Dumbbell Indemnity

Episode	References	Gags	Appearances	Gallery	Quotes	Credits

◄ The Last Temptation of Krust

Dumbbell Indemnity

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Dumbbell Indemnity
Episode Number	194
Production Code	5F12
Original Airdate	March 1, 1998
Chalkboard Gag	"Silly string is not a nasal spray"
Couch Gag	Compressor couch gag
Special Guest Voices	Helen Hunt as Renee
Written By	Ron Hauge
Directed By	Dominic Polcino

“Cheer up. Here, have a flower.”

―Renee to cheer up Moe

Dumbbell Indemnity is the sixteenth episode of Season 9. First aired on March 1, 1998, the episode was written by Ron Hauge and directed by Dominic Polcino.

Synopsis

When Moe goes broke romancing a new love, he enlists the aid of Homer in an illegal scheme to collect $5,000 from his automobile's insurance policy. But after Homer botches the scam, Moe must find a way to bust his best customer out of the pen. Guest starring Helen Hunt as Renee.

Full Story

While at Moe's Tavern, Homer notices Moe's depressed state. After learning Moe has not had a date in some time, he decides to take him out to a night club to meet women. The trip proves to unsuccessful until Moe goes to leave, when a woman named Renee (Helen Hunt) talks to him. She treats him with basic human respect, better than he has experienced in a while, so he asks her out, and she says "yes".

Moe and Renee fall in love, though Moe feels forced to spend an excessive amount of money to impress her. When he maxes out his credit card, he decides to commit insurance fraud. He enlists Homer to steal his car and abandon it on train tracks so a train will destroy it. The night of the event, Moe and Renee go out on the "Police Department's Moonlight Charity Cruise", which ensures Homer that he will be safe from any police. However, Homer decides at the last minute to watch a movie at a drive-in theater and fails to leave the car at the tracks on time. Bent on still trying to destroy the car somehow, Homer gets the idea of driving it off a cliff into a body of water. Unable to get out of the car in time, both Homer and the car plummet into the water near the charity cruise, directly in view of the police.

Sent to jail, Homer is then assured that Moe will bail him out, but Renee talks about vacationing in Hawaii, causing Moe to change his mind. While packing, Moe is confronted by his own conscience (in the guise of Homer), who makes him feel bad for betraying his friend. Moe confesses everything to Renee, who at first respects Moe for telling the truth. But Moe proceeds to devise a scheme to get Homer out of jail illegally, which disgusts her, and she goes to leave.

Moe's plan involves burning his bar down, but he drops a lit match before he intends to, quickly engulfing the bar in flames. Meanwhile, Homer has escaped jail on his own, planning his revenge on Moe. As he arrives at the bar, the two start to fight, but soon lose consciousness due to the excessive smoke. Fortunately, Barney emerges from the bar's bathroom, saving both of them (as well as two kegs of beer). The bar is completely destroyed, and Homer promises Moe he can use his house as a bar until he can rebuild the real thing.

Behind the Laughter

Reception

In a 2006 article in USA Today, "Dumbbell Indemnity" was highlighted among the six best episodes of The Simpsons season 9, along with others including "Trash of the Titans," "The Last Temptation of Krust," "The Cartridge Family," "The Joy of Sect," and "Das Bus".