Brawl in the Family (The Simpsons)
In the episode, the Simpsons get arrested for domestic violence, prompting social worker Gabriel to move in and make the family functional.
After the family is declared acceptable, Amber and Ginger, the cocktail waitresses Homer and his neighbor Ned Flanders married in Las Vegas, show up at their doorsteps.
"Brawl in the Family" was directed by Matthew Nastuk and was the first full episode Joel H. Cohen received a writing credit for.
After the Republican Party of Springfield successfully repeals most of the city's environmental laws, the resulting spike in air pollution causes an acid rainstorm, destroying the Simpsons' TV antenna and prompting them to stay inside and play a game of Monopoly to pass the time.
After a short time in jail, they are released by a social worker named Gabriel, whom Homer continuously dismisses as an angel sent from Heaven.
Before the family can call it a day, they arrive home and find Amber and Ginger waiting in their driveway, causing Gabriel to storm off in disgust.
Amber shows Marge and the kids video footage of a drunk Homer marrying her in Vegas, while Ginger is next door with the widowed Ned Flanders.
The next day, Marge finds Homer asleep amid the broken remains of the doghouse, and asks him to come inside to talk with her, although she is still angry at him over what he did.
"Brawl in the Family" was directed by Matthew Nastuk and was the first episode Joel H. Cohen received a sole writing credit for.
[4] On its original American broadcast on January 6, 2002, "Brawl in the Family" was watched by approximately 12.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.
It became the 28th most watched program of the week it aired, beating such shows as ABC's 8 Simple Rules and NBC's Crossing Jordan and Mister Sterling.
[7] Al Jean, Joel H. Cohen, Max Pross, Delroy Lindo, Matt Warburton and David Silverman participated in the audio commentary of the episode.
"[10] Writing for DVD Movie Guide, Colin Jacobson wrote that the episode "seems like two story fragments combined into one; it’s like the writers couldn’t flesh out either tale for an entire 22 minutes so they just stuck two half-programs together.
[7][11] Despite receiving mixed reviews, "Brawl in the Family" is often considered a fan favourite, and R. L. Shaffer of IGN called it one of the season's "gems".
