 " Bart of Darkness " is the first episode of The Simpsons ' sixth season . It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 4 , 1994 . It was written by Dan McGrath , and directed by Jim Reardon . In the episode , Bart breaks his leg and becomes increasingly isolated in his room . He starts spying on the neighbors with a telescope and begins to suspect that Ned Flanders has murdered his wife . The episode was produced during the 1994 Northridge earthquake which delayed production by a month , and is largely a parody of the film Rear Window . 
