24 Minutes
Encyclopedia
"24 Minutes" is the twenty-first episode of The Simpsons
' eighteenth season
and was broadcast on May 20, 2007 as part of the one hour season finale, alongside the episode "You Kent Always Say What You Want
". It was originally promoted as being the 400th episode, but was broadcast as the 399th. It was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham
and Billy Kimball
. It was Kimball's first writing credit.
The episode is a spoof
of the Fox television drama 24
, and sees Principal Skinner's new Counter Truancy Unit (CTU), led by Lisa Simpson
, attempting to prevent a stink bomb
being released at Springfield Elementary School. Guest stars include Kiefer Sutherland
and Mary Lynn Rajskub
as their characters from 24, Jack Bauer
and Chloe O'Brian
. It won the 2008 Annie Award
.
heading up the operation over Milhouse
, Martin
and Database. When the bullies Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney play truant, Milhouse is assigned on a mission to spy on them.
A container of expired and highly pungent yogurt at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant is found to belong to Homer
, who is ordered to dispose of it by Mr. Burns
. Homer tries to return the yogurt to Apu
, but Apu refuses to take it due to its unbearable stench and, desperate to get rid of it, takes Homer to the yogurt section and offers him whatever he wants there. The expired yogurt, left unattended, falls into the hands of the bullies. Outside, Homer unwittingly breaks Milhouse's cover, causing the bullies to throw them both in a trash container and send it rolling down an avenue.
Meanwhile, Marge
finds a note in Bart
's shorts pocket about the elementary school bake sale, and has only half an hour to make a raisin sponge cake. In order to save time, Marge drastically increases the oven temperature to 1,200 degrees, quickly burning the cake and making it rock-solid. Marge desperately attempts to cover it up with pink and white frosting before rushing to the bake sale.
At Jimbo's house, the three bullies make a powerful stink bomb
(which resembles the canisters of Sentox Nerve Gas from season 5 of 24) from the expired yogurt along with other ingredients including six week old bottled farts, roadkill and even Jimbo's sister's retainer case, and plan on detonating it at the bake sale. After Milhouse's failed attempt to track the bullies, Lisa suggests that Bart
help them, which he does after negotiating immunity from punishment for all his past and future pranks (and making Skinner teach him a new swear word). During his investigation, Bart's phone call is accidentally crossed with a call from Jack Bauer of 24, who is busy in a gun battle, and turns it into a prank call against him ("Ahmed Adoudi"). Bart finds out about the stink bomb and informs Lisa about it. Upon returning to school, he discovers that Martin is a double-agent working for the bullies. Before Bart can tell Lisa about Martin's double-dealing, Martin knocks him out from behind and takes him to the ventilation room, where the bullies tie up Bart. When Willie finds the bullies in the room, he tries to get them out, but they get the better of him and tie him up too. The bullies then return Martin's ant farm, which they had stolen and used to blackmail him into working for them, but Martin is devastated when he learns that the bullies have converted one of his ants (A male named Phobos) to their side. Later, he hangs himself by his underwear on a clothing hook, giving himself a wedgie
after putting on his hall monitor sash (as an homage to the suicide in A Few Good Men
).
At the bake sale, the bullies start the three-minute timer for the bomb. Bart, tied up in the ventilation room along with Willie, uses his tongue to contact Lisa by his cell phone and sends her a picture of the stink bomb, telling her to have Principal Skinner dump the hot dog water to short circuit the ventilation fan. Skinner, who is desperate to stop the bomb and does not care that doing so will drown Bart, starts filling up the room with the water. Bart and Willie float up dangerously close to the spinning sharp blades of the fan on the wall. Running out of air, Bart attempts to swim down with the chair tied to his back to the room's only window, which happens to face the room in which the bake sale is being held, allowing Bart to get the people's notice. Chief Clancy Wiggum irresponsibly shoots at the window, but he (rather fortunately) cannot break it because the glass is bulletproof. Marge then steps up and throws her burnt cake like a discus through the window, breaking the windows and allowing Bart, Willie, the bomb, and all the water to flood into the room. Lisa defuses the bomb with one second left to spare, saving the bake sale from the stench. However after that, Bauer and his CTU SWAT Team breaks into the bake sale, destroying it. Bauer starts to arrest Bart for his "annoying prank call," saying that he hopes he made the correct decision by leaving his mission temporarily and calling in every agent on assignment to bring Bart to justice. A nuclear bomb then goes off in the distance, but everyone sighs with relief after Bauer reassures them that the nuclear bomb went off in Shelbyville.
from 24 appearing in the episode and being killed, but the concept was dropped.
. The episode includes many of the show's hallmarks, such as the multiple split screens, the timer before and after the commercial break, and extended opening credits
running over the opening scenes of the narrative. 24 characters Jack Bauer and Chloe O'Brian, voiced by their original portrayers, make cameo appearances.
listed Sutherland's performance as one of the thirty-three funniest cameos in the history of the show.
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
The Simpsons (season 18)
The Simpsons 18th season aired from September 10, 2006 to May 20, 2007. The season contained seven hold-over episodes from the season 17 production line. Al Jean served as the Showrunner, a position he has held since the thirteenth season....
and was broadcast on May 20, 2007 as part of the one hour season finale, alongside the episode "You Kent Always Say What You Want
You Kent Always Say What You Want
"You Kent Always Say What You Want", formerly known as "Kent State Massacre", is the twenty-second episode of The Simpsons eighteenth season, airing on May 20, 2007 as part of the one-hour season finale, alongside the episode "24 Minutes"; a repeat took place on August 19, 2007. It was the...
". It was originally promoted as being the 400th episode, but was broadcast as the 399th. It was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham
Ian Maxtone-Graham
Ian Maxtone-Graham is an American television writer and producer. He has written for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons , and has also served as a co-executive producer and consulting producer for The Simpsons...
and Billy Kimball
Billy Kimball
-Personal life:He was born in New York City and graduated from Harvard College where he was an editor of the Harvard Lampoon. He is currently married to the former Alexandra Manuela Vargas Hamilton and has two daughters.-Career:...
. It was Kimball's first writing credit.
The episode is a spoof
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the Fox television drama 24
24 (TV series)
24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration...
, and sees Principal Skinner's new Counter Truancy Unit (CTU), led by Lisa Simpson
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
, attempting to prevent a stink bomb
Stink bomb
A stink bomb or stinkbomb is a device designed to create an unpleasant smell. They range in effectiveness from simple pranks to military grade or riot control chemical agents.The Guinness Book of Records lists two smelliest substances...
being released at Springfield Elementary School. Guest stars include Kiefer Sutherland
Kiefer Sutherland
Kiefer Sutherland is an English-born Canadian actor, producer and director, best known for his portrayal of Jack Bauer on the Fox thriller drama series 24 for which he has won an Emmy Award , a Golden Globe award , two Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Satellite...
and Mary Lynn Rajskub
Mary Lynn Rajskub
Mary Lynn Rajskub is an American actress and comedian, best known for her leading role as Chloe O'Brian on the Fox action-thriller 24.-Early life:...
as their characters from 24, Jack Bauer
Jack Bauer
Jack Bauer is the main protagonist of the American television series 24. His character has worked in various capacities on the show, often as a member of the fictional Counter Terrorist Unit based in Los Angeles, and working with the FBI in Washington, D.C...
and Chloe O'Brian
Chloe O'Brian
Chloe O'Brian is a fictional character played by actress Mary Lynn Rajskub on the US television series 24. An analyst at CTU Los Angeles , she is Jack Bauer's most trusted colleague, often doing unconventional and unauthorized favors for him, even at personal risk to herself...
. It won the 2008 Annie Award
Annie Award
The Annie Awards have been presented by the Los Angeles, California branch of the International Animated Film Association, ASIFA-Hollywood since 1972...
.
Plot
Principal Skinner opens a CTU – Counter Truancy Unit – at Springfield Elementary School with LisaLisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
heading up the operation over Milhouse
Milhouse Van Houten
Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a fictional character featured in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Pamela Hayden. He is Bart Simpson's best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School....
, Martin
Martin Prince
Martin Prince, Jr. is a recurring character in the Fox animated series, The Simpsons, and is voiced by Russi Taylor. Martin is Bart Simpson's classmate, and is Lisa Simpson's rival in intelligence, as well as Nelson Muntz's favorite target for bullying...
and Database. When the bullies Jimbo, Dolph and Kearney play truant, Milhouse is assigned on a mission to spy on them.
A container of expired and highly pungent yogurt at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant is found to belong to Homer
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
, who is ordered to dispose of it by Mr. Burns
Montgomery Burns
Charles Montgomery "Monty" Burns, usually referred to as Mr. Burns, is a recurring fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons, who is voiced by Harry Shearer and previously Christopher Collins. Burns is the evil owner of the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant and is Homer...
. Homer tries to return the yogurt to Apu
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon
Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is a character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Hank Azaria and first appeared in the episode "The Telltale Head". Apu is the proprietor of the Kwik-E-Mart, a popular convenience store in Springfield, and a friend of Homer Simpson. He is also...
, but Apu refuses to take it due to its unbearable stench and, desperate to get rid of it, takes Homer to the yogurt section and offers him whatever he wants there. The expired yogurt, left unattended, falls into the hands of the bullies. Outside, Homer unwittingly breaks Milhouse's cover, causing the bullies to throw them both in a trash container and send it rolling down an avenue.
Meanwhile, Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
finds a note in Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
's shorts pocket about the elementary school bake sale, and has only half an hour to make a raisin sponge cake. In order to save time, Marge drastically increases the oven temperature to 1,200 degrees, quickly burning the cake and making it rock-solid. Marge desperately attempts to cover it up with pink and white frosting before rushing to the bake sale.
At Jimbo's house, the three bullies make a powerful stink bomb
Stink bomb
A stink bomb or stinkbomb is a device designed to create an unpleasant smell. They range in effectiveness from simple pranks to military grade or riot control chemical agents.The Guinness Book of Records lists two smelliest substances...
(which resembles the canisters of Sentox Nerve Gas from season 5 of 24) from the expired yogurt along with other ingredients including six week old bottled farts, roadkill and even Jimbo's sister's retainer case, and plan on detonating it at the bake sale. After Milhouse's failed attempt to track the bullies, Lisa suggests that Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
help them, which he does after negotiating immunity from punishment for all his past and future pranks (and making Skinner teach him a new swear word). During his investigation, Bart's phone call is accidentally crossed with a call from Jack Bauer of 24, who is busy in a gun battle, and turns it into a prank call against him ("Ahmed Adoudi"). Bart finds out about the stink bomb and informs Lisa about it. Upon returning to school, he discovers that Martin is a double-agent working for the bullies. Before Bart can tell Lisa about Martin's double-dealing, Martin knocks him out from behind and takes him to the ventilation room, where the bullies tie up Bart. When Willie finds the bullies in the room, he tries to get them out, but they get the better of him and tie him up too. The bullies then return Martin's ant farm, which they had stolen and used to blackmail him into working for them, but Martin is devastated when he learns that the bullies have converted one of his ants (A male named Phobos) to their side. Later, he hangs himself by his underwear on a clothing hook, giving himself a wedgie
Wedgie
A wedgie occurs when a person's underwear or other garments are wedged between the buttocks. While a wedgie can be created naturally, the term is usually associated with a prank or as a form of bullying...
after putting on his hall monitor sash (as an homage to the suicide in A Few Good Men
A Few Good Men
A Few Good Men is a play by Aaron Sorkin, first produced on Broadway by David Brown in 1989. It tells the story of military lawyers at a court-martial who uncover a high-level conspiracy in the course of defending their clients, United States Marines accused of murder.It opened on Broadway at the...
).
At the bake sale, the bullies start the three-minute timer for the bomb. Bart, tied up in the ventilation room along with Willie, uses his tongue to contact Lisa by his cell phone and sends her a picture of the stink bomb, telling her to have Principal Skinner dump the hot dog water to short circuit the ventilation fan. Skinner, who is desperate to stop the bomb and does not care that doing so will drown Bart, starts filling up the room with the water. Bart and Willie float up dangerously close to the spinning sharp blades of the fan on the wall. Running out of air, Bart attempts to swim down with the chair tied to his back to the room's only window, which happens to face the room in which the bake sale is being held, allowing Bart to get the people's notice. Chief Clancy Wiggum irresponsibly shoots at the window, but he (rather fortunately) cannot break it because the glass is bulletproof. Marge then steps up and throws her burnt cake like a discus through the window, breaking the windows and allowing Bart, Willie, the bomb, and all the water to flood into the room. Lisa defuses the bomb with one second left to spare, saving the bake sale from the stench. However after that, Bauer and his CTU SWAT Team breaks into the bake sale, destroying it. Bauer starts to arrest Bart for his "annoying prank call," saying that he hopes he made the correct decision by leaving his mission temporarily and calling in every agent on assignment to bring Bart to justice. A nuclear bomb then goes off in the distance, but everyone sighs with relief after Bauer reassures them that the nuclear bomb went off in Shelbyville.
Production
An original idea saw Edgar StilesEdgar Stiles
Edgar Stiles was a fictional character played by Louis Lombardi in the American television series 24.-Characteristics:Edgar had experience as an Intelligence Analyst at CTU as well as being a protocol manager...
from 24 appearing in the episode and being killed, but the concept was dropped.
Cultural references
The title is a reference to the FOX thriller 2424 (TV series)
24 is an American television series produced for the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration...
. The episode includes many of the show's hallmarks, such as the multiple split screens, the timer before and after the commercial break, and extended opening credits
Opening credits
In a motion picture, television program, or video game, the opening credits are shown at the very beginning and list the most important members of the production. They are now usually shown as text superimposed on a blank screen or static pictures, or sometimes on top of action in the show. There...
running over the opening scenes of the narrative. 24 characters Jack Bauer and Chloe O'Brian, voiced by their original portrayers, make cameo appearances.
Reception
Robert Canning on IGN named "24 Minutes" the best episode of the season and gave it a 9.6/10 saying "this smart, funny, spot-on parody of 24 was so good that it came very close to redeeming the entire season." He also stated "Though much of Season Eighteen was quite mediocre, "24 Minutes" ranks up there with the best of all time". In 2007, Simon Crerar of The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
listed Sutherland's performance as one of the thirty-three funniest cameos in the history of the show.