The Best Episodes Directed By Pete Michels

When Louise invites the Harts and Brenda to her annual Christmas party in lieu of a bonus, the extravagance makes Jenny feel insecure; Betty tries to figure out how to give the family the best Christmas presents on a budget

When Sideshow Bob is released from prison, his brother Cecil puts him in charge of building Springfield's new hydroelectric dam.

When Otto drives the school bus off a bridge, the kids wind up on a deserted island, fending for themselves in a “Lord of the Flies” parody. Back in Springfield, Homer takes on Bill Gates.

Bart’s latest stunt thwarts Lisa’s plan to attend a museum exhibit. When she tries to go alone and takes the wrong bus, Homer sets out to find her.

When an expensive blunder forces budget cuts at Cognito Inc., J.R orders Reagan and Brett to decide which of their co-workers should be fired.

Stewie convinces Brian to go on a road trip with him to San Francisco to search for a man Stewie believes is his real father.

When Peter gets hurt and can't work, his boss tells him he needs to speed things up. So Lois goes to the brewery to help him out. Meanwhile, Stewie finds out that Brian is dating a very attractive but not very intelligent woman. He tries to get Brian to break up with her, but Brian can't do it.

When Lois discovers that Stewie's sick playmate is being denied medical treatment because his parents are Christian Scientists, she decides to take matters into her own hands.

Alarmed by a soccer riot, Homer buys a handgun. His reckless behavior drives Marge and the kids out of the house, and even his new gun club buddies desert him.

Lois' pregnant sister inspires her and Peter to have another baby.

Peter decides to grow a mustache, and after being mistaken for a fireman, ends up lending a hand when a fire breaks out at a local fast food restaurant. The owner gives him unlimited burgers as a thank you, but he eats too many and has a stroke. When Peter recovers, he vows to expose the fast-food company for what it really is, becoming friends with a genetically engineered cow along the way.

The Griffins are put into the witness protection program.

Peter's mom gets a divorce. Peter feels abandoned until he sees a father figure in his mom's new boyfriend, Tom Tucker. Meanwhile, Brian gets his own NPR style show on the radio.

When Brian begins dating an older woman, the family begins to make fun of him. After Brian's new fling breaks her hip, he gets the pleasure of becoming her errand boy.

The adults are trying to catch a skunk. Tommy and Chuckie join the hunt and Chuckie ends up being skunked. The babies and grown-ups try everything to get rid of the smell, but the real cure is Minka's borscht.

In "I Know What You Diddily-Iddly-Did" the Simpsons fear they have killed Ned Flanders. "Desperately Xeeking Xena" satirizes superheroes of yore with "Stretch Dude" Bart and "Clobber Girl" Lisa. And "Life's A Glitch, Then You Die" depicts the upcoming horror of Y2K.

Viewer mail inspires three stories in which Peter loses his bones, the Griffins gain superpowers, and Peter and his friends appear as eight-year-old "Little Rascals."

Lois discovers she has a brother named Patrick and takes the family cross-country to meet him. It turns out; he’s locked up in a mental institution. Lois thinks he’s sane, so she checks him out to live with the Griffins. Meanwhile, Peter starts the Society for the Acceptance of Fat Men. But when all the fat men of Quahog are strangled one-by-one the group lives in fear. Who could the “Fat Man Strangler” be?

Peter wants to top Joe, who just built a new home theater system, so he starts to build a multiplex in his backyard. In doing so, he discovers an Indian burial ground. He finds an Indian chief's skull and the Griffin house becomes haunted. Stewie gets sucked into the television and strange events follow as they try to get Stewie back from the poltergeist.

A new TV series features a suave and debonair character named Homer Simpson. Homer capitalizes on his new namesake, until the character is rewritten to be a bumbling fool. Trying to recapture the positive attention he enjoyed, Homer changes his name to "Max Power."

New Yorkers invade the town in the fall; Lois hones her martial-arts skills.

Brian is sentenced to care for a crabby old woman; Peter's beard becomes a home for birds.

At his high school reunion, Peter tries to impress his fellow classmates. When Peter, heading for the bathroom, charges through the crowd of people, impresses quarterback Tom Brady, who offers Peter a spot on the New England Patriots. Meanwhile, Brian owes Stewie money, after Stewie becomes a sports bookie.

After reading an erotic novel, Peter gets the idea to write one himself. Carter gets sued for publishing Peter's book on tape and loses all his money, where he is forced to become a middle-class citizen. Meanwhile, Stewie tries to train for the Olympics.

After losing at a swim competition, Stewie trys to eliminate his rival by blowing up a lifeguard tower. His plan backfires though, and Stewie has a near death experience that seems to change him.