Children of a Lesser Clod (S12, E20-268)

Whoever filmed this did a good job keeping pace while not also drawing Homer's anger.

Plot Summary
The Springfield YMCA is having a free trial night.  Homer and some others play a game of basketball, but Homer ends up breaking his leg.  He undergoes surgery to fix it, and is forced to a wheelchair, unable to go to work, for at least two weeks.  Bored stiff at home, Homer starts to become delusional.  Ned Flanders comes in looking for a babysitter, and Homer obliges.  He and the boys have a good time, though, and when Ned comes to pick the boys up, Homer liked the experience so much he decides to start up a day care.

Word around town picks up about Homer's new day care, and soon the Simpson home is bustling with small children having a good time with their new pal, Homer who continues the work even after his leg fully heals.  Two small children, however, are less than happy: Bart and Lisa, who become jealous that Homer is spending so much time with other children and so little time with them.  They attempt to sneak a picture of themselves with Homer to Homer, but Homer takes the photo out of the frame and replaces it with his new day care permit.  Homer's work becomes so well known, that he is nominated for a "Good Guy" award, with a camera crew appearing to tape Homer's work with the kids.  Bart and Lisa are shoved off to the side to make hearts for Homer's day care kids, and the two have had enough, deciding to come up with a plan to ruin Homer.

The night of the awards occurs, and Homer wins an award for his day care work.  As a video plays regarding his day care, Bart and Lisa hijack the showing and begin showing clips of Homer in a lesser light.  Videos of Homer gambling away Maggie and chasing Bart with a mace are shown, and Homer doesn't take it well, going up to the stage and publicly choking Bart.  As parents throughout the crowd tell their kids to stay away from Homer, Homer snaps and rushes the kids out the building, driving away in a truck.  The police give chase, but Homer crashes and is ultimately arrested.  Three mistrials later, Homer apologizes the kids for having ignored them, and promises he'll only care about them, also Maggie.

Quick Review
I really enjoyed this episode.  The YMCA scenes that opened the episode were fine, especially concerning Rainier Wolfcastle's desire to hunt for man.  The middle portion had its moments as well, and I enjoyed seeing Bart and Lisa work together again even if for a petty cause.  The last part of the episode was great, though Arnie Pie in the Sky was probably the best part of it.  In all, it makes for a very strong episode.

Final Score: 8.9