Hood 'n the Boyz is the second episode of Season 8 of Married... with Children, also the 159th overall episode of the series. Directed by Tony Singletary and writen by Michael G. Moye, the episode originally on FOX, premiering on September 12, 1993.
Synopsis[]
Al and Peg go to the big city for their second honeymoon where Al is called to help his childhood girlfriend deal with a young tough guy and his gang.
Storyline[]
Al is thrilled when his childhood girlfriend, Mary Ellen Litchfield (Debra Engle) asks for his help in dealing with a young thug named Ray-Ray (Matt Bornlenghi) and his gang, who have been harassing her at the inner city convenience store, which her father owned, and which she now owns. But how does Al explain it to Peg? Simply put: Al checks himself and Peggy into a local hotel near the rough neighborhood and sneaks out to confront the thug Ray-Ray and his gang, only to get beaten up by the youths again and again.
When he first visits Mary Ellen's store, he meets her young niece named Jackie (Kimberly Paige), who recognizes his face from a flyer on the cash register saying "Do not accept checks from this person"!
In the first confrontation with Ray-Ray, Al brags of his exploits on the football field at Polk High upon introduction before threatening the punk saying "I was king of these streets when you and your boys were gleams in the eye of a couple of strangers at an Eagles concert! And that lady you're picking on is a friend of mine...So, as a former king of the streets to a pretender to the throne, we can handle this two ways...either in here like gentlemen, or out there like Ren & Stimpy!" To Al's dismay, Ray-Ray, who suggests a "third option", summons several members of his gang, and they soundly thrash him, before he goes home beaten up, and, as seen in his eyes, adding insult to injury, promptly has to have sex with Peg!
When Al, at home in the bathroom, comes out of it bloodied and beaten, he, after making an excuse that he must have cut himself while shaving, asks Peg, "Hey Peg, I was king of the streets once, wasn't I ?" When she replies "Sure you were, honey, you remember! Crazy Andy Guzick Pete the Beat Rumballo, Tony the Tounge McCullough! When he responds "I don't remember a Tony The Tongue McCullough!" Peg reveals a few bones from a romantic skeleton in her closet when she responds "Oh, that must have been one of my boys!"
In the second confrontation, Al gathers up several of his old Polk High football teammates in an attempt to squash Ray-Ray and his gang; when Ray-Ray summons what seems like a whole battalion of fellow thugs, Al, with his buddies speeding off in their car, is left alone to face the even larger gang. Needless to say, Al faces defeat again, having again to go home beaten and bloody, and forced to romantically appease his again love-starved in the mood wife Peg!
In the third and final confrontation with Ray-Ray, the tough replies "Hey, what is it with you, Bundy? I mean, we knock you around, you still come back, why?". Al then explains "the meaning of male bravado", in that men sometimes do stupid things to impress a woman, Ray-Ray, his girlfriend, and he, Mary Ellen. He then gives Ray-Ray a choice to make: to either leave town, so Al looks cool in front of Mary Ellen, or to kill Al right there, so he can look cool in front of his girlfriend. Al throws his jacket down and tells him, "Let's Rock!". Ray-Ray and his gang get up and as he starts walking towards Al, they strangely change course and walk around him. Ray-Ray and his gang move on to another part of town, leaving Al as the victor in front of Mary Ellen.
Guest stars/Recurring[]
- Cast regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy D'Arcy
- Ted McGinley as Jefferson D'Arcy
- Buck as Buck Bundy
Guest starring []
- Matthew Borlenghi as Ray-Ray (as Matt Borlenghi)
- Debra Engle as Mary Ellen Litchfield
- Kimberly Paige as Jackie
- Alex Zonn as Bum
- Skye Bassett as Ray-Ray's girl
- Chuck Le Fever as Skippy
- Nicholas Brendon as Ray-Ray's boy (uncredited)
Quotes[]
- [Al, along with several of his Polk High Panthers teammates, go over to confront Ray-Ray and his gang]
- Al: As I was say, now that the odds are a littler fairer, let's examine your options.
- [Ray-Ray whistles, causing an even larger wave of gang members to arrive and stare Al down]
- Al: [scoffs] What, are we suppose to be scared?! Well, let me tell you something about the king and his court!
- [The sound of tires screeching is heard, Al looks back and realizes that his teammates are gone. He then picks up an inhaler and tries to gesture to them that they left it behind. Al is then forced to turn around and face Ray-Ray and his gang again]
- Al: [voiceover] Well, this certainly sucks! This is no time to panic. If you're still king, just say what a king would say.
- Al: [stuttering, sobbing] C-c-can't we all just get along?
- [After surviving another beatdown by Ray-Ray and his gang, Al emerges from the bathroom and tries to quietly sneak back into bed and avoid another round of sex with Peg]
- Al: [quietly to himself] Oh, please, let her be asleep... Oh, please! Oh, please! Oh, please! [finally makes it to the bed and lays down] Thank you!
- Peg: [seductively] Al....!
- Al: [ sobbing] Aww, Peg... [stuttering] C-c-can't we all just g-get along?
- [Al confronts Ray-Ray in a final showdown]
- Al: I'm a moron, Ray Ray. We're all morons. That's what comes from being a man. From the first little worm they dare us to eat, to the last big shovel of snow that we can move... we are nothing more to women than an amusement park ride with life insurance. Why else would we do the idiotic things that we do? For example, do you ski? [folds arms and reclines against the stair post]
- Ray-Ray: [scoffs] No.
- Al: Well, you will someday if a girl wants you to. We all will. We hurl down that mountain so fast that the crack of our bodies hitting that tree at the bottom wouldn't even resonate in their ears before we pounce up and say "I'm okay!" They know we're not okay. Hell, even if they missed seeing that pair of squirrels running away with our hacky sacks, one glance down at the color of the snow indicate that they're might be some trauma. [gets up and walks over to face Ray-Ray square on] And we've all been to a weight room where some pretty girl walks by and we say to ourselves, "Gee, I think I'll start today's warm up by bench pressing around... Oh, nine tons!" So you see, Ray Ray, as long as there's women... they're will be men around to do stupid things to impress them. That's why I'm here. That's why you're here. [looks down at Ray-Ray's group on the stairs] That's why they're here. Now, someday you may evolve beyond this, but it's too late for me. I'm too old, too married and lost far too many hacky sacks.
- Ray-Ray: [rubs chin] So, its either I split so you can look cool in front of your girl...
- Al: Or you look cool in front of yours... and kill me. [slowly takes a few steps back and removes his varsity jacket] Let's rock.
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a parody of John Singleton's 1991 film, Boyz n the Hood. It was produced by Columbia Pictures, which also produced MWC through its television division.
Trivia[]
- Skippy, Al's heavyset friend in this episode, would later die and be remembered in the season 9 episode, "Dud Bowl".
- Chuck Lefever, who plays Skippy in this episode, also appeared in "Dud Bowl" as Speedy, another Polk High Panther who is in attendance at Skippy's funeral.
- Matt Borlenghi, who plays Ray-Ray in this episode would later reappear on MWC in the season 10 episode Enemies as Tom.
- Nicholas Brandon, who plays one of the boys in Ray Ray's crew, starred in the TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer with David Boreanaz, who also appeared on MWC in the season 7 episode "Movie Show", as Frank, one of Kelly's boyfriends.
- Al has sex with Peg a total of 3 times during this episode.
- During their second round of sex, Al can be heard screaming "Help me I'm dying!" between the scenes of the rams hitting each other and a dummy bouncing next to a drill press.
Cultural References[]
- Peg mentions that she hadn't seen Al so excited "'...since Ginger Week on 'Gilligan's Island'", in reference to the 1960s sitcom, Gilligan's Island and one of the castaways, Ginger Grant.
- Tina Louise, who played Ginger on Gilligan's Island previously appeared on MWC as Miss Beck in the season 5 episode "Kelly Bounces Back".
- Al tells Ray-Ray when he confronts him the first time that they can handle the situation "...out there like 'Ren and Stimpy'", referring to the popular Nickelodeon cartoon series, The Ren and Stimpy Show that was known for its violence as well as its dark humor and sexual innuendos.
- When Al tries to confront Ray-Ray and his crew for a second time and is abandoned by his friends, he asks Ray-Ray and his crew before they beat him "C-C-Can't we all just get along?", a reference to a line Rodney King said to the media during the L.A. Riots in 1992.
- Al uses the line again when Peg tries to have sex with him for the third time.
- Al tells Ray-Ray that he was king of the streets "Before you were the gleam in the eyes of a couple of strangers at an Eagles concert". This in reference to the 1970s band The Eagles.
- While talking to Al about fighting Ray-Ray and his gang, Kelly mentions that it's "not some gun fight at the Oaky Corral", confusing the name of the O.K. Corral.
- More specifically, this is a reference to the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, considered one of the most famous gun fights of the Wild West.
Music[]
- The song that plays when Al and his friends go and challenge Ray-Ray and his gang is an instrumental version of "Beat It" by Michael Jackson.
- The music video for the song also features a street fight between two rival gangs.
Locations[]
- Bundy Residence
- Hotel
- Alleyway
- Soda Shop
- Chicago
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Hotel Room
- Alleyway
- Soda Shop Cash Register / Dining Area
- Downtown Chicago Streets
Goofs[]
- Peg mentions that she can't remember the last time Al took her to the beach, even though he did take her and the family to the beach in season 3's "Life's A Beach" and the end of season 5's "Route 666 (Part II)".
- The suitcases Al is lugging into the motel room are clearly completely empty.