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"In Marge We Trust" is episode 22 in season eight of The Simpsons. The episode introduces the fictional character Mr. Sparkle, who is the mascot of a fictional brand of dishwashing detergent from Japan.

Synopsis

Template:Spoiler Homer Simpson takes Bart and Lisa to the Springfield dump after church and finds a box of Japanese dishwasher detergent whose mascot, Mr. Sparkle, looks suspiciously like Homer.

Meanwhile, Marge becomes concerned with Reverend Lovejoy's lack of enthusiasm about helping people. She begins working for the Church as "The Listen Lady", listening to people describe their problems. Her popularity in Springfield subsequently skyrockets. Reverend Lovejoy, however, realizes his inadequacy and begins to feel depressed.

Homer, disturbed by the box of Mr. Sparkle, contacts the manufacturer for information. As it turns out, the manufacturer is the result of a joint venture between two huge Japanese corporations (Matsumura Fishworks and Tamaribuchi Heavy Manufacturing Concern) whose mascots are a fish and light bulb, respectively. Their promotional video shows the mascots merging to become Mr. Sparkle. "There's your answer, fishbulb," Bart quips.

One day, Ned Flanders calls Marge for help. Jimbo, Dolph, and Kearney are hanging around outside the Leftorium, and he's worried that "they could start slacking any minute." Marge suggests that he shoo them away. Unbeknownst to him, they're about to leave, but when he comes out and asks them to, they get a different idea. When Ned calls Marge again, he's standing on a chair while the three boys circle him on their motorbikes. She tells him to "lay down the law." One of them snips the phone cord, and Marge assumes that Ned has hung up.

When Ned is discovered missing, Marge realizes that she may be partially responsible. She goes to Reverend Lovejoy for help. No longer feeling useless, he seeks Ned out and with some crafty detective work, finds him at the zoo. Jimbo, Dolph, and Kearney have abandoned their pursuit, but now Ned has a whole new problem: he's trapped in the baboon exhibit. While the Simpson family watches in horror, Reverend Lovejoy performs a dramatic rescue, complete with kiddie train and gymnastic combat.

Now that he feels useful again, Reverend Lovejoy rediscovers his passion for his work. The episode ends as he regales his congregation with the tale of Ned's rescue.

Trivia

• Reverend Lovejoy's church sounds are an ambulance, a bird (which sounds like a hawk cry), and a disco whistle.
• In the beginning of the commercial of Mr. Sparkle when the Japanese man is saying to the American investor that he (the investor) is interested in distributing Mr. Sparkle, but instead of saying in your home state he says home prefecture referring to the jurisdictional divisions of Japan.
• On the Mr. Sparkle box, he thought to be saying "パワークリーン!", a transliteration of "Power Clean!". However if you look closely, it actually says "ハワークリーン!" which would be pronounced "Hower Clean!".　The box name in katakana "ミスタースパーコル", which transliterates as "Mister Sparkle" in English. Bart mistakes the katakana text as a futuristic text when he first saw the box.
• Much of the Japanese dialogue in the episode is poorly pronounced/translated and unintelligible to a Japanese listener. (Although much closer to Japanese than Ling-Ling's Japorean).
• In The Zoo one of the sign boards says "Habitat for Huge Manetees" which is a spoof of "Habitat For Humanity"
• Mr. Sparkle makes a second appearance in the episode "Thirty Minutes Over Tokyo," where the Simpson family travels to Japan and appears on a torturous Japanese game show.
• In a later episode Bart is seen looking in a cupboard for a video camera, while he is looking the Mr Sparkle box can be seen.
• There's an exterior cleaning company based in British Columbia, Canada that calls itself "Mr. Sparkle". Their website is at http://www.mrsparkle.net
• The fake Fruity Oaty Bar commercial in the film Serenity is partially inspired by Mr. Sparkle. The octopus featured in the Fruity Oaty Bar commercial can be seen as a toy in the background of the original Mr. Sparkle commercial.
• Mr. Sparkle also appears as one of the Collector Cards in The Simpsons Hit and Run.
• A deleted scene contained on The Simpsons season eight DVDs reveals that Jasper Beardley proceeded Reverend Lovejoy as minister at the Simpsons' church in Springfield.

Cultural references

• The episode title is a play on the United States' national motto, In God We Trust.
• The point of view shot of the bullies circling Ned on their bikes parodies a famous scene from the film Black Rain.

Quotes

• Mr. Sparkle: (in Japanese) I'm disrespectful to dirt. Can you see that I am serious?
• Mr. Sparkle: (in Japanese) Out of my way, all of you. This is no place for loafers! Join me or die! Can you do any less?
  Japanese Women: (in Japanese) What a brave corporate logo! I accept the challenge of Mr. Sparkle.
  Woman #1: (in heavily-accented English) Awesoma powa!
• Akira: (On phone) Hai, Hai, Hai, Bye. (Turns to Homer, Bart and Lisa) Hi!
  Homer: Akira, can you translate this for me. (shows Akira the box)
  Akira: Ah yes, this is a product called Mr. Sparkle, Hey, he looks like you! (laughs)
  Lisa: What's he saying?
  Akira: He identifies himself as a magnet for foodstuffs. He boasts that he will banish dirt to the land of wind and ghosts.
• Marge: Donny?
  Donny: What?
  Marge: Did you see a man being chased by some young hooligans?
  Donny: I see lots of stuff.
  Lisa: Did you see that?
  Donny: Yes.
• Moe: Hi. I'm calling for Rev. Lovejoy. Who is this?
  Marge: This is...uh...the Listen Lady.
  Moe: Yeah well, listen, lady! I've got so many problems I don't know where to begin.
  Marge: Why don't you start from the top?
  Moe: Okay, uh, Number One, I've lost the will to live.
  Marge: That's ridiculous, Moe! You've got lots to live for.
  Moe: Really? That's not what Rev. Lovejoy's been telling me! Thanks! (hangs up, then calls back) Hi, it's me again. This one's about my cat. (Moe's cat groans off-camera) (to his cat) Yeah, shut up! I'm askin' her!
• Agnes: Seymour, I'm tired! Tell them we're going next!
  Skinner: I'm not principal of the line, mother!
  Agnes: And you never will be.
• (Rev. Lovejoy meets Ned for the first time)
  Ned: Uh, Reverend, I have bit of a pickle here.
  Lovejoy: Well, sit down and rap with me, brother. That's what I'm here for.
  Ned: The other night I got talked into doing this dance called "The Bump", but my hips slipped and my...buttocks came into contact with the...buttocks of another young man!
• Ned (calling Lovejoy and Helen while they are in Paris): I think I swallowed a toothpick!
• Bart: Hey Dad, if they have a picture of you, that means they can see you! They're probably watching us right now!
  Marge: That's ridiculous! No one is watching us.
  (the family goes into an awkward silence as they look around at each other)
• Lovejoy: (disgruntled by letter selection while filling marquee) Can you believe it? They give you five "Q"s and only two "U"s. What a world.
• Homer: We're gonna get rid of the old Christmas tree. (shows the brown, wrinkled tree) It's starting to turn brown.
• Skinner (calling Lovejoy): Mother's gone too far! She's put cardboard over her half of the television. We rented Man Without a Face; I didn't even know he had a problem! What should I do?
  Lovejoy: Well, maybe you should read your Bible.
  Skinner: Um, any particular passage?
  Lovejoy: Oh, it's all good.
  Skinner: Alright, thanks anyway.
• (after the mystery of the Mr. Sparkle logo has been solved)
  Lisa: Hey...it was all a coincidence.
  Bart: Yep, there's your answer, fishbulb.
  Homer: (numbly) Well, it was a good ride while it lasted. Come on, kids, let's go home.
  Bart: We are home.
  Homer: That was fast.
• Reverend Lovejoy: You heathen baboons!

External links

• "In Marge We Trust episode capsule". The Simpsons Archive.

• The Simpsons episodes, season 8