The Simpsonswill not be ending one of its funniest running gags anytime soon,despite the program joking that it could not do it last season. For longtime fans of the animated series, they know that Homer Simpson (Dan Castellaneta) is sometimes not the greatest father to Bart (Nancy Cartwright), and their back-and-forth dynamic creates some of the funnier moments of the show.The gag in question has Homer choke Bart in a hilariously violent fashion,but many believed it would not continue after the show made light of it.
In Season 35 ofThe Simpsons, there was a moment in the third episode in which Homer says, in response to Bart giving a firm handshake, “See, Marge, strangling the boy paid off. Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.“TMZspoke to showrunner Matt Selman about the quip, saying it was a “mistake” to even make it in the first place. Although some fans knew it was just a brief joke on the current comedy climate, the scene was enough to put the running gag in question for future seasons. To Selman, the problem with the joke is that it “felt more like an announcement … it was just a joke … and people took it in the wrong direction.”The Simpsonswill certainly continue to bring back the Homer-Bart gag whenever it can be “funny or impactful” as it’s “in the DNA of the series.”
10 Old Simpsons Jokes That Make No Sense in 2024
As much as they get credit for constantly predicting the future, sometimes The Simpsons got it wrong.
Fret not, as the latest season has already brought back Homer choking Bart out. The Simpsons world reset itself after baiting audiences into believing the premiere was a series finale, with the pivotal turning point beingBart mocking his dad and Homer subsequently strangling him.The scene can be watched below:
The Simpsons Already Made a Joke About it
The funniest part ofthis whole ordealis that they already made light of this situation last year. In November 2023, shortly after the episode aired, the officialX/Twitteraccount for The Simpsons posted an image making fun of the notion they would stop having Homer strangle Bart. The caption read, “Homer Simpson was unavailable for comment as he was busy strangling Bart.” It seems this was not enough, as the season premiere and the showrunner still had to address the relatively small elephant in the room.
Most of the uproar when the Season 35 joke came out was based onDisney now owningThe Simpsonsafter purchasing 20th Century Fox.To many, it seemed the long-running series was attempting to modernize itself by laying off the physical gag at the behest of new ownership.Of course, it is now known that it was never the case. In trueSimpsonsfashion, the show has now made a big deal out of Homer choking Bart, making it the crux of its 36th season premiere episode.
The Simpsons
