The Simpsons sees a new change appropriate to the times

By: Gelene Peñalosa - 1 year ago

After 34 years of Homer strangling his son Bart when things go wrong, ‘The Simpsons’ has seemingly stopped this shtick.

On the 3rd episode of the show’s 35th season, The Simpsons family patriarch Homer was seen to declare that he’s a changed man/father while on a welcoming visit to their new neighbor, Thayer.

Prior to his statement, Thayer had commented on Homer’s strong grip while the two were shaking hands. To which Homer said, “See Marge, strangling the boy has paid off,” later adding, “Just kidding, I don’t do that anymore. Times have changed.”

Since the inception of ‘The Simpsons,’ Homer Simpson and Bart Simpson’s father-son dynamic has always involved physical violence—a.k.a, the thing where Homer takes out his anger on Bart by means of strangling him to the point where his eyes and tongue bulge out of their crevices.

Seeing how this was their normal dynamic, many weren’t pleased as to how this had continued on for 30+ seasons. However, the change in Homer’s demeanor towards his son was a welcome change for many viewers. The last time that Homer Simpson actually strangled Bart on TV was in the first episode of Season 31, which aired about 4 years ago.

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Though, not everyone was pleased with how one of the most iconic running gags in TV history was removed, and even went so far as to say that ‘The Simpsons’ have become ‘woke’.

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We’ve got some questions for those people crying about it: Since when was it okay for a show to broadcast literal child violence? Do you see something funny about it, especially when that’s the reality for some children in the world?

What kind of human are you to find some joy and entertainment in a kid getting strangled on television even if they were animated? Would you laugh if it were a real kid? No, right?

So, if animated it’s fine, then if it’s a real one, no. Okay, got it.

So what if ‘The Simpsons’ is removing a problematic thing about the family’s dynamic, does that make the show less entertaining than it already is? This show has shown more longevity than most of its generation, and it still keeps its humor while staying true to the times. It’s not called being woke, it’s called being aware and learning anew about what’s okay and what’s not.

It’s not ‘woke’ to call out brutality against children, nor is it ‘woke’ to call out racist undertones in the show. Yeah, we’re also talking about how ‘The Simpsons’ portrayed an Indian character named Apu and how he was voiced by a white man.

‘The Simpsons’ phased Apu’s character out in 2018, and his voice actor Hank Azaria also stated in an interview this year, “Through my role in Apu and what I created in Hollywood messaging – which is a big deal in this country and around the world – I helped to create a pretty marginalizing, dehumanizing stereotype.”

So again, no. It’s not woke. It’s just the creators of ‘The Simpsons’ realizing that they need to be better at what they show to their audiences.

 

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