Top 10 Worst! Simpsons! Episodes! EVER!
#10: “Homer vs. Dignity”
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If it wasn’t for THAT scene, Homer vs. Dignity would have been an unremarkable episode. But they just HAD to have a panda sexually assault Homer. The episode sees Mr. Burns using a cash-strapped Homer as his “prank monkey”. In one instance, Homer is forced to dress as a panda and entertain people at the zoo. This is when things get really weird. A male panda thinks that Homer is a female, pounces, and physically drags him into his cave. Moe’s creepy commentary makes it even worse . . . Fans were understandably outraged, and many consider this the moment “The Simpsons” devolved into gross-out shock humor akin to “Family Guy” and “South Park.”
#9: “What to Expect When Bart’s Expecting”
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This episode managed to be both redundant AND absurd. It starts with Bart accidentally impregnating his art teacher via a voodoo doll. Bart starts up a voodoo pregnancy clinic, and he and Homer are kidnapped by the mob so Bart can work his sex magic on Fat Tony’s race horses. It’s completely preposterous, and to somehow give it an emotional core, the episode falls back on the good old “Homer is a terrible father and role model” theme. That might have been fine except that the series was in its 25th season! We know full well that Homer is a bad role model! The whole plot felt like an outlandish coat of paint disguising a rudimentary “Simpsons” story.
#8: “Kill the Alligator and Run”
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“The Simpsons” was already on a downward slope by season eleven, but Kill the Alligator and Run gave it extra momentum. This episode is widely panned by fans for being erratic and jumbled, and it’s easy to see why. First, Homer suffers a nervous breakdown after thinking that he only has three years left to live. Then the family goes to Florida and gets caught up in Spring Break. Then Homer accidentally kills the state’s mascot. So the Simpsons go on the lamb and begin working at a restaurant. All this and more in 20 minutes. It’s absolutely chaotic, devolving quickly from down-to-earth and relatable to absurd farce. More like Kill This Episode and Run.
#7: “The Greatest Story Ever D’ohed”
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It’s one of the most famous episodes in “Simpsons” history . . . for all the wrong reasons. “The Greatest Story Ever D’ohed” sees the family traveling to Jerusalem with Ned. Homer of course acts like an ignorant buffoon, before getting lost in the desert and hallucinating that he’s the Messiah. The episode received middling reviews from critics, but fans absolutely despised it. Some cited episode’s ludicrous storyline. Others blamed Sacha Baron Cohen’s disappointing, and incredibly grating, guest appearance. Regardless of the reason, this episode was rated the show’s worst by online discussion group “No Homers Club”, and by quite a large margin.
#6: “Moe Goes from Rags to Riches”
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Absolutely no one asked for a history of Moe’s bar rag. Yet here we are. This bizarre episode begins with a town meeting at Moe’s, where everyone laughs at the bond he shares with his bar rag. The rag then tells his “Forrest Gump”-ian story, as he’s traveled surprisingly far and witnessed many notable events throughout history. It wouldn’t be so bad if the jokes were actually funny, or if the episode intelligently commented on historical events, but it was instead completely aimless and laugh-free. Then there’s a B-story involving Bart and Milhouse that’s redundant and completely untethered from the rag’s story. The episode is a total mess.
#5: “Saddlesore Galactica”
Saddlesore Galactica was a major turning point for the show. And not in a good way. The episode starts with the family rescuing a diving horse and training it as a racehorse. OK, fair enough. But then rival jockeys kidnap Homer, take him to the underground Land of the Jockeys, and reveal themselves to be elves. Yes, actual elves. And with that, “The Simpsons” had officially jumped the shark, if it hadn’t already. Or, should we say, entered the Land of the Jockeys. Looking back, it’s maybe not so bad, but at the time this was borderline sacrilegious. It’s a historical episode in the “Simpsons” canon, one where the show completely abandoned all pretenses of normality and relatability.
#4: “The Boys of Bummer”
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The Boys of Bummer took everything endearing about “The Simpsons” . . . and threw it out the window. In this episode, Bart becomes a victim of the town’s malicious cruelty after blowing an important baseball game. Bart has been the town outcast before, but for much more legitimate reasons. Here he just blew a baseball game. That somehow warrants pelting him with food, persistently booing and jeering, and publicly ridiculing him on the radio. Bart has a nervous breakdown and eventually attempts suicide by throwing himself off the water tower. We don’t mind dark humor, but the emphasis is supposed to be on HUMOR. This is pretty much just hateful.
#3: “Love Is a Many Strangled Thing”
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This episode courted controversy, but lacked original or thoughtful commentary to back it up. The premise is actually pretty unique, as Homer takes intense fathering enrichment classes that prevent him from strangling Bart. However, the episode’s content and message is dark and downright malicious. Homer suffers trauma from being strangled by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and his friends, and Bart becomes a heartless bully without Homer to strangle him. He even prank texts Moe rather than saving his father from being hung. Worst of all, Dr. Zander becomes disillusioned with Bart’s sociopathic tendencies and decides to murder him. Granted, there are some good laughs along the way, but you have to wade through some truly unenjoyable stuff to get there.
#2: “The Principal and the Pauper”
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With “The Principal and the Pauper”, the show’s Golden Age came to an abrupt and disappointing end. This episode infamously revealed that Principal Skinner is actually an imposter named Armin Tamzarian. The reveal, complete with a deus ex machina ending that completely negated the revelation, was despised by the show’s fanbase, and many people consider it the show’s official jump the shark moment. Even Matt Groening and Harry Shearer have disowned the episode, calling it “a mistake” that was “disrespectful to the audience.” The Principal and the Pauper started one of the biggest, and definitely the most famous, quality decline in television history. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions. “All Singing, All Dancing” “E My Sports” “Every Man’s Dream” “The Musk Who Fell to Earth” “Bart-Mangled Banner”
#1: “Lisa Goes Gaga”
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“The Simpsons” often features guest stars. But “Lisa Goes Gaga” put Lady Gaga front and center, and fans were not having it. The episode was basically a twenty-minute commercial for the singer, and many people called out “The Simpsons” for selling out and resorting to cheap gimmicks. The episode was also bad on a purely technical level – Lady Gaga’s vocal performance was bland, and the show resorted to unoriginal jokes like making fun of her weird outfits. They also criticized the depiction of Gaga’s character, as some type of Christ-like savior who can sense when young girls are upset. Quick summary: “Lady Gaga is a loving eccentric who makes outcasts feel better about themselves.” There, we saved you twenty minutes.
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