Good Hill Hunting
Episode KH304
Original Air Date: 12/01/98

Hank prepares Bobby for a deerhunting trip as part of his initiation into manhood.

As Hank and his friends make final preparations to take their children on a deerhunting trip, Hank admits to Peggy that he has yet to purchase Bobby's hunting permit. As the conversation progresses, Hank admits he is frightened of being alone with his son, as he sometimes uncertain what the boy is talking about. Hank declares that he has one last errand to run before the journey gets under way. He drives to the county office to purchase the hunting permit. But a clerk informs him that no more licenses will be sold, due to an agreement with environmentalists. An angered Hank returns home. As his neighbors and their children head off for the hunt, Hank pulls into his own driveway and parks.

Bobby creates a deer out of cardboard and uses it for target practice. Hank and Peggy notice this, and grow concerned that their boy may descend into madness if he fails to achieve manhood by killing an animal. Later, Hank encounters Eustis at Strickland Propane. Eustis shows him a brochure for a private hunting reserve called the LaGrunta Hotel and Resort. Eustis explains that he is taking his son Randy to the reserve for his rite of passage, as the company takes care of guns, permits and the like. Shortly thereafter, the Gribbles, the Souphanousinphones and other neighbors return home with their kill. Bobby begins crying, as all of his friends have shot a deer. Hank decides a trip to LaGrunta is in order.

When Hank and his son arrive at LaGrunta, they are directed to a shooting stand in the woods. As the pair await their prey, an automatic feed spreader whirrs into action, and deer emerge from the forest. But Bobby and Hank realize there is no sport in killing an animal in such a fashion, and they leave the resort empty handed. On the drive home, Hank decides it's time for Bobby to try his hand behind the wheel. Bobby climbs into the driver's seat and navigates a deserted road. Suddenly, a deer bolts in front of the truck. Bobby slams on the brakes, but it is too late, and the animal dies. Hank congratulates his son, as it is a "clean kill."