The Simpsons - 17x03 - Milhouse of Sand and Fog

    Kirk and Luann get back together, and Milhouse is annoyed that he isn't getting the same attention he used to get.  So he and Bart come up with a ploy to drive a wedge between them, which backfires, and gets Homer and Marge mad at each other.
    When I go back and watch A Milhouse Divided, I find that it doesn't play as wild as many other Simpsons episodes do.  I suppose that the topic of divorce isn't all that funny, but I think it was also the effort that the writers were making in order to make the story feel serious enough that it was communicated that the effects of the story were going to be permanent.  There aren't too many episodes with permanent effects.
    This might be why this episode feels lighter than its counterpart.  The story actually abandons Kirk and Luann by the third act, twisting the story to just focus on Bart, Homer, and Marge, with Milhouse along as comic relief.