The Best Episodes Written By Ian Maxtone Graham

Episode Rankings

1. #1 Fan Favorite
   

   8.5/10(12 votes)

   #1 - Oslo

   S7:E65/5/2019

   Selina tries to arrange a meeting via her Finnish contact Minna. Gary helps Catherine plan a big event. Jonah and Amy push an anti-vax message in Pennsylvania. Mike finds a new home. Richard may have an enemy.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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2. 

   8.0/10(40 votes)

   #2 - The City of New York vs. Homer Simpson

   S9:E19/21/1997

   Designated driver Barney absconds to Manhattan in Homer's car and leaves it there. But when the family journeys to the Big Apple to retrieve their property, Homer discovers his car has been booted.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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3. 

   7.9/10(15 votes)

   #3 - Blurb

   S6:E75/28/2017

   Selina tries to finish her book. Selina and her staff prepare for her portrait-unveiling ceremony, while Jonah tries to weasel himself onto the guest list. Dan works on his onscreen-chemistry problem.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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4. 

   7.8/10(28 votes)

   #4 - Trash of the Titans

   S9:E224/26/1998

   Homer feuds with the Springfield garbage men and decides to run for Sanitation Commissioner. After winning the election with a sleazy campaign, Homer can’t keep the extravagant promises he made to the town.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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5. 

   7.5/10(30 votes)

   #5 - The Trouble with Trillions

   S9:E204/5/1998

   Facing an IRS audit, Homer agrees to help the feds bust Mr. Burns for a missing trillion-dollar bill. When Burns makes an anti-government stand, Homer flees with him to Cuba.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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6. 

   7.4/10(30 votes)

   #6 - Lisa Gets an 'A'

   S10:E711/22/1998

   Stuck at home with a cold, Lisa gets addicted to a video game and neglects her homework. Her A+++ on a test wins the school a grant, but when she confesses that she cheated, Skinner covers it up. Meanwhile, Homer raises a lobster.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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7. 

   7.3/10(21 votes)

   #7 - The Seemingly Never-Ending Story

   S17:E133/12/2006

   The family is on a nature walk through “Carl’s Dad Caverns,” when Homer tries to get a piece from a stalactite. This results in the family falling through the cave floor and winds up with Homer getting stuck in the ceiling of one of the lower chambers of the cave. Marge, Bart and Maggie go off to find help, while Lisa stays behind and tells her father a story to pass the time. Her story involves running from a bighorn sheep and into Mr. Burn’s mansion. The pair evades the tenacious sheep by finding refuge in the mansion’s attic, where Mr. Burns tells her the story of how he came to work at Moe’s Tavern by losing a scavenger hunt with a rich Texan. While there he learned (and tells to Lisa) the tale of the Moe’s treasure. The stories within stories culminate in the fate of the treasure being determined in the cave.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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8. 

   7.3/10(23 votes)

   #8 - 24 Minutes

   S18:E215/20/2007

   In a parody of "24," the school's Counter Truancy Unit tries to stop three sixth-graders planning to disrupt the school bake sale with a stink bomb.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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9. 

   7.1/10(28 votes)

   #9 - Alone Again, Natura-Diddily

   S11:E142/13/2000

   Ned's wife Maude is inadvertently killed by a T-shirt accident at an auto race. Homer and his family try to help Ned cope.

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   Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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10. 

    7.1/10(27 votes)

    #10 - E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)

    S11:E511/7/1999

    Fleeing from a duel, Homer takes his family to live on a farm. There he discovers that by mixing tomatoes, tobacco and radioactivity from the nuclear plant, he can create a dangerously delicious new substance.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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11. 

    7.1/10(23 votes)

    #11 - The Blunder Years

    S13:E512/9/2001

    After tricking Marge into thinking an advertising spokesman is coming to visit her, Homer takes Marge and the rest of the family to a restaurant. A hypnotist uses his powers on Homer, and makes him remember a horrific childhood incident where Homer found a dead body in a ravine. The Simpson family decides to investigate this and find out where the body came from.

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12. 

    7.1/10(29 votes)

    #12 - Large Marge

    S14:E411/24/2002

    Thinking Homer does not find her attractive anymore, Marge decides to get liposuction, but instead receives breast implants. She becomes adored by many of the men in Springfield, and becomes a spokesmodel for trade shows. Meanwhile, Bart and Milhouse try to imitate a stunt they saw on an episode of Batman that guest stars Krusty the Clown. When the stunt ends badly, media watchdog groups blame Krusty, forcing the clown to make his show more safety-conscious and less fun.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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13. 

    7.0/10(24 votes)

    #13 - Gone Maggie Gone

    S20:E133/15/2009

    Lisa infiltrates a convent in order to steal back Maggie who was accidentally taken in by nuns. While in the convent, Lisa uncovers a series of cryptic clues leading to a hidden jewel in Springfield. With help from resident history buffs Principal Skinner and Comic Book Guy, Lisa sets off to find the coveted prize. But Springfield's Freemasons are also hot on the trail of the jewel, and Lisa must race against them to find the jewel and rescue Maggie.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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14. 

    7.0/10(20 votes)

    #14 - The Scorpion's Tale

    S22:E153/6/2011

    During a field trip, Lisa discovers desert water that makes usually combative creatures get along; after getting kicked out of the retirement home, Grampa comes to live with the family.

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15. 

    7.0/10(20 votes)

    #15 - How I Wet Your Mother

    S23:E163/11/2012

    When Homer's bed-wetting worsens, his family tries to infiltrate his dreams to find the source of the problem.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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16. 

    6.9/10(27 votes)

    #16 - Dark Knight Court

    S24:E163/17/2013

    Springfield's Easter is ruined by a prank and all fingers point to Bart. It is up to Lisa to save her brother, in a student court presided over by Attorney General Janet Reno. Meanwhile, inspired by an old comic book, Mr. Burns becomes an ineffectual superhero—fruit bat man.

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17. 

    6.8/10(33 votes)

    #17 - Burns, Baby Burns

    S8:E411/17/1996

    Mr. Burns' boorish long-lost son Larry gets the brush-off from Burns, but Homer hatches a plan to reconcile them.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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18. 

    6.8/10(24 votes)

    #18 - Dude, Where's My Ranch?

    S14:E184/27/2003

    When challenged to think up a new Christmas carol, Homer instead writes a song about how much he hates Ned Flanders. The song becomes such a hit that the Simpsons become sick of hearing it and take a trip to a dude ranch. Lisa develops affections for a local boy named Luke but becomes jealous when he hears him talking to a girl named Clara on the telephone. One night, she meets Clara and gives her the wrong directions, leading her to become lost. After Lisa discovers that Clara is actually Luke's sister, she rushes to find her. She saves Clara, and decides to tell Luke what happened, but he is offended and dumps her. Meanwhile, Bart and Homer decide to help a tribe of Native Americans who want a beaver dam removed so they can reclaim their land.

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    Writer:Ian Maxtone-Graham

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19. 

    6.8/10(23 votes)

    #19 - The Heartbroke Kid

    S16:E175/1/2005

    When Bart endangers his health by bingeing on vending-machine food, the Simpsons turn their home into a hostel in order to afford sending him to a forced starvation facility.

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20. 

    6.7/10(22 votes)

    #20 - Catch 'Em If You Can

    S15:E184/25/2004

    After a ruined movie night, thanks to Bart and Lisa, Homer and Marge take a vacation away from them, but decide to go to Miami instead of going to see an uncle. When Bart and Lisa catch wind of their parents' secret plan, Bart steals Rod's credit card (just like Homer stole Ned's) and go after them.

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21. 

    6.5/10(23 votes)

    #21 - Dangerous Curves

    S20:E511/9/2008

    Homer and Marge remember the ups and downs of their marriage through a series of flashbacks, including the time they each began flirting with guests at a glamorous party - a situation that led to a food fight and an unexpected swim in the pool.

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22. 

    6.5/10(24 votes)

    #22 - The Yellow Badge of Cowardge

    S25:E225/18/2014

    Bart feels guilty after he wins the annual "last day of school" race around Springfield Elementary School, with help from Nelson, who beats up the frontrunner, Milhouse. Meanwhile, Homer tries to bring back 4th of July fireworks after they are canceled due to budget cuts.

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23. 

    6.3/10(25 votes)

    #23 - Tennis the Menace

    S12:E122/11/2001

    While making funeral arrangements for Grampa's future, the funeral planner pitches the idea of a mausoleum that uses the same amount of cement as a full-sized tennis court. This prompts Homer to instead build a tennis court in his backyard, initially mistaking the sport for "Foxy Boxing". The tennis court makes Marge and Homer popular in town, but it turns out that this is only because Homer's inferior tennis ability makes them an easy target. Bart on the other hand, shines as a natural.

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24. 

    6.3/10(23 votes)

    #24 - The Color Yellow

    S21:E132/21/2010

    When Miss Hoover asks her students to research their family history, Lisa is horrified to discover that most of her ancestors were bad people – a motley crew of horse thieves and deadbeats. But while rummaging through the attic, Lisa happens upon a diary kept by her ancestor, Eliza Simpson. As Eliza’s story unfolds, Lisa learns that her family was part of the Underground Railroad, a group that helped slaves escape to freedom. Eliza recounts liberating a slave named Virgil, but when Lisa presents her findings at school, some of her classmates refute it, leaving Lisa determined to exonerate her family’s name.

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