe is also off the hook when a lie detector test clears him as well.
With just one lead left, Chief Wiggum falls asleep where a peculiar dream tells him to check the suit Burns got shot in. Sure enough, in the suit there lays a single eyelash, and a DNA test will allow them to learn the genetic lineage of the eyelash: Simpson. Just then, Burns wake up from the coma and blurts out "Homer Simpson", prompting the police to act. They arrive at the Simpsons house and find a gun in Homer's car with his fingerprints on it (not the same gun Grampa has), which matches the bullet found in Burns. Having everything they need, Wiggum arrests Homer for the attempted murder of Mr. Burns.
A fast food trip gone wrong allows Homer to escape custody, prompting a renewed Smithers to offer a reward for Homer dead or alive, while at the same time Lisa isn't convinced Homer did it, saying Homer's fingerprints could've gotten on the gun some other way (perhaps by accident), and that the eyelash could belong to any of the Simpsons. Seeking one last desperate clue, Lisa visits the crime scene and looks at the sundial where Burns collapsed. Seeing how his arms landed, Lisa realizes what happened. Just then, its learned that Homer is at the hospital Burns is in. As it turns out, "Homer Simpson" is all the tramatized Burns can say at the moment, and as Homer confronts Burns, he starts shaking him in an attempt to get Burns to stop naming him the murderer. The attack snaps Burns out of it and he regains his ability to talk just as everyone arrives. There, Burns reveals that Homer did not shoot him, and points out the real shooter in the crowd: Maggie Simpson!
As Burns explains, after the town meeting, he decides to celebrate, and sees Maggie alone in the car with the dog holding a lollipop (Marge having left to look for everyone else, who were unaccounted for). Remembering the phrase "as easy as taking candy from a baby" from Part One, he decides to try it out now, but Maggie's grip is super strong (as Burns probably should've remembered). Just then, the gun Burns had equipped himself with falls out of his holster, and lands on Maggie's lap. A shot is fired, and Burns is hit. The gun then falls under the seat. As nobody outside of maybe Texas would convict a baby, the case is settled and everything seems to of returned to status quo rather quickly.
Quick Review
Despite how ludicrously plausible that ending was, this ended up being a strong conclusion and an excellent start to the new season. The progress of Wiggum's incompetent yet efficient investigation was full of great laughs, the bit with Smithers worked well enough, and though the ending was a little weak the episode was still very excellent.
Final Score: 9.7
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