'Marge vs. The Monorail' Ranked as the Greatest 'Simpsons' Episode of All Time
The Simpsons may have over 800 episodes, but only one can come out on top.
In 2024, Entertainment Weeklystaff ranked their top 25 episodes of the revolutionary animated sitcom, which has been airing since December 1989, making it the longest-running sitcom and scripted series in American history. With over 30 seasons to choose from at the time of writing, one episode from an early season was declared the greatest ever.
"Marge vs. The Monorail," the twelfth episode of Season 4, airing in January 1993, has long been a fan favorite - and for good reason, too. After Mr. Burns gives $3 million back to the city of Springfield after being caught dumping nuclear waste, its residents are at a loss on how to invest the funds at a town meeting. Right on cue, charismatic monorail salesman Lyle Lanley (voiced by Phil Hartman), shows up to the meeting and, through the power of song and dance, convinces the townspeople to build a monorail, derailing Marge's previously successful pitch of fixing Main Street.
While the rest of Springfield remains excited about the development, with Homer even being promised a job as a train driver, Marge stands alone in her skepticism of the development. Even when she finds evil plans by Lyle to sell a faulty monorail and run off to Tahiti with the money, the buzz of the monorail - egged on by celebrity appearances at the ribbon cutting like Leonard Nimoy - is too strong for Marge to convince others of its dangers. However, when a train driven by Homer, with Bart alongside him, loses control and passengers are faced with death, it's up to Marge (and a zany enginer) to rescue them.
Written by now-iconic comedian Conan O'Brien during his tenure as a Simpsons writer, the episode embodies everything that the show's "golden age" during its early seasons possesses: it's packed with an insane amount of jokes per minute, it utilizes all the lovable quirks of its townspeople, and even has a catchy musical number you'll have stuck in your head long after the episode is finished.
The episode also possesses many of the show's best cartoony jokes (such as "We're too late!" "I shouldn't have stopped for that haircut. Sorry."), and parodies countless pop culture classics, like The Silence of the Lambs, The Music Man, and The Flintstones. Just like Lyle Langley showing up to swindle the citizens of Springfield, the episode casts a spell over its audience in a short space of time, leaving you in complete awe long after they're finished.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Apr 29, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published April 29, 2026 at 4:48 PM.