Trash of the Titans

"Trash of the Titans" is the 22nd episode of The Simpsons' ninth season and the 200th overall. It originally aired on the Fox network on April 26, 1998. The episode, which was written by Ian Maxtone-Graham and directed by Jim Reardon, sees Homer Simpson run for the job of Springfield's Sanitation Commissioner after becoming enraged at what he deems to be a poor refuse collection service. Steve Martin guest stars as Ray Patterson, the incumbent commissioner, while U2 play themselves after requesting an appearance on the show.

Inspired by a friend's experience in politics, Maxtone-Graham decided to have Homer run for Sanitation Commissioner, although one draft of the episode saw him running for mayor. The staff also wanted the episode to be about trash, and created the concept of "Love Day" as a means of generating waste. The episode's resolution was much discussed by the staff, with one proposed idea being that Springfield would be raised up and the excess rubbish swept underneath it (this idea was later used in Treehouse of Horror X when Lisa and Bart become superheroes and use their skills to clean around the house and then lift it up to push all the debris underneath). The episode also features a parody of the song "The Candy Man" and an incident involving comedian Redd Foxx.