April Fools Day- the one day of the year when you can pull a prank and pretty much get away with it. In The Simpsons season 4 episode 18, "So It's Come to This: A Simpsons Clip Show," Homer plays a ton of April Fools Day jokes on Bart, perhaps as retaliation to get back at the boy for the pranks he pulled him.
Yet, Bart's no fool and his prank on Homer with a shaken can of Duff leads to the Simpson house imploding, and the latter winds up in the hospital due to the pressure. Injury aside, the prank is one of the best in the show's history. It led to various past incidents in the family and helped shape the animated comedy to strengthen its rightful spot on TV.
The Simpsons "So It Has Come To This: A Simpsons Clip Show" highlighted key moments in the show
I summarized Bart's little "Blow Up the Beer" prank in the article, The Simpsons: 5 of the best Bart Simpson pranks over the years, along with his other notable ones. Yet, as it was brief, it only focused on the prank and not the episode entirely.
As Homer recovers in his hospital bed, the family looks back at events that made them a family, as well as personal visions. One of my favorites was when Homer re-daydreamed about Germany being The Land of Chocolate, as seen in season 3's "Burns Verkaufen der Kraftwerk." It was a simple imagination of the Simpson patriarch and relieved the stress of work problems. Plus, the piece with the dropping candy, chocolate bunnies, and old-fashioned storefront was peak animation. The scene was filmed frame by frame to emphasize Homer's over-blissed emotions with the sweet treats.
"So It's Come To This" further revisited seasons 1-3 episodes with a related clip. It's good to have recall, as fans tend to pick up something new since they last watched it. And don't forget, streaming services were years away from the early 1990s, and clip shows provided the rewatch, as you couldn't put on your favorite The Simpsons episode as you can with Disney+. Come to think of it, we've been taking that privilege for granted, and looking back, rewatching an episode then was a special thing.
Other clip show followed "So It's Come To This" and who would've thought that a holiday based on a holiday supposedly began by the Pagans started it all?