The 12 Best Summer Simpsons Episodes for the 12-Day FXX Marathon

The Simpsons have touched on a countless number of subjects throughout their many glorious years, with different types of episodes for different likes, moods, and times of year. As the summer of 2014 winds down, we want to count down 12 of the greatest summer episodes by naming the best one that will be airing each day of the marathon on FXX.

To clarify, these aren’t necessarily the best episodes to air each day, and they aren’t necessarily the most summer-y episode to air each day, but instead a combination of the two: the best of all the summer-related episodes.

I’ll also admit up front that I made some stretches in this list, and some difficult decisions and cuts. Also, the air times for each episode should be accurate, but its not a sure thing. Check your local listings, and don’t send me angry emails and tweets if you miss an episode because the scheduling is off. Although I should mention that I actually did all the math on paper myself to determine when each and every episode will come on – and it was later confirmed.

Day 1: “Call of the Simpsons” – S1E7 (Thurs, 8/21 @ 1:00pm ET)

An easy choice for day one, “The Call of the Simpsons” still stands as the top outdoor-themed episode of the entire series, and a solid way to start off this summer list. In it, Homer buys an RV to take his family into the wilderness, and also to spite Flanders in one of the earliest examples of their rivalry. From the jokes about the features on Flanders’ well-equipped vehicle, to the sad state of Homer’s ride, the digs about his poor credit), some Bigfoot gags, and a solid acting performance by veteran comic Al Brooks, this episode had ample laughs, and ended up being one of the first legitimately funny installments from start to finish. In fact, “The Call of the Simpsons” was so popular that Burger King released a line of toys based on it.

I’d also be remiss not to mentioned Homer’s obvious lack of survival knowledge, including one of Chef Rich’s all-time favorite laughs on the show: the rabbit trap that launches the Simpson Family’s potential meal clear into the next county.

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Day 2: “Kamp Krusty” – S4E1 (Fri, 8/22 @ 3:30pm ET)

The summer-iest episode on this list might be the one featuring “the Krustiest place on Earth.” Not only that, but Kamp Krusty is arguably the most memorable summer show in The Simpsons history since it encapsulates the feeling we all once had of school ending and, for some, the opportunity to spend summer at a really awesome camp. Personally, I was always tricked by my parents into going a seemingly fun place that turned out to be some lame dog & pony act (much like Kamp Krusty) or a bible camp in disguise (paging Counselor Flanders…)

This episode was not only loaded with jokes and hilarious lines (in fact, it made our Top 25 Episodes of All Time list) but it obviously featured plenty of Krusty, one of the show’s best characters, and had a couple songs as well. If you happen to be lounging around on a lazy summer afternoon, there’s no better episode to watch.

Apologies to: “Saturdays of Thunder” – S3E9 (@ 7:30am ET)

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Day 3: “Bart of Darkness” – S6E1 (Sat, 8/23 @ 1:30pm ET)

Another episode on the Top 25 List, this one could easily give “Kamp Krusty” a run for its money if this were a ranked list. “Bart of Darkness” combined one of the biggest joys & biggest fears of summer: beating the heat by swimming in a nice, refreshing pool (among other techniques) and missing out on all the activities & fun associated with the season. After all, summer is really for the kids, since they get it off from school. For the rest of us, it’s just that time of year in which we get sweaty on the way to work. (Homer: “Don’t worry, boy. When you get a job like me, you’ll miss every summer.)

Throw in a Flanders plotline (and one the show’s biggest mystery stories, save “Who Shot Mr. Burns”) and an ode to Rear Window (one of the best films by one of the best directors of all time) and you can’t lose. I think about it every time I swim, as well as every St. Swithins Day.

p.s. Your epidermis is showing.

 Apologies to: “Boy-Scoutz N the Hood” – S5E8 (@ 6:00am ET)

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Day 4: “Summer of 4 Ft. 2” – S7E25 (Sun, 8/24 @ 2:00pm ET)

The title has the word “summer” right in it, so this one was a no-brainer. Plus, we’ve covered summer camp & backyard swimming pools already, so what possible plots are left other than family vacations? (Okay, maybe there are a few left.)

Taking the family away from Springfield and its endless cast of characters could make for an awkward episode (and to some extent, it did) but the Simpsons took Milhouse along for the ride, and there was an out-of-town Apu knockoff, so we’re still pretty well covered. There’s also a Fourth of July theme as well, so if you don’t think this episode belongs on the list, you’re un-American. You might as well just celebrate Bastille Day.

By the way, this is also one of the first episodes that matched up Bart & Lisa with realistic, non-cartoony kids. You know, average teens (or tweens) that actually act their young age. Plus, it showed all the different complexities of Lisa’s personality, making it one of her better installments.

 Apologies to: “Homerpalooza” – S7E24 (@ 1:30pm – although the schedule says this episode and “Summer of 4 Ft. 2” are reversed.)

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Day 5: “Lisa’s Sax” – S9E3 (Mon, 8/25 @ 4:00am ET)

I’m going to say it: “Lisa’s Sax” might be one of the last (if not the last) exceptional flashback episode. There definitely hasn’t been one as good since. It had frequent laughs throughout, lots of retro reference jokes, and some real emotion. (Who knew I was so attached to a fictional cartoon girl’s saxophone?) Plus, little five-year-old Bart was adorable.

And oh yeah, Springfield goes through its worst heat wave since “four billion years ago when the Earth was just a ball of molten lava.” So yeah, it’s a summer episode. The story goes from Bart’s first day of school, to Homer wanting to buy an air conditioner, to Lisa getting her sax. All inter-related events, with a smooth flow from one topic to another. (Even if it didn’t seem that way to Lisa.)

Although this episode was funny, it might not be as funny as some of the others I considered for this spot. However, this one has some extra feeling, and was by far the most summer-y of the bunch.

Apologies to: “Bart Carny” – S9E12 (@ 8:30am ET), “Wild Barts Can’t Be Broken” – S10E11 (@ 8:30pm ET)

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Day 6: “E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)” – S11E5 (Tues, 8/26 @ 5:00am ET)

This episode is one of the prime examples of why I don’t buy into the whole “The Simpsons have been bad since Season 10 (or 9, or 8…)” idea. Coming straight out of year number 11, this episode barely missed being one of the 25 best, and features one of the best plotlines in the show’s history. Homer gets in trouble after a glove-slapping spree, has to flee from a southern colonel to avoid a duel, moves back into his family’s old farmhouse, and uses radioactive plutonium to grow crops that turn out to be a tomato-tobacco hybrid which he dubs ToMacco. Taking aim at farm life & big business simultaneously, this episode offers running gags, cultural references, and some of the wisest cracks the show has ever seen.

What better way to celebrate nice weather & fresh air than an episode that takes place on ol’ Rural Route 9? Plus, there’s no mention of the kids missing school, so it’s safe to assume this installment takes place over the couple months between school years. Then again, there’s no mention of Homer missing work either…

Apologies to: “Lisa the Treehugger” – S12E4 (@ 3:30pm ET)

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Day 7: “How I Spent My Strummer Vacation” – S14E2 (Wed, 8/27 @ 12:00pm ET)

Tough call on this episode, as far as it’s appropriateness to the subject of this list. Yes, it’s another camp one, and yes, it’s a play on “How I Spent My Summer Vacation,” but fantasy camp isn’t quite the same thing, and there’s no indication of the actual time of year.

Still, it was supposed to spoof a summer camp experience, and as far as later-day Simpsons episodes go, this is easily one of the best.

It’s not so much the lines of dialogue & jokes themselves that make this episode work so well, and it’s not just the impressive list of rockers that volunteered to guest voice, but the combination of these two factors. There’s nothing celebrity-like in the superstars’ roles, and no simple cameos either. These guys temporarily joined the cast and were actually major characters in the story. Each famous face (or voice) had their own identity (be it a parody of their real selves: like Keith Richards and his hard-partying ways; or something completely different, like Mick Jagger playing the head counselor and foil to Homer’s shenanigans) and all appeared more than willing to poke fun at themselves, the regular Simpsons characters, or anything else the writers dreamt up.

Does all this make it more summer-y? Nope. But it surely made this slightly summer-y episode one of the better to choose from.

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Day 8: Catch ‘Em If You Can – S15E18 (Thurs, 8/28 @ 7:00am ET)

I’ll be honest, I have no idea when this episode takes place. Springfield is in its typical moderate climate, yet Ohio (Homer & Marge’s unfortunate destination for an elder relative’s birthday) is apparently both very cold and prone to tornadoes. Go figure.

However, this episode is about making your own good time, and finding your own happiness. If that means sneaking off to Miami to create your own summer when one isn’t available to you, well, I think that’s good enough for me.

Besides, “Catch ‘Em If You Can” has one of the better animated sequences in the show’s history (that of the Catch Me If You Can chase segment spoof) and for a show that only vaguely alluded to sex in the past, it was actually blatant this time around, and totally pulled it off. Kudos.

Although this was the better episode, this spot could have easily gone another “way”…

Apologies to: “The Way We Weren’t” – S15E20 (@ 8:00am ET)

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Day 9: The Simpsons Movie – 2007 (Fri, 8/29 @ 6:00pm ET)

Look, no one said picking the best episodes out of the more recent seasons would be easy, especially with the added qualification that they must be summer related. So I’ll totally admit this is a bit of a cop-out. However, numerous pro-environment episodes almost made this list (such as “The Old Man and the Lisa” and “Lisa the Treehugger”) only to be pushed out by better ones. So why not include the most environmentally-friendly thing the Simpsons have ever made?

Plus, the movie was an enormous historical event for the show, and turned out to be surprisingly good. Funny, warm, and had a solid plot. (And a spider pig.) Also, I honestly think the movie marks an important turning point in the series, as the quality of Simpsons episode began gradually improving from this point forward, recovering from their season 13-18 (or whatever) dip.

There were other episodes that could be considered more summer-y here, but they weren’t nearly as good as the movie.

Apologies to: “The Seemingly Never-Ending Story” – S17E13 (@ 2:00am ET), “The Boys of Bummer” – S18E18 (@ 3:30pm ET)

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Day 10: “Dangerous Curves” – S20E5 (Sat, 8/30 @ 8:00am ET)

I’ll be blunt here. This is probably the weakest episode on the list. It’s another Homer & Marge flashback, and the story just isn’t particularly interesting this time around.

However, it starts on a Fourth of July trip to a cabin in the woods, and ties in a backstory to that same cabin, making it undoubtedly the most summer-y episode of both the season and the day in which it will air.

Story aside, there are a few bright spots that still make “Dangerous Curves” worth watching. Bart & Lisa are very entertaining as they bicker constantly like a married couple, and there are a surprising number of funny & quotable lines in relation to the episode as a whole, and the season as a whole. Although you might not fall for this particular installment, I can guarantee you’ll still find yourself laughing throughout. (Note: Not a guarantee.)

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Day 11: “MoneyBART” – S22E3 (Sun, 8/31 @ 5:00am ET)

Surprisingly, this was a difficult decision. It’s not that this episode, or either of the ones in the “apology” section, were outstanding (they were all solid, though) but they all contained strong arguments to make this list. “The D’oh-cial Network” illustrated the need for kids to abandon their electronic device shackles and go play outside (and even had a Summer Olympics reference) and “The Squirt and the Whale” had that eco angle, but the top pick had a theme that surprisingly didn’t make the list at all yet: baseball. Granted, this episode shouldn’t even be mentioned in the same breath as classics like “Homer at the Bat” or “Dancin’ Homer,” and even “Hungry, Hungry Homer” and “Wild Barts Can’t Be Broken,” but it’s at least on par with “The Boys of Bummer” and is better than “Homer and Marge Turn a Couple Play” – so here it is. “MoneyBART” is a baseball episode, it’s current, and it was actually well-executed. If you don’t believe me, check it out for yourself.

Apologies to: “The D’oh-cial Network” – S23E11 (Sun, 8/31 @ 8:00pm), “The Squirt & the Whale” – S21E19 (Sun, 8/31 @ 1:30am ET)

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Day 12: “A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again” – S23E19 (Mon, 9/1 @ 12:00am ET)

I almost – almost – put “The Yellow Badge of Cowardge” in this spot. It takes place on the last day of school, there’s an outdoor race, and it really does scream “summer.” But I just really didn’t enjoy the episode that much. It wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t list-worthy either. (So if you end up watching the entire marathon, don’t turn it off one episode shy of the finale because of what I said.)

In lieu of “The Yellow Badge of Cowardge,” I have selected another vacation episode. In this one, Bart tries to keep a fun cruise going forever by engineering some tomfoolery like he always does. It’s a single story episode, which is a technique that can be hit-or-miss with The Simpsons. With two (or three) storylines, there’s a better chance that at least one will resonate with viewers. On the other hand, if a story is truly good, viewers will inevitably want to see it take up the full 22 minutes. Luckily for “A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again,” the story had both humor and meaning. And, like most summer vacations, or summers in general, we never want the good ones to end.

Apologies to: “The Yellow Badge of Cowardge” – S25E22 (Mon, 9/1 @ 11:30pm ET) Especially since I kind of dissed it before.

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The Simpsons marathon kicks off Thursday, August 21 (today!) at 10:00am on FXX. It ends 12 days later, on September 1st, at midnight. Promise me you’ll at least try to shower and feed yourself during a couple of the commercial breaks.