Unless you caught Fox’s famous cartoon family in their interstitial The Tracey Ullman Show shorts, they first entered your life in the form of a Christmas special. The second attempt to do a Christmas 'Treehouse of Horror' is an improvement of King Sized Homer proportions. Two brand new Mrs. Brown’s Boys Christmas specials are coming to your TV this Christmas. But truth be told, there aren't that many Simpson Christmas episodes. 14) "Simpson Christmas Stories" - Season 17, Episode 9 (Photo: FOX) Likely due to the success they found with the "Treehouse of Horror" concept, The Simpsons would go on to … Ironically, the top-ranking Simpsons holiday episode isn't really about Christmas. “Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” isn’t just the first Simpsons episode to air; it also helped save the show. Or... well, you see where I'm going with this. It also became apparent that the show didn't actually do many holiday episodes during its so-called 'golden-era' - seasons two to about nine, give or take. Episodes of The Simpsons have won dozens of awards, including 31 Emmys (ten for Outstanding Animated Program), 30 Annies, and a Peabody. (Though Lisa deserves better than to just end up with Milhouse). This one of the Christmas themed Simpsons episodes that revolves around Lisa, and in this notable instance she decides to become a Buddhist after realizing how commercialized Christmas has become. Surprisingly, “Holidays of Future Passed” could very well have been The Simpsons series finale when it aired in 2011. It ends on a shamelessly tear-jerking, heart-warming moment – but what Bart goes through in the lead up in excruciating. Weaving in a great parody of 1950s sci-fi movies, some wonderful animation of Bart’s hamster astronaut, and Milhouse’s eyebrows being blown off, the whole sequence is a reminder that The Simpsons could still be great in the early 2000s. So gather round children, and with joy in our heart, let’s rate the festive adventures of Homer, Marge, Lisa, Maggie and Bart. Holidays of Future Passed. Technically this episode only becomes a Christmas show in its final act, when Mr Burns, who has been paying Homer to be his ‘prank moneky’, gets him to dress up as Santa and throw fish guts at kids (well, technically, this is during the Thanksgiving parade, but Santa = Christmas episode as far as I’m concerned). Oh, and Rev. The bit about Lenny getting pudding in his eye is funny though. Plus it gave us everyone's favourite adorable runt, Santa’s Little Helper. No one needs an Xmas special where Krusty converts to Christianity. When rocky contract negotiations made it seem as if the 495th episode would serve as The Simpsons’ last, the team decided it would only be fitting to go out with a Christmas episode. Yes, when you go back at watch first seasons episodes of The Simpsons, the animation is all wonky and Homer voice sounds wrong and it all just feels a bit, well, ewwwww. It’s a great punchline, but it is also so perfect. A high-profile episode, featuring Lisa converting to Buddhism and Richard Gere doing a guest spot, the satire of religious corporatisation, culminating at Christmas, is well-held. “‘Tis the Fifteenth Season” may not hit the same heights as other Christmas Simpsons, but its dark ending—where Springfieldians mistake a rescue flare shot by a dying Hans Moleman for a vision of god—ties an appropriately cynical bow on this holiday episode. The idea that his life is so empty that he's genuinely excited to spend Christmas trapped at work is perfectly true to the character, even if the episode itself doesn't get all the nuance. While the very first episode was a holiday story, it took them six years to do another one. After a misunderstanding, Marge kicks Homer out on Christmas Eve. It opens with an uninspired retelling of the birth of Jesus ("Shalom, Dr Nick" is pretty funny, I guess), then a dopey story about Grandpa and Mr Burns getting stuck on a desert island during World War II. Just look at the ending, where Bart excitedly opens his present, and we think he is finally going to get the violent game he wants – only for it to be revealed to be boring-ass golf sim Lee Carvallo’s Putting Challenge. The Simpsons Movie, a feature-length film, was released in theaters worldwide on July 26 and 27, 2007 and grossed US$526.2 million worldwide. If you loved video games in the mid-’90s, “Marge Be Not Proud” definitely spoke to you with its pitch-perfect parodies when it aired in 1995. Where do I stream The Simpsons Christmas online? Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire. Let it snow in Springfield, and enjoy the best The Simpsons Christmas episodes. This episode had such a big impact and was so well crafted that it was nomi… Many shows have done the “presents don’t matter” holiday message before, but only The Simpsons would deploy this moral using mob justice. I've watched the Simpsons on and off since they first aired when I was in 3rd grade. The Way of the Dog. We decided to eschew ones that just feature snow (sorry, 'Mr Plow' and 'Homer The Heteric'), but any episode that featured a significant segment set during Christmas was included. The first Simpsons episode Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire is… But, to be fair, Bart’s Christmas-ruining in “Miracle on Evergreen Terrace” comes about as a complete accident—though one fueled by selfishness. Since joining the games press in 2007, he's written for sites like 1UP, Joystiq, The A.V. And despite being a possible series finale, this episode doesn’t focus on The Simpsons we know and love. Christmas-themed Simpsons Episodes. The future jokes come thick and fast, and t it almost feels like an episode of Futurama than The Simpsons. So, while the first Simpsons Christmas special might exist as the first true episode the world has ever seen, it’s actually the eighth episode produced. If you’re looking to watch some holiday appropriate Simpsons episodes in this, the season of nog, you can’t go wrong with our top five. But instead of spending their newfound cash on gifts and a tree, Homer sneaks away to buy him a pricey talking astrolabe—one that later tests its smoke alarm for a full three hours. But you’ve got to put yourself in the headspace of what it was like watching the show’s first episode back in 1989. You how every so often, someone will tell you The Simpsons has gotten good again in recent years? Instead, it jumps 30 years into the future for a glimpse at where Marge and Homer’s parenting have brought Lisa, Bart, and Maggie. The Simpsons are renowned for their annual Halloween episode, which usually ends up being the best moment from recent seasons. The series first aired on December 17, 1989. The hit ratio of the gags is pretty solid though, and it’s improved by the addition of two short stop-motion animation sequences. The Simpsons Christmas is available for streaming on FOX, both individual episodes … As such, we’re about to get in the holiday mood, Disney+ style. In particular, the tight plotting - one of the show's least-sung but most important qualities - has been replaced by outlandish storylines that come out of nowhere - in this case, evil Furbys are coming alive and destroying other toys. However, over the show's current 32 season span, it has had 15 Christmas episodes, with a new one set to be released 13th December. BBC Radio 1 says it won’t play original version of Fairytale of New York this Christmas. That’s fine, though, since this darkly comic Christmas adventure does a much better job of introducing the core cast than the true first episode where Bart squares off against his one-time enemy, The Babysitter Bandit. On The Simpsons Season 32 Episode 10, a cable channel films a Christmas movie in Springfield, and Skinner falls in love in the holiday-themed episode. It might not hit the heights the show would in the years to come, but it remains a reassuring warm blanket of an episode, filled with fond memories, and that’s what a Christmas special should be. Bart’s attempt to win his mom over again gives “Marge Be Not Proud” the most heartwarming ending of any Christmas episode—one the writers aren’t afraid to immediately undercut afterwards with a look at the lousy (unbeknownst to her) video game she bought him. It just so happens that Springfield has its own Buddhist temple, and there she meets Carl, Lenny, and Richard Gere. It's just another middling mid-00s episode that's not very good, but you'll watch it if comes on Channel 4. He also hosts the weekly podcasts Retronauts and Talking Simpsons. ‘Lisa’s Wedding’ still remains the show’s best glimpse into what’s to come, this is easily one of the funniest Simpsons of the twenty-first century. After Thanksgiving Dinner, Bart and Lisa are excited for Christmas. And then, the episode itself has nothing to do with Christmas, being a Sideshow Bob story with Bart trapped down a well (didn’t they already do that?). Damn, modern Simpsons can be lazy. The second season included this short of Bart retelling The Night Before Christmas, and while it is only about a minute long, it is still pretty funny, and more enjoyable than several episodes on this list. Hilariously, Gere teaches her about being Buddhist while Marge works on bribing her back into celebrating Christmas. And it is... not good. Lovejoy has a crisis of faith. The true series finale—whenever that happens—will have to work pretty hard to beat this one. Springfield becomes a tourist spot after its the only town in America, so the Simpsons' open up their house to annoying Canadians and Lisa frets about the true meaning of buying presents. It's nice that they're trying to do something more grounded and character-based, but in terms of Homer-Marge marital strife episodes, it is no 'Secrets of a Successful Marriage'. The final scene of the family being genuinely happy without any mortal good is also genuinely sweet - even if it one of those lazy conclusions that leaves the status quo irrevocably shattered, only to be reset next episode without explanation, that later seasons are so guilty of. While most year-long TV series typically produce an annual holiday episode, The Simpsons tends to be much choosier when it comes to Christmas content. Gone Boy. More than anything, “Marge Be Not Proud” hammers home the message that nothing feels more miserable than truly disappointing the people who love and trust you. Stream full episodes online & watch live Sundays at 8/7c! That’s fine, though, since this darkly comic Christmas adventure does a much better job of introducing the core cast than the true first episode where Bart squares off against his one-time enemy, The Babysitter Bandit. Ultimately, “‘Tis the Fifteenth Season” acts as a tribute to Christmas specials of the past, which inspire Homer to change his greedy ways. And arguably, there is no greater emotional ringer in the show’s thirty years than the seventh season’s Christmas episode. Skinner's Sense of … It is definitely a memorable episode, to say least. The Simpsons have pumped out many a Christmas episode – but what is the best? This meant that there was a lot of slogging later period Simpsons. The Simpsons only started really doing Christmas episodes towards the end of the 1990s – hence there’s not many from the shows golden era. 10) The Fight Before Christmas (Season 22, Episode … Regardless of holiday-content levels, ‘Homer Vs. Dignity’ is largely remembered for being one of the worst Simpsons episodes of all time – mostly for its mean-spirited main story, rehashing of overused set-up, and the infamous scene where Homer appears to be molested by a panda. Tis the 30th Season "Tis the 30th Season" is the tenth episode of Season 30. Alexandra Plesa . 'Tis the Fifteenth Season. The three-story format has since been adopted for other other non-Halloween editions, like this Christmas special. However, Homer and the kids surprise Marge with a vacation to a Florida resort. The Simpsons was outrageous and surreal, and like nothing else on TV. That's great. The final segment purports to be a take on The Nutcracker, but you can literally feel the writers shrugging their shoulders and giving up a few minutes in, and they start doing an extended vignette of Moe trying to kill himself for some reason. Nothing says the mid-teen seasons of The Simpsons like going through the motions, and damn, if 'Tis the Fifteenth Season’ isn't just lumbering through those motions. Menu. McGrew’s Christmas Carol”—a not-so-subtle parody of a similar Mr. Magoo cartoon—Homer vows to be the nicest guy in Springfield, putting even Ned Flanders to shame. Only someone who truly loves you can get you a gift so, so close to what you want that also misses the mark so spectacularly. She of Little Faith. After receiving a financial windfall from an unwitting Mr. Burns, the family heads out to buy some pricey Christmas presents at the Springfield Heights Promenade. It is hard to overstate how revolutionary this first episode would have felt, with its elaborate tattoo removal lasers and parade of deadbeat Santas. Plot The First D'oh-El. It’s still a wonderful episode, a classic Homer and Bart story, which delivers jokes and pathos effortlessly, and established the Simpsons as working-class family, never more than one crisis away from money troubles – an important element of the show sorely missing in modern Simpsons. 'Dude, Where's My Ranch?' The John Lewis Christmas advert pigeons and hedgehog are getting people very emotional. A Springfield Summer Christmas for Christmas. Miracle on Evergreen Terrace. Principal Skinner is one of The Simpsons' most wonderful characters. Take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. The brand new football show from Joe Cole and Tom Davis. This well-stuffed stocking of Simpsons Holiday Treats includes classic tales of the season, from Simpsons seasons one through seventeen. And instead of clever jokes, we get Gary Coleman shouting. The town then takes its revenge on The Simpsons by looting their home, leaving them a solitary washcloth that Homer, Marge, Bart, and Lisa playfully fight over as the episode comes to a close. Movies. Still, the flash-forward really seemed to get the show’s mojo back, at least for one episode. And when Bart and Milhouse's magic stopwatch breaks, they are the only ones left in real time. 11 Simpsons Christmas Episodes, Ranked From Worst to Best ... 11 Simpsons Christmas Episodes, Ranked From Worst to Best ...Dec 13, 2011 ... On Sunday night, there was a new Simpsons Christmas episode. QUIZ: How well do you remember the football that happened in 2020? I expected this DVD to be more like a Christmas version of their "Treehouse of Horrors" Halloween discs. If there's an easy joke, the episode goes for it every time. Then the finale goes completely nuts, in an elaborate Muppet Show riff, made with real live action and slightly terrifying puppets. The Christmas-to-Christmas year-long time frame is nice, but this is standard stuff. However, the best stuff in this episode is easily the hilarious opening acting, which is virtually unrelated to the main plot. Or "Colonel Homer'. Still, it … The main plot, about Homer and Ned trying to out-good-deed each other, doesn’t really kick in until the last ten minutes, and it’s mostly just a rag-tag collection of festive jokes and skits. The first holiday episode since the pilot, ‘Marge Be Not Proud’ is the one where is caught stealing a video game from the mall, and Marge finds herself unsure how to react. The Simpsons Christmas episodes Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire (Season 1, Episode 1) This episode also happens to be the very first episode of this show which set the tone for the massive numbers of episodes that would follow.