Red October Sky
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Red October Sky” | |
|---|---|
| American Dad! episode | |
 Stan's New Neighbor |
|
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 13 |
| Written by | Steve Hely |
| Directed by | Caleb Meurer |
| Production no. | 3AJN11 |
| Original airdate | April 27, 2008 |
| Newspaper Headline | Friend's T-Shirt Idea Deemed "Genius!" By Friend |
| Season 3 episodes | |
| American Dad - Season 3 September 30, 2007 – May 18, 2008 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ← Season 2 | |
| List of American Dad! episodes | |
Red October Sky is an episode of the television program American Dad!.
[edit] Synopsis
Stan is assigned to search for a former KGB agent, Sergei Kruglov. He and Sergei had a history twenty years ago, during a prisoner exchange between them. While arguing about the wonders of capitalism and communism, Sergei tricks him and brings him back to the Soviet side, resulting in six more months in Soviet custody before he got out. Steve wants his help in building a rocket for an altitude contest but Stan is too busy to help out. His first rocket accidentally goes into their neighbor's house, and discover he has been dead for weeks (Hayley seems to be the only one who cares that he's dead).
After digitally searching all over the world, Stan is shocked to find that the man is his new next-door neighbor. Sergei claims that he had turned to capitalism and decides to end the feud. This brings Stan on the promotion to being Deputy-Under Director of Missing Foreign Agents and is then assigned to find ten more. Because of Stan's lack of support, Steve goes to Sergei for help with his rocket. After a lot of work, Stan hears Steve say "proletariat", a word common among communists. He confronts Sergei, who reveals that he intends to turn Steve into a communist. The reason why is because that after communism's fall, his wife left him for a German tennis equipment salesman and his son turned to sports and selling Halloween costumes for dogs, so he vowed that one day he will get his revenge. Stan, feeling that Steve would stick to being American, denies it, only to find that Steve had decorated his room with Soviet posters, photographs of famous communist leaders and Soviet and Chinese flags.
To save his son, Stan destroys everything Soviet, communist and the rocket. Determined to use capitalism, Stan brings Steve on a wide buying spree where they buy a huge rocket and a tech crew, deciding to finally make good on Steve's requests. At the contest, Sergei had helped Barry with his rocket. As the contest starts, most of the rockets fail while Steve's, Toshi's and Barry's rocket go up high. But the former's explodes nearing passing velocity and the latter's survives. Steve isn't concerned, however, for he just wanted his dad's support, which was the decisive battle Sergei was waging. He was going to plan long-term revenge, which he describes as growing a garden, but Stan and Steve just laugh in his face and leave. However, Stan spent all their money on the rocket. But from his logic, he didn't spend anything because he did not make any money. At the end of the episode, Stan and Sergei seem to have some level of friendship; after the latter gloats he tampered with the former's shower head, Sergei then gives Stan some mail that was accidently delivered to him.
Meanwhile, Klaus tries to kill himself (by suffocating without water) because nobody remembered his birthday. Roger is able to save him and they decide to head to Europe for a little R&R, where they experience the continent's greatest wonders, especially the women.
[edit] Trivia
- The episode's title is in reference to The Hunt for Red October, October Sky, and "Red October", a nickname for the October Revolution.
- The episode is a parody of the novel and film Apt Pupil.
- Klaus and Roger are never seen returning to America. The original episode summary said that Klaus would get them both busted for drug smuggling, but this was apparently changed some time after the information was released.
- Upon sighting two buxom Swiss beauties, Roger openly wonders if he even likes girls, eventually deciding that he must.
- When you see Stan reading a book called "Where Are They Now", you can see the terror alert on the fridge. It is revealed in the episode Threat Levels, Blue means a better risk of terrorist attacks, and the two colors are backwards on the fridge.
[edit] Cultural References
- The National Anthem of the Soviet Union (which is also similar to the current anthem of the Russian Federation) is featured prominently in this episode.
- Stan confuses the poster of Che Guevara for a poster for Planet of the Apes.
- During the scene where Stan and Steve buy the rocket supplies and demonstrate American excess, the price of all the merchandise comes to $847.63, the same price that comes up on the scanner when Maggie is scanned in the opening sequence of The Simpsons.
- Sergei slams his shoe against a crate similar to Nikita Khrushchev during a rough session in United Nations. Additionally, Barry later says "we will bury you", which Khrushchev said in a speech.
- Roger and Klaus are seen walking into a Taco Bell while visiting Rome, in which they say they will make up for it by eating a "large Italian meal." This satirizes Americans who eat at American fast-food chains while visiting foreign countries.
- The scene with Roger and Klaus at the airport is similar to a scene from The Simpsons episode, The Italian Bob in which Lisa also pretends to be Canadian. It is also the episode in which references to both Family Guy and American Dad! occur.
- The above scene also references an Eddie Izzard bit from Dress to Kill in which he states Americans should pretend to be Canadian when they go to Europe (by putting Canadian stickers on.)
- Francine refers to Steve as "my little Disney's The Rocketeer."
- Stan's boss said they were keeping an eye on Sergei through his Columbia House account, where he purchased Sheryl Crow, but lost him, to which Stan replies, "Damn Limewire!"
- While speculating where Sergei may be hiding, Stan says, "Cuba? China? Back in time to kill Betsy Ross?"
- While receiving the news about Mr. Hallworthy's death, Francine exclaims, "Nutty bars! They stock Nutty Bars now!"
- When Stan meets a newly American Sergei, he is wearing a Mets cap and a Winnie the Pooh shirt, smokes Menthol cigarettes, and eats Peeps.
- While trying to convince Stan that he is American, Sergei shows him a Costco card.
- Sergei claims he learned capitalism while working in Moscow's first McDonalds, where he then moved up to the first Wendy's, and again to the first Burger King. He hit hard times when he worked at the first Hardee's, although the latter three never opened in Russia.
- There is a reference to Air Pippen's in the show which is parodying Air Jordan's, for former Chicago Bulls player Scottie Pippen who played with Michael Jordan
