The yellow family from Springfield just won't quit. Honestly, most people thought The Simpsons would have folded a decade ago, but the Season 37 premiere, specifically the massive Treehouse of Horror XXXV, proves there is still some gasoline in the tank. It’s weird. It’s gross. It’s exactly what the show needed to stop the "zombie Simpsons" allegations that have haunted the writers' room since the early 2000s.
Let’s be real for a second.
Watching modern Simpsons can sometimes feel like visiting an elderly relative who keeps telling the same story. But this most recent episode, which technically kicked off the 2025-2026 cycle, leaned hard into the "prestige TV" parody. It didn't just poke fun at tropes; it tore them apart.
The Simpsons Most Recent Episode and the Return to Form
The buzz around The Simpsons most recent episode isn't just about the jokes. It's about the structure. For years, the show stayed in a safe lane of "Homer does something dumb, Marge gets mad, everything resets." Not this time. By leaning into the three-segment anthology format for the premiere, the creators gave themselves permission to be genuinely mean and experimental.
One of the segments—a direct riff on The White Lotus—is perhaps the sharpest social commentary the show has produced in years. It’s biting. It’s cynical. You've got the entire Springfield elite trapped in a high-end resort where the "service" is literally killing them. It works because it doesn't try to be a "lesson." It's just chaos.
Most people get the show's current direction wrong. They think it's trying to catch up to Rick and Morty or South Park. It isn't. It’s actually leaning back into its roots as a cynical, counter-culture powerhouse that happens to be animated.
Why the Animation Shift Matters
If you look closely at the frames in the most recent episode, something has changed. The "sheen" of the HD era is being replaced by more textured, experimental art styles during the fantasy sequences.
Matt Selman, who has been running the show with a fresh perspective, has pushed for these "segment-specific" art shifts. In the latest outing, we saw a sequence that looked like a 1980s dark fantasy film—think The NeverEnding Story but with more existential dread. It’s beautiful. It’s also incredibly expensive to produce, which shows that Disney is still willing to throw a massive budget at a 37-year-old property.
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Breaking Down the "Venom" Parody
People are talking about the "Denim" segment. It's a parody of Venom and superhero obsession, but it’s actually a metaphor for fast fashion and consumerism.
Homer gets a pair of sentient jeans.
Simple? Sure. But the way the episode explores the "bond" between a man and his pants is surprisingly dark. It’s the kind of body horror that the early Treehouse of Horror episodes were famous for. You remember the "Fly" parody with Bart? It has that same DNA. It’s uncomfortable to watch, which is exactly why it’s good.
The Simpsons is at its best when it makes you feel slightly nauseous while you're laughing.
The Evolution of Lisa Simpson
We have to talk about Lisa. For a long time, the writers turned her into a mouthpiece for whatever political issue was trending on Twitter. It was exhausting. In this most recent episode, however, they went back to "8-year-old genius who is also deeply lonely."
There’s a nuance there that was missing for a long time. She isn't just right about the world; she's burdened by it. Seeing her navigate a digital landscape that is essentially a 1:1 parody of our current AI-saturated reality was cathartic. The show isn't just predicting the future anymore; it's surviving it alongside us.
Is the "Golden Age" Back?
Let's not get ahead of ourselves. No one is saying Season 37 is better than Season 4. That’s impossible. You can't capture lightning in a bottle twice when the bottle is now a multi-billion dollar corporate asset.
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However, the "New Golden Age" (as fans call the Selman era) is real.
The writing is tighter. The guest stars—which used to be the worst part of the show—are now used as actual characters rather than just celebrities doing a "hey, look at me" cameo. In the most recent episode, the voice work from the core cast feels rejuvenated. Dan Castellaneta is finding new gears for Homer’s scream that we haven't heard since the 90s.
What Critics Are Saying
Rob Bricken and other long-time animation critics have noted that the show has stopped trying to be "everything to everyone." By leaning into niche parodies and darker themes, it’s found a second life. The ratings might not be what they were in 1994, but the cultural relevance on streaming platforms like Disney+ is skyrocketing.
The data shows that "The Simpsons most recent episode" is consistently a top-three trending search every Sunday night. That’s staying power.
Practical Insights for the Casual Viewer
If you haven't watched a new episode in ten years, you're actually the target audience for this season. You don't need to know the deep lore of the last 300 episodes to get the jokes.
Here is how to approach the current season:
Start with the anthology episodes. They are the "entry drug" for modern Simpsons. They move faster, the animation is more daring, and the writers aren't afraid to kill off characters because they know the "reset" is coming.
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Ignore the "controversy" headlines. Most of the time, the "outrage" over a joke or a character change is manufactured by people who haven't actually watched the full episode. The show is much more self-aware than the internet gives it credit for.
Pay attention to the background. One thing that hasn't changed is the "freeze-frame" humor. The most recent episode is packed with signs, store names, and book titles that are funnier than the actual dialogue. It's a show designed for the pause button.
The Future of Springfield
What happens next? Season 38 is already a lock. There are rumors of a second movie, but the showrunners seem more interested in doing "event episodes."
We are seeing a shift toward "prestige" animation. Short films, experimental shorts, and episodes that break the fourth wall entirely. The most recent episode wasn't just a premiere; it was a manifesto. It’s saying that The Simpsons will continue until the sun burns out, and they’re going to have a weird amount of fun while it happens.
The "Denim" segment alone is proof that they still have weird ideas. And in a world of safe, corporate-approved comedy, "weird" is the highest compliment you can give.
Actionable Steps for Fans
To get the most out of the current run, follow the official writers' accounts on social media. They often post "deleted scenes" or script pages that explain the jokes that were too dark for broadcast.
Also, check out the "Simpsons Is Relevant Again" playlists on streaming services. They curate the best of the recent years, helping you skip the mid-2010s slump.
Lastly, stop comparing everything to 1993. It’s a different world. The show has evolved from a sitcom into a living archive of American culture. Watch it through that lens, and you’ll realize that the most recent episode is actually one of the most vital things on television right now.