Warning: The following contains major SPOILERS for the premiere of The Simpsons Season 36.
The Season 36 premiere ofThe Simpsonsleft a lot of fans confused when the series opener seemingly ended the long-running animated sitcom with a “series finale.” Hosted by a Simpsons-ified version of former writer and comedy iconConan O’Brien, the episode claimed to be the last ever episode of the show, something many fans never thought would happen. O’Brien began the perplexing episode with a monologue stating that Fox had now decided to end The Simpsons, bringing back several celebrities to celebrate this momentous moment.
“It’s such an honor to be with you all for the series finale of ‘The Simpsons.’ I knew I was the right man for the job because I’ve hosted the last episode of three of my own shows and counting… Well, it’s true. Fox has decided to end the Simpsons. This show was such a special part of my early career, so being here means the world to me. Also. I left a sweater in the writer’s room in 1993 this is the only way they’ll let me get it back.”
The episode, titled “Bart’s Birthday,”sees an artificial intelligence (AI)concoct the ultimate series finale forThe Simpsons, with Bart turning 11-years-old after famously being 10 for the last three and a half decades. Suddenly gaining sentience in his old age, Bart tries to stop Springfield, and its inhabitants, from changing.
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The episode brought several characters' stories to an end, including Homer and Marge attending couples counseling and deciding to lead much calmer lives; Lisa winning a scholarship to Junior Juliard Jazz; Maggie saying her first word (and poking fun at MCU-esque humor in the process); Mr. Burns falling into a pit of acid and dying; John Cena delivering Comic Book Guy and Kumiko’s baby; Chief Wiggum leaving Springfield and heading to Chicago; Krusty the Clown airing his final episode; Principal Skinner leaving for Sacramento and moving in with Groundskeeper Willie for a new spin-off show; and the return of the “real” Seymour Skinner; as well as all manner of marriages and funerals.
The episode also featured a whole host of guest stars, including John Cena, Tom Hanks, Joel McHale, Mark Proksch as Hack-GPT, Seth Rogen, Amy Sedaris as Maggie Simpson,and Danny DeVito, who returns as Homer’s half-brother, Herbert Powell.
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Ultimately, Bart succeeds in beating the AI’s plans for a finale, taking things back to how they should be and celebrating his tenth birthday once again. The episode then wraps up by paying homageto several well-known finales, including the likes ofThe Sopranos, Breaking Bad, MAS*H, Game of Thrones, Mad Men, Frasier, Succession, and more.
The episode left some fans shocked and confused, with@Codenamegammataking to X/Twitter to say, “wait, it’s like not REALLY the Simpsons Series Finale is it!? WTF!” while@ChocMilkDrinkeradded, “IS THIS ACTUALLY THE SIMPSONS SERIES FINALE????”
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Some have praised the episode, with@Codenamegammaeven suggesting thatfans who have left the series behindshould give it a shot, saying, “Ok so it wasn’t the finale. the premise was that it was the finale but it was written by AI, bart became self aware and broke it. It was a good episode. if you haven’t seen the simpsons because you thought it wasn’t good give this episode a shot.” Similarly,@CartoonGal1adds, “I legit thought this was the series finale until I realized it was all a joke XD But still this was a great and funny season 36 premiere! Loved all the references!”
The Simpsonsis available to stream on Hulu and Disney+.
