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| I... I'm fairly sure fiber optics do not work like this. |
Homer is taking Bart and Milhouse to school, the boys having missed the bus. However, Homer finds a contest bus driving by, and drops the boys off wherever so he can chase it to claim a prize. As the boys walk the rest of the way, they find a police car - Chief Wiggum's car - at a diner. They go into the car, but as a dog inside sniffs them out, they panic and accidentally set the car into neutral and crash it at the park. Bart and Milhouse are arrested and go to court. There, the soft-minded Judge Snyder lets Milhouse go with no punishment, under the 'boys will be boys' credo. He's about to do the same for Bart, but during Bart's proceedings the Judge's 'vacation time' officially starts and Snyder just ups and leaves without handing a verdict. In his place, Judge Constance Harm takes over. Harm is much more ruthless than Snyder, favoring cruel and unusual punishments aimed at having parents take responsibility for their kid's misbehavior. Taking a look at the case, Harm sees that because Homer had neglected Bart which led up to the incident, that as punishment Bart and Homer would be hooked together with a tether.
With the punishment described as, well, cruel and unusual, Bart and Homer still make the most of the situation and, at first, really start to bond as father and son. However, Homer's adult... needs begin to interfere, first at the bar, and later on when Homer tries to make love with Marge. The latter incident sparks a fight between Homer and Bart, where Marge finally has enough and cuts the tether in two. Judge Harm is instantly aware of the tether snapping, thanks to the fiber optics in the tether (I guess?). She learns that it was Marge who cut the tether, concluding that Marge, too, must be a bad parent. Marge refuses to admit this, so as punishment Judge Harm hooks both Homer and Marge to old wooden stocks until they both admit they're bad parents.
Marge refuses to give in, and convinces Homer to side with her on the issue. The two agree to get back at the Judge. They remove their stocks using Flanders' tools, then sneak off to Harm's houseboat. Their devious ploy of vengeance is pretty much just placing a large banner reading "BIG MEANIE" on the boat. Before they can leave, though, the two are stopped by Harm's pet seal, and are forced to hide. Homer readies a nearby cinder block to knock Harm out, but he misses and the block ends up sinking Harm's houseboat.
Harm is even more furious now, and the next day in court, is ready to send Homer and Marge to jail. Bart finally speaks up and tells the Judge that his parents only seem bad because Bart tires them so, and that if anyone should be punished, its him. Harm agrees and decides to send Bart to five years in juvenile hall. Before she can make the sentence official, Judge Snyder returns from his vacation and relieves Harm of her duties, then with Lisa's suggestion lets the other three Simpsons free under the 'boys will be boys' credo. The family then agrees to abide by the law for a year, though Homer isn't off to a good start.
Quick Review
Its not a great episode, some jokes are pretty good but others just miss, but its not a particularly bad episode either. Judge Harm was an... okay character, I guess, she served her purpose. Judge Snyder's sudden exit and later entry into the court was odd, but whatever. So, this is mostly an average episode.
Final Score: 7.1
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