Homer Alone
| "Homer Alone" | |
|---|---|
| The Simpsons episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 15 |
| Directed by | Mark Kirkland |
| Written by | David M. Stern |
| Production code | 8F14 |
| Original air date | February 6, 1992 |
| Guest appearance | |
| Episode features | |
Couch gag | The family forms a pyramid[2] |
| Commentary | Matt Groening Al Jean Dan Castellaneta Julie Kavner Mark Kirkland Brad Bird |
"Homer Alone" is the fifteenth episode of the
but leaves home looking for her mother, causing Homer to frantically search for her.The episode was written by
"Homer Alone" contains references to the
Plot
Stressed from doing household chores and running errands for her family,
Marge decides to take a vacation by herself to a health spa called Rancho Relaxo. She leaves Bart and Lisa with Patty and Selma; since Maggie is scared of Patty and Selma, she ends up staying at home with Homer. Marge enjoys her much-needed rest while the rest of the family find it hard to adapt to life without her. Homer finds himself lonely and unable to care for Maggie. Bart and Lisa dislike living with Patty and Selma because they snore loudly, watch MacGyver and Divorce Court, and serve meals of tongue sandwiches, Clamato, Mr. Pibb and soy milk.
Upset by her mother's absence, Maggie leaves the house to find Marge. When Homer and Barney are unable to find her, Homer calls a missing baby hotline. Maggie is found atop the roof of an ice cream shop (whose mascot resembled Marge) and returned to Homer as Marge leaves the spa. Marge finds her forlorn and disheveled family waiting for her on a train platform when she arrives home. While Homer and the kids are sleeping next to her that night, Marge tells them she needs their help around the house; they assure her she has nothing to worry about.
Production
"Homer Alone" was written by David M. Stern. He had noticed that most of the writers were pitching stories about Bart and Homer, and he thought a "deeper vein of comedy" could be reached by having Marge suffer from a nervous breakdown.
The episode was directed by Mark Kirkland. The scene at the train station where Marge leaves for Rancho Relaxo includes a brief cameo appearance of a character modeled after Simpsons director Jim Reardon. Reardon dislikes flying, and took trains whenever possible, so the animators always tried to include him in scenes at a train station.[5] Susie Dietter served as assistant director for the episode and animated several of the scenes for the subplot with Bart, Lisa, Patty and Selma.[5] In a scene where Homer sings a song to Maggie, he was designed to look disheveled because the writers had wanted him to look drunk, although no attention was called to it.[5]
Cultural references
The title is a play on
The song that plays while Homer is on hold on the missing child hotline is "
Reception
In its original airing on February 6, 1992, on Fox during
Since airing, the episode has received generally positive reviews from critics. The authors of the book I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, wrote, "After the first few minutes, this episode becomes less about Marge than the family's reliance on her. Bart and Lisa's torturous time at Patty and Selma's is wonderful ... but it's Homer losing Maggie, and working out what to tell Marge upon her return, that provides the best jokes."[2]
DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson felt that the episode "comes close to finding the series in a rut, as it sort of offers another iteration of the 'Homer's a bad father' theme. However, the emphasis on Marge's issues makes it different, and it's also fun to see life at Patty and Selma's place. It's another solid show."[9] Nate Meyers of Digitally Obsessed rated the episode a 3 (of 5), writing "The episode serves only to demonstrate what is already obvious: that Marge holds the family together. It's entertaining to see Homer struggle with the most basic of parenting skills, but this happens at the expense of all the other episodes this season that show him to be a good father (albeit flawed). Still, it's nice to see Marge get her own show."[10]
References
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- ^ a b c d e f Martyn, Warren; Wood, Adrian (2000). "Homer Alone". BBC. Archived from the original on December 23, 2003. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Castellaneta, Dan. (2003). Commentary for "Homer Alone", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ a b c Jean, Al. (2003). Commentary for "Homer Alone", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ a b c Kirkland, Mark. (2003). Commentary for "Homer Alone", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- ^ Bird, Brad. (2003). Commentary for "Homer Alone", in The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season [DVD]. 20th Century Fox.
- Long Beach Press-Telegram. Associated Press. February 20, 1992.
- Daily News of Los Angeles. Associated Press. February 12, 1992.
- ^ Jacobson, Colin (August 21, 2003). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season (1991)". DVD Movie Guide. Retrieved March 29, 2010.
- ^ Meyers, Nate (June 23, 2004). "The Simpsons: The Complete Third Season". Digitally Obsessed. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved March 29, 2010.
External links
