‘The Simpsons’ episode Matt Groening called a mistake: “We’ll never speak of this matter again”
For a while, The Simpsons was unquestionably one of the greatest shows on television, with Springfield’s first family the subjects of countless classic episodes crafted by a writing team hailing from an eclectic background, who combined their myriad of influences and inspirations into small screen magic.
There can definitely be too much of a good thing, though, and it’s hardly a controversial opinion to say that The Simpsons hasn’t flirted with greatness on a level comparable to its peak for decades. However, because it’s still a lucrative operation, the series must continue.
Fast closing in on 800 episodes, The Simpsons has been renewed through at least the end of its 36th season, which guarantees Homer, Marge, Lisa, Bart, Maggie, and the rest of the favourites who’ve become fixtures of the pop culture landscape will be on-screen until at the end of 2025 at the very earliest, although it’s reasonable to assume it’ll continue well beyond that.
In a similar vein to many other monolithic franchises, part of the downturn in quality that’s beset The Simpsons has stemmed from just how popular and iconic it is. At the height of its creative powers, it was a trailblazing animated sitcom, but fast forward more than three decades. The writers’ room is largely comprised of people who grew up watching the show, and reverence rarely yields the best results.
That’s not to say The Simpsons hasn’t dropped some clangers at its height, in fairness, with ‘The Principal and the Pauper’ one of the most egregious offenders. It’s hard to pinpoint an exact moment when the decline in quality began, but revealing Seymour Skinner to be an imposter is a pretty good shout.
Fans absolutely hated the episode, to such an extent that Groening would rather pretend it didn’t exist at all. In an interview with Rolling Stone, he admitted that “we make some missteps” along the way before pointing out how “we acknowledge it on the show,” prior to naming ‘The Principal and the Pauper’ as the offender in question.
“We had an episode where it was revealed that Principal Skinner was an imposter,” he said. “By the time we finished the episode we realised it was a mistake and we had a judge say, ‘We’ll never speak of his matter again’. And we never did.”
‘The Principal and the Pauper’ remains one of the most-hated episodes of The Simpsons that’s ever been produced, which is saying something when there are so many to choose from. Groening knew he’d made the wrong call before it even had a chance to reach the airwaves, but a gag attempting to dismiss the revelatory plot twist right after it happened didn’t have the desired effect.
The Simpsons may have never spoken of it again, but long-time fans of the show have never been able to forget.
