The Simpsons has numerous tropes that it is caught to over time: regardless of if he will get fired or stumbles into a brand new job, Homer Simpson (Dan Castellaneta) will nonetheless be working at Springfield’s nuclear energy plant. Lisa (Yeardley Smith) is all the time the clever do-gooder, whereas Bart (Nancy Cartwright) stays the troublemaker. Additionally, Simpons followers have tried — and failed — to appropriately guess the place Springfield is situated within the USA (collection creator Matt Groeningeventually revealed that he named it after Springfield, Oregon.) The most important ingredient of The Simpsons is that not one of the characters have considerably aged within the 35 years that the collection has been on-air.
This truth has sparked numerous theories, starting from the concept that Homer is in a coma to Springfield being trapped in a time loop, however the most straightforward rationalization is that The Simpsons makes use of what is named a “floating timeline.” A “floating timeline” permits for a collection to continuously replace itself whereas nonetheless preserving its core parts intact. Comedian books, notably Marvel and DC, have used this for years, however The Simpsons was the primary animated sitcom to pioneer this custom. And whereas it is helped the collection keep abreast of present developments, this observe has led to some snags in continuity — although that is likely to be coming to a detailed.
The Floating Timeline of ‘The Simpsons’ Has Brought on Some Contradictions
The floating timeline of The Simpsons has not solely let the present poke enjoyable at present popular culture developments but in addition contributed to its unusual “predictions” that wound up coming true in real life. In case your characters do not age, then something is on the desk so far as comedy goes. However it additionally causes The Simpsons to contradict itself at sure factors, particularly in terms of Homer and Marge (Julie Kavner)’s relationship. Season 2’s “The Approach We Was” explores their first assembly in highschool, whereas subsequent episodes are devoted to exhibiting the early days of their marriage and the eventual births of Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. However recent episodes have thrown this history into question, notably Season 19’s “That ’90’s Present” (no relation to the Netflix spinoff), which winds up altering the circumstances of Bart’s conception. Season 29’s “3 Scenes Plus a Tag from a Marriage” takes it one step additional by revealing that Homer and Marge lived in a completely totally different metropolis from Springfield.
These inconsistencies have prompted followers to cry foul, however producer Matt Selman told IGN that the present was by no means meant to have a linear timeline.
“We do not have the stresses of different reveals — of getting them to be serialized or having an arc for the season. We’re an actual old-school ‘90s present the place each episode could possibly be the primary episode of the Simpsons; each episode could possibly be the final episode of the Simpsons. We’re probably not married to continuity, though some individuals love continuity. Each episode is its personal little mini-movie.”
Nonetheless, that may change with Season 36.
‘The Simpsons’ Newest Season May Add Actual-Time Growing older to the Present
Season 36 of The Simpsons will open with the episode “Bart’s Birthday,” marking the primary time one of many Simpsons has had an on-screen birthday. Previous to this, Bart was all the time depicted as a 10-year-old; by getting older him up, The Simpsons is suggesting that it is open to the idea of lastly breaking from its floating timeline. It is not the primary time the present has performed with leaping into the long run, as episodes together with “Lisa’s Wedding ceremony” and “Holidays of Future Handed” have proven grown-up variations of Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. However the actuality of Bart’s rising up was first teased in Season 35’s “A Mid-Childhood Night time’s Dream,” when Marge learns that he is nearly prepared to maneuver to fifth grade — and having a lower than welcome realization that her “particular little man” is rising up. “A Mid-Childhood Night time’s Dream” was praised for the emotional strategy it took, but it surely might have additionally been hinting that after 35 years, The Simpsons‘ inventive crew is able to begin transferring in a brand new path. Time will inform if “Bart’s Birthday” winds up truly taking issues in a brand new path or if Springfield’s residents will stay ageless.
The Simpsons is obtainable to stream on Disney+. Season 36 premieres on September 29, 2024.
