Great episodes of The Simpsons: Cape Feare

Sideshow Bob’s release from prison and attempt at revenge is easily one of The Simpsons all best episodes.

Plot: The Simpsons go into the Witness Protection Program after Sideshow Bob is released from prison and is about to make good on his promise to get Bart.

Why is it a great episode? Everything that makes The Simpsons unique can be found in Cape Feare. The episode is full of great pop culture parodies, but that’s just the beginning. Cape Feare is also a chance for one of The Simpsons great recurring characters to really shine. Because while Sideshow Bob has many great moments, Cape Feare is without a doubt his finest episode.

This episode finally gives us the chance to see Sideshow Bob at his most uninhibited self, from his fury at rakes to his singing the entire score of the Gilbert and Sullivan opera H.M.S. Pinafore. It’s absolutely impossible to imagine any other character on The Simpsons singing Gilbert and Sullivan, even if they tend to be a bit more on the evil side.

While one could make any number of jokes about Mr. Burns being old enough to meet Gilbert and Sullivan in person, one still can’t imagine him singing show tunes. It’s also impossible to imagine Fat Tony or Snake doing anything like that even through they are just likely to kill someone as Sideshow Bob is. But they are also quite different from him as they kill people because of their respective criminal enterprises, while Sideshow Bob revels in the idea of killing Bart Simpson, a specific person. Cape Feare really shows how Bob savors the idea of getting Bart Simpson and that fantasy is like a drug to him.

As if all that were not enough to show why this episode is great, watching the Witness Protection officials attempt to work with Homer is absolutely priceless.