"Death and Texas" is the 57th episode of King of the Hill. It was first aired on April 27, 1999. The episode was written by John Altschuler and Dave Krinsky, and directed by Wes Archer.
Summary[]
Peggy visits a convict whom she believes is a long-lost student whose life went downhill, but is really a con man who needs a drug mule for his cocaine addiction. Meanwhile, Dale tries to get a job as an executioner at the local penitentiary.
Plot[]
A death row inmate, Wesley Martin Archer, writes to Peggy claiming to have been touched by her substitute teaching. Peggy visits him in prison and brings him books to read, much to the disapproval of Hank. Discovering that Wes is illiterate, Peggy begins tutoring him. She plays Boggle with him and gives him the Boggle set to use. At their next meeting, Wes tells Peggy that the Boggle timer was destroyed in a fight and that his partner Jennette will give her a new timer to bring to him.
Meanwhile, Dale, inspired by hearing about Peggy's visiting the prison, wants to become an executioner. The warden accepts Dale's offer to spray the entire prison for pests for $1. Dale then states gleefully that according to the prison manual, he is eligible to become an executioner. The warden agrees to add him to the long waiting list but erases his name after he leaves the room.
Peggy gets the over-sized timer, packed to the brim, from Wes's friend. Later Wes claims that the sand spilled out of the timer, so Peggy retrieves a brick of "timer sand" from his friend. Soon Wes admits to Peggy that the timer sand was actually cocaine and that he has been using her as a drug mule. He tells her that he had written all of the teachers in the Arlen yearbook and she was the only one naive enough to respond, saying to her, "I never had you as a teacher! I'm from Arkansas. I'm almost 40 for God's sake!"
Wes threatens to turn Peggy in unless she brings him a list of items including a "box of pornography, a jug of corn liquor, a Farrah Fawcett poster and a Milwaukee Sawzall," as well as a brick of cocaine every week. Peggy reveals that Wes is dealing the cocaine to the Aryan Brotherhood, prompting Hank to propose that they replace the drugs with real sand so that the neo-Nazi prison gang will "make a pincushion out of him." She clarifies that Wes always tasted the timer sand, so the idea is scrapped. The deadline passes, and Peggy is called to see the warden since Wes accused her of intentionally doping him with cocaine. Before going to the office, Peggy and Hank try to spend as much time with Bobby as they can since they both believe that Peggy will be incriminated and sentenced to prison. The next day, they go to the meeting with the warden to find that the only evidence against Peggy is the empty timer, which "looks like it's been licked clean." With no evidence, Peggy is absolved of the crime, and Wes is arrested.
On the way home, Peggy says that "someone" owes her an apology, which means she's talking about Hank. Hank apologizes, but when he does not know what he is apologizing for, Peggy accepts and the episode ends.
Characters[]
- Hank Hill
- Peggy Hill
- Bobby Hill
- Luanne Platter
- Dale Gribble
- Jeff Boomhauer
- Bill Dauterive
- Wesley Martin Archer (debut)
- Jennette (debut)
- Prison warden
- Prison security guards
- Sam (non-speaking)
- Jennette's children (non-speaking)
- Ray (mentioned)
Stinger Quote[]
- Bobby: "All sloppy and no joe."
Trivia[]
- The episode title is a reference to the popular phrase "death and taxes" (used in the saying that those two are the most inevitable things in life).
- When the prison warden erases Dale's name from the list of executioners, one of the other names listed is Alex DeLarge, the main character from the Anthony Burgess novel (and Stanley Kubrick film) "A Clockwork Orange".
- Another name on the list of executioners is one of the the writers of the episode, John Altschuler.
- The main antagonist of the episode, Wesley Martin Archer, is named after the episode's director, Wesley Archer and his brother Martin Archer.
- Bobby's essay that Peggy covers up with Wesley's drawing reads: "Some people might try to tell you that pollution is good. I think they are wrong. From all the research I have done it seems to me that pollution is bad. Very bad. Pollution makes the sky a funny brown color and that is bad. The only way to stop all this pollution is if we will just stop spilling oil and throwing our garbage around. My dad says that if we all used propane there would be a lot less pollution because propane is a clean burning efficient fuel. I am so sure that pollution is bad that when I get this paper back I will never throw it out."
- Wes and Jennette are seen again in the Season 11 episode "Glen Peggy Glen Ross" as Hank is leaving the prison. They talk next to the prisoner Hank spoke with regarding the golf clubs.
- When Wesley Archer asks Peggy Hill to translate "Peggy Hill is the smartest, most talented woman on earth" in Spanish, she simplifies the translation as "Peggy Hill es bueno." A more accurate translation would have been "Peggy Hill es la mujer más inteligente y talentosa del mundo."
Quotes[]
To be added.
Goofs[]
- During the scene in the warden's office where Peggy is accused of smuggling cocaine, the timer is sitting empty on the warden's desk. But after Peggy denies the accusation, the timer is shown full.