The Otto Show (S03, E22-057)

"Alcohol increases your ability to drive... FALSE!?  Oh man..."

Plot Summary
There are a lot of characters in The Simpsons, a lot of good characters with the potential to carry episodes, as will be see in many of the later seasons.  Still, when you think of earlier episodes based around non-Simpsons characters, Otto the bus driver is not one character you would think should come to mind.  Yet, here we are, nearing the end of Season 3 and already Otto has an episode centered around him.

Of course, because it is hard to fill an entire episode about Otto, the first part of the episode has hardly anything to do with him.  Bart and Milhouse attend a Spinal Tap concert, but the group (who provide an excellent guest appearance, might I add) can only stand doing the show for 20 minutes as the arena, normally a hockey rink, is wet and technically incompetent.  A riot ensues, and though Bart escapes alright (not so much Milhouse), he sets out to become a rock star.

Homer and Marge buy Bart an electric guitar to that end, but Bart ends up being terrible at it.  At the bus stop, he tells Otto that he thinks it might be broken, but Otto more than confirms its just fine.  After a mini jam session, Martin perilously notes that the bus should've been in school ten minutes ago.  Otto tries to rush the bus to the school, but for once his reckless driving doesn't pan out and the bus crashes in town square (after crashing the Spinal Tap bus along the way).  Upon learning Otto does not have a license (or is even wearing his own underwear), Principal Skinner has no choice but to suspend Otto until he acquires a license.  As Skinner takes over bus driving duties on an increasingly frustrating basis, Otto tries to get his license, but Patty at the DMV fails him due to Otto being terrible.  Otto then goes back to his apartment to learn he's been evicted.

Bart discovers Otto in a trash depository outside the Kwik-E-Mart, and decides to have Otto stay at his house.  Homer and Marge predictably think that's a bad idea but are ultimately convinced to let him stay.  After Otto makes a nuisance of himself, they kick him out, though Marge advises him to try the test again.  Although Otto has no confidence in passing, Bart reminds him that Homer did call Otto a "sponge".  Motivated, Otto storms in and tells Patty he's retaking the test "so [he] can staple [his] license to Homer Simpson's big bald head".  After entertaining Patty with Homer's usual idiocy, Patty gladly lets Otto pass despite still being terrible at it, and soon Otto is back at his bus driver job much to Skinner's relief.

Quick Review
I ended up enjoying this episode than I thought I would initially.  The Otto Show is an episode that normally slips through the cracks of memorable Season 3 episodes.  It doesn't have any memorable scenes and its not really heartwarming.  It does have its share of jokes, though, and again the Spinal Tap appearance was done really well.  This ends up being about an average Season 3 episode, which is to say that its really good.

Final Score: 8.5