"Simpson Tide" is the nineteenth episode of the ninth season of the American animated television series The Simpsons. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on March 29, 1998. After being fired from the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant, Homer decides to join the U.S. Naval Reserve. The episode was both the second and last to be written by Joshua Sternin and Jennifer Ventimilia and the final episode directed by Milton Gray.
It guest-starred Rod Steiger as Captain Tenille and Bob Denver as himself, with one-time Simpsons writer Michael Carrington making an appearance as the Drill Sergeant. The episode makes many references to popular culture, especially contemporary culture, with its title and plot elements being derived from the 1995 film Crimson Tide. Although the episode is partially based on the 1995 film Crimson Tide, the original pitch was made before the film was released. After the release of the film, the writers decided to start incorporating elements from the movie in the script. The naval recruiter refers to the recent passing of "Don't ask, don't tell", and an official on Homer's court martial has been indicted in the Tailhook scandal. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, rumors began spreading that the joke also predicted that this war between Russia and Ukraine, both of which were previously part of the Soviet Union, would happen. In an interview with Hollywood Reporter, showrunner Al Jean responded to the prediction rumors by claiming that the gag was "very sad" and that "There is the kind of prediction, where we reference something that has happened, happening again — we hope it wouldn't, but sadly, it does." In addition to the ordering the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who Jean blamed for the rising tensions,
Reception
In its original broadcast, "Simpson Tide" finished 29th in ratings for the week of March 23–29, 1998, with a Nielsen rating of 9.2, equivalent to approximately 9.0 million viewing households; it was the second highest-rated show on the Fox network that week, following The X-Files.
The episode received mostly positive reviews from critics, and is considered to be one of the best episodes of the season.
Michael Schiffer, one of the writers of Crimson Tide itself, is said to have enjoyed this episode.