12 The Way We Was

When the Simpsons' television breaks down, Marge tells her children how she and Homer first met. The year is 1974 and Homer and Marge are both in their senior year of high school. Unlike Homer, Marge is a responsible student, but after she burns a bra at a feminist rally, she is sent to detention. Homer is also sent to detention along with his best friend Barney for smoking in the restroom. When Homer sees Marge for the first time as she enters the detention room, he instantly falls in love. Despite his father Abraham's warning that he is wasting his time, Homer is determined to win Marge's heart.

To impress Marge, Homer joins the debate team, of which Marge is a member. At a debate, Homer finds out that Marge is more interested in the more articulate Artie Ziff. Therefore, Homer pretends to be a French student so that he can be tutored by Marge and when Homer asks Marge to the senior prom she accepts. However, when Homer confesses that he is not really a French student, Marge is furious at him for making her lose sleep for a debate tournament the next morning. She ultimately loses to Artie, who asks her to be his partner to the prom; she agrees. Homer does not realize that Marge has changed her plans, and so he shows up at her house for prom night to pick her up. Moments later Artie shows up, causing confusion to Marge's family, and a despondent Homer leaves. Undaunted, he decides to go to the prom alone.

At the prom, Artie and Marge are voted prom king and queen, and the two share the first dance. Meanwhile, Homer, heartbroken, leaves and cries in the hallway. After the prom, Artie tries to get romantic with Marge in the backseat of his car: after he pushes his luck too far, she slaps him and demands to be taken home. Meanwhile, Homer's limousine time has run out, and without any money, he decides to walk home. Along the way Marge and Artie pass by Homer. After Artie drops Marge off at her house, she returns in her car to pick up Homer, realizing that he was the man for her all along. Homer manages to fix up the strap of Marge's dress with the corsage that he got her after Artie ruined it from his earlier attempt.