PRODUCTION/CULTURAL REFERENCES (written 10/2/18-10/4/18)

-Of all the episodes I've written so far for season seven, this was definitely the hardest one to finish, mostly because of all the ideas for it that I threw out.

-I mentioned in the season six retrospective back in July that I wasn't satisfied with how that season turned out. I don't hate it or dislike it, but it was the first time that I felt like the show was getting stale. It was the first time that I felt like the show wasn't breaking new ground or meeting the standards that I had set before. Plus, the way the season finale turned out really disappointed me. I knew that I wanted the show to feel different in season seven, from the writing process to the quality of the episodes. Right now, it feels different but that's only because the season just started. I want to continue feeling this way in January and February.

-A long time ago, I came up with the idea for a short-term storyline involving Buster and RK living together. I felt like I would get a lot of comedy out of them interacting more frequently. It was just a matter of figuring out how to make it a reality. Once I decided to make it a part of the seventh season, I wanted to set it up in a way that was natural and made sense.

-Originally, the plan for season seven was to open it up with a doubleheader on September 30, starting with "TYH TakeOver: Brooklyn '18" and ending with "Y2RK." I was just going to explain in the first episode that Buster was living with RK due to the entire Westboro complex being destroyed in "The Simpsons Movie: Thank You, Heavenly Edition." However, since Sparky's house was destroyed and rebuilt in the same episode, I felt like including Buster's condo was going to be overkill and something that needed its own time to be dealt with.

-At that point, I decided to write an entire episode about Buster needing to leave his condo and moving in with RK. This is when I decided to do the opening weekend concept of a new episode for three consecutive nights. I came up with an idea a while back involving Buster leaving his condo (entitled "Buster and the Big Blue House") but it wasn't until I decided to make "Welcome Home, Mr. Newman" that it became anything other than an idea.

-For the longest time, I was having trouble coming up with a reason for Buster needing to move out, since my original reason no longer worked. The first idea was everyone in the complex being afraid of Buster due to beliefs that he actually did burn down Ike's in the season six finale, despite Lisa being convicted of arson. I hinted at this at the end of that episode, because it was supposed to lead to Buster moving out, but it ended up becoming more of a joke.

-My next idea was having Buster get kicked out because of the other tenants complaining about the constant fires in his condo, and when another one happens, Buster's landlord gets rid of him. That idea didn't last long, so I just went with Buster causing a fire due to his stupidity. Part of me wonders what would have happened if this episode turned out the way it was originally supposed to.

-I knew the story was thin, so I had to fill up the episode with other events like Buster having different roommates and Bitch Clock getting kicked out of Sparky's house. Another idea I had was Buster initially having no problem with being RK's roommate, but then RK and KG argue over his presence. Of course, this was before I came up with the idea of Buster causing the fire.

-At one point, I was considering calling the episode "Newman's Place."

-Another idea I had for the episode was a framing device to kick things off, with Anna wondering how Buster and RK became roommates. However, doing that would have involved scenes that Buster and/or RK were never in, so I decided not to go with it.

-In the first draft, the episode started with Buster watching a Snickers commercial on TV and not understanding what it was about. However, I decided to get rid of the commercial and go straight to RK walking in because it wasn't funny at all.

-Buster not remembering anything about "The Simpsons Movie: Thank You, Heavenly Edition" is mostly me being self-deprecating because of how the episode turned out. One thing I was never able to resolve about that episode was what happened to RK's gun, so I decided to write a bit about him needing a new one when season seven came around.

-In the first draft, RK and Buster had a talk in the car about Warren Buffett and coming up with lucrative business ideas, but I didn't think it was funny enough along with it being too random, so I got rid of the conversation.

-The season three (2014-2015) TYH episode "The Roommate from Hell" is mentioned several times in this episode. In that one, Buster has to leave his condo temporarily after a termite infestation and moves in with Sparky. However, he ends up being a very annoying roommate and the experience almost ruins Sparky and Buster's friendship.

-Yet another idea I had for this episode was Jaylynn wanting Buster to move in with her, and she competes against RK in a bidding war to get Buster as a roommate.

-Bitch Clock references the historical period drama series Downton Abbey (2010-2015).

-The scene where "So What" plays was inspired by a scene in the Two and a Half Men episode "A Giant Cat Holding a Churro" where they were also playing the song. However, I originally envisioned the scene taking place earlier in the episode.

-I was considering writing in a guest spot for Maia Mitchell during the Fosters fantasy sequence, but I decided not to. I noticed there were hardly any guest stars in season six and wanted to use them more, but I don't want to go overboard when the season just started.

-Buster asks Callie why her and Mariana are getting the spin-off, which is a reference to the upcoming Fosters spin-off Good Trouble starring Maia Mitchell and Cierra Ramirez (the actress that plays Mariana).

-One of the first scenes I thought of for the episode was the one at the bar, and I thought "Stone Rollin'" was perfect for it. Actually, listening to "Stone Rollin'" was what made me come up with the bar scene.

-Bitch Clock references the Notorious B.I.G. song "Ten Crack Commandments," specifically the line "Number 5: never sell no crack where you rest at."

-"everybody dies" was my first choice for the end credits song, then it changed to "Hip Hop Hooray (20th Anniversary version)" by Naughty by Nature, then I changed it back. It was the perfect song to close out the weekend and officially introduce the seventh season.