Homer to the Max

Plot

The Simpson family watches the pilot of Police Cops, a show featuring a suave detective named Homer Simpson. Homer enjoys the positive attention from townspeople who associate him with the character, despite his family's insistence it is a coincidence. After the pilot, the character is rewritten as an overweight, inept sidekick who mistakes "toys for guns" for "guns for toys" and the police chief's insulin for illegal drugs, spouting the catchphrase "Uh-oh!

SpaghettiOs!" Homer is mocked by Springfield's residents. He appeals to the producers to revert the character, but they refuse and use his plea as material. After failing to sue for improper use of his name, Homer legally changes his name to "Max Power," the only correctly spelled name on his list.

Marge is unhappy he changed it without consulting her. As Max, he becomes more assertive and meets businessman Trent Steel at Costington's. Trent invites the family to a garden party, where they meet celebrities, but the party is a pretext to save a redwood forest. Max, Marge, and others chain themselves to trees. Police arrive and chase Max around his tree with mace; the chain cuts into the tree, causing it to fall and knock down all other redwoods, angering their new friends. Max later changes his name back to Homer Simpson, then suggests Marge change hers to something sexually suggestive.

Production

The writers were inspired by a newspaper story about people with famous names, considering how Homer's life might be affected if he saw someone on TV with his name. The production staff debated whether the television Homer Simpson should be cool throughout or become an idiot from the start, ultimately deciding to have him start cool and then become an idiot. The hat Homer wears in the mall parodies one owned by Woody Allen. The episode later inspired Tom Martin's cousin to name his son Max Power. In one scene, Ned Flanders comments that cartoons can easily change voice actors; for that scene, Flanders was voiced by Karl Wiedergott instead of Harry Shearer.

Cultural references

The show Police Cops is a spoof of Miami Vice. A new program within the episode features Archie Bunker in All in the Family 1999. For his court-ordered name change, Homer proposes Hercules Rockefeller, Rembrandt Q. Einstein, and Handsome B. Wonderful to Judge Snyder. The "Max Power" song uses the tune of "Goldfinger" from the 1964 James Bond movie. At the party, attendees include actors Woody Harrelson and Ed Begley Jr., President Bill Clinton, and producers Lorne Michaels, Brian Grazer, and Jerry Bruckheimer. The scene where police "swab" protesters recalls 1997 incidents in Humboldt County, California, where deputies swabbed pepper spray into environmental protesters' eyes.

Reception

The episode "Homer to the Max" earned a Nielsen rating of 8.5 and placed 39th in the weekly ratings for the week of February 1–7, 1999. Critical response has been mixed. Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood described it as funny in spots but noted its two separate plots fail to connect, with the subplot about Ed Begley Jr. saving a forest feeling forced. Robert Canning of IGN rated it 7.7 out of 10, praising many humorous scenes and memorable lines, but felt the story lacked direction and called the final half of the third act a complete waste. Conversely, Morgan Larrick of About.com considered it one of the most unforgettable episodes when reviewing the tenth season.