Bart vs. Thanksgiving

[1] In the episode, Bart runs away from home after destroying a centerpiece that Lisa makes for the Thanksgiving dinner table.

The episode features cultural references to Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and the poets Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, and Edgar Allan Poe.

Marge then tells him that he has ruined Thanksgiving and later informs him that he will not be allowed to eat dinner until he issues a sincere apology to Lisa in front of the family.

After Homer expels Santa's Little Helper from the house for stealing a turkey drumstick, Bart and the dog run away from home.

While wandering the streets, Bart uses Homer's ID to sell his blood and after passing out, is brought to a breadline serving dinner to homeless people.

The Simpsons had previously aired at 8:00 p.m. EST on Sunday night but Fox switched its timeslot to the same time on Thursdays at the beginning of the second season.

[6] Bill and Marty, voiced by Dan Castellaneta and Harry Shearer respectively, also make their first visual appearances, although they were heard on the radio in previous episodes, including "Bart Gets an 'F'".

[6] Two of the fictional Dallas Cowboys players are named Jay Kogen and Wallace Wolodarsky after two writers on The Simpsons.

[6] Lisa also keeps a book of Ginsberg's work on a bookshelf next to Jack Kerouac's novel On the Road, and a collection of poems by Edgar Allan Poe.

[7] Feeling hungry, Bart decides to steal food from the old, rich Mr. Burns, who lives on the corner of Croesus and Mammon, both connoting wealth.

The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, wrote: "Marge's mother Jackie is particularly nightmarish in her first real appearance.

The final sequence on the rooftop with Lisa and Bart is lovely, and Homer's comment to Marge is a magical wrap-up to a good episode.

"[6] DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson said the episode "maintained a nicely irreverent tone most of the time – irreverent enough to make it amusing, at least," and added: "The interaction of the Simpson and Bouvier families at dinner was terrific, and Bart's experiences on skid row made their point while they still managed to be pointed and clever.