It Ain't Over 'til the Fat Neighbor Sings
Encyclopedia
"It Ain't Over 'til the Fat Neighbor Sings" is the 186th episode of the FOX
animated television series King of the Hill
, broadcast as the ninth season finale
. The episode's title is a reference to the opera
expression "it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings".
is more despondent than usual, feeling that no one at the Army base appreciates him or would miss him if he were gone. Hank
tries to help him by taking him to his church. There, Bill becomes fascinated with the Harmonaholics, an all-male choir. Wanting more than anything to join them, he goes as far as to stop their bus to get an audition. The Harmonaholics accept Bill into their ranks, making him happy to the point that he wears the group's uniform around the alley and sings unnecessarily. The gang is dismayed, with Dale
nearly going insane resisting the urge to mock him, but Hank is at least glad that Bill has cheered up.
Unfortunately, the choir soon indoctrinates Bill into putting them above everything else in his life, and he begins skipping work, using up all of his vacation and sick days to practice with them. At this point, the base's general schedules a haircut appointment with Bill, who now cannot miss it. Addicted to the choir, however, Bill goes AWOL anyway to tour with them.
After the Army drives by the alley looking for Bill, Hank and the gang finally decide to intervene, even though going after him will mean skipping a Dallas Cowboys
game for which they already have tickets. They confront Bill right before the choir's performance and try to reason with him, but he tunes them out at first; even Dale's most vitriolic insults fail to embarrass him into giving up the choir. However, when Bill realizes that the gang skipped the football game to help him, and that they are trying to keep him from being court-martial
ed, he sees who his true friends are.
Bill returns to the Army base just in time for the general's haircut. He finally gets healthy recognition as the general compliments his work, even remarking about how important barbers like Bill are to keeping the Army's boys looking good in the field.
In a side plot, Peggy
and Bobby
begin a game of Pong
at home that turns into an all-day marathon. The game remains scoreless for hours, with neither player daring to leave it for any reason. When Hank comes in late from his trip to find Bill, he goes to bed without realizing that both Peggy and Bobby have fallen asleep in front of the TV. Peggy finally scores a point when Bobby topples over and drops his controller.
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
animated television series King of the Hill
King of the Hill
King of the Hill is an American animated dramedy series created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, that ran from January 12, 1997, to May 6, 2010, on Fox network. It centers on the Hills, a working-class Methodist family in the fictional small town of Arlen, Texas...
, broadcast as the ninth season finale
Season finale
A season finale is the final episode of a season of a television program...
. The episode's title is a reference to the opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
expression "it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings".
Plot
BillBill Dauterive
Bill Dauterive, born Gillaume Fontaine de la Tour D'Haute Rive is a fictional character on the Fox animated series King of the Hill...
is more despondent than usual, feeling that no one at the Army base appreciates him or would miss him if he were gone. Hank
Hank Hill
Henry Rutherford "Hank" Hill Age 50 animated series King of the Hill. Hank lives in Arlen, Texas and works at the fictional Strickland Propane selling propane and propane accessories. Hank's voice is provided by series creator Mike Judge. The Economist named Hank Hill as one of the wisest people...
tries to help him by taking him to his church. There, Bill becomes fascinated with the Harmonaholics, an all-male choir. Wanting more than anything to join them, he goes as far as to stop their bus to get an audition. The Harmonaholics accept Bill into their ranks, making him happy to the point that he wears the group's uniform around the alley and sings unnecessarily. The gang is dismayed, with Dale
Dale Gribble
Dale Alvin Gribble is a fictional character in the animated series King of the Hill. and is voiced by Johnny Hardwick . He is an exterminator, bounty hunter, smoker, gun fanatic, and paranoid believer of almost all conspiracy theories and urban legends...
nearly going insane resisting the urge to mock him, but Hank is at least glad that Bill has cheered up.
Unfortunately, the choir soon indoctrinates Bill into putting them above everything else in his life, and he begins skipping work, using up all of his vacation and sick days to practice with them. At this point, the base's general schedules a haircut appointment with Bill, who now cannot miss it. Addicted to the choir, however, Bill goes AWOL anyway to tour with them.
After the Army drives by the alley looking for Bill, Hank and the gang finally decide to intervene, even though going after him will mean skipping a Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
game for which they already have tickets. They confront Bill right before the choir's performance and try to reason with him, but he tunes them out at first; even Dale's most vitriolic insults fail to embarrass him into giving up the choir. However, when Bill realizes that the gang skipped the football game to help him, and that they are trying to keep him from being court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
ed, he sees who his true friends are.
Bill returns to the Army base just in time for the general's haircut. He finally gets healthy recognition as the general compliments his work, even remarking about how important barbers like Bill are to keeping the Army's boys looking good in the field.
In a side plot, Peggy
Peggy Hill
Margaret J. "Peggy" Hill is a fictional character in the American animated series King of the Hill.-Biography:Peggy is the matriarch of the Hill family, and the wife of series protagonist Hank Hill. She wears rimless glasses and is generally seen wearing cut-off blouses and culottes...
and Bobby
Bobby Hill (King of the Hill)
Robert Jeffrey "Bobby" Hill is a character on the animated series King of the Hill and is voiced by Pamela Adlon. Bobby is the only child of Hank and Peggy Hill.- Biography :...
begin a game of Pong
Pong
Pong is one of the earliest arcade video games, and is a tennis sports game featuring simple two-dimensional graphics. While other arcade video games such as Computer Space came before it, Pong was one of the first video games to reach mainstream popularity...
at home that turns into an all-day marathon. The game remains scoreless for hours, with neither player daring to leave it for any reason. When Hank comes in late from his trip to find Bill, he goes to bed without realizing that both Peggy and Bobby have fallen asleep in front of the TV. Peggy finally scores a point when Bobby topples over and drops his controller.