Episode: Season 3 - "Lisa's Pony" You know what makes Homer Simpson's buffoonery tolerable, and nearly acceptable? How much he loves his family. And especially how much love he shows his daughters. Case in point: Lisa's pony, which she received from her father in the third season episode "Lisa's Pony" (they really didn't try very hard with the episode names back then, did they?). In the outing, Homer gets Lisa a pony after screwing up and causing Lisa to bomb her sax recital. It's buying back his daughter's love, but the length he goes to so that she can keep the pony - including taking a second job at the Kwik-E-Mart - show how dedicated he is to her. When she returns the sentiment at the end of the episode, well, that's your pay-off.