Krusty opens a private school of clowning, which proves to be a huge success.
Krusty is filming an episode of his show, only for his Shakespeare parody to get no reaction from non-cricket members of the audience. There aren't any kids in the audience, just a bunch of crotchety seniors. Krusty complains to a couple of suits that this is supposed to be a kids show, but they reply that kids aren't into his show anymore, so they brought in the only audience they could get, loose seniors who were lost at the mall. Krusty admits he's lost touch with his audience in the 90s, and to his shock, the 90s were a long time ago. He needs new material, but to equal amounts of shock, he finds out his writers are long dead. Krusty gathers with a bunch of his fellow TV clowns (and a Pennywise parody) at a restaurant for has-beens, and their discussion makes it clear to Krusty that the art of TV clownery is dying out. They're all old, and they need new, young clowns. But who is there to teach them? Nobody, at least, not until Krusty gets an idea to start up a school for young clowns. And with how much private school tuition costs, how could he say no?
Krusty meets with Mayor Quimby and Superintendent Chalmers to get his clown school started, but they object. He has no degrees. Krusty bribes Mayor Quimby into going along with his idea, but he doesn't accept bribes in physical cash anymore, only though online transfers. Chalmers questions if Krusty's gonna teach STEM, and he says he will. "Slapstick, Tumbling, Enormous shoes and Mime". Chalmers doesn't like the idea of teaching mime in schools, and mimes suicide in response, which Krusty mistakes for him applying to be the mime teacher.
The Herschel Krustofsky School for the Clowning Arts is about to open where the Krusty the Klown show used to be filmed, despite Chalmers' complaints. Seeing an ad for the school, Bart decides he's going there. He's not doing well at Springfield Elementary, this could be the chance to turn things around, and actually be good at school like Lisa, "but fun". While Krusty does like that Bart has been repeatedly voted "class clown", he has the stink of a loser. Homer then claims that Bart is an Alpha Loser, the loser that the other losers blindly follow. Enter, Milhouse, wanting to join Krusty's school because whatever Bart is doing he wants in on, and his dad is willing to pay for it. Krusty admits Bart in, and orders him to bring in every loser he knows. Krusty now has hundreds of new applications on his desk, including one for Rainier Wolfcastle's son Dieter who wouldn't be accepted by decent schools.
The school is open, and Bart is as enthusiastic a student as Lisa is for ordinary school. And to his own surprise, he's going very well, and is putting in the effort too. Bart's clownery gets Homer's laughs and Marge's pride in being able to subvert Homer's rage. Krusty's school is proving a good enough education to rival Springfield Elementary's brightest, as a Science Bowl pits Bart, Milhouse and Nelson against Lisa, Martin and Database, and the clown boys narrowly win. After Marge thanks Krusty for what his school is doing to Bart, and after hearing more thanks from more parents, Krusty knows he's truly making a difference, something he and his father could be proud of. But things take a turn as Fat Tony enters the scene, wanting in on the education racket.
The mafia is running out of revenue streams, due to the legalization of certain drugs and gambling. Private schools and higher education make a lot of money, and he wants in on America's last untapped scam. Krusty is too intimidated to make a stand, and the mafia now controls the school. Things go downhill immediately, as Louie and Johnny Tightlips traffic control leads to a traffic jam outside the school, and the school runs out of markers due to their marker trafficking. With motivation from the picture of Rabbi Krustofsky's disapproving gaze, Krusty attempts to rat the mafia out, but because of the police's lack of jurisdiction outside the station, he's gonna have to wear a wire. Because of Krusty's incredible ticklishness, he's gonna have to wear the wire in his squirt flower, but this means any attempt to squirt will result in Krusty being electrocuted. Unfortunately, as Krusty walks in on the mafia's card game, Legs and Johnny Tightlips request that very gag. Johnny threatens Krusty at gunpoint to perform after Krusty hesitates, and a sweat drop lands on the flower, shocking him, which the goons accept as a funny enough gag, but Fat Tony knows better, he knows Krusty is wearing a wire, and for this, he must die. Then, a bunch of Krusty's students enter on unicycles, carrying smartphones that are recording the scene. Fat Tony is willing to accept a different solution, which results in the mafia getting the money and getting out of Krusty's school. Burning it down in an insurance scam. The school he built/the studio he filmed at is gone in a fire that is snuffed out by a helium explosion, with one of the remaining things being the picture of Rabbi Krustofsky and his disapproving gaze. As Krusty laments to the picture that he blew the one good thing the Rabbi could be proud of, but Bart interjects that he made a difference. While Krusty appreciates this, he'll need more than thankfulness and false hope to cheer up. Bart offers Krusty some nachos, which Krusty mishears as "nachas", the Yiddish word for fatherly pride. Krusty takes it that it's a sign that his father is proud, and graciously says the food is on him.
Tropes:
- Actually Pretty Funny: Homer is amused by Bart's spring-loaded boxing glove in his hat that he got Homer to look into, resulting in Homer interrupting himself with a "WHY YOU-- Genius!"
- Anything but That!: Bart says that Krusty's school will straighten his life out, and the only other option for that is Catholic school. Homer and Marge gasp at that possibility, and panic as Bart reads a Latin prayer.
- The Bad Guy Wins: Fat Tony gets away with his money scheme, though not by keeping the school "afloat" but rather by minimizing losses by simply burning the school down and collecting the insurance money away from Krusty.
- Body Horror: Because of a drive-through LASIK surgery gone awry, Krusty has scars on his eyes that can make his eyes resemble dollar signs.
- Brick Joke: Little Debbie Dimples advises Krusty on one of the most important things of comedy, but forgets what it was. She pops up at the very end of the episode, remembering what it was. Timing.
- Call-Back: Ralph Wiggum once again has a wind-based musical instrument up his nose, a slide whistle this time.
- Canis Latinicus: When Krusty first gets the idea for opening up a clown school, his Thought Bubble shows a prestigious clown college with the motto "Heyus Et Heyus".
- Chirping Crickets: This is all Krusty’s balcony sketch gets; Krusty acknowledges that at least the crickets liked it.
- Clown Car: The school bus for Krusty's school, naturally. It's only as tall as Bart is, but is able to store 18 kids, plus the driver.
- Couch Gag: The Fat in the Hat rides a Seussian flying unicycle during the opening title.
- Decomposite Character: The Pennywise parody at Mussel and Flanks resembles Krusto from "Not It", but with the Krusty elements removed due to Krusty already being there, leaving a green-tinted Pennywise Expy.
- Diabolus ex Machina: Krusty had absolutely zero difficulties through his wish to open up his own school and was very happy with everything running smoothly until Fat Tony appeared out of nowhere and started intimidating him into submission.
- The Ditz: Homer forgot Lisa plays the saxophone every night, completely unable to recognize it is the same instrument that Dieter Wolfcastle is using to play Yakety Sax.
- The Easy Way or the Hard Way: Fat Tony drops this line while intimidating Krusty, but Krusty is too intimidated to let him finish, admitting "You win!" after Fat Tony says "or", especially since Tony is reaching for his coat pocket, presumably for his gun.
- Everyone Hates Mimes: After hearing the M in Krusty's idea of STEM is for "Mime", Superintendent Chalmers says "Forget it" before miming shooting himself in the head. Krusty mistakes this for thinking Chalmers is offering to teach miming, which Chalmers replies with another mimed suicide, which Krusty mistakes for a confirmation.
- Fun with Acronyms: To Krusty, STEM stands for Slapstick, Tumbling, Enormous shoes, and Mime.
- Fun with Homophones: In the ad for Krusty's school mocking teachers for working only nine months a year, a vacationing teacher's lesson plan is that he will "lessen" his drink.
- Give Me a Sign: As Krusty puts up a photo of his father Rabbi Hyman Krustofsky on the wall of great educators, he tells him that if he's got a problem with his son running a school, give him a sign. Nothing happens, and Krusty takes this to mean approval due to nothing being the best thing he's ever said about him.
- I Can't Believe It's Not Heroin!: The mafia seizes the school's marker supply to sell them in Ogdenville in a manner like a drug trade, with the buyer admitting he's addicted to highlighting.
- In Memoriam: Krusty somehow got into one of these in-universe while still alive. It got booed.
- Lethal Chef: Lunchlady Doris cooks so horribly, the mafia has her eat her own mashed potatoes as punishment for a missed payment.
- Literal Metaphor: As Krusty accuses Fat Tony of threatening him, Fat Tony drops his euphemisms because Krusty wants to address the elephant in the room, and with a snap of his fingers, the school's elephant grabs Krusty with his trunk.
- Only in It for the Money: Krusty admits as such while putting up a photo of his father on the wall of great educators.Krusty: You see this, dad? I'm trying to be an educator, just like you. Like all great teachers, my motivation is money!
- Negative Continuity: No mention is made of the other time Krusty started a clown school.
- Noodle Incident: Marge's list of house rules includes injunctions against turnip tossing, obscure mentions of turtle and unicorn poop, and the note, "Urn ashes stay in urn."
- Pie in the Face: This pops up multiple times, due to it being a classic clown trope. The school's math teacher does it to himself with a catapult to demonstrate a parabolic curve.
- Police Are Useless: Chief Wiggum readily admits that their jurisdiction doesn’t extend past the police station.
- Pretentious Latin Motto: Krusty's first idea of the clown school is a fancy ivy-covered college with the motto being a faux-Latin rendering of his catchphrase, "Heyus et Heyus".
- Punctuated! For! Emphasis!:Bart: I. Have. To. Go. There!
- A Rare Sentence: Homer admonishes Bart for riding a unicycle in the kitchen, and asks what he told him about this. Bart replies he said nothing about this, it's never come up. Marge looks at the house rulebook and confirms this.
- Shout-Out:
- One of the clowns Krusty meets with has a similar appearance and voice to comedian Ed Wynn.
- Krusty delivers a speech in a manner similar to General Patton as the school readies to open, with the American Flag replaced with a giant "BANG!" flag, and the stars on his helmet replaced with smiley faces.
- Jack Black and Michelle Pfeiffer are on the school's wall of great educators, in reference to their roles in School of Rock and Dangerous Minds, respectively.
- Shout-Out to Shakespeare: The episode begins with Krusty filming a Romeo and Juliet parody sketch with Sideshow Mel as Julie-ech and Krusty as Krusteo, and Krusty references a different Shakespeare play before administering a Pie in the Face.Krusteo: To pie or not to pie. That is no question!
- Squirting Flower Gag: Legs and Johnny Tightlips are fans of this trope, and want Krusty to do it, but Krusty is reluctant due to wearing a wire inside the flower. Johnny threatens Krusty at gunpoint into doing it, threatening that one of them is gonna get splattered in five seconds.
- Subverted Catchphrase: Homer is too entertained by Bart's clowning at his expense to be angry and reacts with "Why, you...genius!"
- Take That!:
- The cast of The View is listed among the retired/dead clowns pictured at Mussel and Flanks.
- In his Patton-esque speech, Krusty says clowns are the most despised profession in America, after Supreme Court Justice.
- Kent Brockman delivers one towards the prominence of Sequel Hooks by claiming the Herschel Krustofsky School for the Clowning Arts winning the science bowl against Springfield Elementary with a tiebreaker is a "Hollywood ending, except Hollywood doesn't write endings anymore, they just tease the sequels."
- After complaining that previous mafia revenue sources like marijuana and sports betting are now legal, Fat Tony calls private schools "America's last untapped scam."
- Tempting Fate: Upon accepting Rainer Wolfcastle's bribe, Krusty says "I could afford another marriage". An angry pregnant woman enters the door, leading Krusty to say "and just in time!"
- Touché: After Bart claims Krusty's school can turn his life around and make him "like Lisa, but fun," Lisa objects to being called unfun. Bart points out she's reading a tragic book entitled "You Aren't There God, I Give Up, Margaret", Lisa withdraws her objection.
- Virtuous Character Copy: The Pennywise parody that Krusty meets up with doesn't do anything monsterous, or anything at all for that matter, which automatically makes him a nicer character than the Humanoid Abomination he's based on, and the parody from earlier this season he got his green palette from.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: After mishearing Bart's offering of "nachos" as "nachas", the Yiddish word for parental pride, Krusty is content with everything that happened because he believes his father is proud of him.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Bart convinces his parents to let him go to Krusty's school because he doesn't want to turn out "unfun" like Lisa. This comes up twice more, with Lisa feeling bad about how people see her as a killjoy. It seems like it's setting up a plot development, but it gets abruptly dropped halfway through, with Lisa's later appearance at the math competition having nothing to do with it and then her disappearing from the episode.
- Wingding Eyes: After Krusty hears about how much tuition is for private schools, he gets dollar signs in his eyes. One of his fellow clowns mentions the idea of selling gag contact lenses, only for Krusty to say they're not contact lenses, but scars from botched laser eye surgery from a drive-through surgical clinic.
