Now that it’s been on the air for 30 seasons, with the 31st currently airing, Fox renewed the show for seasons 31 and 32 so the current series will be followed by at least 1 more. With any luck, the surreal, satirical, and ultimately human story of the Simpson family will keep going for years and years.
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For fans of the series, it can now be streamed exclusively on Disney+, although eagle-eyed fans have spotted an issue. The episodes have been converted from their original 4:3 ratio into 16:9, which is now considered standard. Unfortunately, this hasn't been a great move, with the conversion meaning parts of the action are missing. Disney have pledged to fix this by making the first 19 seasons available in their original format, although fans will need to wait until next year.
So, while you are waiting take a look at our list of all 30 seasons of The Simpsons so far, ranked.
SEASON 21
Season 21 sees a series that has been worn thin over two decades. It opens with the somewhat inspired “Homer the Whopper,” guest-written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and guest-starring Rogen, but devolves quickly into a season of episodes with shallow setups just to get celebrity guest stars in.
SEASON 29
Season 29 is, generally, a lame duck of a season. However, it does have some gems. Lisa and Marge teaming up to write a graphic novel in “Springfield Splendor” is a standout, because of its gorgeous visuals and tear-jerking story. Plus, the season’s “Treehouse of Horror” Halloween special has a rare combination of three great segments. But other than that, it’s not a good season.
SEASON 20
By season 20, the show was reduced to such thin non-plots as Bart and Milhouse finding Denis Leary’s cell phone and Homer and Flanders teaming up as bounty hunters. “Homer and Lisa Exchange Cross Words” and “In the Name of the Grandfather” are among the small handful of strong episodes, but it’s an overall weak season.
SEASON 26
Season 26 began with a tremendous disappointment, as Fox had promoted the season with the promise of a major character’s death. It turned out to be Krusty’s father, who no one really cared about. Still, there are some pretty good episodes: “Covercraft,” “Super Franchise Me,” “Opposites A-Frack” etc. Plus, the Futurama crossover “Simpsorama” gets points for ambition, even if it’s not amazing.
SEASON 30
Season 30 has shown us that The Simpsons is still happy to unabashedly lampoon religion and politics, while also tackling semi-current issues like Black Friday sales and self-driving cars. So, while it’s not as great as it used to be and there have been ups and downs over the years, this is still The Simpsons and, thankfully, it looks like it won’t be leaving our screens any time soon. Plus, comedy fans will appreciate Krusty the Clown ing Marc Maron in the garage for an episode of WTF.
SEASON 17
This season is hit-and-miss, with far more miss than hit. The season premiere episode “The Bonfire of the Manatees” guest-starring Alec Baldwin is one of the series’ best, but it goes downhill from there.
SEASON 12
While the odd episode like “Simpson Safari” or “New Kids on the Blecch” are entertaining enough to sustain viewers’ attention, season 12 is, on the whole, weak. The scene in “Homer vs. Dignity” that implies Homer is sexually assaulted by a panda is one of the series’ all-time low points.
SEASON 22
Season 22 is woefully so-so. There are no really terrible episodes in it, but there are no really great ones either. It settles into a comfortable averageness with episodes like “Angry Dad: The Movie” and “Moms I’d Like to Forget.”
SEASON 19
Season 19 is a mix of really great episodes – “Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind,” “Dial ‘N’ for Nerder,” “Any Given Sundance” – and really terrible ones – “Smoke on the Daughter,” which betrays Lisa’s character, and “That ‘90s Show,” which shamelessly retcons so much Simpson family history that watching it is pretty much unbearable. This is probably a result of the writing staff being exhausted, since this was the first season produced after The Simpsons Movie, as well as production being delayed by a 100-day Writers Guild of America strike.
SEASON 24
The best episodes of The Simpsons these days are the ones that tackle current issues, looking ahead rather than getting stuck in the past. Season 24 has a few examples of this, with the best being “The Day the Earth Stood Cool,” a hilarious satire of the hipster subculture.