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"Of Mice and Little Green Men" is the one hundred-eighteenth episode of King of the Hill. It was first aired on April 7, 2002. The episode was written by Sivert Glarum and Michael Jamin, and directed by Shaun Cashman.

Summary[]

When Dale and Hank realize they have more in common with each other's son than their own, Dale reveals a shocking truth relating to Joseph's true father.

Plot[]

When the guys are drinking in the alley, Hank tries to tell a joke that Bill tries to finish when he is suddenly hit with a lacrosse ball. Joseph admits he was the one who threw the ball since he is trying out for the team. Dale praises his son for being so athletic but wonders how he is so skilled since he and Nancy are not athletic; John Redcorn leaving Dale's house just then.

At dinner time, Bill is eating with the Hill's as they monitor his condition during his concussion. When Bobby starts speaking in a heavy Southern accent, Hank scolds him for his impression at the table when Peggy announces that Bobby is one of the stars in the play Of Mice and Men. Bobby tries to get Hank to help him rehearse for the upcoming act but Hank quickly weasels out of it by saying Peggy is better at these things than he is. However, when Peggy sees how upset Bobby is by Hank's actions, she turns the tables on Hank and puts him in a spot where he cannot get out of helping Bobby.

Things get interrupted when a lacrosse ball breaks the patio window and hits Bill. Hank takes the ball next door and begins to scold Joseph for his aim when Joseph confesses that Dale is one who threw the ball that broke the window. Coming out from hiding in a bush, Dale admits to Hank that he is not fit for teaching Joseph. At that moment, the two fathers realize they can help the other's son and proceed to spend time with them, Bobby appearing to be the only one upset as it means he does not get to spend time with Hank.

While each boy better polishes their skills under the other's father and make staring debuts in their respective events, they are still hurt that their own father did not watch them and later catch each other at a restaurant together. After Peggy leaves with the boys, Dale and Hank both admit that they have nothing in common with their son's when Dale drops a shocking revelation that he knows Joseph is not his real son.

Surprised, Hank questions what Dale means and hears him point out how he and Joseph do not share any physical appearance similarities or personality traits. Dale continues by detailing how, around the time Nancy got pregnant, he had been in Marfa, Texas to study the Marfa Lights and had asked John Redcorn to look after Nancy while he was gone. Dale suspects that space aliens had impregnated Nancy in order to distract him from "finding the truth" by keeping him busy with a kid and that Joseph is really the son of an alien. Not able to confess the real truth, Hank goes along with Dale's theory as the reason he cannot bond with Joseph and Dale suspects Hank's reason for not being able to connect with Bobby is that he is a bad father.

At home, Hank apologizes to Bobby for missing his opening act and promises to attend the next play when Bobby reveals that the other leading actor had a job transfer that will keep him from attending the second night of the play. Hank tries to pretend to be upset but his ruse makes Bobby deem him the perfect substitute for the role. At the Gribble house, Dale tries to make amends with Joseph but makes a mess of things when he tells the teen that he is not his real father. Joseph tries to get Nancy to clear things up but her nervous behavior only makes him further believe that Dale was telling the truth. He tells Bobby this news and that he plans to head to Marfa to find his space father to leave with him. Not wanting Joseph to go through with this or do it alone, Bobby accompanies him on the trip.

Because Bobby left, Hank and Peggy were forced to perform the play. When they return home, they learn from Dale that the boys ran off to Marfa and head out to find them. At the lights site, Joseph decides to head further in the desert to be easier for his alien father to find and Bobby chases after him. Hank and Dale eventually arrive and find out that the boys headed into the desert.

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As Dale continues to voice that Joseph's relation to a being from space, Hank, having enough, tells Dale that he is Joseph's true dad as he has been there for him since he was born when the 'alien' has not. Dale comes to accept this and finds Joseph as he attempts to get the Marfa Lights to accept him. He stops the teen and the group begin to head home.

As they drive back, Joseph pitches the theory that the aliens had gotten ahold of Dale's genetic material to create him. Dale 'recovers' the memory of this incident and joyfully proclaims that Joseph is his true son. At the same time, Hank and Bobby apologize to each other and bond over how they each have a Gribble to look after.

Characters[]

Stinger Quote[]

  • Bobby: "Hey, Dad, what's in the jar?"
  • Hank: "Don't drink it!"

Trivia[]

  • The title of this episode is a play on Of Mice and Men, the novella written by John Steinbeck.
  • This episode's stinger quote is a rare example of a line unused anywhere else in the episode.
  • In this episode, Joseph is playing Lacrosse and is a natural at it. Lacrosse is a game invented by Native Americans. This is a nod to his biological ancestry by John Redcorn.
  • This is the first episode where we see how similar Dale and Joseph are in personality. Up until this point, Joseph acted just like any other normal American white teenager (much to John Redcorn's dismay).
  • Dale's comment about making a good pet for the aliens is a reference to the song "Pets" by Porno for Pyros.
  • The Marfa lights are real phenomena that have been observed in Marfa, Texas for decades. Dale says that the lights have been dismissed as "swamp gas, experimental aircraft, or weather balloons", which are all UFO-explanation clichés, when in fact skeptics versed in the subject actually claim the Marfa lights are car headlights on a distant highway, distorted by local atmospheric conditions. Because of the frequency of the appearance of the lights (nearly every night), either skeptics are correct or Marfa, Texas is adjacent to a very busy UFO highway.
  • The previous Bugabago can be seen during the flashback scene when Dale goes to Marfa. This van is light purple with "Dale's Dead Bug" written in pink in Streamster font.


Season 5 Season 6 Season 7

Bobby Goes Nuts · Soldier of Misfortune · Lupe's Revenge · The Father, the Son, and J.C. · Father of the Bribe · I'm with Cupid · Torch Song Hillogy · Joust Like a Woman · The Bluegrass is Always Greener · The Substitute Spanish Prisoner · Unfortunate Son · Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret Hill · Tankin' it to the Streets · Of Mice and Little Green Men · A Man Without a Country Club · Beer and Loathing · Fun with Jane and Jane · My Own Private Rodeo · Sug Night · Dang Ol' Love · Returning Japanese · Returning Japanese II
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