The Grapes of Wrath

As Homer's misstep down the stairs leaves him bedridden, Marge exacts a cruel revenge on Bart by tasking him with cleaning his room - a chore that yields an unexpected discovery: an old cherry bomb. With a mischievous glint in his eye, Bart decides to flush it down the toilet at school, unaware of the chaos that will ensue when Principal Skinner's mother, Agnes, is using the adjacent girls' restroom. The subsequent explosion sends Agnes flying, prompting Skinner's wrath and a plan to punish Bart in the most extreme way possible.

Skinner proposes that Bart participate in the school's student exchange program, spending three months in France as part of his punishment. Initially resistant, Bart is won over by the promise of staying at a "lovely French château" and agrees to the plan, much to Skinner's delight. Meanwhile, back in Springfield, the Simpsons welcome their own exchange student, Adil Hoxha from Albania, who quickly wins them over with his charming demeanor and helpful nature.

Bart's experience in France is far from the idyllic retreat he had envisioned, however. Upon arrival at Château Maison, he finds himself stuck on a run-down vineyard, where he's subjected to slave labor by winemakers César and Ugolin. His days are filled with backbreaking chores, from hauling water buckets to picking grapes and crushing them beneath his feet. As the weeks drag on, Bart grows increasingly despondent, starved of both food and freedom.

Back in Springfield, Adil's arrival brings a welcome injection of culture and sophistication into the Simpson household. Marge is particularly taken with Adil's polite mannerisms and eagerness to help out around the house. Homer, meanwhile, sees an opportunity to bond with his new exchange student when he takes him on a tour of the nuclear plant - completely unaware that Adil has hidden a fax machine in Bart's treehouse and is transmitting sensitive blueprints back to Albania.

As Bart's situation grows increasingly dire, he decides to take matters into his own hands. A trip to town to buy antifreeze gives him the chance to confide in a police officer about his ordeal - but when he realizes that the officer doesn't speak English, he's left feeling frustrated and helpless. Yet, something unexpected happens: Bart suddenly finds himself speaking fluent French, pouring out his heart to the officer about the cruelty he's endured at the hands of the winemakers and their schemes to sell tainted wine. The authorities are swift to act, arresting the perpetrators and hailing Bart as a hero for exposing their nefarious activities.

In the quaint town of Springfield, Adil's clandestine activities are brutally exposed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, sparking a chain reaction that culminates in his swift deportation to Albania as part of a high-stakes prisoner exchange program. In a clever twist, an American spy is released from Albanian custody, having been held captive for unknown reasons. Meanwhile, Bart Simpson returns home to Springfield with an assortment of colorful gifts in tow, eager to share them with his loved ones. However, his enthusiasm is short-lived as he unwittingly becomes the focal point of Homer's (misguided) pride and excitement upon learning that his young son has supposedly mastered the French language - a notion that is promptly dispelled when it is revealed that Bart had merely hurled the insult "buffoon" at his oblivious patriarch.