The Falcon and the D'ohman

"The Falcon and the D'ohman"
The Simpsons episode
Homer and Wayne
Episode no.	487
Directed by	Matthew Nastuk
Written by	Justin Hurwitz
Showrunner(s)	Al Jean
Production code	NABF16
Original air date	September 25, 2011
Guest appearance(s)
Tom Colicchio as himself Kevin Michael Richardson as SendEx Courier Kiefer Sutherland as Wayne
Season 23 episodes September 25, 2011 – May 20, 2012 "The Falcon and the D'ohman" "Bart Stops to Smell the Roosevelts" "Treehouse of Horror XXII" "Replaceable You" "The Food Wife" "The Book Job" "The Man in the Blue Flannel Pants" "The Ten-Per-Cent Solution" "Holidays of Future Passed" "Politically Inept, with Homer Simpson" "The D'oh-cial Network" "Moe Goes from Rags to Riches" "The Daughter Also Rises" "At Long Last Leave" "Exit Through the Kwik-E-Mart" "How I Wet Your Mother" "Them, Robot" "Beware My Cheating Bart" "A Totally Fun Thing That Bart Will Never Do Again" "The Spy Who Learned Me" "Ned 'n Edna's Blend" "Lisa Goes Gaga"
Seasons
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Tom Colicchio as himself
Kevin Michael Richardson as SendEx Courier
Kiefer Sutherland as Wayne

"The Falcon and the D'ohman" is the season premiere of the twenty-third season of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on September 25, 2011. In the episode, the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant hires a new security guard named Wayne and Homer soon becomes friends with him. "The Falcon and the D'ohman" also reveals the fate of the relationship between the characters Ned Flanders and Edna Krabappel that was initiated in the previous episode of the series, "The Ned-Liest Catch", that aired in May 2011.

Actor Kiefer Sutherland guest starred in the episode as the voice of Wayne. This was the third time he appeared on The Simpsons. The episode also features a guest appearance by American chef and Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio as himself in a segment in which Marge dreams about being a contestant in a show similar to Top Chef. "The Falcon and the D'ohman" has received mixed reviews from television critics, with criticism directed at the plot and the cultural references featured. However, a reference in the episode to the computer animated re-enactments of news stories done by the Taiwan-based Next Media Animation has been particularly praised.

"The Falcon and the D'ohman" features a reference to the previous episode of the series, the twenty-second season finale "The Ned-Liest Catch" that aired on May 22, 2011. In that episode, the characters Ned Flanders and Edna Krabappel start dating. The episode ends with Homer and Marge Simpson giving viewers a link to the official The Simpsons website, TheSimpsons.com, and encouraging them to go on the website and vote over the 2011 summer on whether Ned and Edna should stay together. The result of the poll was revealed in "The Falcon and the D'ohman"—a majority had voted for the couple to remain in a relationship. According to executive producer Al Jean, the poll was "very strong in one direction". In an interview before the result was presented, Jean guaranteed that the poll was authentic and that the writers would not undo the viewers' decision, adding "What the fans have joined together, let no writer put asunder."