The episode sees Homer, after being hypnotized by the hypnotist Mesmerino while having dinner at the restaurant Pimento Grove, reminded by a repressed traumatic experience from his childhood, including the moment he discovered the dead body of Waylon Smithers' father while having a fun at an abandoned mine.

The Simpsons set out to find the corpse that triggered Homer's psychological trauma, which evolves into a murder mystery later in the episode.

Following the release of The Simpsons' thirteenth season on DVD and Blu-ray, the episode received mixed reviews from critics.

After tricking Marge into believing that the model for the Burly paper towel corporation Chad Sexington would have dinner with the Simpsons, Homer takes the family to the Pimento Grove to watch live performers as compensation.

The next day, Homer's co-workers Lenny and Carl bring him home early from work, still screaming, and Lisa and Marge finally manage to calm him down with some Yaqui tea.

Upon noticing that his bar was empty, the present-day Moe arrives at the Simpsons' home and recalls that while they sat by a fire that night, they saw a near-meltdown at the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant.

Finding nothing left of the corpse but a skeleton, they take its skull with them and travel through the pipe to emerge through a hatch in Mr. Burns's office.

Declaring the case of the haunted quarry solved, Homer stores the skull in his "Memories" box, despite Marge's insistence to give it to Smithers.

At that point, the episode was titled "Smithers' Father's Apparent Murder" until the writers incorporated flashbacks to Homer's childhood that resembled the story of the film Stand By Me, based on the novella The Body by Stephen King.

The staff intended to cut the shot, but they later decided to keep it in; Jean explained in the DVD audio commentary for the episode that, "Nobody ever notices it.

[6] Welsh singer-songwriter Judith Owen, wife of Simpsons' cast member Harry Shearer, also makes an appearance in the episode.

[4] One of the walls in Pimento Grove shows photos of several characters and guest stars who have appeared on The Simpsons, including Birch Barlow, Stephen Hawking, and Ringo Starr.

[3] Following the release of the thirteenth season of The Simpsons on DVD and Blu-ray, "The Blunder Years" received mixed reviews from critics.