grimy adj : thickly covered with ingrained dirt or soot; "a miner's begrimed face"; "dingy linen"; "grimy hands"; "grubby little fingers"; "a grungy kitchen" [syn: begrimed, dingy, grubby, grungy, raunchy]

English

Pronunciation

• /ˈgɹaɪmi/, /"graImi/

Adjective

1. stained, or covered with grime

Translations

• Maori: poke

"Homer's Enemy" is the twenty-third episode of The Simpsons’ eighth season, first broadcast by Fox on May 4, 1997. The plot of the episode centers on the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant's hire of a new character named Frank Grimes. Homer attempts to befriend Grimes; however, Grimes ends up hating Homer and declares himself Homer's enemy. Meanwhile, Bart buys a run-down factory for a dollar.

Production

A goal of the Oakley/Weinstein team was to create several episodes in each season which would "push the envelope conceptually." The idea for "Homer's Enemy" was first conceived by Bill Oakley who thought that Homer should have an enemy. The thought evolved into the concept of a "real world" co-worker who would either love or hate Homer. The writers chose the latter as they thought it would have funnier results. In an interview with Simpsons fan site NoHomers.net, Josh Weinstein said:

Frank Grimes was originally designed as a "burly ex-marine guy with a crew cut", but he would later be modeled after Michael Douglas in the movie Falling Down

Reception

Warren Martyn and Adrian Wood, authors of I Can't Believe It's a Bigger and Better Updated Unofficial Simpsons Guide, described the episode as "one of the series' darkest episodes [that] ends on a real downer but is nevertheless also one of the wittiest and cleverest in ages." It is a favorite of then-showrunner Josh Weinstein, who cites the episode when Grimes visits the Simpson home as one of his favorite scenes, while The Office creator Ricky Gervais has called it "the most complete episode."

When the episode was first broadcast, many fans felt it was too dark, unfunny In the DVD commentary, Josh Weinstein considers this episode one of the most controversial of the seasons he ran, as it involves sharp observational humour which many fans "didn't get." In 2007, Vanity Fair called "Homer's Enemy" the seventh best episode of The Simpsons. John Orvted said it was, "the darkest Simpsons episode ever... To see [Grimes] fail, and ultimately be destroyed, once he enters Homer's world is hilarious and satisfying."

Legacy

Frank Grimes has since been referenced many times in the show, often showing his tombstone, usually with "Grimey" (the nickname Homer gave Grimes, which he hated) or sometimes "Homer's Enemy" in the center of the stone, and occasionally mentioning him by name. In the season fourteen episode "The Great Louse Detective", it is revealed that he fathered a son named Frank Grimes Jr., who tries to kill Homer. The footage of Grimes's death is also shown during that episode. Chief Wiggum's quote, "Ralphie, get off the stage, sweetheart", is used as the chorus in the song "Ralph Wiggum" by the Bloodhound Gang.

References

External links

portal The Simpsons

• "Homer's Enemy" at The Simpsons.com
• "Homer's Enemy" at the Internet Movie Database
• "Homer's Enemy" at TV.com

besmirched, blotchy, dingy, dirty, dusty, fuliginous, grubby, grungy, messy, miry, muddy, murky, scruffy, slovenly, smirched, smirchy, smoky, smudgy, smutchy, smutty, snuffy, sooty, untidy