The Simpsons: 12 Things You Missed If You Stopped Watching in 2000

7. Sober Barney, And His Relapse

Technically, Barney first sobered up in 1999 - so if you stopped watching in 2000, you'd likely have caught it. You would, however, have missed his relapse, such as it was. Barney's relapse has been an on-again, off-again sort of affair. Or maybe it's his sobriety that has been on-again, off-again. To be completely honest, drunken Barney is a lot more entertaining than sober Barney. The sobriety angle was interesting for a single episode, but after that, well, it got tired quick. However, over the years since his sobriety and relapse, he has been shown both drunk and sober. Progress? As far as said relapse goes, drunken Barney eventually returned in the fourteenth season episode "I'm Spelling As Fast As I Can." During the episode, which has a spelling bee as part of the plot, the word "relapse" comes up, and Barney sings "That's what beer has done to me!" following the word being spelled out.