or resolved. When Homer visits Moe's Tavern, he sees an effigy of himself being burnt by his friends who worked at the plant. Homer realizes that due to his improved intelligence, he is no longer welcome and that his life was a lot more enjoyable when he was an idiot. He therefore begs the test center doctors to put the crayon back into his brain. The scientists refuse to do it, but recommend Homer to someone who can: Moe, who is also an unlicensed physician. At his bar, Moe inserts a crayon into Homer's brain, returning him to the idiot he was before. Lisa is initially saddened that she and her father have lost the new connection they shared. However, she finds a note written by Homer before the operation that reads: "Lisa, I’m taking the coward’s way out. But before I do, I just want you to know being smart made me appreciate how amazing you really are.". After reading the note, she gets emotional and hugs her father. Production The episode was written by Al Jean and directed by Mike B. Anderson as part of the twelfth season of The Simpsons (2000–2001). The episode is inspired by Flowers for Algernon, the award-winning science fiction work by Daniel Keyes, where an intellectually disabled man also has his intelligence enhanced with an experiment. In particular, the title "HOMR" is a take on the novel's 1968 film adaptation Charly. Release The episode originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on January 7, 2001. It was viewed in approximately 10.2 million households that night. With a Nielsen rating of 10.0, the episode finished 19th in the ratings for the week of January 1–7, 2001 (tying a 2001 Sugar Bowl pre-game show on ABC). It was the highest-rated broadcast on Fox that week. On August 18, 2009, "HOMR" was released on DVD as part of the box set The Simpsons – The Complete Twelfth Season. Staff members Mike B. Anderson, Al Jean, Mike Scully, Ian Maxtone-Graham, Matt Selman, Tom Gammill, and Max Pross participated in the DVD audio commentary for the episode. Deleted scenes from the episode were also featured on the box set. Critical response "HOMR" received generally positive reviews from critics. In 2009, IGN's Cindy White called it a classic and in 2003, The Florida Times-Union writer Soyia Ellison named it one of the ten best The Simpsons