My Way or the Highway to Heaven

"My Way or the Highway to Heaven"
The Simpsonsepisode
Episodeno.	Season 30 Episode 3
Directed by	Rob Oliver
Written by	Deb Lacusta Dan Castellaneta Vince Waldron
Production code	XABF17
Original air date	October 14, 2018(2018-10-14)
Guest appearances
H. Jon BenjaminasBob Belcher Jon Lovitzas himself Dan MintzasTina Belcher Eugene MirmanasGene Belcher Tracy Morganas himself John RobertsasLinda Belcher Kristen SchaalasLouise Belcher
Episode features
Couch gag	Homerfinds himself inBob's Burgersduring the show's opening sequence. TheBelcherslook inside the restaurant at Homer.

"My Way or the Highway to Heaven"is the 642nd episode of the American animated television seriesThe Simpsonsand the third episode of thethirtieth season.It aired in the United States onFoxon October 14, 2018. The episode was directed byRob Oliverand written byDeb Lacusta,Dan Castellaneta,and Vince Waldron.

In this episode, Ned tells the story of him saving a young Homer, Marge tells the story of her grandmother fighting Nazis, and Lisa tells the story of a female version of the Buddha.H. Jon Benjamin,Dan Mintz,Eugene Mirman,John Roberts,andKristen Schaalguest starred as their characters from the television seriesBob's Burgers.ActorsJon LovitzandTracy Morganappeared as themselves. The episode received positive reviews.

Plot

Inheaven,in apparent homage to the show's traditionalopening segment’s couch gags,GodandSt. Petersit on the couch discussing possibly rela xing their admissions requirements to address the perceived lack of people there after a recent building project. They look on asNed Flandersleads aSunday schoolclass: “Who will get into heaven”.In a montage, to the soundtrack of Ted Moock's cover of “Cheek to Cheek”with its lyric “I'm in heaven”, the children are seen imagining how they die and ascend, withBart Simpson’s vision including hisdeathbed conversionrepentance. Ned tells them the only way to heaven is to “never stray from the path ofrighteousness”and, after goading fromNelson Muntz,recalls his non-religious,bebopupbringing as Neddy tobeatnikparents, and his subsequent trail of “depraved” jobs until he started doingdoor-to-door sales.

As a salesman of VertebreakerTrampolines,Ned is initially discouraged, but then the 1971 televisedmoonwalksofApollo 14astronauts “bouncing” on the moon increases sales. He revels in his success, including a promotional billboard stating “Ned Flanders, Your Key To Getting High”, until another salesman tells him that the trampolines aredeath traps,where astatic chargeis built up with each bounce, then released en-masse on the 500th bounce, killing the child. Ned vows to save a then-youngHomer Simpson,who theSpringfield Shopperreports intends to surpass the “500-bounce barrier”and enter into theDuff Book of World Records(a reference toGuinness World Records). Ned rushes to intervene, pushes Homer out of the way, and iselectrocutedby the trampoline and a bolt oflightningthat was attracted by it,appearing in heaven before ahippie-stylized, Che Guevara poster-donningJesuswho offers him the chance to live again if he becomes aChristian.He wakes up “reborn”in his hospital bed with “a sign of [God's]mercy”,a permanent scar which is hidden by hismustache.

Back in heaven on the couch, St. Peter suggests God consider another potential pool of candidates:atheists,who do not believe in God but might still be righteous. Back in the Sunday school class,Marge Simpsontells a story of her atheist grandmother,Genevieve Bouvier,who she claimed lived inNazi-occupied Francein 1944 duringWorld War II;however, the caption reveals her grandmother was actually living inNazi-alignedVichy, Francein 1944.She co-managed Cafe Meaux with the cafe's namesake, her husbandMeaux,aNazi-collaborator.While Meaux bootlicks a Nazicommandantand his entourage of officers, Genevieve goes down to the expansive cellar to prepare dinner for the officers. There she discovers someU.S. paratroopers(the younger versions ofAbe Simpson's father and the fathers ofSideshow Mel,Lenny Leonard,Carl CarlsonandBarney Gumble,whom she disguises as dining staff.During the meal, one of the U.S. soldiers mistakenly reveals the plan forNormandy landings.To stop the Nazis from warning others, the U.S. soldiers sing “La Marseillaise”,which prompts the cafe patrons to stand and join in blocking the Nazis' exit.When the Nazi general attempts to kidnap Genevieve, she kills him, and Meaux and the paratroopers help her in the killing of the Nazis. After the massacre the paratroopers escape and Genevieve and Meaux reconcile, thus proving Marge's point that atheists can also do great things. Back in heaven God agrees to opening heaven to atheists.

In heaven still, God and St. Peter are visited byBuddhawho encourages them to open heaven to other faiths. In the Sunday school class,Lisa Simpsontells the class that besides redemption, and good works, there isthe Way of enlightenment.She shares a story she calls “The Princess not affiliated withDisney,unless we are now owned by Disney”. InLumbini,Shakya RepublicofNepalduring the 6th century BC, a spoiled princess Siddmartha(a feminized version ofSiddhārtha Gautama,founder ofBuddhism) remained dissatisfied despite being denied nothing. She sought a middle path betweenopulenceanddecadence,and ventured out of the palace disguised as a poor boy. In search of scholars she goes toKathmanduU.but frustratingly finds the university aparty school;being void of ideas, she opts instead to sit under theBodhi Treeuntil she was enlightened.Back in heaven, God agrees that “all the good souls are welcome”.

Heaven is instantly crowded again including a shockedMr. Burns,who was let in asWaylon Smithers' guest as a plus-one invitee. Burns demands to get in later under his own merit, and Smithers goes after him. Back on Earth, Flanders tells his sons Rod and Todd that thunder is angels bowling; St. Peter then accidentally drops a tenpin on their house, which they consider a blessing.

Production

Tracy Morganwas cast for two episodes for this season. In this episode, he plays himself as an angel in heaven as a nod to his2014 car accident,which left him in a coma for two weeks. He later played a tow truck driver in "Baby You Can't Drive My Car".A photo of him in this episode was released in July 2018.

Reception

Dennis Perkins ofThe A.V. Clubgave the episode a B− stating, "The episode takes the form of a sort of religion-basedTreehouse of Horror,with three stories (told by Ned, Marge, and Lisa, respectively) that test out the new criteria by which God will choose who deserves to hang out for all eternity in the show's traditionally cloudy and harp-strewn paradise. Written by marriedsDan CastellanetaandDeb Lacusta,along with first-timeSimpsonswriter Vince Waldron, the result is a decidedly low-stakes outing that, nonetheless, isn't without its charms. "

Tony Sokol ofDen of Geekgave the episode 4.5 out of 5 points ranking stating,"The Simpsonsmay not preach against evolution, but they have evolved from the kind of show that was uproariously laugh out loud to evoking us to say, oh, clever. The series will always be a little intellectual, as it is a constant battle between the selfless wisdom of Marge and Lisa and the chaotic buffoonery of Bart and Homer. Where were Bart and Homer, by the way? We get a story from Ned in place of a family member? Could it be it wouldn't matter what they brought as an offering it would send the whole town of Springfield straight to hell? "My Way or the Highway to Heaven" should have let the boy and his Homer offer their own dark alternative. The episode is tinted too bright. "

"My Way or the Highway to Heaven" scored a 1.0 rating with a 5 share and was watched by 2.52 million people, makingThe SimpsonsFox's highest rated show of the night.

External links

• "My Way or the Highway to Heaven"atIMDb