King of the Hill (TV Series) The Petriot Act (2005) User Reviews

The point?

[sallyjoybonsall · 6/10 · 12 January 2022]

I found this to be an amusing episode, but unlike most other KOTH episodes, personally I didn't see any message/lesson of the story except that cats are... expensive?

One of the most frustrating koth episodes ever

[Kenjislamberry · 3/10 · 2 August 2021]

No person in there right mind would spend over 1000s of dollars on a strangers cat. Hank wouldn't have burned through his vacation money budget if he had just gone to his own vet instead of the expensive vet the owner wanted him to go to. The only thing good about this episode was seeing Bill being happy for once . It was adorable seeing Bill bond with the dog . This is a episode I would only watch once.

Agh!

[Fry-TheMovieReviewer · 1/10 · 27 September 2019]

It is one of the episodes of King of Hill that only makes you angry rather than joyful through guffaw. I would NEVER expect some stranger, regardless of who they are, to pay $1000s for cat surgery or doctor visits (of any kind) for a cat. I wouldn't even pay such prices for people I know, much less a random pet. I have my own family to worry about, regardless of being flush with extra funds or not, because it's that very "or not" that could be the moment in which my family needs me. Of course this episode is ridiculous and the whole show's context is reliant on over-the-top ridiculousness, but, again, this only angers one rather than bringing joy because, sadly, there are people like this - gullible to fall for such ridiculousness and happily (or angrily) pays the bills of such ridiculousness, those willingly hoping to fraud others through such programs highlighted as "community outreach," and then those who are happy to call you "scum" or "trash" for not willing to pay such outrageousness billed as "community service".

The only winning grace in this whole episode is the ending with Bill - for his service, and his care and attention to taking care of a solider's pet while on duty, he is awarded a ride on a jet and given a pilot's helmet with his name on it (Bill). It was a touching ending for Bill and the audience; to see Bill finally get something good in life by those that recognize his value as a human being and as a hard worker of community outreach, especially since he truly is good and does put his all into the things he does.

-CDM

A meh episode - gives veterinarians a bad name

[kathysdogs · 5/10 · 23 January 2023]

Not one of my favorite KOTH episodes. Hank's patriotism is all fired up which is good - to a certain extent. He learns from Bill about a special program where people can foster service personnel's pets while the service person is overseas. That's a truly noble effort BUT as does happen with government programs it doesn't always have a good result. The only nice thing about this episode is that there's something positive for Bill who is normally the guy treated like a dishrag. Hank learns that Bill got paired with a sweet dog & Hank wants to do his part - without considering Peggy & Bobby's feelings. This is important since the Hills were fixing to go on vacation to Dollywood. When what Hank did was a fait accompli, Peggy's not a happy camper but Hank mollifies her by assuring her that the kennel that Ladybird will be boarded at will be able to accommodate the fosteree (the Army insisted on sending the pet BEFORE their vacation instead of after as Hank requested). Worse, Hank assumed that all the fosterees were dogs - and he ends up with the cat from hell named Duke. Maybe Duke's what the Animal Planet show with that name was based on - as he was very nasty to the Hills (the Army should never assume that a person who will accept a dog will accept a cat as many people are allergic to cats but not dogs; Hank did push back on taking the cat but with no success). Among other mandates, Hank had to get the vet that the owner used to sign off that he took all the necessary steps to ensure the health of the pet. First Hank has to get some cat food at the pet store that's a bit pricey - then he encounters the owner's choice of vet: Dr. Bradley Leslie whom IMO was a con artist. He dismisses the food Hank bought at the pet store and foists on him another brand that was $57 a pop for a small bag saying in a condescending manner "we can't expect Duke to pay for it on his salary" and orders a bunch of mostly unnecessary tests, running up a bill that's thousands of dollars, putting the Hill's long awaited vacation plans in jeopardy. His protest about the cost fell on deaf ears and the receptionist just coldly points to a sign tersely saying "payment in full required at time of service". Am surprised when Hank informs Peggy & Bobby about the costs jeopardizing the main highlight of their trip that Peggy didn't just up and get a lawyer to file for divorce, suing for custody of Bobby. Also am wondering if Duke's parent was being paid excessively by the Army if he could afford all the fees that Dr. Leslie required. Upon Peggy's suggestion he gets a second opinion from Ladybird's vet who is older, very competent and much more reasonably priced. He said Dr. Leslie was competent but more likely to go whole hog on expensive machines (and pass it onto the consumers). A salesman came by to try to talk the vet into an expensive machine that he admits even Dr. Leslie had not invested in and Hank asks for one of his sales pamphlets - this planted the seed for Hank's defensive power play/leverage/blackmail against Dr. Leslie who had been refusing to sign off on the paperwork despite all the time and expenses Hank had invested in Duke, with Duke only giving the Hills a lot of trouble. When Hank confronts Dr. Leslie about not having the most comprehensive equipment despite high fees and threatens to tell the other pet parents, the vet finally caves in and signs off on the paperwork - which he should have done days and thousands of $ earlier.