This is despite the off-hand consensus of some viewers that the series has been total rubbish since season 10.
There are a couple of qualifiers here.
AKA, the one where Ned Flanders and Edna Krabappel start dating.
I guess this is gonna have to be decided… by a higher power.
This is an odd one to include, which is partly why its so low on the list.
And thats where things get weird.
Two Pints Of Lager And A Packet Of Crisps pulled this shit too.
As much as he hates stupid Flanders, he does need him on side.
AKA, the one where Springfield bans sugar
Oh, what gave me away?
In his ambition to achieve a world record, Homer winds up outing Springfield as the worlds fattest town.
The bad guy in question is evil CEO Garth Motherloving, a memorable one-off character voiced by Ben Stiller.
You cant beat a good bit of Professor Frink.
The real core of this episode harkens back to the very best family dynamics of the early episodes.
One of the best gags in this episode comes during the World Cup final.
(Hi, can Lisa come out with her hands up?)
AKA, the one where the rat symbolises obviousness
Unlike love, respect cant be bought.
Could it be faithful Milhouse, new best friend Nelson, or a seemingly rebellious new kid called Donny.
Spoiler alert- its Donny.
Lets see if they go after The Wolf Of Wall Street next.
AKA, the one where an entire town turns on a 10-year-old boy
Are you Bart Simpson?
The kid who dropped that easy fly ball?
You stink like a Dutchmans throw-up!
Talking to you was the biggest error of my life!
Part of what makes this one so darkly funny is how harsh the Springfielders are towards Bart.
He misses the same easy catch, prompting another do-over, and another, and another.
AKA, the one with Dan the mob accountant
This is America.
Anyone can eat what they want as long as they eat too much.
That said, we wouldnt mind a return for Steve Carells Dan Gillick.
When Fat Tony is called up for jury duty, Dans left in charge of making budget cuts.
In his line of legitimate business, that inevitably means whacking a couple of the employees.
It would be a shame if we never saw him return to his criminal ways in future episodes.
AKA, the one where Bart has a heart attack
Bart, just take this seriously.
Now youve got nothing!
Heres one that starts out comedic and turns a little darker.
Bart fares worse than most of his classmates, gaining a huge amount of weight.
This spurs the family into sending him to a fat camp, ran by Tab Spangler.
Every sign is wrong!
Isnt it a bit messed up that Rainier Wolfcastle wasnt the president in The Simpsons Movie?
The series has its own purpose-built Schwarzenegger, perfectly voiced by Harry Shearer.
Before that, hes distracted easily enough by Skinners utterly pathetic stand-up comedy routine.
Lisa is confronted with the truth that her favourite YA author T.R.
How could that be made up?
Together, they plan a heist to replace the rewritten version of their masterpiece with the original before publication.
Whichever one is the morning one.
Its not that one.
Even if youve never seen 24, the gags stand on their own.
If anything, it feels like a dry run for a series finale, right down to The End?
at the close of the episode.
Sean, you wanker, he says.
Repent of your wicked ways or sod off.
Then he gobbed in my face and turned back into a streetlight.
to Marges worries over her family converting to Catholicism, (All that standing and sitting and kneeling.
Its like Simon Says without a winner) but thats not why its so high on the list.
The ending is a perfect example, with Bart telling the feuding Christians, Its all Christianity, people!
The little stupid differences are nothing next to the big stupid similarities!
Flash forward one millennium later, where Barts words are the basis of a huge denominational holy war.
When Lisa finds out, she quits her role and joins the students in a strike.
Musical rules still apply, so she also wins over the police and various other unionised grown-ups.
Aside from any of these reasons, youve gotta love a musical.
but its an impeccably written episode and perhaps the best The Simpsons has been in the last 15 years.
