Alone Again, Natura-Diddily

"Alone Again, Natura-Diddily" is the fourteenth episode of The Simpsons ' eleventh season. The episode aired on February 13, 2000.

Plot


On a trip to the bird sanctuary, the family sees that a new speedway has been built and is opening that day. The family goes to the racetrack and are surprised to meet the Flanders family, who came not to see the race but for the high levels of safety used. Not long after arriving, a squad of cheerleaders is giving out free t-shirts by firing them from a cannon into the crowd, and Homer demands one. Homer takes off his t-shirt, and waves it around, shouting. Behind him were Ned and Maude Flanders; irritated by his antics, Maude goes to buy some hot dogs. Homer draws a target on his chest and gains the attention of the promotional cheerleaders. The cheerleaders send a full salvo of t-shirts in Homer's direction, but Homer bends down at the last second to pick up a bobby pin. The t-shirts hit Maude instead, who is returning from the hot dog stand. They knock her from the top of the bleachers to the ground. Dr. Hibbert is fortunately there, but Maude is pronounced dead.

Reverend Lovejoy eulogized her as follows: "In many ways, Maude Flanders was a supporting player in our lives. She didn't grab our attention with memorable catchphrases, or comical accents. But, whether you noticed her or not, Maude was always there ... and we thought she always would be."

Everyone shows their condolences for Ned's loss, but Ned has to deal with being a widower and a single parent. Homer secretly makes a videotape of Ned Flanders to show to the interesting single girls across Springfield, helping him, but the dates are sour. On Sunday morning, Ned Flanders says he does not want to go to church, because he doubts the Lord for having taken Maude. Guilt-ridden, he later rushes to church (apologizing out loud to God the whole way) and sees a Christian rock band, Kovenant, perform. He is attracted (both physically and spiritually) to the singer, Rachel Jordan. She sings over the end credits.

Criticism
Lowe's Motor Speedway president Jerry Gappens expressed his concern over the episode as it appeared to parody an actual incident during the aborted Indy Racing League IndyCar Series Visionaire 500k event on May 1, 1999 where flying tires in a Lap 62 crash killed three spectators, forcing the track to abandon the race before the halfway point (104 of 208 laps). WCCB, the Fox affiliate in Charlotte, North Carolina, home to Lowe's Motor Speedway, refused to show the promotional advertising for this episode. 

Many viewers criticised the show at the time for killing off a popular and beloved character, Maude Flanders. Groening later revealed that Maggie Roswell, the actress who voiced Maude, moved away from the studios to Colorado, making it difficult to continue the character's role in the show.

Cultural references

 * The title of the episode is in reference to the Gilbert O'Sullivan hit, "Alone Again (Naturally)" (1972).
 * Words Ned spells out while playing Scrabble by himself: Solitary, Alone, Forever, Horny, and Flanswered.
 * The video game "Billy Graham's Bible Blaster," played by Bart with Rod and Todd, is a spoof of the unlicensed NES game, Bible Adventures.
 * The background music during Ned Flander's dating tape is I'm Too Sexy by Right Said Fred.