In the series debut of King of the Hill we meet fictional Arlen, Texas and propane company sales whiz Hank Hill. Hank spends a lot of time hanging out in the alley beside his house, having beer with his three pals: Dale Gribble, a conspiracy theorist who is clueless that his wife Nancy is sleeping with her “healer” John Redcorn, nor does he realize that his son Joseph resembles Redcorn; Bill Dauterive, a divorced army barber; and Boomhauer, somewhat of a ladies’ man, although we do not know how he earns his living since we can hardly understand what he says when he speaks. Hank resides with his spouse Peggy, who is a substitute Spanish teacher at Tom Landry Middle School; his son Bobby, who prefers comedy to sports; Peggy’s niece Luanne, who attends beauty school; and his dog Ladybird, a bloodhound whose mother sniffed out James Earl Ray.
During a little league game, a baseball hits Bobby in the eye. This results in a black eye. Meanwhile, a social worker sees Hank’s temper and notices Bobby’s black eye. He begins to think that Hank abuses his child.
