Homer, Lisa, and Bart wait in line outside a theater where the latest chapter of the “Cosmic Wars” saga is about to open. Lisa is psyched about the movie and thinks its creator, Randall Curtis, is a cinematic genius. As the film gets underway, the audience quickly grows bored with the film’s plotline, which involves endless scenes set inside a galactic senate, where politicians, aliens, and robots vote on procedural amendments. Lisa takes issue with a stupid, Rasta-voiced character named Jim-Jam Bonks, which she thinks is nothing more than a tired ethnic stereotype. When the film ends the disgruntled audience files out of the theater, and even Comic Book Man vows not to buy “Cosmic Wars” pillow shams. Bart and Lisa return home and throw their old “Cosmic Wars” collectables in the fireplace. Marge encourages Bart and Lisa to write a letter complaining about the film’s quality. Lisa does just that, and a few weeks later the kids receive a reply. The envelope contains a form letter that ignores the criticisms. Bart and Lisa vow to track down Randall Curtis and force him to listen. They beg Homer and Marge to take them to Northern California, where the Cosmic Wars Ranch is located. Marge thinks it’s a great idea, as it will allow her and Homer to take a tour of wine country. Later Marge and Homer drop the kids off at the Cosmic Wars Ranch, where Bart and Lisa tour the company. The kids sneak away from the tour and find Randall Curtis typing a script on his computer. They tell him his early movies were some of the greatest films ever made, but his latest offerings seem indifferent. Inspired, Randall decides to head for a video store so he can steal more ideas from old movies. Meanwhile Homer and Marge head for a vineyard, where they sample too much wine and get drunk.

When the family returns home, Marge tells Homer she stored some of the extra wine they purchased in the cellar. They continue drinking wine, causing Bart and Lisa to remark that romance is definitely back in the marriage. Homer decides to take Marge to Moe’s, where they consume more wine. They stay drunk for days, until one morning they wake up with a hangover to end all hangovers. Marge suggests they put their drinking on hold for a while, but they end up attending an Oktoberfest celebration and drinking too much beer. A tipsy Homer carries a passed-out Marge to the Oktoberfest parking lot. He places her in the car and heads home. Along the way he loses control and ends up upside-down at the bottom of an embankment. Terrified of losing his driver’s license, Homer places the unconscious Marge in the driver’s seat.

Wiggum arrests Marge and charges her with DUI. Since Marge was unconscious at the time, she buys into Homer’s story that she was driving while intoxicated. She feels terrible about what happened. She determines to put her days of drinking behind her. She decides to check in at a dry-out clinic operated by a therapist named Kyle. Meanwhile, back at the house, Homer finds out he won’t be able to contact Marge for an entire month. Lisa voices skepticism about the details behind the crash, noting that her mother never drives while intoxicated, and that the seatbelt was adjusted for Homer’s girth. Homer says her suspicions have been noted and will be answered. He panics and runs out of the room. He decides there’s only one thing left for him to do: bust Marge out of the clinic. He races to the building and tells Marge he placed her behind the wheel of the car. Marge is so outraged, she walks into a room marked “patients only,” and slams the door. She asks the other patients if any of them are secretly hiding alcohol. Several of them are, and Marge downs some martinis. Marge then realizes she has never liked alcohol: she liked spending time with Homer. Marge announces she’s a “Homer-holic” and walks out of the room, where she finds a now-drunk Homer. Kyle warns the pair that Homer’s a chronic alcoholic and Marge is in denial. As they walk off, Marge makes Homer promise that he’ll cut down on some of his drinking.