When I first heard that The Simpsons were coming to Disney+, I was pretty baffled. The first thought I had was, “Wait. THE Simpsons? You mean the ones with the spikey haired boy who gets strangled by his father? That Simpsons”. But now that The Simpsons have been on the popular streaming service for a while now, it kind of feels like an essential part of Disney+. Almost to the point where I think it should be included in their five pillars of Star Wars, Marvel, Disney, Pixar, and National Geographic. I mean, when it comes to the Mount Rushmore of television shows, The Simpsons definitely belongs up there.
And apparently, I’m not alone in this thinking since, information shared by What’s On Disney Plus, The Simpsons looks to have been the most popular television show on Disney+ in this past year. If the reports are correct, then this would mean that The Simpsons was watched more than fresh, new shows like The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, WandaVision, and even anything Star Wars-related. I mean, don’t have a cow, man, but that would mean that The Simpsons are bigger than General Grievous! And I’m overjoyed to hear it, since I think The Simpsons are definitely the best part of Disney+ right now! Do you want to know why? No, well fine. But if you don’t, then I think you already know what you can do with my shorts, man.
It is An Ongoing Time Capsule
The Simpsons is the longest running scripted television show OF ALL TIME. With 33 seasons and over 700 episodes dating all the way back to 1989, The Simpsons is pretty much the clearest time capsule we have of the past 30 years or so, and it’s wonderful. If you go all the way back to the first episode, “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire,” and then watch every episode up to “The Last Barfighter”, then you will see everything from rabbit ears on the television to flat screen TVs, Sting to John Legend as musical guests, and even multiple presidents as they go throughout the years.
Not only that, but it’s also fun to just see all the times that The Simpsons predicted the future. I mean hell, The Simpsons even predicted that 20th Century Fox would be bought out by Disney, and if that’s not prescience, then I don’t know what is.
It Is One Of The Few “Grown-Up” Options On The Platform
Let’s be real. Disney+ is not HBO Max. Sure, the characters in the Marvel shows might drop the occasional S-bomb, but when it comes to the content on Disney+, only some of it is, at most, PG-13. And The Simpsons is as well! That said, there is so much adult humor on The Simpsons that I’m surprised that it’s even allowed on Disney+.
Episodes about divorce, infidelity, doubt in religion, and death are all present in the series. I mean, I grew up on The Simpsons, so in a lot of ways, I kind of began to understand the world through my viewing of Springfield. But if you ask kids today, a lot of them will tell you that The Simpsons isn’t for them. For instance, one of my students has a Bartman logo on his bookbag. When I asked him if he liked The Simpsons, he said no. He just liked the logo. “The Simpsons is for adults,” he told me, and yeah, I guess he’s right. Adults are now, and maybe have always been, its target audience. I can’t really say that for any of the other Disney+ content.
Some Of The Best Episodes Of Television Ever Are From The Simpsons
And let’s not forget that The Simpsons is one of the greatest television shows of all time. And I’m not just talking sitcoms. Remember when I mentioned the television Mount Rushmore in the intro? Well, on that Mount Rushmore, I’d put Tony Soprano, Walter White, Omar from The Wire, and Homer Simpson. I mean, a lot of people will argue about what season The Simpsons stopped being funny. But as somebody who has watched every single episode since 1989, I can earnestly tell you that even the worst episodes of The Simpsons are better than most other shows’ best episodes.
In fact, I think The Simpsons may be TOO good for Disney+. Yeah, The Book of Boba Fett and the MCU shows may be enjoyable and what not, but none of them would be considered some of the best television has ever had to offer. Granted–and again, I may be a bit biased since I grew up with The Simpsons–neither The Book of Boba Fett nor any of the MCU shows have been on for 30+ years, but still! It’s kind of crazy to think that a show as old as The Simpsons could still be more popular than the hip new stuff from the MCU or Star Wars.
It Is The Only Option On Disney+ That Actually Takes Potshots At The Streaming Service
The Simpsons has been taking potshots at Disney for decades, and it doesn’t look to be stopping anytime soon. Sure, the “shots” are a lot safer now and more tongue-in-cheek, but you can even see it in some of The Disney+ Simpsons shorts, like “Plusaversary” and “The Good, The Bart, and The Loki”. Any fears that The Simpsons may pull its punches once it had its content delivered to Disney+ were allayed when the entire series was put on the platform, untouched (Well, save for one episode featuring a certain dead pop star that was kept out).
It’s actually really refreshing that The Simpsons still bites the hand that feeds it since you definitely won’t see any other shows openly mocking Disney like The Simpsons has for years now. It’s also the only show that’s really self-referential, and dare I say, even brainy or clever on Disney+. In every way, The Simpsons has still got it, baby!
It Stands Out From Everything Else On The Platform As A Purely Original Entity
And lastly, I just love how much The Simpsons stands out on Disney+ as a purely original entity. Sure, when Disney bought Fox, we also got shows like The X-Men and the old Spider-Man cartoons, and that’s cool and all. But that really feels like it belongs more with the Marvel content than anything else. The Simpsons, however, feels different from all the Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, Disney, and National Geographic stuff.
Being one of the old guards of Fox, it just FEELS like it doesn’t belong on Disney+. Married…With Children, Martin, The Simpsons. These are not squeaky clean, Disney properties. They’re dangerous! Barbara Bush once called The Simpsons the “dumbest thing [she] had ever seen” in People Magazine, and families across the country decided to tune into The Cosby Show over The Simpsons, which were seen as a bad influence for children. And now, they’re on Disney+. It’s kind of surreal, but here they are, the “bad influence on children,” right on Disney+, and we’re all the better for it.
