Homer's Paternity Coot

The family sits on the couch. A photographer comes in and takes the family's picture, setting off a series of future family pictures; the family is normal in 2006 and 2007, Homer dies in 2008, Marge marries Lenny in 2009, Lenny and Carl marry and care for the Simpson kids in 2010, Marge returns and marries Jimbo Jones in 2011, Homer returns as a robot in 2012, and the family become robots in 2013.^[1]

Guest star(s)

Michael York
William H. Macy
Joe Frazier

Season 17
September 11, 2005 – May 21, 2006

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"Homer's Paternity Coot"^[1] is the tenth episode of The Simpsons' seventeenth season, and first aired on January 8, 2006, being the first episode of 2006. Mail from forty years earlier is discovered, and a letter from Homer's mom's old boyfriend states that he is Homer's true father. Homer sets out to find his new father, leaving Abe Simpson behind.^[1] It was written by Joel H. Cohen and directed by Mike B. Anderson.^[1] The episode guest stars William H. Macy and Joe Frazier as themselves, and Michael York as Homer's new father, Mason Fairbanks.^[1] During it's first airing, the episode originally garnered 10.1 million viewers,^[2] higher than the previous episode.^[3]

1 Plot
2 Cultural references
3 Reception
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Plot

As Marge goes shopping, a toll booth appears, but Marge and other Springfield residents take "The Ol' Cheapskate Trail". Mayor Quimby enforces tire spikes and blocks off the escape route. The next time Marge comes up to the booth, she backs up, causing many car's tires to become severely damaged. The tires are thrown in the tire fire, melting some of Mount Springfield and revealing a mailman, which has been frozen for 40 years. One of the forty year old letters is delivered to Homer's Mother, Mona Simpson. It is from her old lifeguard boyfriend, whose name begins with an M, who writes that if Mona replies to the letter, she has chosen him, and if she does not, she is choosing to stick with Abe. But he also writes that "in his heart he'll know that the baby she carries is his."

Homer goes to the library to find his supposed father by looking in "Lifeguards of Springfield in the Twentieth Century." The only person in there whose name begins with M is Mason Fairbanks (voiced by Michael York). Homer goes to his relatively large house pretending to be a reporter. He tells him that he is interviewing people who wear sweaters, and he is let inside. Mason shows him around his home, and he even shows him his ship, The Son I Never Knew. Homer eventually tells him that he thinks that he is his father, and Mason is delighted. He takes Homer and the rest of the family (excluding Grampa) on a ride on his ship and tells them the story of a lost emerald treasure. The family is impressed with him, but when they come home, Grampa is angry that Homer would even think that Mason could be his real father. They decide to have a DNA test, and after a suspenseful wait, it is revealed that Homer's real father is Mason Fairbanks.

While Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie are having an awkward, uneventful visit with Grampa, Mason and Homer are underwater (which is terribly polluted by nuclear waste) in their own individual submarines looking for the lost treasure. Homer gets separated from Mason, and he follows a small light that he thinks is him. It is actually a glowing fish, but it is too late, because Homer gets stuck in some coral. His oxygen begins to run out, and he starts to see flashbacks including him and Abe. When his last bit of oxygen runs out, the last thing he sees is Mason heading towards him. When he wakes up, he is in the hospital, and Bart tells him that he has been in a coma for three days. Grampa starts to leave, but Homer grabs his arm and asks Mason, Marge, and the kids to leave. He tells Grampa of his memories and says he has been just like a father. Grampa then tells Homer that he is actually his father -- he switched the labels on the DNA samples, and that he wanted Homer to be happy. They share an emotional moment, and it is official: Abe is Homer's real father. The episode ends with Mason teaching Homer, at Homer's request, "that the stove is hot" on his ship.^[1]

[edit] Cultural references

When Ralph gets his head stuck in a tuba, he says he is C3-D2, a combination of the names of Star Wars's C-3PO and R2-D2.^[4] The song "Time After Time" by Cyndi Lauper is heard in Homer's fantasy of playing with a question mark.^[4]

[edit] Reception

Ryan J. Budke of TV Squad gives the episode a strong positive rating, quoting its ingenuity and charm.^[1] He calls it a funny episode with a lot of heart, and quotes that it was a great episode by comparing it alongside his other favourite, "The Girl Who Slept Too Little".^[1]