12 August 6-12, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Season 14 Dallas Fort Worth International Airport – Epi- sode 1, “Return of the King” The season begins with Hank and Peggy Hill returning from an extended stay in Saudi Arabia, where Hank took his love of propane (and propane accessories) to the next level, working with Saudi Aramco. They exit the plane and arrive at Terminal D (Gate D3) of DFW, where Hank falls to his knees and kisses the ground, thankful to be back home in his beloved Texas. You could, theoretically, recreate the scene by paying for an interna- tional flight to get access to the terminal, but maybe stop short of kissing an airport floor. George Bush Library at Southern Methodist University – Episode 3, “Bobby Gets Grilled” In the third episode of the season, Hank and Peggy take a trip to the George W. Bush Presidential Center with their friends and neighbors, the Gribbles. While we can come up with a laundry list of criticisms to lob at Bush’s tenure as president, conspiracy- minded Dale Gribble takes things to the ex- treme, hijacking the tour to spout his own bizarre ideas. It gives Hank a newfound ap- preciation for the importance of historical accuracy, and reminds the rest of us that the second Bush has a presidential library in Dallas. No one talks about that much. AT&T Stadium – Episode 7, “Any Given Hill-Day” Later in the season, Hank, Bobby and Bob- by’s then-girlfriend, the free-spirited Willow, attend a fantasy football training camp for the Dallas Cowboys. Now, the show technically labels this space “Dallas Stadium,” but the re- semblance to AT&T is notable, and for at least six weeks this year, the stadium was techni- cally and controversially named after Dallas for the World Cup. Jerry Jones’ office (actu- ally located at the team’s facility at The Star, though he does reportedly have a suite at AT&T Stadium) has a significant role to play, so in the “King of the Hill” universe, “Dallas Stadium” may also be drawing on elements of Ford Center. Without giving the game away, Willow has a score to settle with Jones, and takes her revenge by doing something many fans of the team have probably dreamed of over the years to Mr. Jones’ desk. Medical City Dallas – Episodes 9 and 10, “No Hank Left Behind” and “A Sounder Investment” Technically, the hospital that the charac- ters visit is called Central Medical Dallas, but the establishing shots are so clearly inspired by Medical City Dallas that this is one of the most easily recognizable real-world locations featured in this season. Honestly, we wish we could make some jokes here, but the show makes Medical City seem pretty nice. It is ef- fective, efficient and family-friendly in its mission to treat patients. And it gives Bobby two opportunities to support the women in his life and grow as a character. Meyerson Symphony Center – Episode 10, “A Sounder Investment” Early in the final episode of the season, Bobby and Connie attend a performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major at the Meyerson Symphony Center, home of the Dal- las Symphony Orchestra. The performance puts them to sleep, but sophistication has never been what makes the characters in “King of the Hill” so lovable. We have always been drawn to their inherent goodness, though (even when it is layered beneath cartoonish antics), and see- ing North Texas through their eyes. Dallas has never been sillier or more sincere than the ver- sion conjured by “King of the Hill”, and for that alone, we’re grateful we get to inspire one of the best adult cartoons ever made. Season 15 University of Texas at Dallas – Basically every episode, but especially Episode 7, “Hank Ruf- fles Some Feathers” Bobby Hill is still heading up his Ger- man-Japanese fusion restaurant Robata Chane in Season 15, but now he’s juggling his entrepreneurial responsibilities with his burgeoning romance with Connie Soupha- nousinphone. Season 14 revealed that Con- nie is studying at UT Dallas’ Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Sci- ence, and much of her scenes in the new sea- son are spent on campus (mostly in her dorm room). But it’s worth calling out an ep- isode later on where Connie decides she needs a new hobby and dons the bulbous, flaming blue head of Temoc, the university’s real-life mascot. The show could have faked it and done a knock-off mascot, but they wisely decided not to mess with perfection. Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center – Epi- sode 4, “Hank Encounters of the Nerd Kind” The “Dallas Science Fiction Fan Conven- tion” is in town and Bobby wants to try bring- ing Robata Chane to the masses with a food truck. Unfortunately, he brings his dad along and hijinks ensue, as Hank’s conservative sensibilities are tested by the idea that people might want to dress up as aliens for fun — on a weekday, no less. The building where Hank confronts the cosplayers is clearly meant to be the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, pre-demolition. You can also catch a character dressed up as The PriceMaster hovering in the background of one scene, an- other fun nod to niche, local North Texas lore. Dallas Morning News Building – Episode 8, “No-Cuddle Offense” Okay, technically this is the “Dallas Daily Digest” building in the show, but it seems pretty obvious that this is meant to be a ref- erence to the Dallas Morning News. It’s not a one-to-one of the historic and abandoned “Rock of Truth,” nor their newer digs on Commerce Street, but it’s close enough and the establishing shot of an office building with the publication’s name up top calls DMN to mind. Unrelated, the A-plot in this episode centers around Hank and his pals trying to stop their friend Bill from spending all his money on cuddle therapy. We were curious, did some light Googling, and learned that while the “cuddle clinic” in the show does not seem to exist, there are ap- parently therapeutic cuddling services avail- able in Dallas. And they aren’t cheap. Fair Park – Episode 9, “Reality Bites” Hank and the guys go fishing in this epi- sode and end up retrieving a Civil War-era cannon from the water. They take it home and clean it up, learning it was used in the Battle of Palmito Ranch, a real battle re- garded as the final land engagement of the Civil War that took place near Brownsville, on the very edge of the Mexican border. Who knew? At any rate, Hank wants to do- nate it to the local historical society, but the guys decide to try it out first. Things go awry when they fire the cannon, and instead of landing harmlessly in the middle of no- where, the cannonball ends up in Fair Park, taking off a few of Big Tex’s fingers on its journey, which Hank then has to repair. Whataburger – Episode 10, “Propane Recall” There are dozens of Whataburgers around North Texas, so it’s impossible to tie this to any specific location, but a What- aburger’s a Whataburger. In your head canon, you can pretend this all takes place at the one nearest you. Either way, in the flash- back-heavy finale of Season 15, we learn that Bobby discovered his love of cooking when he took a job at Texas’ favorite fast food burger chain, realizing that working in a restaurant would let him combine his love of food with his love of people. If we’re lucky, the show will revisit this period of Bobby’s life again. Whataburger is great at lunchtime (when we see Bobby working), but everyone knows it’s at its best at 3 a.m. when everyone’s been drinking, and your designated driver is trying desperately to figure out how many honey butter chicken biscuits the group’s going to need to ingest to function the next morning. Let’s see Bobby earn his stripes dealing with that crowd in Season 16. Screenshot via Hulu The “King of the Hill” gang is back. As Seen on TV from p10
