 " Cape Feare " originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on October 7 , 1993 . It finished 32nd in the ratings for the week of October 4 – 10 , 1993 , with a Nielsen rating of 12 @.@ 3 . The episode was the highest @-@ rated show on the Fox network that week . " Cape Feare " was selected for release in a 1997 VHS collection of episodes titled The Simpsons : Springfield Murder Mysteries , along with " Who Shot Mr. Burns ? ( Part 1 ) " , " Who Shot Mr. Burns ? ( Part 2 ) " and " Black Widower " . It was included again in the 2005 DVD release of the Springfield Murder Mysteries . The episode is also featured on the Simpsons season five DVD set , which was released on December 21 , 2004 . Groening , Jean and Vitti participated in the DVD audio commentary for " Cape Feare " . Kelsey Grammer 's performance of H.M.S. Pinafore was later included on the album Go Simpsonic with The Simpsons . The musical score for the episode earned composer Alf Clausen an Emmy Award nomination for " Outstanding Dramatic Underscore – Series " in 1994 . 
