I always hated an otherwise well-regarded episode of The Simpsons for pitting two of the show’s most important heroes against each other. Sibling rivalry is a very real phenomenon and, since conflict is at the core of comedy and drama alike, it makes sense for sitcom siblings to spend years at each other’s throats. Since the Simpsons never age, it would be understandable if Bart and Lisa had spent the last 35 years constantly fighting for space in their dysfunctional family. However, although The Simpsons season 36 may change this, the show hasn’t historically leaned into their rivalry.

Bart and Lisa have fought plenty of times, and often with good reason. As anyone with siblings can attest, Bart’s immature pranks and Lisa’s smug superiority complex are both pretty recognizable from childhood. Despite this, Bart and Lisa’s dynamic was never defined by mean-spirited opposition. The pair is more similar to the Belcher siblings of Bob’s Burgers, often putting aside their differences to get one over on parents or teachers. This is why one otherwise acclaimed outing from the Golden Age of The Simpsons never sat right with me and has only grown more contentious as the years went by.

The Simpsons Season 8 Episode 17 Betrayed Bart and Lisa’s Relationship

The Simpsons Siblings Truly Hated Each Other In This Episode

In season 8, episode 17, “My Sister, My Sitter,” Lisa’s burgeoning babysitting business is given a major boost when she successfully cares for Rod and Todd despite her relative youth. Lisa’s babysitting abilities are pushed past their limit when she is asked to care for Bart, who is outraged by the implication that his younger sister is more responsible than him. Inevitably, Bart counters this affront by bombarding Lisa with increasingly absurd pranks that soon get out of hand. Eventually, the episode’s proceedings take a dark turn that never made sense to me as a long-time viewer.

As far as I’m concerned, Bart intentionally causing himself a severe head injury just to spite Lisa for being left in charge betrays his essentially good nature. Although The Simpsons season 35 finale proved Bart isn’t altogether stable, the nasty brutality of his self-inflicted concussion jarred with the tone of the series. At this stage in the outing, Bart already has a dislocated shoulder from a frustrated Lisa pushing him down the stairs. Solely to discredit Lisa’s babysitting, he barricades himself into a room and repeatedly runs into a wall. The subsequent injuries leave him unconscious for hours.

Lisa and Bart Usually Work Together In The Simpsons

The Siblings Shared Some Classic Sweet Moments

For most of the show’s Golden Age, The Simpsons illustrated what I thought was an innate truth about growing up with siblings. Bart and Lisa (and, on occasion, Maggie) drove each other crazy, but they also always had each other’s backs. Compared to the schmaltzy, sugar-coated family lives in The Cosby Show, Full House, or The Brady Bunch, the Simpson kids had a more recognizably real relationship. However, “My Sister, My Sitter” took the show’s cynicism too far, resulting in an outing that felt more mean-spirited and glib than most South Park or Family Guy episodes.

I always thought Lisa and Bart would look out for each other. For all of the bad habits The Simpsons has, the show has been consistent in its depiction of Bart and Lisa as reluctant friends and mismatched co-conspirators. Season 3, episode 18, “Separate Vocations,” saw Bart take the fall for Lisa’s rebellion to ensure that her reputation wasn’t damaged. In season 6, episode 8, “Lisa On Ice,” the duo threw a vital hockey game since their rivalry was driving them apart. In season 6, episode 22, “Round Springfield,” Bart spent $500 on a Bleeding Gums Murphy record for Lisa.

Why Bart and Lisa’s Season 8 Episode 17 Rivalry Didn’t Work

This Episode’s Central Conflict Was Too Mean-spirited

There are plenty of other examples of both Simpson children helping each other out, meaning “My Sister, My Sitter“ is a profound betrayal of Lisa and Bart’s friendship. The Simpsons doesn’t need to make childhood out to be a fairytale of constant cooperation, particularly when much of the show’s original appeal came from its subversion of sentimental family sitcom convention. That said, this episode added an element of outright disdain and antipathy to the duo’s dynamic that never really rang true. I felt like the series forgot Bart and Lisa’s bond in the outing, replacing it with genuine hatred.

Like many of the show’s weaker episodes, “My Sister, My Sitter” felt like it didn’t care about its inconsistent portrayal of the show’s heroes. In this regard, the outing helped herald the end of the show’s Golden Age. Although The Simpsons season 35’s best character arc did improve the show’s critical reception, the series still peaked decades ago. Among the biggest causes of its decline was a string of seasons that betrayed the original characterization of the show’s heroes. Homer became meaner and more inept, Lisa became far smarter and less popular, and Bart became markedly less intelligent.

The Simpsons Revisited This Story In Later Seasons

Worse Episodes Of The Show Pitted Bart Against Lisa

As The Simpsons exaggerated the defining characteristics of its heroes or, in Bart’s case, changed these character traits entirely, the show revisited the plot of “My Sister, My Sitter” less successfully. Most infamously, season 16, episode 11, “On a Clear Day I Can’t See My Sister,” pitted Bart and Lisa against each other for an even more bitter and drawn-out conflict. Since the episode aired so long after the end of the show’s Golden Age, unlike “My Sister, My Sitter,” the outing wasn’t even particularly funny or well-written to make up for the unpleasant dynamic between Bart and Lisa.

Much like Homer’s mysterious deteriorating intelligence made him less relatable, I couldn’t see anything recognizable in Lisa getting a restraining order against Bart. By this point, The Simpsons had given up on saying anything relatable about sibling rivalry and was more interested in maximizing conflict. “On a Clear Day I Can’t See My Sister” is the weaker episode since it never even got a smile from me, but the seeds of its issues were sown in “My Sister, My Sitter.” With this Golden Age outing, I realized The Simpsons didn’t really care about even the show’s most important characters.