This episode is set in a standard fantasy setting of Springfield, the Kingdom of Springfieldia which largely spoofs multiple fantasy series such as The Hobbit, Game of Thrones, and C. S. Lewis.
This episode contains examples of:
- Actor Allusion: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau cameos as Marge's twin brother who has incestuous feelings for Marge. Nikolaj plays Jaime Lannister in Game of Thrones where he is in an incestuous affair with his twin sister.
- A Day in the Limelight: One of Jacqueline Bouvier's (Or, at least, the fantasy counterpart to her) largest roles in an episode.
- Affectionate Parody: Of various fantasy stories and tropes.
- Age-Gap Romance: Mrs. Bouvier and The Icewalker had a 900-year age gap between them when they were dating.
- Alien Space Bats: It's implied the setting would have become our world if the dragon had stayed dead.
- Ban on Magic: King Mitothin forbids magic by mages who are not serving him. Those who aren't serving him are essentially drafted.
- Both Sides Have a Point: Marge wants to do whatever it takes to keep her mother alive and healthy, as any loving family member would want to do. But at the same time, Homer points out Marge's mother is already a very old woman, so it's debatable if even curing her curse would buy her that much more time.
- The Cameo:
- The long-retired Troy McClure appears as one of the victims of King Mitothin's beheadings.
- A caricature of George R. R. Martin is seen walking with a sandwich board that declares that "The end is not nigh. I'll tell you when it's nigh".
- Cessation of Existence: In a scene where several characters argue about what the afterlife is like, Bart raises the possibility that there is no life after death and that people who die just stop existing.
- Comically Missing the Point:
- One scene features several heads on pikes. Lisa complains that the upper class people get the best pikes.
- When the peasants wonder how to get into the castle, a group of Ent expys offer their assistance. The peasants choose to kill them and spend hours making their remains into ladders. When one says they could have easily broken down the castle gates by themselves in minutes, Homer tells the talking tree that trees can't talk.
- Don't Explain the Joke: During the episode climax, Wolfcastle complains to the the townspeople about how they're "dragon" the economy. Sideshow Mel is quick to point out the pun: "Oh, I get it! Because he's riding a dragon!" Mel is promptly incinerated by Wolfcastle for this.
- Face Death with Dignity: Mrs. Bouvier. Throughout the episode, she shows no problem at all with her deadly magical illness, only choosing to continue living because Marge wanted her to. In the end, she realizes that she can't go through with it and convinces Marge to let her pass on, in this case, by performing a heroic sacrifice against the dragon.Mrs. Bouvier: It's time for me to... go. Life is about moving forward. Girls want to be women, women want to be mothers, mothers want to be grandmas and grandmas want to know what comes next...
Marge: But what if I'm not ready?
Mrs. Bouvier: I wouldn't leave you if I didn't know you'd be alright!
Marge: Okay mom. I understand. (they hug)
Mrs. Bouvier: Maybe I was born a peasant, but I'm going out an ice queen! - Girl in the Tower: Lisa becomes this in the episode's climax.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Mrs. Bouvier saves everyone by succumbing to her deadly ice illness—she gets completely encased in magical ice which shields her from the dragon's fire, slowly enters his mouth and shatters, freezing the dragon's insides and killing him temporarily.
- It's All About Me: Marge is basically alone in wanting Jaqueline to stay alive even though her mother would rather just pass peacefully than cling to life. It was this quality which forced Lisa to turn a rock into gold in order for Homer to use it to buy an amulet to cure Jacqueline, and it's what led King Quimby to take Lisa into custody; even Marge lampshades this as she holds herself responsible after learning what happened.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Marge is right to be pissed with Homer for not helping her get Jacqueline back like he was supposed to.
- Knocking on Heathens' Door: Aslan goes around knocking on doors to spread the "Good News".
- The Magic Goes Away: At the end of the episode, Mrs. Bouvier's Heroic Sacrifice consequently removes all the magic in the world. Rather than let Lisa's suggestion to redefine the world with science be heeded, Homer (obviously not wanting to put any of the work in) restores the status quo by reigniting the dragon's flame, which resurrects it.
- Mayfly–December Romance: At one point Mrs. Bouvier dated the Icewalker, who is 900 years older than she is.
- Mutant Draft Board: King Mitothin demands all mages serve him, which causes Lisa to be arrested by his mage minions when she's found to have magic. This is what sparks the revolt in the ending.
- Production Foreshadowing: The look and feel of the medieval setting filtered through The Simpsons would come about with Disenchantment not long after this episode.
- Shout-Out: To numerous fantasy series.
- The potions sold at Dr. Hibbert's shop include the Strangler, milk of the poppy, a Mundane Potion, Lucy's Cordial, Potions of Cure Moderate Wounds and of Barkskin +2, Red, Green and Blue Potions with prices in rupees, Ent-Draught, and Polyjuce Potion.
- Toothless's decapitated head is mounted inside Moe's Tavern.
- Willie is a Warcraft-styled orc.
- Take That!: The recipe for the stuffed Hobbit, which involves cutting a hobbit in three pieces, packing them with unnecessary stuffing, and can be served for many but leaves none satisfied is pretty transparent one to the Peter Jackson's movie trilogy, which is often criticized for being split into three parts despite the book being fairly short, each part bloated with plenty elements that didn't appear in the book.
- The Un-Favorite: Homer leads the peasants into a revolt on the basis of the fact that their superiors feel free to take their children, "not just the worthless Barts but the magical Lisas."
