History Recap / TheSimpsonsS3E5HomerDefined

* AchievementsInIgnorance: In the realm of "possible but exceedingly unlikely", Homer manages to prevent a catastrophic meltdown two separate times by pressing a single button on his console at random. In the episode's epilogue he also becomes the literal InUniverse dictionary definition of this Trope.

* AchievementsInIgnorance: In the realm of "possible but exceedingly unlikely", Homer manages to prevent a catastrophic meltdown two separate times by pressing a single button on his console at random.

-->'''Bart:''' I had a fight with Millhouse.

* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: Smithers makes one of these when death in the coming meltdown seems inevitable. The object of his affecton does not take it well.

* SeeminglyProfoundFool: Lisa begins to admire Homer after he saves the power plant and interprets all of his statements this way (also extending the treatment to Barney).

* BrokenPedestal: Downplayed. Homer is eventually revealed as an extremely lucky buffoon, and his picture is added to the dictionary as both "American bonehead" and "to succeed at something despite idiocy", but he doesn't seem widely despised. When all is said and done, he still prevented two nuclear catastrophes and saved thousands of lives even if he did it through dumb luck.

-->'''Burns''': [[{{Squick}} Urgh!]]

Episode - 8F04\\
First Aired - 10/17/1991

* EmergencyBroadcast: A news bulletin shows Kent Brockman interviewing Mr. Burns, who – despite the imminent danger, the wail of emergency sirens and increasing urgency of the situation – nonchalantly tries to assure the public that experts are trying to quickly resolve the problem and that the public is safe.

--->'''Bart''': Bad influence, my ass! How many times have I told you: never listen to your mother!

** Also the reaction of Burns and Smithers when they realise where the problem at the plant is:

* AchievementsInIgnorance: In the realm of “possible but exceedingly unlikely”, Homer manages to prevent a catastrophic meltdown two separate times by pressing a single button on his console at random.

* TheCameo: [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] legend Magic Johnson calls Homer to congradulate him for preventing the nuclear plant meltdown.

* DramaticDrop: When Burns decides Homer will be the next Employee of the Month, a shocked Smithers drops his wine bottle.

** In addition, Homer pushes the button in an attempt to avert the first meltdown just as the act ends and the show goes to commercial break. We find out that everything was just fine after the break.

* ForcedMeme: The episode attempted to make "Pull a Homer"[[note]]A blend of AccidentalHero and AchievementsInIgnorance[[/note]] an American slang term. It never worked.

* AccidentalHero: Homer saves Springfield from nuclear doom by using eeny-meeny-miney to find the right button. He is then lauded as a national hero. He later manages to recreate his blunder, but the townsfolk figure out he had no idea what he was doing, and his "reward" this time is inspiring the term "[[PersonAsVerb pulling a Homer]]".