Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1)

Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1) is the first episode and season premiere of Season 2 of the FOX TV series Married... with Children, as well as the 14th overall episode. Written by Ron Leavitt and Michael G. Moye, the episode was directed by Linda Day. It first aired on FOX on September 27, 1987.

Synopsis

The Bundys take a vacation to near-beautiful Dumpwater, Florida and stay in a cut-rate motel where an ax murderer that hates tourists, shows up every five years since 1967, and redneck locals begin to make bets on who the psycho will strike next.

Full episode summary

To be added.

Cast

Regular Cast

Notes

Title

The episode title refers to the motel Poppy's by the Tree the Bundys stay at for their vacation.

Trivia

This is the first two-parter on Married... with Children.
Part 1 and 2 of this episode were originally shown as a one-hour episode.
The addition "by the Tree" is a reference to the common Florida beachfront resorts addition "by the Sea".
This episode starts off in black and white.
Dumpwater is a fictional town but according to the map shown in the episode it is located near Lake City, Florida.
The name "Dumpwater" could be a play on the name of an actual town called Clearwater in Florida.
Al and Peggy stay in room 21 and Bud and Kelly stay in room 22.
Sandy Sprung, who plays Dottie in this episode, was also a producer and writer on the show.
Charlie Dell, who plays Roy in this episode, would later play Leslie Baum in the season 9 episode "Shoeless Al".
Gary Grubb, who plays Delbert in this episode, would later play Cal Stevens in the season 11 episode, "Requiem for a Chevyweight (Part 2)".
Ian Patrick Williams, who plays Beany in this episode, would later play Inspector Fitzpatrick in the season 10 episode "Al Goes to the Dogs".
The ending credits for this episode show a still frame of the Bundy family entering Poppy's instead of Al and Peggy on the couch.

Cultural References

Al calls Beany "Elmo", which is a character from the children's TV show Sesame Street.

Music

The song that plays in the beginning of the episode is "Ode to Billie Joe" by Bobbie Gentry.

Locations

Sets

Bundy Living Room/Kitchen
Poppy's by the Tree Motel Lobby
Peggy and Al's Poppy's by the Tree Motel Room
Kelly and Bud's Poppy's by the Tree Motel Room

Goofs

The hole on Al and Peggy's bed, which the killer shoves the machete up through in the end, is visible the entire episode.
Bud asks to go down to the high school "tomorrow" to meet the man who met Andy Griffith. Earlier Al reads the events page in newspaper. The event was said to be "tonight."
Bud tells Beany that he wants his can of Coke to be unopened, yet when it arrives at the table it is already open and he proceeds to drink it.
At the end of the episode, the killer shoves a long machete up through the mattress. This isn't possible considering he's under a bed and there's not enough vertical space to shove a machete straight up.

External Links

Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1) at the Internet Movie Database
Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1) on Bundyology
Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1) - Illustrated Transcript on albundy.net
#15 Poppy's by the Tree - MWC Podcast on Horrorphilia

◄ Season 1	Season 2 Episodes	Season 3 ►
Poppy's by the Tree (Part 1) • Poppy's by the Tree (Part 2) • If I Were a Rich Man • Buck Can Do It • Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Part 1) • Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Part 2) • For Whom the Bell Tolls • Born to Walk • Alley of the Dolls • The Razor's Edge • How Do You Spell Revenge? • Earth Angel • You Better Watch Out • Guys and Dolls • Build a Better Mousetrap • Master the Possibilities • Peggy Loves Al, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah • The Great Escape • Impo-Dent • Just Married... with Children • Father Lode • All in the Family