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Season 4
Season 5
Season 6


The fifth season began on September 30, 1993 with the first episode, "Homer's Barbershop Quartet," and ended on May 19, 1994 with "Secrets of a Successful Marriage." David Mirkin was the show runner through most of the season's episodes. Al Jean and Mike Reiss were show runners of two episodes, "Homer's Barbershop Quartet" and "Cape Feare," which had been produced for the previous season. Consequently, they have Season 4's production code, 9FXX, rather than Season 5's, with 1FXX.

The season received eight awards nominations. It won an Annie Award for "Best Animated Television Production", an Environmental Media Award for "Best Television Episodic Comedy" for "Bart Gets an Elephant," a Genesis Award for "Best Television Comedy Series". David Silverman earned a nomination for "Best Individual Achievement for Creative Supervision in the Field of Animation", Alf Clausen and Greg Daniels received a nomination in the "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music and Lyrics" category for the song "Who Needs the Kwik-E-Mart?", a song from "Homer and Apu." Clausen had another nomination for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore)" for the episode "Cape Feare" and the series was nominated for a Saturn Award for "Best Genre Television Series". The producers again tried to submit episodes for "Outstanding Comedy Series" category rather than the "Outstanding Animated Program" as they had previously done, but were still not nominated. This was the last season to regularly air on Thursday nights in prime time before the series return to Sunday nights.

All 22 episodes of Season 5 including extras were released on DVD on December 21, 2004 in Region 1, March 21, 2005 in Region 2 and March 23, 2005 in Region 4.

Episodes[]

Picture # Title Original airdate Directed by

Written by

Prod. code

Homers Barbershop Quartet 82 - 1 "Homer's Barbershop Quartet" September 30, 1993 Mark Kirkland Jeff Martin 9F21

Homer tells the story of when he was a member of a barbershop quartet called The Be Sharps, consisting of himself, Principal Skinner, Apu and Chief Wiggum (who was later replaced by Barney). The group became popular very fast, largely due to their hit song, "Baby on Board", which earned them a Grammy.

Sideshowbob8 83 - 2 "Cape Feare" October 7, 1993 Rich Moore Jon Vitti 9F22

Bart is worried when he receives anonymous threatening letters written in blood, and even more worried when he learns that the sender is Sideshow Bob, and Bob has recently been released from prison.

Homer Goes to College promo 84 - 3 "Homer Goes to College" October 14, 1993 Jim Reardon Conan O'Brien 1F02

Homer learns that he is underqualified for his own job at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant because he has no college training in nuclear physics. He enrolls at Springfield University, where he tries to live the stereotypical college life of pranks and parties and gets his three nerd tutors to go along with him.

Rosebud (Promo Picture) 85 - 4 "Rosebud" October 21, 1993 Wes Archer John Swartzwelder 1F01

Mr. Burns remembers his long-lost childhood toy, a teddy bear named Bobo, and wants to retrieve it. Maggie is discovered to be in possession of the bear which leads to Burns trying to tempt the Simpson family into giving the bear back.

Burnsvampiro 86 - 5 "Treehouse of Horror IV" October 28, 1993 David Silverman Conan O'Brien, Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein, Greg Daniels & Don McGrath, Bill Canterbury 1F04

Prologue: Bart talks to the viewers in a room with paintings lampooned by the Simpsons. Marge tells him that he should warn viewers that the episode is scary, and leaves Maggie with him while she goes to buy some earrings. Bart ignores her, continuing to present the episode and telling three scary stories.

The Devil and Homer Simpson: Homer laments that he would sell his soul for a donut. The Devil promptly appears, producing a contract (which Homer signs) and a donut. Despite his attempt to outsmart the Devil by not eating the last piece of the donut, Homer inevitably eats the final piece anyway while half-asleep raiding the fridge. The Devil returns to collect, but Marge insists on having a trial, to which the Devil reluctantly agrees.

Terror at 5½ Feet: Bart witnesses a gremlin attacking the school bus and tries to warn everyone, but nobody believes him because they don't see the gremlin. With each warning, Bart gets deeper into trouble while the gremlin further damages the bus.

Bart Simpson's Dracula: When a series of mysterious attacks occurs in Springfield, Lisa suspects that a vampire is responsible and that the vampire is Mr. Burns, but no one believes her. Lisa becomes more suspicious when Mr. Burns invites the family over for dinner, ending with Bart becoming a vampire also.

Marge on the Lam (Promo Picture) 87 - 6 "Marge on the Lam" November 4, 1993 Mark Kirkland Bill Canterbury 1F03

Marge and the family's neighbor, Ruth Powers, have a girls' night out, hanging out at a country bar and doing some target shooting using a farmer's antique cans as targets. Homer hires Lionel Hutz to babysit the kids and goes out to have some fun on his own.

Bart's Inner Child (Promo Picture) 88 - 7 "Bart's Inner Child" November 11, 1993 Bob Anderson George Meyer 1F05

Marge realizes she is addicted to nagging and consults a self-help guru, Brad Goodman, to overcome it. Marge later takes the family to hear Goodman speak, hoping that he can do something about Bart's bad behavior. Instead, Goodman uses Bart as an example of how people should behave: "Do what you feel like."

Boy-Scoutz N the Hood (Promo Picture) 89 - 8 "Boy-Scoutz 'n the Hood" November 18, 1993 Jeffrey Lynch Don McGrath 1F06

Bart and Milhouse go on an all-syrup Squishee bender, and Bart awakens the next morning to find that he's joined a Boy Scouts-esque group called the Junior Campers. Bart at first hates the group and wants to quit (especially when he learns the patrol leader is Ned Flanders), but comes to enjoy it when he discovers that the skills he learns are highly useful for pranking Homer.

The Last Temptation of Homer (Promo Picture) 90 - 9 "The Last Temptation of Homer" December 9, 1993 Carlos Baeza Frank Mula 1F07

Homer finds himself highly attracted to Mindy Simmons, a new employee at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, but is torn because having an affair with her would ruin his marriage to Marge.

$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling) (Promo Picture) 91 - 10 "$pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling)" December 16, 1993 Wes Archer Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein 1F08

A declining economy prompts Springfield to legalize gambling, and Mr. Burns opens a casino. Homer is hired as a blackjack dealer, and becomes popular among customers when they realize he always loses. Marge, however, becomes addicted to gambling, ignoring her family in favor of playing slot machines.

Vigil4 92 - 11 "Homer the Vigilante" January 6, 1994 Jim Reardon John Swartzwelder 1F09

A wave of burglaries hits Springfield, and many items, such as Lisa's saxophone, are stolen from people's homes. When the police can't catch the cat burglar, Homer forms a neighborhood watch group.

Bart Gets Famous (Promo Picture) 93 - 12 "Bart Gets Famous" February 3, 1994 Susie Dietter

John Swartzwelder

1F11

Bart sneaks away from a school field trip and ends up getting a job assisting Krusty the Clown. When Krusty puts Bart into a sketch as a last-minute replacement for Sideshow Mel, Bart flubs his line and accidentally trashes the stage. He then says, "I didn't do it," which the audience finds hilarious.

Homer and apu 94 - 13 "Homer and Apu" February 10, 1994 Mark Kirkland Greg Daniels 1F10

Homer gets food poisoning twice from expired products at the Kwik-E-Mart. When Kent Brockman does an exposé on the store, Apu is fired and replaced by actor James Woods. Apu moves in with the Simpsons, and Homer decides to help Apu by going with him to India so he can ask the Kwik-E-Mart chain owner for his job back.

Ae 95 - 14 "Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy" February 17, 1994 Jeffrey Lynch Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein 1F12

Lisa is dissatisfied with the new Malibu Stacy doll because everything it says is demeaning to women. Lisa visits Stacy Lovell, the doll line's reclusive creator, and persuades her to make a doll to be a more positive role model for girls.

Deep Space Homer promo 96 - 15 "Deep Space Homer" February 24, 1994 Carlos Baeza David Mirkin 1F13

Homer is passed over yet again for the "Worker of the Week" award at the nuclear plant, the award going this time to an inanimate carbon rod. At the same time, NASA decides to launch an average American into space to improve TV ratings for space missions. Homer and Barney are selected as candidates, and Homer is chosen to make a shuttle flight.

Homer Loves Flanders 36 97 - 16 "Homer Loves Flanders" March 17, 1994 Wes Archer David Richardson 1F14

Homer is unable to get tickets to the Pigskin Classic football game, but Ned Flanders has an extra and invites Homer to come to the game as his guest, They have a good time and Homer is grateful, but his gratitude turns annoying when he constantly hangs out around Ned.

Elephant 98 - 17 "Bart Gets an Elephant" March 31, 1994 Jim Reardon John Swartzwelder 1F15

Bart wins a radio contest where the prize is either $10,000 or an elephant. Bart insists on the elephant, even though it's obviously a gag prize. When the announcers are threatened with being fired, they give Bart the elephant, which he names Stampy.

Burns'Heir 99 - 18 "Burns' Heir" April 14, 1994 Mark Kirkland Jace Richdale 1F16

Mr. Burns nearly drowns in his bathtub and decides he needs an heir to inherit his wealth. He holds auditions and rejects many local children, including Bart, but when Bart takes revenge by vandalizing Burns' mansion, Burns decides that Bart is what he's looking for and selects Bart to be his heir.

Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song (Promo Picture) 100 - 19 "Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song" April 28, 1994 Bob Anderson Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein 1F18

Bart brings Santa's Little Helper to school for show and tell. The dog is a hit with the kids, but he escapes and causes a series of mishaps, resulting in Principal Skinner being fired. Flanders is hired as principal and Skinner rejoins the Army.

Simpsons08 101 - 20 "The Boy Who Knew Too Much" May 5, 1994 Jeffrey Lynch John Swartzwelder 1F19

Bart ditches school as he considers such a day for one too beautiful to remain inside. Principal Skinner is aware of the ditching and tracks him down but fails to capture him. Bart then sneaks into a birthday party of Mayor Quimby's nephew, Freddy and witnesses a waiter being injured, having an innocent Freddy taken into court as he was accused of attacking him.

Aj 102 - 21 "Lady Bouvier's Lover" May 12, 1994 Wes Archer Bill Oakley & Josh Weinstein 1F21

Grampa falls for Marge's mother, Jackie, while in Maggie's first birthday party. They begin dating but Jackie then favors to date with Mr. Burns instead.

Secrets of a Successful Marriage 37 103 - 22 "Secrets of a Successful Marriage" May 19, 1994 Carlos Baeza Greg Daniels 1F20

Homer signs up to teach a class about keeping a successful marriage at a learning annex as he is tired of being called "slow". He is first unsuccessful and only can be keep the class's interest is by telling them secrets about Marge and what she and Homer do in their bedroom.

Characters introduced[]

Locations introduced[]

DVD Release[]

Season 5 was released on DVD in its entirety as The Complete Fifth Season Boxset on December 21, 2004 in region 1, March 21, 2005 in Region 2 and March 23, 2005 in Region by 20th Century Fox. While primarily containing the original 22 episodes, the boxset also consists on bonus features such as storyboards.

The Complete Fifth Season Boxset
Set Details Special Features
  • Optional commentaries for all 22 episodes
  • Introduction from Matt Groening
  • Animation Showcases
  • "A Look Back" with James L. Brooks
  • Deleted Scenes for 14 episodes
  • Commercials
  • Illustrated commentaries
  • Audio outtakes
  • Original sketches
Release Dates
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
December 21, 2004 March 21, 2005 March 23, 2005

Trivia[]

  • There are a few firsts that this season has to offer, and here they are in the list:
  1. This season replaces it's showrunners again for the 2nd time because Al Jean & Mike Reiss completely stopped serving as the show's showrunners in favor of concentrating on their new show, called The Critic. The staff & crew hired David Mirkin as the new showrunner & this will be start to happen with the 1st episode that they produced for Season 5. However, there are 2 episodes that were shelved after being produced in Season 4, and because of that, Al Jean & Mike Reiss were the showrunners of the show during this season's airing for the final time. Incase you don't know, those 2 held over episodes are "Cape Feare" & "Homer's Barbershop Quartet". Further detail, Al Jean can make a come back as a showrunner for the show for the show's 13th aired season in 2001-2002, which took place and happened 7 years after this season has finished airing it's episodes on TV.
  2. On the topic of crew, from 1989-1993, the previous four seasons of the show had different people who would help with the producers to write the episodes. However, starting right with this season, things are different, as the old Season 1 writers had left the show after Season 4's production was done & the staff hired many new writers for this season. Again, this season had holdovers from the last season, which meant that Cape Feare & Homer's Barbershop Quartet, despite being new, Season 5 episodes, were the last 2 in the episode production and television airing order to feature the old fashioned writers.
  3. As of this season, the show has produced and provided viewers with 100 episodes, making this the 1st season to feature an episode number milestone. Speaking of milestones and 100 episodes, the hundredth episode is Sweet Seymour Skinner's Baadasssss Song, which would go on the air on the TV airwaves for the first time on Thursday, April 28th, 1994.
  • This season's production code is 1Fxx.

Awards[]

The season received eight awards nominations. It won an Annie Award for "Best Animated Television Production", an Environmental Media Award for "Best Television Episodic Comedy" for "Bart Gets an Elephant," a Genesis Award for "Best Television Comedy Series". David Silverman earned a nomination for "Best Individual Achievement for Creative Supervision in the Field of Animation", Alf Clausen and Greg Daniels received a nomination in the "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music and Lyrics" category for the song "Who Needs the Kwik-E-Mart?", a song from "Homer and Apu." Clausen had another nomination for "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Music Composition for a Series (Dramatic Underscore)" for the episode "Cape Feare" and the series was nominated for a Saturn Award for "Best Genre Television Series." The producers again tried to submit episodes for "Outstanding Comedy Series" category rather than the "Outstanding Animated Program" as they had previously done, but were still not nominated.

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