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| "Well, sure, buddy, I'd be happy to help out. What can I do-diddily- doodily-diddly-hobbily-hibbily-gobbily-gobbily-gobble-gabba-gabba-hey!" |
Homer eventually learns that there's an annual chili-cookoff being held right now, despite Marge's best efforts to prevent him from knowing. She recalls the cookoff from last year, when Homer became embarrassingly drunk, and makes Homer promise not to drink at this year's cookoff, which Homer agrees to.
The two quickly separate at the cookoff, allowing Homer to go to work. Homer is apparently a big shot at these cookoffs, as chili cooks fear his iron tongue and wooden spoon (said to of been carved from a bigger spoon). He starts the day off fine, criticizing several bland entries, but then walks upon Chief Wiggum's entry, a special batch of chili made just for Homer. This chili has been infused with, as Wiggum puts it, "The Merciless Peppers of Quetzlzacatenango! Grown deep in the jungle primeval by the inmates of a Guatemalan insane asylum". Homer attempts to eat a pepper, but it burns even his tongue, forcing him to run for drinks, but after Marge prevents him from gushing down beer, Homer settles for plain old water to cool his tongue. Now the laughing stock of the cookoff, he gets the idea to put melted wax in his tongue, thereby preventing it from feeling the heat of the pepper. He goes back to Wiggum and, to the astonishment of all, gulps down several peppers effortlessly. Though Homer once again becomes a chili legend, his stomach doesn't take the peppers very well. Indeed, the peppers live up to their name, and Homer begins to have hallucinations, causing him to run off in a panic.
Marge learns of this when Helen Lovejoy gossips Homer's chaotic departure to her. Believing Homer broke him promise and drank, she leaves the cookoff furious. Meanwhile, Homer's hallucinations 'bring' him to a strange fantasy world, an endless desert. After a tortoise eventually leads him to a pyramid-like structure, he is met by a space coyote, who sends Homer on a quest: to find his soulmate. When Homer notes that Marge is his soulmate, the coyote questions whether that's actually the case, then departs. After a 'ghost train' makes a run at Homer, he finally snaps out of it - waking up in a sand pit at a golf course the next morning - and learns that the 'dream' took elements around him i.e. the sand pit as the desert, the pyramid-shaped pro shop as the pyramid, and the talking dog as the talking coyote.
Homer returns to his house where Marge is still very angry. She refuses to believe Homer's story of having 'went to a strange fantasy world', and snaps at him when he suggest she's his 'soulmate'. That night, Homer sees that he and Marge have little in common, and realizes that she can't be his soulmate. He leaves the house in search for that person. After trips to the bar and elsewhere prove fruitless, Homer stumbles upon the lighthouse, and hopes that an "Earl" stationed there will be his soulmate; Earl however is just a machine with the name being an acronym. Frustrated, Homer suddenly hears a cargo boat coming in. Believing that someone on that boat will be his soulmate, Homer destroys the light, in hopes of having the boat crash, revealing Homer's soulmate. Just then, Marge appears, having found Homer based on several of his tendencies. As the two talk, Homer realizes that Marge is, in fact, his soulmate. After sticking it to that space coyotes, the two quickly work to get the lighthouse back in order, allowing the boat just enough time to avoid crashing into the lighthouse, instead tearing up on a rock nearby revealing its precious cargo: hot pants. Regardless, Homer and Marge find renewed love and kiss one another in front of the light.
Quick Review
This episode starts off really strong with the chili cookoff and even Homer's fantasy world bit, a lot of good stuff happens with these two plots. The episode does slow down a bit once Homer's actual soulmate quest begins, and the opportunity for laughs die down until the hot pants boat comes into play. Still, its another great episode in Season 8.
Final Score: 8.6
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