Difference between revisions of "Dark Knight Court/References"

Revision as of 15:59, December 17, 2022

Cultural references

• The name of the episode refers to the nickname of Batman, Dark Knight.
  • The name of the episode also refers to the TV show Night Court.
• Kent Brockman makes a pun on the bubonic plague.
• The song "Easter Parade" by Irving Berlin is heard when the people of Springfield celebrate Easter.
• The comics at The Android's Dungeon & Baseball Card Shop include:
  • The Thung, a parody of The Thing.
  • Interesting Stories, which mentions "Who will stop the Communist Bloc".
  • The Formidable Mulk, a parody of The Incredible Hulk.
  • Zoidzilla, a parody of Godzilla.
• A young Mr. Burns is reading The Good Shepherd and his Sidekick, The Fleecy Kid, a reference to the novel of the same name.
  • He also makes a reference to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, which control was ceded to the USA in the late 18th century.
• Comic Book Guy asks for "the speed of light expressed in dollars" for his entire collection. Instead, Mr. Burns orders Smithers to pay him only "Faraday constant".
• The Funeral march is heard when Bart swears he didn't do the prank.
• Homer makes the kid's orchestra play "The Stars and Stripes Forever" by John Philip Sousa.
• American lawyer Janet Reno appears in Abe's story. She also mentions former president George W. Bush.
• Matt Groening makes a drawing of Bart.

Lenny, Homer and Carl dressed as Bane, The Penguin and The Joker, respectively

• Mr. Burns tries to imitate Batman, calling himself Fruit Bat Man. Many references to Batman are seen throughout the episode:
  • The whole subplot of Mr. Smithers bribing civilians to act as villains for the Fruit Bat Man is a parody of Alfred Pennyworth's Story in "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?".
  • People robbing the bank:
    • Lenny Leonard is dressed as Bane from The Dark Knight Rises.
    • Homer Simpson is dressed as The Penguin.
    • Carl Carlson is dressed as The Joker.
  • The Burns' Signal is a parody of the Bat-Signal.
  • The Crazy Cat Lady is dressed as Catwoman.
• After Lisa is rejected by Mr. Burns, she says that the only "true Batmen" are Christian Bale and Adam West. Both Bale and West are famous for portraying Batman in The Dark Knight and the 1960s Batman TV series, respectively.
• According to himself, Groundskeeper Willie practices Presbyterianism.
  • He also mentions the goddess Ēostre.
• The Octogenarian Initiative is a parody of the Avengers Initiative.
  • The black guy with the eye patch is a parody of Nick Fury played by Samuel L. Jackson.
  • The Rambler is a parody of Superman.
  • Early Bird is a parody of Hawkman.
  • Hot Flash is a parody of The Flash.
  • Iron Lung is a parody of Iron Man.
• The superhero group being called The Dependables is a reference to The Expendables.

Continuity

• The last time Bart took the blame for something Willie did due to his pranks in the past was in "The Father, the Son and the Holy Guest Star".