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| "Homer? Who is Homer? My name is Guy Incognito." |
Homer tries to join in the fun when his bar mates pull dangerous pranks on Moe including putting a snake in the cash register and setting his alcohol-soaked clothes on fire. However, Homer unscrews the cap of a sugar container a bit, which spills over when Moe tries to put some in coffee. That act is apparently too far, and Moe quickly bans Homer from the bar. Homer attempts to find another place to drink (while Moe and the others beat up Homer look-alikes that come into the bar mistaking them for Homer), but none of the places work out. Homer's last attempt takes his to a pilot bar outside an airport. Claiming to be a pilot to get service, the plan backfires when Homer is unable to back out of flying a plane to Chicago. After promptly ruining the plane before it even takes off, the head of the airport promises to give Homer and his family a free plane ride to anywhere in the 48 continental states in exchange for his complete silence.
The family is excited about the unnamed trip, except for Marge who quickly shows anxiety towards the idea. On the plane, she reveals she has a fear of flying and has a panic attack, forcing the family to leave the plane before it departs. The experience gets to Marge, causing her to bottle up her fear in weird ways, like cooking at night, or fixing the roof at night. Homer tries to help by having Marge watch airplane crash survival movies, but that only makes things worse. Lisa suggests Marge sees a therapist, though Homer is afraid that said therapist will only seek to split Homer up from, well, everyone, Marge especially. With Marge's condition worsening, though, there is no other option.
The therapist, a Dr. Zweig, tries to find a traumatic moment in Marge's childhood that could be responsible for Marge's fear. Although that doesn't turn up any leads, Marge then mentions a recurring dream she's been having where she's the mother from Lost in Space, a sequence that ends with the rocket somehow flying away and Marge imploring her father to not leave. Dr. Zweig presses the issue of Marge's father, and she "reveals" that he was a pilot, but then another memory comes back to Marge where she, as a child, recalls that her father was actually an airplane steward. In tears over the moment, Marge is reassured somewhat when she is told that male stewards are now commonplace. With Marge's fear of flying having its roots located (though Marge then recalls several other bad memories involving planes), Homer swiftly takes Marge away before Dr. Zweig can take on the "far more serious problem" of Homer. Marge and Homer attempt to fly again afterward, with Homer trying to calm Marge just as the plane's engine stalls and the craft glides into a nearby lake or ocean or whatever.
Quick Review
Fear of Flying turns out to be a great episode, which one may not expect from a Marge-centric episode, but the plot works very well. The beginning part featuring Homer's quest for a new bar was well done, and the references to Cheers and Lost in Space were excellent even if a bit lost on today's generation. Regardless, this episode is another strong entry in Season 6's superb run.
Final Score: 9.7
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