The Agony of De-Feet is the 22nd episode of the fourth season of Married... with Children, also the 79th overall episodes of the series. Directed by Gerry Cohen, the episode was written by Diane Burroughs & Joey Gutierrez. The episode originally aired on FOX on May 6, 1990.
Synopsis[]
Marcy is led to believe that she had sex with Bud after waking up next to him on the couch. Meanwhile, Al, who lately has been freaking out over feet, is chosen to be a judge in an odd beauty pageant.
Episode summary[]
Marcy thinks she had sex with Bud after waking up next to him on the couch, thanks to a scheme by Kelly, who plotted it as revenge because Marcy called her an imbecile (idiot). Bud, who is lead to believe the same, all of a sudden, looks upon himself as having scored a major feather in his cap, seducing an "older woman", which repulses Marcy! Meanwhile, Al, who lately has been freaking out over feet, is chosen to be a judge in an odd beauty pageant.
Recurring cast/Guest stars[]
- Regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy Rhoades
- Buck the dog as Buck Bundy
Guest starring[]
- Noah Blake as Jim
- Robin Angers as Rhonda
- Jim O'Doherty as Pageant Master
- Michael John Burns as Joey
- Lou Wills as Judge #1
- Mary Gillis as Judge #2
- Gita Isak as Al's mom (voice)(uncredited)
Quotes[]
- Bud: [sees Marcy asleep in the Bundy living room] Aww, look at Mrs. Rhoades. Isn't she cute? Peaceful as a baby. I want her so bad.
- Kelly: Well, maybe I can help you out. Bud, I'm going to let you in on some secret woman's stuff that no other man knows.
- Bud: Oh man!
- Kelly: Now, shh. If anybody knows that I told you this, the sisterhood will strip me of my PMS privileges. Now, you see, Bud, when a woman sleeps, her hormones accumulate. Which means that when she wakes up, she falls in love with the first man that she sees. Now, if she stands up and she hasn't seen anyone, her hormones will fall to her feet and they will go down the drain when she showers.
- Bud: [snaps fingers] Of course! I've noticed that when they're standing up, no girls like me.
- Kelly: But we won't give Mrs. Rhoades the chance. Now, if I were you, I would sleep here tonight on the couch. That way, you're the first thing she sees and the only thing she wants.
- Bud: Yowza. What should I wear?
- Kelly: Your love clothes. You know, your cowboy jammies. [Bud nods and then confidently slides down onto the couch next to the still sleeping Marcy.]
- Bud: [to Marcy] Your hormones... my jammies... you don't stand a chance!
- Kelly: (Bud and Marcy, having agreed to be "just friends", go out for ice cream...as Kelly looks on triumphantly) So now who's the simpleton? (chuckles) Tricking them was as easy as 1-2-C.
- Judge #1: Excuse me, but do you know how we're supposed to judge this?
- Al: Well, the way I look at it, we give 2 points for talent, 2 points for personality, and uh... 96 points for hooters. [the judge laughs]
- Judge #2: You're a pig!
- Al: And you, sir, are a...[Al and Judge #1 turn and realizes that Judge #2 is a woman] Oh, I'm sorry madam, I didn't know you were a woman. [hesitates] Are you?!
- Kelly: (Marcy has just ruined Kelly's make-out session by scaring off Jim) Thanks a lot, Mrs. Rhodes. That's the fourth guy this week, that I was actually in love with, that you've messed up for me!
- Kelly: (Sneaking downstairs late at night, she kisses a dozing Bud to make it look like he and Marcy made out in their sleep. She suddenly looks nauseous) …Oh, great. Cherry-flavored Zit-Be-Gone.
Notes[]
Title[]
- The episode's title is a reference to the phrase "The thrill of victory ... and the agony of defeat" from the introduction of ABC's Wide World of Sport
Trivia[]
- Prior to creating the Disney series Kickin' It, Jim O'Doherty worked as an audience warmup-man for several years...not only on MWC, but also on Suddenly Susan and Unhappily Ever After.
- Al mentions that he has had the nightmare of seeing feet for over two weeks at beginning of the episode.
- Al uses the phrase "Ba-whoosh" when talking to Peg about seeing feet. He had previously used it when talking about his Ferguson Toilet in "A Dump of My Own"
- Kelly is wearing the same purple mini-dress she wore in "You Gotta Know When to Fold 'Em (Part 2)"
- Noah Blake, who plays Kelly's date, Jim, was previously Kelly's punk boyfriend, Sean, in the season 1 episode "Married... without Children".
- Coincidentally, in both episodes, Kelly claims to be in love with Jim / Sean, as well as Marcy being in their presence when they try to make out on the couch.
- Marcy reveals she had kept her wedding ring on until this point and finally removes it.
- The main actors from this episode also filmed a segment for the 1990 ABC special The Earth Day Special around the time this episode was filmed, as most of the actors are wearing the same clothing from the last portion of the episode in the sketch.
- The segment was also directed by Gerry Cohen, who also directed this episode.
- After Al proclaims his will to live after hearing about the pageant, someone in the audience can be heard yelling something like "Damn right, Al!".
- Peggy tells Marcy that she doesn't remember giving birth to Bud and Kelly and also regrets giving birth to them.
- When Bud walks in to greet Peggy and Marcy and removes his sunglasses, someone in the audience can be heard yelling something like "Get her, Bud!"
- When Al is in the shoe store thinking to himself, his mother's voice says, "Don't worry Al, just think of it as a stepping stone, some day you'll be the President of your own corporation". In his other show (debuting 19 years later after this episode), Modern Family, Ed O'Neill's character, Jay Pritchett, is the wealthy owner of Pritchett's Closets & Blinds.
- Robin Angers, who plays Rhonda, the attractive woman who talks to Al about using Gary's Shoes & Accessories for Today's Woman for a pageant, later appeared on the MWC spin-off Top of the Heap in the episode, "Stocks and Bondages" as Gina, one of the three waitresses hired by Vincent "Vinnie" Verducci.
Cultural References[]
- While in bed, Peggy tells Al that they can play "Bring the big bad wolf over to this little Peggy" and then they will huff and puff before giving up. This is in reference to the children's fable The Three Little Pigs.
Locations[]
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Al & Peggy's Bedroom
- Shoe Store
Goofs[]
- Right after Bud and Marcy make up and leave the house, the camera slowly zooms in on Kelly, who was watching by the clock on the staircase. As it gets closer, the shadows of Ed O'Neill and Katey Sagal can be seen on the pink window curtain. After it reaches her, Kelly says "Tricking them was as easy as 1, 2, C" and bumps into the clock and their shadows are still there before they immediately appear after she heads up the stairs.
- When the older man at the pageant tells the lady that he needs to get back to his hot dog stand, the studio lights are reflected on his glasses. They can be seen again when he laughs after Al tells him that he will give "96 points for hooters!" when judging the pageant.
External Links[]
The Agony of De-Feet at the Internet Movie Database- The Agony of De-Feet on Bundyology
- The Agony of De-Feet - Transcript on albundy.net
- #80 The Agony of De-Feet - MWC Podcast on Horrorphilia
