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"The Man Who Flew Too Much" is the twelfth episode of the thirty-sixth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons, and the 780th episode overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on December 22, 2024. The episode was written by Al Jean and directed by Steven Dean Moore.

In this episode, the helicopter taking Homer's bowling team to a championship match crashes on a snowy mountain, and the survivors must find a way to return to Springfield. Glenn Close guest starred as Mona Simpson. The episode received mixed reviews.

Plot

The current iteration of the Pin Pals bowling team, consisting of team captain Homer, Moe, Ned, Carl, and Fausto, have made it to the state championship match. The town holds a rally for the team where the team members make speeches. Ned says a prayer thanking God while Homer taunts him. Bart says he is proud of Homer. Barney flies the team to the tournament in his helicopter. As they attempt to fly over a snowy mountain, they are alerted that the helicopter is overweight because the team brought heavier bowling balls than the ones declared in the flight manifest. Unable to climb over the mountain, Barney tries to land, but the helicopter crashes.

The survivors are uninjured except for Fausto, who is unconscious and barely breathing. They trek down the mountain with Flanders carrying Fausto while Homer secretly admires his effort. Moe gets a phone call from Bart, looking for Homer, and throws away his phone thinking it is a prank call. They begin hallucinating and start to pray. Barney checks on Fausto and says he has died. Moe suggests eating Fausto, but Ned stops him while secretly eating the communion wafers he carries with him. Homer tells Ned he is a better leader than him, but Ned encourages Homer and has him lead the team in prayer. However, they quickly lose consciousness due to the cold.

Meanwhile, no one in town can contact the team, and everyone aside from the Simpsons assumes they have died. Marge puts up the Christmas decorations at home to make the family feel better even though it is October. The police tell Marge to prepare for the worst while Patty and Selma use generative artificial intelligence to show her Homer's dead body. However, Marge believes he is alive and will lead the team to safety. She prepares Homer's favorite foods for when he returns. On the mountain, Homer hallucinates his mother and asks to join her in heaven. She says she is not there, which worries him. He smells Marge's cooking, and he awakens. He ties the living team members to a rope and drags them down the mountain. As the town holds the funeral for the team, they burst into the church to the elation of the Simpson family. They are proud that Homer saved the team and proved everyone wrong.

Later, Fausto also returns and declares he is alive.

Production

The plot of the Pin Pals trying to survive the crash is a parody of the 1993 film Alive and the 2023 film Society of the Snow. The films depict how the survivors of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 stayed alive by resorting to cannibalism, which Moe considers in the episode. Writer Al Jean was not aware that the plot of the television series Yellowjackets has a similar premise until after he pitched the episode.

Glenn Close reprised her role as Mona Simpson. Close first appeared in this role in the seventh season episode "Mother Simpson". In this episode, Chris Edgerly takes over the role of Rod Flanders from Pamela Hayden, who retired earlier in the season. Milhouse Van Houten, previously voiced by Hayden, appears but is not voiced.

Cultural references

The couch gag of this episode references the Out of Context Simpsons Couch Gags account (@OOCCouchGags) on X. The depiction of Homer rising and pushing away the snow is based on a similar illustration in the comic book The Amazing Spider-Man #33.

Reception

Viewing figures

The episode earned a 0.26 rating and was watched by 0.91 million viewers, which was the second-most watched show on Fox that night, behind a repeat of Bob's Burgers.

Critical response

John Schwarz of Bubbleblabber gave the episode a 7.5 out of 10. He preferred the original Pin Pals team but liked the sight gags and Bart's phone call to Moe. He also did not like the Fausto character and the brief appearance by Mona.

Mike Celestino of Laughing Place did not like the jokes or the writing. He would have preferred a follow-up episode of the seventh season episode "Team Homer", which was the first episode to feature the Pin Pals.

References

1. ^ Jean, Al (December 23, 2024). "If you've made it to first act break @TheSimpsons May I recommend the films Alive and Society of the snow …after pitching out story became aware Yellowjackets has the same premise based on ill fated Uruguayan rugby team but avoiding watching that show…" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.
2. ^ Celestino, Mike (December 22, 2024). "TV Recap / Review: The Pin Pals Are "Alive" In "The Simpsons" Season 36, Episode 10 – "The Man Who Flew Too Much"". Laughing Place. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
3. Jean, Al (December 23, 2024). "Doesn't look like they'll be making it to Capital city… the true story is grimmer than Moe's line at the act break will leave it at that" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.
4. "(SI-3602) "The Man Who Flew Too Much"". The Futon Critic. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
5. Oakley, Bill (2005). The Simpsons season 7 DVD commentary for the episode "Mother Simpson" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
6. Jean, Al (December 23, 2024). "Chris Edgerley but sounds the same to me …" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.
7. ^ Shanfeld, Ethan (November 20, 2024). "Milhouse Voice Actor Retires From The Simpsons After 35 Years". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on November 20, 2024. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
8. Jean, Al (December 23, 2024). "Hope you enjoyed watching as much as I enjoyed writing… no new Milhouse voice but soon @TheSimpsons" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.
9. Al Jean (December 23, 2024). "Sure! Merry Christmas!" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
10. Jean, Al (December 23, 2024). "Based on my favorite comic book story ever open of Amazing Spider-Man 33… the late Stan Lee once told me this idea was all Steve Ditko…@TheSimpsons" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2024 – via Twitter.
11. Pucci, Douglas (December 26, 2024). "Sunday Ratings: Eagles-Commanders Thriller on Fox Highlights Top NFL Early Afternoon Window Audience on Any Network for the Season To-Date". Programming Insider. Retrieved December 26, 2024.
12. Schwarz, John (December 23, 2024). "Review: The Simpsons "The Man Who Flew Too Much"". Bubbleblabber. Retrieved December 23, 2024.

External links

• "The Man Who Flew Too Much" at IMDb

• The Simpsons

• 2024 American television episodes
• The Simpsons season 36 episodes
• Television episodes written by Al Jean
• Television episodes directed by Steven Dean Moore