You Better Shop Around (Part 1) was the 21st episode of Season 5 of Married with Children, also the 101st overall episode in the series; this was the first half of a two-parter in which the Bundys and the D'Arcys went head-to-head over who was rightfully the lucky "millionth customer" at Foodie's supermarket. Directed by Linda Day, the episode was written by J.D. Brangato and Michael Ferris. It originally aired on FOX on April 14, 1991.
Synopsis[]
Part one of two. During a heatwave, Al buys an air conditioner that saps the town's power. With the neighbors enraged and out for blood, the Bundys move to the local grocery store, where they become winners of a shopping spree. Model Bobbie Brown guest stars as a stereotypical dumb blonde supermarket patron, named "Nibbles" according to the credits.
Plot summary[]
Al cannot afford to buy an air conditioner for the hot summer. After an attempt to install an old experimental model, (which results in a neighborhood blackout) Al moves his family into the local supermarket. After a while, they are told by the owner to buy something or they will be kicked out. After doing so, Al cuts in front of Marcy and becomes the one millionth customer to leave the store. The prize is a shopping spree worth $1,000.
Recurring cast/Guest stars[]
- Cast regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy D'Arcy
- Ted McGinley as Jefferson D'Arcy
- Buck the dog as Buck Bundy
Guest starring[]
- Bruce Jarchow as Manager
- John Asher as Bob (as John Mallory Asher)
- Jodie Mann as The Cashier
- Bobbie Brown as Nibbles
- Regina Leeds as The Cheese Lady
- Louise Rapport as Mrs. Gillis (as Louise Pellegrino Rapport)
- Helena Apothaker as Butter Lefkowitz
- Kevin Ryder as D. J. (voice)
- Gita Isak as Foodies Customer (uncredited)
Quotes[]
- Peggy: You know, Al, I thought you were going to a discount store to get one of those Korean ones. You know, with names almost like real products? Like our "Frigid-door" refrigerator, "RC-Hay" TV.
- Al: Or my "beauti-fool" wife?
- Manager: Buy something, or you'll be moving into the County Jail.
- Al: Alrighty... Family meeting. Kids, got any money for ol' Dad?
- [The kids dig around their pockets and give the money to Al]
- Al: Eighteen cents. When I said I needed a battery for the Kaiser, you said you didn't have a dime.
- Peg: No, we said we didn't give a DAMN.
- Bud and Kelly: [quietly] Yeah!
- Al: [bitterly] Boy, how soon they forget the good times.
- [Al gets in line behind Marcy with a packet of gum after the manager tells him to buy something.]
- Al: Uh, Marce, listen, I only got a pack of gum. Uh, could I get in front of you?
- Marcy: [coldly] Eat hot death!
- Al: [looks at a nearby magazine rack] Oh, the National Enquirer... "Steve Rhoades marries Cher."
- Marcy: Where?! Where?! [steps out of the line to look at the tabloid as Al pushes her cart aside and goes to the cashier]
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the 1960 song "Shop Around" by the Miracles featuring Bill "Smokey" Robinson
Trivia[]
- The Bundy shopping cart dons the colors, as well as cheating spike, of Leo "Crater Face" Balmudo's racing car in the 1978 film classic Grease. Then-20th Century Fox head Barry Diller was also head of Paramount when the company distributed and co-produced the film.
- Helena Apothaker, who previously played Butter Lefkowitz in "Weenie Tot Lovers and Other Strangers" plays her again in this episode. She appears with another girl and Bud, who has his arms wrapped around both of them. As they walk past Al and Peggy, she comments on how they are that family living in a supermarket, before Bud yells at his parents "Get a job, buddy!" and laughs at them.
- She also played Bud's date, Crystal in "Kids! Wadaya Gonna Do?"
- This episode along with its second part is available on the Married with Children - Most Outrageous Episodes DVD volume one.
- Inside the supermarket, many name brand products can be clearly seen, such as Pepsi, Budweiser, Mountain Dew, A&W, Michelob, Slice, Capt. Crunch, Quaker Oats, Huggies, Coleman, Reddi Whip, Ruffles, Shasta, Slim Fast, Imperial, Keystone, Johnson & Johnson, and Edge. Some of these brands originally withdrew their ads from MWC during the Rakolta Boycott while some joined after the boycott had passed.
- Marcy mentions that it is the hottest day of the year in this episode. The hottest day of 1991 in Chicago was August 2nd with 102°F (39°C).
- It is quite possible for the temperature to be in the 80's°F with high humidity as the climate in Chicago is usually wet in April and May.
- John Asher who plays Bob the stockboy, later played Gary Wallace on the TV series, Weird Science which was based on the 1985 film of the same name.
- Also, Bruce Jarchow, who plays the Manager in this episode had a recurring role on that series as Principal Scampi.
- The radio DJ in this episode is played Kevin Ryder, who at the time, was known as part of the morning radio duo Kevin and Bean on the Los Angeles-based rock station, 106.7 FM KROQ.
- His radio partner Gene 'Bean' Baxter was previously on MWC as DJ Rick Cool in "Oldies but Young 'Uns".
- Bud reveals that he is the only Bundy who has not been fingerprinted by the Chicago Police Department, implying that the rest of the family have some sort of record on file.
- At the beginning of the episode, Bud is shown reading Playpen magazine, which is the generic adult magazine title used in film and television.
- The magazine cover features a blond woman in a yellow bikini kneeling in sand, which later be used for various Big 'Uns covers in later seasons of MWC.
- The gag with Al deliberately dropping an item and informing Nibbles that she had dropped something in order to watch her bend over and thanks her afterward for bending over was used in the previous episode by Al's friend, Charlie Verducci.
Cultural References[]
- The air conditioner that Al buys is listed as "Property of Erwin Rommel", a German field commander during World War II nicknamed "The Desert Fox".
- Peg makes reference to Rommel's nickname later when the neighbors try to break into the Bundy house and she sarcastically says to Al, "Well, Desert Fox...".
- One of the settings on the air condition is "Blitzkrieg", a war strategy refined by Rommel that uses short, fast and powerful techniques to overwhelm the enemy.
- Erwin Rommel was a German general, so the inscription should read correctly: Eigentum von Erwin Rommel
- After seeing the Bundys living in the store, Marcy sarcastically calls them the "VanderBundys" and jokes about them living in their summer home. This is in reference to the Vanderbilt Family, who were at one the richest family in America until the late 20th century and had numerous Vanderbilt Houses.
- Marcy quotes a variation of the lyrics to the folk song "If I Had a Hammer" by Peter, Paul and Mary, saying she and the neighbors sang "If I had a hammer, I'd driver it through Al Bundy's skull."
- The song title would later be referenced for the season six episode, "If Al Had a Hammer".
- Al takes a copy of the National Enquirer from the check stand and claims that the headline reads "Steve Rhoades Marries Cher".
- The National Enquirer is a tabloid newspaper that is often found at the checkout stands at supermarkets
- Cher is a musician and actress, who at the time this episode originally aired, was known for dating various male celebrities who were typically several years younger than her.
Music[]
- The song Al sings while in the pool is "Mack The Knife" by Bobby Darin.
Locations[]
Sets[]
- Bundy Backyard
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Foodie's Frozen food aisle
- Foodie's Check stand
Goofs[]
- In the scene at the beginning of the episode, Peggy shoots Al's plastic pool, and it starts spewing out water. However, in Al's pool, air should have been leaking out, not water.
- Also, the direction that the water is going out is incorrect. Peggy shot what should be the left side of Al's pool, so the water should coming out at a low angle towards Peggy. Instead, its shoot at a high upward angle towards the studio audience, implying that it hit the front of Al's pool, near his feet.
- The settings on the air conditioner are written in a faux German-English mix, which would make no sense for something that belonged to a native German speaker in 1940s Germany.
- During the scene with the pitchfork-armed, torch-wielding mob attempting to break into the Bundy house, the laughter from the studio audience was so loud and uproarious that Katey Sagal had to start over her speech, "Well, Desert Fox..." twice.
- During the opening scene when the Bundys are outside and complaining to Al about the 100°F heat, a thermometer can been scene behind them on the house and shows an approximate temperature of only 70°F, which may had been the actual studio temperature when they filmed the scene.
- When the stock boy confronts the Bundys, Peg tells him that they are shopping, grabs the bag of Ruffles potato chips that is beside her, and then puts them in the cart. When Al tells her to read the ingredients of the potato chips, the bag of chips is beside her again.
- Bud tells Marcy its a school night, even though this episode is supposed to take place during the summer. With the exception of short summer remedial classes, schools in the United States usually take a summer vacation from late June to late August.
- Al tells the kids "No names!" when Bud and Kelly try to run the air condition into the city's power line, but he clear calls out their names, while they called Al "Dad".
- After Al tells Bud to get perfume for Peggy, she gushes over Al for remembering her birthday. Peggy's birthday is listed as April 12 and this episode originally aired on April 14, 1991. Yet this episode is supposed to take place sometime during the summer, as the DJ clearly states at the beginning of the episode.
- A sign above the aisle that the Bundys stay at says "Frozen Foods", yet all the merchandise there appear to be soda, beer, eggs and cheese. All these items would not require freezing and would be place in their appropriate aisle (Soft Drinks, Alcohol and Dairy).
- When Al gives Peg the honor of turning on the Kaiser for the first time, as she drops to her knees, the camera tilts up to where the actual top of the studio, as well as an overhead light hanging near the garage door are clearly visible for a moment. The camera then tilts down and zooms in as she starts to turn the crank.
External Links[]
You Better Shop Around (Part 1) at the Internet Movie Database- You Better Shop Around (Part 1) on Bundyology
- You Better Shop Around (Part 1) - Transcript on albundy.net
- #101 You Better Shop Around (Part 1) - MWC Podcast on Horrorphilia
