The Man Who Grew Too Much

Did You Know?

• This episode marked the final appearance of Marcia Wallace as Edna Krabappel.
• Executive producer Al Jean stated that only two lines recorded by Wallace remained, and there was not enough material for a farewell episode.
• The character of Edna Krabappel was retired out of respect for Wallace.

Plot

While watching a film in Ms. Hoover's class, Lisa and her classmates are interrupted by students stampeding for Taco Tuesday. Homer and his co-workers sneak into the school to take advantage of the day. Lisa sees Bart eating his sixth taco and the lunch lady saving the salad for another meal. When Lisa asks if the vegetables will rot, the lunch lady explains they are genetically modified and will last. After reading about side effects of genetically modified foods, Lisa presents her argument at a parent-teacher meeting. Following a confusing video, she researches further and discovers genetically modified foods can be beneficial. A corporation takes interest in Lisa's initiative and introduces her family to their chief scientist, who is Sideshow Bob. Bob recounts how, driven by insanity in prison, he became a test subject to spare the monkeys. Lisa and Bob connect over their mutual love of Walt Whitman, and Bob notes Lisa was always the best family member. They begin conducting scientific food experiments together and enjoy each other's company. Meanwhile, Marge rushes to church for volunteer sign-ups but is suckered by Ned into giving a sex talk to teenagers. The teenagers mock her teaching, and her finger puppets fail to convey her point. At home, Homer tries to spend time with an angry Marge, who uses him as an example for her class. Marge brings Homer to church to tell the class she has abstained from sex for two days. The image of Homer and Marge touching prompts the teenagers to pledge to wait until marriage, though they start a riot in pent-up sexual frustration.

Reception

The episode received a 1.6 rating and was watched by 3.75 million people, making it the second most watched show on Animation Domination that night. Critics gave positive reviews. The A.V. Club awarded a B+ rating, praising Kelsey Grammer's voice-acting and the episode's strong, straightforward narrative. Teresa Lopez of TV Fanatic gave a mixed-to-positive review, lauding the bonding between Sideshow Bob and Lisa as heartwarming but criticizing Bob's scheme as mundane and his transformation into a genetic monster as silly. She praised the B-story involving Marge's celibacy talk for its comic moments. The episode received a 3.6/5 star rating. After airing, Monsanto released a statement expressing gladness that Lisa did her homework and came to her own conclusions about GMOs.