He Loves to Fly and He D'ohs
"He Loves to Fly and He D'ohs", also known as "He Loves to Fly",[2] is the nineteenth season premiere of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It was the first episode to air after the release of The Simpsons Movie, having originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 23, 2007.[2] In the episode, Homer falls in love with private planes after taking a flight to Chicago with Mr. Burns. He tries to find a job that involves flying in a corporate jet, and hires a life coach named Colby Kraus to assist him with his goal.
"He Loves to Fly and He D'ohs"
Season 19
Episode 1
JABF20
September 23, 2007
"I will not wait 20 years to make another movie"[1]
Al Jean
Joel H. Cohen
Matt Selman
Tom Gammill
Max Pross
David Silverman
Ralph Sosa
Mike B. Anderson
The episode was written by Joel H. Cohen and directed by Mark Kirkland,[3] while Lionel Richie guest stars as himself and Stephen Colbert guests as the voice of Colby Kraus.[4]
In its original broadcast, "He Loves to Fly and He D'ohs" was watched by about 9.7 million people, it received a 4.7 Nielsen rating and a 12 percent share, making it the highest-rated episode of The Simpsons since "The Wife Aquatic", which aired January 7, 2007.[5] Following its broadcast, the episode received mixed reviews from television critics.
Plot[edit]
Both the episode and the season take place two months after the events of the movie in the newly restored Springfield. During a visit to the Springfield Mall, Mr. Burns falls into a fountain while trying to take a penny from it. Homer arrives to pull him out, saving his life. Burns offers to take Homer out to dinner as a reward; when Homer expresses a liking for Chicago-style pizza, the two fly to Chicago in Burns' luxuriously appointed private plane. Homer enjoys the trip and the dinner, but soon becomes depressed because he does not have a plane of his own.
To raise Homer's spirits, Marge hires life coach Colby Kraus to work with him. Colby discovers that Homer is only good at bowling and urges him to wear his bowling shoes everywhere in order to boost his self-confidence. The strategy succeeds, and a revitalized Homer soon receives job interview invitations from several companies. He decides to interview only at Handyman's Choice, a copper tubing manufacturer, because the position would require him to take business trips on the company jet.
In the days following the interview, Homer confidently leaves the house each morning, but drives past Handyman's Choice and spends the day at a nearby Krusty Burger. Bart finds him there during a class field trip, and Homer admits that he did not get the job because he knows nothing about copper tubing and manhandled the CEO in an attempt to hire him. Bart urges Homer to tell Marge the truth, but upon hearing her happy voice on the phone, Homer cannot bring himself to disappoint her. Instead, he charters a brief private jet flight for himself and Marge, intending to tell her the truth during the trip. Before he can do so, though, the plane hits turbulence and Homer and Marge find the pilot passed out from heroin use. They struggle to pull the plane up and keep from crashing into the ocean, and Marge frantically calls Colby for advice. His motivation guides Homer to land the plane safely at the airport, but Homer accidentally steers it into the ocean while trying to taxi back to the terminal. He and Marge are airlifted to safety, and he decides to go back to work at the power plant, seeing private jet travel as dangerous.
Cultural references[edit]
While in Chicago, Mr. Burns and Homer walk into a salon called "Ferris Bueller's Day of Beauty" in a reference to Ferris Bueller's Day Off. When they exit the salon, they are dressed as Ferris (Burns) and his friend Cameron (Homer), respectively.[7] Lionel Richie sings "Say You, Say Me" on the flight. He makes it about beer at Homer's requests. The two titles, when changed, are "Hey You, Beer Me" and "Beer Beer, Beer Beer," the latter of which Homer forgets the words to.[1] Mr. Burns and Homer catch a show at the real-life Second City Theater. Both Dan Castellaneta and guest star Stephen Colbert were members of Second City early in their careers.[1] The episode's title is a reference to Delta Air Lines' 1987 slogan, "We love to fly, and it shows."[10]