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The 'Final' Season Of The Simpsons (Possible Team Project?)

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 (Edited)

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https://zaredit.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/simpsons_ver47.jpg?w=518

For years, we’ve all heard the familiar chorus,  “They’ll never stop the Simpsons, have no fears, we’ve got stories for years”…well, consensus on the internet is they ran out of stories and drive to do better decades ago, yet they persevere, the bar considerably lowered year after year…oh sure they’ll be a few standouts, but they’re spread far beyond and even between what we usually get.

So the challenge lies with the fans…let’s create the ideal 26-episode  ‘final season’, we can achieve this by carefully cherry-picking the best of the weaker seasons, or ones that provide sufficient ‘closure’ for some existing plot points and character arcs, or by fan-editing/fan-mixing episodes together, (this can include material from the various Treehouse of Horrors also), to add to the ‘season’.

Youtube Channels like ‘Dark Simpsons’ shows editing episodes into something totally different can be achieved, so we surely we can attempt it on a bigger scale.

Here are a couple of articles that can help

https://www.geek.com/television/11-episodes-the-simpsons-could-have-ended-on-1753405/

https://screenrant.com/simpsons-ending-final-episode-holidays-future-passed/

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I like this idea. I guess the first question is when do you think The Simpsons stopped being good? For me the last great season is 8. But there are some gems in season 9, more than any subsequent season (do to it including some holdover episodes from season 8). Off the top of my head I like the NYC one, ‘Realty Bites’ and ‘Cartridge Family’.

I think it’s important to have a Treehouse episode (you could mix and match the segments from different years). There should also be a Sideshow Bob episode. Not sure which I would pick. And it’s a good idea to get as much Phil Hartman as possible (his last appearance is in season 10).

As for closure, that’s a good point. I think the one where Maude Flanders dies would probably be a good inclusion (even if it’s a little depressing). Also ‘Behind the Laughter’ feels like a final season kind of episode. Not sure how far into the series you want to go, in terms of matching SD/HD episodes, but I vaguely remember there being some decent stuff in season 20 that could give a good sense of finality.

Last thing I’ll say is I would be cognizant of the different show runners. I find it’s pretty easy to feel a difference between them (I’m a big Oakley/Weinstein fan, myself. They did seasons 7 and 8). Seasons 9-12 were run by Mike Scully and everything 13 and on was Al Jean (with occasional Matt Selman input). Would the goal here be to pick one of those eras and stick with it, or try to get the best of everybody’s? That could be done too. Season 9 has three holdovers from the Oakley/Weinstein seasons AND two run by David Mirkin (who ran seasons 5 & 6).

My YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXnq2soRMB-8vqvL-6NHIOg

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13las said:

I like this idea. I guess the first question is when do you think The Simpsons stopped being good? For me the last great season is 8. But there are some gems in season 9, more than any subsequent season (do to it including some holdover episodes from season 8). Off the top of my head I like the NYC one, ‘Realty Bites’ and ‘Cartridge Family’.

I think it’s important to have a Treehouse episode (you could mix and match the segments from different years). There should also be a Sideshow Bob episode. Not sure which I would pick. And it’s a good idea to get as much Phil Hartman as possible (his last appearance is in season 10).

As for closure, that’s a good point. I think the one where Maude Flanders dies would probably be a good inclusion (even if it’s a little depressing). Also ‘Behind the Laughter’ feels like a final season kind of episode. Not sure how far into the series you want to go, in terms of matching SD/HD episodes, but I vaguely remember there being some decent stuff in season 20 that could give a good sense of finality.

There’s “Holidays of Future Present”, which to my understanding was deemed the ‘canonical’ conclusion to the show out of all the ‘future’ episodes they’ve done, but theree’s also “Barthood”, which I often felt was the more believable ending out of the two.

Sideshow Bob wound up having a family, but that ended up being ignored with subsequent appearances. I always felt like “Brother From Another Series” was the natural ending for Bob’s character, as he does a lot of redeeming things in that episode, he and Bart work together etc. Maybe an alternative ending could be given to that episode as it originally ends with Bob being incarcerated again.

Another idea I had would be to trim half of “Homer’s Enemy” off and join it up with it’s follow-up where his son is out for revenge on Homer and Sideshow Bob helps the family track down the culprit.

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How about re-editing ‘Who Shot Mr. Burns’ to function as a one-parter where Burns dies at the end? You could integrate the footage of Maggie shooting him into the first part footage so there’s no mystery, and omit the cliffhanger.

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That’s an interesting idea. Like I said last time, though, I think you have to define your goals a little more clearly here if this is an actual project you want to kick off. Where would you want potential viewers to stop watching the official series and start watching this fan-made final season? Again, for me, I would keep seasons 1-8 as they are and then build a final season on the bones of season 9.

But another good place to start is, what’s your series finale? Who Shot Mr. Burns is a pretty solid candidate for that, actually. Considering it’s a two parter. But would you be worried about killing off a character or doing something drastic considering The Simpsons Movie? I think it’s pretty good (better than the show had been for a few years prior to its release) and I wouldn’t want to mess with that.

My YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXnq2soRMB-8vqvL-6NHIOg

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 (Edited)

13las said:

That’s an interesting idea. Like I said last time, though, I think you have to define your goals a little more clearly here if this is an actual project you want to kick off. Where would you want potential viewers to stop watching the official series and start watching this fan-made final season? Again, for me, I would keep seasons 1-8 as they are and then build a final season on the bones of season 9.

But another good place to start is, what’s your series finale? Who Shot Mr. Burns is a pretty solid candidate for that, actually. Considering it’s a two parter. But would you be worried about killing off a character or doing something drastic considering The Simpsons Movie? I think it’s pretty good (better than the show had been for a few years prior to its release) and I wouldn’t want to mess with that.

I’ve actually edited The Simpsons Movie, I turned it into a 60-minute special, it’s listed on Fanedit.org

https://ifdb.fanedit.org/simpsons-finest-hour-the/

If so inclined, this could be a potential candidate for our ‘finale’ as it fits a tidy extended TV format.

For me personally, The Simpsons ended with “Homer’s Enemy”, where Homer’s role in the Springfield community is truly defined in itself. He’s largely found acceptance amongst them they find joy in his bungling, entertainment in his idiocy. When Homer says “Change the Channel Marge” in his sleep, that’s basically a command to the audience to just stop watching the show, it’s peaked. This is where I would advise people to stop following the official seasons and from there enjoy the fan-made ‘final’ season

I was also thinking we could somehow edit The Simpsons Arcade Game into a workable “gimmick” episode, or a short for the ‘final’ Treehouse of Horror.

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This sounds fun. I’ll help as I can, though I’ve only watched the show on and off.

Holidays of the Future Present was going to be the ending of the show had it been canceled. It was a Christmas episode because the pilot episode was also set during Christmas. For that reason, I think it would do for a good finale episode.

I recall Barthood as a really good episode, but it had an almost entirely Bart focus, so I don’t think it would do for the show’s final episode. I would like for it to show up midway through this final season. I wonder how much of the lore messes with Holidays: isn’t that set 30 years in the future, where Barthood stops around when Bart is 20? Ideally it’d fit but if it doesn’t not the end of the world.

Maul- A Star Wars Story

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Barthood could be the penultimate episode I suppose, as far as chronological placement goes.

I just remembered that Lisa is in a relationship with Nelson by the end of Barthood, but married to Milhouse by the start of “Holidays…”, we still don’t have a clear idea of when Lisa finally chose to have a family with Milhouse in between that in the series.

I know there was one modern series episode where Lisa finally kissed Milhouse, but that’s when they were still kids.

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I tried asking around on r/simpsons but noone was too keen on it over there, ah well, I still feel it’s worth pursuing somehow.

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Nice to see this thread. I’ve mulled over this concept time-to-time.

Initially, I’d have left Season 9 alone. As mixed as it is, I still feel the good outweighs the meh/bad. But then I realized there simply aren’t enough decent episodes in Season 10+ to put together a quality 26-episode season; there’s enough for maybe a 13-episode season? I dunno — I quit watching the show regularly after Season 14.

SEASON Ω

  1. “Lisa’s Sax”
  2. “Treehouse of Horror Ω” (includes the intro from “XII”, The HΩmega Man from “VIII”, The Terror of Tiny Toon from “IX”, & I Know What You Diddily-Iddily-Did from “X”.)
  3. “The Cartridge Family”
  4. “The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetilons”
  5. “Lisa the Skeptic” (I’d re-edit this one to remove/reduce Lisa’s antagonism towards belief in angels)
  6. “Realty Bites”
  7. “Miracle on Evergreen Terrace”
  8. “Bart Carny”
  9. “The Joy of Sect”
  10. “Dumbbell Indemnity” (I’d re-edit this one to keep Moe & Renee together.)
  11. “Lisa the Simpson”
  12. “King of the Hill”
  13. “Lost Our Lisa”
  14. “Natural Born Kissers”
  15. “The Wizard of Evergreen Terrace”
  16. “Bart the Mother”
  17. “D’oh-in’ in the Wind”
  18. “Lisa Gets an “A””
  19. “Maximum Homerdrive”
  20. “Take My Wife, Sleaze”
  21. “Alone Again, Natura-Diddily”
  22. “Days of Wine and D’oh’ses”
  23. “The Computer Wore Menace Shoes”
  24. “Trilogy of Error”
  25. “The Blunder Years”
  26. “Behind the Laughter”

I’d also incorporate Stupid Sexy Flanders from “Little Big Mom” and the Adam West Batman scene from “Large Marge” in any of these episodes. Dunno where they’d fit best.

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Great list there, I’ve fortunately managed to see about 25% of the episodes listed there. I’d probably still swap around some of the episodes so there’s a stronger lead-up to “Behind The Laughter”, maybe “The Cartridge Family” before it, and I’d probably shift “City of New York Vs Homer Simpson” in there too as a penultimate episode, since the car gets totalled.

For the “Sexy Flanders” scene, maybe we could edit in a brief sub-plot for the Simpsons where they find Ned on the slope and him fitting into the jumpsuit is one of his ways of ‘coping’ with Maude’s death?

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Perhaps we could even take one of Bart’s many love interest episodes and re-jigger it so he settles with one of them?

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If I get what you’re saying is that season 23 episode: “Holidays of Future Passed” was supposed to be the final episode of all The Simpsons if all the voice actors walked off from their contract negotiations?

https://screenrant.com/simpsons-ending-final-episode-holidays-future-passed/

Did somebody already say that you could do this final Simpsons season like X-Files, where the 1st episode and every other other episode would be continuity stories that show how characters develop or die along the way to lead to the final episode? And then every other episode would be the best of the Simpsons shows after season 23 or something?

I have hardly watched The Simpsons since Phil Hartman has been gone. Not the same show to me.
But I would watch this final season!

I’m not sure if the Simpsons: Embiggened fan edit project would also be helpful in making sure that the Simpsons episodes are unedited?
http://originaltrilogy.com/topic/The-Simpsons-Embiggened-Edition/id/55848

I just read Zarius’ post on this thread.
Maybe, the Simpsons has more than 1 final episode like “22 Short Films About Springfield” 21st episode of 7th season?

I could not find Zarius Simpsons movie fan edit on fe info, so I would like to see that if it could be a possible final episode for the “final season” of The Simpsons,thanks!

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Thanks for directing me to the Embiggened project Kaarma, I’ll look into it.

Continuity wise, I would definitely like half of the season to form closure of some sort for characters, as much as the status quo allows really…anything else could just be carefully manipulated editing, taking things from stories that LOOK to disrupt the status quo, and actually do as opposed to being reversed by the end of the episode.

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This is a really interesting idea, so I decided to take a crack at it. I’m not too sure how useful this would be for your purposes, because I’m not sure where you consider the drop-off to occur. I definitely agree with most people that the drop off started in seasons 9 or 10, but I still think the show is still pretty decent for seasons 10-20. Personally I didn’t really start watching the show until I was around 9 or 10, which is around seasons 14-16, so I probably have a much better reaction to seasons 10-20 than others. I stopped watching the show halfway through season 21. For me, Season 14, is the last season before the decline had fully taken effect. There are definitely still some really good gems throughout the widescreen HD seasons of the show, but most of my list is from seasons 15 and 16, with a handful of episodes from seasons 17-19 and I tried to find at least 1 from every season of the show after that. I tried to find episodes that tackled contemporary issues, as the show’s best episodes are often ones that tackle semi-serious subject manner, episodes that focus on certain character’s relationships, and those that bring a sense of closure for specific characters. I put an R next to episodes that I’m not sure should be in this hypothetical final season.

1 S15 My Mother The Carjacker (Closure for Mona Simpson)
2 S15 Today I Am A Clown (Closure for Krusty)
3 S15 My Big Fat Greek Wedding (Closure for Skinner and Edna)
4 S15 The Way We Weren’t
5 S16 Future Drama
6 S16 Sleeping With The Enemy (Closure for Nelson
7 S16 She Used To Be My Girl
8 S17 The Monkey Suit R
9 S18 The Mook, The Chef, The Wife and Her Homer
10 S19 The Haw Hawed Couple
11 S18 24 Minutes
12 S20 Sex Pies and Idiot Scrapes
13 S16 There’s Something About Marrying (Closure for Patty)
14 S16 Goo Goo Gai Plan (Closure for Patty)
15 S18 The Wife Aquatic R
16 S19 Eternal Moonshine of the Simpson Mind
17 S19 Mona Leaves A (Closure for Mona Simpson)
18 S22 The Neediest Catch R
19 S23 Ned ’n’ Edna’s Blend Agenda R
20 S31 Thanksgiving of Horror
21 S23 The Book Job
22 S24 The Saga of Carl R
23 S25 Steal This Episode
24 S26 Simpsorama
25 S30 Bart vs Itchy and Scratchy
26 S30 Woo-Hoo Dunnit
27 S27 Barthood
28 S29 Mr. Lisas Opus R
29 S23 Holidays of Futures Passed

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Good list, particularly like the inclusion of the last couple of Mona Simpson episodes. I actually think both could be re-edited into one story, taking the best moments from each and creating the definitive tragic finish to her story.

24 Minutes is another good choice, I remember watching that one summer and really enjoying it, I’d place it closer to the end of the season as it’s a pretty high-stake story and one of the last times, at least as far as I remember, that Bart was sort of a savy psudeo-action hero in the series.

Are there any Sideshow Bob episodes in that list I should be aware of? It’s alright if there isn’t any included, because I always felt his closure came with “Brother From Another Series” and that was covered by a previous season.

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There’s Gone Boy from Season 29 if you wanted to take a look at that. I removed it from the list because I disliked the final scene to the episode and also because my list is intended to be watched after season 14. That season had The Great Louse Detective which is where I consider his arc completed.

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I would not worry much about episodes you’re unsure about suggesting, this isn’t just a “best of…” list, if need be, the episodes suggested can be edited so you can get the outcome you want.

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I’m thinking of maybe doing three or so takes on this, but so far I’ve settled on this list for a final season comprised largely of season 9-11 episodes, with some from season 12, as well as “Barthood” and “Holidays of Future Passed”

The City of New York Vs Homer Simpson
Simpson Tide
Natural Born Kissers
Girly Edition
Treehouse of Horror VIII
The Trouble With Trillions
This Little Wiggy
Bart Carny
The Two Mrs. Nahasapeemapetions
Lisa The Sceptic
Trash of the Titans
The Cartridge Family
Mayored To The Mob
Lost Our Lisa
Wild Barts Can’t Be Broken
I’m With Cupid
Make Room For Lisa
Brother’s Little Helper
Faith Off
Alone Again Naturally-Diddly
Trilogy of Error
The Computer Wore Menace Shoes
Day of the Jackanapes
24 Minutes
My Mother The Carjacker
Holidays of Future Passed