Extreme Makeover: Homer Edition

Homer and Marge are preparing to go on a date night with Lenny and Carl and their dates while waiting for Shauna to babysit their kids. Homer tells Marge to go ahead while he waits for Shauna. At the restaurant, Marge is nervous about making conversation, but everyone enjoys her banter. When Shauna arrives injured, Homer sends her away and has the kids sit on the lawn, so he can watch them through the doorbell camera. He goes to the restaurant but ignores the women, which annoys Marge. Seeing their kids on the lawn on Homer's phone, Marge yells at him and sends him home.

Feeling regretful, Marge wishes Homer could have a different personality. First, she imagines him as a reckless fighter pilot who keeps getting his wingmen killed. He is ordered to undergo psychological evaluation with Marge. He realizes his fear of being afraid while they fall in love with each other. When Homer must lead a dangerous mission, he is afraid, so Marge flies with him in another plane to make him brave enough. Homer completes his mission, but his wingmen, including Marge, are killed.

Seeing on her phone that Homer left his house keys at the restaurant, which leaves him and the kids trapped outside, she imagines Homer as a businessman from the 1950s. After being rejected at an executive meeting, he goes home to his wife, Helen, who is having an affair with Kirk. She encourages him to get a promotion by attending a party thrown by his boss, so he can be away from home for longer periods of time. Feeling spiritually unsatisfied, he meets Marge, an artist who is the bartender at the party. She takes him on a trip filled with music and art, and they fall in love. Planning to run away with her, he goes home to pack where Helen says she got him the promotion. Later, Marge sees him at the bus station, but he goes on the train to his new job instead.

Not wanting to go home yet, Marge goes to Moe's Tavern where she imagines Homer without anger issues. In a rundown city, Homer has a laughing disorder, and his hero is Krusty. He gets a job as a clown where he is constantly abused. After being assaulted by bullies, he is hospitalized. Seeing them being interviewed by Krusty on television, he has a psychotic break and kills a hospital donor. He is sent to an asylum and meets Margeley Quinn who says he now has an angry male following who will obey him. They fall in love and escape. They lead a clown mob to Krusty's studio and kill him. Seeing Homer and Margeley in love, the mob kills them too.

Going home, Marge is worried when she cannot find Homer and the kids in the house. She is relieved to find them in the treehouse. Homer apologizes to her while she says that he is perfect for her the way he is.

"Extreme Makeover: Homer Edition" was the 800th production episode of The Simpsons.^[a] The couch gag was produced in partnership with arts and entertainment company Meow Wolf. It features easter eggs of various Meow Wolf references including its founder Matt King. Executive producer Matt Selman said he is a fan of the company's Omega Mart installation in Las Vegas.^[1]

Betty Gilpin guest starred as Amy.^[2] Musicians Laufey and Tegan and Sara sing in the episode.^[3] Actor Jon Hamm appeared as himself. He previously guest starred in the twenty-second season episode "Donnie Fatso" as a different character.^[4]

The first dream sequence is a parody of the 1986 film Top Gun. The last dream sequence is a parody of the 2019 film Joker and its 2024 sequel.^[5]

Marcus Gibson of Bubbleblabber gave the episode a 7 out of 10. He said the plot of Marge doubting Homer due to his actions has been done many times previously. However, he highlighted the animation style in the couch gag and in the second dream sequence.^[5]