When The Simpsons first made the jump from "The Tracey Ullman Show" to prime-time cartoon series, most people had never even heard of them yet. The first season was extended by Fox because of a little buzz and the fact that the young network didn't have a suitable replacement.

The Season One episodes are..

1. Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire (Pilot / Christmas Special) This is the episode that introduces the family dog, Santa's Little Helper.
2. Bart The Genius (a/k/a Kwyjibo) Bart switches aptitude tests with class genius Martin Prince.
3. Homer's Odyssey (a/k/a Safety Inspector) After being fired from the plant Homer contemplates suicide and safety signs.
4. There's No Disgrace Like Home (a/k/a Shock Therapy) Courtesy of Dr. Marvin Monroe's Family Therapy Center
5. Bart The General (a/k/a War on Nelson Muntz) Bart enlists Grampa and one-armed Herman from the army surplus store.
6. Moaning Lisa (a/k/a Meeting Bleeding Gums) Lisa's depression is met with understanding by bluesy sax man Murphy.
7. The Call of the Simpsons (a/k/a Big Foot) Maggis joins the grizzly bears as the family gets stranded on a camping trip.
8. The Telltale Head (a/k/a Jebediah's statue) Bart pleads his case of peer pressure before an angry mob.
9. Life On The Fast Lane (a/k/a Jacques) Marge's birthday present leads her to Barney's Bowl-A-Rama and another man.
10. Homer's Night Out (a/k/a Stag Party) Bart catches Homer in action with Princess Kashmir in a spy-camera photo.
11. The Crepes of Wrath (a/k/a France) Adil from Albania stays with the family while Bart fights anti-freeze laced winos Paris.
12. Krusty Gets Busted (a/k/a Sideshow Bob) Bart's hero is jailed for armed robbery and his own father has to testify, Ay Carumba!
13. Some Enchanted Evening (a/k/a Babysitter Bandit) Penny Marshall guest stars as the sitter from hell and she's not messing around.

the TOP 5 episodes from this season are..

5) The Call of the Simpsons The very first one ever aired in the UK, so this is a historic one as well. The Blackboard line says, "I WILL NOT DRAW NAKED LADIES IN CLASS." Strangely, there is no couch gag. They just sit on the couch. During this commentary we learn that William Shatner was the first person to turn down an invitation to guest star on the show and still has not appeared. We also learn that George Harrison only granted their request to be on at the behest of his grandchildren. The best headline seen in the "National Informer" is The Bigfoot Diet: Pork Chops Aplenty. Albert Brooks is hilarious as Cowboy Bob the SUV salesman.

4) The Telltale Head is a foreshadow story told from the ending and recounted from there in retrospect. The Blackboard line says, "I DID NOT SEE ELVIS." Couch Gag: Bart is squeezed off the couch into the air and then lands after the couch seen has ended. It is the first episode featuring the vocal talents of Tress MacNeille (Agnes Skinner, Dolph & Cookie Kwan). This is also the first episode in which we see Bart skateboarding. Both Barney and Smithers still have hair-color issues as well. The Springfield Retirement (Home) has not yet been made Castle. Funny Line: when the kid's refer to a five-fingered discount even though they only four fingers on each hand.

3) Krusty Gets Busted is not just the first Kelsey Grammer / Sideshow Bob episode. It is also the first time we get real Krusty stuff. It is revealed in the commentary that Krusty is modeled after the Tv clown Rusty Nails. Oh yeah and Sideshow Bob isn't reduced to a slide-whistle anymore after this. The Blackboard line says, "THEY ARE LAUGHING AT ME, NOT WITH ME." The couch gag is a simple Maggie being caught by Marge. Krusty's small feet are still haunting me to this day.

2) Homer's Night Out - While attending a stag party at The Rusty Barnacle, Homer is enticed onto the tables for a sexy dance with a stripper which is captured on film by....yup. Bart's spy camera photo is then photocopied and passed around Springfield until everybody's seen except Homer & Marge. The Blackboard line says, "I WILL NOT CALL MY TEACHER 'HOT CAKES'" and the couch gag is a lame collapse of the couch. BEST LINE - "239 pounds?! I'm a blimp! Why are all the good things so tasty?"

1) Life on the Fast Lane is another guest spot of genius by Albert Brooks in fact, he is the only guest star ever to be given a blank slate and allowed to improvise his entire role. He also changed his character from Swedish to French on the spot. It was originally going to be titled, Bjorn to be Wild but that, of course changed quickly. This episode won an EMMY award. Re: Blackboard and Couch Gags...there was none. They had so much good footage IN THE EPISODE that they jumped halfway through the opening sequence right into the episode cutting from outside the school to right outside the family home.