Season 4 summary

Treehouse of Horror III

Smithers only appears in one segment this episode: King Homer. The segment starts with Marge applying to be part of a mysterious expedition led by Burns. He asks Smithers what he thinks, and he simply says that he thinks "women and seamen don't mix." Mr. Burns brushes this comment off and hires Marge anyway.

When the crew arrives at Ape Island to capture Homer, who is a 50-foot ape in this segment, the inhabitants of the island speak of sacrificing Marge in their native language. Unable to understand them, Marge asks what they're saying, and Mr. Burns claims that they're saying they'd never sacrifice her. However, she's taken as a sacrifice immediately afterwards. Mr. Burns tells Smithers of his plans for Homer: if they capture him alive, they'll put him on Broadway, and if he's dead, they'll sell him to the army in the form of monkey stew.

The crew tries to attack Homer, but it's to no avail. Mr. Burns attempts to throw a gas bomb at him, but his weak throw simply lands the bomb right at his own feet. While he's dazed, Smithers successfully throws a gas bomb at Homer, knocking him out. For his accomplishment, Mr. Burns decides to give him a raise. However, Smithers is immediately eaten by Homer, which Burns simply shrugs off. Smithers doesn't speak at any point in this scene, but he's visible at 9:48, 10:01, 10:34, 10:52, 11:24, and 11:42.

Marge Gets a Job

The plant is hosting a retirement party for a longtime employee, Jack Marley. Smithers has prepared a musical number for "Jack's special night." However, the party is quickly revealed to be an excuse to celebrate Mr. Burns, as his song functions simply to (literally) sing the praises of him, not even mentioning or alluding to Jack in the lyrics. After his song ends, Jack begs to keep his job, apparently having been forced to quit, but he's simply thrown out. Mr. Burns proceeds to announce there's a new job opening in his place before telling the audience to get out.

Marge applies for the job. However, she uses a fake resume created by Lisa, as she has nothing to put on her real resume. Upon reading the resume, Smithers is impressed and immediately hires her, albeit in a foreign language. When she doesn't understand this, he tells her it's Swahili for "welcome aboard," and that his Swahili must not be as good as hers, implying that speaking Swahili was among her many dishonest claims on her resume. He then tells the other applicants that the position's been filled.

When she starts her job, he leads her to her office. Apparently, Tibor (a foreign employee the workers blame for their mistakes) lost the key, but it can still be opened with a credit card. The office contains complicated machinery, which he simply leaves her with because, according to her resume, she invented that machine in the first place.

Later on, Mr. Burns is watching his employees over the surveillance monitors in his office. Upon spotting Marge, he immediately develops romantic feelings for her and tells Smithers to zoom in repeatedly. At one point, he zooms in too close, accidentally bumping Marge in the head with the camera lens. He doesn't speak her, but is visible in multiple shots between 11:37 and 12:01.

Eventually, Burns gives Marge a raise and a new office, right next to his own. As things turn out, this is/was Smithers' office, but Burns assures him that he's going "where the action is." Apparently, he now has to clean the mens' restroom. Just as he's finished scrubbing the urinals, Homer runs in to use one, much to his dismay.

Next, Burns tells Smithers that he dreamt about Marge last night, asking him if he knows "that dream where you're in bed and they fly in through the window." It then cuts to a fantasy of Smithers' where Burns does this with him. He says he's been reading his wish book, though Mr. Burns pays no significant attention to this claim.

He tells Smithers to arrange a party at his estate for himself and Marge, hopefully also digging up Al Jolson for the occasion. Smithers reminds him that they've tried that before, apparently to unpleasant results. Instead, Mr. Burns decides to opt for Tom Jones, who Marge has expressed an interest in. At one of Jones' shows, Smithers offers him a suitcase of money to perform at their private party. Jones turns this down, saying he doesn't do private parties. He shows him another suitcase, this time filled with gas which knocks him unconscious.

After recruiting Tom Jones (albeit against his will), Burns invites Marge out for a night of dinner and dancing. He shows her that he's gotten Tom Jones on board, who appears from a hidden door in the wall, waving and smiling nervously. Smithers is behind Jones (and out of view from Marge), holding him at gunpoint.

Once Mr. Burns finds out she's married, he fires her. After some brief legal threats, he decides to throw the party anyway, this time for Homer and Marge. As planned, Tom Jones is performing. Though he doesn't speak, Smithers is seen watching the performance from a distance back, holding a handgun. He's visible at 21:41.

Homer's Triple Bypass

Homer is eating donuts at his work station, which Mr. Burns watches over the surveillance monitors. Monologuing to himself, he remarks that he's getting ever closer to the poisoned donut hidden in the mix. However, Smithers tells him that there is no poisoned donuts, as their lawyers concluded it would be murder. Mr. Burns then tells him to bring Homer (who's now sleeping at his post) to him.

After being fired and harshly reprimanded by Burns, Homer has a heart attack and collapses onto the floor. Smithers checks his pulse and realizes he's dead, but upon hearing Mr. Burns tell him to send his wife a ham, Homer's spirit returns to his body, and Smithers tells Burns he's actually alive.

Marge vs. the Monorail

The episode starts with Lenny and Carl sealing up a container of nuclear waste. After they discuss where they think it'll go afterwards, the two leave, allowing Burns and Smithers to come in and take it away.

Smithers asks where they'll dump this batch of toxic waste, suggesting the playground. However, Mr. Burns objects to this, saying that the apparently increased number of bald children are becoming suspicious. Instead, they dump the waste in the park. While doing so, the Environmental Portection Agency catches them, causing Mr. Burns to be fined $3,000,000 for his offenses.

Later on at a town hall meeting, the town discusses what use the money could be put to. One man, "Mr. Snrub" from "someplace far away," suggests they put the money back into the power plant. Smithers approves of this idea, saying he likes the way "Snrub" thinks. However, the citizens are immediately suspicious of them and become visibly angry. Smithers pulls out a grappling hook and escapes with Snrub.

Last Exit to Springfield

Burns asks Smithers where the union representative is (as he's 20 minutes late to meeting up with him), and Smithers tells him that he hasn't been seen since he promised to "clean up the union" (heavily implying that the representative was murdered).

The two look over the union contract, which promises things like "benefits, perks, [and] a green cookie on St. Patrick's Day," and Burns vows to challenge the union and remove their dental plan.

Over the surviellance monitors, Burns and Smithers watch Homer condemn the dental plan-less contract. Burns asks Smithers who he is. After he reminds him and gives examples of incidents involving Homer, Burns still doesn't remember him.

Mr. Burns attempts to negotiate with Homer. Smithers doesn't speak in this scene, but he appears visually at 9:52, in which Mr. Burns remarks to him that Homer's a "worthy foe."

Burns forcibly brings Homer to his manor and tours him around. He ends the tour with his basement, which Smithers silently stands in the whole time. He's visible during various shots between 13:24 and 14:04. In a short scene immediately afterwards, Mr. Burns falls out of a helicopter, injuring himself. In this scene, Smithers is silently visible at 14:28.

When the plant goes on strike, Burns tells Smithers to bring in some strikebreakers, specifically the kind they had in the '30s. This ends up bringing in Grampa Simpson and several other elderly men, and Grampa tells the two a story that goes nowhere. Smithers doesn't speak here, but is visible at 16:21, 16:27, and 17:05 (in which he and Mr. Burns show visible boredom at Grampa's tangent).

Afterwards, Mr. Burns tries (and fails) to hose down the protesters. Smithers is silently present at 17:21. After that, Mr. Burns concludes that the two of them can run the plant by themselves, resulting in a montage of them attempting to manage the plant on their own. Once again, Smithers does not speak, but he's visible the entire sequence.

Mr. Burns decides to turn off the power to Springfield, but this doesn't phase the strikers. After realizing this, he strikes a deal with Homer: they can have their dental plan but he must resign as head of the union. Homer celebrates this, much to the surprise of both Burns and Smithers. Again, there are no speaking roles from Smithers, but he does appear throughout a whole sequence from 19:32 to 20:07, and several shots between 20:43 and 21:21.

So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show

Marge tells Homer that their marriage has been through rough patches but that they always got through it. This prompts footage to be shown from Life on the Fast Lane, which features a shot of Burns and Smithers silently watching Marge walk through the plant at 12:10.

Marge in Chains

After a flu virus takes over Springfield, Burns tells Smithers about his new germ-free chamber and how the flu won't be able to get to him in there, though he unfortunately finds Homer already in the chamber. Smithers doesn't speak, but is visible from 6:01 to 6:14.