THE SIMPSONS Greatest Hits: “Homer The Heretic”

Welcome to The Simpsons Greatest Hits, my never-ending quest to find the greatest episode of The Simpsons. Please come find me on twitter @FirsttoLastpod and let me know what is the best episode, and keep a look out for it on this weekly column.

Homer the Heretic

Season 4/Episode 62 overall

First aired: 08 October 1992

Written by George Meyer

“God said to Noah, there’s gonna be a floody-floody”

“Homer the Heretic” is an incredibly simple story. It has no B or C plots. Nor does it have a cold open that shows a mini-Simpsons adventure that segues into the main plot.

No, “Homer the Heretic” begins with Homer deciding to stay at home instead of venturing through the snow to church, and that’s it. The rest of the episode is how people react to that and his eventual realisation that he should be attending church (even if it’s just to sleep there).

It has a clarity of story that is often lacking from The Simpsons. This isn’t a complaint, but it is still refreshing for the episode to jump straight into the meat of the story as though we’re beginning in the second act with all the pieces in place for a comedic showcase of one character’s depravity and sloth.

“Please do not offer my god a peanut”

This whole episode is practically a one man show with the lion’s share of best moments and lines given to Homer, a man who dominates proceedings with his disgusting habits and ill-thought arguments against organised religion.

When The Simpsons first came out, and I watched it as a kid in 1990s England, Bart Simpson seemed to be the intended break out character. He was the major source of merchandise, he had all the catchphrases, and even the hit single the show released was called “Do the Bartman”. However, it is Homer who became synonymous with the show and episodes like “Homer the Heretic”, and last week’s “Last Exit to Springfield” show why.

He is a larger than life character that, even though he is cartoonish and ridiculous, seems to remind everyone of someone in their life in some way. Maybe it’s his eating habits, or some of the silly things he says. Or maybe it’s his good side, his love of his family and his dedication to his wife. Everyone knows a Homer. And if you don’t know one, then it might be you.

“Everyone is stupid except me”

It is a razor-thin tightrope that the writers walk when they write episodes around Homer. He is, at his core, a dumb jerk with a heart of gold. Some episodes lean too much into the dumb, and he becomes ridiculous, and others lean too much into the jerk, and he becomes unlikable. “Homer the Heretic” is a great example of when the writers get it right.

Homer is stupid and obnoxious in this episode, but there is something wonderfully satisfying about seeing him make his moon waffles and wrap them around a stick of butter to eat, and the way he talks about the pointlessness of church to poor Marge is rude, but also he is saying stuff I agree with. In lest adept hands, Homer could end up being the villain of this piece with Marge as his foil, however by keeping it light and our focus aimed squarely on Homer, we find ourselves on his side and glad to see the man finally get some time to himself, even if the site of him dancing around in his underpants is fairly unsettling.

The other admirable aspect of this episode is how they manage to make a story in which the moral of the story is that God moves through the hearts of good people and church attendance is good that doesn’t feel preachy or corny. As a die-hard atheist, this is probably the most astounding element of this episode for me. I don’t find it condescending or Very Special Episode-ish and that in itself is enough to make this one of the best episodes the show has ever produced.

Overall Score: 5 Matthew 21:17s out of 5