Stinkmeaner Strikes Back

"Stinkmeaner Strikes Back" is the fourth episode of the second season of the Adult Swim animated television series The Boondocks and the nineteenth episode overall. It originally aired on October 29, 2007.

Plot

The episode opens with Colonel H. Stinkmeaner, the old man whom Robert Freeman murdered in Granddad's Fight, enjoying himself in a Japanese-styled hell. Impressed, the Devil declares him "the baddest motherfucker hell had ever seen", having "called the devil himself a 'bitch ass nigga.'" Satan gives him the opportunity to return to Earth and spread ignorance and chaos among the black community. He is also thus given the opportunity to seek revenge against the Freeman family. Stinkmeaner, declaring that "hell ain't shit, I'm gonna get you, Freeman!" happily obliges.

Meanwhile, Riley is teaching his granddad about internet dating via Myspace. Having adorned his page with multiple ridiculous lies (he claims he loves skydiving, is Brazilian, and was a member of G Unit) and pictures of himself in outfits ranging from replicas of suits worn in Michael Jackson music videos to thongs.

In the court parking lot, Tom Dubois is parking his car when he is cut off, thus instigating a "nigga moment" (which is unusual for Tom, given he is "as far away from a nigga as a black man could be"). As he exits his vehicle and attempts to confront the man that stole his parking spot, the man responds with a slew of redundant insults and threatens to assault Tom with his Uzi. As he walks away, Tom is possessed by Stinkmeaner, who maniacally harangues the man, dropkicks him in the chest, and continues to verbally assault him before Tom regains control and attempts to help the man who is utterly traumatized.

In court, an attorney is interviewing an old Chinese American woman who assaulted a black man and drove his car through a mall. As Tom approaches the defendant to make his case, Stinkmeaner possesses him again, prompting the woman to answer his question of, "What's good, nigga? What's really good?!" Tom then jumps on the defenses bench, and begins to wildly kick and stomp on the table, saying to the judge "Fuck yo' court nigga!" (in a direct reference to Dave Chappelle's famous Rick James sketch). It is then that Tom realizes something is seriously wrong with him and excuses himself from court. In the bathroom mirror, he sees his reflection become the reflection of Stinkmeaner and runs away.

Huey is still disturbed by his dream. The ghost of Ghostface Killah (who Huey notes is not dead) appears to give Huey advice, though he remains ambiguous, telling Huey "think about it, peace" Meanwhile, Robert Freeman, who arranged a date online, is too obsessed with his date that night to talk to Huey about his concerns. He sends Huey to his room.

Tom reaches home again, and Stinkmeaner takes over just in time to have sex with his wife. Some time later, Robert, naked on the toilet with a laptop, is interrupted when a possessed Tom begins chopping through the bathroom door with an ax. Robert sends a distress email to Riley from the bathroom before managing to escape just as Tom is entering. With his underwear around his ankles, Robert runs from Stinkmeaner, falling down the stairs. The boys, having received the message, come down shortly after.

Stinkmeaner reveals his identity and his plan to take the Freemans back to Hell with him. Huey tosses Robert his belt and a battle ensues. Stinkmeaner overwhelms Huey's martial arts, Riley's streetfighting, and Granddad's whip-like belt combat styles, but Riley manages to render Stinkmeaner unconscious by slamming him in the back of the head with a lamp, a vase, and a geisha statue (all of which Granddad declares were expensive). They tie him in Riley's bed and Robert goes downstairs for his date.

Robert's date begins questioning him as to the racket coming from upstairs. After lying miserably, the date leaves not because of the possessed man upstairs, but because he lied about it. Robert turns to the National Headquarters of the Catholic Church, but no one is available to take his call. Robert then seeks the help of a local exorcist: "Reverend Father" Uncle Ruckus. He begins the exorcism by attempting to scare the possessed Tom with a nightstick, then attempting to force Stinkmeaner to read, and finally flagellating Tom with the whip while encouraging the others to help him by chanting the "holy phrase," "nigga, get yo black ass outta here!" Robert joins in using his belt, and Riley uses the nightstick. Huey, not participating, watches for hours in disgust before Ghostface Killah's ghost appears again, to make Huey stop beating at Tom before they kill him. After many questions, Ghostface Killah derides Huey for not having "figured this shit out yet." As he did before, he says, "Peace," before disappearing. Huey realizes something profound and intervenes in the exorcism.

Huey starts a conversation between Stinkmeaner and Uncle Ruckus about how much they hate black people, which sparks some good will between them. We learn that a "nigga moment" cannot be solved by violence, but only through harmony and understanding. With this, Stinkmeaner is finally exorcised successfully. Tom awakens the next day, not remembering anything that had happened the night prior, but having a large bill to pay due to the damage done in the Freeman house.

Cultural references

• The episode features the songs "Under Your Closed Eyelids" by Isabelle Antena (plays when Granddad is preparing for his date) and "Boondocks rmx" by Metaphor The Great (during the Stinkmeaner fight scene).
• Coincidently both episodes that feature Stinkmeaner feature the Wu-Tang Clan in some way. the first episode ("Grandad's Fight") features the song "Guillotine [Swords]" by Raekwon from his album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..., this episode features Ghostface Killah as a spirit form of himself.
• This episode parodies the film The Exorcist, which can be seen with Uncle Ruckus' description of the 'nigga spirit', the exorcism and the music of Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells, as well as the scene in which Ruckus is dropped off by a vehicle and briefly stands outside the Freeman house while being silhouetted by a beam of light. This was the most famous theatrical poster used for the film.
• The episode has a parody of a famous scene from Stanley Kubrick's, The Shining when Tom, possessed by Stinkmeaner, tried breaking through the bathroom door using an axe and peering though the crack. Also after when he says to Grandad, "I'M BACCCK NYUKKA!", it is similar to Carol Anne's ghostly reflection saying "We're baaack!" in Poltergeist III.
• This episode references the Rick James skit featured in Chappelle's Show, with Granddad saying "Cocaine's a hell of a drug", a quote that Rick James used several times in the skit. The scene in the courtroom where a Stinkmeaner-possessed Tom starts grinding his feet into a courtroom table while yelling "Fuck yo' court, nigga!" is a paraphrase of the quote ("Fuck yo' couch, nigga!") that Rick James used while grinding his dirty boots into Eddie Murphy's couch. The episode also features two instances where a specific event is repeated three times, with the third in slow motion - a recurring device on Chappelle's Show.
• When Uncle Ruckus appears, a slower rendition of Jabba the Hutt's theme music can be heard playing in the background. "Jabba's Theme" previously appeared as a theme for Ruckus in "...Or Die Trying" and "Thank You for Not Snitching".
• The episode title is derived from the title of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. The Episode was originally to be called "The Return of Stinkmeaner" in a similar fashion to Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.
• It is implied that Granddad's date is a Slavic scam bride.
• When Stinkmeaner awakes during Granddad's date, he yells "I will not be ignored!", a direct reference to Glen Close's iconic line from the 1987 movie Fatal Attraction.
• When the Devil sends Stinkmeaner back to Earth to torment the Freeman family, he says "They will be no match for you," echoing Darth Sidious' words to Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
• The Boondocks logo in the beginning of the episode (BOON (BD) DOCKS) parodies the logo of Shaw Brothers Studio which is popular for producing movies in the Hong Kong martial arts action cinema scene. Also, the Stinkmeaner training sequence pays homage to the classic martial arts movie The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (produced by Shaw Brothers Studio).
• This episode easily breaks the record previously held by "Granddad's Fight" from Season 1 for most usage of the word "nigga" (65) clocking in approximately 72-95 times. (depending on if you choose whether or not to count the "nigga's" separately when they start chanting the phrase "nigga, get yo black-ass out of here here!" during one of the scenes).
• During the fight with Stinkmeaner, Huey can clearly be seen doing a Crack Shoot, a move used by Terry Bogard from Fatal Fury.
• When Stinkmeaner gets knocked out, he is heard singing 'Ave Maria'. He is heard singing the same song while driving his car in "Granddad's Fight".
• This is the first fight in The Boondocks that Huey and Riley have won, (other than Huey's fight with Riley in Let's Nab Oprah) although the only reason they won is because Stinkmeaner was distracted in the act of choking Granddad, giving Riley the chance to knock him out from behind.
• The two suits that Riley brings Granddad in the bathroom resemble the jackets that Michael Jackson wore in his videos for the songs "Beat It" and "Thriller". They also have the two songs written on their backs to tell them apart.
• The opening scene where Stinkmeaner is training in Hell is a reference to the film The Master Killer in which San Te kicks hanging pots through rings of fire. Also, in the same scene, we see Stinkmeaner using "three stick nunchakus" which in the Master Killer are used by San Te to defeat Li Mu Bai and General Chang.

Notes

• During the fight between Stinkmeaner and the Freeman family, Huey is the only Freeman to block/deflect any of Stinkmeaner's blows and strikes.