Bill Dauterive

Oh

... who is the voice of Bill Dauterive and, uh, shows up in Coen brothers movies from time to time.

He's in DodgeBall, he's Milton in, uh, Milton in Office Space.

So, I, it's just-

Heard

... we have in this episode, Propane Recall, Hank, Peggy, and Bobby Hill, Dale Gribble, Bill Dauterive, Boomhauer, the return of Joe Jack, Enrique, Roger Buttesack, Buck Strickland, Jody Ray Roy Strickland, Jimmy Witchard, my friend-

Ooh

...

Absolutely fucking perfect.

Even Bobby's weird off-model blue hair that, which is- it's a con in here.

Uh, like, th- even that couldn't jar me from, okay, Bill is dressed like he should be, wife beater, ponch, jeans, is what it is.

Dale has got a-

It's an ordinary alley with trash cans, wooden fences, and no reason for anybody to stay there.

Hank, Dale, Bill, and Boomhauer do not by admission.

They do not schedule a meeting.

They barely sit down.

Today, I want to argue that the alley is not merely where King of the Hill puts its characters between stories.

The alley is the story.

It explains why these people remain friends, why Arlen feels real, why the show can disagree with its own characters without hating them, and why even Bill Dauterive is never completely alone.

Social scientists use the phrase third place to describe informal gathering spaces outside the home and work.

With the rest of them, right? [laughs]

Yeah, our cast of characters this week, Hank, Peggy, and Bobby Hill, Dale Gribble, Bill Dauterive, Boomhauer, Nancy Gribble, Minh Souphanousinphone, Emilio, the introduction of Dave Wiel, I think Dave Curry was the better name, and Cuddle Clinic Attendant.

I will update the wiki in a moment, because once again, just cut our basic copy pasta, because for some reason they thought Joseph was in this episode again.

Do better, wiki.

Go do it.

We're here.

[upbeat music] Mark, Bill finds his happiness in typical Bill fashion, and as usual, Hank can't let well enough be.

Peggy hears from an old student, and in typical Peggy fashion, manages to make it someone else's problem.

Deep in the heart of Texas.

Though Bill Dauterive looks like the loneliest man in Arlen, Boomhauer may actually be lonelier.

Bill announces his pain to the entire neighborhood.

Boomhauer does the exact opposite.

He hides behind women, behind cars, a relaxed smile, a voice that turns every serious thought into background music.

Boomhauer is one of the cleverest designs in the entire series.

To strangers, his speech sounds almost impossible to follow.

To Hank, Dale, and Bill, it's perfectly normal.