"Hanky Panky" is the seventy-third episode of King of the Hill. It was first aired on February 6, 2000. The episode was written by Jim Dauterive and directed by Jeff Myers.
Summary[]
Hank is seduced by Buck Strickland's ex-wife Miz Liz and Buck's mistress Debbie Grund, the latter of whom is found dead in a Dumpster outside of Sugar Foot's Barbecue. Meanwhile, Buck transfers ownership of Sugarfoot's to Hank, but Peggy's ego takes charge and she gives the barbecue restaurant an overhaul.
Plot[]
The night of the Texas Propane Dealers' Association meeting finds Hank and his family in attendance for Hank to receive the Blue Flame of Valor award; also present are several of Hank's coworkers, including Buck Strickland and his mistress Debbie Grund (Reese Witherspoon). Hank's acceptance speech (as well as Buck and Debbie's gratuitous making out) is interrupted when Buck's wife Elizabeth "Miz Liz" Strickland (Kathleen Turner) bursts in and calls Buck out in front of everyone for his infidelity. Before leaving, she politely apologizes to Hank for the interruption.
Back at Strickland Propane, Buck distributes his possessions among his employees to hide them from Liz's divorce attorney, conferring upon Hank's ownership of his restaurant Sugarfoot's Bar-B-Q. The next day, Liz and her attorney arrive, ousting Buck from the day-to-day operation of Strickland Propane; whereupon Liz assumes management responsibilities. Her first executive order is to vengefully demote Debbie to the low-paying entry-level position of tank wipe.
Peggy, seemingly unaware that Sugarfoot's is to be turned back over to Buck when the divorce is complete, installs herself as general manager of the restaurant and makes sweeping changes. Meanwhile, Hank visits Buck at Debbie's apartment, noticing that Sugarfoot's is right across from the apartment complex. Returning to work, Hank is met by Liz, who takes him out for lunch and, with a monogrammed lighter as a gift, promotes him to manager. That night, Liz calls Hank at home claiming to have a propane leak in her house's hot tub. Hank arrives at the Strickland home, only to find candles, champagne, and seductive advances from Liz; Hank is oblivious at first but flees as soon as he realizes Liz's real intent. The next morning, Liz apologizes for her conduct and gives Hank a new "manager's uniform"—complete with short pants, much to the amusement of his co-workers, with Joe Jack in particular teasing him for being "Miz Liz's 'Debbie'".
That night, Hank secretly visits a convenience store to purchase cigarettes, resuming his old habit to ease his work stress. After he climbs into his truck to leave, Debbie appears beside him clad only in lingerie, attempting to seduce Hank, her boss, to seek protection from Liz. Hank rejects her, prompting Debbie to vow revenge. Hank returns home to find an accusing Buck waiting in his living room, having been told by Liz that she had slept with Hank. Buck believes Hank's truthful denial, however, and regretfully confesses that he just wants his wife (and his money) back.
The following day, Hank arranges for both Buck and Liz to arrive at Sugarfoot's without letting either know the other has also been invited, hoping to effect a reconciliation between the couple. However, Debbie calls Hank, threatening to tell Peggy that Hank had slept with her; thinking quickly, Hank stalls Debbie by saying that he will sleep with her after all and shall meet up with her right away, but instead, he rushes to Sugarfoot's to talk to Peggy before Debbie can. As he enters, Buck and Liz arrive at nearly the same time and manage to reconcile over their shared horror over the changes Peggy has made to the restaurant. Hank suddenly remembers Debbie and rushes to her apartment to try and stop her.
Soon after, Peggy is working in the restaurant kitchen when she hears a gunshot outside. She cautiously heads out back to investigate and is horrified to discover Debbie's body in the dumpster, ending the episode with the storyline continued in "High Anxiety".
Characters[]
- Hank Hill
- Peggy Hill
- Bobby Hill
- Luanne Platter
- Dale Gribble
- Joseph Gribble
- Jeff Boomhauer
- Bill Dauterive
- M.F. Thatherton
- Buck Strickland
- Debbie Grund (guest-star)
- Elizabeth "Miz Liz" Strickland (guest-star)
- Gale
- Jewel Crawford
- Little John
- Elvin
- Joe Jack
- Charlie Fortner
- Maria Montalvo (non-speaking)
- Enrique (non-speaking)
- Jason Adderly (non-speaking)
- Melinda Grab (non-speaking)
- Hector (non-speaking)
- Stu (non-speaking)
- Tom (non-speaking)
- D.C. (non-speaking)
- Bubba (non-speaking)
- Merrill (non-speaking)
Stinger Quote[]
- Joe Jack: "(coughing) Uh, boy toy."
Trivia[]
- Peggy is a Notary Public for the State of Texas (specifically under the Texas Secretary of State), in her role she serves the public as an impartial witness in performing a variety of official fraud-deterrent acts related to the signing of important documents.
- Peggy's notary seal/stamp contains her legal name "Margaret J. Hill". Texas law requires the exact name used as it appears on the notary's commission, the words "Notary Public" and "State of Texas", along with the seal of office—all of which the stamp contains.
- Debbie and Gale reside at Casa Linda, Building 25, Apartment 318D in Arlen, Texas.
- Debbie and Gale's apartment has an Ecology Flag hanging on the living room wall. The Ecology Flag symbolizes the commitment to clean up the environment.
- Buck Strickland incorrectly introduces Gale to Hank as Laura.
Quotes[]
To be added.
Goofs[]
- When Elizabeth Strickland tells Buck Strickland to get out of the house and lake house, Debbie's eyebrows disappear a couple of times.
- When Hank speaks to Buck in his home, the portrait in the background has Peggy with blonde hair. When it cuts back to Hank speaking, it changes to her actual brown hair.
- At the end of the scene where Peggy shows the Sugarfoot's employees her suggestion box, Little John's shirt, which is normally red, turns a pink color as he opens an envelope.
Gallery[]
