Super Dude Theory V1.25

Fanscript

• But he is dead!
• Precedent
• X-Files Connection
• The Awakening
• Bobo/Super Dude Connection
• Principal Skinner Connection
• Groundskeeper Willy Connection
• The Gun
• The Struggle
• Less Whacky Solutions
• Other Motive
• Other Clues
• The Super Dude Booster List
• How to vote for Super Dude

Legal Thingies

© 1995-1996 Super Dude Research: Haynes Lee. Thanx also to Cameron Shelly.

But he is dead!

Super Dude did not die. The basement he was buried in is a cursed druid burial ground. Think of the Stephen King movie Pet Cemetery. Super Dude's body was spat out of the soil because it was evil. When its body was thrown off the school roof it landed in the contaminated Springfield Nuclear Power Plant cooling pond (Skinner threw Super Dude's body in the direction of the SNPP). The combination of the carcinogenic crude oil and radioactive water turned Super Dude into a SPRINGFIELD MUTANT RABID GERBIL!

Precedent

In the episode which begins with Burns and Smithers trying to decide where to hide some nuclear waste drums. There's a shot with a squirrel which has glowing green eyes and shoots down acorns with its laser vision. Obviously, rodents and reactors don't mix! {cs} [9F10]

X-Files Connection

The government safety inspectors who came to Moe's Tavern are no other than Dana Scully and Fox Mulder of the X-Files (the female inspector is a red-head and looks a lot like Gillian Anderson). Scully and Mulder have investigated various mutant life forms. Super Dude could have been the source of the toxic fumes Scully and Mulder were detecting. Will there be an attempt to cover up the truth of Super Dude's involvement? {cs}

The Awakening

Gerbils are nocturnal. Burns blocking out the sun would have put Super Dude into an active state. Upon awakening the evil Super Dude roamed the dark streets looking for a victim. By killing Burns and eating the sunblocker remote, Super Dude was ensuring that the nocturnal darkness would become truly permanent. {cs}

Bobo/Super Dude Connection

Mr. Burns has poor eyesight as he could never recognize Homer. He could have also easily mistaken Super Dude for his teddy bear Bobo.

Principal Skinner Connection

Perhaps Super Dude was really mad at Skinner for tossing him away like that, and attacking Burn's was just a mistake (gerbils are notoriously near-sighted).{td} Maybe Skinner was waiting for Burns, saw Super Dude and ran off, leaving Super Dude at the scene when Burns arrived. After all, Skinner was in enough of a hurry to leave his mother in the Town Hall.{sc}

When Principal Skinner is about to read the headlines of the paper to the Superintendant. Skinner CLEARLY says "SUPER DID IT" instead of saying "Superintendant" when he addresses him. It is so clear that I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned it on this conference before (If you have, please don't flame me...). {hh}

Groundskeeper Willie Connection

Groundskeeper Willie (a.k.a. Janitor Willie) was too "superstitious" to take a job at the cemetery. What is it Willy knows about SD and how does that derive from his supersititions about cemetaries? The letters S could stand for Super Dude and W for Willy. Before burying Super Dude, Willie said "Yer lucky to be getting a decent burial. Me own father got thrown in the bog" (supposively after being hung for stealing a pig). This is a reference to a thousand year old body found in a bog in Northern England a number of years ago. Perhaps it is Willie's father?

The Gun

Super Dude is the only animal capable of digging up the handgun in the Simpson's backyard. Santa's Little Helper was unable to dig because of his two hind legs were broken. He was also unable to retreive it because of the cone.

There was oil next to the hole where the Smith and Wesson was buried. The oil came from Super Dude's oily hide.

The Struggle

When Burns came up to Super Dude thinking it's Bobo to pat it on the head, Super Dude however attacked Burns and grabbed his remote-control and started eating it. During the struggle Burns slips on the slippery Super Dude and falls down and the gun goes off shooting Burns. Super Dude then scurries off into the darkness.

Less Whacky Solutions

• Someone pointed out that Super Dude's "demise" by his own water bottle foreshadows Burns' misadventure by his own gun. Perhaps the parallel goes even further: Burns isn't really dead, and neither is Super Dude! {cs}
• At the beginning of the episode Principal Skinner threw the dead gerbil coated in oil off of the school roof. When Mr. Burns leaves the town meeting, he is confronted by his possible killer but when he pulls his gun he backs up and slips on the oily gerbil, causing the gun to go off and shooting himself. {wp}
• Perhaps Super Dude is actually the reincarnation of the atom-smasher Burns' great-grandfather had entombed in a wall in "Last Exit to Springfield". He came back to earth to get his revenge against the great-grandson of the man who had him killed, and assumed the form of a gerbil so that he wouldn't be recognized. {dh}

We all killed Mr. Burns. We did not love him enouph.
-- Waylon Smithers

Other Motive

Burns is cruel to animals which is evident in "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds" [2F18] and his comments to SLH in "Who Shot Mr. Burns Part One" [2F16].

Other Clues

• Super Dude is the first gerbil in the Simpsons. The starring rodent-pets are usually cute hamsters so there must be something inherently evil about gerbils.
• Super Dude is the smallest character on the Simpsons so he could easily scurry away unnoticed.
• "Super Dude" could be an acronym for "Sun Down".
• Gerbils don't vocalize much. That might explain why Burns' assailant is not heard during the struggle with Burns.
• Gerbils have large front teeth which explains why Burns thought Super Dude was smiling.
• Gerbils are nocturnal. Super Dude was sleeping all throughout his 'burial'.
• Super Dude is the most disposable or "flushable" character.

Like Tito Puente, the number "4" points significantly to Super Dude:

• Firstly, "Dude" has four letters in it.
• Super Dude is the pet of the grade four class.
• Super Dude is the only character with four legs (Santa's Little Helper was reduced to two legs).

If you find this theory plausible, send me an email and I'll add you to the "Super Dude theory booster list." Hey, you can't do any worse!

{cs} Cameron Shelley
{td} Toby Donaldson
{wp} WLFPCK83
{dh} Dominik Halas
{kl} Kevin Lewis
{hh} Howard I. Heisler