Strong Arms of the Ma (S14, E09-300)

Marge proves time and time again she can be the craziest of them all.

Plot Summary
Rainier Wolfcastle is selling everything after going bankrupt, and the Simpsons take advantage.  After the family buys a lot of crap, including Wolfcastle's first weightlifting set, Marge drives the family home after there's no room left in the car for Homer.  She makes an emergency stop at the Kwik-E-Mart to change Maggie's diaper, going to the bathroom in the back of the store to do so, but on her way out is stopped by a mugger who grabs her pearl necklace and runs for it.

The experience greatly traumatizes Marge, who quickly develops a fear of going outside.  Homer and the kids attempt to help Marge overcome this new fear, but they only make things worse, and now Marge doesn't even want to leave the basement.  Though Marge is saddened over her condition, she takes a liking to that weightlifting set Homer hasn't bothered using, and starts lifting.  In two weeks, Marge has gotten a lot stronger, and in a dash to get a lemon, goes outside with no problem.  Marge is so free from her fear of going outside she even coincidentally runs into and subsequently beats up the thief who mugged her.

Feeling some kind of thrill from that, Marge continues lifting weights.  She sees a group of bodybuilders during a run and checks it out.  She finds her old neighbor, Ruth Powers, among them.  Ruth tells Marge that if she doesn't want to be seen as weak and pathetic, she should take steroids, which Marge does rather excessively.  She enters in a competition and wins 2nd place.  At a 'celebration' party at Moe's, Marge goes through a class example of roid rage and pretty much beats up everyone except Homer, who helps Marge realize that her new aggressive behavior is so unlike her.  Marge calms down and admits Homer is right.  She throws away the weightlifting set and decides to go back to her old self, though I am fairly sure muscles don't work the way she and Homer thinks it does.

Quick Review
This had been an okay episode to start, but it started to fall apart in the final act when Marge gets all hopped up on steroids, nothing really funny happening there - not even when Marge roid rages on everyone.  So, this ends up being another less-than effort for Season 14.

Also, this was the 300th episode, despite FOX advertising Barting Over as the episode for some reason.

Final Score: 6.9