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Recap / The Simpsons S 20 E 13 Gone Maggie Gone

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In a parody of The Da Vinci Code and National Treasure, Maggie is abducted by nuns, who believe she's the fulfillment of a mysterious religious prophecy, while Principal Skinner, Comic Book Guy, Mr. Burns and Lisa also try to solve puzzles related to the mystery. Meanwhile, Marge goes blind from staring at a solar eclipse without a pinhole projector and Homer tries to cover up Maggie's disappearance before Marge can gain her eyesight back.



  • Ancient Conspiracy: As a parody of The Da Vinci Code, this naturally figures into the story.
    Mr. Burns: You see my dear girl, I joined the Freemasons before it was trendy. That's my eyeball on the dollar bill. That's also my pyramid.
  • Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking:
    • Lisa objects to Marge taking Maggie away from the throne, because "she's brought peace to our town! And reports of less road rage in Shelbyville!"
    • Comic Book Guy noting that "legend and Wikipedia have it that the gem will be revealed during the first full moon after a solar eclipse."
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  • Don't Explain the Joke: Homer basically spells out they are making a Ratatouille reference before actually making it.
  • Fox-Chicken-Grain Puzzle: "How does the fool cross the river with his burdens three?" The fool being Homer, with Santa's Little Helper, Maggie, and rat poison. Homer figures out a way to solve his puzzle and is so focused on it that, when he sees Santa's Little Helper swimming, he berates the dog for not paying attention to his plan. Then Cletus has a fox, duck, and corn (before he notices, the corn is eaten by the duck, which is gobbled up by the fox).
  • Gilligan Cut: Homer insisted he wouldn't dress himself as a nun. Cut to the next scene and he's still wearing his everyday clothes while Lisa was disguised as a nun. Then he asked her if she's really sure she doesn't want him to do it. He put on a nun disguise.
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  • Hollywood Nerd: Milhouse says he's not a smart nerd, just a weak nerd.
  • The Kindnapper: Considering the case Homer was building to persuade the nuns to let him take Maggie back, can anyone blame them for keeping her?
  • Running Gag: The puzzles being provided before the ad breaks.
  • Shout-Out:
  • Small Name, Big Ego: Lisa, when she gets the wrong answer telling her she's The Chosen One.
  • Stern Nun: The Mother Superior, also a Deadpan Snarker.
  • Whole Plot Reference: The main plot mixes elements of The Da Vinci Code (an Ancient Conspiracy involving the Catholic Church, based around puzzles and a MacGuffin) and National Treasure (a conspiracy dating to Colonial times, with The American Revolution as part of the conspiracy).


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